“Good morning, Jongup.” I meet him with a bright smile before reaching through the bars to give him another fresh rose. Something he takes from me energetically and I watch as he cradle it in his hand. “There’s something I would like to speak to you about.”

At the sound of my voice, he looks away from the rose and up to me.

“Are you willing to help me?” I began cautiously.

I watched as he tilted his head in thought. 

“Can you help me find the Werewolves you were with?” I looked at him in thought. “If you find them, we can –“

He shook his head. “Jongup, not bad.” 

“I know you’re not,” I quickly comforted him but it was only a few seconds later did I realize that it wouldn’t be enough to convince him. When I thought about asking the question, I didn’t expect such a large response.

“Jongup…not bad,” he responds once more and I can see how his body language changes as he starts backing away from me. “Not…bad.”

This was not how I envisioned he would react and I quickly tried to fix the problem that I caused. “No, no, no,” I tried to soothe him gently. “You’ve done nothing wrong, Jongup –“

I jumped in surprise at the loud snarls that interrupted the quiet air. It wasn’t that I was afraid of the sight before me – it was just a shock from the gentle Jongup I had been with all these recent times, his outburst came so suddenly that it was almost too strange. I calmed myself and waited patiently for him to return back to normal. Seeing him still on edge, I spoke out once more.

“Jongup, you’re okay,” I kept my voice gentle while staying in my spot, kneeling before his cell. “You’re okay. Please calm down.” Yet, he didn’t hear me and continues to growl.

The longer it took for him to settle down, the more time I had to figure out why he was responding in such a manner. I have mentioned the Werewolves before – actually, it was only yesterday and he didn’t answer this way. Taking it a step further, I reached in and gently touched the side of his face. 

“Calm down.” Without any discretion, I went on to smooth out his hair. Not once fearing him. And only then did his growls softened and I could see his body visibly relaxing bit by bit as he squatted in front of me behind the bars. Seeing him becoming less tensed than before, I smiled at him. “You are not being punished, Jongup.” 

He had slowly calmed down but heavy breaths continued to leave through his nose and mouth.

“I’m only asking you for help.” I remained careful with my words in fear of causing distress to him once more. “But, if you don’t want to, I won’t force you.”

Jongup looked away from me and toward the hand I still had on his head. Taking it within his, he held onto it tightly. And if it made him feel better, I was going to allow it. 

I watched him as he sat flat down on the ground and kept a tight grip. “Are you okay?” 

I didn’t need to hear him say ‘yes’ to know he was finally unperturbed. I noticed his breathing softening and his shoulder dropping into a more comfortable manner unlike how stiff he was before. 

I, in turn, also took a seat on the floor. I was going to remain here until Jongup felt fine enough again. But, I couldn’t brush away the guilt that I felt at that moment. I should have chosen my words more thoughtfully or maybe, I shouldn’t have brought it up at all. If only I knew this was how he was going to reply.

I leaned my head against the steel bars and kept my eyes on the Werewolf before me.

“I’ll stay as long as you need me to, Jongup.”

***

“Princess.”

My eyes snapped open at the sound of someone calling for me and I came face to face with guard kneeling before me. My eyes widened at the unexpected sight while my brain worked to figure out what was transpiring.

“I fell asleep.” I sighed before remembering the Werewolf that was holding onto my hand. 

Jongup, who was still undisturbed from his slumber, was snoozing away as he lied upon the ground. His body curled up as if he was a normal dog taking his usual nap – still having my hand held between the two of his. 

“The King had asked for you,” the guard continued on kindly.

“Thank you, I’ll go see him soon,” I replied tiredly before smoothing my hair out of my face. The guard was hesitant to leave but within seconds, he decided to allow me time to gather myself. 

I turn to look at Jongup while wiping away the sleep in my eyes and notice the rose that lay unattended on the side. If anything, I thought he would find comfort in the rose, not my hand. But, it wasn’t anything I needed to question further. After gently pulling my hand out of his grip, I reached in to grab ahold of the rose and replaced the space where my hand had been.

Quietly making my way out, I left the prison tower and started for my father’s office.

I wasn’t sure what this meeting was about but I knew for a fact that we couldn’t have Jongup’s help at the current time, not when he reacted in that way. Did he think I was returning him to them? 

Upon opening my father’s office door, I immediately vocalized my thoughts. “Father, about Jongup –“ the rest of my words were caught in my throat as I stared at the woman, who was around my father’s age sitting across from him at his desk. “Hello…”

“She has gotten so beautiful, Hyunjin.” A beautiful smile appeared on her lips while her soft eyes stayed on me. 

My own father smiled. “Haewon, do you remember my cousin, Kim Hwa?”

“How could she remember?” Hwa chuckled softly. “The last time I seen her was when she was around…eight years old?” She thought back to the memory. “It’s been a while, Haewon.” 

“How could I forget you?” My lips soon pulled into a smile before I ran over to give her a hug. “It’s been a while, Auntie Hwa.” It had been so long since the last time she visited – at times I even forget my father had family because his family was a small one that didn’t go out to the kingdom’s social events. 

Though, that should tell you just how close we were to them.

Her bright laughter rung in my ear and I pulled away to look at her. 

“It’s the roses again, isn’t it?” My father knowingly wondered. “Hwa, it’s because of you that she is absolutely fond of those flowers.”

“Roses?” She looked up at me in thought and I nodded in response. “You mean the small rose pot I gave to you years ago?” The person who is the cause behind my obsession – the person who is the first ever to introduce me to the flowers…is this person here sitting in front of me. 

“Well, that pot died,” I answered shamefully. “But now, I have a whole greenhouse.” 

“Really?” She beamed up at me an