I find myself there again, in another of my visions, this time it comes while I sleep. I’m standing in his room, the area dimly lit just enough for me to see his sleeping form on the bed.

Like every time I’ve been here before he will not know I have been here for he’s always asleep. My feet carry me to his bedside, my body leaning over his so my fingers can rest on the skin of his cheek. For a human, he is so beautiful, from what I could tell. For some reason every time I see him his face is blurry but there enough for me to tell he is in fact beautiful. Through the blurriness I can tell he has an almost inhuman-beauty to his features. Those surrounding him must live in envy.

My fingers trail back to trace along one of his blurry ears, my own pointed ears twitching at the feeling. “To what will you bring upon us, dear boy.” My fingers leave his ear to trace back up towards his lips. There was a small scar visible near his lip that always drew my attention to it every time I came. It was so human, but so cute.

Seeing this boy beneath me in my visions ever since I was born was an omen. Bad or good I have not decided yet. But I have foreseen his future and it is not a good one for him. He dies in the arms of his lover. It’s a bloody death from what I could tell as the vision was brief, one I cannot imagine happening in the realm of humans. But alas they were feral creatures. Harming one another seemed like it was natural to them.   My eyes draw up to his eyes, they moved abruptly behind his closed lids. His forehead creasing with worry, small whines coming from his lips, making me wonder what exactly he was dreaming of. Maybe I was sent here to soothe him of his nightmares. I do not know. I lean forward pressing my lips onto the skin of his forehead pulling him from whatever was causing him to tremble in his sleep.   I pull back, a small smile forming on my lips as his features relax once more, his breathing slowing once again. I stand ready to force myself out of the vision like I had learned to do from my elders. But the air is from my lungs at the feeling of warm fingers wrapping around my wrist.   “Who are you?” I hear his voice for the first time. It’s warm, smooth, and silvery despite having just woken up.   And I really should go back because he probably shouldn't know I'm here but curiosity gets the best of me. My body turns towards him, to possibly get the chance to see him. To maybe see what he looks like with his eyes opened. For like I mentioned before in every vision before today, his face was always there but not really at the same time.   He wasn't blurry for some reason, so my eyes quickly trail up his figure that is now sitting up, the very image of him becoming blurry the longer I stare. I finally see his eyes that were narrow with curiousness, ones that are too beautiful to be a human’s. But they do belong to one, they belonged to the one that stared back at me. His eyes quickly take notice of my pointed ears but he only manages to see them for a second before the air that was knocked from my lungs earlier comes crushing back.   My eyes fly open, gasping for air, the image of the boy from before was replaced with my brother’s face. “Rae.” Jaemin sighs, shoulders relaxing. “You had me worried, I couldn’t wake you.”   I slowly sit up, my head spinning as I do. “I’m sorry, Jae.”   He pulls back to sit beside me, eyes filled with worry. “Did you see him again?”   “Mm, this time he saw me too though.” My fingers run down to the skin of my wrist that touched his. It was still warm.   To this day ever since I was born I had seen the boy. I had practically grew up with him even though us elves age slower he appears to be just as old as I was. My birthday for this year had passed around a month ago making me 25 in human years though ever since I turned 20 my aging froze. I will look the same as I did at 20 the rest of my life probably until it was time for me to cross over into the next life.   Even as a baby I saw him, he too was a baby at the time, I saw him grow up as I grew up. To this day I would see him and his future, sometimes like today I'd see him on his current timeline. However old he was. Again I had no idea why I saw him and it isn't unusual for the women in my family to see things. We were seers, we did stuff with our minds, in fact Jaemin too did stuff with his mind. He could read people's thoughts, their emotions, but wasn't gifted with foresight like myself, our mother, or our grandmother.   But then again it was unusual for us to see anything pertaining humans. We lived in different worlds, same planet but different realms. They weren't supposed to cross over into our territory and the same for us into theirs. It wouldn't do us any harm if we were but it was just better to keep to our own worlds. The humans didn't entirely know of our existence. They wondered, they speculated. Just as they did with mermaids, witches, aliens, and other things that were all very much real but ultimately they all kept to their own worlds too.   “Do you think that is a good thing?” Jaemin hums, leaning back against the wall my bed sat against.   “I do not know.”   “Lady Hae wishes to see you.” He stands up, head glancing back towards me. “I think it’s formal, so I’d dress more appropriately.”   “What does she want with me this early in the morning?” I fling my sheets off of my body standing up.   “I think it has to do with the erratic movement of the Eastern clans.” Jaemin moves to my closet searching for a dress he deemed appropriate enough for an audience with our current Queen, our mother, Na Haeun, or otherwise known as Lady Hae.   My eyes land on him as he pulls an elegant gray and pink dress from the closet. His eyes turn to me knowing I was looking at him. “I think your coronation may come sooner than you think. And your marriage to the Southern or Western Prince, whichever you choose, will most likely be moved up.”   I swallow thickly, “You know it is not in my wishes to marry one of them. The Western Prince is an and the Southern Prince is nearly thirty years older than I even if he doesn't look it.”   Jaemin nods sadly, “I know, dear sister, I know. But in order to unify and protect the North you might have to.”   -   “Lady Hae, it is I, Na Rae, your daughter.” I bow as I enter the room in the dress Jaemin had picked out for me. My eyes raise to find her sitting at the head of the room, on her throne. Beside her stood the other head elves of the clans that resided in the North.   My eyes meet Qian Kun, the newly appointed head of the Qian Clan, my childhood friend. Then they move over to Moon Taeil, head of the Moon Clan, the one in which my heart used to lie with until he married another. I swallow thickly at the thought, it had been awhile since their marriage and my heart has long since settled but it was still weird nonetheless.   “Lady Rae, I assume you know why you’ve been summoned here today.” My mother speaks out firmly my eyes flitting back to her. Her features despite being an older woman still were flawless due to our elf-lineage. We always looked young, and beautiful. But my mother was amongst one of the most beautiful I have ever seen.   It had been seven years since we lost our father but she continued on strong for Jaemin and I, for the Na Clan, and for the North. Our father’s life was taken by someone of the East and ever since we in the North haven’t felt safe.   “I do.” I lower my eyes.   “The Western and Southern Princes will arrive in a weeks time. You must choose one for the sake of the North.” She smiles towards me sadly. “We need at least one of their strengths. Jaemin will marry a lady from whichever region you do not marry into.”   Now even Jaemin would be forced into a life he doesn’t want either. “Alright.”   -   “Sadness does not look good on you, Na Rae.” Sicheng, my personal guard sits down next to me at my secret place. It was a waterfall a couple of miles from where our region ended. I’m sure it was well known to those who live here but it was rarely occupied so I used it as my personal place. The emptiness of life was probably due to it being so close to the Eastern territory.   I in a breath through my teeth, the sun was peeking through the trees reflecting off the water causing it to appear to sparkle. I probably wouldn’t get to come to this place once I was married. “Yeah well, sadness is all I can muster after the news my mother dropped on me.”   Sicheng places a few rocks onto my lap, before skipping one across the water. “I wasn’t present but I can only assume the meeting this morning was to announce your soon to be marriage.”   “Mm.” I grab ahold of a rock skipping it across the water, watching as it stops and sinks into the water.   “Who will you choose?” He skips another turning to me. “I know you despise marrying a man who is way older than you but the Southern Prince seems the lesser of two evils.”   I bite my lip, “I cannot imagine crawling into bed with that ert every night and having to bear his children some day.”   Sicheng snorts at the thought, “Yeah, that does sound awful. But would you rather crawl into bed with the Western ?”   “I don’t know,” I hum dropping each of the rocks into the water in front of me. “At least he is around my age. But I don’t think I can take his indignant tone in my ear for the rest of my life.”   “It is a shame that the East is a mess, I know you don’t like to talk or hear of them but I’ve heard from a few of the elders that they used to be some of the prettiest and nicest elves.” He clicks his tongue. “Before the Queen died and it fell into ruin due to no rightful heir.”   My lips open to form a reply whenever Sicheng’s eyes widen, “Someone approaches from the East.” He quickly stands, hand pulling his bow from where it was hooked on his shoulder. His other hand reaching for an arrow. “They are armed, get behind me.”   I stand with a sigh, “Is it only one?”   “Yes.”   I scoff moving to stand beside him. “Then we’ll have no problem handling them.”   Sicheng is unamused at my words, but doesn’t say anything as we hear footsteps approaching. A boy comes running towards the water, not even noticing us. He falls to the ground, sword dropping as he puts his hands into the water pulling it up to his face. He freezes though upon hearing Sicheng pull back on his bow.   The boy’s hand twitches towards his sword but Sicheng speaks up before he can. “Do not move.”   The boy’s eyes move to us, eyes wide as they trail over to me. “Are you from the North?”   “And if we are?” Sicheng doesn’t relax, arrow still ready to pierce through the boy’s heart if he dared move an inch.   “I seek refuge from the East.” There’s a look of desperation in his eyes that I want to believe he wasn’t faking.   “What is your name? And your title?” I speak out, why would someone from the East seek our help when they were after us?   “I’m Lee Taeyong, head of the Lee Clan in the East.” He says softly.   Sicheng scoffs, “You expect us to believe that the head of a clan is seeking refuge from their own people?”   Taeyong’s hands move causing Sicheng to step closer but the boy is only putting them together to plea towards us. “Please, the East is a mess right now. And I am searching for the one who can save us.” His eyes are soft and are piercing at the same time. “My grandmother prophesied, shortly before one of the other Clan leaders killed her before my very eyes, that someone from the North would lead our people into the light again. I come seeking that person and also seeking safety from those who are trying to kill me.”   I rest a hand on Sicheng’s forearm, “Why is it that your own people are trying to kill you?”   “We have no legitimate guidance, other than this witch and her son that have poisoned the mind of more than half of the Clan leaders.” His hands rub together pleading. “Believe me when I say that we do not wish to start a war with any of the other regions but that lady wishes to rule over all of them.”   “Sicheng, put your bow down.”   “But Na Rae.” His eyes dart towards me.   “You are a Na?” Taeyong gasps, head lowering out of respect. “Of the Na Clan?” Sicheng curses under his breath at his slip up, hands not putting his bow down.   “I am.” I nod towards him. “I am the Crown Princess, Na Rae.”   His eyes brighten, “Then you can help me speak to the Queen, you can help my people.” His hands grab his sword causing Sicheng to almost shoot his arrow but I hold his arrow in place since Taeyong was only throwing the sword further away from him.   Sicheng sighs, “We will bring him to Jaemin first, there he will have his mind read. If he passes that I’ll take him to Lady Hae.”   -   “Who is this Eastern boy you bring before us?” The Ko Clan head scowls towards him. Sicheng grumbles something towards me since he insisted that I not come with him to do this but I wanted to be here.   “I am Lee Taeyong, head of the Lee Clan.”   Which causes all of the clan heads to begin murmuring to one another. My mother raises her hand hushing them. “And why are you here?”   “I am here seeking help, while also searching for the one my grandmother prophesied would save the East.”   “Na Jaemin.” My mother speaks causing him to take a step forward from behind me. “What did you see?”   “He is telling the truth.” Jaemin nods towards her, which causes the heads to begin murmuring again.   My mother’s lip close together and she thinks. “For now, put him in one of the cells. We will hold a meeting tomorrow morning to discuss what happens moving forward.”   -   In the evening I find myself beside Kun my head resting on his shoulder at Sicheng’s place. When we were younger this was often the spot we all hung out. Sicheng, Kun, Taeil, and myself, and Jaemin when he was old enough. Now though Taeil was not present due to his marriage. It felt so empty without him, despite the fact that it had been over a year since he had last stepped foot in here.   I was still in utter shock at his abrupt marriage. He didn’t tell any of us that it was happening. It was to the Han Clan’s head’s daughter. She was intelligent beyond belief and loved nature, and Taeil’s eyes had always been on her never straying not even to me who was dying for his affection.   I'm over it now, but I sometimes needed a reminder. My attention returns to the boy from the East. From what he said it seems the East is pretty much non-existent anymore which was sad because soon that could be the North.   “What do you think they’ll decide about Lee Taeyong?” I murmur to Kun since he was a Clan Leader he had some say in what would happen to him.   Sicheng rests his head on the back of his chair trying to not seem interested in what would become of the boy from the East. But I knew he was, for the tips of his ears twitch as he tries listening closely.   Kun rests his chin on his hand, “I’m not sure myself, though Lady Ae prophesied someone would come from the East before the war started.” My head lifts from his shoulder to send him a bewildered look. “If it were to be him then the war is on our doorstep.”   “A war?” My eyes blink towards him. I was not expecting a war, not so soon that is. Why had my grandmother not told me of this vision of hers?   His eyes move to mine, “Mm, Lady Ae predicted it four years ago. It would happen after a man from the East came seeking another.” He shrugs. “But I would rest well, both of you, I do not think it is the man she saw in her vision.”   “And why is that?”   “Because in that same vision, a human man comes into our territory on the same day.” He smiles hands shrugging into the air. “So yeah, highly unlikely, the war won’t happen for a while. You can relax.”   I breathe out a sigh of relief. Why had he drew that out so long? He did it intentially to mess with us, no doubt.   “But that is exactly why we need help from one of the other regions.” His eyes turn to me, a somber smile on his face. “I do not wish for your unhappiness, but I do wish for all of our safety.”   “Did you say that a human comes into our territory on the same day that one from the East does?” Sicheng sits up, eyes not really here, but somewhere else.   “Yeah, why?” Kun hums glancing towards the boy.   Sicheng blinks out of his daze, “There’s a human man dangerously close to walking into our territory as we speak.”   Kun’s eyes widen getting ready to stand, I press my hand into his chest. “Let me go talk to him, I will talk him away from our territory.”   I lay back in my seat, my eyes closing as I drift off to where the human was. I could not see him for I was one with the area surrounding our territory. It was something my dad taught me how to do. I could feel him, walking along the borderline of the human realm and ours.   “What is it that you seek?” I speak out towards the person, slipping into their mind. When he doesn’t answer I speak again. “This is no place for humans, it is dangerous in this area.”   Could he not hear me?   Normally the humans that were warned heeded our warnings. High-tailing it out of here due to being scared. Most of them were hunters strung off the beaten path. But this man seemed determined.   I in a breath, letting my eyes open. “He did not listen to me. He’s going to be crossing the border soon.” My heart pounds in my chest, should I be worried?   “.” Kun raises rushing towards the door to Sicheng’s place. “I must tell the others.”   Sicheng stands following him, “I will go confront the human, he made his arrival so known that I’m sure the other guards are heading his way too.”   “I will go too.” I follow after him and he doesn’t question it since this was merely a human we were confronting.   -   I can feel it in my bones when he passes through the border, it sends a shudder through my entire body. I didn’t know why I could feel it because I did not usually feel when individuals pass through it.   “Sicheng.” I grasp onto his arm. “Something’s not right.”   His eyes turn to me as he stops noticing my trembling. “What’s wrong?”   “I felt him pass through the border.” My eyes raise to his and he comes forward.   “I think you should stay behind, Na Rae.”   “No.” I say firmly taking a deep breath.   He runs a hand through his long brown hair that was braided back away from his face messing it up completely. “You must stay behind me this time then, alright?”   When we approach the other guards Sicheng moves to speak with the one in charge. “What’s going on?”   “We cannot sense him any longer.” The guy replies, eyes darting to me. “Why is it that the Crown Princess is here? It is not safe.”   Sicheng shakes his head annoyed, since he knew I was probably stronger than the guard speaking but doesn’t comment on it. “What do you mean you cannot sense him any longer?”   “After he got within stepping distance of our territory it was like he disappeared. We do not even know if he crossed over.” Another guard comments, hand restlessly holding his bow. As his eyes dart around the area.   “He crossed over.” I speak up, my hand resting on my chest. “I felt it.”   “Does this mean he is not human?” The other guard mumbles.   “What could he be then? There’s nothing that we guards cannot sense crossing our borders, human or not.” The guard in charge glances around.   Sensing stuff was something those who trained to guard could do but I have never taken that training. Most, if not all, of my abilities came to me naturally being from the Na Clan, sensing not being one of them. So why was I suddenly sensing it whenever earlier today I did not sense Lee Taeyong, an Eastern elf, someone of my own kind cross over.   “Split into groups of threes and search.” Sicheng takes command, due to his higher status. His hand pulls me behind him, gesturing for another guard to cover my backside. “We will Na Rae back to the main residence.”   Despite being in the situation I was in I felt calm and collected. This didn’t feel like a dangerous situation. A twig snaps to the left of us and the guard behind me quickly reacts, moving in the direction of it only for another to snap in front of us. Sicheng slows to a stop sensing around trying to sense something, maybe an animal. When he doesn’t since he doesn’t say anything he gestures for me to stay put as he steps forward into the trees in front of me.   I’m left out in the open. My eyes turning to a figure, one I had noticed following us in the woodline a while back but did not mention it. The person didn't feel threatening and the obvious thing they were doing was to get me alone. I should be at least a little scared. Especially when they come forward but I’m not. This entire situation felt serene, calming. Maybe they were doing something to me for me to feel this way?   A hand grasps onto my upper arm over the sleeve of my dress, my eyes search for a face but it’s covered due to the dark hood the person wore. I’m tugged away into the woods and despite the fact that I should fight back I don’t because I don’t think this person wants to hurt me.   After running for a few seconds I’m pushed up against a tree, a hand resting against my lips, as the figure glances over their shoulder.   “Na Rae!” I can hear Sicheng’s voice in the distance.   The figure shushes me by removing his hand from my face and resting a single finger against my lips. I blink towards him, my hands moving up to his hood. As I pull it down my eyes find the last person I was expecting it to be.   The boy from my visions. My eyes search into his, how did he find me? Was this another dream or vision? No it couldn’t be, could it? It felt too real. There was no blurriness which seemed a dead giveaway to me that this was real.   My fingers move up to brush along the skin of his jaw, he was very much real, or so he felt. But then again even in my visions he felt real. “Are you real?” I ask him, and for the first time I realize that he’s taller than me. I am an elf, in which is taller than most humans. How is it that he is taller than me even then?   He seems amused at my comment, eyes narrowing as he snorts, “I should be asking you that.” He mumbles quietly. This time he’s the one to brush his hand against my cheek as he leans down surprising me with a kiss on the lips. It’s very brief but enough to shock me.   “What was that for?” My ears twitch, embarrassment crawling up my neck. I had always thought my first kiss would be with Taeil, not the boy who stood before me. But I must admit, I kind of liked it.   His eyes dart away nervously, “Checking to see if you’re real, is all.”   I blink up at him, “Can you do it again?”   He lets out the cutest little giggle before nodding, head leaning down once more to press his lips into mine. This time I respond briefly before he’s pulling back again.   “What are you doing here?” I ask him, my hand reaching for his cloak to keep him near me. Like he would disappear in front of my very eyes if I didn’t.   “I-.” My eyes widen cutting him off by raising my hand.   With my mind I stop the arrow Sicheng has aimed for him in mid-air. I quickly move around the boy, stepping in front of him as Sicheng loads another arrow.   “Sicheng, stop!” I say firmly.   Sicheng blinks towards me not lowering the bow. “He is dangerous!”   “He is just a human.” I say through my teeth.   “And how do you know?”   “He’s the boy I’ve seen in my visions since I was young.” I grab Sicheng’s arrow that was frozen in the air, holding it in my hand.   Sicheng blinks surprised at my words. “He is?”   The boy steps up beside me, “I want to clarify something.”   I glance towards him, my eyes taking in his form once again. How was he able to even get here?   His eyes turn towards me, they held a power in them all alone. His gaze was beautiful. “I am only half-human.”   I can feel a look of confusion cross over my face, “Half?”   He nods his head, fingers moving up to his left ear which I now notice is slightly pointed now that the blurriness wasn't present. “I am half-elf, on my mother’s side.”   “A halfling?” Sicheng let’s his bow rest at his side coming closer, examining him. “I guess it makes sense, especially since no human could enter our territory unnoticed.”   “Why did you come?” I turn to face him now that Sicheng has let his guard down.   “I saw you, or well your ears. I’ve had some speculations that you weren’t just a dream for a while now. And when I saw your ears I knew you weren’t. My mother, before she died, left a map with my father. It was given to me years ago but I finally understood why she gave it to me this morning.” His eyes bore into mine. “It was to find you.”   “Me?” I rest a hand on my chest. There’s no way that his mother foresaw me in his future right? Did she happen to have that gift? Is that why I saw him since he was little?   “I mean, I am able to find my kind now. I do not feel like I belong with the humans. I am too tall, too smart, and I don’t know.” His eyes trail down my body until they meet the surface of the Earth. “I’ve seen you or your figure at the very least, since I can remember. It feels like I belong here with you.”   So it wasn't that she saw me. It was that he felt like he belonged with elves instead of humans.   Sicheng grabs the arrow from my hand slipping it back into his quiver. “We need to go before one of the guards stumbles upon him and tries to kill him.” His eyes trail up to the boy’s hair. “You look painfully human with that haircut of yours.”   -   “So what is your name?” Sicheng asks once we are hidden behind the door of my room.   The boy awkwardly rests his back against the far wall of my room whilst myself and Sicheng sit down on my bed. “Dongyoung, my name is Dongyoung.”   Dongyoung. I finally had a name to the boy I have always seen.   His eyes flit to me. “And what are yours?”   “I am Na Rae.”   “And I’m Dong Sicheng, of the Dong Clan. I am Na Rae’s personal guard.” Sicheng mumbles pressing a hand on my shoulder. “We’re also childhood friends.”   “Personal guard? Does everyone have one of those as an elf?” Dongyoung’s forehead wrinkles with confusion.   “No, not everyone. But Rae she is of the Na Clan and next in line to become Queen.” Sicheng’s hand falls from my shoulder. “She is to be coronated and married next week.”   Dongyoung instantly frowns eyes focusing on me. “I see.”   “What are going to do with him now that he’s here? He can’t possibly stay.” Sicheng stands moving to lean against the door to my room.   “Well he can sleep here for the time being.” I shrug, to which Sicheng scoffs. “No he cannot. He’ll stay at my place.”   I stand up, arms crossing over my chest. “No, he’ll get caught there especially with how Kun and Jaemin frequent your place.”   “You say that like Jaemin isn’t the one to wake you up every day. He also frequents your room.” Sicheng says matter-of-factly.   “Who’s Jaemin?” Dongyoung interrupts but Sicheng and I were still butting heads.   “Jaemin is the least of our problems.” I mumble with a sigh. "He's going to find out regardless of where he stays."   “You’re to be married next week, you’d let another man sleep in the same room as you before then?” Sicheng teases, knowing it wasn’t like I was dying to give myself to either of the men I could be marrying.   “Oh, please Sicheng.” I snort out. “You already know how I feel about that.”   Dongyoung comes forward. “I’m sorry, but I’m so confused.” His hand cards through his hair. “Who’s Jaemin? Is he your um, fiancé?”   Both Sicheng and I burst out laughing at his sentence causing Dongyoung to pull back slightly embarrassed. “Jaemin is my brother.”   Dongyoung murmurs out an “Oh.”   “I am to be married to either the Western or Southern region’s Princes. The Western Prince is an and the Southern Prince is too old for me. But I don’t really have a choice, I have to in order to save us from the East.”   “The East?” Dongyoung’s eyes widen a bit, a look crosses his face that I cannot place. “What’s wrong with the East?”   “They killed her father, and haven’t had guidance by an elf in 20 years. Supposedly a witch controls their territory and has bewitched more than half of the Clan leaders against the other three regions.” Sicheng interrupts, hands dropping to fold in front of himself. “And well if Lady Ae’s prophesy is correct, they are bringing a war to us, maybe even as we speak.”   “A war?” Dongyoung’s eyes move to me once again. “And you’ll have to fight in it?”   I slowly nod, “Yes, for my people I will have to.”   -   “Are you sure it is alright that I stay in your room?” Dongyoung cautiously sits down on my bed while I rummage my closet for something for him to wear.   I glance back at him. “Mm. We as elves are some of the purest of creatures so it is not unnatural for a man to sleep in a woman’s room.” I turn back to my closet. “I have done so before, with Sicheng, Kun, and...” I pause, my mind flashing back to the time I shared a bed with Taeil. “Taeil.” I mumble more quietly.   I give up on finding him something suitable closing the door to turn towards him. “We do not participate in pleasures before marriage, because once we have we are bound to that person forever.” My eyes dropping. “We have to control ourselves, for if we choose someone we end up hating we’ll be stuck with them regardless.” I sigh, rubbing at my forehead. “But I've heard we’ll come to love them anyways.”   I trudge over to sit down next to him. “I suppose I’ll come to love whichever prince I choose,” My head lowering to my hands. “But I do not right now, it's going to take time.”   There’s a silence between us and I wasn’t sure if I made things awkward or if he was bored of my whining so I stay quiet.   “Why is it that you come to me?” Dongyoung speaks up, my eyes raise to look at him noticing he too is looking at me.   I blink, my tongue running along my teeth. “I do not know the reason.” I glance away from him to look at my hands again. “You may have something to do with the resolution of the war, considering my grandmother has seen you in her visions. It’s probably that, given I see you too and here you are infront of me.”   “I wonder what it is that I’m destined to do?” His voice causes my stomach to sink. The image of him lying in the arms of someone, body soaked in blood as his eyes slowly shut flashes before my eyes. My eyes close and suddenly I'm within the vision of him dying. I must've been thinking too deeply about it, this happens occasionally.    It is in this moment that I notice for the first time the arrow sticking out of his chest. I clutch my own chest, the air in my lungs slowly drying up. The design of the arrow, it was the same as the design of the North’s arrows. Did that mean he was killed by someone from the North?   “Na Rae, are you okay?” Dongyoung’s voice echoes around me, I feel his hand rest atop mine. Suddenly the vision continues into a part I’ve never seen before.   A figure in a dark cloak approaches Dongyoung’s body and the person who held him. The bow in their hand drops as they stop in front of them. I in a breath, it is also the first time I realize that I’m seeing everything happen from the perspective of his lover. Any other time I've viewed it from an outsider's perspective.   I look up into the face of the cloaked figure only there isn’t one to see, just a dark pit of nothingness. An eerie voice that is barely there comes from the darkness. “And who might you be?”   They bend down, my fingers grip onto Dongyoung’s body through his lovers holding him against my chest, blood soaking into the white of the dress his lover wore. The figure lets out a y laugh, raising their hand that was covered in a metal glove to his lover's face but I feel the cold metal graze my cheek.   “Na Rae?” Dongyoung repeats again, his voice echoing sounding more concerned by the minute.   The hand grasps onto his lover's neck and I feel my own air flow getting cut off. My hands begin to claw at my throat as the other hand joins in restricting my breathing.   The figure laughs, “You ought to know it’s very rude to spy on someone’s future.”   My eyes widen, body flinging back on my bed. This person, they weren’t talking to Dongyoung’s lover, they were talking to me. They could sense that I was watching.   Dongyoung’s hands that lied lifeless in the vision suddenly grasps onto the hands of the person choking me pulling them from my neck which suddenly pulls me from the vision. I gasp for air, my eyes meeting Dongyoung’s as he leans over me, eyes darting around my features erratically.   “Ar-are you okay?” His hands pull my hands back from my neck as my chest heaves with each breath I take trying to replenish my oxygen.   I slowly sit back up, him returning to his position from earlier as I take a few moments to collect myself. “I’m sorry, I got lost inside a place in my mind for a moment.”   “It didn’t seem like a good place?” His eyes search mine, lips forming into a frown as they drop to my neck. “The skin on your neck is bruising, did someone do this to you?”   My hand quickly raises to my neck and sure enough the skin was burning to the touch. I quickly stand, “I need to go speak with my grandmother. Please stay here so you don’t get caught.”   “Are you sure you’ll be okay to go on your own?” He stands to block me from continuing. “I’m worried about you.”   “I’ll be fine.” I mumble, eyes dropping to avoid contact with his.   -   “My dear Rae, why is it that you’re paying a visit to my old-self this late at night?” My grandmother sits up in her bed. Despite being one of the eldest in the North she still looked young. But truth be told she would be passing over into her next life soon, the amount of years she had left in this world were numbered.   I rarely would get to see her for she was one of the wisest in our territory. She had lived through many things and out of my entire family had more visions of the future or of others than myself and my mother combined. She was really talented in that area.   Her eyes notice my nervousness and then drop to the bruises on my neck. “My dear, who has hurt you?”   I swallow thickly, my neck while it hurt, it wasn’t too bad due to the person not actually grabbing me by the throat. Whoever the person was actually being choked in my vision definitely received worse. “That is why I’m here.” I sit down next to her and her fingers trail up to the skin of my neck. “I had a vision of that boy again, of his death, but this time it didn’t end where it usually does.”   Her eyes dart up to mine, “What happened?”   “I noticed the arrow that pierced his chest was one of our own, grandmother.” A tear slides down my cheek. “And then there was a figure that approached afterwards, whoever it was seemed to have shot Dongyoung because...”   “Dongyoung? How do you know his name?” She interrupts my rambling.   I had screwed up. “I-.”   “Do not lie to me, Na Rae.” Her voice stern and gaze firm. “Is the human who crossed the border today the boy in your visions?”   I slowly nod, “Yes, he is. He’s in my room right now.” I admit to which her eyes turn away from me to stare into space. “He’s not human though, not fully, he’s half-elf.”   Her eyes dart back to me, “He is?”   “Mm.”   “Did he do this to you?” Her fingers lightly rub across my neck again.   “No.” I remark, my hand pulling hers from my neck to hold. “It was weird, I was seeing everything from the arms in which Dongyoung dies in. And that figure approached them, me, and spoke to me.” My eyes fix on hers. “They spoke to me, not Dongyoung’s lover.”   “What did they say?” Her eyes are instantly filled with worry.   “They told me that it was rude to spy on someone’s future.”   “Will you let me see it?” Her hand pulls itself from mine to raise towards my eyes.   I let out a deep sigh, “Yes.”   Her hand covers my eyes, I’m inside the vision once again as it replays for her.   The hand of the figure grasps onto his lover's neck and once again I feel my own air flow getting cut off. My hands begin to claw at my throat once again as the other hand of the individual joins in restricting my breathing.   I felt so helpless in this vision. There was nothing I could do to help myself since it wasn’t happening in real time. Or I guess I could if this were a normal vision? It’s like my body froze whenever I entered this one and I couldn’t do anything to fight back?   The figure laughs, “You ought to know it’s very rude to spy on someone’s future.”   I gasp desperately trying to get away from the vision, to remove myself from the perspective of the person who held Dongyoung’s body but no matter how much I struggle against the metal hands I cannot pull them from my neck. Nor can I pull myself from the individual I was seeing through.   The figure laughs, “Back again, are we?”   My eyes widen as the oxygen continues to get from me beyond what my last vision showed me. I’m stuck again aren’t I? This time Dongyoung wasn’t next to me to pull me out of it but grandmother should be in here with me too. Would we both get stuck?   The lips of his lover open letting out a muffled gasp as I try to speak through them, “Who-?”   “Shhh!” The figure giggles, head turning to the right. “Are you enjoying the show?”   My eyes blink rapidly the longer I struggled for air, pupils darting in the direction the figure was looking, my grandmother stood watching the entire thing go down with wide eyes. The figure laughs, long and heartlessly as their hands tighten around my neck.   “Who are you?” My grandmother’s voice echoes from outside the vision but its also layered on top of her voice inside the vision.   “You should be more worried about if you’ll have a heir given I’m ten seconds away from killing the next Queen.” The figure tightens their grip again leaning over me until I’m bending backwards in the person’s body, their back resting against the ground.   A dark spot forms in my vision, “Na Rae, you need to return. Now!” My grandmother’s hand pulls from my eyes, my body falls from its position sitting up, backwards onto her bed, resting uncomfortably over her legs.   “Na Rae!” But I can’t force myself out, my focus is lost, I cannot pull myself out! I can’t, in fact I’m pulled further in.   “Ah!” The figure let’s out a groan, hands instantly loosening from my neck. I gasp for air, hands clawing at my throat. The figure falls backwards and through the dark spot that had formed in my gaze I notice Dongyoung’s body sitting up. The arrow that had been pierced through his chest was now piercing through the hooded figure’s chest.   Dongyoung crawls over me, hands cradling my face. I’m not sure if this was always part of the vision or if everything was out of whack. Was he staring at his lover or at me? Everything was running together as one of my hands raises from my neck to graze the skin of his cheek before falling limp to the side, what feels like my last breath slips from between my lips. The eyes of his lover blinking on the edge of passing out or worse, death.   His eyes desperately watch the rapid blinking before he quickly leans down pressing his lips to mine parting them and what feels like life is breathed into my lungs. His lips pull back from mine, air flooding in through my nose as he does. The dark spots fade away as I breath and I can hear more than just what’s going on in the vision again. I can hear what’s going on in my grandmother’s room. Maybe I was coming out of it again.   “What are you doing?” I hear my grandmother’s voice from somewhere in the sky, from her room.   My eyes catch on the hooded figure coming up behind Dongyoung and I try to warn him but he seems to already know what’s coming. “You have to wake up, Na Rae.” The figure holds a sword now, the sun reflecting off the blade as they pull it up into the air over Dongyoung’s back. I tremble in his arms. “Na Rae, wake up!”   Maybe I wasn’t coming out of it.   His lips quickly press into mine again, this time more than just innocent touching as they urge me to kiss back and for some reason I do. And I shudder breathing through my nose, my eyes closing as I do. Maybe it was because I’d never get to do it ever again. Since it seemed I was about to die, Dongyoung too. But I kissed him back with a passion I didn’t know I had. My hand slipping up and into his hair as I do.   “She’s back, enough already!” My grandmother’s voice says sounding a lot closer now. His lips leave mine and my eyes open finding Dongyoung’s face above me, the ceiling of my grandmother’s room beyond his head.   My eyes dart around the room, noticing I’m lying back across my grandmother’s legs whilst Dongyoung straddled my body. I glance at my grandmother who is awkwardly staring at the two of us.   “Oh dear god.” I quickly sit up pushing Dongyoung up and off of me. My eyes meet Dongyoung, “I thought I told you to stay in my room.”   “Well thank god he didn’t listen. If he hadn’t of came you would’ve died inside that vision.” My grandmother draws my attention to her.   My eyes turn back to Dongyoung, “Did you see?”   He slowly nods, “Some of it, more so the end. When I entered I woke up in someone’s body and noticed an arrow sticking out of them. I used it to stab the person on top of you.”   He entered the vision and came to in his own body? Now that I think about it how was it even possible that he entered the vision in the first place? My eyes dart to my grandmother.   As if she can read my mind she sighs, sitting up straighter. “Rae, you know how you thought that you were seeing from someone else’s perspective?”   I slowly nod, did this mean that both Dongyoung and his lover die that day? Or was the vision so screwed up that I would never know?   “Well I saw both of the faces of the individuals in the vision, other than the hooded figure’s.” Her eyes dart to Dongyoung. “The two in the vision are the two of you here.”   “What?” I mumble, heart racing in my chest. I was Dongyoung’s lover?   No. I had to have messed up. Why had I determined that person...me...was his lover again?   My mind reels back, carefully this time to not get into the vision again. Those arms around Dongyoung when he died, they were mine? Those arms were recurrent in many visions I’ve had throughout the years, they were the ones who held Dongyoung as he slept, the ones who held him against her as they kissed, the arms who he ends up dying in.   I in a breath through my lips, wait, those visions. Earlier tonight, I had kissed him in the woods. I had seen that before. And just now, he kissed me on top of the bed granted I was seeing it differently moments ago due to the vision, I had seen what it really looked like through a vision a year ago. Those were a few of the determining factors that made me conclude they...we...were lovers.   I gulp, eyes trailing Dongyoung’s figure. Then that vision I had months ago...the one that apparently hasn’t happened yet...the one of him hovering seemingly over someone, those same arms wrapped around the bare skin of his back and neck. Those were my arms. That was me.   But it cannot be me? I am to be married next week, once I am and I have relations with them I am bound to them forever?   “So I woke up in my own body?” Dongyoung speaks up, my eyes watching him carefully.   But it makes so much sense. Could this be the reason why I’ve been connected to him since birth? I’ve never heard of this happening before, it didn’t make sense but it also kind of did.   “You did.” My grandmother nods, her eyes drawing my attention back to her. “We need to have an emergency meeting right now.” She flings her covers off of her. “Especially after what I just witnessed inside that vision.”   “But...”   “Dongyoung must be present too.” She stands slipping her silk robe over her. “Leave me so I can change. Tell my guard to send word to your mother.”   -   Sicheng yawns standing next to me, eyes darting over to Dongyoung. “What the hell happened? Did he get caught already?”   I shake my head no. “I got attacked inside one of my visions.” I glance at him to which his eyes widen.   “By who?”   “I do not know.” I lower my eyes, nudging Sicheng to move down the hall so I could be more discreet. “You know how I’ve seen Dongyoung die in the arms of his lover?”   He hums slowly nodding, “Yeah, what about it?”   “Apparently I’m that lover.”   Sicheng chokes on his spit as he was taking a breath, hand raising to his lips as he coughs it out. He knew of all my visions, he was my friend, hell Kun knew them too. Even the one that I mentioned earlier, the one that hadn’t happened yet.   “You mean to tell me you’re the one he’s...you know...” He gestures wildly with his hands, too shy to actually say being intimate with. “...with in your one? And the ones where he kisses his lover...” He gasps raising his hand to his lips again to send me a scandalous look. “How could you not recognize yourself?”   I deadpan, “I’ve never seen my face in any of them, how would I know?”   “This is an interesting turn of events.” He nods, lips pursing, chin resting in his hand as he thought. “So does this mean the wedding next week doesn’t happen?”   My stomach can’t help but swirl at the thought, “Do you think so?”   He shrugs, “I mean I’d think so, if you really saw him...sleeping with...well you...then yeah you’re going to be bound to him.”   For some reason a small smile forms on my face. Whether it was out of happiness that I won’t be forced into a marriage with an or an old man or if it was the thought of being bound to Dongyoung I did not know yet. But oddly enough I felt okay with marrying Dongyoung. He was neither an or too old for me.   “Man, so is like...all of your visions supposed to happen before your wedding next week?” His eyes widen. “Like that’s how many kisses and then...you’re going to...”   I clear my throat, “About that...I’ve already kissed him like three or four times.”   Sicheng almost chokes on his spit again, “You what?”   “Yeah...” I trail off but he urges me to spill the beans with a pointed look in his eyes. “Okay...two times in the woods tonight when I first saw him. And I think two times in front of my grandmother when he was trying to pull me from my vision. I didn’t realize until later they were exactly like my visions.”   “Holy crap, you kissed in front of Lady Ae!”   I whine embarrassed, “Shh, I don’t want to think about it.” I shake my head. “If it weren’t for him I’d be dead though.”   Sicheng’s eyes move behind me as Dongyoung clears his throat coming up beside us. “Sorry to interrupt.” He sheepishly bites his lip, hands joining in front of him. “But am I dressed appropriately to meet the Queen?” His eyes trail down his dark sweats and black hoodie that once covered his face from me.   I click my tongue, he didn’t look appropriate enough but what could he do at this point?   “Not really.” Sicheng admits causing me to shoot him a look.   Suddenly a body is colliding with mine causing my face to smash into Dongyoung’s chest, my hands getting pinned in the worst position right above his crotch and my stomach.   “Rae, what’s this I hear about...” Jaemin’s voice says too close to my ear. “Oh...you’re him aren’t you.” Jaemin pulls himself and me in the process away from Dongyoung so he can examine him from head to toe.   Dongyoung’s eyes zero in on how Jaemin’s still plastered to my body, but I do nothing to remove Jaemin since he was clingy. Jaemin’s eyes turn to me, “I’ve never seen a human this close before.”   “He’s only half-human.” I clarify, shrugging his arm from my shoulder but that didn’t put any distance between us. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in bed?”   “Half-human?” Jaemin’s eyes sparkle as they move back to Dongyoung. “Even more exciting, what other being are you? Wait, those ears, are you half-elf?”   Dongyoung nods to which Jaemin happily claps his hands together. “How beautiful!” His eyes turn to me. “I heard my guard whispering to grandmother’s guard about you getting attacked in one of your visions?” He pulls away from me to examine my body for injuries. “You seem alright, which vision was it? One of that human boy? Or was it a new one?”   I gesture towards Dongyoung, “He’s the one I’ve been seeing in my visions, and yes, he was in it.”   Jaemin gasps, his hands moving to grasp Dongyoung’s. “Oh my gosh, hello! I’m Na Jaemin, Na Rae’s younger brother. I’ve heard so much about you, it’s almost like you’re family since I’ve heard about you since I was little.”   Dongyoung seems surprised, “You’ve talked about me?” Our eyes meet, I turn away to see Sicheng’s smirking, so I turn my gaze to Jaemin who was smiling innocently between the two of us.   “I mean of course, I’ve seen you since I was born. I only told what I saw in my visions, which up until this morning was just your blurred out face in different scenarios like the vision you saw tonight.” I admit to which Jaemin nods enthusiastically.   Jaemin cheers squeezing his hands, “She’s even seen you with your future lover.” Which causes my eyes to widen, Jaemin! He nudges Dongyoung playfully. “Just so you know, you and your lover have your romantic brief first kiss in the woods.”   “Jaemin!” I warn him.   “Then another brief one in the woods right after the first,” He places a finger to his chin. “Then another one on a bed. And oh...” Jaemin winks towards him and I smack his shoulder but he shrugs me off. “You and your lover also you know.” He claps his hands together to imply something intimate, which causes my cheeks to inflame a deep red.   Sicheng snorts deeply. Dongyoung’s eyes are wider than they’ve ever been, “You’ve seen me with someone?” He frowns, hands pulling from Jaemin’s.   I slowly nod, refusing to admit that it was me.   “Who? Do you know them?” He steps forward.   Sicheng opens his mouth but I send him a look, “I do not know, I’ve only see her arms.”   To be fair I really had never seen the face to his lover myself, my grandmother had. Whether it be my face or not, I didn’t really know.   “Excuse me, Lady Rae.” A guard comes up between me and Jaemin. “They are ready for you guys.”   -   Sicheng, Jaemin, and I step into room, Dongyoung in tow behind the three of us. Kun’s eyes are wide as I make eye contact with him. I could tell he was disappointed in me but Dongyoung was not dangerous.   My grandmother, Lady Ae, stands hushing all the clan leaders hushed whispers of whom they assumed was a mere human man who single-handled entered our territory with such ease.   “All I have called the meeting tonight to address something I saw in Na Rae’s vision tonight. But first I will address the elephant in the room.” My grandmother speaks firmly. My eyes dart to my mother, Lady Hae, who’s eyes were firmly locked on Dongyoung. She wore a dazed expression on her face, I bite my lip, I knew that look, she was currently witnessing a vision. My eyes narrow curiously, it was rare that my mother was into a vision. Her foresight was quite lacking compared to mine and my grandmother’s. My mother quickly shakes her head, the dazed look being replaced with slight shock. “Na Rae, please allow him to step to the front.”   I step aside allowing Dongyoung to stand beside me. He glances at me briefly before swallowing thickly looking towards my grandmother.   “Introduce yourself.” She continues.   He bows slowly, only speaking once he was standing straight again. “My name is Dongyoung and I am half-elf, half-human.”   A series of gasps echo throughout the room at his words but my grandmother is instantly hushing them. “All of you know that the women in the Na Clan have extraordinary foresight, Na Rae is no exception.” She hums moving to stand next to my mother. “Since birth she has been subject to these visions, prophecies as some may call them. As you know I have seen and foretold many a coming events, and my daughter Haeun not as many but they do pertain to the future of the Na Clan and the North. Na Rae’s have been mainly focused on one individual, one up until today we’ve been alluded to believe was human. But he was not, Dongyoung here is that individual, and now he’s here before us all.”   Kun raises his hand to which my grandmother gestures for him to speak, “And what of the vision you had? Is the war upon us?”   She shakes her head, “The man, the elf, you see before you is not the human man I saw in my vision. The war is not near, as of yet.” With her words everyone sighs seeming relieved.   “But all, do not seem relieved yet. Na Rae, she’s had a vision of Dongyoung’s death. She’s had it since she was a mere child and today she experienced something inside that vision that has never happened before.” My grandmother takes a step down to face them and my mother. Meanwhile, Dongyoung's head whip towards me at the mention of me seeing his death. “There was someone else, someone malevolent, inside that vision today. That someone knew she was watching. They knew and they attacked her from within the vision. In doing so they were even able to bruise her through it. They almost killed her had it not been for Dongyoung entering the vision himself and pulling her from it.”   “And what do you suspect this means?” My mother hums, eyes still frozen on Dongyoung.   “There is someone just as powerful as us, able to enter the visions of others. I am not sure who they are after yet. If their true target is Na Rae or if both her and Dongyoung were just in the wrong place at the wrong time I don’t yet know.” She hums with a sigh. “I am afraid this person is from the East, they will come with the war and at this point in time I do not know yet what Na Rae’s fate will be in coming across them.”   The clan leaders begin to whisper again. My eyes meet Taeil’s and for once I see a worried expression on his face. Though was it present due to the uncertainty of my survival upon coming across this person or was it present due to the thoughts of the war? I probably would never know.   “Bring Lee Taeyong from his cell, he is from the East maybe he can provide some insight.” My mother calls out towards one of the guards. As they disappear my eyes meet with my mother’s. “This is all the more reason for us to unite with either the Western or Southern regions as quickly as possible.”   I lower my gaze at her words. “I see no reason why she should have to marry into their families for them to provide us aid.” My grandmother scoffs. “We all should unify, for once they are done destroying us they will go after the West and South. It makes no sense why she should be forced into a marriage.”   My mother hums blinking almost emotionlessly, “It is something that must be done. Neither the West or South will help us without a marriage. The West is too selfish and the South is manipulative. They don’t want to help us, they want us to beg, to bow down, to give our beautiful Crown Princess to them. It is the only way to unify with at least one of them.”   My grandmother sighs, the conversation is cut though due to the guards returning with Taeyong. He’s brought in between us and the clan leaders. He looks tired, worried, all of the above. His eyes wander over the clan leaders, my mother, my grandmother, and then over to me before landing on Dongyoung.   His brows furrow upon his eyes landing on him. Was it because he looked human? Was he wondering why exactly he was here?   “Lee Taeyong.” My mother calls out.   Taeyong continues to stare at Dongyoung for a few more seconds which causes my mother to sigh. “Yes, yes, I am sure you are as mesmerized as the rest of us over the halfling but we have more important issues at hand. Why is it that you’ve come seeking refuge in the North again?”   Taeyong mouths ‘halfling’ to himself before blinking towards the floor. He lets his eyes turn to my mother. “I am here seeking the one who will save the East. The one my grandmother prophesied would be here.”   “And how will you find this prophesied person? Have you seen what they look like?” Her words are sharp.   “I have not. But my grandmother, she was able to let me feel the power they hold course through my veins. I was able to feel how strong they are when they bring peace to both the East and North. If by some chance I am near when this individual uses even just an ounce of that power I will know then and only then.” He admits.   “So you truly know nothing, you are only here for safety until the end of the war. Selfish.” She comments, voice full of venom.   “You say that not knowing what it’s like living there. It is a living hell. The once green Earth has perished into ashes and the sky is burning a constant red underneath the witch’s watchful eyes. She plans on making the entire world like that, she wants to rule over all the regions, even the human one. And once she has them all what’s to stop her from destroying other worlds?”   My mother’s lips form into a thin line. “What happened to the rest of your clan?”   Taeyong blinks rapidly, a look of sadness instantly hitting him. “Most of them have fallen prey to her wicked ways. She bewitches them. Some even killed their own families. Those of us that were able to escape the initial attack have hidden away but they recently found where we were camped out. There were a decent amount of Lee’s and Jung’s left but...” He pauses. “There was so much blood, so much death. I was able to escape thanks to my best friend, the Jung clan leader, Jaehyun, he sacrificed himself for me and I-you’re right, I am selfish. I left behind my entire clan and ran for help but you don’t understand, you’ll understand once she comes for us all here, when your own clan turns on you unwillingly.”   Everyone in the room stays silent, probably out of respect to all the fallen innocent in the East.   “Jaemin.” My mother speaks. Jaemin steps forward accordingly bowing his head. “We will hold a vote on whether Lee Taeyong shall walk freely during his time here in the North. It will be anonymous in the sense that you will be the one gathering their votes that remain unspoken in their minds.”   She takes a deep breath, “You all have five minutes to vote.”   The room goes silent again. My eyes watch Taeyong as his gaze returns to Dongyoung. What was he thinking? My eyes turn to Dongyoung who glances down at me.   “In that vision do I really die?” He whispers lowly.   I swallow thickly, “So it seems but...” I also assumed the person, his lover, was someone that wasn’t me. I could be entirely wrong about him dying in that moment too. “I’ve been wrong before.”   His gaze softens slightly, “And you’re sure you don’t know who’s arms hold me?”   I blink up at him swallowing thickly.   “You do know.” He hums quietly. “Who-?”   Jaemin’s eyes whip towards us obviously reading our inner turmoil as he looks into our eyes. I’m sure he was searching for our votes, even though they didn’t matter, they don’t count, only the clan leaders would.   “The result is in.” Jaemin interrupts eyes landing on Taeyong. “Lee Taeyong-.” He pauses eyes squinting as he seemingly reads Taeyong’s mind. His head swivels towards Dongyoung who was still staring at me. “Is to live freely amongst us.” Jaemin finishes.   -   I’m shaken awake by my brother long before morning rises. He’s quickly sitting down on my bed once I’m fully conscious.   “Jaemin, what are you doing here?” I murmur.   “I lied about the vote for Lee Taeyong to live freely. A majority said to keep him confined.” His eyes lower from mine as I gasp loudly.   “Jaemin!” My heart beats frantically in my chest. He could be in a world of trouble if the leaders were to compare notes and figure it out. “Why did you lie?”   He lets out a shaky breath. “I saw something when I looked into his eyes.” His eyes meet mine. “When I saw what he was thinking I felt it was better to let him free. I think there is someone else we should be more suspicious of.”   My forehead creases, “What do you mean?”   “Dongyoung.” He says softly, glancing over his shoulder.   “I don’t understand?” I click my tongue. “What makes you think this way? What could you have possibly seen?”   “When I looked into Taeyong’s mind I saw what he was thinking and he thinks Dongyoung is eerily familiar though he can’t quite place the reason why yet.” My mouth drops open.   “But how could he be familiar to him if Dongyoung grew up in the human realm?” I move out of my bed to pace back and forth. Why would someone from the East recognize him?   “I don’t know.” Jaemin runs a hand through his hair. “But I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Dongyoung came here, I also think it’s weird that the day he arrives you get attacked in your visions for the first time ever.” He stands up hands resting on my shoulders. “If I’m being honest it’s really really hard to read Dongyoung’s mind. I only see partial things when I try and I don’t like that. No ones ever been able to block me like he does. I just don’t want you to blindly trust him, Rae.”   “I-...but he saved me.” I swallow shaking his hands from my shoulders. “I want to trust him. I do not think he means me any harm.”   “Rae.” Jaemin sighs.   “And what if you’re just reading too much into what Taeyong thinks. The boy is clearly traumatized, who knows if anything he says is really even real.” I shrug trying to calm my heart down. I don't want to believe he's a bad person.   Jaemin reaches for my hands. “Just be careful, Rae.”   -   The sun is peaking out as it rises in the sky, Dongyoung and I walk through the garden outside the main residence side by side. Sicheng and Kun were conversing behind on us on the path. My thoughts were focused on Jaemin’s warnings from early this morning instead of the waist high purple flowers that lined both sides of the path.   My distraction must be obvious to Dongyoung but he doesn’t comment on it. My thoughts though were halted once my eyes meet Taeyong who was coming down the path opposite us.   “Na Rae!” Dongyoung quickly grasps onto my arm. It’s only then that I realize I’ve stomped through a couple of the purple flowers. I let out a sorrowful sigh at the sight of the beautiful petals smashed to the grass underneath my feet.   “Oh no, I’ve ruined them.” I quickly bend down holding one of the broken stems in my hands. Dongyoung bends down beside me taking the flower into his hands.   My eyes watch him as he smiles. “Watch this.” He hums.   He lets the flower rest back on the ground before pressing his hands against all of them. There’s a light glittery mist surrounding the flowers around his hands and slowly they are standing tall again like I hadn’t even stomped on them.   My eyes widen, “You’re able to control plant life?” That while not rare was very hard to learn for those not born with it. Did that mean that his family specialized in it? There was no way he wasn’t naturally born with it if he lived a majority of his life in the human realm not learning the elements of nature.   I can count on one hand the number of people I know of that can do what he just did naturally. There was only one person in the North and that was Taeil’s wife having inherited it from her deceased grandmother. There was one clan in the South that had two as well. But those were the only ones I knew of.   “Not necessarily plant life,” He shrugs raising his hands into the air, smile still on his lips as he spoke. “Air, water, fire, Earth, I can manipulate it all. Giving life to plants is just one of the many things I’ve found I can do.”   My lips close firmly. Even more rare.   My eyes focus on Taeyong as he bends down next to Dongyoung, “What was your name again?” The boy speaks out causing Dongyoung to glance at him.   “Dongyoung.” He replies with a small smile, fingers innocently touching the purple petals of the flowers he just brought back to life.   “And your last name?” Taeyong’s eyes glance at the purple flowers he had managed to bring back to life. I glance at Sicheng and Kun who both stared in awe at what had happened.   My eyes trail back over to Dongyoung who remained silent as he stared back at Taeyong. “And why does knowing my last name matter?”   Taeyong hums, “Why is it something I shouldn’t know?” His eyes draw away from the flowers to him. “Which parent of yours was elf? Are they still alive?”   Dongyoung stands up abruptly, “I don’t like telling strangers my personal information.”   I stand up intrigued myself. Now that I think about it he hasn’t told me his last name? Not that it would matter but it was weird. I mean I did know that his mother was the elf out of his parents I guess.   “Dongyoung, Jaemin says he’s trustworthy.” I murmur.   Taeyong glances at me as he stands up, “He’s not telling me because he doesn’t trust me, he just doesn’t want me to confirm that he’s been hiding stuff from you all.”   My heart drops into my stomach, “Dongyoung, is this true?” Was Jaemin right?   “No.” His eyes form into a glare as he stares at Taeyong.   Taeyong scoffs, “Not everyone can manipulate all the elements,