In this unfamiliar place

I lost the way, no one comes

Which way should I go?

As if I’m lost in a maze, I’m walking blankly

 

--

 

You’ve always been told that it's unbecoming for a princess to dirty your hands, be it physically or metaphorically— no playing in the garden, no mock-sword fighting your brothers, no doing the work of servants.

 

On the flip side, you've never been told just what exactly resides in the dungeons beneath your father’s luxurious castle.

 

You’d asked him once, some few nights ago, after heaps of soldiers returned to the castle whooping in victory after a successful hunt that would later colloquially be referred to as the Full Moon Hunt. Your father had thrown an elaborate feast that month, and he had been so jovial about the whole matter that you hadn't had the time to question him about it— your attempt at asking your mother had been fruitless as she’d pretended not to hear your question and you'd resulted in huffing and stomping away.

 

Nevertheless, while he hadn’t been quite clear on the matter either, your father had certainly been more helpful than your mother.

 

“‘Tis the Beast, daughter,” he had said gravely, and you’d cocked your head in confusion. The Beast? You’d never heard of it. You were about to open your mouth to inquire further when your father had cut you off. “That's enough questions for today, Go Won. You should get some sleep. Whatever you do, do not go down to the dungeons, understand?”

 

You had nodded, but his warning had only made you even more confused. You had already known better than to set foot in the dungeons already. What could possibly have been brought down there that's so dangerous, your father had to warn you again?

 

Perhaps though, the true flip of the switch was when Yves, your maid and closest friend, offered to help you visit the very place that now has captured every bit of your attention.

 

“Do you know what's down there, Yves?” You’d asked the older girl hesitantly, eyes wide. “Have you been into the dungeons before?”

 

Yves had nodded with a mysterious smile. “I've been to the dungeons many times during this past week, Go Won, especially since the new arrival. I think you'll be… surprised by what you find.”

 

“I heard people say that it's terrifying down there,” you had said worriedly. “And that a horrifying Beast now lurks in the shadows.”

 

Much to your surprise, Yves had laughed. “That man is just playing tricks on you, Go Won. That, or the soldier was truly scared. He was right about one thing, however: a Beast does stay within its depths. ‘Horrifying,’ though, may not be the best word to describe it.”

 

That had piqued your interest.

 

“Oh?”

 

“‘Misunderstood’ is the more correct term, in complete honesty.” The young woman had clarified. “But should you go down, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.”

 

And now here you are, breathing heavily as you step into the deepest, previously locked-off section of the castle’s dungeons. Yves pats your back before closing the door behind the both of you.

 

“I'll remain by the entrance and keep watch,” she says, the flickering light of her lantern illuminating her face. “You’ll find what you’re looking for at the very end of this corridor.”

 

You nod and turn around. Small shafts of sunlight stream in from the outdoors, between the iron grates that function as windows to the world beyond. As you continue to walk with shaky steps, you can't help but wonder what it would be like to live in this lonely place, isolated from everyone— even the other prisoners. What could possibly be so terrible?

 

Reaching the final cell — the largest of them all — your steps slow. Something shifts in the shadows, and you narrow your eyes, trying to see through the darkness. Something hides there; just out of reach of the small patch of sunlight that peeks into the cell.

 

“Yves?” A small, tired, and inherently female voice speaks through the silence, echoing off the dungeon’s stone walls, and you feel your chest clench at how lonely it sounds.

 

“I’m not Yves,” you say weakly.

 

There is a pause of silence, and then:

 

“...Who are you, and why are you down here? Only Yves visits me, ever.”

 

“Yves is… my best friend. She let me in down here.” You swallow, your throat suddenly feeling awfully tight. “My name is Go Won.”

 

“Go Won,” the female voice whispers, and you think you hear a bit of disbelief in her tone. “The crown princess?”

 

“That’s me,” you say breathlessly. You haven’t even noticed yourself moving closer to the cell’s bars until the tips of your sandals brush up against the bottom, and your suddenly enclosing a hand around cold metal.

 

There’s more shifting from deeper in the shadows, and hesitantly, a figure takes small steps forward, now on the edge of the small patch of sunlight. You can just barely make out the outline of a girl.

 

“What are you doing here, Princess?” The girl asks, not accusingly; more confused than anything. “I didn’t think I was allowed visitors…”

 

“Oh, I… did not exactly come with permission from my father, or anyone else, for that matter. I came down here looking for the Beast,” you admit. “Everyone around me had been passing around the stories from the Full Moon Hunt, and I grew curious.”

 

The girl lets out a small chuckle, finally stepping out into the light, arms spread out, and palms facing up.

 

“Well, now you’ve found her.”

 

You forget how to breathe for a heartbeat.

 

This girl is certainly not what you pictured a beast to look like, with her raven black hair, porcelain skin, all perfect lips, and wide, almost-feline brown eyes. You wait with baited breath as she glances you over warily— you can see the gears churning through her head, questioning your intentions, asking again, silently, why you are there.

 

“Yves told me that I wouldn’t be disappointed,” you muse out loud once you can finally find it in yourself to take another heaving breath.

 

“Did I live up to expectations?” The girl behind the bars asks, amusement flickering in her brown eyes.

 

“Surpassed,” you clarify, a faint smile gracing your lips, and your grip on one of the bars loosens, your hand returning to hang at your side. “Forgive me, I did not expect someone with your appearance to be residing in this dark place.”

 

“Don’t you think you’re trusting me a bit too easily, Princess?” The mysterious girl asks, nudging the bottom of her cell with the tip of her toe. It’s then that you notice that she’s barefoot, clothed in what must have been the clothes she had been captured in— what once was a pure white long-sleeved shirt is now sullied, her black skirt wrinkled and dirty. You look behind her, barely making out a pair of discarded, dirty white socks next to a pair of battered, worn dress shoes.

 

It must have been quite the scuffle.

 

“I wouldn’t say so,” you reply. “We are, after all, separated by a set of iron bars.”

 

The other girl hums, and you raise an eyebrow, just now noticing the change in behavior— had this girl not been meeker back when she had believed that Yves had been coming to visit?

 

“I suppose so, Princess.”

 

It’s your turn to give her a cautious look.

 

“I wish I could tell what was going through your head,” you say.

 

“Likewise,” she says.

 

“I don’t quite know what possessed me to come down here,” you admit.

 

“I also do not know what called you to the dungeons,” she replies, and you shrug. “I was questioning who would visit me at this hour. Yves is the only person close to what might be a ‘friend,’ and she only visits me at night, when all the other guards have gone out drinking.”

 

“Do you need another friend in this place?” You find yourself asking.

 

“Are you offering?” The strange girl asks back.

 

“I aim to find out why they call you the Beast,” you say.

 

“Perhaps if you stay long enough, you’ll find out,” she replies.

 

“I can’t stay much longer,” you say, biting your lip. It’s almost time for dinner. Surely, Yves will come calling for you soon, and you don’t even want to think about what might happen if you don’t show up at your family’s dinner table— father and mother will be livid. “But I can return tomorrow? If you’ll have me, that is.”

 

The girl laughs slightly. “You say this as though I actually own this place, Princess, when you in fact own these dungeons more than me. I think you’ll find that I won’t be denying any company any time soon.”

 

This brings a smile to your lips as you slowly start turning to leave the dark place. “Duly noted.” You pause. “May I ask for your name, Beast?”

 

There’s a beat of silence, then—

 

“Olivia.”

 

“Olivia?”

 

“Olivia.”

 

“Then I shall see you again tomorrow, Olivia.”

 

“Please have a good rest of the day, Princess.”

 

“It’s ‘Go Won.’”

 

“Go Won?”

 

“Go Won.”

 

“Please have a good rest of the day, Go Won.”

 

“I will. Thank you, Olivia.”

 

--

 

“Why can I not go down to the market with my brothers, father?!” You ask angrily the next day at the lunch table, palms balling into fists. “I am of adult age now, and yet you do not let me stray beyond these castle walls! I’ve yet to even venture farther than our gardens!”

 

“Do not question me, Go Won,” her father says sternly, waving off your anger with the flick of his wrist. “It is for your own protection. Now, leave me! I have many matters to deal with, daughter.”

 

Huffing, you make your way out of your father’s office, watching your brothers whooping with glee as they make their way out of the castle gates on horseback, off to the castletown marketplace that they’ve been to so many times.

 

You sigh, crossing your arms. It’s hard being the only princess, let alone the youngest one who has no claim to the throne in the first place.

 

Making your way to your quarters, you immediately call for Yves, who appears at your side without a second’s notice. You jump at her sudden appearance; she seems to have materialized from thin air.

 

“That was fast,” you comment with a hand over your chest to calm your racing pulse. “Were you not with Chuu during this hour? You usually have lunch with her, no?”

 

“She had a few matters to take care of,” Yves says nonchalantly. “There was a new influx of books that had been ordered from the neighboring kingdom, and Chuu and the other library attendants are busy sorting through everything. I’ve just been waiting around for you, Miss Go Won. Regardless, any reason for your summon?”

 

“I—” You take a deep breath. “I wish to visit her again.”

 

Yves smiles. “I knew you’d be pleased with what you found.”

 

--

 

“Where did you live before you were captured, Olivia?” You ask curiously, sitting cross-legged on the floor of the dungeon. Inwardly, there’s a small part of you that’s pleased with yourself, knowing that your parents would be livid if they knew where you are and what you are doing.

 

“In the Glade,” Olivia replies, also seated on the ground, “the forest surrounding on the outskirts of the town.”

 

“What was it like there?” You ask excitedly, leaning forwards. “I’ve never stepped outside the castle! What was it like to live there?”

 

“Oh, it was beautiful,” Olivia sighs, a faraway look entering her eyes. “There was sunlight everywhere, and not so many humans, so my kind was able to roam around as we pleased alongside the other magical peoples, and oh, Go Won, it was so green! The most lovely shade of green— the grass, the trees and their leaves, the moss, the plants, just everything.”

 

“That sounds gorgeous,” you whisper. “That sounds absolutely gorgeous. I wish I could see it too,” you say wistfully. “But something tells me that I’ll be stuck in this place for a good while longer.”

 

Olivia frowns at you sadly. “Go Won… I’m sorry—”

 

“It’s nothing,” you hastily say, shooting Olivia a quick smile. You’re in no position to be complaining about your circumstances— not when the girl sitting across from you is behind bars for reasons you don’t even know why. You’ve yet to breach the topic, and something tells you that you shouldn’t say anything yet.

 

Regardless, Olivia is still staring at you with those concerned eyes, looking as far away from a Beast as possible, and you hate the fact that she’s concerned about you when you’re nothing but a spoiled child complaining about her lack of freedom.

 

“Anyway, I’m sure you have a lot of stories,” you say, trying to get her mind off of your trivial problems, and you suspect that your diversion worked, judging by the way Olivia’s eyes light up.

 

You spend another two hours down in the dark dungeon, listening eager to Olivia telling stories about her time growing up in the Glade, chasing after faeries, diving into the river after the merpeople, dreaming about flying like the gryphons, and envying the nymphs and flower spirits for simply looking so pretty all the time.

 

“It all sounds like so much fun,” you say dreamily. “So many fun stories! I loved listening to you talk, Olivia.”

 

“I’d love to listen to your stories as well,” Olivia says gently, but you shake your head with a small smile.

 

“I don’t have any stories; none that are as exciting as yours,” you say.

 

“I’m sure that’s not true,” the other girl says.

 

You shrug, biting your lip in an attempt to make that small smile stay small and not grow into something too large.

 

“Maybe I’ll tell you something next time.”

 

“You should,” Olivia says softly. “I like listening to your voice, Go Won.” You feel your heart speed up in your chest. “It’s soothing to me… it reminds me of water— like the creek near where I used to live.”

 

She says it so nostalgically, like her previous home is a long lost dream, and your chest hurts for her. You can’t even imagine what it must feel like to be Olivia— to be ripped away from her previous home and freedom, only to be trapped within these stone cold walls, shrouded in darkness during all hours of the day.

 

“I’m so, so sorry, Olivia,” you whisper, reaching between the bars to take the girl’s hand. “I’m so sorry that you’re trapped in this awful place.”

 

“Go Won…” Olivia shakes her head. “I… I probably deserve it. During that hunt, I ended up hurting a lot of people…” She stares down at her hands, turning them over, as though trying to look for marks or stains that are no longer there. “There were too many of them… and there was so much blood… oh god, Go Won, I killed people!”

 

You wish nothing more than for these iron bars to vanish into thin air in that moment, as you watch Olivia close up on herself, pulling her knees to her chest and hiding her face in her hands in shame.

 

But you can’t hug her right now, so you thread your arm through the bars and take one of Olivia’s hands in your own, giving her as much comfort as you can.

 

“You don’t have to talk about it right now,” you murmur, and Olivia nods, raven black locks shaking slightly. “But I’m here for you. I won’t let you be alone for long. I’m always in this castle, I’m always right above you.”

 

Olivia’s shoulders shake as she grips your hand.

 

“Thank you, Go Won.”

 

“Always, Olivia.”

 

--

 

You visit your friend Chuu the next morning after breakfast, slipping into the library and greeting the head librarian with a smile before dancing off between the aisles to find your friend amidst the tall bookcases.

 

You finally find her with her head stuck in a novel most probably from the romance section.

 

“Chuu!” You call with a grin, and her head pops up, returning your smile enthusiastically with one of her own. It’s a quality you’ve always loved about Chuu— the way she always somehow manages to have a wide smile on her face, no matter how busy she is. You reason that’s one reason why Yves has taken such a shining for her. “Chuu!”

 

“Good morning, Princess!” Chuu says brightly, beaming. “You’re in here rather early!”

 

“I was eating breakfast when an idea came to mind,” you explain with a giggle, and it’s true— you’d been in the middle of biting into a tasty, crunchy red apple when you were suddenly struck with a thought. “It’s about certain kinds of books. I thought that maybe you could help me…?”

 

“If it has to do with books, then I’m your girl!” Chuu enthuses. “What kind of book are you looking for?”

 

“Books,” you clarify, stressing the plural as you begin to follow Chuu down an aisle. “In particular, I’m inquiring about fairytales, specifically. Any that this library has in its possession.”

 

--

 

“You brought a candle with you this time,” Olivia observes as you draw near to her cell later that day. You vaguely notice that she’s still in the position that you left her in yesterday: on the floor, knees pulled tight to her chest. Had she stayed like that all night? There’s a sinking feeling in your chest at the thought. “And… are those books?”

 

You nod earnestly, bringing yourself down to the dusty floor once more. Gingerly, you set down the fresh candle you had Yves fetch before she had brought you down here, placing the stack of books you had cradled in your free arm near it.

 

The smile you send her way – your face now better illuminated thanks to the candle – is shy as she continues to observe you curiously.

 

“I don’t have very many adventures of my own to share with you,” you say, and Olivia looks like she wants to protest, but you push on, your gaze traveling all over the room, “but I did want to share with you something, and I figured that these fairytales were close enough. Is… this alright?”

 

You’re staring bashfully at the ground at the end of your small ramble, and you peek up through your blonde hair to try and get a glimpse of Olivia’s face. Much to your surprise, there’s an affectionate smile making its way across her lips, and something inside of you starts glowing.

 

“This is more than alright,” she says in return, crawling closer to the cold iron bars. This time, it’s Olivia that sticks her hand through the barrier, reaching over to take your smaller hand in hers. Her dark brown eyes are wide and honest as she gazes at you meaningfully, the flickering of your candle flame reflecting back in those orbs of hers. “I just like listening to you talk, Go Won. Would you read to me?”

 

When you were younger, your father and mother had told you to smile often. Your bedtimes had consisted of your mother reading you a fairytale, much like the ones you had brought down for Olivia, and your father asking for you to smile at him before you retired to dreamland.

 

Your smile can bring peace or war to a kingdom, daughter, he would say to you, although you had no idea what he was talking about at the time. It is powerful, Go Won. Please take care of your smile, for it can outshine the sun, still the seas, and calm even the fiercest of monsters. There are many who would love your heart and smile for themselves.

 

You think of his words now, as you beam at Olivia, who makes your heart race like no one has ever before; whose smile is so sad and sullen but you whenever you see it, you cannot help but crave for it more. One day, you wish to see that smile reach her beautiful, brown eyes.

 

“It would be my pleasure to read to you, Olivia.”

 

--

 

It’s painfully easy to forget that the same girl who sits in front of you now, leaning forward and eager to listen to you read aloud whimsical tales, is the same Beast who your father scorns at the dinner table, boasts about his best men besting in battle; the same girl who managed to kill so many of your kingdom’s bravest of soldiers.

 

You’ve still yet to breach that subject.

 

It’s your sixth – maybe even seventh? Eighth? – meeting, and you’re telling Olivia the story of a regular girl who fell in love with a prince-turned-hideous-monster when you realize that the other girl has started to staring blankly at the ground, appearing to be deep in thought.

 

“…Olivia?” You say after a hesitant pause in your reading, and you peer up at her in concern. She blinks out of her momentary daze at the sound of her name, and she shakes her head, not unlike the way you’ve seen your brothers’ terrier dogs do.

 

“Ah, I’m sorry, Go Won,” she apologizes.

 

“Lost in thought?”

 

“You could say that.”

 

There’s another clear pause in the dialogue, and you tilt your head curiously as Olivia seems to mull over her thoughts.

 

Finally—

 

“Go Won?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“In the story,” there’s hesitation seeping into her tone, “the woman falls in love with the monster, even before she realizes that he’s a prince, right?”

 

You nod wordlessly.

 

“Do you think—” Olivia stops, biting her lip and looking frustrated.

 

“Do I think what?” You say gently, urging the other girl to continue.

 

“…Do you think that you could fall in love with a monster?” Olivia asks. Her voice no louder than a whisper, but you think that you heard her as loud as if she had shouted. And yet again, you wish that the iron bars between the two of you would dissipate, only for the fact that you want nothing more than to throw your arms around her neck and never let go.

 

“I think I could,” you whisper back, and you hold out your hand to her. Slowly, she reaches out and laces your fingers with hers together. “I really think I could.”

 

“Even if the monster really truly is a monster?” Olivia presses on, and you continue to nod without uncertainty. “Even if the monster isn’t secretly some prince?”

 

“I think I could,” you repeat. “I know I would.”

 

There is no better feeling than the exhilarating pounding in your chest, and the throbbing in your heart, and the wanting in your soul that quivers and quakes. And it is then that you know that you would do anything to keep that bright smile on Olivia’s red, red lips— the big, bright smile that reaches her eyes and tells you: I’m in love with you.

 

You don’t say the words out loud – not yet – and neither does Olivia, but her shining eyes are enough for now.

 

--

 

“You look awfully happy,” Heejin, one of your close friends from your school days, says to you one morning. Her partner, Hyunjin, remains beside her, a comfortable arm slung around Heejin’s shoulder. “I haven’t seen you this happy in a while, Go Won.”

 

“Not since our lessons finally ended last year,” Hyunjin adds. “And to think that you’re usually not awake at this time, Princess!”

 

You stick your tongue out at both of them.

 

It’s still rather early, the sun not having completely risen above the horizon yet, but for some reason, you had been coerced into welcoming your close friends back into the castle— Heejin and Hyunjin are two of the kingdom’s most promising mages, apprentices to Irene, a royal sorceress, who travels around the land, going wherever she is needed. Naturally, Heejin and Hyunjin are never far behind, endlessly loyal to the older woman.

 

You will never admit to being jealous of them at times; while your same-aged friends are outside, scouring the land and all it has to offer, you’re stuck at home in a castle. Nevertheless, recent circumstances have made you permanent castle confinement rather bearable.

 

“I slept early last night and had a good dream,” you simply say, and it’s not a full lie— so maybe you hadn’t gone to sleep early, but you had dreamt of Olivia and these days, anything related to Olivia makes you smile.

 

“Sure,” Hyunjin teases you, and Heejin winks. You huff and cross your arms – surely you hadn’t hauled yourself out of bed for this – but you relax and your smile returns as they easily drop the topic. “We brought you back something, by the way!”

 

“You did?” You ask, genuinely surprised, only to let out a small squeal of happiness as Heejin slips a bracelet over your wrist with ease. “Oh, it’s so pretty!”

 

You rotate your wrist back and forth, admiring the way the bracelet’s light green beads shine under the brightening light of the morning sun.

 

You smile as you spy the elegantly carved bead that had been meticulously shaped into a butterfly, thumbing it tenderly. Ever since you were little, you’d had a special kind of affinity for the tiny insects, and many hours of your childhood had been spent playing in the castle garden with Heejin and Hyunjin, chasing after butterflies. It’s sweet to know that they still remember those times.

 

“You like the butterfly one, right?” Heejin claps her hands happily. “Hyunjin and I specifically chose that design for you! The carver was more than glad to make it!”

 

And then the light catches on another bead— one that you had not noticed before. To your astonishment, this bead is in the shape of a wolf. You gasp as you pinch it between your thumb and index finger, trying to get a better look at it. With its seated figure and head tipped back to release a howl, you can only imagine how long this head had taken to carve.

 

“Ah, so you found the wolf bead too,” Hyunjin says with a nod. “It wasn’t actually us who chose that bead out.” You raise an eyebrow at your friend. “It was—”

 

“It was me, actually,” Another voice cuts in, and you all turn to see Sorceress Irene striding towards you, the captain of the Mystic Guard, Kang Seulgi, in tow. Irene smiles your way as she and Seulgi bow. “Good morning, Princess.”

 

“Good morning, Royal Sorceress Irene,” you greet back politely, although returning her gentle smile with a goofy one of your own. You like Irene— she’s the youngest of the Royal Sorcerers, yet objectively the most powerful amongst the group of five. Additionally, you know of her not-so-secret relationship with Mystic Guard captain, Seulgi, whose easy-going yet hardworking nature you’ve always been fond of. “Mystic Guard captain, Seulgi. You were the one who chose the wolf bead for me, Miss Irene?”

 

“Of course I did,” Irene giggles, and you stare in wonder at the way her mystical robes ripple like water around her very being, her garb the color of a sunset’s reflection over a lake with its oranges and pinks and purples. “And I know what you must be thinking: how did I know of your sudden fascination with wolves?”

 

You gape at her, all words fleeing you, and her giggles turn into laughter as she shares a look with Seulgi, who chuckles in turn.

 

“A sorceress always knows,” Irene winks, and you continue to gape at her, open-mouthed.

 

You come to the conclusion that you’ve been thinking about Olivia too much. And who’s to say that Olivia resembles a wolf in the first place?

 

--

 

“What animal do you think you resemble the most when you transform into a Beast?” You try to ask casually, flicking at the pages of your latest book during your daily meeting with Olivia that same day. The two of you had decided to approach everything naturally, as it came.

 

Olivia hums, sitting cross-legged and letting herself lean casually on an arm. She balances her chin on the palm of her right hand, elbow on her knee.

 

“Definitely a wolf,” she says, and you find yourself gaping at the bracelet and wolf bead that now rests safely on your wrist. “I look like a giant wolf.”

 

Well that settles it, you think to yourself. Sorceresses can truly by scary when they want to be. I promise to never piss off Heejin and Hyunjin in the future.

 

--

 

The days go on, and you find the time slipping away as you continue your secret meetings with Olivia. Two months go by in the blink of an eye, and suddenly the warmer, early fall days are long gone. The trees lining the castle garden are now barren, and after seeing you shiver when a cold gust of wind blew through the castle, Yves had draped a woolen shawl around your shoulders that has not left ever since.

 

You’re tiptoeing down to the dungeons one afternoon, Yves in tow (you’ve both deemed it unsafe for you to simply have a key even after all this time, but Yves is more than willing to accompany you) with an extra scarf cradled in your arms for a certain wolf, when you hear it—

 

“Don’t you believe that it is time for you daughter to marry?” The voice of your father’s advisor sounds loud in your ears from the corridor over, and you feel the blood freeze in your veins. “She’s of marrying age, and we have been receiving letters of princes from neighboring kingdoms expressing their interest.”

 

“No,” you whisper, about to reveal yourself from your pseudo hiding spot, pressed against the wall. You make way to interfere when Yves’s steady hand appears on your shoulder, and she fixes you with a hard look.

 

“Don’t,” she says quietly, sternly, and you ball your fists at your side. “Don’t approach him now, when you’re all worked up and not thinking straight. Remember where we’re heading to?”

 

You in your breath, nodding. “I know. I know. I—” You tighten your hold on the scarf. There are other things to think about; Olivia will be getting cold with the changing of the seasons. “Let’s go to Olivia, Yves.”

 

--

 

“I don’t want to get married to some prince!” You burst out, pacing back and forth angrily in front of Olivia’s cell. You’d safely delivered the scarf to the imprisoned girl, despite how Olivia insisted that she’d be fine even with the changing of the seasons. The smile she’d sent your way had sent your pulse hammering, and at the same time, had made your blood rush to your head. “I don’t want my life to be sold away to some stranger that I don’t even know!” You turn on your heels, finally facing towards a sympathetic, subdued Olivia. “And I don’t want to leave you!”

 

“Go Won…” Olivia murmurs, holding out a hand through the bars. You immediately latch onto her, intertwining your fingers together.

 

“Do you hate them?” You ask quietly after a moment of Olivia tracing circles into the back of your hand. Surprise sparks in her the pair of eyes that stare back at you, evident even in the darkness of the cell. “Do you hate the men that locked you in here? Do you hate my father?”

 

“…I used to,” Olivia admits after a pregnant pause of silence. She swallows, and you observe the way she grits her teeth and scrunches her face in concentration. “I used to. I really did. I used to sit in this cell and scorn the people who entrapped me, and after that, I’d berate myself for being so stupid as to fall for their traps. I had only been trying to help a villager, but they mistook me for a threat… Then the knights had baited and taunted me, and I had been a fool to give in to my own anger and retaliate.”

 

“Why did they have to?” You just can’t comprehend it. “Why did they try to hunt you down in the first place? You never harmed us, you never provoked us, so why did they have to go and bait you?”

 

“It’s because humans fear what they do not know.” Olivia’s smile is sad. “The unknown frightens them.” She shrugs helplessly. “But what can I say, really? I’m a shape-shifter who has unfortunately been given the gift of transforming into a wolf of all creatures— it’s not surprising that the first instinct is fear.”

 

“Wait,” you frown, remembering the language your father had used at the dinner table one night, as he recounted his story with a returning knight from a long journey. “I was told – and I understand now that this information is completely incorrect – that you come from a line of werewolves, and humans have been hunting werewolves for centuries.”

 

And much to your surprise, Olivia laughs, running a hand through raven locks of hair.

 

“Unfortunate, no?” She lets out another bitter laugh, and you feel your blood freeze in your veins. “Unfortunately, I’m no werewolf. I haven’t been cursed, or turned, or anything like that. My head is still firmly screwed on, unlike those vermin, and I can think for myself. Also, werewolves are bipedal and stand on two legs, whereas I stand on four, like a normal wolf but larger.” Another shrug. “Although, I don’t suppose I can expect humans to be able to tell the difference.”

 

“You’re a shape-shifter,” you breathe out, shaking your head. “Oh my god…”

 

Olivia sends you a wry smile. “That, I am.”

 

“W-well this could change everything!” You exclaim, feeling the dangerous tendrils of hope curling around your heart, creeping up like ivy on a brick wall. “You haven’t been cursed! Humans have gotten along with shape-shifters for centuries! We even have shape-shifters working in the castle, serving as soldiers! The Captain of the Mystic Guard, Seulgi, is a bear-shifter and she’s no monster! And neither are you! You—”

 

“You’re forgetting that I still killed a lot of people,” Olivia reminds you gently, and your optimism for regaining Olivia’s freedom deflates, gone as quickly as it came.

 

“Please don’t concern yourself over me, Go Won,” she says, and you can see just how tired she is, her smiles growing more strained, the dark circles growing beneath her eyes. Yet she is still as beautiful to you as she was the first day you met her. “I will be fine.”

 

“Did they tell you when you will be released?”

 

Olivia is silent, and you clench your fists, digging your nails into your palms.

 

Of course not, you think sullenly.

 

“That’s alright,” you whisper, trying to reassure her. “I will be right here, no matter what happens. I won’t allow myself to grow far from you, Olivia. I will always be right here.”

 

--

 

The next morning, your father tries breaching the topic of marriage with you over breakfast, and you shut him down the second the words “of age” leave his lips; you’ve grown to despise that phrase. You vehemently deny his attempts to get you to hear his proposal, all the while the image of Olivia, alone in her cell, resonates through your mind on loop.

 

Eventually, he sighs, reclining back in his seat at the head of the table, shaking his head with a small smile.

 

“I knew you would say that, Go Won. You’ve always valued your freedom over everything else.” He does not say the words unkindly, and you take it as a good sign.

 

“I will always value personal freedom,” you say firmly, fully knowing that you’re walking on the edge.

 

You count your lucky stars when your father nods and waves his hand to summon an assistant, saying, “My daughter does not wish to marry at this time. Please relay this message to of the letters we have received about acquiring her hand. I won’t hand my daughter away that easily.”

 

You warm at his words, grateful for his understanding. Then you frown discreetly to yourself as you remember Olivia.

 

If only your father’s understanding extended to the misunderstood as well.

 

--

 

You find yourself praying for Heejin and Hyunjin’s forgiveness as you walk away from the dinner table that evening, calling for Yves as you approach your quarters. By the time you reach the entrance to your room, Yves is still nowhere to be found, having disappeared amongst the servants after serving you and your friends your meal, and you make your way down to the library instead, gears endlessly churning through your mind.

 

Twiddling your fingers as you meander down the spiral staircase, you repeat tonight’s gathered information over and over again, intent on remembering every single detail.

 

Heejin and Hyunjin’s words still ring clear through your head. You start running a hand down the bannister, chewing on your lip, deep in thought.

 

You and Heejin had been in a deep discussion about the subtle ways magic had been in play throughout the castle, like how the goblets served to the royal family were charmed to turn purple if poison had been slipped into them, or how the castle mirrors were enchanted to show only those allied or in good relations with the kingdom.

 

“Did you know that the locks down in the dungeons are sealed shut by a deep magic?” Hyunjin had piped up, still halfway through chewing on a piece of bread. She had remained listening and silent until that moment, only nodding and humming throughout certain parts of the conversation, but at her words, your full attention turned to her.

 

“I… did not know that,” you had said, furrowing your brow. The fact of the matter made sense though— ever since sorcerers had partnered with the royal family generations ago, not a single prisoner has managed to escape the darkness of the castle dungeons. You had relayed this fact to your friends, and raised an eyebrow at the looks both girls had exchanged.

 

“…Close to none,” Heejin had clarified, and you had gaped. “There was one who did, but not on her own.”

 

That was how you had come to learn of Royal Sorceress Irene’s escapades as a younger sorceress-in-training, and the wondrous talismans and magical items she had developed outside the watchful eyes of the Society of Magicians.

 

“Rumor has it that Mistress Irene was able to release a single prisoner through the use of a handcrafted enchanted key,” Hyunjin said lowly, under her breath. “It can unlock any lock, no matter how strong the magic.”

 

That had been right before Yves had brought out a tray of desserts, and the topic of conversation was lost as you and your friends began to indulge in pineapple pie.

 

You shake your head, returning to your bearings and jumping down the last few steps, continuing to call for Yves in a hushed voice as you step into the library, hoping that you’re not disturbing anyone.

 

“Yves? Yves!”

 

“I’m here!”

 

Two heads poke out from behind a nearby stack of books— Yves and Chuu in tow.

 

“I might have overheard a bit of your conversation from dinnertime,” Yves whispers into your ear after you dash over to them. “So I came to the library to do a little research— Chuu helped, of course.”

 

“Did you find anything?” You ask excitedly, bouncing on the balls of your feet as Chuu produces an old book from where it had been hidden between two bookcases.

 

“Nothing on any incident with Royal Sorceress Irene,” Chuu explains before she pauses. The librarian-in-training snaps her fingers, and you feel the air around you grow still— a silencing charm, a basic magic spell that all librarians learn to keep the noise level in the library to a minimum. No one can hear any of you now. “But I did find something.” She hands you the book before shooting concerned glances at you and Yves. “I got this from the restricted section, so you can’t keep it for long. Tomorrow night the head librarian is going to take inventory, so I’ll need it back by then.”

 

“Will that be enough time?” You frown.

 

“More than enough,” Yves says, and you gasp as she dangles a set of keys in front of your face. “But we have to move fast.”

 

--

 

“I don’t know about this,” Olivia says worriedly. Her forehead creases in concern as you observe the large lock keeping her cell closed shut, gingerly taking it in your hand and tapping it with your thumb. “Go Won, we don’t know what will happen if we try to use that magic key. What if it fails…?”

 

You bite your lip. “I don’t think that you’ll be harmed…”

 

“I don’t care if I’m harmed,” Olivia says with a frown. “I’m worried about if you are harmed.”

 

“Olivia,” you shake your head. “I will do anything to get you out. You don’t deserve to be in here.”

 

“Go Won, please,” Olivia begs desperately, also placing her hand on the lock, over your hand, and it feels like she’s holding your heart. “I don’t think I could bear it if something goes wrong and you get hurt. This cell… I’ve felt the magic surrounding it since the day I was first encaged. It just can’t be that simple…”

 

“But it’s worth a shot,” you murmur, and Olivia in a breath. You thumb the golden key now hanging from a chain around your neck, the red gem embedded in the metal shining underneath the moonlight streaming in the small grated window. “I can’t stand to see you trapped in here, Olivia.”

 

You gently remove her hand from the lock and unwind the enchanted key from its chain, only to meet Olivia’s deep, apprehensive gaze.

 

“You’re worth it,” you say steadily, and you plunge the key into the lock.

 

--

 

You feel like you’ve been set ablaze.

 

It hurts. It hurts. It hurts.

 

Until suddenly, it doesn’t.

 

--

 

You wake up to Olivia screaming your name, and three pairs of hands cradling your body, hushed voices asking if you’re alright.

 

You’re not. You’re really not, and you get the feeling that Olivia had been right, that something had gone wrong, but you suppose that the question the voices are asking really mean are you alive?

 

Forcing your eyes open, you find yourself staring into Yves’s worried orbs, and you nod shakily.

 

“I’m so sorry, Go Won,” Yves whispers, pulling you into her arms and nearly crushing you against her chest. You shake your head, murmuring about how you had been just as stupid and rash, if not more, and you meet gazes with a distraught and trembling Olivia on her knees, still very much behind the bars of her cell.

 

“I knew it wasn’t that easy,” Olivia says in distress, unshed tears in her eyes, and her grip on the iron bars shakes in anger. “I… I shouldn’t have let you, Go Won!”

 

You gently pull yourself out of Yves embrace and push yourself over to the shape-shifter, resting a gentle hand on hers.

 

“I was too rash,” you murmur sadly. “You were right, Olivia. It couldn’t have been that easy.”

 

“You were right in principle, though,” a third voice says, and it’s then that you recognize the additional presences of Irene and Seulgi also standing a few paces away from you, in the darkness of the dungeon. Much to your surprise, Irene smiles at you knowingly, laying a soft hand on your shoulder. “Your execution just wasn’t correct.”

 

You hang your head. “I’m sorry, Mistress Irene… I shouldn’t have stolen the key.”

 

Irene shakes her head, the understanding look on her face both comforting and baffling to you. “You shouldn’t have, but I understand why you did.” She casts an understanding, affectionate look at Seulgi, standing silently beside her. “I mean, I did the same nearly a decade ago for this one right here, after all.”

 

Your eyes widen as you look from Irene to the quiet guard, your mouth opening and closing, not quite sure what to say.

 

It’s Seulgi that speaks first, looking straight past you to Olivia.

 

“Dungeon food was awful when I was down here,” she says with a chuckle, and you realize it’s the first time you’ve really heard her speak, let alone jest. “Has it gotten any better since then?”

 

Olivia chokes out a quiet laugh in disbelief. Then, she nods, biting down a smile.

 

“I think it has, but that might just be because I’ve stayed in Yves’s good graces.”

 

“That’s good,” Seulgi says kindly before pausing. “…Bears don’t have the same bad reputation as wolves do, fortunately and unfortunately, but I know what it’s like to be trapped in these dark walls.” She motions vaguely to the cold stone surrounding them before smoothly taking Irene’s hand in her own. “It’s thanks to Irene that I ever escaped, and how I got where I am today, well…” Another knowing glance with Irene. “That’s a story for another time.”

 

“It is,” Irene agrees, turning her attention back to you, and you’re caught off guard by the thoughts you find stirring in her eyes. “Go Won?”

 

You straighten up, rising to your feet to meet Irene head on. “Y-yes?”

 

“It takes a sacrifice,” Irene says, the golden key with its red gem appearing in her grasp with the flick of the wrist. “You had not offered the key anything in exchange for the deep magic enveloping the lock, so the key decided to try take and something of yours that was of equal or greater value. In this case, it was your life.”

 

Olivia freezes behind you, as still as a statue. You can feel her stare boring in to her back, but you do your best to ignore her and focus solely on Irene’s words.

 

“How do I do the procedure properly?” You immediately ask.

 

“Go Won!” Olivia cuts in sharply, concerned.

 

The silent question slices through the air, as piercing as Irene’s unfaltering gaze.

 

It’s up to you. So will you?

 

You ask again.

 

“How do I do the procedure properly? How do I set Olivia free?”

 

--

 

Yves escorts Irene and Seulgi out of the dungeons, and you’re left alone with a silent Olivia.

 

“Go Won—”

 

“We’re going to try again, okay? In a few days, just like Irene said—”

 

“I don’t want you to!”

 

Olivia sounds like she’s one step away from crumbling to glass, and oh, it’s so easy to forget that you once were supposed to believe that she was a beast.

 

Nevertheless, your gaze whips over to her, and you see the way she shakes, hands balled into fists, staring straight down at the floor like it had done something bad.

 

You shake your head in incredulity. “What are you talking about, Olivia? Don’t you want to free?”

 

“I—” Olivia takes a shaky, heaving breath. “I do, I really do, Go Won! But not like this. Not with all this risk— you could have died tonight, Go Won! I care about you so much, and I never want you to have to bear through that pain! A-and I don’t think that it’s worth it if I’m free, but I can’t even see you again once I leave these castle walls!”

 

“But I can’t stand to see you trapped, Olivia!” You protest just as passionately. “You’re miserable and you know it!”

 

“I don’t want to be free at the expense of your suffering, Go Won!” Olivia fires back, the volume of her voice rising, the edge growing sharper. “I’m not worth it!”

 

“I am the only one who can decide where my efforts lie,” you declare hotly. “And I’ve decided that they belong here! I have feelings for you, Olivia! I can’t ignore them!”

 

“So did you not hear me? I’m not worth it!”

 

“We’d be fools not to take this opportunity!”

 

“YOU’RE AN ABSOLUTE FOOL IF YOU THINK THAT YOUR SO-CALLED ‘FEELINGS’ FOR ME ARE WORTH ALL OF THIS RASH BEHAVIOR!”

 

Your eyes widen at the sound that leaves Olivia’s lips— it’s a loud roar, unintelligable to most, but to you, the words ring clear in your ears.

 

And it echoes; echoes off the walls and in your head and rings deep, deep down into your heart.

 

Your bottom lip trembles. Your ears hurt. Your head hurts. It’s like you’ve been shoved underwater and everything doesn’t make sense anymore. You don’t realize that your hands are shaking until you feel your grip on one of the ice cold iron bars goes slack, and nothing feels worth it anymore.

 

Meanwhile, Olivia is looking at you in utter shock. She shakes her head and she takes a desperate step towards you.

 

“N-no… no, Go Won, I didn’t mean any of that! I-I’m not doubting anything of yours, I-I got angry and lost my temper! I—”

 

“What do you know of feelings anyway?” You whisper, looking away from the raven-haired girl. “You couldn’t possibly understand, you monster. You Beast.”

 

Your words are quiet, but Olivia reels backwards like she’s been slapped.

 

When you finally raise your head to see her, it’s through teary, angry eyes and clenched fists. Olivia shrinks under your gaze, fearful and trembling.

 

You try to tune out Olivia’s whimpers as you slam the dungeon doors shut and demand for Yves to bring you back to your quarters.

 

Yves hangs her head and does so with sad eyes, but she says nothing.

 

--

 

Your father waits for you with crossed arms in front of your quarters, a hard edge in his eyes. His first orders are to dismiss Yves, and she hastily nods and hurries away, but not without a squeeze of your hand.

 

You sigh to yourself but dare not meet your father’s eyes.

 

Tonight is going to be long.

 

--

 

Sometimes, you wish that you could get away from this castle. There have been moments when you’ve entertained the idea of allowing yourself to get married off to some nondescript prince, just to get away from the stone walls and the family members that haunt these halls like persistent ghosts.

 

You’ve always known that your eldest brother was a tattletale, and as you slam your door shut behind your father’s weary, exiting form that night, you hate your eldest brother with the fiery passion of all the burning pits of hell.

 

After all, it’s his fault that you’re no longer allowed down into the dungeons anymore.

 

You should thank whomever might be watching over you that your brother couldn’t catch any of Olivia’s words, just her loud roaring. For now, your father thinks that you wandered down into the dungeons’ depths for the first time today, where you stumbled upon the Beast, who upon seeing you, roared in hatred in the face of anything related to the royal family.

 

Oh, how wrong that story is.

 

Humans fear the unknown.

 

Nevertheless, Yves had been standing quietly near you during your scolding, and you’d heard your father’s strict instructions to her: never let Go Won into the dungeons again. Should I find her there, you are both in trouble.

 

Now, you lie awake in bed, feeling nothing if not apologetic. Sorry to Yves, who got yelled at for being your best friend. Sorry to Chuu, who now has to sneak a book back into the restricted section of the library. Sorry to Irene, and by extension, Seulgi, whose enchanted key you stole, who had to bring you back from the brink of death tonight.

 

And sorry to Olivia, whose heart you broke tonight, when you walked out without explanation, slamming the dungeon doors shut, leaving her alone in that dark place without the reassurance of company. And now, you’re never going to be allowed back into the dungeons again.

 

Your heart aches in regret, and you turn over under your comforter, burying your face into your pillow and letting your tears stain the fabric as you cry yourself into a dreamless sleep.

 

--

 

A week passes, and the ache in your chest doesn’t die.

 

Yves still refuses to let you into the dungeons (you tried after three days of staying away).

 

If your father notices the way you drag your feet around the castle, push away your plate of food during meals, and avoid his presence at all costs, he doesn’t say anything.

 

You spend your days at the top of the tallest tower, a fairytale in your lap as you look out to the horizon, watching the first snow start to trickle down, dreaming of what could lie beyond and the person you want to see it all with.

 

(She’s trapped in the dungeon, and she probably hates you by now.)

 

--

 

A week passes, but you feel like it’s been an eternity since you’ve last seen Olivia. You never quite realized how fast your days had gone by while you had been in her company until now, when you’re very much without her.

 

Regardless, you continue to sit at the top of the tall tower, reading fairytales aloud to yourself with the quiet hope that maybe she can hear you from down there, in the dark.

 

You see a lot from the tower: the servants bustling around the castle, the townspeople making their way through the castletown, the way the bare trees in the winter weather sway when a frosty breeze blows by.

 

It’s also from this tall tower that you first spot them, riding over the horizon, spears in their hands, flying on gryphons.

 

The tower opposite yours suddenly bursts into flames.

 

--

 

The large bells that have remained stationary for decades start to toll, and it’s a sound more terrifying than anything you’ve heard in your life.

 

You’ve never heard them ring before, but if there’s something you remember from all those royal lessons it’s that those bells only ever ring when there is a threat directly to the castle.

 

It only takes a second for you to notice Yves and Chuu screaming at other castleworkers, racing through the courtyard.

 

And perhaps there’s never been a more appropriate time for the bells until now, as a spear breaks through a nearby window, and you scream something incoherent.

 

All chaos runs loose; you hear it from the screams below in the courtyard.

 

A large burly man follows through the broken glass – his steed, a ragged-looking gryphon, waiting outside and cackling – as you scramble towards the stairwell, but he is bigger than you and covers the floor in only two strides, and he blocks your only exit with a threatening grin that reveals a pair of razor sharp teeth.

 

You shriek, fear taking over your body as you hastily retreat backwards, the invading ruffian coming ever closer the further you attempt to back up.

 

The moment your back hits the wall, you crumble towards the ground and curl up into a ball, pulling your knees towards your chest. You let out desperate sobs, pleas to let you live as the man gets closer.

 

“Please!” You beg through messy, hot tears that bubble from your eyes like a geyser and cloud your vision. “Please, I haven’t said goodbye yet! I—” The man laughs but you hardly notice through your babbling. “I just— please! Olivia! I’m sorry! Oliv—”

 

Your vision turns to white the moment the door comes crashing down, and you hear the distinct, loud howl of a wolf.

 

--

 

“Olivia!” You gasp at the sight of the hulking creature – surely at least twice bigger than the average wolf – looming in front of you, teeth bared and red eyes glowing, glaring at the groaning ruffian she had just thrown at the nearest wall who now lay crumpled in a heap of limbs on the floor. From outside, the man’s gryphon shrieks at the sight of the wolf, abruptly taking flight in retreat. “Olivia!”

 

At the sound of her name, the large head of the wolf swings to look at you, and you see the striking mix of surprise and relief that swirls in Olivia’s red orbs— that is, until panic and fear seeps into them, and then you’re scrambling forward the moment Olivia whimpers and takes a small step backward.

 

“N-no, Olivia! I am not afraid!” You cry, launching yourself at your Beast, and you thread your fingers through her mane, burying your face in soft, raven black fur. You feel the hard, raw muscle beneath layers of fur tense, then relax as you close your eyes and take comfort in Olivia’s familiar scent. A low rumble sounds from Olivia’s chest. “You were able to escape! I’m so glad!”

 

You force yourself to push away slightly to take Olivia’s muzzle in your hands, and you rest your forehead against the wolf’s. It’s easily evident that Olivia can’t communicate with you aurally in this form, but you can virtually hear her words crystal clear, ringing through your mind, as you meet her red gaze head on.

 

I broke out— broke through those iron bars. I heard you call for me, so I decided that I would come to you, no matter the cost. Olivia nudges your open palm with her nose. Stupid magic locks be damned, they can’t stand between you and I in the face of this.

 

“I’m sorry,” you whisper into her fur, and Olivia rumbles in acknowledgement. “For everything I said before. I missed you so much, Olivia.”

 

I’m sorry as well, Olivia responds softly. We were both too quick to give into our own anger, but that’s alright. The past is the past Go Won, and I’m just glad to be with you now… I missed you so, so much. Thank you for continuing to read to me.

 

And in the midst of everything, you manage to crack a tearful smile.

 

“So you heard that, huh.” You hiccup.

 

I heard you this whole time, Go Won. A certain light shines in Olivia’s eyes. Perks of being a monster wolf. Now, what can I do to help?

 

--

 

It’s against your best instinct when you shakily tell Olivia about your friends entrapped or endangered by all the invading ruffians throughout the castle— you’ve seen it all happen from the top of your tower. You hate the high vantage point— there are things you wish you hadn’t seen. Nevertheless, it’s against your best instinct because you’ve already predicted the way Olivia’s gaze will harden; already predicted the way Olivia will get determined.

 

So as you stammer and babble an explanation through hiccups and coughs, you somehow manage to convey how you’d seen the entrance to the library get barricaded with fallen debris, Chuu very much entrapped inside, intent on getting everyone else out first, and how you’d spied Yves running against the current, back into the castle to help evacuate all the other servants— you don’t know how long ago that had been, but as you peer shakily over the tower balcony, you’ve yet to see anything of her since.

 

You hate how brave your friends are.

 

Especially Olivia— brave, brave Olivia, who had been captured by your father’s men, who had been shoved into the darkest of dungeons, who had been kept in isolation for these past few months, only to be actively be working to save the very people who had stolen her freedom in the first place— you included.

 

You want to tell Olivia to run; to leave amongst the chaos, flee away into the Glade, far from this place, to the creek where she had grown up, and to never look back.

 

You also hate how you know that Olivia would beg you to leave with her with those expressive eyes of hers; those eyes that come so guarded but can take you to a different world every time you look into them.

 

And most of all, you hate how you know that you can’t force her to leave; you know that Olivia would stay by your side no matter what.

 

So you don’t.

 

“Please save us,” you whisper to your Beast, your Olivia, “I hate to ask this of you, Olivia, especially after how wrong they treated you – how wrong I treated you – but will you save us?”

 

All it takes is one steady nod of Olivia’s head, and sobs threaten to wrack your body.

 

It would be my pleasure to save you, Go Won.

 

“Promise me you’ll leave once you’re done,” you choke out, giving Olivia one last desperate hug. “Promise me that you’ll leave, and you won’t look back.”

 

Go Won, a war wages in Olivia’s red eyes, I can’t just leave you! I can’t—

 

“Promise me!”

 

...I will, Olivia promises, though she looks hesitant. After a heartbeat— Smile for me, Go Won, my sunlight.

 

You smile through it all – through the tears, and the thickness constricting in your throat, and the churning in your stomach – as you wave her off as your Olivia goes charging head first back into the battle.

 

“Farewell.”

 

--

 

The freezing sky broke, the fierce wind passed by

You, who is like the sun, the new season I only got to meet now

Because I am afraid this might break, thaw me

Change the long waiting into fluttering

 

--

 

You can’t remember much from after you send Olivia off, but you remember how it didn’t take long for the door to the top of your tower-hideaway to be kicked open yet again.

 

You’re suddenly slung over a large, burly man’s shoulder – you put two and two together and realize that he is the leader of the invading ruffians – who grins at your small frame and brings you down the stairs as kick and scream and punch at him to no avail.

 

Then there’s sunlight, and you’re out in the courtyard. Distinctly, you hear the sound of your father’s enraged yelling, but you don’t seem much of him other than the glint of his silver blade, which goes flying through the air as one of the enemies manages to disarm him.

 

It’s too much. It’s all too much. You can’t think, not with this man’s harsh grip on you, the way his rough hands wrap around your wrist. Absentmindedly, silently (you’ve run out of voice to scream), you think of how your wrist will most definitely be donning a big blue bruise sometime in the near future, if not the rest of your body, when—

 

You feel drowsy.

 

It’s too much. It’s all too much.

 

Your father is shouting your name. His voice carries far and loud, and it is heavy in your ears, hurts.

 

It’s too much. It’s all too much.

 

The darkness looks enticing. You fleetingly wonder if this is what Olivia thought about on occasion, as she sat in her dark cell, ready to give up.

 

“Olivia,” you whisper.

 

It’s too much. It’s all too much.

 

But you smile.

 

Perhaps – just perhaps – you and everything else will be at peace, if not temporarily, should you go out smiling.

 

--

 

“Get away from her!” A harsh growl cuts through the stale air that seemed to hang somewhere between time and space, and all drowsiness suddenly flees your body. “How dare you touch Go Won!”

 

Your eyes snap open just in time to see the large, wolf-like body of Olivia barrel into the Shaded man, teeth barred, claws outstretched. The large man lets out a grunt of surprise, his grip on your back loosening to the point where you feel yourself drop from his grasp, right into Olivia’s firm, safe embrace. She lets out a grunt of her own, kicking the man away from both of you and letting the other castle guards, led by captain Seulgi, surround him before finally letting you attempt to stand on your own, just as she finally allows herself to calm down a tad.

 

You stumble as you land on your feet but she steadies you with a sturdy hand on your back, pulling you close to her.

 

“Easy,” she says lowly, and you take this single chance to look at her. She's no longer fully transformed, now only half-wolf and standing on two legs once more. Her ears remain, as does her tail and elongated claws, but she looks ever more like your Olivia now, save for perhaps her glowing red eyes. “I’m here. I've got you, Go Won, I’m here.”

 

“Olivia,” you whisper, voice trembling as tears begin to well in your eyes. You press your face into her old white shirt and tangle your fingers in its hem, just burying yourself in everything Olivia. Oh, how you've dreamed of hugging her close like this, although under drastically different circumstances. Still, now that she has her arms around you, now that there aren't any bars to separate you from her, now that there isn't anyone stand in your way from being with her, you aim to hold her for as long as you can. And with those thoughts, you mumble into the fabric, “You came back for me… even after I told you to leave…”

 

“Of course I came back,” Olivia says, voice raw with emotion and pure affection. It's getting harder to force back your tears now, especially with the way she's looking at you, and the way she's running a hand through your hair, and the way she seems to protectively cradle you, on guard. “Your friends are safe, but in the end, you are my Go Won.” Your heart trembles at that word: my. “I am your Beast, remember? I am here to protect you, and I won't let anyone hurt you ever again.”

 

--

 

You cling to Olivia desperately even after the world starts to turn again, and she willingly holds you. She’s back to looking fully human, and it’s the first time you’re finally getting to stay in her arms; needless to say, you plan on soaking every moment of it up.

 

“I love you,” you whisper into her collarbone, as you’re perfectly tucked into embrace— you’re the perfect height for Olivia to press her lips again the crown of your head. She rubs circles into your back with one hand, the other wandering upwards to tangle her fingers freely in your long blonde locks. “I love you so, so much, Olivia.”

 

“I love you too, Go Won,” she says tenderly into your hair.

 

“I will not let them take you away again,” you say firmly, and you can feel Olivia’s smile and soft chuckle against the side of your head. “I mean it! No one is taking you away from me again. I am safest when I am with you, Olivia.”

 

“And I feel the most at ease when I am with you,” she admits easily, fingers still playing with the ends of your hair. The hand drawing circles has ceased, coming to rest comfortably at your hip, although the hold tightens protectively the moment you sense a new presence near you.

 

“What do you plan on doing with my daughter, Beast?” Your father’s voice booms around you, a hard edge to his words. The unspoken command is there: get away from my daughter.

 

And this time, it is your turn to be brave. There is no more hiding in the darkness— for both you, and Olivia.

 

You want nothing more than to be by her side.

 

“Olivia is no beast, father!” You exclaim, whirling on him and standing protectively in front of her. You grip her hand tightly, your palm feeling sweaty as nerves start to accumulate. “She has done nothing but protect me, has been nothing but understanding! She knows me like no other.” You allow a fond look to overtake your features as you gaze over her soft features, so unlike her form as a wolf. Then you fixate your father with another steely gaze. “It was your men who provoked her into defending herself. She is no werewolf, so stop treating her as such! She is a shape-shifter, not a mindless demon. She is my Olivia.”

 

There is silence, and you watch your father mull over your words. Then, wordlessly, he turns to Olivia, who you finally notice looks deep in thought.

 

“But I do not mind being a Beast,” Olivia finally says after a moment of pondering. Her voice is steady, unfaltering as she looks up to fix your father with a steely, determined gaze. “I do not mind being a Beast so long as I am a Beast for Go Won. I will do anything to protect her, and I am loyal to Go Won, and Go Won alone.”

 

Your father still remains silent, and you wait with baited breath for him to speak. You simply wish for him to talk— about anything! To disgrace you from the family, to send you to your room, anything.

 

And then—

 

“You’ve always wanted an adventure, haven’t you, daughter?” He chuckles slightly, shaking his head. “I should’ve known you’d find a way to befriend the Beast in the dungeons.” You stare at him, jaw ajar slightly. Then, he turns to your companion. “What was your name? Olivia?” He receives a hasty nod. “I see… You will take care of Go Won?”

 

“Always.” Olivia’s answer is firm, and you feel that warm feeling rise in your chest again at how sure she sounds of herself. The arm around your waist tightens. “We will look after each other.” Oh, what you would do to kiss Olivia right now. “Go Won is no helpless creature— she’s more than capable of getting her hands dirty should you let her, Your Highness, and she’s also one of the smartest and most empathetic people I have ever met.”

 

She pauses. “Granted, I haven’t come into contact with the largest amount of humans, nor do I have the greatest record with them, so I don’t know how much power my words have, but Your Highness, Go Won is your daughter. Surely you know her best? Isn’t she more than trustworthy enough to have more adventures of her own now?”

 

You stare in shock at Olivia, and the raven-haired girl smiles and squeezes your hand.

 

“I know that Go Won wants to see the world, Your Highness,” Olivia says with a finality. “After today, I don’t think it would be too farfetched to say that there’s no one who can protect her better than me.”

 

“You did break out of the magically enchanted dungeons to save her,” your father chuckles, and there’s that semblance of hope yet again rising in your chest. “Perhaps you two can see the world together.”

 

You don’t even try to conceal the whoop of happiness that leaves your lips, and Olivia giggles, hands still lightly grazing your waist to keep you steady.

 

“And perhaps weapon training should be in order,” your father further relents, and your eyes gleam. “As much as I hate to be a pessimist, we never known when another attack could occur, and I believe that I would prefer for you to be armed.”

 

“That’s fine!” You breathe out, sharing a glance with Olivia. “That’s more than fine. Getting my hands dirty… that sounds wonderful, actually!”

 

--

 

Luckily for you, your quarters remain relatively untouched, with the only sign of having been an attack being a few scratch marks on your door. (Later, you’ll come to learn that Heejin and Hyunjin had guarded your quarters with magic, fully knowing that you’d be devastated should any harm come to it).

 

You tug Olivia into your living space, and the two of you wave to Yves, who remains by the entrance. Outside, you can see servants hustling around the dirtied castle walls, already beginning the restoration process.

 

“I’ll make sure no one bothers you two,” Yves says, still managing to be cheeky despite her tired appearance.

 

You roll your eyes affectionately, and you shoo her off.

 

“You go make sure Chuu is alright,” you say with a small smile that grows wider at the true gratification on Yves’s face. “Off you go!”

 

“I feel so out of place here,” Olivia comments as soon as the door closes, and you laugh, motioning for her to sit down on the edge of your plush bed with you. She does so, and you immediately latch on to her, taking comfort in her warmth.

 

“You’ll get used to it,” you mumble, coaxing the raven-haired girl to lie down. “For now, let’s sleep, please. I’m sleepy, Olivia…”

 

You smile at the pair of lips that press themselves firmly into your forehead.

 

“Sleep Go Won,” she tells you, raw affection in her tone. “I’ll be here when you wake up.”

 

“I love you, Olivia.”

 

“I love you too, Go Won.”

 

--

 

I dream, and I become a flower

It’s me who bloomed with your warmth

Bloom a flower in my heart

Be my sun