The Mirror King sat pensively on his throne, his elbows on his knees, his chin resting on his folded hands as he let the silence in the SM Court Haven draw out. The Courtiers were still, watching him, waiting to hear what he had to say about last night’s events - about what judgement he may pass.

He gave a heavy sigh and sat back, gripping the armrests of the gilt throne in his fists as he sought for the words.

“I…” he tried, but paused. He stood slowly and smoothed his jacket, fastening the buttons as he looked straight ahead.

“I cannot remember a time this year when I have been obeyed, given my due respect, or had all of my children here with me, happy and healthy.” He clasped his hands behind his back. For a moment, he was still. He was so still, one could have mistaken him for a mannequin, a silvery prop dressed in black finery. “You have all done remarkably well at sneaking around behind my back, making pacts with the Gentry, and putting this entire Court at risk. Possibly putting all of Seoul at risk.

“My Lost. My Changelings. You did this.” He sighed again and let his head droop. “Though I suppose you have already faced the consequences of your actions. There is little else I can do to punish you beyond what you have already done to yourselves. “You will have to carry these memories and experiences with you, and I hope for all of our sakes that you have learned something from this.” He descended his steps and stared at each one of them in turn, but they couldn’t look up at him. Not one of them could face their own reflection on his features.

“But,” the King said finally, coming and resting a hand on Victoria and Leeteuk’s shoulders, then grasping each one of the rest of them in a similar manner. “You did it. Somehow, you’ve done it.” He gave a great, heavy sigh. “You are all free to go. But Red Velvet? Your new promotions start soon, so please rest up.”

Joy looked like she was going to faint clean away at the mention of their promotions and Wendy slumped against the taller girl in silent dismay. Irene’s shoulders shook as she exhaled in amusement and Seulgi simply stared at the King in shock as he ascended to his throne once more and tiredly sat himself upon it.

Heechul strode away into the mist-filled wings as they were dismissed and came to stand by Yeri, the SM Court’s Oracle.

“All the world’s a stage, and the men and women merely players,” she murmured to him as he settled against the wall.

“Don’t. That’s creepy,” Heechul said glowering at her.

“Don’t what?”

“Quote Shakespeare. You’re like 10.”

“I’m 16, thank you very much.”

“Whatever, just keep it down. You don’t want anyone to overhear you talking about people’s ‘exits and entrances’ right now.”

“But that’s what made me think of it,” she countered. “Besides, aren’t people like us supposed to adore Shakespeare?”

Heechul smirked. “I’ve always been more of an Oscar Wilde fan, myself.”

Yeri just rolled her eyes, thinking Heechul probably took one too many pages out of Dorian Gray’s playbook. “I think A Midsummer Night’s Dream is more appropriate.”

“THAT QUOTE ISN’T EVEN FROM A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM!” he hissed violently, but after a moment he followed her gaze and saw that while the rest of their group had dispersed, Jessica remained behind, still staring up at the King with a challenging expression.

The King sat up, noticing the nearly invisible girl as well. The only way he could really tell she remained was from the way her Seeming shifted about her form, folding and creasing like a robe of silken, transparent cloth, warping the air around her.

“Jessica, my dear, was there something more?” he asked politely.

His tone grated on her. After everything, everything, it was going to be back to business as usual, and she couldn’t stand it any longer.

“I’m out,” she said.

The King paused for a long moment, then, with an elbow on his armrest, he placed his chin on his fist. “I’m sorry, my dear, what-”

“I said I’m out,” Jessica iterated, loudly. The Hall fell silent. “I’m breaking my Contract with the SM Court. I’m done.” She balled her hands into fists to keep them from shaking and in a breath. The abandonment, the laissez-faire attitude, the resignation with which he had dealt with all of their disappearances…

… and how he hadn’t even bothered to make her a Fetch.

“I’m done.”

The King looked down at her and slowly leaned forward. “To break a Contract with me,” he began in a quiet, low voice, but she interrupted him in a fury.

“I don’t care!” she shouted up at him. “You! You don’t care! Not about me, not about the others…!” She took another breath. He was just as bad as her old master; with or without her Seeming, he always seemed to look right past her, like she were cellophane. “I can’t do it anymore,” she said, her voice dropping as she came down from her rage. “I won’t.”

And with a swirl of displaced, undulating waves of air, Jung Jessica left the SM Court Haven.

+++

“Jessica, wait.”

It was cold - much colder than usual for this early in the fall, the last day of September, and as Jessica paused near the fountain, she hugged her thin coat around herself, her breath clouding in front of her face. It was the first time she had been able to change her clothes since July, and she still hadn’t managed to dress herself suitably. Perhaps one day she would be able to laugh at this memory.

Perhaps.

She heard Taeyeon trot up behind her.

“Jessica.”

“Heechul told me what you did. He told me you finally came.” Jessica’s voice cracked in the crisp fall air.

Taeyeon stopped a few feet behind her. The horror and the echoes of the Horned One, the magnitude of what she had nearly done in that cave would continue to give her night terrors for years to come. But it had been worth it. Saving all of them, saving her had been worth it. Even if in the end, it was too late.

“I waited too long,” Taeyeon finally admitted.

Jessica raised her chin and closed her eyes, willing back the tears. “Yeah.”

For once, things were simple between them. It had taken a kidnapping to Arcadia for Jessica to finally come to terms with just how simple things truly were, but there it was.

She continued walking.

“Yeah, you did.”

+++

There was a knock at their door and Joy answered. “Sulli?” She asked, backing up so the ex-F(x) member could enter their dorm suite.

She gave Joy a small smile by way of greeting and looked around the living room. “Is Irene here?” she asked, though she soon spotted the Red Velvet leader herself curled up on the couch.

Irene immediately stood and came over to give Sulli a hug. It had barely been a full day since they had emerged from the cave, and Irene was just so happy they had all returned, she was a little more clingy to those around her than was her wont.

But the younger girl soon pulled away. “Hey Irene, uh, is… is your Fetch around?” she asked hesitatingly.

Irene glanced away and nodded. Running into her likeness over and over again throughout the day had been very disorienting, and last night had been especially awkward, but the Fetch had been very compliant with the situation and had volunteered to sleep on the couch. “She’s here, why?” Irene said quietly.

Sulli shifted her weight uncomfortably and Joy made herself scarce.

“Sulli?” Seulgi asked from the hallway, turning slightly so Joy could pass. She came out and joined the two girls in the living room. “Are you okay?” Seulgi hadn’t had a chance to talk to anyone either before or after their audience with the King aside from her own members. “Were you hurt at all?”

Sulli shook her head and thanked her. “No, I’m fine.”

“And… and Amber?”

Sulli gave her a bracing smile. “It’s still early, but they think she’s going to pull through.”

Seulgi looked visibly relieved, and couldn’t help taking Irene’s hand, seeking support. Irene readily obliged and threaded their fingers together.

Sulli looked like she was having some difficulty, and Irene looked up at Seulgi. “Seul? Do you think you could give us a minute?” she asked.

“No, it’s fine if she’s here,” Sulli spoke up. “It’s just… Irene, if you’re ready, I can help you dismiss your Fetch.”

“D… dismiss…”

It sounded so final.

“How?” Seulgi asked, feeling Irene’s fingers tense around her own.

Sulli sighed. “It’s easier if the Fetch agrees to it. Irene, you know how your shadow’s gone, right?” Irene nodded mutely and Sulli continued. “It was used to make her. We’re just going to return it to you.” And Irene reflexively glanced down at the floor behind Sulli, and to her shock, there spread out behind her, faint upon the carpet, was Sulli's shadow.

Seulgi’s eyes glanced around guiltily as she thought about the Fetch, their rehearsals, their music video shoot. She hadn’t treated her well, even though in the end she was still a part of Irene. And as she caught sight of the Fetch herself standing at the end of the hallway, watching them in mild alarm, Seulgi suddenly felt ill.

Had she heard?

That faint, uneven smirk - so like Irene and yet not - clouding expression suggested that she had. She slowly approached their group. “I… I guess t-time’s up?” the Fetch tried to joke, but stumbled over the words.

No one could meet her eyes.

It hurt more than she expected it would. She knew once she saw Irene - the real Irene - walk through that door that it was only a matter of time before she would be dismissed, but she hadn’t anticipated it feeling quite like this. She was afraid. In these past few days, she had tasted an entire spectrum of emotions and experiences: exhilaration, exhaustion, love and longing, pain both physically and emotionally, but what awaited her now? Cold, dark oblivion?

Or, as she watched Irene until the girl finally met her gaze, would she finally feel complete?

Seulgi suddenly brushed her fingers along the Fetch’s arm, drawing her attention. “Hey,” she tried, but then stopped.

The Fetch settled into a soft, yet wry smile as she looked up at her.

“I’m… sorry,” Seulgi finally said, at a loss for how to adequately express her regret.

With a hand on Seulgi’s shoulder, the Fetch leaned up and kissed her on the cheek, and as her lips lingered for a moment, Seulgi felt tears stinging her eyes. It was as if she really were saying goodbye to a part of Irene, in a way.

“I know,” the Fetch replied, settling back on her heels. She returned her attention to Irene, who pulled her into a hug, and they held each other tightly.

And the fetch realized it wasn’t like saying goodbye after all.

It was like coming home.

And just like that, she was gone.

Though really, it was as if she had never actually left.   

+++

Sulli returned to the hospital to see if one of the other girls needed to go home and freshen up. They had wordlessly agreed on spending as much time in Amber’s room as they were allowed, but the nurses were adamant about Amber needing as much quiet and rest as possible.

When she arrived, she saw the predictable sight of Victoria, Luna, and Krystal sprawled out on the room's various pieces of furniture, dozing. There was no real place left for her - and she couldn’t help but smirk at that - so she lowered herself onto the floor and leaned against the armchair Victoria was currently asleep in.

Save for the fact that Amber was still in critical condition, she very much enjoyed the fact that they were all in the same room together once again. As she watched them sleep, she considered how hard it must have been for them to have no idea where she was, or if she would return, and then to have to deal with her Fetch… She knew that hadn’t gone over well.

It had in fact gone over so poorly, that they had elected to split the group and cast the Fetch out. It was an irreversible decision, according to the King, and after Amber recovered, F(x) would resume their activities without her.

As she let her head rest against the arm of the chair and began to drift off, she could have sworn she felt Victoria's fingers gently brushing the hair out of her face.

+++

“How did you escape it?” Irene asked, watching Seulgi out of the corner of her eye as the taller girl came to sit next to her on the couch. It was nice to no longer have to worry about seeing Henry every time they turned a corner in their own dorm, and the girls were taking full enjoyment of their newly restored privacy, with Joy sprawled out on the floor and Wendy taking a call in the kitchen.

Seulgi blinked at her. “Escape what?”

“My Seeming- my power Seulgi. That light,” she explained. The incident in the cave - funny that they had all returned more or less intact and were able to call it a mere incident now - still hadn’t quite left her mind, even days later.

Seulgi shrugged. “I don’t know. Uh, why? Was it supposed to… get me, too?” She still wasn’t quite sure how Irene’s Seeming worked, but the results had been pretty clear.

Irene glanced away. “It’s supposed to enchant you. It’s supposed to draw you in and… you become obsessed with me and lose yourself.” Not only was it awkward to try to explain it herself, but having to describe the effects of her Seeming brought back the visions of her victims as they were caught by her. “It makes you completely devoted to me.”

Seulgi cocked her head for a moment, as her gaze drifted this way and that in thought. After a moment, she took Irene’s hand in her own and gave it a soft squeeze. “I meant what I said,” she said quietly, so Joy wouldn’t overhear. She turned a little to get a better look at Irene. “I love you already, Irene. I think I have for a lot longer than I realize.” And maybe that’s why she hadn’t quite noticed Irene’s Seeming before. Just maybe. “And besides,” she added, growing embarrassed at the way Irene was staring up at her in wonder. “I did promise I wouldn’t leave you.”

But as Irene was reaching up to take Seulgi’s face in her hands, leaning in to kiss her, Wendy walked back into the living room, hanging up her phone.

“Oh, come on guys, you share a bedroom already. Can’t the living room at least be a neutral zone?” She made a show of rolling her eyes, but frankly she didn’t care if they got right there on the couch, she was just that happy that they were all together again.

Joy gave Wendy an odd look, but said nothing.

The two older girls composed themselves, but Seulgi compromised by taking Irene’s hand again.

“Who was that on the phone?” Irene asked after clearing . Joy sat up from her sprawled position to listen.

“Actually it’s kind of a big deal,” Wendy admitted, making sure she had everyone’s attention. “It was our manager. He told me we’re going to have a meeting about it later, but they’re going to be adding another member to our group.”

“What?”

“Who?!”

“When?”

Wendy blinked at the barrage of questions. “It’s Yeri, the Oracle.”

Joy paled. Wendy came and sat beside her on the carpet, facing the two girls on the couch.

“You remember her from our predebut stuff right?” Wendy asked Irene and Seulgi, and they nodded. 

After her initial knee-jerk reaction, dismayed that their group had only just been reunited to suddenly have another member tossed in, Irene beamed. She actually really liked Yeri, despite her prophetic nature. “Come on, Joy, I think she’ll be a nice addition,” Irene began, seeing how the youngest was still in shock. Joy visibly relaxed as Wendy put an arm around her shoulders and finally nodded.

Seulgi was pleasantly surprised to see how welcoming everyone was being. She saw no immediate reason why Yeri shouldn’t join Red Velvet, and if the King wanted to add another member, wasn’t that a good sign about their futures?

“No matter what happens, as long as we’re still together, I think it’ll be alright,” Seulgi said to the group.

“Red Velvet forever!” Joy shouted jubilantly as she crushed Wendy in a hug.

“What do you say?” Seulgi asked, turning a wide grin back to Irene.

“Say to what?” Irene looked up at her askance, though there was still that smirk playing upon her lips, amused at the others’ antics.

“To forever,” Seulgi murmured.

Irene fought to breathe, a brilliant blush coloring her cheeks. She hid her face in the crook of Seulgi’s neck and smacked her in the arm.

“In your dreams.”

fin

+++ Thank you. +++

WHOOWEE. I said I wouldn't work on this and suddenly here it is. I hope everyone finds this ending more or less satisfactory, and before I say anything else, if you still have questions or are confused about anything, please don't hesitate to ask! I love reading each and every one of your comments, and nothing brings me more joy than when a reader is confused about something, but so invested in the story that they bother to ask about it.

And on the subject of comments, reading everyone's reactions, especially to the last ten or so chapters has nearly brought me to tears on several occasions. I know this isn't a terribly popular genre, and that the beginning of this story was pretty rough around the edges, but your support chapter after chapter has really floored me. Once again, I find myself at the end THE END of a story I wrote, and what a marvel that is to me. I was able to do this because of you guys. I have never been part of a nicer, more supportive fandom than this one, and trust me, I've been around.

So thank you. 

And now on to business: I have decided to leave the Intermission chapters where they are, here in this story, and when I am ready to post a new character origin, I will copy them into the new oneshot collection. It will not be under the Seulrene tag, because there won't be any Seulrene (or any pairings, beyond possible hints), so please look out for it under my authored stories. I will definitely tag the characters in it as they crop up installment to installment, and I will try to announce it on my twitter as well, which is @ThisIsHaro.

It's been a ride. See you in the next story.

<3 Haro