There were many differences living in Oneiric and Izland. For all her life, Chaeyeon was a prisoner in her own castle in the Oneiric kingdom. It resonated with the bedtime stories that her governess would tell her, about the princess who was trapped in a tower guarded by a vicious dragon, waiting for the prince to save the helpless maiden. The stories were made up, but it felt like her reality. Only, her father was the vicious dragon, and there were no princes who saved her.

There was only Eunbi. A Queen, who was even more formidable than her own father, Chaeyeon dared say.

When she first moved, Chaeyeon was engaged to be married the second she stepped foot in Izland. This instilled fear in her. She was scared that she was only exchanging one prison for another. It made her wary of walking in the halls, made her wary of even asking if she could leave the castle grounds. Like instinct, from years of living under the roof of her father, Chaeyeon was too scared of the backlash if she had asked to leave.

But the Queen––Eunbi––was so far from a captor.

Eunbi is warm and kind. She radiated the comfort that was a balm to Chaeyeon’s heart. After their heartfelt moment a week ago, they spent all their moments together. Each night, they would share stories and converse in hushed, soft tones in Chaeyeon’s room, sitting on the edge of the bed with their hands clasped together.

(“I once cut my own hair with a sword—Sakura was mortified!”

“I sneaked out of the castle through the sewers. Father was so displeased, my brother had to lie and tell father that he pushed me in because he wanted my dessert.”)

They would grin and giggle with their foreheads touching, acting like little children conspiring to keep a secret from the adults. 

If by chance the Queen was busy with kingdom matters and had no time for their evening exchange, Eunbi would not fail to seek her out to bid Chaeyeon goodnight. They parted at her door with a sweet kiss on the lips and a promise for the morrow.

And in the morning they would meet again with radiant smiles, breaking fast privately in the dining hall, ready to start the day regardless if they were on different sides of the castle. Even if they did not spend their day together, they would think of each other. Chaeyeon knows this because the Queen had asked one of her Queen’s Guards to pass little notes to her throughout the day. All of them started with a longing “it pains me to be away from you” and ended the note with an endearing, “I will be thinking of you.” 

No, Eunbi was never her captor.

And ever since that night, when Eunbi apologized and she graciously accepted, even if there was apprehension attached still, Chaeyeon finally realized that she was freed the moment she married Eunbi. She was free to do as she pleases, and to be more than just a helpless damsel in distress. To be her own person who thinks, lives, and loves freely.

That thought was at the forefront of her mind as she walked along the paved road to the nearby village. It was such a simple act but so very exciting for the princess. Mainly because Chaeyeon did not even have to sneak out of the castle. Instead, she was accompanied by Sakura, the Ladies Hyewon, Minju, and Yuri, and three of Eunbi’s own Queen’s Guards. 

“Tell me again, Your Highness,” starts Sakura walking at her side. “I don’t understand why we didn’t take a carriage to the village. I have gravel in my sandals.” Her lady’s maid had to stop once in a while throughout their journey to shake it away, be about it each time.

“I enjoy the walk,” Chaeyeon replies.

“Well, princess, I hope you’ll enjoy the walk back with blistering heels,” says Lady Yuri.

Chaeyeon couldn’t help rolling her eyes, chuckling. “You ladies really are quite dramatic.”

“I think we merely strive for comfort.” Lady Hyewon replies.

Chaeyeon opens to retort, but stops when, in the distance, she sees a beggar kneeling at the side of the road. She frowns, seeing the tattered clothes of the old woman, dusty and muddy.

She didn’t even realize she had stopped walking until Minju bumped into her. “Princess?”

Chaeyeon did not avert her eyes from the beggar. “Is the kingdom not prosperous?”

The ladies looked confused for one moment before they finally saw what Chaeyeon was looking at. “It is impossible to be rid of all poverty.” Sakura was the one to answer.

Chaeyeon turns to Sakura, surprised at the almost nonchalance of what is happening in their kingdom. “Does the crown do nothing for the impoverished?”

“The crown does their best,” Sakura finally says after a long moment. “The queen makes sure that each lord is given enough money to govern the smaller villages in their lands. However, there are always things with greater importance––trades to arrange and borders to secure. Unfortunately, the crown is not able to worry for each individual citizen.”

The explanation only made Chaeyeon frown more. Chaeyeon was no stranger to seeing the suffering of her citizens in Oneiric. But she did hope for the better in Izland.

She wasn’t an idealist, not really. And she wasn’t naive either. Chaeyeon was aware that her wife was busy with many things. But from what she had seen, it was clear that the Izland crown was not lacking, and so were the lords of Izland. If the rich were able to have bountiful amounts of food on their table and the money to own more than enough castles than they need, then the citizens of the kingdom should be able to enjoy more than a life of poverty. 

“That is… unfortunate.”

It became awkward when neither of them made a move. Sakura deemed it necessary to diffuse the situation, if not evade it. “Shall we continue our walk, Your Highness?”

“Yes,” Chaeyeon immediately replies.

She was still in disbelief of how unpleasantly similar Izland’s problems can be to Oneiric. She wanted to see more––she needed to see more of this kingdom she now calls home. Chaeyeon had to prove to herself that the kingdom wasn't suffering. Or if she can’t, she had to prove that they were similar and maybe, finally do something about it.

The marketplace was bustling with people. The smell of spices, bread, and odd foods filled the air. Some of the villagers looked and smiled at her, others ignored her altogether in lieu of their errands. For a time, Chaeyeon was able to not dwell on the beggar woman she’d seen before.

She visited almost each stall with wonder and excitement, her lady’s maids were all too happy to indulge her. “We should get you this scarf, Your Highness.”

“I think the queen would love to receive flowers from you.” That comment made Chaeyeon chuckle, though she did buy a bouquet of red carnations for her wife.

It was a little further into the village when Chaeyeon saw a run-down building crowded with children and women just outside of it. The children were laughing as they kicked around a ball, but Chaeyeon couldn’t help notice how skinny they looked. The women there, on the other hand, were standing in line, all waiting behind a large cauldron. A woman was ladling into their wooden bowls what Chaeyeon could only guess was porridge.

There were tents put up around the building as if to extend it’s living space. This reminded her too much of the villages in Oneiric when she was younger and used to sneak out from the castle.

“What is this place?”

“...A