Third Person POV

“Kangin, have you not learnt anything from all this?” Yoonji stood at the door of the room where Taeyeon was resting and glared coldly at her husband. After Taeyeon was treated by the village doctor, Kangin brought her back to her room which the girl had spent all her life confined in. Yoonji knew that nothing was going to change. Kangin sat beside Taeyeon’s bed and attached a rope to her wrist whilst tying the other end to the bed frame.

“Once the princess has been dealt with, I shall let her go as you wished. I cannot let her face the princess now. Not after she caused her fall into this state,” Kangin snapped at his wife with irritation. Yoonji sighed heavily and glanced over to her daughter’s sleeping face. It pained her to see her daughter in such a condition but it hurt her even more to see Kangin tie her down to a bed frame like an animal.

“Kangin, the whole village knows that the princess is here. Taeyeon is now the villager’s most precious being right now and will do anything and everything to protect her. I don’t see how tying her down is going to do any good. If anything, she will probably hurt herself trying to free her hands.” Yoonji stepped into the middle of the room and waited for a response. Kangin just merely ignored her and continued to secure his daughter.

“I can’t take any risks Yoonji. I almost lost her; I don’t want to lose her this time. I’ve neglected her for my duties as the chief and now I will make up for the mistake and make sure that the princess is punished. After that, I shall try to spend as much time as I can with her,” Kangin said in a blunt tone before dusting his hands in accomplishment. Yoonji looked at her sleeping daughter and sighed heavily.

“Kangin, you know how against this I am. Taeyeon is not going to like this at all once she awakens. I may not have been a good mother, but I do know that she is lonely in this room by herself,” Yoonji tried to waver Kangin in hopes of untying Taeyeon, but she knew she had close to no hope with Kangin’s stubborn nature.

“Then you can remain here and keep her company. I’m not keeping her from the village, Yoonji. I’m keeping her from the princess. If you excuse me, I need to attend to village matters.” Kangin stood up from his seat and walked out the room without a second look. Yoonji shook her head slowly at her husband and turned back to Taeyeon. Feeling rather hesitant, Yoonji took the seat next to Taeyeon.

“Taeyeon-ah. It’s your mother here. I apologize on your father’s behalf for making you so lonely like this, and I apologize for being such a useless mother. I’ll do what I can to convince your father, so please don’t hate him too much. He’s just looking out for your wellbeing because he cherishes you dearly,” Yoonji whispered ever so quietly. She then placed her hand on Taeyeon’s forehead and felt her temperature. It seemed rather cold so Yoonji pulled the blanket up to Taeyeon’s neck, tucking in her tied down wrist back into the blanket’s warmth.

She then turned back to watch her daughter sleep soundly. A sad and guilty smile was slowly forming on the mother’s lips. Although no one knew, Yoonji would often visit Taeyeon. The first time she visited her daughter was when she was at the age of ten. Taeyeon had greeted her with pure excitement due to it being her first interaction with someone other than her father, but that day wasn’t all the best that Yoonji remembered.

“Did my father send you to read stories to me?”

Taeyeon had no idea that Yoonji was her mother; instead she assumed that she was a maid sent by her father. It hurt Yoonji to hear her own daughter demote her down to a maid but she did not dare admit that she was the girl’s mother. She was too ashamed to be called mother by the girl after having abandoning her in a small lonesome room for her young childhood. Instead, she accepted the role of being Taeyeon’s maid and complied with each one of Taeyeon’s wishes.

“What I would do to hear you call me ‘mother’ just once…” Yoonji could feel herself weakening in front of her daughter. She knew Taeyeon did not respect her as she should. In one of the rare occasions in which Taeyeon would talk to her, Taeyeon had admitted that she didn’t really have a mother.

She complained that her mother never visited her even though she was her daughter, and how she was left alone in the room because her mother didn’t want her. Yoonji had excused herself early that day because she could not bear seeing Taeyeon disheartened like that. Yoonji had almost admitted that she was the mother just to reassure the girl that her mother cared for her, but Taeyeon never gave her the chance. As soon as she mentioned Taeyeon’s mother, Taeyeon would dismiss her politely and say that she was not feeling well.

“Your mother loves you dearly Taeyeon. I know better than anyone else, but she’s a coward. Your mother is the queen of cowardice and she sincerely apologizes to you,” Yoonji leaned in towards Taeyeon and placed a warm kiss onto the top of Taeyeon’s forehead. Once she pulled back, she noticed Taeyeon let out a long breath of air. It was a sign that Taeyeon was still alive and she couldn’t have wished for anything better than to find her daughter still alive.

“Thank goodness the princess brought you down in time­­­—” Yoonji stopped short when she realised a flaw in the recent events. From what Kangin had told her, the princess brought a lifeless Taeyeon down from the mountain and willingly gave herself up. She glanced outside the window to see the village and pondered silently.

“Why would the princess willingly give herself up and bring Taeyeon back to the village?” Yoonji murmured in a barely audible tone. The princess was supposed to be a cold hearted killer who took her anger out upon the women that were given up to her every five years. Yoonji glanced at Taeyeon before slowly pulling back the covers. Once she finished scanning over the sleeping girl, she replaced the covers and gave a long sigh.

There were no signs of abuse on Taeyeon’s body except for one or two minor cuts. The princess had definitely not taken her anger out on Taeyeon as there were no signs of harm.

“Something doesn’t make sense,” Yoonji crossed her arms and thought long and hard to come up with a conclusion. Why would a cold blooded demon bring Taeyeon back to the village, and on top of that, willingly give herself up to the village. There must be something in return for giving herself up, but Kangin had not mentioned any of the sorts.

Giving a defeated sigh, Yoonji stood from her seat and proceeded to the door to do further thinking without disrupting Taeyeon’s sleep. As Yoonji stepped out of the room, she noticed that Kangin came back into the house with a frustrated expression.

“Did something happen?” Yoonji asked considerately.

“That demon princess is what happened. I asked her why she did this to Taeyeon yet she remains insistent that she did not mean for all this to happen and blamed it on me for making her like this. That little wretch has a tongue of a demon,” Kangin yelled back at Yoonji. Yoonji quickly glanced at the room Taeyeon was resting in and pressed her finger onto her lip to signal to Kangin to remain silent. Kangin instantly lowered his voice so that Taeyeon could rest and instead stormed off into his room.

“So what are you doing to her now?” Yoonji followed suit behind Kangin and questioned further. Kangin took off his overcoat and scoffed at his wife at the ridiculous question.

“She’s held captive in one of the barns. She’s been tied down and we have men guarding her. Tomorrow morning we shall bring her to the middle of the village and make her pay for her deeds. It is up to the villagers what they do. I will just be there to watch,” Kangin muttered spitefully. Yoonji couldn’t help but sigh for the nth time that night. Kangin was a stubborn man who was someone to be feared once enraged and Yoonji knew that Kangin was more than enraged that night.

“Yoonji, go check on our daughter. I need to rest now. Tomorrow is going to be quite a busy day for the village and I’m going to need to keep things in order.” Without another word or gesture, Kangin closed the door on Yoonji’s face. Yoonji stood there for a moment as a thought came across her mind.

“Perhaps the princess can shed some light onto this situation,” she whispered to herself in thought. Yoonji then hesitated. She knew the princess was dangerous and no one would allow her to visit her without a valid reason. She then eyed the overcoat that Kangin had placed near the door and caught sight of the chief’s pendant, the sign of authority.

‘The guards are there to help me shall anything happen,’ thought Yoonji. She then quickly grabbed the pendant from Kangin’s overcoat without a single thought and hastily made her way out of her home. There was something that the village and Kangin didn’t know, and only Taeyeon and the princess knew. Either way, Yoonji would try her best to make sure all would be known to make fair judgement of the situation.

Jessica

“Why did you make my daughter suffer this way?! If it weren’t for the dedicated doctor of this village, my daughter would be nothing but a limp corpse.”

This chief is the most stubborn man that I have ever come across. The sun had now set for quite some time and yet he is still here questioning me with the same question.

“I did not want for her to fall ill like this. I happened to come across her when I walked by the back of the mountain,” I answered back for the umpteenth time. The chief stood there with an enraged expression, glaring at me. The guards who were supposed to have kept an eye on me were slowly falling asleep on the side with the repetitiveness of this conversation. He would ask why or what did I do to her and I would answer with the same response.

I continued to sit in the small barn that was assigned to hold me. The smell was awful and was less than uncomfortable. Even the bare cave that I had inhabited would surpass this small barn by the thousands. Even though this barn was already horrible, I knew that there was something worse in store for me.

“So be it.” The chief turned around and waved at the guards. They immediately took their places in front of the barn and stood their ground as the chief walked away in frustration. He’s just as bad as his ancestor. Quick to judge and stubborn.

I huddled myself in the furthest corner of the barn and sighed heavily. I’m relieved to know that Taeyeon is safe but now I’m worried. What are they going to do to me? Was it really necessary for me to give myself up to this village? If I had just given her to her father, she would still be taken to the doctor, right? I’m starting to feel as though I had just made a huge mistake.

“Mrs Kim. What brings you here?” a gruff voice filled the silent barn. I turned my head towards the source of the noise and saw the guards talking to a cloaked figure before them. The cloak prevented me from seeing who was underneath but from the petite figure of the person, I could tell that it was a female.

“Kangin told me to talk to the princess to see if I can get some information. He gave me this as proof of his authority,” the woman hushed quietly. She then pulled out a pendant that I immediately recognised. It was the chief’s pendant which was worn by the past chief. What was this woman doing with that and what information would she be able to receive from me?

“Be careful. We do not wish for the chief to lose his precious wife,” the guards took two side steps and allowed for the woman to proceed through. Chief’s precious wife? Was this woman married to that stubborn hard headed man?

“Go away before I summon the cold winds to freeze you off,” I muttered in a threatening voice. I was sick and tired of the same questions and I knew that this woman was exactly like the rest of the village. She would question what I did to her daughter, trying to force an answer and just walk away disappointed again.

“I do not believe that you would do such a thing,” a soft voice came from the cloaked figure. I stiffened at her tone of voice. It wasn’t threatening, nor was it demanding. It was so much like the first time I met Taeyeon up in the mountains.

The figure then took off their hood to reveal them to me. I gasped quietly when I recognised few features on the woman’s face. She was in no doubt Taeyeon’s mother.

“I only have very few questions, princess. I wish to understand this confusing situation more before I make my decision upon the situation. I apologize if my husband has intimidated you. He has a stubborn personality and makes rash decisions without researching the background. Are you comfortable?” the woman continued to speak calmly.

I can see where Taeyeon gets her personality from. This woman was the opposite of what that chief was and reminded me so much of my reason for being here. I didn’t know whether that was a good thing or not.

“Are you not scared of what I would do?” I asked her cautiously. The female just smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

“If you truly were going to do something, then you would have done it already. I don’t know whether I’ve gone mad or not, but for some reason I feel like I should thank you,” she laughed softly. This woman was truly mad in the eyes of the village, but to me she was sane. It gives me some relief to know that there are at least two sane people in this village. There was still hope to save this village from stupidity.

“I see where Taeyeon gets her personality. You’ve raised her well,” I whispered quietly, half hoping that she did not hear me. Taeyeon’s mother just laughed sadly at my compliment and shook her head slowly.

“I’m a terrible mother. Taeyeon doesn’t even know who her mother is let alone who it was who raised her. I’m nothing more than a mere maid who was paid lots of gold to keep her away from the eyes of the village,” she said calmly. I raised a brow at the middle aged woman. From what I know, Taeyeon would never show that much disrespect to anyone, let alone a calm mother like this.

“Taeyeon is not to blame. I’m just a coward. I do not wish to reveal myself to her in fear that I may be pushed away from her. I am a horrible mother and I do not deserve to hear her call me by anything more than a maid.”

I felt uncomfortable within that moment. What was I to do in this situation? I was held captive and the wife of the one who is keeping me captive is talking to me as if I was an old friend. When did I easily drop my cold exterior to others so easily?

“What do you want?” I returned with a cold but unstable voice. I was scared of what I was becoming. I hated villagers yet here I am, feeling calm and somewhat relieved around a woman who happens to be the village chief’s spouse.

“I shall not be long. I would like to thank you first of all for saving my daughter. You brought her back to our village in time to save her. Although Kangin may not see it, I can tell that your intentions were good. Taeyeon is the only child that he and I have and she means the world to us both. When she was taken up to your cave, I thought I had lost my daughter forever but the one who was supposed to have taken her, brought her back to me.”

“I do not care for what you and that chief wishes for,” I stopped her quickly. Had she misunderstood my intentions? I did not bring Taeyeon back for their sakes. I did not give myself up just so that the chief could have his daughter back.

“I see. Then might I ask your reason for giving yourself up so easily towards our village. You know that we despise you, yet you still willingly follow the guards into this small barn. Is it possible that you’ve given up your ways of the Ice Princess?” she continued. I clenched my fists together at the mention of the ‘Ice Princess’. Although she was somewhat calm and understanding, she still viewed me as the demon of the caves.

“Or perhaps there’s a deeper meaning behind your submission.”

I felt my heart stop beating for a moment. It felt as though she had just shot an arrow straight through my chest. Curse her observational personality. I stood up from the corner of the barn and moved to the other corner, refusing to respond to her words.

“I understand now. Thank you for your time Princess. I have no power with what Kangin does, but I shall try to do what I can as a repayment for bringing back my daughter. However, I do not approve for my daughter to return your feelings. I hope you understand.”

What feelings? What does she not approve of?

“What—”

Before I could even finish, the woman stood up and walked away from the barn. As soon as she was out the entrance, the guards retook their guarding positions and prevented me from proceeding out after her. Once again, I was left alone, confused and lost.

My hands and body were ice cold once more. The cold winds blew past me felt warm against my skin. I had once felt warmth through my body. I had felt the blood running through my veins to keep my body at a stable temperature and made the wind feel like ice cold daggers. I had once felt what it was like to be normal once more but it was gone now. The source of my stability was no longer with me.

But that did not matter to me. I question myself whether I was sane for giving up my freedom for one girl whom I had just met days ago. Even though I had lost all my freedom and dignity, I was content. I must be mad for being like this, but I did not regret giving myself up. The feeling of uncertainty and fear just moments ago wasn’t out of regret.

I would probably never see her again. By tomorrow, I could probably never see another sunrise again. I did not care that I had sacrificed myself for her, but I did want to see her once more. The last images I had of her had been of her sickly body in my own arms, the image of her arm hanging limp from the chief’s arms as he ran to the village doctor, the broken and weak state of her as she stood outside my cave. They were all negative images.

Before I leave this world, I desperately want to see a healthy and lively Taeyeon. I want to see that my sacrifice wasn’t in vain and be able to leave this world with a vision that I will not regret. I may be selfish for requesting such things, but I want to see results in what I do. I want a reward for my acts. I didn’t do it for the good of others; I did it for my own.

The world is full of selfish people. It wouldn’t be the world that we know it if there wasn’t such a thing as greed and selfishness. It’s the way the world works. Maybe one day, I would no longer need to be selfish. One day I will be content with what I have; with whom I have. But I’m afraid I may never be able to see that day.

“The world is never fair.”

Taeyeon

Why does my body feel so heavy? I feel as though I have a group of people sitting on top of my body. I can’t even open my eyes or lift a finger without finding it extremely tiring so I remained still. There was no point in wasting my energy right now. I was too tired to do anything worthwhile.

Is this what death feels like? Never moving but forever conscious? Maybe this is why everyone was so scared of dying. You’re useless. You can’t move. You can’t speak. You can’t do anything. This doesn’t make it any different to what I was before. I’m still a waste of space, but this time I can’t move out of others’ way. I just lay here, fully aware of how useless I am.

“How is she?” a husky and threatening voice filled the darkness beneath my eyes.

“She’s still resting. The doctor had told us that we should not rush her recovery. She is very tired right now, all we can do is wait,” a female voice answered back.

Who were these two people talking? Who was resting? What recovery?

“Call me when she awakens. I need to settle some matters with the Ice Princess. The villagers shall be able to get their revenge on her for all she’s done. It is a glorious day for our village,” the male voice let out a dark laugh. Father?

What was going on out there? Why can I hear my father?

“Don’t you think you’re going a little too far? Taeyeon’s safe now, must you continue?”

I’m safe? That doesn’t make sense. Shouldn’t I cease to exist now? Why am I safe?

“I know what I’m doing, but justice must be served. I can remain to be the chief they trust if I allow the one who has caused us so much trouble to walk free,” my father replied. I could feel the weight off my body slowly being lifted off with each word he said. My heart was starting to beat slightly faster. I was threatened by his words. My body was reacting to this threat naturally.

Before I could even progress any further, I heard a door slam shut. My father was no longer there and I was left alone with a woman. The threat had now disappeared and the weight upon my body returned. I was pinned down; immobile.

“Taeyeon, I do not wish to rush your recovery, but please hurry. I fear your father may be doing something that would cause you more pain. He needs guidance Taeyeon. Your guidance,” the female whispered to me.

My body felt even heavier with the pressure that was now placed upon me. This woman beside me had a way with words. I now presume that my ‘recovery’ has been delayed with the added pressure.

It’s amusing how this is turning out. I’m still as useless as ever only now, I have pressure. My father is still making decisions without consultation and I am forced to accept those decisions. I had no say. Everything was for my ‘safety’. My physical body remained safe, but my mentality has been tarnished. Spending my life in a room alone was not healthy. I knew it wasn’t healthy. I was given too much time to think that I fear I might have become insane.

I am now forced to think even more. I can’t move myself to distract my thoughts. I am pinned down and forced to think of useless things that are probably thoughts of an insane person’s.

“The princess awaits your return, Taeyeon. She waits for you, but you must not follow her. Give her the reassurance but do not follow her. Following her will only expose yourself to the dark nature of our village and make all your efforts go in vain. Remain strong and resist the temptation,” the female continued to whisper to me.

The princess waits for me. The Ice Princess of the caves awaits my return. Jung Jessica waits for the village girl, Kim Taeyeon.

It finally became clear. I was not dead, not yet. My father’s voice…

No, it can’t be.

“The village awaits for you as well Taeyeon. The daughter of the chief is safe. The twenty-fifth hero has brought justice to the village. You’re a hero in their eyes now.”

I was back in the village.

It can’t be. I can’t return to the room. I will lose the last of my sanity if I were to find the same room surrounding me. The room which I was imprisoned in is my definition of hell. I didn’t want to return. Please, don’t let me return.

“Taeyeon?!” the female’s voice became urgent.

I felt my eyes open slowly. Don’t open. Please don’t open. I begged my body to allow me to fall back into my weak state. I was scared of what I would witness. If I were to be faced with the ceiling of that lonesome room, I don’t know what would happen to me.

But alas, my uselessness took over. My body did not hear my pleas and I slowly opened my eyes. I tried forcing them closed again, but they only reopened to make my surroundings clearer. With each blink, my nightmare became even more real.

The surroundings around me were clear now. I could see the four cracks through the ceiling. I could see the all too familiar chip in the wall near the ceiling. It hadn’t changed. Nothing had changed.

“Miss Kim, you’re awake,” the owner of the female’s voice came into my line of view. I felt my stomach drop.

The maid who would attend me every day was sitting beside me. The book shelves of books were placed at the end of the bed, the tattered chairs and lone table was placed in the middle of the room and the light from that single window illuminated the unlit room.

I was back.

“How are you feeling Miss Kim?” the maid asked me cautiously. I could feel the last of my sanity disappearing through the form of tears. I was condemned to hell. What did I do to deserve this living hell?

“Oh dear, Miss Kim?” the maid wiped away the tears falling from the side of my eyes. She was not making the situation any better. She only reminds me of where I was. I was back inside a lone room with one maid and the elders knowing my existence.

“Take me back. Just take me back!” my hoarse voice broke through the unsettling silence. I lifted my arms to hide the tears that were falling, only to feel it being pulled back around my wrist. I opened my eyes and stared at my wrist which now was restrained with a rope securing me to the legs of the bed.

I was tied down to the bed. I was forced to stay here. The last of my freedom is being taken away from me.

“Miss Kim, please calm down. The chief was scared that you may—”

“Just get me away from here!” I yelled, cutting off the maid. My father had taken away my freedom ever since I was born. I complied reluctantly because I respected his protectiveness of me, but I cannot stand it any longer. He was forcing it upon me to follow his ways.

He would even go as far as to chain me down like an animal in a barn.

“Miss Kim! Calm down!” the maid yelled over the sounds of my struggle against the restraints. My body was still weak. I became weak quickly and had eventually lost all of my remaining energy. My arm fell flat against the bed as my tears were now flowing even more. The last of my sanity was quickly slipping away.

“Please, calm down,” the maid continued to whisper once I had stopped thrashing against the rope. She was scared of what I would do to myself. She was scared of what my father would do to her if I were to be found hurt once more. No one cares about what I want, not even my own father.

“Just leave already. Tell my father to give you your pay and just leave!” I used the last of my remaining energy to yell at her. I didn’t want anyone to see me become insane. It was already pitiful that a maid had more freedom than I did.

“But Miss Kim the chief—”

“Tell him I dismissed you to rest,” I cut her off once more. The maid fell quiet.

“As you wish…” she replied as she got up from her seat. I turned my head away from the door and lifted my hands up to block my ears. I hated the sound of the door closing in this room.

It was a sound which reminded me that I was abandoned. My mother never reassured me that everything would be fine. My mother never even spoke to me. She just brought me to this life and let my father lock me away in this living hell. Had she not cared for her own flesh and blood? Did she not care that I was slowly becoming a mad person?

Why didn’t she help me? Why didn’t she speak to me? Why didn’t she even acknowledge me?

Why?

Because I was left alone, I now find myself tied down to the bed. The gods of the afterlife must not want useless people in their world. I was denied access to the afterlife and now I’m forced to be treated like an animal by my own father. It’s reassuring to know that I didn’t belong, even in the world of the dead.

In the world of the living I did not exist. In the world of the dead, I was not wanted.

I had been a bad experiment; a failed trial. I did not belong anywhere. I was the failed experiment which was thrown out and left to slowly rot.

“I don’t know just yet. I may not like change, but the feeling of not having you here is even worse than the feeling I’m having now. You ruined my life Kim Taeyeon. My routine is no longer the same anymore. You came in and ruined it all.”
“You shall remain here until we can fix the problem right?”

The image of the caves flashed through my head. The view of the village, the snow of the mountains, and the hot spring in between the trees all replayed itself through my head. A world secluded from the living and the dead. A world in which the Princess Jung Jessica ruled.

I felt as though I belonged there. I had a purpose there. The princess welcomed me there.

“Return to your village. You are the daughter of a chief. You serve a purpose to the village. Stop spouting lies and just… leave. I do not require your services anymore. From what I know, you are the cause of my problems. Just leave before I really do kill you,”

Who was I trying to fool? I did not belong there either. The princess had exiled me as well. I was inexistent in the world of the living, denied in the world of the dead and exiled in the world in between. What hope did I have anywhere else?

I lifted my hand up once more and examined the rope around my wrist. It had started to cause red marks on my wrist from the struggling I had done before. As I stared at the rope, I wondered if the world of the dead was willing to accept me once more. If this rope could take my freedom, would it be able to take away my life?

“If you believe in fate, then so be it. But your fate is not to die there in the snow. If it was so, then I shall go against all odds and deny you that fate.”

What was I thinking? The princess had rescued me from the grasp of death and yet I’m here, trying to force death to grab hold of me.

I was truly becoming insane.

One moment she threatens to kill me, the next she denies me of my death. Jung Jessica was the reason behind all my confusion. It was because of her that I realised my lack of freedom I had throughout my life. It was because of her that I had strived to change myself and be someone. It was Jung Jessica, the princess of the caves who made me feel true emotions for once in my life. I had no right to make her efforts go in vain, but I also had no rights to be the source of her efforts. I was useless. I did not deserve to continue in the world of the living but she still continued to try and save me.

“What am I to do?” I questioned myself in the lonesome room.

“Why is the world never fair?”

Just so some of you don't know, I've posted this story on SSF as well so dont freak out when u see it one day in the forums xD

I added an explanation on the story just to show u that its not just a story between taengsic. there's actually a lot more behind the way they think 

First off, Yoonji was mentioned in the first chapter of the story. she was the maid that Taeyeon thought was paid lots of money for to keep her away from the public's eye. This doesn't mean that Taeyeon is disrespectful. Yoonji had left Taeyeon alone for quite a few years before she finally showed herself to Taeyeon. Since Taeyeon grew up thinking that her mother didn't care for her, she automatically assumed Yoonji was a maid that Kangin had sent because Yoonji was always tending for Taeyeon's needs.

Yoonji was and still is afraid of telling Taeyeon who she really is and as a result, Taeyeon still sees her as the overpaid maid.

Secondly, the difference and similarities between Jessica and Taeyeon.

Jessica was framed for the bakers actions and as a result was condemned to the caves. Similarly, Taeyeon was forced to live inside the small room since the beginning of her life.

These two have lived most of their lives alone and end up having a lot of time to think for themselves.

The difference between them is their circumstances and what ideas they have developed. Jessica was forced into the caves against her will because she was thought to have done something wrong, however Taeyeon was forced into the room for her own safety. Jessica ends up developing the idea that humans are quick to judge and idiotic whilst Taeyeon grows up to believe that humans are superstitious. She starts seeing herself as a difference race towards the villagers and ends up secluding herself even more from the people. She sees herself as the narrator or spectator who does nothing but watch the humans through the window of her room.

Jessica ends up hating the humans and Taeyeon ends up questioning them.

There are many differences but also similarities between taengsic.

When Taeyeon finally breaks free from being a spectator as Jessica breaks free from her demonic ice princess image. the two end up feeling the same thing but for different reasons.

Taeyeon's reason is because she is now part of the human race. she starts to experience what it's like to be human first hand rather than to watch it whilst Jessica is finally seeing another side to humans. To Jessica, Taeyeon was like a new toy who would save her from the hate that was consuming her.

Another example would be when Jessica pushes Taeyeon away. Jessica finds herself lost without the toy who was clearing her hate for humans and as a result, the chief of the past and the baker comes to haunt her, developing that hate once more. The only difference this time was that they were hurting Taeyeon to hurt Jessica. Jessica then questions what she was going to do with herself and thinks about going back to the time before taeyeon, which can be seen as hating the humans once more.

Similarly, Taeyeon also questions what she is going to do. Her only chance to be a human was now gone and she wanders around unsure of what to do next. She did not wish to return to the past (be a spectator of the village) again so she wanders on trying to find something. The difference between the two here is that Jessica considers going back in time whilst Taeyeon wanders on hoping to find something.

The final example i am going to give (there are many more but maybe u can find it ;] ) is in this chapter.

Both their freedoms are lost again but there's a difference this time.

Jessica willingly gave up her freedom to save Taeyeon's life but Taeyeon was again forced to remain in the room.

Jessica gives up her freedom but she thinks selfishly and wants to get something in return for her sacrifice (seeing Taeyeon well again). Taeyeon on the other hand wishes to regain her freedom. Although she was forced into the room like she was before, she refuses to go back to the past and become a spectator again. She finally sees that Kangin is treating her like a thing rather than a daughter. She feels as though she is a mere animal rather than a spectator and slowly loses all her hopes in the living world. Taeyeon refers to her 'sanity' as her hope. With the tears falling and depleting her 'sanity' she is actually losing hope for change in the world she lives in.