The room outside Mother Soonkyu’s office was quiet and comfortable. There wasn’t anywhere else to be; after the Council meeting which Dahyun had been supposed to attend had failed they didn’t have anything to prepare her for for a few more days, and everyone was a bit too busy to spare her any attention.

“You seem better.”

Dahyun looked up at Sana, sitting nearby, and smiled. “I’m okay,” she said gently.

Sana leaned forward in her seat, a playful smile on her face. “So why did you vanish just in time for the meeting?”

“Hm?”

“You can’t have just gotten lost. They were supposed to guide you there. What went wrong?”

Dahyun didn’t want to say that she’d been led away by a stranger. How stupid did she have to be to believe that Mother Soonkyu really wanted her to leave that woman’s side?

And that man… she’d been told not to speak to him, but not given a reason. Just a simple demand; and somehow, it made her more curious than ever. She’d never exactly been the rebellious type, but what did that matter now? She was intrigued.

He was intriguing, anyway.

She had to shake herself back into reality. Sana was waiting for an answer.

“It… well, this place is like a maze,” Dahyun said defensively. “I really just got lost.”

“Uh huh,” Sana said, leaning back with a confident smirk. “I saw that look in your eyes.”

“What do you think I did?” Dahyun laughed nervously, trying to diffuse her own tension.

“I don’t know,” Sana looked at her fingernails idly. “Met a boy?”

She met Dahyun’s eyes then, and Dahyun looked away fast, the faintest smile appearing on her face in spite of herself.

“Oooh!” Sana brightened in an instant. “Tell me about him!”

Dahyun shook her head quickly, standing up. “I didn’t say anything,” she said nervously, moving away. She left the room without another word, looking around the place thoughtfully. What had given her more confidence? Was it Jimin?

She didn’t know, but she moved forwards with a strange comfort in her chest. She was going to get lost again, and as always, he’d appear. He was going to make everything make sense. She knew the general way to the moon side this time, and it was without too much confusion that she started convincing herself she was there.

But once she’d made it, of course, she started to wonder. This was rash. Beyond stupid. Who was to say she’d find him? She chided herself, opening another door and stepping forward – but someone was on the other side.

She flinched, eyes going very wide as she looked. A woman; tall and overwhelmingly glamorous, looking at Dahyun with cold eyes.

Dahyun bowed deeply. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bump into you.”

“You didn’t bump into me,” she answered, and Dahyun peeked up from her bow. The woman was still blank. “You’re from the Sun Clan, right? What are you doing here?”

Dahyun stood upright, unsure if she should say it. “I… well, I was hoping to see someone.”

“Who?”

“Jimin,” Dahyun answered, her heart beating wildly. The woman narrowed her eyes, leaning back slightly.

“You want to see my betrothed?” She asked, and Dahyun’s face fell, bringing the other woman to chuckle quietly as she drifted past Dahyun. “That rake. I’ll need to talk to him.”

B-betrothed? He was betrothed?

“He’d be with the Council now. Come back in a few hours.”

“R-right,” Dahyun said, turning and watching the beautiful woman moving away. Dark curls bouncing as she walked, a strong air of confidence all around her, just hanging in the air. She sighed to herself as she turned back, looking into the room she’d nearly entered. She flinched out of her skin when she met a pair of bright orange eyes – that man again.

No, not him. She turned instantly, moving fast as she could. Just get away from him.

She shut her eyes tight for a few seconds as she walked, stress aching in her head.

Was it even worth thinking about how much she hated being here?

She made it back better this time. The paths to and from each side were beginning to make sense, that armoured statue she’d once bumped into becoming a landmark. When she returned, opening the door into the room from which she’d abandoned Sana, Soonkyu was standing there, tall and refined with a hand on the backrest of a sofa. She looked over at Dahyun quickly, staring hard.

“Where did you vanish to?”

“I’m sorry, Mother Soonkyu,” Dahyun said, bowing deeply. “I was wandering.”

Soonkyu was surprised by that; her gentle eyes lit with a degree of understanding, and she nodded calmly. “I see. Be careful, child. This temple is not as safe as it might appear.”

Dahyun remembered that man with his orange eyes. She tried not to shiver.

“I’m sorry,” she repeated. “Were you waiting for me?”

“Dahyun, tomorrow we are going to give you the Sun.”

Dahyun held her breath. She didn’t have much of an idea of a timeline. That wouldn’t mean her life was over tomorrow, wouldn’t it?

Her thoughts dissipated into fuzz the moment the idea occurred to her.

“You’ll be introduced to the Star Council immediately after.” She smiled weakly. “I don’t want to keep you in the dark.”

Dahyun nodded slowly. “Wh-when will… you know…”

The light faded from Mother Soonkyu’s eyes. “Don’t worry about that, child,” she said softly. “You have time yet. Focus on living.”

Dahyun didn’t like that answer. She bit down the temptation to press her further, instead bowing deeply. “Very well, Mother Soonkyu.”

Soonkyu didn’t answer. When Dahyun broke the bow, she didn’t have anything to say, just a heavy weight in the back of her mind.

How was she supposed to live when she was trapped here? She searched for words, some way to break the silence. But the more she tried the more desperately she wanted to get away.

So without another word, she rushed out of the room.

***

“This is annoying.” Jiyong rested his head against a hand, holding a parchment open with the other one. Jimin was quiet, listening to their meeting with nothing to say.

He avoided thinking about Dahyun, the bright girl who kept appearing for no good reason. He hoped she didn’t appear again. Not now that she knew.

“I thought you were glad they weren’t participating in the Star Council for another week?”

Seunghyun’s comment brought their brave leader a sigh. “I was. But we’re just delaying the inevitable. They weren’t even willing to tell us if they’ve found a sacrifice.”

He’d always hated his curse. How could he not? If it wasn’t there, things would be so different. He would have a mother. A father who loved him. He might be lower-class, but people would be happy to spend time around him.

He might have turned out a much different person. But why did he have to dwell on this? He’d spent years being miserable about it. All that had given him was the misery in question.

“Surely they’ve found one by now,” Yuri said, tapping fingers against the table. “Does it even matter that much? They just need to put the essence in someone and then stab them.”

“You know that it matters,” Seunghyun said. “The Sun Bearer is a target for everyone. They need to at least be strong.”

“Can’t Soonkyu do it?” the lightest smile appeared on Jiyong’s face as he spoke. Jimin rolled his eyes.

“Sounds good,” Hyomin said with a chuckle. “Maybe then we’ll get some sign of free thought from the rest of their council.”

Jimin stood, cutting off the bored atmosphere. Death controlled his life, forced his decision at every fork in the road. It didn’t help to hear people speaking of it so flippantly.

“Excuse me,” he said, voice quiet. They said nothing, but they didn’t carry on either. They kept looking, and he left, feeling their eyes on his back until he’d closed the door behind him. He returned to the dorms quietly, moving through familiar halls. In the other room Tzuyu turned her head from her seat.

“You!” She said, her eyes alight with a wearisome mischief. Jimin looked at the person sitting opposite her; a man around their age, likely someone hoping to join the Star Council just like everyone else. He looked like he wanted to leave – probably because Jimin the killer had just walked in.

“I need to be touching you to kill you,” Jimin said boredly. Tzuyu looked back at the man, who was surprised.

“Don’t mind him,” Tzuyu said. “He’s just mopey.”

Jimin rolled his eyes as he moved further in. “Did you have something to talk to me about, Tzuyu?”

“There was a girl looking for you,” Tzuyu said, turning back with an unbearable smile on her face. “She looked like she was from the Sun Clan. What’s that about?”

It took a few seconds to go through his mind.

“I have no idea,” he said honestly. He was tempted to ask about her – was it Dahyun? Why?

“She asked for you by name. It was weird. And then she ran away.”

“What… what did she look like?”

“She looked… normal.”

“You could be more specific.”

“Why? Hoping she’s pretty?”

Jimin sighed, making Tzuyu’s smirk grow even more. “It might help me identify her, that’s all.”

“What, you expect to have lots of girls from the Sun Clan looking for you?”

Jimin held the stare for a few seconds. It wasn’t going to go anywhere. He looked over at the man sitting opposite her.

“Who are you, anyway?”

Tzuyu laughed joyfully, looking back over at the man.

“I’m Jungkook,” he said. “A friend of your betrothed’s.”

There was a hint of aggression in his voice. Probably his curse. He always met the worst side of everyone.

But what about that girl?

He battered the thought out of his mind. Dahyun had no place being there. If it was her…

Well, it wouldn’t be. She knew the truth now. Why would she want to see him ever again?

“Don’t call me that,” Tzuyu said with a hint of disgust in her voice. “I’m Tzuyu more than I’m that.”

Jungkook looked over, surprised. “Oh. Sorry.”

But what if she did?

Maybe it was time for him to appear at her side of the Temple. He left the room without another word, mind stewing.

It was funny, standing in the halls dedicated to those of the Sun Clan and going entirely unrecognised. People passed him, glancing at him, never sparing another look. He leaned against the walls calmly – most here were busy, lower servants rushing to deliver messages, probably preparing for the next meeting.

He enjoyed observing them, but his line of thought was cut off when he realised someone had stopped in their tracks. He turned slowly, battling down his smile when he recognised the shocked face of Dahyun.

“I heard you wanted to see me?” he asked, his smirk winning the fight.

Dahyun blinked, looking away, a faint sheet of red over her. “Why would I want that?”

“That’s what I’m wondering, too.”

She met his eyes, pulling herself together. “You’re betrothed!”

Well, that was unexpected.

“Yes.”

“Why didn’t you tell me!?”

That… that was what she wanted to confront him about?

“Should I have?”

She blinked. “W-well,” she started, looking down for a second. He watched her with a small smile growing on his face. “No. I just thought that- well- no, you had no reason to tell me.”

She looked strangely defeated, cheeks red as she pretended she had no reason to care. Jimin liked her. He realised it now with shocking clarity. He wasn’t just curious about her.

“So, why did you ask my betrothed about me?”

“I… just…” she looked him straight in the eyes, searching for an answer. “I wanted to know why I’m not supposed to talk to you.”

He tried not to tense up, nodding and turning away. She didn’t know.

He shouldn’t be disappointed.

“What did she tell you?”

“Nothing. Just that I should stay away from you.”

“She didn’t think that through, did she?”

Dahyun giggled. “Maybe I’m predictable.”

Jimin struggled to see the humour in the situation, but she didn’t know what he did. It would have been better if she’d hated him. None of this uncertainty. Maybe he should just tell her – say exactly what he was.

“Do… you have any idea?” She asked, looking up at him with big eyes. He shook his head, not even realising what he was doing. He just needed the line of conversation to be over.

And she had very nice eyes.

“Hmm,” she said, frowning. “Maybe it’s a misunderstanding then.”

“I’m from the Moon Clan. I imagine that’s it. Is that all?”

“What?”

He smiled, curtly. “Is that all you wanted to talk to me about?”

“Oh, um… I suppose so.”

“I should go, then,” he said, turning.

“Why?” Dahyun asked, shock in her voice, and when he turned back he saw that she’d moved a few steps closer to him. That didn’t help – she had things to learn about him, and he didn’t have the courage to make her learn.

“I have things to do, Dahyun.”

Something about his voice upset her. She recoiled, looking displeased. “Fine,” she said, and he felt her eyes on him as he walked away.

“Wait,” she said moments before he turned a corner, and he glanced back at her. “You should meet me later. In the outdoor garden – do you know where that is?”

“Yes,” Jimin said, his pulse louder all of a sudden. Dahyun smiled.

“Midnight.”

He smiled in spite of his predicament as he turned to move away. It seemed that this girl would always be able to make him smile.

a/n- whew. let's hope I can keep this speed going!