+ a/n | y’all want a part two y’all got a part two
read part one here
You awoke to pleasant birdsong, the mating call of a goldfinch overhead. The rising sun filled the sky with vibrant hues of orange and yellow. Sitting up from your bedroll, you rubbed the buildup of sleep in your eye. Your body was stiff from the departure of your bed the prior night and you stretched and rolled until you felt a little less rigid.
“Good morning princess,” Ser Harwin’s voice rang out, a little more rugged than normal from underuse. He cleared his throat as he approached you. The rest of the camp had already been packed away, save for your sleeping area, the fire embers smudged out. The stag from last night was draped on the backside of his horse.
“Good morning Ser Harwin,” you stood, bending down to clean up your bedroll before he stopped you. You watched as he swiftly cleaned up the area and packed the things on your horse.
You bent down to the underbrush, a blood red and black splotched flower catching your eye. It was large, almost as big as the palm of your hand. You thought you would bring it back for your sister, so you wordlessly walked over to your horse next to the knight and added it to your small bag.
“What’s this?” he asked, watching you. You shrugged in response. “I’m not exactly sure, I’ve never seen it before. I thought Rhaenyra might like it.”
The knight chuckled. “Lady of Dragonstone, Princess of Flowers.”
You rolled your eyes at him but couldn’t help the grin that spread on your face. “And what about you? Knight of a… creepy, cursed castle?”
“Something like that, I suppose.” He flashed you a cheeky smile. “So, shall we return to camp and I can teach you how to properly skin an animal?”
You face must have given away how you felt about that prospect because Ser Harwin erupted into a booming laugh. “Fine,” he conceded, still chuckling. “But I have you til midday, so you might as well observe. I bet Larys would be happy to have the company…”
“I’d be happy to sit and watch with him,” you assured. Anything to get you out of sitting in the gathering tent with your new stepmother and the highborn ladies, talking about everyone and everything yet somehow saying absolutely nothing. It was a charade that was dreadful for both you and Rhaenyra.
Harwin grabbed your hips and hoisted you onto the saddle. You landed with a surprised yelp and readjusted to straddle your horse. “Sorry for startling you, flower,” you heard him quip beside you. You furrowed your brow at him and he winked back as he mounted his own horse.
You kept a slower pace than when you started yesterday, partly because of the stag on Harwin’s horse but also because some part of you wanted to stay in the Kingswood and never leave. This forest had reached out and touched a part of you that you knew you’d have to hide away at the Red Keep.
If Harwin could sense the change in your demeanor, he didn’t bother to comment on it. The whole ride back to camp was silent, even though for most of it your horses were side by side.
It was considerably more quiet when you returned than when you left the night prior. The men who hadn’t bothered to make it back to their tents were slumped over in chairs, sleeping off their drink. Others were milling about, beginning the day. House Strong’s tent was lined up along the main path and upon your arrival you saw Lord Lyonel and Larys outside of the tent. They were both planted on chairs in deep discussion.
Lord Lyonel rose at the sight of you and his eldest. “Princess,” he nodded. “Did you enjoy the hunt?”
Ser Harwin was already off his horse and offering you a hand down. “It was wonderful, Lord Lyonel.” You walked closer to him so that in a hushed tone you could say, “thank you for speaking to my father for me.”
He bowed to you. “Happy to see you smile again, princess,” he said softly.
Ser Harwin carried the stag and rabbit to the table beside his family tent. “I see the hunt was good to you both,” his lord father commented.
Harwin jerked his head toward you. “Not me, just the princess.”
Lord Lyonel’s eyes were wide at that. “Well then, princess, I daresay you’ve already outhunted most of the men here.”
You smiled up at him. “Thank you, my lord.”
“Your father will be very proud.”
You sighed. “One can only hope.”
With that, Lord Lyonel bowed and took his leave toward the main table where your father, his new wife, your half brother and the hand were all seated and you sat in the Lord’s prior seat beside Larys. “Pleasant morning to you, Larys.”
“Princess, lovely to see you as always.” He was a different fellow, sure. But you had always liked Larys. He was an observer, like you. Never very chatty, unlike you.
Harwin’s back was to you, setting up the various tools he would need to skin the stag and rabbit. He started with the rabbit and you watched silently. It was almost an art form for him, and you were completely mesmerized. You truly considered watching Ser Harwin skin every animal you could find for him, until Larys finally broke your train of thought.
“Is that your sister… covered in blood?”
Your head whipped past Ser Harwin’s broad shoulders and caught sight of Rhaenyra and Ser Criston Cole. Dried blood speckled the side of her face and neck as she strutted into camp. Her silver hair was stained pink and red. She looked… well, intimidating came to mind. Ser Criston’s horse had the body of a slain boar trailing behind it. Rhaenyra walked straight past the main table and into her own tent. The look on the Queen’s face made you smirk.
“It seems both our Princesses were on the hunt last night,” Ser Harwin commented as he continued to work on the rabbit. He had noticed your sister.
Really noticed her.
You swallowed hard.
You mentally scolded yourself. As if one night in the Kingswood somehow magically bound you to Ser Harwin. You felt like a silly little girl. Rhaenyra was your older sister after all, closer in age to Harwin than he was to you. How could you be so naive as to think he took you hunting because he liked you.
Rhaenyra was heir to the iron throne. She would become Queen one day. Marriage proposals were already starting to come her way. Why wouldn’t he want your smarter, prettier, older sister? What better way to get in her good graces than showing kindness to her little sister?
You had been chewing on your lip so hard you began to taste metal. You released it from in between your teeth and brought a finger to it. Pulling back you noticed blood, drying quickly in the morning air. Ever quiet Larys offered you a handkerchief, which you accepted with a small thank you. You dabbed at you lip, hoping it wouldn’t swell too much.
“Something troubling you, princess?” Larys gently prodded. You knew he caught you deep in thought but you had the benefit of him not know what you were internally struggling with. “Just… worrying about my sister,” you half-lied.
“Maybe you should speak with her,” he suggested.
“I think she would like to be alone right now,” you lied again. In all honesty you had no idea how Rhaenyra was feeling right now but you did know that you were one of the few people she would let be around her no matter what. You struggled to avoid biting your lip again.
Ser Harwin had moved onto the stag. He lifted it up and onto the skinning table with ease. “Would you like to come closer? Or are you having fun watching through my back?” He turned to face you, Larys’ handkerchief still pressed against your lip. He furrowed his brow at the sight. “What happened?”
You shrugged him off, offering Larys his handkerchief back. “Oh, it’s nothing.”
Ser Harwin twisted his head to the side and gave you a look as if he didn’t believe you. He walked over and half crouched over your chair, putting each arm on either side of the seat. He lifted you and the chair effortlessly, bringing you around the edge of him so that you could actually see what he was doing.
Harwin began asking Larys about last night after he left, whether he heard anything of interest from the ladies he sat with, interrupting every so often to point something out to you. You sat silently, watching each exchange. Harwin was skilled enough that he barely had to pay attention to what he was doing, and before long he was done.
“Well princess, this will certainly make an excellent addition to the feast.”
You thanked the knight and excused yourself. You walked straight to your own tent, only pausing to wave softly at your father when he acknowledged you.
You didn’t think you had ever felt so foolish. An aura of shame washed over you. You stripped yourself bare, removing you hunting clothes and washing yourself clean with a rag. You found a suitable dress and fixed up your hair. It was time to play princess once more.
You don’t think you said more than 5 words all night. Rhaenyra was nowhere to be found the first night and anytime that someone would try to acknowledge you, you would excuse yourself, only to end up in the ever generous hands of a wine servant who would fill your cup to the brim.
You continued this charade, night after night, albeit speaking more and more each time. Rhaenyra didn’t want to talk about her adventures in the woods, no more than you did of yours, so neither of you spoke about it. Rather you savored each others company and kept at each other’s side. You and Rhaenyra, with Ser Criston as your constant protector. Until it was finally time to journey home.
The journey home was as dreadful as the journey there, but to your delight felt shorter. You all but crawled into your bed, Rhaenyra and you holding hands until you arrived at your separate rooms. You felt great peace knowing she was next door, especially after mother’s death.
A knock at your door a few moments later almost made you groan aloud, but you managed to keep some semblance of decorum. “Come,” you instructed.
Ser Criston entered, not too unexpected considering he was watching your and Rhaenyra’s rooms tonight. “Ser Harwin Strong is here to see you, my princess.”
You bottom lip once again found purchase between your teeth. “Send him in.”
Harwin stepped in after Ser Criston stepped out, your small travel bag in his rather large hand. He held it out to you and you sprung out of bed. “Thank you,” you said sincerely, fingering the expensive leather. “I had forgotten all about this.” You reached into the bag. “Rhaenyra’s flower,” you muttered under your breath.
You quickly walked over to a large stack of books. Ser Harwin trailed behind, watching as you took the flower and stuck it in between a bit of parchment paper. You began lifting the books in two and threes at a time. He could tell they were dusty, old and heavy. He quickly walked over to you and began to lift them out of your way.
You thanked him so quietly he almost missed it. He wanted to ask what you were doing but he was stuck in such a trance, all he could do was watch. You very carefully opened the book on the very bottom, sticking the flower and bits of parchment paper inside. He noticed other bits of parchment paper sticking out of the book every which way. You motioned to the stacks of books and he helped you lower them on top of the bottommost book.
“Princess…”
“Thank you for this, Ser Harwin.” Your kind eyes found his and he felt himself smiling for the first time in days.
“Princess, might I ask, what is this?”
You giggled as you handed him a smaller book. “Princess of Flowers,” you declared, as if that would explain everything. “Go on, open it.”
He opened the book and found about half a dozen flattened flowers. Your delicate handwriting was on the pages, describing not just the name of the flower but when you found it, the characteristics you liked most about it, what the smell reminded you of.
“I pressed them myself. Mother taught me. Rhaenyra was never interested and it was… our thing. Now it’s one of the only things I have left of her.”
Ser Harwin studied the pages. He touched the dried ink of your handwriting, careful not to touch the flowers. “Princess of Flowers,” he breathed.
He gently handed back the book. You closed it and put it back where it belonged on the shelf. It was only then that he noticed just how many stacks of books you had. He looked back to you, waggling a finger at him. “Don’t start,” you warned, grin creeping along your face. “If Maester Runciter finds out, I will be in a dragon’s pile of trouble.”
“Dragon’s pile?” he asked.
“Er… when they go to the bathroom? Well, imagine the size of them Ser Harwin,” you enthusiastically raised your hand above your head. “You know what I mean? Aerrax might not be the biggest, but she’s pretty large…”
Ser Harwin was laughing so hard at this, he had trouble staying upright. He leaned against one of the many decorative beams in your room. His laughter was contagious, and soon you were joining him, failing miserably to catch your own breath.
Finally after a few minutes, you both pulled yourselves out of your laughing attack. You feigned exhaustion and plopped your bottom on the rather large chaise in your room. You patted beside you and watched as he walked over to the chaise and sat down next to you.
“Oh!” you exclaimed. “I have your dagger!” You began to hop back up but Harwin grabbed your forearm, gentle but stiff. You furrowed your brow at him but sat back down.
“Princess, I came here not only to return your bag but to ask you…”
You waited with his pause until curiosity got the better of you. “Ask me what exactly?”
“Ask you… if I did something to upset you. During the hunt, for Aegon’s name day.”
You bit your bottom lip nervously. “What would cause you to say such a thing?”
Harwin stood from the chaise suddenly, rubbing his fingers down his beard as he walked around. “Princess,” he stopped pacing to look at you, “you left so suddenly. You barely said a word when you sat with Larys.”
“I…” you faltered. “Seeing Rhaenyra like that, both of us fighting with father the day before… it has been… a difficult few years. I apologize for my behavior.”
Harwin returned to the seat next to you. “You don’t have to do that you know, play politician with me. We’ve known each other since we were children.”
You turned to face him, grabbing his bicep gently. “I am sorry though. For making you think that. Especially after you were gracious enough to take me into the Kingswood.”
Harwin chuckled. “I can promise you that was the highlight of the entire celebration for me.”
He used the arm you weren’t holding and brushed a few strands of hair out of your face. “Keep the dagger.”
“But…”
He shook his head. “It was a gift, princess. I never intended to get it back.”
You were still holding his bicep when Ser Criston entered. You nearly jumped out of your skin at his voice. “Princess, your father is requesting your presence in his chambers.”
You dropped Harwin’s bicep as he stood. He offered you a hand which you accepted with a nod and he pulled you to his feet. “I’m afraid I must be off anyway, princess.” He motioned to the gold cloak covering his shoulders.
“Duty calls… for us both.”
Ser Harwin nodded in agreement with you and offered his arm. “Shall I accompany you to his chambers?”
Ser Criston stepped closer to you. “I’ll take her from here, Ser.”
You shooed Ser Criston with you hand. “It’s quite alright Criston, I think Ser Harwin can handle keeping me safe from the treacherous walk to my father’s chambers,” you giggled.
Sers Harwin and Criston shared a glance above your head while you gently gripped onto Harwin. He led you out and away from Ser Criston, who was still outside yours and Rhaenyra’s doors, watching you both disappear down the hallway.
“I hope your nights in the City Watch haven’t been too eventful,” you confessed.
“Nothing I can’t handle princess, not to worry.”
“Well maybe I’ll wave at you from the skies tonight.”
Ser Harwin stopped in his tracks, pulling you to a stop with him. “Princess,” he warned. “You mustn’t be out after dark without protection.”
You suppressed a role of the eyes at him. “Aerrax can protect me. Plus, what do I have to worry about above the clouds? Birds? Nice snack for her if you ask me…”
“Princess, just… be careful, okay?”
You rubbed the side of Harwin’s arm that you were gripping. “Of course,” you reassured.
“You have a knack for finding yourself in trouble.”
“Oh please! As a child maybe.”
“I mean it, don’t find yourself outside of the Red Keep without protection,” he warned.
“Well if I ever take a spontaneous trip to Flea Bottom, I’ll make sure you’re on duty.”
Ser Harwin decided to ignore your obvious sarcasm. You continued on together through the corridors.
“Here you are, flower,” Harwin said, bringing you up to the door.
You dropped your grip on his arm. “Thank you Ser Harwin.”
another reason why financial boycotting belift / enha will work!!
people say "hybe has bts they dont care abt us". and thats wrong!
financial documents show that hybe needs 2.8 trillion in profit to pay shareholders next year.
bts cannot generate all this money even with arirang. searching up what the predicted revenue for bts this year w their cb and tour will show that it only generates 1.3-1.4 trillion.
now this is revenue, the profit made from this will be much less after removing all costs―bts won't be able to cover half of the money they need to pay shareholders.
enhypen is hybe's third biggest group. if bts doesnt cover everything, then that means they need their other groups income to pitch in as well.
a temporary financial boycott means that they won't get the money they so desperately need from enhypen's income until they do as we fans say because we give them the money.
so stop buying. stop spending money. stop streaming (this is optional if you guys are too scared to do this, its better not to). dont buy merch dont buy albums dont pay anything. just download songs to listen offline, just go to bilibili to watch enha content like en-o'clock. dont give in. we will hold belift accountable for the mistreatment of enhypen.
this isnt forever. this is just until we get a statement from belift. if we dont do anything belift will just do worse.
Allow Heeseung to Pursue Solo Activities Without Leaving ENHYPEN
ENHYPEN IS SEVEN!!
please engenes, sign this petition (and share it) and make sure to reblog a lot of posts to make your voice heard!! it’s so important!!
ENHYPEN IS SEVEN AND ALWAYS WILL BE!!
imo, heeseung didn’t want to quit enhypen and BELIFT didn’t gave him other choice (like an ultimatum) to quit enhypen so he could pursue his solo career BUT HEESEUNG CAN DO BOTH. HEESEUNG ONLY HAS US.
please reblog this posts, reblogs the posts you see to make our voices heard, make your voice heard as much as possible… it’s so important and maybe with all our support, BELIFT will understand it.
they are so much more informations on Twitter (X) and much more petitions but this one’s the most important and popular so don’t forget to sign it, it’s free and it takes 2 seconds.
Guys as much as we've seen in heeseung's post that it was his decision, none of this makes sense. Other writers and enhablr users have posted all the speculations and suspicions so I'm just gonna leave a flicker of hope that we have here.
Please sign this petition. Maybe, just maybe something might waver.
my 2 cents is that clearly this wasn't discussed with any of the members and that fuckass belift is doing this bc of the allegations on bang sihyuk, that is, to direct attention away from the whole matter.
as many people pointed out, the contract renewal still had time so they could've easily waited it out if this was JUST for heeseung to focus on solo work.
it's all very shady, but from what i've seen so far the protests do seem to be working (people on x and insta saying they've seen company workers taking photos of the protest trucks, belift allegedly replying to someone's email saying heeseung's position with respect to the group is not set in stone), so sign the petition.
their stocks are falling, the petition is around LESS THAN 100k signatures away from reaching ONE MILLION, there have been almost EIGHT MILLION posts on x/twt about this, multiple protest trucks outside the building of hybe THAT HYBE STAFF THEMSELVES TOOK PHOTOS OF !!!! and reminder there have been NO news of his contract termination even if he’s supposedly (let’s assume) under a soloist contract THERES STILL NO NEWS OF HIS CONTRACT TERMINATION FOR ENHYPEN. as bad as it may feel and look like for us rn it’s looking WAY worse for hybe/belift. there’s still sm hope don’t any of u dare to give up pls — mass email, call, use as many emails as you have, do anything in your capability because nothing has been fully confirmed and decided yet we still have a chance !!!
SIGN THE PETITION !!! LINK
• READ THE THREAD TO HELP: LINK
• EMAIL THEIR INVESTORS: LINK 1 | LINK 2 | LINK 3
• KOREAN [in person] PROTEST: LINK 1 | LINK 2
• GIVE BAD REVIEWS (they’ve currently deleted over hundreds of bad reviews to fix their image — meaning that they’ve seen and heard everything!!! keep going!!!): LINK
• EMAIL KOREAN JOURNALISTS/MEDIA: LINK 1 | LINK 2 | LINK 3
• TRUCK DONATIONS: LINK 1 | LINK 2
• TIMES SQUARE BILLBOARD DONATIONS: LINK
• BANNER DONATIONS / FUNDRAISERS: LINK
• EMAIL JBTC CHANNEL [one of the biggest news outlets in sk]: LINK
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