- Hana

I woke up crying, hot tears streaming down my face. Gasping, I frantically wiped the wetness off my face and looked around in a slight craze.

As it slowly dawned on me that I was just in my room, I fell back into my pillow, resting my arm above my eyes.

What was this feeling though? It was a feeling of… losing something, no someone important.

***

“It’s not going away…” I muttered, rubbing my wrist. It didn’t hurt anymore, but the bruise had definitely gotten darker, and more concentrated in the center. I pulled my dress sleeve over it, wanting to not attract attention to it.

“Ready for class, Hana?” Singing Mistress entered the room. I quickly tucked my hands away and nodded.

“Flat Hana,” Singing Mistress said. I raised my tone a slight bit and she nodded with satisfaction. I finished the rest of the song without much trouble.

“You’ve improved a lot Hana,” Singing Mistress smiled. “I remember our first lesson… I thought you were tone death.”

I laughed at the old memory.

“I know you’re going off to the castle in a week, so I got a small present,” Singing Mistress said, pulling something out of her dress pocket.

She handed a leather bag to me, and inside was a small instrument made out of clay.

“It’s an ocarina,” she explained as I experimentally blew on it. A clear note came in response.

“Thank you Singing Mistress,” I thanked her, tucking it back into the bag.

She smiled at me, “You’ll find it useful in the future.”

- Daeryong

“Only one more week left here,” I sighed as Hana and I sat by the river, our feet dipped in the cool water. The sun was setting, splashing hues of pink and orange onto the sky. I was going to miss home.

“Four more days for me,” Hana crinkled her nose. “I’m leaving earlier than you.”

“Tomorrow,” I said, turning to face Hana. “Let’s spend it together.”

“Just us two?” Hana asked. “It’s your birthday though.”

“Exactly,” I sighed, looking down at the water. “You’ll probably be the one I miss the most when we go to the castle… so I want to spend my nineteenth with you.”

She laughed softly, “It’s not like we won't be able to see each other at all.”

“But it won't be like this,” I said stubbornly. “I’ve spend the past fifteen years seeing you everyday, spending most of the day with you.”

“Fine, fine,” Hana smiled. “We can spend all of tomorrow together.”

this's probably the shortest chapter i've written in the history of my story writing... sorry.. BUT SO MANY BETTER THINGS TO COME OMG IM SO EXCITED SOMEONE BE EXCITED WITH ME PLS.