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The weather had gotten slightly warmer and rumors went around that a rare breed of bison was spotted in the woods nearby as the snow started to clear. 

Naturally, this started a hunting craze to spur up and before long the King and some of his men had tried their luck in the woods. Having came up with but one animal on their trip, the King had then suggested for the young Princes to enjoy a hunting trip of their own.

I thought it was a stupid idea from the beginning and tried to convince Jungkook of that, but he was still upset about what I said at the lake and wouldn't listen to me. When I turned to Namjoon he assured me softly that everything would be fine. Hoseok just laughed and told me he'd bring back the best game in the forrest.

So off the seven of them rode into the woods that morning and I couldn't shake the odd feeling in the pit of my stomach.

In fact, I was so put-off for some reason that I had the maids dress me in my outdoor wear and I spent hours around noon time in the courtyard. I trudged around the gardens a little as well but always found myself back in front of the palace and staring into the direction they rode off in.

It must have been long past lunch hours when I heard noises from afar. I had my gaze fixed on a small leftover patch of snow until I heard shouts in the distance. There was a low rumbling as the ground began to shake a little beneath my feet, signifying that a horde of horses was nearing the castle.

I stepped forward timidly, trying to get a better look into the distance along the gravel roads that led far from the palace. The first thing I could spot was a white horse speeding up towards the castle ground's entrance. It was Jimin's white horse. And Jimin was shouting something I couldn't hear.

As he neared, I could see the horses of the other Princes following behind. The only person I couldn't spot in the commotion was Namjoon and Yoongi. That changed when Namjoon rounded the corner on his horse, Yoongi's horse tethered to his as he rode. Yoongi's horse was empty.

It didn't take me too much longer to find out where he was however.

"Doctor! Call the doctors!!", Jimin's voice boomed more harshly than I've ever heard him yell as his stallion bounded right up to where I was standing.

I had to step out of the way to make sure he wouldn't run me over and he quickly dismounted once he came to a halt.

"W-what is going on?", I stammered in pure confusion and fear.

"Dammit", Jimin swore under his breath instead of answering me and began running towards the palace in record time.

My head whipped around to look at the other horses that were now close to the entrance. My stomach dropped when I could finally see where Yoongi was. Sprawled in Hoseok's arms on his large horse he lay limply, a large arrow protruding from his shoulder.

As they came to a stop near me, I could hear Yoongi groaning in pain over the frantic discussion of the others. I watched in horror as Hoseok carefully helped lift Yoongi down into the arms of Jin and Taehyung. Jungkook got off his horse looking horrified and confused, trying to snap himself back into action to help lower Yoongi's broken body to the ground.

"Yoongi!!", I dashed towards them, letting myself sink to my knees in front of him.

His black riding gear was darkened with blood stains surrounding the area where the arrow stuck out of his shoulder.

"Yoongi! Yoongi! Are you alright?", I spoke frantically as I tried to inspect his wound, "What on earth happened?!"

"He- was shot", was all Taehyung managed to say from beside me.

"Yoongi...", my breathing was rapid as I tried to remove the clothes from the wound, but he winced and groaned in pain, so I pulled my hands back quickly, "Oh, Yoongi, what happened?"

It was only when I cradled his pale face and rubbed soothingly along his cheeks that I noticed how much blood there was on my hands, small streaks left wherever I had touched him. The arrow must have gone almost completely through him for there to be so much blood.

"Yoongi, please talk to me", my voice broke and I could feel the tears rolling down my cheeks as his eyes were shut in pain.

"J-Jungkook...", was all his weak voice could whisper out.

Before anything else could be said, a bunch of palace guards and doctors came rushing into the courtyard led by Jimin. They immediately started surrounding Yoongi and getting me out of the way so that they could lift him into the palace.

I could feel myself sobbing, but it was as if all my senses had shut down. I couldn't hear a thing, not even Namjoon comforting me or Jimin guiding me along with the rest of them. It was only when I found myself in our infirmary, staring at Yoongi lying in the bed, that the voices crept back to me.

"What happened exactly?", one of the royal doctors inquired while checking for Yoongi's vitals.

"W-we were hunting and Yoongi was with Jungkook and I", Jimin explained frantically, his hand repeatedly running through his blonde locks, "And the next thing we know a-an arrow whizzes towards us and hits Yoongi square in the shoulder, causing him to fall from his horse. We don't know who shot it."

The doctor nods and then turns to some of the nurses, "There's going to be a lot of bleeding, but we need to get that arrow out of there and then cauterize the wound afterwards."

"Sir, we need you to stay conscious. Will you be able to get through the procedure?", another doctor asked Yoongi and watched for his faint nod. He then held a liquid he had stirred up to his lips, "This is opium, it will help you with the pain."

Yoongi gulped it down, his complexion growing paler and paler by the second. I doubted he could stay conscious and I feared for his life. I had read enough books on anatomy to know that if that arrow so much as grazed his lung, it would be over for him.

"Yoongi", I stepped towards him, my sobs still wracking my whole body, "Yoongi, please-"

I wanted more than anything to wrap my arms around him, to be able to plead with him. Even in the short amount of time that we had come to know each other, I didn't want him to leave me behind in this cruel world alone.

But I felt multiple people tugging at my arms, pulling me back and outside of the infirmary as I wriggled. I was no match for Taehyung's strong arms though and I sobbed into him as he pulled me into a tight embrace and held me to calm me. Past his shoulder I could see Jimin looking at me with sorrow and worry in his eyes.

When I heard the screams coming from the infirmary, I cried louder. The pain echoed throughout the whole palace as they pulled the hooked arrowhead from his insides and held scalding hot metal to his flesh to stop the bleeding. The screams haunted me to the bone and I could see the same emotions reflected in the other Princes' expressions. If it weren't for Taehyung's steady arms that embraced me I would have broken down already.

It must have been almost three hours later when one of the doctors came out into the hallway where we were now seated.

"H-how is he?", Jungkook was the first to stutter and scrambled to his feet.

"You may come see for yourselves", the man replied and lead our trepid group back into the infirmary.

I leapt to Yoongi's bedside as soon as I saw him. His eyes were shut, his dark eyebrows scrunched together as shallow breaths came from his mouth. A thin layer of sweat rested above his upper lip and his cheeks were rosy in temperature. The nurses had laid a damp washcloth over his forehead.

"I-Is he alright?", I glanced at the doctor in alarm.

"He will most likely live, if that is what you're asking, Princess", he expressed solemnly, "The arrow did not pierce his lung and did not sever any major arteries. His scalpula has been cracked however and although I aligned the fragments, I don't know how it will heal. He's also lost a lot of blood."

"But he'll live?", I grabbed onto Yoongi's pale hand.

"I believe so", the doctor nodded, "His fever is part of the healing process, his body has been through a lot. If he makes it through the fever, he will live."

The nurses and doctors started clearing out of the infirmary to leave us some space upon request. I glanced around at the Princes who stared at Yoongi with solemn expressions. Jungkook still looked like he had seen a ghost.

"How could this happen?", I asked them sternly as I clutched Yoongi's hand, "This couldn't have just been a hunting accident."

"But it was only the seven of us in those woods", Namjoon contemplated aloud.

"Tell me exactly what happened", I said firmly.

"Well, when we got deep enough into the forrest we decided to split up", Jimin started explaining much calmer than the first time, "Jin, Namjoon, Taehyung and Hoseok went to scout one area and Yoongi went with me and Jungkook to scout another area. We were tracking down the bison when... Everything went by so fast, but Yoongi looked frantically between the trees and the next thing we know he gallops forward and gets hit in the shoulder. We quickly yelled for the others to come and they did, so they must not have been too far."

"Our group was also tracking down the bison and we mostly stuck together. But Hoseok wasn't with us the whole time. He rejoined us after the shouting had started", Taehyung added with a narrowed glance in Hoseok's direction.

"Why is that important?", Hoseok furrowed his brow.

"Because your weapon of choice is the bow", he shot back.

The room went real silent at that, everyone's eyes on Hoseok who's own eyes were widened in disbelief.

"Surely, I can't be the only one with a bow and arrow", he blubbered out, bewildered that he was being accused.

"You were the only one out of the seven of us that had a bow on you today", Jimin joined in, his suspicion growing as well, "The rest of us had swords, spears and nets."

"But I didn't-", Hoseok started again frantically.

Jin cut in with a new thought however, "It doesn't make sense though. There's no motive that Hoseok would have to kill Yoongi."

"Nothing else makes sense though", Taehyung snapped.

"Actually, I...", Jungkook spoke up timidly and squirmed when all expectant eyes were on him then.

"What is it?", Namjoon encouraged him.

"I-I don't really know how to explain, but...", the youngest Prince gnawed on his lower lip, before gesturing to explain what happened, "Well, my horse was standing here and Yoongi's was a few steps behind to my right. Jimin was off to the left further back. When Yoongi looked into the woods in a panic, he looked off to the right. And that's when he rode forward, next to my horse, and was shot by the arrow. I-If he hadn't done that... Hurried to get in front of me, I mean, then I think... the arrow would have hit me in the chest..."

My breath caught in my throat when I realized what may have happened. And I felt like throwing up the next moment.

"J-Jungkook", my voice trembled as I turned to him, "Are you sure there was no one else in the forrest with you?"

"I-I don't know", he wished he could have seen things clearly, "There might have been..."

"There must have been, because I swear I didn't shoot that arrow at Yoongi", Hoseok said distraughtly, "I swear on my own life I wouldn't harm any of you."

I looked to Hoseok and my gut believed he was telling the truth, no matter how many arrows pointed to him. Like Jin had said, it made no sense. There was no motive. It seemed as if he had been framed.

"I think...", I started and had to take a deep breath not to get sick, "I think the King has made the first attempt on Jungkook's life."

"W-what?", Jungkook's eyes went round and I could hear the intake of breath from everyone else.

"You can't mean-", Namjoon interjected.

"Yes", I cut him off, "If the King could have made Jungkook's death look like a hunting accident, then Cronus would have no heir to the throne anymore. This must have been his intention all along."

I could see the way the gravity of the situation finally weighed in on Jungkook. He understood that the King's plans weren't just something looming overhead, but an active threat to his life. He could've been killed that day if it weren't for Yoongi.

"A-and I told Yoongi...", my voice broke once more and I could feel the tears coming up again, "I-I made him promise me to protect Jungkook... And n-now... and now..."

I turned back to gaze down at the young Prince suffering in his sleep. His arm that was put in a brace hung uselessly by his side and his complexion was burning up with a fever. His whole body was so hot that I could feel it through his pale, lifeless hand I was still clutching onto.

"And now he might not make it-", I burst out in tears and felt my shoulders wracking with sobs, "I-I should've never made him make that promise... I-It was never his responsibility, it was mine!"

"Milou, no", Jimin spoke up and came up to my form sitting on the bedside, "It wasn't your responsibility. And it wasn't Jungkook's either."

Jungkook must have been feeling just as horribly guilty as I was at that point and it showed in the way he hung his head low.

"Milou, listen to me", Jimin urged again and leaned down to cup my face in his hands. He heightened my gaze to look at him as his thumbs wiped away the tears that kept streaming down my cheeks. "It's not your fault. It's not your fault the King is after Jungkook. It's not your fault that Yoongi took the arrow. It's not your fault that the evil in others has taken over. None of this is your fault."

As I gazed into his midnight colored eyes, they twinkled with honesty and meaning. So although I continued to cry, I managed a small nod of understanding. His loving arms then wrapped around my shaking form and pulled me into a comforting embrace.

I didn't know how long we stayed there for, but I knew that all of the Princes were by my side.

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