[-]

  Days flew by and then weeks were gone. The silence between Dara and Jiyong grew and even the servants grew quieter with the heavy atmosphere in the residence. They noted how the Ice Lord would go out to patrol more often instead despite the fact that the boarders are much more safer now with the new truce agreed upon by the young Dal King and the just-coronated Taeyang Crown Prince. They saw how miserable Miss Dara's backview was but also how whenever she turns around to face them, she would give them the brightest smile she could possibly managed.

  It is saddening to see their bubbly and kind-hearted, even at times strange and eccentric Dara slowly withdraw to herself.

  The change of ruler did not brought about any prosperity or peace to the Kingdom of Dal. Flash floods combined with the torrential rain during the monsoon season rendered the Southern part of the nation in wreckage. A strange plague which was infecting and taking lives at a horrible rate was spreading slowly from the North to the East and the rest of the country, spreading mass chaos and panic everywhere. With the instability everywhere, the Ice Lord who had initially planned to use the time saved from deflecting the Taeyang's military provocations to investigate into the mysterious circumstances surrounding his older brother Seunghyun's death was forced to go from area to area in relief efforts. Even the idle prince Seungri had stepped out of his residence at the seriousness of the disasters.

  Yet the palace doors remained tightly shut. The young King remains hesistant in using the state funds to rebuild the country or in aid-efforts and the new Queen Dowager too, kept herself dressed lavishly in the finest silk. The groans and cries of the people had switched from blaming the heavens to the incompetence of the imperial family.

  The royal physicians had claimed that it was a plague spreading through Dal. The infected showed symptoms of persistant high fever and rashes, which the physicians couldn't explain.

  "Did you hear? There was a Crown Prince that was supposed to be the King instead but he died really young. This must be the heaven's curse on us." Jisoo whispered to Dara at the marketplace, which was a lot quieter than usual. News that the plague had reached the Fire City made everyone eager not to leave their houses for fear of infection.

  "Rubbish..." Dara muttered, yet sounding a little worried. "How are they treating the woman showing the rashes and fever?"

  "I've heard that dunking her in ice water helps to cool her down. I suppose that's what the physicians are doing."

  Dara's eyes almost popped at the answer. Ice water on someone running with high fever?​​​​ It would be a miracle that she haven't died by now! Aghasted by the way how these treatment methods still exist, Dara found her way to the royal physician's bereau situated in the town.

  The old head physician eyed the relatively young woman with skepticism and disdain as she tried to tell him in an understandable way that these methods are ancient. The head physician, however annoyed, could not lash out at what he thought was an ignorant child with the knowledge that she is the lady that had caught the Ice Lord's eyes.

  "I can bring the fever down." Dara said finally with a huff, very aware of the distasteful glances that the physician is eyeing her with behind his smiling mask. He probably didn't even pay attention to what she said.

  True enough, despite the loud objections from Jisoo for fear of the possibility that her young miss would be contracted by the terrifying disease, Dara went ahead and supressed the woman's fever with a mixture of home remedies that she would use on Bom during their university days which include a series of simultaneous forcing and coaxing for her to take in large amount of water a day and wormwood tea, a remedy that was passed down from her grandmother. The physician stared in disbelief at the disappearing rashes on the woman, wondering where did Dara get her knowledge from.

  "The look on his face was priceless." Remarked Jisoo as they exited the home of the thankful woman whom they had not only cured but befriended in the past days while slapping on her arm. "There's so much mosquitoes here..."

  It's as if someone had rang a bell in Dara's head. "Mosquitoes!" She exclaimed after standing frozen for a minute, looking around her. "Mozzies! Its them that are causing all the trouble!"

  "You mean, mosquitoes kill people?" Jisoo frowned.

  "Look- the monsoon season- all these- all these-" Dara gestured around her frantically. "All these water! It's what that's breeding them! The disease isn't spreading, these mozzies are!"

  Before Jisoo could open , there was a shout from afar and they looked over to see a returning Seungri, tired, yet cheery looking. In a hurry, Dara rushed up to him before he could even get off his stallion.

  "I know what's causing the plague." Dara said speedily, ignoring Seungri's dropped jaw. "Get people to cover up their drinking water and wells and sweep away all the water on the floor and in the pits, Seungri."

  "What?"

  "It's the mosquitoes thats stinging and spreading fever, Seungri. The disease isn't infectious, the mosquitoes are!"

  "So you're saying that those tiny things are the ones wiping out our population." Seungri laughed, but upon the serious and slightly agitated look on Dara's face, coupled by the reminder of how Dara is able to indentify the weird liquid that burned the towers they had down, he complied hesitantly, issuing the command for every resident in the Fire City to do so.

  Miraculously, the horrifying rashes did not appear on a second person in the city. It had stopped completely almost like a spell. Word spreaded and soon enough everybody was clearing the stagnant water around them and there was a mad hunt for wormwood plants that Dara had used. The superstition was not cured, however. People across the entire Kingdom; in the North which was hit the hardest; sang praises for the young lady who managed to heal them when physicians and healers cannot, calling her their protector sent from the heavens and even Celestial Fairy.

  The illness was slowly being stopped everywhere. There are still one and two people that succumbed to the disease despite the new remedies but the vast population were recovering and rebuilding. People began to reemerge from their home and the dead are buried. Businesses started operating again, scarce at first, and then one by one. The Dals' livehoods were restored and the dark skies were clearing up to give way to a clear one again. Dara, as well as the Ice Lord who had been travelling tirelessly to aid in relief efforts, were hailed as heroes and praised to the skies. The people lamented that they should be the King and Queen of the country instead of the useless Taeil, who till now remained inresponsive to the sufferings of his subjects and people.

  But these rumours managed to penetrate the palace walls and reach the people within. The Queen Dowager was enraged at the comparison and gossiping among the folks about the new King and fanned the King's frustration with both his incapabilities and jealousy further. Under the Dowager's influence, the King ordered for his imperial guards to patrol the capitol, slaughtering anyone who dared to speak of opposing him. Yet his tactics did not surpressed the grudge in his people. Instead, their roars of outrage only became louder, demanding for the King to abidicate.

  The unrest continued to brew and Jiyong's carefree days were long gone as he's tied down with these official duties once again. It was deep into the night when he returned home yet again, drained and tired. The residence was quiet in a soft way. He's sure that no one would be awake at this untimely hour. The fatigue in his bones seemed to weigh his body down and he dragged himself to the direction of his room before his almost-closed eyes were caught on the gentle, flickering light that was kept lit in the room that was the nearest to the fences of the residence. Dara's. He dropped his gaze and hesitated. She must have left it burning when she fell asleep. Jiyong contemplated the possibility of her being awake, and he realised that ironically, he wished she wasn't. So many days and weeks had past with them feeling like there was something in between that he had forgotten how to properly hold her gaze anymore. He wished that she was asleep, so he could stare at her sleeping form and be reminded of the times where they could cuddle into a ball and stay silent for a million year yet feel as comfortable as anyone could be.

  He creaked the doors to Dara's room open and true enough, she was asleep in her bed, her back against him. He shuffled his feet over to her bedside as quietly as he could managed and gently blew the lights out before lying down beside her. It strange how he could still see her contour perfectly in the darkness. He sighed softly. She had kept herself busy going from areas to areas in the Fire City, treating and taking care of the people who are still sick. He had opposed for the same reasons that Jisoo did, but she claimed that it wasn't infectious and she would be fine if she wasn't stung. He was worried sick for her and wracked with the terrifying thoughts of her becoming as ill as those people at least 10 times a day on duty but he just couldn't manage himself enough to express it.

  "Your third brother Donghae sent a letter today. He hoped that I could go over to his city to help out with the epidemic."

  Jiyong, who had reached out his hand to feel her warm brown hair halted at the soft voice and he slowly withdrew it. Dara opened her eyes, her vision filled with the white walls in front of her but aware of the man she loves that is lying behind her.

  Why would Donghae Hyung want her around? Jiyong remembered what Seungri told him about when their hyung came over. The eyes he had when he looked at her, his Dara, they weren't neutral and it irked him, even if he was his own blood related brother.

  "Are you going?" Jiyong asked in a quiet voice. The city is faraway.

  "I don't know, Jiyong." Dara answered, sounding very exhausted. Going about helping people is physically draining her and the lack of exchange between them is emotionally her dry.

  Jiyong paused, before he opened his mouth again. "You want to get away from us." He said softly.

  To Dara's surprise and heartache, she didn't deny it. Maybe it's true and he's right. Maybe the reason that she hadn't rejected the weird guy's offer was not only the will to help more people, but to get away fom the torture of only being able to make small talks with the one she so passionately loves.

  She thought that it was okay for her because she knew he doesn't know how to express himself. She thought it was okay if he doesn't explain things before she was so sure her trust for him was bigger than anything else. But she didn't thought about the side effects, and now they're slowly eating her up.

  "Maybe you're right." Dara whispered.

  And Jiyong felt something inside him tear a little apart in a place where stiches can't reach a little too silently.

[-]

  "You look like , hyung. Do you hate me this much?" Seungri mocked, both of them riding their stallion at a snail's pace.

  Jiyong smirked darkly at his talkative brother. The dark rims beneath his eyes were getting obvious, even comparable to Seungri's ones, which the latter had mercilessly about. He noted the change in his younger brother, seeing how responsible and serious he can be in a time of crisis. He commands his guards without an inkling of playfulness in his eyes, and Jiyong wonders if the little imp had finally grew up. Even so, Jiyong's mind was filled with 2 million things that were all tangled together in a sticky mess, making it hard for him to focus on anything else. It's frustrating and he loses his temper easier than ever. The soldiers who were just seeing how the Ice Lord had warmed up a little since the arrival of Miss Dara were now scared of the Lord's wrath again.

  "Let's drink, kid." Jiyong said, his eyes trained on an inn infront of them.

  Seungri followed the direction of his hyung's gaze and frowned. He was the one in charge of the drinking between the brothers. Jiyong hyung rarely even drinks to keep himself in top-notch condition all the time.

  "Is it about Dara?" Seungri asked after Jiyong had downed his seventh cup. There was a slight pink tint to the latter's cheek and his eyes were slowly losing focus. Seungri's first cup was still fully filled. He knew that with this rate that hyung is going he wouldn't stop until he'd completely passed out.

  "Did she tell you anything?" Jiyong asked gruffly.

  "Yeah, she said you aren't speaking to her. Like I couldn't tell. Maybe I should tell her to be appreciative because at one point of time you spoke like 3 sentences at most a day." Seungri answered, his face in his palms, itching for the alcohol infront of him. Ugh, restrain yourself. His mind barked. You'll have to hog this drunk prince back later.

  "Maybe you should date me instead. You speak to me just fine."

  "Trash." Jiyong muttered, tipping the remaining content of his cup into his throat.

  Seungri was surprised by how well his brother is able to hold his alcohol. Even after draining two jugs of wine all by himself, he could still walk upright showing no signs of drunkness except for a slightly dazed and vacant look in his eyes. The younger exhaled heavily, which went unnoticed by his older counterpart. He wonders if he made the right decision to bring the two together back then. He had never seen Jiyong Hyung drank this much before, not even when Seunghyun Hyung passed away. How miserable must he be feeling inside?

  He turned to look at Jiyong but he was missing from his side. Confused, Seungri looked around to see him frozen to the ground a few steps behind him, his hazy eyes focused on something up ahead. Perplexed as to why he isn't moving when they're a few steps away from home, Seungri turned his curious eyes onto the direction of Jiyong's vision and frowned at the sight.

  Under the setting sun and infront of the back gate of Jiyong hyung's residence stood a hesitant looking Dara who didn't seem to have noticed their presence. Infront of her, with his hands on her shoulders, was the new Crown Prince of Taeyang.