**3 years later** 

Ye Jin emerged from her bedroom, eager to start the day with Nam Joon. The two cousins had arranged to head to the flower gardens to commemorate the start of their third year in College. The first time they went there was when Ye Jin and the Park clan moved North.  

It took everyone a while to get settled into their new schools and workplaces, but that was the price they paid for agreeing to the separation in the new Treaty between the clans. Ye Jin, especially, was forced to resign from her various SNS accounts for her senior year at high school, for fear that Jung Kook or Suga would find her and want to meet up with her.  

Her transition from South to North went as smoothly as possible, as her transcripts were faxed over to her new school and she never had to cross the borders since she arrived.  

Now, Nam Joon stood in her doorway, leaning against it, staring at her putting on lipstick.  

"How long is that gonna take?" He teased. 

She smacked her lips together and turned to him smiling. The red tint on her lips made her smile much more emphasized. "Ready!" She announced as she took her bag from the table and rushed to meet him.  

They said their goodbyes to his parents and headed out into the crisp Fall air. The flower garden was a few blocks away from their neighborhood, so they settled for a morning walk rather than taking the crowded public bus. On their way, they saw other neighbors and greeted them warmly. No one suspected that they were witches, and Ye Jin wanted to keep it that way.  

They finally arrived, but it seemed that they were too early, as the gates were still closed.  

"That's strange," Nam Joon said. He checked his watch and the gates were supposed to be opened half an hour ago.  

Ye Jin strolled to the left of the gates, where a guard booth stood. No one was there. Instead, she tried to contact the Managing office for the gardens, but they didn’t pick up either. The two cousins looked at each other, confused.  

Just as they were about to walk off and head for something to eat, the gates creaked opened.  

"Okay, that was you, right?" Nam Joon asked her, accusing her of using her powers. 

She shook her head, and made a step towards the gates. 

"You're going in?" Nam Joon asked, hesitantly. 

"Well, they're opened, right?" She walked closer until she was behind the gates.  

There was no one inside. The grounds were bare of people and the only noise that entered were from the cars outside. As soon as Nam Joon joined her inside, the gates clanged shut behind them. 

Nam Joon jumped and exclaimed, "What in the fresh hell was that?" 

Ye Jin's eyes widened, but she knew she had to keep calm for Nam Joon. "Let's just walk and see if there's another gate around here." 

She tugged at his shirt sleeve and walked on. The further they walked, the more the silence engulfed them. The cars got further away and the breeze whispering through the bushes was all they had to remind them that they weren't dreaming.  

After 15 minutes of walking in silence, a strong sense of lavender covered them.  

"What is that?" Nam Joon asked. 

'Lavender, of course."   

"But we passed lavender already," he informed her.  

She winced, knowing he was right. 'Let's keep going." From what she knew of lavender, it was used to cure common colds and heal cuts or bruises. She pushed the thoughts away as she stepped forward, continuing through the path of rose bushes.  

"Park Ye Jin," a voice called out.  

The two stood perfectly still, finally giving in to the thought that they were not alone.  

"Ye Jin-ah," Nam Joon whispered.  

A fog began to consume them. The rich green of the bushes faded to a papery green behind the fog. Just as the fog reached their knees, it stopped, becoming thicker. 

"Okay, what the hell is going on?" Nam Joon demanded.  

Ye Jin looked at her cousin, mirroring his concern and cluelessness.  

"Park Ye Jin," the voice called out again.  

This time, Ye Jin knew exactly where it was coming from. She turned around sharply, now facing the direction from which they came. She could see the faint purple of the small lavender leaves.  

"Nam Joon-ah," she called behind her. "Keep walking and get out of here."  

"What? I don’t even know where to go!" He retorted.  

"Keep going on the path and you're bound to find another gate. Now go, quickly!"  

Nam Joon sighed but listened to her warnings. He paced off away from her. Ye Jin knew that something was wrong. The gates opening for them and closing as soon as they entered, could mean only one thing: this was a trap. If she was right, she didn’t need her cousin to be a victim.  

Ye Jin followed the path, to the voice. She took another 10 steps before she heard it again. 

"Ye Jin-ah," it called out. 

Why had the voice just dropped honorifics? She felt insulted momentarily, but focused on the fact that she didn’t even know who was calling her even more.  

"Stop," it instructed. 

She followed. Suddenly, a figure emerged from the fog and approached her. The outline was taller than her and had a slender frame. The stroll tickled her memory as well as the overall vibe she got from it.  

When the figure was close enough, the fog dissipated and Ye Jin gasped. In front of her stood someone she had worked to hard to erase from her memory. However seeing him now brought all the memories back, along with the emotions. She stared at him, unaware of how to act. He smiled back, that familiar mischievous smile that she had met in her dreams several times and dreaded seeing by the time she woke up. But, how could he be here? It made no sense. He could be persecuted for this. He took a step closer to her, never letting his gaze leave her.  

"Ye Jin-ah," he said in a calm, sweet voice that sent butterflies soaring in her stomach. 

"Yoon Gi-ah."