"Hongjoong, you aren't supposed to be here," San said quietly as Hongjoong walked into the room that lead to the dungeons. Hongjoong disregarded San's words and walked down the hall towards the room he knows Yunho will be held in.

"Joong, your father said not to come here. I will unchain him and then we'll come up to your room and you can check on him," San said as he hurried to keep up. The King was specific in saying Hongjoong wasn't allowed to talk to anyone in the dungeons until they were out and he didn't want Hongjoong getting in more trouble than he already was.

"San. I'm going to get Yunho out of there with you, so just stop even bothering," Hongjoong said. San sighed but stayed quiet, knowing he couldn't convince him of anything different. They got to the room and San quickly pulled out the keys, inserting it into the lock and unlocking it. The minute it was unlocked, Hongjoong hurried forwards and opened the door, rushing inside but stopping when he saw Yunho. The boy had his arms chained above his head, no shirt and a bruise on the side of his torso.

"Yunho," he gasped, rushing forwards and raising a hand to cup his cheek, noticing his lip was split slightly. Yunho blinked his eyes open tiredly as he felt a hand touching his cheek. He would've flinched but from the touch alone, he knew it was one of his close friends from the castle, most likely San. However, when he looked up he saw it was Hongjoong, not San. Hongjoong who is not supposed to be here, not at all.

"Hongjoong, what're you doing here," he said, trying to scold him, but it just came out weak and tired.

"I'm here to get you out, take you to my room to rest," Hongjoong said softly as San hurried over and begun to unlock his chains.

"I'm so sor-."

"Hongjoong, don't feel guilty. I told you it's fine, and it's not your fault at all. It wasn't that bad anyway," Yunho said, cutting Hongjoong off. He didn't want the Prince to be stressing and guilty for something his father did.

"It wasn't bad? And yet there's a big bruise on your torso," Hongjoong pointed out. San finished unchaining him and Yunho fell forwards, but both San and Hongjoong caught him and hugged him tightly.

"You ok," San asked worriedly as they lowered Yunho onto his knees. Yunho blinked and nodded.

"Just give me a few seconds to stretch and get my bearings a little," he said, holding tightly to Hongjoong's shirt. His head was spinning and he felt weak, dropping his head down onto San's shoulder. San glanced worriedly at Hongjoong, seeing the older was just as worried about Yunho.

"Take you time," Hongjoong said sadly, moving his hand to run through Yunho's hand, hoping it would bring comfort.

"I'm ok," Yunho said quickly, trying to reassure Hongjoong once again. Hongjoong lowered his eyes sadly, feeling helpless as his friend was exhausted and in pain because of his family.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, placing his forehead on top of Yunho's sadly.

"Don't be," Yunho said softly.

"Can you help me up," he added, feeling slightly better now. San nodded and gently pulled Yunho to his feet, Hongjoong quickly helping out. Yunho's head spun slightly, but he held onto San tightly and the they just stayed still for a few seconds so he could get his bearings.

"You alright," San asked softly.

"Yeah I'm ok. Stop stressing you two," Yunho said softly.

"We care about you Yunho," San said quietly..

"I know, and I'm alright, just a little tired. I promise," Yunho replied. Hongjoong sighed but nodded. He took a step back and begun to untie his robe.

"Hongjoong, don't be stupid," Yunho snapped, knowing what he was doing. Hongjoong froze and looked over at Yunho with wide eyes. All he was going to do was give Yunho his robe so that he would be covered and warmer.

"You need some clothes," he said gently.

"Yeah, but not yours. You're a Prince you idiot. Imagine the consequences I would have when being seen in your clothes," Yunho scoffed. Hongjoong paused and thought over what he said, realising he was quite right. San rolled his eyes at how unaware Hongjoong can be sometimes.

"Use mine Yunho," San said, untying his robe quickly. He pulled the robe off and gently wrapped it around Yunho's shoulders, helping him slip his arms through the armhole. Hongjoong stepped forwards and gently fixed the robe, tying it off but making sure it wasn't too tight.

"Come on, we'll take you back to my room and let you get some rest there," Hongjoong said, slipping Yunho's arm over his shoulder.

"Hongjoong, you can't help carry him. You aren't even supposed to be here in the first place," San pointed out.

"I'm just going to help you get him to my room so he get some rest," Hongjoong said.

"You can't Hongjoong. You shouldn't even be there walking with me or letting me use your room, but I know we can't convince you not to do that," Yunho said. He could see the uncertainty in Hongjoong's eyes, how much he wanted to be able to help more.

"Ok, I'll walk just ahead of you," Hongjoong said quietly, knowing how stubborn both of the Knights could be. San nodded, thankful that Hongjoong wasn't going to put up a fight on this. He quickly moved closer to Yunho, pulling his arm over his shoulder and letting the taller rest against him.

"Come on, I've got you," he whispered slightly, slipping his arm around Yunho's waist as they begun to walk. Hongjoong walked ahead of them, holding the door open and making sure they could get through. He slowed down at the stairs, glancing back continuously to make sure San and Yunho were doing ok. Yunho didn't seem to me in too much pain thankfully, more so just exhausted. San glanced up, seeing Hongjoong looking back at the two of them worriedly and he quickly sent him a small smile of reassurance.

"You doing alright," Hongjoong asked worriedly when they finally made it to the top of the stairs.

"Yeah, I'm alright," Yunho nodded. He felt exhausted and ready to just sleep as he didn't really sleep much the last night due to being chained up and he hasn't had much sleep the last few nights as well because he's been guarding Hongjoong. Hongjoong and San could both tell that Yunho needed the sleep as soon as possible so they moved as quick as they could through the halls. Hongjoong paused at the door and turned to the other two.

"Hwa may still be asleep on the bed, I didn't wake him up when I came out," Hongjoong informed them. Yunho felt better knowing that Seonghwa was there to look after Hongjoong when his mind may not have been in the right place the night before. Hongjoong quickly opened the door and stepped inside, glancing around and finding that sure enough, Seonghwa was soundly sleeping on the bed. He smiled fondly and walked over, climbing onto the bed and gently shaking his shoulder to wake him up. Seonghwa whined softly and rolled over, curling up against Hongjoong's knee from where he was knelt on the bed next to him. Hongjoong held back a chuckle at how unbothered and cute he was while sleeping and he glanced back at Yunho and San who were in front of the closed door. Yunho is used to seeing how comfortable the Prince and servant are together, especially in the mornings, so he wasn't surprised in the slightest. San however, was not used to seeing this level of comfort between the two and tilted his head curiously as he watched.

"Hwa, wake up. Come on," Hongjoong said softly, giving his shoulder another shake. Seonghwa woke up slowly, feeling his shoulder being shook and opened his eyes to see Hongjoong looking down at him with a small smile. Waking up to see Hongjoong's smile is one of his favourite ways to wake up and he smiled as well, moving his head to rest in his lap as he flopped an arm over his lap. San watched closely, finding it intriguing to see the two's dynamic with each other. Sure, he's seen the two hug during their meet ups at their special spot, but he hasn't really seen their close bond when they aren't worried about who could catch them. Hongjoong's eyes flicked back to the other two in the room and couldn't help the way his lips turned down slightly. He felt an odd feeling in his stomach at having the other two there and watching Seonghwa when he's in such a content state. He knows Seonghwa is this comfortable around him, but he doesn't know if he'd like the others seeing him like this. He quickly shuffled to the side slightly, so his back was facing the two in front of the door, blocking their view of Seonghwa. He pulled Seonghwa up to try and wake him up a bit more. Seonghwa whined slightly as he's lifted harshly and quickly wraps his arms around Hongjoong's neck, snuggling his head into his chest, letting out a breath and relaxing. Hongjoong lifted his hand to run through Seonghwa's hair, not having the heart to keep trying to wake Seonghwa up harshly.

San watched the two of them curiously, not having seen Hongjoong this soft and gentle with anyone except Yeosang and perhaps sometimes Wooyoung if the younger is upset.

"Are they usually like this," San asked Yunho quietly. Yunho was still quite tired, but just hummed in affirmation. The two of them are quite sweet together sometimes. They reminded San of his relationship with Wooyoung in the early stages, but slightly different in their own way.

"Star, I need you to wake up please. Yunho is back from the dungeons and he's exhausted, so he needs to get some rest," Hongjoong said softly. Seonghwa quickly sat up, rubbing his eyes to wake up a bit more, wanting to move so that Yunho could get the rest that he needs. He quickly stretched his arms above his head to loosen his muscles and Hongjoong's hand instinctively shot out, catching the bottom of Seonghwa's nightshirt and stopping it from riding up too much. Seonghwa quickly moved to the edge of the bed and slipped off, glancing around until his eyes landed on Yunho by the door. He quickly moved over and slipped his unoccupied arm his shoulder, copying San.

"Come on, we've got you. Let' get you into bed," he said softly. They quickly half carried him to the bed, setting him down softly where Hongjoong helped position him properly. Yunho let out a sigh of appreciation at finally being somewhere warm and comfortable. He rolled over slightly, moving into the warmth that Seonghwa left from when he was laying there. Hongjoong quickly shuffled closer and gently picked up Yunho's arm, studying his wrist which was now bruised from the chains.

"Yunho before you go to sleep, is there anywhere that is hurting more than it should be. Something that isn't just bruised," Hongjoong asked quickly, not wanting the younger to fall asleep hurt.

"No, m'fine," Yunho mumbled. Hongjoong sighed, and moved his hand to card through his hair, making sure to avoid the small cut on his cheek, that was probably stinging a bit. Seonghwa also walked over and sat down on the bed, resting his hand on Yunho's ankle and rubbing soothing circles on it to help him fall asleep.

"S-Sannie," Yunho said tiredly.

"Yeah," San asked.

"Look after Joongie," Yunho whispered before he went quiet. The others stayed quiet for a few minutes until they were sure that he had fallen asleep.

"He asleep," San asked as he was the only one not sat next to him. Seonghwa nodded in reply, shuffling over so his legs were dangling off the edge of the bed. He opened his arms and San quickly moved forwards, dropping into them and cuddling close to the oldest, his arms moving to wrap around his waist. Seonghwa pulled him closer, securing him in his arms and letting him rest on his lap. He placed his hand on San's head, moving it to rest on his shoulder. San let out a shuddering breath, finally letting his fear and anxiety out as he clung tighter to Seonghwa. Hongjoong noticed what they were doing and realised what was happening and he felt guilty. San hasn't had very good experiences down in the dungeons and he no doubt has trauma related to it. It must've taken him a lot to go down and get Yunho out. Seonghwa quickly moved so the two of them were further on the bed and Hongjoong cuddled up to San's side, moving his hand to rest on San's stomach, rubbing it soothingly. San sniffled slightly as he begun to quietly cry. His back started to hurt and he whimpered, moving his hand back to rest on it. Hongjoong immediately noticed what San did and his heart broke, memories coming back to him.

***

Hongjoong watched sadly from the door to the room as the boys huddled around San. He was bloody and bruised after having spent two days in the dungeon and getting beaten. Hongjoong's heart was shattered and he felt awful. San flinched from him earlier and was scared of him. This is all his fault, his father is the one who did this. San cried out and he snapped his head over to see San laying on his stomach, his hand resting on his back. Seonghwa had lifted San's shirt and his entire back was blooming with bruises. Hongjoong fought back a gag and quickly turned, leaving the room. San didn't want him there and he didn't want him in even more distress than he was already in.

***

"Sannie, it's ok. You aren't hurt, you're alright," Hongjoong said softly. San whimpered again and shook his head, so Hongjoong quickly rested his hand on the youngers back, rubbing it softly. San's breathing picked up as a memory came to the surface of his mind, but it was gone quickly as he felt Seonghwa leave a gentle kiss behind his ear.

"Relax Sannie, you're safe here with us," Seonghwa whispered, worried for the younger and usually cheerful boy.

"We've got you," Hongjoong said softly. San took his time, taking deep breaths to relax, honing in on the two people embracing him and using that feeling to calm himself down.

"You're safe," Seonghwa said softly. San took a deep breath and nodded into his shoulder, slowly calming down. Hongjoong hugged him tighter, massaging the back of his neck slightly with one hand.

"San," Hongjoong asked quietly after a few more seconds. San sniffled and lifted his head, turning around slightly to look at him. Hongjoong sighed softly and lifted his hand, gently wiping his tears away with his thumb.

"I'm ok," San said quietly.

"How's your back feeling," Seonghwa asked gently.

"It's fine. It's not injured, I don't know why it was sore," San replied with a sigh.

"It was just a flashback, a memory of the pain you felt once," Hongjoong said softly.

"It hurt," San whispered.

"Oh darling, I know it did," Hongjoong said softly, cupping his cheek. San sniffled again and held out his arms. Hongjoong quickly scooped him up into his arms and Seonghwa helped move him into his lap. San hugged him tightly and Hongjoong hugged him back just as tight.

"Everything's ok darling," he said softly.

"I know. I'm ok now, it was just a bit daunting," San replied. Hongjoong hummed in reply, ruffling San's head before they pulled apart.

"You did well San, I'm proud of you," Hongjoong said gently. San smiled, wiping the last remaining tears from his face and taking a deep breath.

"We should probably get ready. I have no doubt that you have jobs to do as the Crown Prince," San said.

"First of all, we need to get you a robe. You can't walk around the castle in your undergarments," Hongjoong pointed out with a chuckle. San blinked and looked down, turning red as he realised he had indeed forgotten that he gave Yunho his outer robe.

"I'll have to head back to my room and get a new one," he said.

"Don't bother. I've got some spare ones from you guys in my cupboard," Hongjoong said. San raised an eyebrow in confusion, and Hongjoong chuckled.

"You guys are here a lot and sometimes sleep over so I just have them in there in case," Hongjoong shrugged. He can't let them wear his clothes, so he keeps spares of different ones for the others. San quickly stood up and went to the cupboard, finding suitable robes before going into the bathroom to get changed. Hongjoong was still looking over at the bathroom before he felt arms wrap around his midsection and a chin chest on his shoulder.

"How're you feeling? You still tired," Hongjoong asked softly.

"No, I'm fine. How're you feeling," Seonghwa asked worriedly, pulling back and shuffling to sit next to Hongjoong.

"I'm fine. I'm just glad Yunho's gonna be ok," he whispered, glancing over at the sleeping boy.

"I told you he'd be alright. He's strong," Seonghwa said.

"He has a bruise along the side of his torso and it's pretty big. I don't know what happened, but it must've hurt," Hongjoong whispered.

"Just remember it isn't your fault Hongjoong. Whatever happened wasn't your fault," he said quickly.

"My father did it Seonghwa. That's another one of my boys that he's hurt. I just, I hate that I can't do anything to stop him. I care about them, I really do and I've sworn to protect them from everything that I can. But I can't protect them from my own father," Hongjoong said sadly.

"And we don't want you to. We want you to be safe as well Hongjoong, you aren't the only one who cares about everyone. We care about you just as much as you care about us," Seonghwa said softly, trying to get it into his head. He doesn't know why it's so hard for Hongjoong to realise how much people care about him, but perhaps it's because of the fact that his own parents don't seem to care about him too much. Hongjoong sighed and rested his head on Seonghwa's shoulder, nuzzling his nose into his neck and taking a deep, calming breath. Seonghwa tilted his head slightly, letting Hongjoong nuzzle closer and wrapped his arms around the smallers shoulder, squeezing it gently. San walked back out of the bathroom and smiled towards the two cuddled up next to each other.

"You ready," he asked Hongjoong.

"Yeah, I'm going to go out in a bit. What about you and Mingi? Do you and the other Knights have stuff you need to do," Hongjoong asked.

"I'm staying with you. Yunho is out of commission for today at least and you need someone to look after you. I told him I would," San said firmly. Hongjoong smiled, seeing the protectiveness in the youngers eyes, his Knighthood pushing through.

"Let's get going then," Hongjoong said standing up.

"I won't need you until tonight because I want another bath, so you'll probably end up in the kitchens," Hongjoong said, turning to Seonghwa.

"That's fine. I'll have your bath ready for you when you get back from dinner," Seonghwa said with a nod. Hongjoong nodded and quickly strapped his sword to his side, flicking his robe back over the top of it. Together he and San left the room, walking down the halls.

"So what've you got to do first," San asked as they walked.

"Something that will bore you, I need to go to the library and study a book about negotiations. Father's orders," Hongjoong said with a sigh. San wrinkled his nose up slightly, not liking the idea of sitting in a library for a few hours as it's boring, but he wants to look after Hongjoong so he will put up with it. Hongjoong could tell that San wasn't too excited for it, but wasn't going to say anything about it. He decided he was going to do something that would make it more enjoyable for San. He turned right towards the entrance of the castle instead of left towards the library.

"Wrong way," San pointed out, confused as to why Hongjoong went the opposite direction.

"I know. We're just making a quick stop beforehand," Hongjoong said. San was still confused but didn't question it as it's Hongjoong's decision what he wants to do. They walked over to the training arena for the Knights and went inside. There were already a few Knights warming up and getting ready to train hard, one being Mingi. Mingi spotted them immediately and hurried over, hoping they would have some news about whether Yunho was going to be alright. He heard about him being locked in the dungeons and he was just hoping he wasn't too hurt as some of the guards from down there can be ruthless. Yunho and him have been close since they were kids, so they have a very strong bond.

"Have you seen Yunho? Is ok? Is he out now," Mingi asked quickly but quietly so as to not draw attention.

"Yunho is tired, but fine. He's staying in my room to get some rest and catch up on sleep," Hongjoong told him.

"Is he hurt," Mingi asked, pulling at the bottom of his shirt worriedly.

"He has a cut on his cheek, a pretty big bruise on his side and bruising on his wrist from the chains but nothing permanent and nothing that can stop him from moving around," Hongjoong said. Mingi let out a breath, thankful that Yunho was going to be ok.

"Ok, that's really good. Why're you here anyway," Mingi asked. He didn't think the Prince was scheduled to be joining them in the training.

"I was gonna see if Youngie was here. I'm pretty sure it was his day to be down here and cleaning the equipment," Hongjoong said. San glanced at him immediately, his hopes rising slightly. He loves spending time with Hongjoong, but nothing can be better than seeing Wooyoung.

"Yeah, he's down there right now," Mingi nodded.

"Thank you. San's going to be with me today, so he's not training. Work hard Mingi," Hongjoong said, patting his shoulder gently.

"I will. Look after Yunho please," Mingi replied.

"Of course," Hongjoong said with a nod.

"Let's go San," Hongjoong said. The two of them quickly walked off, down into the equipment room. San immediately saw Wooyoung, wiping a shield clean with his back to him. He grinned and walked over, leaning over and placing his arms on either side of Wooyoung's head trapping him in. Wooyoung jolted and spun around quickly but giggled when he saw San behind him, watching him closely. San quickly leaned forwards and pecked his lips softly before pulling back.

"Hey baby," he said softly.

"Hi," Wooyoung said, glancing in the doorway to make sure no one was around before hugging San softly. Hongjoong doesn't really count, because he already knows anyway.

"What's going on? What're you guys doing here," he asked them as San wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

"Do you want to have a break for a couple of hours? San's keeping an eye on me today because Yunho is getting some rest and I need to study in the library, so he needs someone to keep him company," Hongjoong said.

"Really," Wooyoung asked hopefully. Spending time with San sounds a lot better than cleaning a heap of equipment. Hongjoong smiled fondly at the way the youngers entire face seemed to light up.

"Yeah, come on," Hongjoong said. Wooyoung grinned and moved away from San, bounding over to Hongjoong and hugging him tightly. Hongjoong moved forwards slightly so they weren't anywhere near the doorway and allowed the younger to hug him tightly.

"Alright Sweetheart, that's enough," he said after a few seconds, patting his back softly to get him to let go. Wooyoung obliged and stepped back quickly, grinning happily at him.

"Come on, let's go to the library so I can read a boring book and you two can have some fun," Hongjoong said with a sigh.

"Thanks Joongie," Wooyoung said happily. Hongjoong rolled his eyes in feigned annoyance, but really he was smiling on the inside, satisfied to have made at least someone happy, or two someones.

A/N

Here is Chapter 6 everyone, I'm going to continue posting whenever I finish another chapter because there isn't any point stacking up a heap if you won't get to read it. I hope you like this chapter

Once again, let me know what you liked and might want to see more of, or what you perhaps might want to see less of and I'll see what I can do

Thank you for reading everyone!