there is a certain kind of beauty in the darkness, in the shadows that are frightening to strangers and comforting like the embrace of a long lost friend to the girl huddled in cloaks in the notch of a large willow tree.

she has spent her whole life in darkness.

the girl slips out and tiptoes across wet leaves on light feet, fur rustling against damp leaves as she makes her way through the forest, towards a menacing silhouette in the distance.

it is a tall castle, built of gray brick whose mortar has begun to crumble. a looming spire pierces through the sky above all the rest, so far away that one has to squint to see the candlelight flickering in the one lonely window.

she slinks closer, through the feathery moss surrounding the castle and up the dilapidated staircase, fingers ghosting over the walls, slimy with mildew. although she cannot see, she knows this castle, has traveled its halls so many times that her feet know the way without her eyes.

a sudden noise pierces the silence and she immediately presses her back to the nearest wall, ears straining even as she reaches for the dagger she keeps at her belt. the noise again, a clanging of metal on stone that’s nearer now, and closely followed by the harsh, boisterous laugh of a man.

“a dragon, they say? why, there is no dragon here! there is nothing standing in the way of me and that reward! once she is mine, i will have my way with her.”

reward.

she has heard that term before, knows exactly who it refers to, and feels a sudden clench of fear around her heart. the man is coming closer, whistling to himself as he slams his weapon into the walls and scratches the tip on the floor, and her body knows what she’s doing well before her mind can place it.

a choking, gasping sound, warmth at her hands and sliding down her arms, pooling at her bare feet, and a thud of a heavy weight hitting the floor. her heart is pounding in her chest, but there is no regret, only a sense of exhilaration and a fierce protection.

suddenly, she needs to see her.

with a determination that leaves her nearly breathless, she drops the dagger into the sticky blood and runs, runs faster than she’s ever run before. her feet are pounding on the stone and her lungs are burning, but she feels as though she’s flying, as though she could run forever so long as she is there at the end.

she slows when she comes to a splintered door, a broken lock hanging from the handle. her fingers leave dark prints on the wood when she slowly pushes the door open.

although the girl cannot see it, moonlight bathes the room in a burst of white, catching on the sheer fabric surrounding a bed upon which a vision in beauty lies, her chest rising and falling steadily and her eyes closed in a peaceful sleep. her skin is a sun kissed tan, her hair dark and luscious where it’s spread upon the pillow, and her lips are plump and full, slightly parted as she breathes.

the girl creeps into the room, tattered dress catching on the broken floorboard that she avoids without thinking about it. she carefully makes her way towards the bed, leaning down so that her waywardly chopped blonde hair falls into her face as she stretches a cautious hand out, questing fingers sliding over the lines of a face she sees in her dreams.

she breathes out a sound that’s nearly a sob as her fingertips touch warm skin, grazing across strong cheekbones and the curve of her jaw, the nearly imperceptible scar on her temple.

“you’re safe,” she cries softly, fingers clenching in the fabric at the girl’s shoulders as hot tears pool in her eyes. she had been so worried that something might have happened to this beautiful creature, to the one that she’s spent the past two years visiting, night after night. when she visits, she speaks; of nothing, of everything, and although she gets no answer in return, her heart is held captive by this silent beauty.

“i couldn’t let him take you,” as she lets her fingers trace down the curve of an elegant neck, slip through silky strands of hair. she murmurs as she leans in close, feels the stickiness of blood on her hands and uncaring as she presses her lips to warm skin, flutters them across a delicate nose and on closed eyelids.

“i love you.”

when the tears finally begin to fall, the body beneath her begins to stir and she jumps back with a cry, stumbling over the protruding floorboards. a quiet sound, like your first breath of air after being underwater, and she pulls her cloak tighter around her in protection. 

rustling, fabric on fabric, and sudden silence.

“…minseon?”

the girl – minseon – lifts her head from beneath the furs and blinks, pushing onto her knees.

“…how do you know my name?”

although minseon can’t see it, she can hear the smile in the girl’s voice when she says, “i could hear you. all those times you came to visit me, and talk to me… that was you, wasn’t it?”

minseon nods, once, twice. she’s sure she’s a sight, dirty and cloaked in ratty furs, covered in halfway dried blood and beginning to shake.

creaking of wood as the girl comes closer, warmth drawing goosebumps out onto minseon’s skin, and a body settles itself next to her on the floor. silence for a second, and then that voice again, a voice like sunshine after rain, like the waves crashing down on wet sand, like the whisper of a breeze through the leaves.

“my name is jungah.”

minseon forms the sounds in , lets her tongue slip over them, caress them, and nearly shudders.

“it’s beautiful.”

“so are you,” jungah says quietly, turning into minseon and tucking her face into the crook of minseon’s neck, seemingly uncaring of the dirt and blood she knows is there.

“you saved me.”

jungah continues talking when minseon stays quiet, still under jungah’s warmth.

“when i was born, an evil witch put a spell on me, vowing that i would be pricked by a spindle and die at the age of 16. instead of dying, i was instead cursed to sleep until true love’s kiss woke me from my slumber.”

warm lips press against minseon’s cheek, and a hand laces itself with hers, delicate fingers sliding over minseon’s inner wrist, and minseon prays jungah can’t feel the way her pulse is pounding.

“your love saved me, minseon.”

minseon squeezes her eyes shut to keep the tears from falling and curls her hand tightly around jungah’s, feeling more than hearing the words jungah whispers against her collarbone.

“thank you.”