Treasure | Ateez

| 10 |

"Sine doctrina vita quasi mortis imago"

- Without learning, life is but the image of death

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Some people are born to fight. 

It is not that they are born brave, nor are they born strong. It is just that the universe has decided in itself that this one will have the grit and fire and steel in their bones. They will break from time to time, face trial in one to many ways, but they were born to fight.

It is not the life they would have chosen, maybe they would have loved to lay down, but they were born to fight and it is all they know. It is what they do best. It is all they can do. 

Aeris led the way to the corridor outside the weapons room, careful to avoid any rough spaces as she noticed the boy wince in pain as he stumbled over his leg. 

She had noticed his limp the very minute he had called her, the slight curve of his leg had given it away. But she had not said a word, nor acknowledged it in a way that would make him feel bad or worse about himself. It was normal, she had seen much worse. 

"Yes, Aeris?"

Aeris 

She blinked at the shock that coursed through her veins at the pronunciation of her name. Her name. 

No Princess, no highness, just Aeris. 

"I have a question" she began, careful to meet his eyes as he looked back at her, light grey eyes looking into hers as she spoke. She ignored the rush that ran through her, the fluttery feeling that played through her bones as she cleared her throat. "Am I not a prisoner?"

Seonghwa frowned at the question, running his tongue over his bottom lip and looking down with a frown. She followed his reaction, wondering what would the answer be. 

"No" He spoke, voice as smooth as the flow of water down the river bed, "You are not"

"Why?" 

"Because the captain said so" The raven haired smiled warmly at her, her confusion growing even more. "We all have powers," he continued, noticing her expression, "We all have this - so called magic - within us, and for it we can be killed. It is the truth, and so we have this crew." 

He began to walk, stumbling slightly before making his way into the open, the wind catching at his hair and exposing his forehead. "Hongjoong created it, a safe haven for us."

"yet you are pirates" she chuckled, amused, as she followed his footsteps across the deck "not exactly a safe profession"

"We still must survive, musnt we?" 

"So, this crew" she mused, groaning in annoyance as her dress caught in her feet for the third time. Not leaving the raven's notice. 

"You must ask San for extra clothing, I think his might fit you."

"What?"

"Well, dresses are hardly ideal for a crewmate" he raised an eyebrow, amused. "plus that dress looks heavy"

"It is" she groaned " I cannot bear it any longer"

"Would you like to head there?" 

Aeris noticed the way his eyes crinkled at the distance, the shuffle of his feet at his words and she swallowed her words back. "Not now, you still have not answered my question"

"May I?" 

Seonghwa smiled at the new appearance, noticing the arrival of the captain and San as they walked over to her. Aeris's expression soured as she looked at the captain and waving her hand at the cheerful boy at his side. 

"San, Seonghwa, the mast needs to be raised" He spoke authoritatively, "Let me have a chat with miss Aeris here"

"Alright" 

Seonghwa smiled, clapping Hongjoong's back with clap before sling an arm over San's shoulder and heading in the opposite direction. Hongjoong walked towards the girl, watching her as she leaned over the deck, watching the water flow and the mist spraying against her skin.

"You are no prisoner, you may believe yourself to be. After all, your presence here was not exactly to your terms but it was something that had to be done" 

"Why is that so?" 

Aeris was not going to back down without a fight, she did not like the captain. His cocky smirk and the turn of his eyes brought her intense irritation, his voice driving her further into the state.

She liked everyone else, only the gods knew why he wasn't everyone else. 

"Because you would be lying dead on those streets by the next morning" 

Aeris froze, fingers still tracing the patterns in the wood as she listened to him. 

"believe it or not Silver, the guards had arrived" He seemed pleased "And however much I do not like your face, you are one of the very few who have powers. I could not leave you there"

"So it was out of goodwill?" 

"If you want it to be"

"I refuse to believe you had no ulterior motive, captain" 

Aeris was no fool. This was a pirate ship, powers or not nothing was done without being absolutely thought through. The captain knew her powers, he probably wanted to use them. It was better she knew for what exactly in the very beginning instead of suffering the repercussions of her ignorance later on. His smile added fuel the fire, she watched as he leaned over the railing. 

Hand raising the water into the shape of - what San had told her - dolphins, jumping through the water before they collapsed into horses running over air like grass, jumping high and turning into birds that soared through the sky, closing over an island that rose from the sea. The island was filled with barrels of gold and trees, caves and inland lakes surrounded by precious metals. 

"Wonderland" 

A name heard in fairytales, a fictitious island that was impossible for humankind to find. A place made out of broken dreams and everything man could ever want. The place of beginning and the place where everything would end. The start of every explorers dreams and the place of their deaths. 

"You want to go there" 

She breathed, breath floating in the wind as Hongjoong closed his hand, droplets rejoining into the deep mass of water below them. 

"And for that we need you" He was close to her, green eyes dragging her into their depths, "The seer of death" 

Aeris gasped at the words, stumbling back as he continued

"That is your power, is it not? Those eyes cannot lie to me, those hands command darkness itself. You are a powerful person, silver, but you cannot see it. You are scared of it, I do not know why" 

He could see through her, each word piercing her skin and the armour she had so carefully placed over herself. A knife that founds its way through the chinks of her safehold. Those eyes blazing with fire as his fingers tugged a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, a breath escaping his lips. 

"But I intend to find out"

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