Claw's Bridge(Discontinued)

48. Flowers

"Nighter, wake up. We need to go inside," Jimin gently shook me awake. I grumbled incoherently as he ran his hand through my hair, trying to wake me up. "Yoongi's calling us for dinner."

Not wanting to anger the orange-eyed male, I sat up, my head previously resting on Jimin's lap. "Let's go," I mumbled, standing up with the brown-eyed male's help.

-

I opened my bedroom door, jumping back in surprise when I saw Seokjin stand in front of the door with a raised fist and a bouquet of flowers. I raised an eyebrow when his ears turned red and he started stumbling over his words.

"I uh... I was just- I want- you-" he started, but I cut him off.

"Hi to you too," I greeted. I was always more cautious around Yoongi and Seokjin. "Did you want something?"

"Jimin told me you liked flowers. So I bought you some..." he trailed off. I held back a smile when I saw the flowers. "What?"

"You don't know what those are, do you?" I asked, letting slip a smile of amusement.

"Um... no?" he said, though it came out as a question.

"Aconites(also known as Wolfsbane). They symbolize death," I said, taking the bouquet from him. "You don't normally give these to people unless you're wishing death or harm upon them. They're good medical sources, but are also often used as poison."

"W-what?" he stuttered, flabbergasted. He snatched the flowers from me and threw them to the side of the hallway. "Never mind this then. I'll make sure these are no longer grown in the garden."

"So what did you come here for?" I asked, changing the topic for his sake. It was a wonder that the staff managed to not be poisoned when planting the seeds. All parts of the plant were highly toxic, the seeds and the roots especially.

"Well, that was just a gift. Clearly not a good one," he mumbled. "It's dinner time. We have things to discuss."

"Oh okay," I replied, stepping outside the room. I followed him to the dining room. "Is the meeting going to be like the previous one?"

"No. I'll make sure it's not. It's about Miyoung, nothing else. We need to get her back behind bars before something goes wrong," he said.

"Why don't you kill her?" I asked as we entered the dining room.

"We have rules we follow. If it's possible, we take all measures necessary, to avoid bloodshed," Namjoon replied.

"What are the exceptions then?" I asked. Everyone looked at me in confusion. "You guys do have exceptions to laws right?"

"No," Jimin responded. I slumped back in my seat, baffled at the lack of precautions Hitzor ran on.

"Okay... After all the crimes she's probably committed, you just want to lock her up?" I voiced out. "First problem I can point out is that she has a high power in society, and therefore, a lot of connections. Arresting her would only provoke people to act against Seokjin. Second, keeping her in a cell didn't work out the first time, do you think the second time will? What if she gets out? Who is she going to take the next time?"

"We could make a special cell, instead of putting her in some room with bars. We don't need to tell the public, we just need to find a place where no one can get," Taehyung put in.

"A cell just for her?" I asked. "What about everyone else? She can't be the only one in power. Power runs on a hierarchy of control."

"Nighter's right. She isn't the only one in line for her position," Yoongi added. "There is a hierarchy. As irrational and chaotic the community is, there are rules that even those in power cannot break. One: those in power have to be biologically female. The exception to the rule is that if the heir is an only child, and the child is a boy, then the child takes over once they turn 21. You are raised accordingly."

"They're not after your powers," Hoseok started, putting the pieces together. "They want you to follow the rules. They want you to take over. You having powers strengthens the community. They'll force you to create an offspring who will inherit the alleles for fire powers."

Seokjin and Yoongi exchanged glances. I observed the two while Namjoon spoke up. "Why don't your parents create another offspring until a girl is born?" he asked.

"My mother is unable to give birth anymore. The first time caused some complications that led her to be unable to carry," Yoongi replied.

"What's a sign of weakness?" Taehyung asked. "For a person in power, what's a sign of weakness?"

"Humiliation, embarrassment, incompetence. Anything that would corrupt the leader's public image and/or challenge the leader's ability," he responded.

"Yoongi," I started. "You're not her only child, are you?"

(For those who are active on TikTok, you may have come across videos on Maladaptive daydreaming or MD. Allow me to clarify that MD is not part of the DSM-5[the current diagnosing manual used by psychologists], thus is not a recognized disorder in present psychology. It was however, recognized in DSM-IV, but was taken away because of the difficulty in diagnosing it and the fact that the symptoms of the disorder fall under ADHD or Dissociative Disorders, thus leading to misdiagnosis. Moreover, it was mildly rare. Please do not validate it as an actual disorder and most certainly don't self-diagnose, it does more harm than good.)