"I have finished the one over here!"

Jennie got her mind completely distracted just by the sound of Jisoo's voice. It was bloody hot and she was sweating. Yet, she found no reason to complain. Three days of planting trees together did not make her enjoy any of this less; not when the exquisite beauty of the Venusian and her husky voice were there to accompany each and every day. 

"Good job there, Jisoo" 

Jisoo made a bashful smile upon the remark. Jennie's eyes stayed on the Venusian as she pondered. 

"Are you tired doing this?" She finally asked. 

Jisoo looked at her rather panically. "N- no. Why?"

"You seem to look... a bit distant these past few days" 
 
"What do you mean?"

"I am not sure. You would usually do things like, commenting on my words..." Jennie glanced carefully, paying attention to Jisoo's aura and her choice of words. "Or picking a fight...?"

The Venusian immediately refused to meet Jennie's eyes. The answer was easy for her mind, yet complicated for her tongue. "I- I was just too focused on the trees. I have never really done such a thing back in my home"

"Really?" Jennie regained her smile as she sat down on the ground. "Now why don't we rest and listen to your stories?" 

Though looking doubtful at first, Jisoo mimicked Jennie's move, occupying the vacant space barely a few centimeters apart from the other girl. None broke the silence for a while after. The temperature felt exceptionally hot to the Venusian, either because of the weather or of Jennie's presence next to her, and she could feel bullets of sweat begin forming on her forehead. 

"Well?" The Martian caught her by surprise by suddenly turning her usual intense gaze at her. "Since you said you had never done this before, I was just wondering if you have grown up with trees since you were small" 

Jisoo nodded. "When I was finally old enough to be let out playing in the garden by myself, I saw hundreds of them already. At first I didn't really know how they grow, but one time I saw some gardeners planting the seeds" 

"Why don't you ask your mother to let you plant some?"

"I have always wanted to, but my mother always says that it's their duty to do so and I am not supposed to bother their job. Also, there doesn't seem to be a single spot around the castle where I cannot find enough trees growing" 

Hearing this made Jennie pull a smile; the kind of simper that showed pride, but not enough to be called cocky. "I am honored that I am the first one who made you do this and showed you how" 

"I- I already know how to, I just have never really put it into practice" Butterflies in her stomach. Jisoo could feel it when she incidentally caught the sight of Jennie's lips through the tail of her eyes. Looking away seemed to be the only way to dismiss it. "What about you then? Have you done this often?"

"Yes, quite often since I was a child. I assisted the gardeners a lot to plant and grow trees that produce floral nectar so we could earn some honey" 

"You... get honey from those trees?" Jisoo's stare slowly returned to the Martian's face. 

"Yeah, with the help of the bees of course. Why?" Jennie's fierceful eyes met her soft ones. Jisoo, though not turning away this time, once again had to look down at the ground. 

"Nothing, it's just... I never know exactly how honey is made. I just have it whenever I want it" 

"I can't have it that way here in Mars" Jennie responded. "I can only have it once in a blue moon. My mother once said I could have more if I want to, but I know the common Martians out there need it more"

She was looking a bit glum then, but had no idea that Jisoo was observing that. It was only after she looked up again that she noticed the way the Venusian was watching her, and how her own mood had affected the other girl's. 

In an attempt to brighten the atmosphere, Jennie smiled. "So when you have become my wife later, don't ask for too much honey, okay? Unless you are willing to plant a thousand of such trees for me"

Jisoo bit her lips, but then parted them again to retaliate. She was unable to tame the wild blush on her face this time. "Who said I'm going to become your wife for sure!?"

"I was just joking, because your face seemed so serious" The Martian's chortle was hearty, though short. 

"B- but... If- if that's the case, you can always... I mean, I can always help with some supplies from my planet" Jisoo said all of those with her eyes glued to the ground all the time.

Jennie was busy noticing how cute Jisoo's stutter was. That was before what Jisoo had just spoken out dawned on her. Her lips were stretched as widely as they could be, revealing her bright set of teeth. "Did you just basically say that you will become my wife?" 

"I didn't say that!" Jisoo's tone rose and her face was comparable to a tomato now. "If! I said 'if'!"

As if she had known that the Venusian would say that, Jennie simply reacted with silence. The sincere, happy smile was still there on her face, however. Who could blame her? An 'if' coming from this gorgeous-looking princess already drove her crazy. It was not just anybody; it was Jisoo - the girl whom she had fallen for as instantly as she saw her for the first time and whose soul was just as beautiful as her brightly-lit eyes, perfect nose, and heart-shaped lips. 

"Then I will wait until 'if' is no longer just an 'if'" 

Jisoo turned her head at her. She was greeted by the warmth and gentleness of the Martian's brown eyes. Jennie. How was she so perfect and how did she so smoothly break down all the walls she had put? 

"How did you spend your childhood, Jisoo?"

"Huh?" 

Jennie had spoken up again, stopping her from further rumination. Jennie had to repeat the question again. 

"I studied a lot but also played a lot" Jisoo explained. "All people in the castle are my friends. I spent a lot of time talking to them. I have never really felt like they are inferior. In fact, I have learnt a lot from them. I also read plenty of books, I told you before you won't believe that I like philosophy" 

"I have never said it is an unbelieveable" 

"How about you? How did you spend your childhood?"

"Me? Hmm... I think I did a lot of kingdom tasks, like planting trees, for example. But I also studied a lot of books and finished many paintings. Unlike you, I was not completely allowed to communicate often with the house caretakers"

Jisoo did nothing but listening earnestly. 

"I do have a childhood friend, though. Her name is Nayeon. She is the Princess of Pluto"

The Venusian looked up at her upon this. "You have a childhood friend?"

Jennie nodded. "She is the only friend I have, even until now, I think. I have never really considered anybody else as a friend. She used to visit Mars often, with her mother The Queen of Pluto for kingdom matters, but as time went by she no longer did. Until last week or so before you came, I got a news that she would be coming here after a while"

"I see" That was all that Jisoo could reply. That 'Nayeon' name did not sit well with her for some reasons she failed to acknowledge. 

They fell into moments without words again, but was then alerted by a voice coming from behind. 

"Your Highness" It was one of Jennie's group of guards. He knelt down in front of the two. "I would like to inform you that your mother want you and Your Highness Princess Jisoo to be back before dinner. She told me that she would like another dinner together"

"Understood. Thank you, you can go" Jennie replied before shifting her attention back at Jisoo. "Let's finish the planting soon, then we can go back"

Jisoo muttered an 'okay'. The image of another tense, awkward meeting with Queen CL was already lingering in her mind.

***

The dinner went quite alright, Jisoo recalled as she lay on her bed. 

There were only a few questions directed to her from Jennie's mom, most of which involved the places around the Kingdom she had visited so far, and what she and Jennie did that day. The powerful, charismatic presence of The Queen of Mars still had its way to intimidate her, but scared her much less compared to that first day. 

Then her mind wandered to her day with Jennie, particularly what Jennie had said to her earlier that evening. 

"I will wait until 'if' is no longer just an 'if'" 

She wanted to tell the Martian that she, too, no longer wanted it to be just an 'if'. True, the so-called prophecy said that they would get married anyway, so eventually it would no longer be just an 'if', but it was not that she was thinking of. It was her own feelings, her own decision to be with Jennie. And she was more than aware that Jennie was talking about the same 'if' too. 

Should she? Should she tell Jennie now that she was feeling the same way Jennie had always felt toward her since the beginning of time? 

It was this thought, rather than planting the seeds of the trees and having dinner with the almighty Queen of Mars, that made her tired. Her eyes reopened a few times only for her mind to refer back to the same dilemma, before she finally drifted into sleep. 

She woke up from a deep slumber in the most terrible way she had ever been woken up. 

How much time had passed since she was no longer awake, she had no idea, but one thing for sure she neither saw nor heard anything suspicious before then. Something that to her sounded like a sword being snatched out from its scabbard reached her ears, and it stirred her soul from her unconscious state. Her eyelids uncovered her tired orbs in a slow manner, still not ready to witness what was going to happen next. 

Still, she fleetingly flew her stare all over the room. For a second she thought she must have confused her dream with reality. She changed her mind, though, when seconds after that the sound of footsteps ensued, eerily filling her quiet bedroom. 

Jisoo jolted up, shifting into a sitting position on her bed now. "Jennie?" 

The footsteps had halted. The room went back to its absolute quiescence, leaving the Venusian bewildered. She let a few minutes tick by to ensure that no other sound or movement followed. It was during the last minutes that she noticed, with a terrorizing shock, that the linen that covered her door had had a hole on it. It was one that was big enough for a human's fist to sneak in, which was perhaps what led to the door's lock undone. 

Piling up her courage, she uncovered her legs from the blanket. Her feet touched the cold ground and she stood up. She had barely taken one step when she heard a yell from the right side of her bed. 

"Gaah!"

What seemed to her like a person clad in black costume darted toward her in the speed of a lightning. The blade in the attacker's hand glistened briefly before swaying through the direction of her right shoulder. Thanks to the training she had had for years, Jisoo was agile enough to dodge to the back, making her land on the bed hard. The sharp tip of the weapon would have done quite a damage to her flesh had it not been for her quick move. 

She had caught her breath only once when the person in black made the next move by standing before her with hands holding the blade upside down. The weapon plummeted like a lightning hurtling down from the sky, targeting Jisoo's stomach. Once again, the Venusian managed to roll to her left. The tip of the blade ed deep into the bed inside and formed a gaping cut. With her fast hands Jisoo grabbed the blanket that had been coldly abandoned before, and threw it all over the attacker. It would help only a little and for a very short time, Jisoo thought, but would hopefully grant her enough time to reach the door and dash out. 

The attacker wiggled inside the big, thick blanket and Jisoo wasted no time to run for the door. Her prediction was proven right when the mysterious assaulter had found a way out of the temporary distraction Jisoo had given him by the time she could touch the door. She pushed fast and so abruptly that she almost tripped and fell outside her own bedroom, but she thankfully regained her balance. Looking back, the person in black had been right behind her on the edge of the door. She sprinted to her left, to the direction of where she knew Jennie's room was located. 

The long, sleepy aisles that were lit only by the torches became Jisoo's path to escape that night. Having been there for days gave her some knowledge of the castle's map, but she had always been bad at directions. Still in her white nightgown, Jisoo bolted left and right, not knowing where she was going as long as she could keep further and further distance from the assaulter who never seemed to give up on capturing her. Much to her dread, there seemed to be no guard or troop on watch that night. She was trying to turn from one particular aisle to another one on her right side when her legs seemed to go too fast and tripped instead. She fell face down. 

The person in black had been tailing her very closely, and when Jisoo was caught off guard on the floor, the weapon was drawn out one more time. It swung rapidly to Jisoo's back, but missed the target since the Venusian rolled to her right side just a milisecond before the tip could create a profound, terrible wound on her flesh. 

The assaulter moved fast, and this time, managed to throw himself on Jisoo before Jisoo could stand up. Jisoo was deadlocked under his body, facing the person eyes to eyes. She could see unfamiliar black eyes that were lusty for blood and knew no mercy, but couldn't figure out the rest of the facial features due to the black ninja mask that wrapped his head. She writhed under him, and whimpered when she saw his hands moving the tip of the weapon closer and closer to her neck. Her eyes could catch the shiny, sharp point that could split her head off her body anytime.

"J- Jennie!" She shrieked the name. She was aware that there was little chance that the Martian would hear her, but she needed her badly at that very moment. 

Trying to silence Jisoo, the assaulter quickly moved the blade, about to murder Jisoo by the neck. It was when he was lifting the weapon up in the air that Jisoo regained her strength to move her leg. With her left leg she landed a kick on the attacker's crotch. The man let out a yelp that was infused with pain. Jisoo pushed him as strongly as her arms allowed right after the deadlock on her loosened. 

"What happened!?"

Another man's voice echoed along the aisle almost instantly after Jisoo erected back on the ground. The Venusian turned her head to the source of the voice and saw a guard's figure at the other end of the aisle. As if she was not given any time to scream for help, the assaulter had met her on eye level again. His fury seemed to have driven him to oscillate the blade at Jisoo. Jisoo drew her head back and darted backward toward where the guard was standing. 

The guard, then beginning to comprehend what was happening, ran and disappeared into another dark aisles. Soon after, Jisoo could hear the sound of cymbals being hit continuously - a form of alarm that a dangerous situation had been taking place. The mysterious man in black was still after her as she tried to find the guard and the gong. Thankfully, the guard returned immediately after with a spear ready in his hands. 

Welcoming the attacker, the guard charged forward courageously. The spear met the blade and the two weapons fought furiously like two snakes trying to choke each other to death. It was during this intense battle that Jisoo caught the sight of a girl behind the attacker. With the fire from the torches as the only assistance to her vision, Jisoo could trace the figure as none other than the Martian princess. 

"Jisoo!?" Jennie yelled from behind the heated battle. "Jisoo are you there!?"

"Jen!" The Venusian tried hard to reach back. "Jen, I'm here!"

Jennie observed carefully as the attacker was now leading the match by strangling the guard on the wall with his spear. Her heart pounded fast. All she could think about was to not let this villain get near her princess, but on another side, her guard - her own people was striving for life. 

She opted for the last choice and drew out her own sword. This lured the assaulter's focus, and the man released the guard, who then dropped to the ground and coughed terribly. He bolted toward Jennie; his blade was as ready as it had been when he wanted to steal Jisoo's life. 

"No! Jen!" Jisoo ran toward them, but was soon stopped by the guard who had struggled to stand up. 

"Your Highness, it is dangerous!" The guard said as he restrained Jisoo from pushing forward. 

"Let me go! Jen!" 

"Your Highness, the troops would be here soon! Please stay still and allow me to assist Princess Jennie!" 

"No! I know how to fight! I am not weak!" Jisoo's attempt seemed futile with her small body against the guard's big, muscular one. 

Jennie's eyes were busy following every movement that the blade made, avoiding every slash it attempted to make on her face and body. With the aggressive motions from her opponent, she could only do her counterattacks when the assaulter's arms ran out of energy to swing his weapon, and he always managed to escape every deadly Jennie did with her sword. This made her completely unaware of Jisoo's approaching presence, and when she realized it at last, her attention was divided and her defense dropped. Taking this chance, the attacker brought the blade forward for one more time. The weapon advanced speedily in his hands toward Jennie's left . 

Quickly perceiving this, Jennie used all her energy to dodge the attack. She made the attempt by dashing backward, and it dawned on her that she had taken a big, wrong move when her skin made contact with the wall behind her. Before she could figure out what to do next, the assaulter had proceeded, once again aiming her left chest with the sharp tip. Her last option was to try to duck.

But it was too late. The blade managed to make its way deep into Jennie's flesh this time, ripping her skin apart all the way to her bones inside.

"Aahh!!" Jennie released an ear-piercing bellow.

It all went too fast for Jisoo as the girl helplessly watched how everything happened from behind the guard's bulky shoulder; how the man mercilessly inserted half of the blade's length deep into Jennie's chest, how Jennie screeched in pain and how her face contorted likewise, and how torrent of blood downpoured from Jennie's chest like a raging waterfall.

"Noo!!" The Venusian screamed from the top of her lungs. 

 

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Hi, it's been a while :)

First of all, I am terribly sorry for not being able to update as fast as other authors probably do. I have anxiety problems that slow me down from finishing things. I really hope that you guys are not gone and will still read this fic. Your comments inspire me a lot more than you guys think they do. I have no intention at all to sound like I need a comment charity, but I also have to admit that comments take a big portion in my motivation to keep going on.

Anyway, I am back for real this time since I start to feel much better. I will try my best to update as quickly as time allows me. Thank you once again for still reading.

'Til the next update :)