You sat down at your desk, picking up your pen and poised it under your chin as you thought briefly. Smiling, you set about writing your letter.

Dearest Jane,

Your letter was so well-timed and entertained me greatly! It sounds that Ten is forever keeping you on your toes, much like sweet Henry and Evangeline are. I wouldn’t trade the bustle of such a life though. It has been very busy here as my father continues with his talk of my coronation and making Jaehyun and I rule the kingdom. I still dispute we are far too young for the job, and there is too much to do with life. Taeyong has gone on a journey with his newlywed bride and I feel the itch to travel again soon. Father, however, seems even more incessant with ensuring we focus on the plans he has. I am certain he still has some notion that he can entrap me to this place permanently when I am unready to do so. Jaehyun, of course, remains civil to both sides. Even after three years of marriage, he is yet to have a moment where he disagrees with my father. How placating he forever is. How I married such a man-

“Your Highness!” a voice interrupted and you sighed, turning around to smile forcibly at Bessie. She ignored your disdain and your eyes travelled to the hands she held firmly over what was now making the whining noises in front of you. You tried your hardest to hold back your smile as you took in the state of him. “Prince Minhyun was playing in the mud again!”

“Sparrow,” you called and the toddler finally broke free, dashing across the room to your side. Bessie’s calls to not let him touch you fell on deaf ears as you happily hugged your son to your chest.

“You know, he’s never going to know what his name is if you keep calling him that,” another voice mentioned and you smiled up at Jaehyun who entered the room sporting a similar design of mud on the lower part of his slacks. He leaned down to kiss the top of your head.

“You still call me little bird to this day and yet I know my own name. Might I remind you that it was you who also gave our son this nickname?”

You both fussed over your child and the chambermaid groaned, throwing her hands up in defeat and stomped out of the room.

“Were you having fun?” you asked your son and he nodded happily. “Then who minds the mud?! You do know it means you will need a bath tonight, though.”

“Again?!” Minhyun cried and shook his head defiantly. “I don’t want one!”

Jaehyun hissed at him to be silent and the toddler turned broody before he leapt out of your arms and went over to play with the wooden toys in the corner of your study. Jaehyun placed himself around you, looking towards your unfinished letter and you groaned at his ability to read it faster before you could move it away.

“How I married such a man? Really, you would say such a thing to Jane?”

“Of course. You haven’t once gone against Father’s words!”

“I’ve never had a true need to,” he murmured faintly and you rolled your eyes at his vague answer. “What will you write next?”

You glanced at your son playing, smiling at how energetic he was. Although he looked just like his father, no one could ever dismiss how much Minhyun was alike to you. Excluding the years of your controlled temperament until you broke free, your son was as wild and carefree as you were now. He spoke up for what he wanted, and already at two years old, he had a sound understanding of what was right and wrong. He learned by exploring and he valued the outdoors far better than being inside all day long. Minhyun loved the frequent outings to the nearby villages and chasing butterflies in the field near Marigold’s house whenever you visited her. He was living the life you had only dreamed of for so long. You were proud to offer your son everything you had wanted, even if it meant he was messier than any prince who had been within these lands before.

Turning around to face Jaehyun, you wrapped your arms around him as soon as you were up out of your seat, embracing him warmly. His hands went to your hair and mindlessly through it. “Let’s have another one.”

“Another… you’re going to say that next?” he asked in confusion and you laughed lightly.

“No, I will not tell Jane that, although she already has urged for me to have a daughter to marry Henry.”

“A daughter who looks just like her mother but has more of my temperament would be nice,” he admitted slyly and you looked up at him, unable to hide your own grin. “I’m serious though, what comes after that line? How did you marry such a man?”

“I fell in love,” you said, still gazing up at your husband. “I met a man who took me on an adventure. I danced in the ocean and spent many nights stargazing. During that time I fell for someone who didn’t want to put me into a box of what I should be. He encouraged me to be who I wanted to be, much like he does of our sparrow too.”

Jaehyun glanced over at Minhyun and then back at you, reaching for your face and angling it so he could kiss your lips softly. When your kiss was over, you continued.

“I’ll tell her that all my dreams came true even if I married such a man. That I know I’ll live happily ever after, just like in the fairytales.”

“Really?” Jaehyun asked, his voice huskier with emotion. “You will tell her all that?”

“And much more over the years to come as well,” you affirmed, smiling up at Jaehyun. “I love you.”

“I love you forevermore.”

“You better,” you teased and he chuckled. “Otherwise I’ll fly away again!”

“Y/N, you forget I plan to follow you wherever you travel to.”

“Even as far away as the stars?” you asked playfully and Jaehyun nodded immediately.

“To the moon and back.”

As you smiled up at your husband and his endless ways of making your world feel magical each and every day, your thoughts slipped back to the journey three years previous. You treasured the memories you held dearly, knowing that they had allowed everything you now had. When you had escaped that night, you had only wanted to find some understanding of the world. You were thankful that what came from that experience was something far greater, something you hadn’t ever felt before. You would fight for what you believed in from that time onward. You would live the life you wanted to, within reason of course. After all, you were still a Princess and would one day be Queen.

And with Jaehyun at your side, you knew that your adventure was nowhere near over. You couldn’t wait to see where being in love with him would take you.

Or where you would fly to next.

The End.