"We have what we came for. Let's go."

Yves' words hang through the air as we hurry out of Jennie's old room, sneaking behind corners to avoid the guards lingering the hallway. Now that the sun leered down at us in its full, agonizingly bright glory, the kingdom was awake. It felt louder than usual. More tense. The slightest of sounds had guards flinching and moving into attack. Servants and maids flocked together as if they were a pack of animals in the wild, protecting themselves against danger.  

 Only when we've created distance from the room do we slow our pace and my breath returns to my body. I wasn't sure what it was that made me feel so anxious. Maybe it was the fact we just broke the rules and almost got caught, or maybe I was just picking up on everyone else's emotions. Jungeun's stiff shoulders as she looked left and right, left and right, left and right-- over and over again as if walking on eggshells.  Yves' face forms into a frown that has my heart clenching in my chest, lost in her own thoughts.  I can't help but purse my lips together and swallow the lump that forms in my throat, tearing my eyes away from the duo.

Soon I'm walking ahead of them as I lead them back to my room. We had what we came for. The missing page. Now it was time to put the pieces back together.

The silence is broken when Yves suddenly grunts, frustration splitting across her face.

"Just what is that Jungkook up to? How could he have known?"

I watch the ordeal silently from the corner of my eye. Jungeun furrows her brows and shakes her head almost immediately, turning to meet Yves' hot gaze with one of her own-- persistent.

"I know he and I are not the most... tolerable of pairs, but I do not believe he would act as treasonous as you have been implying."

"It appears to me you are far too headstrong on giving people the benefit of the doubt, Jungeun." Yves responds, curt. I don't miss the way their gazes holds, the way she seems to challenge the blonde with a narrow of her eyes. "Even when signs point to their guilt."

I can't help but fidget, uncomfortable. I never knew what to do in these situations. Being caught in the middle of an argument between two other people, no option but to listen and pray that it doesn't turn my way. Jungeun finally breaks the tension and looks away, her face softening as a sigh falls from her lips.

"Maybe you are right. I just do not want to believe that while our enemies are waiting outside the walls of this kingdom, there are few already here. Among us. Any one of these people we have passed in the halls time and time again. It makes me question. Why are they waiting to show their true colours?"

I trail into my own thoughts from there. Her words bring a sour taste rising to my senses, suffocating. By now I had it decided that out of everyone I met so far, the only people I trusted was her, Yves, and Olivia. The overseer felt like Switzerland. I was undecided.

It's not long until the rustling of paper tears me from my thoughts and back into reality once more. Not letting up my pace, I watch from my peripheral as Yves tugs the parchment out of her dagger-pocket, unfolding it carefully and smoothing the creases. She scans it over, a single finger following the words as if she's contemplating them carefully. Her frown not once slips from her face. If anything, it strengthens. 

"I must admit I do not know what is so special. It just looks like the ramblings of a man with much to say." She sounded exhausted. Her words fall from her lips in a breathy whisper. The sound of her voice sends a chill down my spine, welcome in contrast to the thick silence that followed us. 

We round a corner and Jungeun snaps out of whatever daze she'd fallen into. She manoeuvres herself so she's peering over her friends shoulder to get a good look at the paper in her hands. After a moment she mirrors the princess' frown and hums.

"I do not see the appeal either, but it must be important if she deemed it necessary to steal."

Yves soundlessly nods her head as if agreeing with Jungeun's words. But before she can respond, the blonde continues. 

"Although I am not sure why she would appear so interested in..." she leans in closer and narrows her eyes as if stumbling over a word. "-In some kind of bridge."

Bridge... The familiar word has me freezing. Memories of my conversation with the overseer in his cell come back to me like a freight train, my eyes blowing wide. 

Yves stumbles into my back at my sudden pause, quickly regathering herself with an almost annoyed glint crossing her eyes. But I pay it no mind. I pay no mind to her hot glare, pay no mind to the static feeling that seems to imprint itself on the skin of my back at having her so close for the briefest of seconds.

When I turn to face them, however, her face softens. As if noticing the way I flush pale as red hot recognition flashes over my eyes. The overseers words linger at the forefront of my mind and I stammer. Jennie being interested in this couldn't have meant anything good. Before they can question me, my words slip from my lips before I could stop them.

This is where my powers come to rest and it is where they will come to die... 

"I've seen it before. The bridge. He showed me."

The duo perk up. Looking around to make sure we were alone, Jungeun lowers her voice to a hush and motions for me to continue.

"What is it? Somehow that look on your face tells me it is nothing good..."

I dig around for my words. How was I suppose to explain it? At the time I could barely wrap my head around it, not even now. I settle with a huff.

"I... I don't even know how to explain it. Nonetheless where to begin. He called it some kind of gateway between your reality and mine."

"Like the gates to the kingdom?" Yves pipes up this time, her head tilting to the side as she mulls over my words. I shake my head and frown.

"No, I don't think so. It was... dark. Like an endless room, nothing but us." Memories of the encounter fill my mind as clear as day, remembering every single detail. "He explained it like it was some kind of-"

Before I can finish, I'm beat to it. Jungeun cuts me off with wide eyes, realisation crossing her face.

"-Tomb. A resting place for his powers." Her eyes settle on mine. "It is the same bridge that brought you to us."

I look back at her in shock. She seemed to take the words right out of my mouth, filling in the gaps. She shakes her head and elaborates when she notices Yves' inquisitive stare.

"Hyejoo has let it slip in tongues before."

My mouth forms into a small 'o'. It made sense. If anyone was destined to know about it, it was Olivia. The thought made a breath of relief slip from my lips. Better it be her than someone like Jungkook. God knows what he's up to.

Before anything else can be said, Jungeun looks around for a second time and then motions for us to keep moving. We narrowly avoid the guard that rounds the corner at the end of the hallway, heading in our direction. We continue our long strides towards my room as our words hang through the air. She continues when we're out of earshot.

"I wonder why it caught her interest." And then she frowns. "Better yet, I can not help but wonder why she lead you straight to it."

I didn't know. I already had so many questions that needed answering, and this was only adding pudding to the cake. I purse my lips and sigh.

"I don't know about the second part, but I do know the bridge has something to do with my powers, too." The word slips from my mouth carelessly and I purse my lips immediately. Powers. I wasn't sure what I was suppose to call it. 

The rest of the walk is spent in silence before we finally reach my room. I push the door open and walk inside, the pair following in my footsteps. I don't miss the apprehensive look that crosses Jungeun's face, and for a moment I figured why. Just a day ago the very woman we were suppose to be at war with was waiting for me. Standing in the centre of my room when it shouldn't have been possible. I supposed it was only in Jungeun's nature to be on her guard.

When my eyes scan the room I realise it was exactly as I left it; messy bedsheets as a reminder of my restless, sleepless night. As my luck would have it, Yves seems to follow my gaze. 

Yves opens in disgust, just a second away from scolding me. But when her gaze darts in my direction and I level her with a stern, "not now, yell at me later"  look--  she zips her lips instantly. Now wasn't the time for her to reprimand me on being untidy. 

Shaking my head to rid myself of my thoughts, I dart into action. We returned for the overseers journal, and that's exactly what we were gonna' do.  I practically pounce over my bed as I reach for the journal, taking it hastily into my hands. The pair gather around the bed while I flip open the book and skim through the pages, trying to find the familiar rip at the spine.  I look up for the briefest of seconds when Yves hesitates with a furrow of her eyebrows.

"What are we suppose to do now?"

I shrug. I take the parchment from her outstretched hand and place it back inside the book, aligning it with the tearing. My answer doesn't seem to settle well with her.

She steps forward a little closer so she's standing directly over my body, her chest to my back as she peers over my shoulder. Ignoring the flutter in my chest at her being so close, her voice sounds ten times louder when she pushes again. 

"Better yet, why was it so important for us to find the missing page? Now we have what we had before plus writings about something you already knew. It sounds rather counter intuitive-- unhelpful, even."

I swallow the lump that forms in my throat and falter. Despite wanting to be stubborn, there was no denying the truth to her words. Now what? Just put the page back where it belongs and hope that something happens? Nonetheless, I shake my head and retaliate.

"There's gotta be something we're missing. We weren't lead to find it for no reason."

I couldn't see her face but I could hear it in her voice. I could just hear the way her face pulls into a sympathetic frown, hear the way she tilts her head as if locating the holes in what I'm saying. She sighs.

"Perhaps, but we still do not know Jennie's intentions. As far as we know, she may have lead us on a hunt to waste our time."

Her words bring a pang to my chest. Maybe I was so intent on trying to be as helpful as I could  that I didn't realise the truth behind her scepticism. We had the journal and the missing page, now what? As far as I knew, we were still in the exact same position as we were before. Nothing had changed. We were just as lost and confused. If not, even more. What was the significance? Why did we need to find the page?

 My thoughts bombard my mind so heavily my face must have fallen, my shoulders deflating. She was right. They both were. Maybe Jungeun was right to doubt the plan, maybe I was the only one who wasn't thinking clearly. Looking down at the paper resting in its place, a frown tugs at my lips.  Now what?

A moment of silence passes before someone makes the first move. It's almost as if she feels my emotions, as if she felt the way my body deflated (to be fair-- she probably did. Her chest presses a little closer to my back when she leans forward to gaze at the side of my face. Part of me almost thought it was for comfort, that contact was her way of making sure I was okay.) And then a second later she clears and sighs. Hesitantly, I crane my head to the right so I meet her eyes. They stare into mine, soft. 

"Do you truly believe there is something we are missing?"

From over her shoulder I notice the way Jungeun darts her eyes between us, a look of pure confusion crossing her face. As if the girl in front of her, the same girl she knew all her life had never felt so foreign. But I pay her no mind. My gaze stays locked on the brunette's as she stands over me with a soft grimace slowly crossing her face. It's almost as if she knew the answer already.

For probably the first time since I got here, I'd never felt so positive. In this moment the emotion that consumes me feels alien. I'd grown so use to feeling sceptical, so use to feeling afraid, unsure. But now... now I felt like the answer was as clear as ever. I nod my head with no second wasted.

"Yes."

The room grows deathly silent. I practically feel a bead of sweat form on my forehead as I watch the way her shoulders deflate, the way her head falls so she can share a look with the blonde soldier behind us.  Jungeun's eyes dart between the two of us, nothing but pure doubt swimming in