Trigger Warning

Protective boys and lots of cuddles and comfort

(And some mention of attempted sexual assault, so if that triggers you then please don't read)

"Yo Sannie, did you hear what happened to Soonwon." San paused from where he was sharpening his sword, looking up to see one of the newer Knights walking over. Soonwon is a right piece of work, not many people like him. He's always trying too hard in practice, sometimes actually injuring people. It was clear the young Knight was bursting to tell someone whatever gossip he had heard.

"What happened to Soonwon," San indulged as he continued sharpening his sword.

"He got sent to the dungeons in a bloody heap," the Knight rushed out. Now that intrigued him. What exactly did he do to be sent to the dungeons and who sent him there?

"What did he do this time," San asked.

"I'm not sure exactly. People are saying the Crown Prince beat him and sent him to the dungeons, then his guard ended up beating him again," the Knight said. Hongjoong and Yunho? They wouldn't do something like that unless it was warranted.

"You sure no one mentioned why that happened," San asked.

"I mean people are saying he did something to one of the servants, the Prince's one. Bedded him or something." San froze at his words, his head snapping up and his grip on the sword loosening slightly. Seonghwa. He stood up quickly, slipping his sword into his belt and hurrying off.

"San. Where are you going?" San ignored him and left the training rooms, running towards the castles. If something happened to Seonghwa, that would definitely provoke Hongjoong and Yunho's actions. If Soonwon hurt Seonghwa, San will go down to the dungeons and beat him himself. He hurried into the castle and continued running down the halls, heading towards the Prince's room. If Hongjoong is going to take Seonghwa anywhere to look after him, it will be to his room, to keep him safe. He ran and ran until he got to Hongjoong's room, throwing the door open quickly. Hongjoong's head snapped up, his grip tightening on Seonghwa and his other hand reaching out to grab his sword. San paused, meeting Hongjoong's eyes and Hongjoong relaxed.

"Come in and close the door," he said quietly, making sure not to wake Seonghwa who was sleeping soundly against him. San quickly stepped inside and closed the door before walking over to the bed.

"Is Hwa ok," he asked worriedly. Hongjoong realised that San must have heard what had happened and was worried about Seonghwa.

"Yeah, he's gonna be just fine. I got there before anything too bad happened," Hongjoong assured him. San let out a breath of relief that Seonghwa was going to be ok.

"What happened," he asked quietly, not sure if it was something he was allowed to ask. Hongjoong could see the hesitation in San's eyes and have him a reassuring smile.

"I don't fully know what happened to him. I went to check up on him because Wooyoung told me he was sick and I heard him scream. I found him pinned on a bed with that piece of shit standing over him," Hongjoong said, clenching his jaw tightly. San closed his fists, squeezing tightly as he fought back the urge to run down to the dungeons and kill Soonwon himself.

"Come lay down Darling. I'm sure Seonghwa would enjoy some extra cuddles and comfort," Hongjoong said softly. He knows San well and knows how protective he can be, especially when it involves Seonghwa or Wooyoung. San blinked in confusion and quickly shook his head to get rid of his previous thoughts. He quickly crawled onto the bed and over to the two of them, cuddling up to Seonghwa's back and wrapping an arm gently around his waist. Seonghwa shifted slightly and San froze, but all the older did was cuddle up closer to Hongjoong, his head nuzzling into his neck. San relaxed again and hooked his chin gently on Seonghwa's shoulder, letting out a breath.

"It scared me, when I heard something had happened," he said softly.

"He's going to be ok. I already checked in with him before he went to sleep," Hongjoong said.

"Why are people like that though? Why do they think they can do anything they want with Hwa and Youngie," San asked sadly. Hongjoong shook his head and sighed, glancing down at the sleeping boy on his chest.

"Because some people think others of lower status are theirs to use however they like," Hongjoong said sadly.

"When you're king, can you get rid of status so they don't have to go through this," San said quietly.

"I would do anything to change the way Hwa is treated. I would do anything for him to be able hug whoever he wants, whenever he wants, for him not to have to slave over tasks for other people when he's sick. He doesn't deserve this, but I can't change it, even when I'm possibly King," Hongjoong said in frustration. San blinked slowly, studying Hongjoong and going over what he said.

"You care about him," San said slowly. Hongjoong raised an eyebrow at the younger, wondering how in the years they've known each other, he's obviously never come to that conclusion.

"Of course I care about him San. What part of being my closest friend says I don't care about him," Hongjoong asked slowly.

"No, I mean you really care about him," San said.

"Once again, closest friend who has looked after me for most of my life," Hongjoong pointed out. San smiled and nodded, letting the subject drop and relaxing against Seonghwa.

"You gonna sleep as well Darling," Hongjoong asked softly, moving his hand over to run through his hair. San's reaction immediately, his eyes slipping closed as he nuzzled his head into his hair. Hongjoong smiled at the other's cuteness. San may be a fierce and kickass Knight who can drop you without breaking a sweat but on the inside he's an adorable little kitten at heart.

"Get some sleep Darling," he said softly. San blinked his eyes open and shook his head slightly.

"I shouldn't sleep. I should get going and pr-."

"You don't need to go and practice more right now San. You're helping me practice later, you can have some rest now. I know you Knights don't always get enough sleep," Hongjoong said softly, scratching San's head softly.

"I am a little tired," San agreed.

"Sleep my sweet Darling. You need some energy to beat my ass later," Hongjoong said. San chuckled as his words but listened to what he said, letting his eyes slip closed as he snuggled closer to Seonghwa, tucking his head into his shoulder. Hongjoong watched fondly as San slowly drifted off, practically melting into Seonghwa's back from where he was cuddling him. He let out a sigh, watching the two sleeping boys quietly. They've all been through too much pain in their lifetime already and he hates that he can't do enough to keep them safe. There hasn't been much word on what's happening with Valkyrie and Balhae, but if Balhae gains a bigger appetite for blood then they could end up in a war. There'd be no way for him to make sure they're all protected at all times, and that's what scares him. That's what his biggest fear is.

~~~~~

"San left ages ago Yunho, I have no idea where he went. The other Knights said he just bolted, what happens if he's sick or something," Mingi whined to his friend as they walked through the halls.

"I'm sure he's fine Mingi. He might've heard about what happened with Seonghwa earlier," Yunho said with a shrug. Mingi stopped immediately at his words, spinning to face him.

"What happened with Seonghwa? Is he hurt," he asked quickly. Yunho paused, realising that he's just freaked out Mingi because he hasn't been told what happened.

"Seonghwa's fine now," Yunho said quickly.

"Now? But he wasn't before," Mingi asked worriedly.

"First of all just calm down, nothing too bad happened. I mean it almost happened and it was still kind of bad but it's nothing permanent," Yunho said, trying to calm him down.

"That's not helping Yunho, just tell me," Mingi whined, his heart pounding at the fear of one of his friends being hurt.

"One of the Knights, Soonwon, he tried to take advantage of Seonghwa. Hongjoong found him before he managed to, but he almost got there," Yunho explained. Mingi stood up straighter and narrowed his eyes, his blood boiling.

"Where's Soonwon now," he asked tightly.

"He got a good beating and I locked him in the dungeons," Yunho said. Mingi nodded slowly before turning around swiftly and storming down the halls. Yunho squeaked and ran forwards grabbing Mingi's arm quickly.

"What're you doing," he asked frantically.

"Going for a stroll and possibly ending up in the dungeons. And then perhaps I might accidentally beat that pathetic, lowlife, piece of shits ass," Mingi said, his voice getting angrier as he continued. Yunho sighed and pulled Mingi into his arms, hugging him gently. Mingi struggled slightly before giving up and hugging him back. He's never really been one to reject a hug, especially from Yunho and the other Knight knows that. He slowly felt himself relaxing, the anger seeping away slightly.

"Hwa's fine, he's with Hongjoong and Soonwon has already gotten a good enough punishment. For now anyway," Yunho said.

"Can we go see them," Mingi asked quietly.

"Yeah, come on," Yunho said, letting him go and dropping his hand, slipping it into Mingi's and linking their fingers. Mingi squeezed his hand softly and they walked together down the halls, quickly getting to the Crown Prince's room. Yunho knocked on it gently, waiting to hear a come in but none came.

"I thought you said they'd be in here," Mingi said.

"They are in there. Just don't be too loud," Yunho said quietly. Mingi nodded and Yunho slowly opened the door, poking his head inside and smiling softly.

"I think we've found our missing boys. All three of them," Yunho said, swinging the door open gently. Mingi raised an eyebrow of confusion before looking inside and smiling. Hongjoong, Seonghwa and San were all cuddled up together on the bed, sleeping soundly. Seonghwa's head was on Hongjoong's chest, San's on Seonghwa's shoulder and Hongjoong's resting on top of Seonghwa's.

"Oh my god, I am going to die of cuteness right now," Mingi whispered. Yunho giggled and nodded, pulling Mingi inside and closing the door.

"They really are adorable," Yunho said, looking back to the three on the bed.

"I don't get why they're sleeping though," Mingi said.

"Seonghwa's a bit sick at the moment so Hongjoong would've wanted him to get some rest. San must've checked on them and laid down and then fallen asleep. I'm guessing Hongjoong followed," Yunho shrugged.

"Why does it feel a little bit like we're being perverts," Mingi whispered after a minute of silence.

"Because we're standing in the Prince's room watching three people sleep," Yunho whispered back.

"Should we wake them," Mingi asked.

"To feel less like perverts," Yunho asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I mean, yeah," Mingi shrugged.

"But they're so cute," Yunho said, looking back to them.

"And they can also hear you. Either shut up and join us or wake us up," Hongjoong said, watching the two bickering at the end of his bed.

"Oh Joong, you're awake. I thought you were asleep," Yunho said, going bright red.

"I was asleep, until you two started talking about how big of pervs you are watching us sleep," Hongjoong said with a shrug. His shrugging jostled Seonghwa slightly and he whined, stirring slightly.

"Shh Star, get some sleep. It's just Yunho and Mingi," Hongjoong whispered softly, leaning down and nuzzling his nose against the side of his head. Seonghwa hummed happily and went to move closer but stopped quickly when he felt a weight on his shoulder. He opened his eyes blearily and turned his head to see San sleeping peacefully. He turned around slowly, wrapping his arms around San and pulling him close to his chest.

"Sannie. Come on, wake up bub," Seonghwa said softly. San yawned and stretched, waking up slowly and sitting up.

"Morning sleepy. You totally ditched me on patrol today," Mingi said. San chuckled and gave him a sheepish smile.

"Sorry, I came here to check on Hwa and Hongjoong made me fall asleep," San said.

"I wasn't going to stop you from sleeping when you were clearly tired," Hongjoong said ruffling his hair softly before dropping his arm to wrap around Seonghwa's shoulder.

"Seonghwa, are you doing ok," Mingi asked gently, turning his attention back to the eldest in the room. Seonghwa looked up and smiled softly.

"I'm ok guys, no need to stress. I was kind of out of it and just really not feeling well, he took advantage of it. Hongjoong got there before he could do anything other than ripping my shirt," Seonghwa said. The room was quiet for a few seconds as they went over what he said and realised just how dire the situation was. Hongjoong's grip on him tightened and he chuckled at the protectiveness.

"I'm really fine guys, I promise," Seonghwa said, trying to reassure them so they didn't feel so bad about it.

"I hope so. You know we'd kill anyone who hurts you right," Yunho said softly, Seonghwa nodding quickly.

"I know that, trust me. But I'm going to ask you one thing, please don't kill the Knight who tried to hurt me," Seonghwa begged.

"What? Why," San asked quickly, the other's confused as well. Why would Seonghwa ask them not to kill the person who tried to do something so awful to him.

"Because you're better than that. We don't kill our own, you don't. He's an ass, but I don't want you to kill him," Seonghwa said.

"Please," he added, turning his head up to look at Hongjoong.

"Seonghwa, we're not going to make that prom-."

"Ok. We're not going to kill him, I promise," Hongjoong said, cutting Yunho off. Seonghwa looked into his eyes worriedly and he nodded in reassurance. Yunho scoffed and rolled his eyes at how easily Seonghwa got Hongjoong to cave.

"Thank you," Seonghwa said softly, slipping his hand under the blanket and into Hongjoong's, squeezing it tightly. Mingi opened his mouth to speak up when there was a sudden knock on the door. San and Hongjoong both sat up quickly, wrapping their arms around Seonghwa and pulling him behind San. Yunho rushed forwards and shoved his shoe in the crack under the door so that if anyone tried to open it they wouldn't be able to. Hongjoong and San relaxed slightly at that, but still held Seonghwa close.

"Who is it," Hongjoong called out.

"Us, let us in pleaseeee." They'd all know that whining voice anywhere. Yunho let out a breath and stepped away, opening the door. Wooyoung bounded in happily, his eyes instantly honing in on the three cuddled up on the bed, and without him.

"Rude, no one invited me," he pouted, running and jumping on the bed. San chuckle and let go of Seonghwa, holding his arms out for his lover. Wooyoung giggled and slipped into his arms, hugging him tightly and tucking his head under his chin.

"Disgusting," Yeosang scoffed as he walked into the room, rolling his eyes at the affection the two had.

"Don't be jealous," Wooyoung said, holding San closer.

"So, what's this? A family reunion," Jongho asked, walking in and closing the door.

"A reunion is when you haven't seen each other for ages. This is more like a gathering," Mingi said.

"Well why are we gathering," Jongho asked.

"I dunno. Why'd you three come here," Hongjoong asked.

"We came to check on Seonghwa. We heard something happened to Seonghwa and we knew Hongjoong would have him here so we came," Yeosang said.

"Look, I'm glad that you all care about me, it's really sweet but I'm ok," Seonghwa said.

"Are you sure," Wooyoung asked worriedly. He of all people knows exactly how Seonghwa would've been treated, and it certainly isn't very nice. Seonghwa reached his hand over San and squeezed Wooyoung thigh softly.

"I'm sure Youngie. I was scared at the time as it was happening, but Hongjoong was there. The reason why it was more terrifying was because I was sick and weak and I couldn't do anything to defend myself," Seonghwa said quietly. Wooyoung grabbed his hand and squeezed it in sympathy.

"I'm sorry that it happened to you Seonghwa. You didn't deserve that," he said sadly.

"It's ok Wooyoung, it's not your fault," Seonghwa said gently.

"It's not ok. You guys shouldn't be treated like that just because you're servants. You're far better people than any of those assholes will ever be," Yeosang said angrily. Seonghwa nodded in reply, his eyes beginning to water slightly. He cursed himself internally. He can't do this, he can't break down in front of them. He doesn't want to be seen as a weak and useless servant, he needs to be strong.

"Seonghwa," Yeosang whispered, noticing Seonghwa's state. He quickly climbed onto the bed and shuffled over, holding his arms out. Seonghwa hesitated for a second before moving over and falling into his arms. Yeosang hugged him tightly and he buried his head into his chest. He couldn't hold back his tears anymore and begun to cry silently into his chest, his shoulders shaking. The other's watched sadly as their friend begun to breakdown. Hongjoong felt his heart break at the sound of Seonghwa's cries. He quickly moved over and hugged him tightly from behind, rucking his chin onto his shoulder. Seonghwa started sobbing sadly, clinging tightly to Yeosang. Jongho sighed quietly moved onto the bed, joining the hug from the side. Wooyoung glanced at San who nodded and the two of them quickly moved over, joining the hug. Yunho and Mingi were quick to follow, all 8 of them hugging tightly in the middle of the bed.

"It's ok Hwa, we're here. We're all here," Hongjoong whispered. Seonghwa continued to sob but he nodded, feeling safe and comforted in the embrace of all his closest friends, his family. Safe to let out all of his emotions and cry it out, because none of them would ever judge him.

They all sat there for a while, allowing Seonghwa to cry for as long as he needed until he finally calmed down.

"H-He said I probably do it a lot, because I'm a s-servant," Seonghwa whispered, keeping his head hidden in Yeosang's chest, not quite ready to look at everyone else. Yeosang lifted his head up, looking at Hongjoong who looked sad.

"I haven't, I haven't done it before. I-I'm not, I've n-never-."

"Shh, it's ok. You're safe Star, you're safe," Hongjoong whispered. Seonghwa nodded and lifted his head, removing his arms from around Yeosang. He squirmed slightly and managed to turn around, tucking himself into Hongjoong's arms instead, the arms that he trusts the most, that he feels the safest he ever can be.

"He said that all us servants do it, that that's what we're for," Seonghwa whispered. Jongho clenched his hand into a fist, Yeosang noticing and moving his own hand to hold it softly and calm his guard down. Jongho blinked and glanced at the 2nd prince, his heartrate slowing back down.

"That's not true Seonghwa. You guys are more than that," San said, holding Wooyoung tightly in his arms, rubbing his hand up and down his side.

"He told me to strip," Seonghwa whispered. Hongjoong grit his teeth tight, every muscle in his body itching to go down to the dungeon and kill the bastard chained in there, but he can't because he promised he wouldn't.

"He kept telling me I wanted it," Seonghwa said sadly. Hearing what Seonghwa saying, what happened, Yunho felt awful. He was telling Hongjoong not to worry about Seonghwa being sick, that everything was ok. What would have happened if Hongjoong listened, if he didn't go looking, they didn't hear Seonghwa scream.

"I'm sorry Seonghwa. No one should have to go through that," Yunho said softly. Seonghwa glanced up and met his eyes giving him a watery smile.

"I'm sorry for this, I just needed t-."

"Don't be sorry about it Hwa, you needed to talk about it and let it out," Wooyoung said. San could hear the slight quiver in Wooyoung's voice and new he was a little choked up, the story possibly hitting a little close to home, or detail what he could go through. He held him tighter, ducking his head down and placing a few gentle kisses to the back of his neck to relax him.

"I didn't want to break down like this in front of you guys. I'm not, I'm not weak," Seonghwa said quietly.

"We know Seonghwa. You are far from weak. Crying doesn't make anyone weak," Jongho said gently, making Seonghwa chuckle.

"Says the little baby bear who never cries," he pointed out.

"I do so cry, you just never have had the opportunity to see it," Jongho said with a shrug.

"Has anyone ever been there to see it," Mingi asked.

"Yeah, one person," Jongho said slowly.

"And who's that," Yunho asked with scoff. Everyone knows Jongho always tries to show his tough façade, even to his brother.

"Me. I've seen the baby bear cry a few times," Yeosang said, wrapping his arms around Jongho's neck and pressing the side of his face against his. Jongho blushed slightly, still not used to having the younger prince so close, but he instinctively slipped a hand around his waist. San glanced at his little brothers face and held back a smile at the clear blush and flustered look on his face. The only person he has known to get Jongho to drop his façade in an instant is the naïve and innocent prince.

"Huh, I was expecting San," Seonghwa said.

"The worlds full of surprises," Jongho said with a shrug, hoping the topic would change.

"How are you feeling now Star, like really. None of this, 'I'm acting fine because I don't want to show that I'm not' crap," Hongjoong said. Seonghwa paused and glanced around, looking at all of his friends crowded around him, sitting huddled together on the bed.

"I'm fine, excellent actually. There's nothing to raise your spirits better than your family having a little cuddle session," Seonghwa said with a small smile.

"We're glad we could help," San said softly.

"We're family, we look out for each other and bring each other up when we're feeling down," Yunho said softly.

"On second thoughts, can we hug again. It kind of felt really nice," Seonghwa whispered. Hongjoong chuckled and pulled him closer, the older almost sitting in his lap. The other's all quickly shuffled forwards, forming the circle of comfort once again.

A/N

Here is Chapter 10 everyone, I hope you enjoyed it

As always, let me know what you think, what you liked in this chapter so I can try to continue adding it in

Thank you for reading and I hope you're all doing well, better than me anyway. I currently have covid so I'm kind of stuck in bed and that either means I'll be bored and write a whole lot or I'll be too exhausted to do much. I guess we'll see as the week continues and whether I update much. I hope I can update a few times but I apologize if I end up going dark for a bit