Sungmi hadn't ever been a scheming sort of child - probably because she never had a need to do so - but whenever she thought about her brother the cogs in her head refused not to turn. And she soon had an idea how to do it.

Ever since she was fourteen, Sungmi had been enrolled in a medical academy designed specifically for healers to be trained. She was one of only fifteen girls in the entire academy, not that she minded particularly. Her mentor was a kind man, not much older than she was, only six or so years, but with a wealth of knowledge in the field. Unlike Sungmi, who was trained in civilian healing, he was specifically trained in military healing in preparation for his departure to the frontline.

"It's an unusual career you've picked here," Suho commented, handing the training dummy to Sungmi.

She gave a little shrug. "I honestly can't remember ever wanting to do anything else," she told him honestly.

At this, Suho quirked his lip up a little, looking almost impressed by his young apprentice. If he were to pick a favourite, it would be her. "Unusual for a female, though," he replied as if trying to get some sort of reason out of her.

"Female or not, it's what I want to be," she replied, sounding almost indignant at the thought of her being any less able because of her gender.

Suho let out a little chuckle. "I didn’t mean any offence, I was just curious."

Of course Sungmi knew her mentor well enough to know that he wasn't one to generalise, but she was very used to people telling her to just pick an easier career instead – her mother in particular. "I know," she almost huffed out in a sigh. "It's just habit to defend myself."

Raising an eyebrow, Suho locked up the cabinet they were using with a set of keys that could be impossible to use if you didn't know the exact one you wanted. "You sound like one of us war veterans. They say that defence just becomes pure instinct after about a month of being out there."

Sometimes it was hard to remember that Suho had already served his term in the military, but he had been one of the lucky few that were placed into a sub-unit used only for maintenance purposes. It was sort of rule of thumb that if you came from a wealthy family then your placement would be better, although this was denied by almost all members of the pyramid of power.

"I want to be like you," Sungmi announced, looking hopefully to the older boy. "I want to become a military medic before Sunghee's term in the military. I want to be able to look after him."

Almost instantly, Suho's face turned sour. "Don't say things like that. You know it would never be allowed. The only medics allowed out on the front are male, and you know that. That's almost like saying you want to fight."

"I don't want to fight," Sungmi instantly countered as she made her way out of the building with Suho following, keys jangling with him. "I just want to protect my brother."

Suho's face became almost amused by his student. "You're rather single-minded, aren't you?" Suho asked as he locked up the building. “This is why your mother always moans at you. She wants you to settle down with a nice man already.”

Sungmi pulled an ugly face, causing Suho to chuckle a little.

"Do you know why I'm going back out to the war?" he quietly asked, now sounding very serious.

Shaking her head, Sungmi turned towards her mentor and watched as his face remained sombre.

"I didn’t want to feel like a cheater," he admitted quietly, eyes focused onto his feet. "I don't want to feel like my time there was so easy because of who my parents are. I wanted to actually contribute something to the effort."

Sungmi thought about what he was saying, biting her lip. "And what if I want to do that too?" Sungmi asked, but not in any way aggressively. It was said instead with a quiet sadness.

Suho considered her claim, probably realising that she had just as much right to contribute as he did. "Both our reasons are a little selfish," he eventually said. "Me because of my pride, you because of your brother. The difference though, is that I wouldn't put any one patient ahead of the others. You would always do that for your brother."

Opening to answer, Sungmi was left closing it again. When it came to her brother, she would always be biased. “That doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t look after the other military personal too – I would.”

“And I’m sure you would do a great job, but it simply isn’t allowed. The closest a female medic has ever come to the front is in the training camps.”

“Then put me forward for that,” Sungmi pleaded, realising she wasn’t quite going to get her way, but that she might be able to watch over Sunghee for a short while more.

Suho glanced sideways at her unsurely. It wasn’t often a female wanted to be part of the military, and even less common for a female healer to want to become a medic.

“You aren’t qualified for that,” Suho responded, trying to dissuade the girl. “And it’s very hard to get qualified, too.”

Sungmi stared up at her mentor until he met her gaze head-on with slight trepidation. “They said that about becoming a healer to begin with,” she pointed out, and rightly so.

Suho let out a little sigh. “You know your parents wouldn’t like it.”

“This isn’t about my parents. This is about my brother.”

“And what about you? Is this really what you want to be doing?”

Looking at the older almost disbelievingly, Sungmi gave a nod. “I’ve always wanted to protect my family.”

“I’m not going to talk about this anymore,” Suho replied, sounding rather uncomfortable now. He knew why the girl wanted this, but he wasn’t prepared to just let her have her way yet. That wasn’t what made good medics. “We should get you home.”

Sungmi considered arguing, but she thought she saw a little glint in his eye. Even if he wasn’t saying it, he was thinking about it. And that had to be enough for her. She just had to prove herself as a medic. “I’ll show you,” she smiled at him. “I’ll make it impossible for you to recommend anyone else.”

Suho’s face softened towards her. “Well, good luck to you then.”

Although he didn’t have much intention of recommending the girl, her determination made it a little hard not to do so. Everyone loves a trier, and Suho was no exception.

And Sungmi, more than anyone Suho had ever met, proved to be a determined individual. Her grades shot up almost overnight, and her official request form couldn't just be ignored by anyone. When she came to ask Suho again, he had no choice but to submit her name for consideration. If this was what she truly wanted, then she had more than earned it.

So with that, Sungmi and three others from her year were invited to take the exam. This was something that Sungmi neglected to tell her parents, for the simple reason that they might try to interfere. It was only once she had passed the exam that she realised she could skirt around telling them any longer. She started with Sungsook, although wasn’t quite sure how her sister would react. When she – briefly – laid out her plan, her sister had simply stared at her for a moment before screwing up her face.

“Why?” was Sungsook’s initial qu