♜ forest

Frost-covered foliage stuck and tugged at Angelina's clothing as she trekked through the forest, her footfalls almost imperceptible if not for the light crunch of snow and frost-bitten leaves under her worn-leather boots. Each breath she took appeared in a cloud of crystals, quickly dissipating as it warmed and dispersed in the air before her. A rustle in the distance stopped her mid-step and she quietly set her foot to the ground to hear better—the quadrupedal steps ahead of her stopping as well. Her ears pricked as it sounded again, followed shortly by a rabbit darting out from one snow-covered bush to another. "Chase!" The command was hushed, just enough for her canine companion's ears and just enough to spur the dog on, deftly springing into action before the word could finish echoing in the quiet wood.

@kim jisoo Jongin felt terrible for scaring the stranger, he knew that she must have been terrified and if given the opportunity Jongin would have explained what was going on but he didn't have time. Less they would be caught and Jongin would have to fight off the attackers, and the only source of weapon was his wood axe which wasn't very useful in combat especially towards men that most likely had swords, lighter and quicker weapons.

"Sorry about that." Jongin mumbled softly as he let her go, still trying to be quiet as he wasn't sure how far the other men had actually went and wanted to stay safe. "I didn't mean to scare you, he said giving the girl a quick look over for any notable injuries. "Are you alright?"

@hwang hyunjin After demonstrating how to start chopping the tree, Hyunjin followed suit and copied him very welll. Jongin could tell that he was actually paying attention, and the little bit of experience helped out just a bit. Of course, there was just a bit of a problem with his stance, but other than that everything seemed to be going well. "Just dig your feet into the ground a bit more, and you can firmer your stance. " He suggested. "Other than that, I think your doing just fine."

Jongin looked around the wooded area a bit more, before looking back at the younger male. "We will work on this tree together, a few swings each until the tree falls down and then we can get it into smaller pieces until you feel a bit more comfortable on your own." Jongin stated, not feeling comfortable enough to leave Hyunjin to his own devices, sure the male was doing well but in the instance anything happened he didn't want Hyunjin to have to come searching for him.

@kim jongin Jisoo felt the tug on her arm, everything happened so qucikly she didn't have time to stop herself from being dragged off the trail. Struggling the girl wasn't exactly sure what was going on, she was being chased one minute, and pulled off the trail the next and who is to say that the person pulling her off the trail also wasn't trying to harm her.

Jisoo could feel her heart beat a bit faster as she struggling, soft muffling sounds coming from when the other covered it, only to realize that maybe the person holding her down wasn't maybe trying to hurt her, when the original pursuants rode off, trying to figure out where she went.

@kim jongin Hyunjin admired the way that Jongin didn't waste any time going into work, and the younger male didn't hesitate a second to jump right in line with him. He followed behind Jongin, axe in tow, taking note of each tree that Jongin pointed out was 'wrong'. Jongin had seemed to be looking for specifics, and Hyunjin wanted to keep what the other kept in mind, so he took mental notes of everything and made sure to hold on to them.

As the other started demonstarting how to swing an axe to chop down a tree, Hyunjin also took note of everything there. The other's form, and how much force he seemed to be putting into each swing. The male had to admit that he was a bit nervous when it actually came down to it, but he tried to push that aside. "Okay, I'll try it." He said more so to himself than the other.

Moving over into position, he stood there for a moment, trying to get familiar with the axe, the weight was much different than a sword, so he wanted a proper hold and familiarize himself with it rather than just going at it blindly. Once the younger male felt comfortable, he lifted the axe up, taking a breath before swinging at the tree in the same motion that the older male did, striking the same spot he did. He did two more swings before looking at the other for a bit of input or tips.

@kim jisoo Jongin had been working alone in the forest, honestly just trying to collect any stray wood that he would need for his work, he wasn't in the mood to chop any wood today, so it was just him and his horse, Nutmeg wandering the forest grounds. When he heard some sounds of struggle, the caretakers in the orphanage raised him better than that, and always taught him to help anyone in need.

Jongin, now on foot, had approached the situation just in time, he grabbed the female's wrist dragging her off the trail, pulling her close to him, covering with one hand, and the other having a tight grip on her hands to try to stop the other from fighting. . Just long enough for the pursuants to go away, hoping she wouldn't fight, as Jongin meant no harm and only wanted to keep the other safe.

@hwang hyunjin Jongin could tell that the other was eager to work, and the was beneficial to the constructer, the faster things could get started the more work they could done in a days work. So jongin didn’t waste his time in trying to get things started. He listened to the others explanation of his small experience, Jongin nodded lightly walking back towards the mule grabbing his other axe before motioning Hyunjin to follow him.

“So with chopping down trees, especially for building you have to be careful which trees you try to get down.” He explained examining the trees, pointing to a few, “Too tall. too thick. rotting. Too thin.” He named off things that were wrong with each tree before stopping in front of one. “The one is just perfect.” He stated, turning to look at Hyunjin once more.

“Now, I’m gonna show you a proper stance, and taking a few swings, and I want you to copy me once I’m done demonstrating, okay?” He asked and continued on before even getting a confirmation from the younger. Firmly planting his feet on the ground. “You want to swing for the base of the tree, but at a comfortable height, if you swing too low you are liable for an injury, just as well as swinging high. Both can damage the tree as well.”

Jongin demonstrated a few swings for the other to examine while throwing in random tips here and there for the other to catch on, before stepping bf away. “Okay, if you can give it a try now, I’ll observe and make sure your doing it correctly.”

@kim jongin Hyunjin was waiting for the male to start yelling and scolding at him, but when apologizing for being late all he got was a simple “That’s fine.” The male was taken aback, but also appreciated how easily the older male brushed it off. Hyunjin grabbed the axe, that was definitely heavier than he was used to and held on to it.

“None taken.” Hyunjin started. “I have some experience, mainly just chopping the wood up into smaller pieces.” He nodded lightly, while taking a breath. The male knew that he wasn’t exactly the type to chop wood just based off looks but he wasn’t about to say no to hard work. “I grew up on a farm, and we had to use fire wood often to keep the house warm.” He explained further.

“I have never chopped down an actual tree before though.” The younger male finally admitted. “It would be my first time doing so. I hope that is okay?”

@hwang hyunjin Having finished getting everything ready, Jongin had almost given up on the help arriving. Perhaps, Jongin should have been more clear about the time? Perhaps the other had misinterpreted the day? Jongin had wrote the letter back in a rush, trying to get back to his work, that he wasn't sure what he sent. Jongin let out a sigh, and a slight shake of his head before going to grab one of the axes. Ready to work regardless of the help.

Upon picking up the axe, Jongin could hear the trodding of hooves approaching him, looking up a younger looking male hopped down. Jongin couldn't help but feel a bit of relief upon the other arriving. "That's fine." Jongin gave a small bow back to be respectful. As the male was unsure of what his letter said, he wasn't exactly sure that the other was late in the first place, Jongin did come earlier than usual to get prepared. It wasn't that serious of a job in the first place, so Jongin didn't want to be the guy to get annoyed at others being late. "I'm Jongin." He introduced himself properly.

"So tell me, Hyunjin, before we get started," He offered out the axe he had just grabbed towards the other for him to take. "Do you have any experience chopping wood?" Jongin didn't mind teaching the other if need be, but for sure needed to know where he would need to start. "No offense, but you look quite small, so it doesn't seem like you have too much experience?"

@kim jongin Hyunjin had only woken up that morning due to his sister violently shaking him. "You committed to something, you better go." Was all he could make out of her constant nagging, trying to wake her younger brother up. Bolting up, the male immediately started getting dressed. He wasn't sure how late he was, but knew that it would leave a bad impression on the male he was supposed to be helping. He threw some clothes on, and went to the stables to borrow a horse. Four legs was faster than two.

Riding the horse out of the city, he got the horse to go just slightly quicker upon exiting the city limits. It wasn't far until he got to the forest line where he saw two mules, but there was no other person in sight. Looking around, until he saw who he assumed Jongin's head appear from behind one of the mules. Leading the horse in the direction Hyunjin had to take a few deep breathes trying to figure out what he would say to the other for being late.

"Hello." Hyunjin said hopping off his horse, giving a small bow to the other. "Pardon me for being late." He apologized. "I'm Hyunjin, I'm here to help with whatever you need." Hyunjin announced confidently, despite not being so. He had cut up wood in different pieces for fire, but cutting down the trees himself, that was his dad and older brothers doing. So Hyunjin wasn't sure how much of help he could be, but as long as he could provide some service he hoped the other would appreciate.

@hwang hyunjin The days had passed since Jongin had received an answer to his post on the city help board. He had been needing some help chopping some wood since the help in the construction shop had been low. His old master was no longer able to help him, so anytime Jongin needed to go out, it was just him. The male was capable of doing the work himself, but it was much better to have someone there to help him, even if it was just a small bit of help. They didn't need to be the fastest worker, Jongin had just hoped that they were a quick learner and that Jongin wouldn't have any trouble with the other.

The dew was still claiming home to the ground, in the early hours that Jongin had already been up and prepping for his trip. Getting the mules ready to go, and preparing a few hatches. He wasn't sure what the other would bring, or if he had anything to help chop wood on his own, so he had to come ready for anything. Filling a leather canteen flask full of water, before strapping it to his side.

Ready to go Jongin headed out of the city, walking with a mule at each of his sides. He wasn't sure how much they would get done, and knew that it was always better to be over prepared than under. It wasn't long after leaving the city that Jongin had found himself at the edge of the forest entrance, looking around to see that the other hadn't arrived yet. So he decided to pull his mule to the side and start getting ready for when he arrived.

It was seldom that Jisoo had to leave the city, and when she did, Jisoo felt as if she was always ill prepared. She had her companion horse by her side, and a dagger on her person just in case she needed it. She was only going to the next town over, and it would be just a day's trip there, and then one back after staying the night. So She hoped she wouldn't need it.

Jisoo had been wrapped in warm garb, her ears mostly covered so she didn't hear anything or anyone coming up on her. It was her horse jerking out of fear when she had realized that there was another person there. Taking off Jisoo wasn't able to get a proper hold on the reins of the horse and ended up falling off. She jumped up and ran after it. The rude men who startled her horse chasing after her, trying to get the lady to go with them. Jisoo didn't look back, scared of what might happen.