CHANGES

Yena was dropped off at the Royal Guards Military Training Grounds at exactly 7.00 a.m. sharp the day after Yujin was handed back to the Royal Ahns.

It was only after a teary goodbye with her siblings and her mother, then she was able to part ways with them to be escorted to the black Mercedes Benz waiting outside at the road for her to her new home for god knows how many years.

She asked Chaeyeon if she would be able to return and visit them to which Chaeyeon replied, “I believe it is up to you to decide.”

She watched the vast skyscrapers lining her vision evolve into that of a dense forest.

Then finally, her car joined a snaking line of similar cars to hers to a compound with huge words lettering the cement wall, “We pledge to provide our services to the Royal Ahn Family of Elbonia with our loyalty and truth” with a weighing scale above those words.

“To hell with that, I would never pledge to provide services to the Royal Ahn Family. Not when Yujin is made to act as Ahn Eugene. I don’t believe this utter bull. It’s not fair.”

Yena thought to herself as the car entered the huge cast iron gates.

From there, she was made to follow instructions to a medical room to further assess her.

The medical team onsite cleared her, saying that she was a healthy child, fit and ready to serve as a Royal Guard with plenty of training sessions and that she needed to get her immunisation shot which she hadn’t cleared for the year.

Yena obliged and rolled up her sleeves and had the nurse prick her skin with the needle containing the immunisation shot.

She winced slightly at the pain but it was cleared with a bandage applied and a friendly reminder to ‘press on it for a few minutes to allow the effect take place fully’

Yena thanked them and collected her belongings stashed in her own neon yellow luggage and wheeled it through a security check.

She was cleared and she joined a group of teenagers round the same age as her in a vast hall.

The room was eerily silent with only the recruits’ heavy breathing heard along with the whirring of the air conditioner.

“Okay, testing. 1 2 3. Alright. That’s good.” The mic suddenly boomed loudly in the hall, shaking Yena out of her stupor.

The very man that had brought Yena to the military training grounds was standing in front of her very eyes.

Mr Dennis Lim.

He wore a blood red shirt along with black slacks and looked round each and every recruits’ faces.

Their faces were a mixture of fear, worry and confusion on being in their foreign place.

“Welcome, to your introductory day here at the Royal Guards Military Training Grounds, or the short form, RG MTG. And without further ado, I would introduce myself as Mr Dennis Lim, but you are to address me as Sir Lee on formal grounds. Surely you may feel like you are not fit to be in this training programme. But think about the efforts that we took to scour for potential Royal Guards round this country. It wasn’t an easy feat but do feel honoured that you have been chosen to represent the Elbonian nation. Rest be assured, that you will be able to receive education but under new teachers and you will receive training that would enable you to achieve the status of Royal Guards of the Elbonia. It would be an honour for your families, wouldn’t it be? Their children serving the nation, proudly with badges on the royal red vest. Also, you will receive wages starting from the bare minimum of Elbonian $800 every month.”

Everyone looked on in shock at the amount of money to which Mr Lim replied, chuckling to himself over the mic.

“Well, this money would be stored in a special hologram bank account which you can only access if you wish to return to the outside world to visit your loved ones or would like to buy items for your own self. Also, do take note that you would be paid extra if your tremendous efforts are seen by the troop leaders. So do take note to work hard.”

A bell sounded in the compound.

“This marks the end of my talk so I wish the batch of 2043 a wonderful experience in their upcoming years in RG MTG.”

Then, people wearing velvet vests walked into the cold hall and they rounded up the recruits into their bunks.

Yena joined her new friends, cramped into a military jeep which ferried them to their bunks.

From, there they assigned beds to their own selves and were given instructions to report to the hall in an hour for further instructions. 

Yena was able to assign names to the faces surrounding her with Yuqi, the girl with wide doe eyes with her bunk bed to her right, Yeji with a high ponytail on her left. Right across her was Heejin who resembled Hitomi in a subtle way.

Yena unpacked her belongings, storing them into the empty drawers next to her bed.

She accepted that she would have to work hard to support her siblings in case Chaeyeon’s sentence increases by a few more years.

‘Just endure this and you would surely be rewarded for it’ Yujin’s words echoed in her brain.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________

Breakfast was a solemn Sunday affair for the Royal Ahns with Sakura’s  hologram reciting today's morning news and upcoming events.

They all dismissed themselves from the dining table individually, saying their thanks for the meal and left to attend their own duties or lessons in store for them for the children.

Leaving Yujin alone in the dining room.

She cleared her plate which was filled with her second helpings of scrambled eggs and cleared her palate with apple juice. She rose from her table to leave the room and made her way down the winding hallways to her room.

She could just request to use the hoverboards that the Queens use to make their way from one end of the palace to the other without breaking into a sweat, especially with it programmed to reach the final destination within a short time. 

But she doesn’t want to since she wanted to familiarise herself within the walls of this constricting house.

Then she ran into a crossroad.

‘Am I to turn to my right or make my way forward?’ 

She decided with the latter, since it seemed more familiar.

She made her forward and with it came another crossroad. 

Yujin recalled her steps with Minjoo the night before and was only able to make her way back to her original spot.

But she wasn’t entirely sure if it was the same original location she was at a few minutes ago for the carpets were of a darker shade of red.

She sighed to herself, regretting her terrible decision of not wanting to use the programmed hoverboard.

She then pressed her hologram, to call for help when she felt someone walking down the same hallway as she was.

Perhaps it was a servant?

She whipped her head round to come face to face with Ahn Yuri.

Yujin wasn’t exactly familiar with the younger sister, Ahn Yuri for she was a few grades lower than her.

Yuri looked up to see Yujin looking round with a confused expression across her face, which broke into a face of relief upon seeing her.

Yujin half jogged and walked to Yuri to which she asked with a sheepish grin, “Can you help me find my way back to my room. I’m really sorry”

Yuri broke into a warm grin and told Yujin to stay close behind. Yujin nodded her head like an obedient puppy.

“Sister, how do you feel returning back home?”

The same old question to ask her how she felt and whether she feels comfortable. Just a general question to ask about her welfare.

Yujin grimaced silently and told a dry answer to the boring question.

Yuri was unlike Minjoo who was pretty talkative for someone who was usually silent in the public, whereas in front of Yujin, Yuri was a rather quiet and timid person which is a contrast to her loud boisterous voice in the public.

Then Yuri asked a question which caught her off guard, “Is Lee Yena your sister?”

Lee Yena.

Lee Hitomi

Lee Nako

Lee Chaeyeon

It has only been a day and Yujin wants to return to her old house, away from this living hell. Surely, the palace was more vast and spacious but she preferred the quaint apartment of The Abelia down on Mayflower Road.

Yujin tried to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall that may stain her dress. She took a deep breath in and said, “Yes. She was my sister”

Yujin wondered how Yuri would have known about Yena because they were of different grades and heck even different schools.

She asked, trying to take her mind over how her family would be faring without her.

“How could you possibly know about Yena, Sister Yuri?”

Yujin could see a blush creep up Yuri’s pale neck and her ears started to turn a similar shade of the carpet they were walking upon. A sign that she was hiding something personal.

“Forget I ask, Sister Yujin”

“Why though? Did you perhaps take a fancy to her? Well, she is a pretty lad, a rather annoying one at that and..”

However, Yuri beat her to it.

“A girl who is more charming than all the suitors shoved into my endless list”

Yuri stopped her tracks and immediately clamped her hands over in shock.

The blush reached her cheeks and she looked like a tomato in Yujin’s perspective.

Yuri decided to pick up her speed, leaving Yujin to catch up with her.

She wanted to but they were complete strangers despite being sisters in the books.

Finally, they reached Yujin’s room without any form of exchange with them.

Suddenly, Yujin cheekily replied to break the light tension, “Hey Sister Yuri, I can hook you up with a date with Yena if you want to”

Yuri just gave a shocked expression in return and told Yujin to zip to which Yujin paralleled the action, leaving Yuri to scurry off to the safety of her own room.

A secret sealed within the depths of their own hearts

Yujin chuckled to herself and closed the door behind her, knowing that life at the palace could be at least a bit more bearable with her sisters.

She looked at her hologram which flashed 9.45 a.m. meaning that she had only 15 minutes to prepare herself and find a way to Queen Sakura’s room.

She then decided on a silk outfit for herself as she couldn't bear the stifling hot dress wrapped around her figure.

It was cooling compared to her previous.

Meanw