"My Prince, where are we going?" BamBam asked as he directed the royal carriage down another pathway they did not often travel.
"I need to visit the clinic." Jinyoung answered while waving at some of the common folk that they bypassed.
The coachman frowned, quickly glancing back at him. "Are you falling ill? Are you hurt? Was it the vamp-"
"No, not for those purposes." The latter quickly replied. The last thing he needed was to raise any more worry about him-- he was already tired of it, and it would only grow worse and things between the two kingdoms further tensed.
BamBam was quiet for a few moments, the air filling with the sound of the large wooden wheels rolling over rocks. He let out a soft sigh while gazing ahead. "My Prince, you are acting strange."
"Am I?"
"Well, frankly, ever since the vampire-"
"I am fine, BamBam. Drop me here." Jinyoung stood as they approached the clinic, hopping off the still moving carriage. He turned to the coachman who abruptly stopped the horses, tossing him a bag of coins that hung at his side. "I will be back in a bit. Why don't you take some coins from my sack and buy yourself some lunch."
BamBam's eyes widened at the heavy sack he haphazardly caught in his hands. As soon as he looked back up, the prince was already walking off. "Oh I cannot possibly do that--"
Jinyoung waved as he stepped into the doorway. "I insist, my good friend! I'll be back shortly."
All eyes were on him as soon as his presence in the small business became known; he could hear the whispers and gleeful squeals from those who came for an appointment and unexpectedly ran into royalty.
"Nice day, everyone." He greeted the room with a wave, then turned to the reception area; a wooden table stacked with papers and a woman dwarfed behind it. "Hello madame, you look lovely today."
The woman glanced up, doing a double-take from the papers she was scribbling on as soon as she registered Jinyoung's face. She instantly stood, deeply bowing. "W-Why thank you my Prince, I'm flattered." She quickly straightened, clearing her throat and adjusting her attire. "Is something ailing you? I would love to fetch you an appointment, I'll bump you up to be the next patient, no one will mind!"
Jinyoung rose a hand in denial. "No, no, I am of good health. I just need to speak with a doctor. Is Kim Yugyeom around, by any chance?"
"Why, he just finished with a patient minutes ago! Please follow me, I'll take you to his medical room."
The cheery woman spun around and walked as fast as her legs could take her with Jinyoung in tow behind her. She led him down the long hallway of the clinic filled with patients receiving treatment for ailments from wounds to diseases. Looking around, the prince wished he had the skill to heal others; it would make him feel much more useful than his current role of sitting pretty at large events.
The woman he followed brought him to a room, gently knocking on the closed wooden door before gently opening it and gesturing inside.
"He's right in here." She stated with the politest smile she could muster.
Jinyoung matched her smile with his own as he reached for her hand, lifting it to his lips and kissing the back of her palm. "Thank you, m'lady."
The woman flustered, nearly tripping over her own feet as she stumbled out of the prince's way. "Y-You're very welcome, Prince J-Jinyoung!"
He chuckled as he watched her rush off, quickly turning his attention into the room she guided him to. He stepped in, the doctor he's come to know well shaking his head at the scene he just witnessed.
"You must love making ladies scream like that." Yugyeom commented while he cleaned up his workspace with a cloth and bucket of water.
Jinyoung shrugged, shutting the door behind him. "I am merely a gentleman. People like gentlemen."
The latter scoffed at the lame reasoning. "I am a gentleman as well, hell, I save lives! Yet I have no one dropping to their knees for me as you do."
"Well you are not a Prince, so who would kneel to you?"
"Don't boast your royalty to me, I know you of all people couldn't care less about the title."
"Ah, you do know me well."
Yugyeom chuckled as he dropped the wet cloth back into the bucket, turning to Jinyoung while drying his hands on his cloak. "So what is bothering you, my friend? Toothache from all the royal sweets? Backache from carrying so much gold in your pockets? Has your dick fell off?"
"No, no, and if it falls off I wouldn't miss it much-- lack of use." The prince wandered over to the wooden table covered in thick wool meant for patients to lay on, seating himself on the edge. He was slightly hesitant to reveal his intentions for coming, but he was also quite desperate. "...I need to draw blood."
"Blood?" Yugyeom repeated, his brows furrowing as if he wasn't sure what he heard.
"Yes, I need you to drain some from me and put it in a bag." Jinyoung confirmed.
Silence filled the room. Yugyeom's face morphed into various forms of confusion mixed with a variety of other emotions as the request sank in.
He eventually shook his head, folding his arms over his chest. "I cannot simply drain blood from someone with no proper reasoning. Especially not the prince of all people."
"I have a reason, a very good reason, in fact." Jinyoung assured.
Silence again filled the room as Yugyeom looked at the prince expectantly, yet he received no further explanation.
"...Are you going to fill me in?" The doctor questioned.
The prince shook his head. "No, can you just do it?"
Silence, again.
Yugyeom sank deep into his thoughts-- he was extremely hesitant to just do as the prince asked, even with his status. Rightfully so; a doctor's job was to keep everyone safe and healthy by making decisions best fit for each patient, Jinyoung wasn't surprised that he had reservations about cutting open his skin for no apparent reason.
He stared at the prince for a moment, seemingly coming to the realization that the latter was serious and this was not just an odd joke leading up to a punchline. He let out a long sigh, his fingers gently pinching the bridge of his nose. "Will this be used for anything illegal?"
Jinyoung frowned, shaking his head. "I don't believe so?"
"Will it be traced back to me?"
"Yugyeom, I won't get you in trouble. I need a bag of my blood for personal reasons, please."
"Well, that sounds even stranger." The doctor replied. It took him a moment of self-convincing before he reluctantly opened a drawer and pulled out a small, sharp cutting tool. He cleaned the metal tip with his cloth before approaching Jinyoung sat on the table. "Don't do anything stupid Jinyoung. Draining this much blood for an unreasonable purpose is bound to end unwell. I'm only doing this because I know you, and I know you do not do pointless things for pointless reasons."
Jinyoung nodded vigorously as he rolled up the sleeve of his left arm, baring his porcelain skin. "Trust me, the purpose is very important. I cannot go into detail, but it has to do with protecting this kingdom."
"You've gone insane." Yugyeom assured. He grabbed a small leather sack meant for holding water off a nearby counter, ensuring it was empty before deciding to use it as a blood bag.
"A little insane doesn't hurt anyone." Jinyoung responded, watching the latter intensely as he was handed the bag to hold under his bicep, presumably where the incision would be made.
"Yeah well, this is gonna hurt you quite a bit." Yugyeom mumbled. He decided anesthetics weren't necessary, he just needed Jinyoung to hold still. He placed the small blade against the prince's skin, pressing in until he felt the tip sink into him, dribblets of blood pouring out. He could feel Jinyoung wince and hiss under his touch, but other than that, the prince held himself together. "Let the wound bleed out until you've filled the bag to your desire. If you start feeling dizzy, let me know so I can stop the blood flow."
Jinyoung nodded, glancing down at his arm that messily leaked blood into the sack. He wasn't sure how much he would need, but he wanted to fill it a decent amount. He gently pressed the wound harder, squeezing more of the crimson liquid out of him despite the pain that accompanied it. "Thank you, this is important, trust me."
Yugyeom hummed, retreating to clean his tools again. "You know, this would be so much easier if you had a female's body."
"Yes, but fortunately I don't have to go through those cycles." Jinyoung replied with a chuckle. "And I would feel odd retrieving a bag of blood from between my legs..."
"Does filling a bag of blood not feel odd in general?"
"Well... not for the reason I'm doing it."
Yugyeom turned, his eyes flicking to the small sack that was slowly inflating. It looked almost half full, and he soon realized that Jinyoung was trying to squeeze as much out of the wound as he could before it began to heal, which of course wasn't exactly safe. "That should be enough Jinyoung."
"I need more." The prince responded.
Yugyeom opened another drawer, pulling out a long white cloth. "No, I have to bandage the wound."
"Wait--" Jinyoung blurted out as Yugyeom approached, carefully watching his blood trickle into the pouch. He needed as much as he could spare, this was for something bigger than himself, he can't hold back due to a little lightheadedness. "...just a bit more. Please."
Yugyeom sighed, standing antsily as he watched Jinyoung continue to drain himself. As a professional, it was difficult to watch the latter doing something he strongly objected to much longer. "Alright, that's enough."
The doctor forcibly took the sack, tying it along the top and setting it aside. He quickly cleaned up the wound, tying the cloth tightly around Jinyoung's bicep.
"Thanks, Gyeom." The prince replied, gently touching the bandage and slightly wincing from the soreness of his arm. He pulled down his sleeve and hopped off the table, stumbling a little, while reaching for the warm sac filled with his own liquid.
The other shook his head, still confused and quite concerned about Jinyoung's intentions. "Don't drag me into your madness okay? And be careful with whatever you are doing, it does not sound too safe... be sure to rest a bit before doing anything else."
The latter flashed his princely smile as he headed for the door, leaving a few gold coins on the table in exchange for troubling his friend. "I'll be fine, I'm sure."
Yugyeom watched him leave, his blood bag concealed in the sack he carried on his hip.
"Yeah, sure..." The doctor mumbled to himself, shaking off the prince's odd visit to prepare for his next patient.