For the past week, the entire castle had been in a state of anticipation. There was a scheduled play coming up, and everyone was looking forward to the event. One of the most expectant people was Yona. She had been chatting to Hak about the play every day for a straight week, gushing about what the outfits and masks would be like, and having the afternoon off from lessons. Hak nodded and listened as she talked, although the performance wasn't of particular interest to him. He was, however, fascinated by the excitement that Yona projected. As she spoke about it, her eyes sparkled and her cheeks reddened as her gestures grew more and more exaggerated. By the time the day of the play arrived, even Hak was a little enticed by the whole affair.

While Yona was finishing up her morning lessons, Hak went and scoped out the area in the courtyard where the play would be taking place, just to make sure that the area was clear of any potential threats to the princess. Once he was satisfied, he made his way back towards her chambers. About halfway there, however, he ran into King Il. Bowing, Hak said, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

King Il's eyes lit up. "Ah, Hak! Going to fetch Yona for the play, I assume?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. Is there something I can do for you?"

King Il looked slightly troubled. "Actually, yes there is." He sighed. "I realize that this isn't really your problem, but I thought since Yona listens to you, it might be better if you told her." Hak tried to keep his face bland at the suggestion that the fiery princess ever listened to him as the king continued, "I just ran into Yona's history tutor. He said that she...hasn't been taking her studies as seriously as she should lately. In fact, it appears that she has a rather large amount of outstanding work that she hasn't completed from his lessons. So I'm afraid I have to ask you to tell her that she may not attend the play until she has completed that work and delivered it to him."

Hak stared at King Il, hoping that if he didn't acknowledge the order it would be rescinded. No such offer was extended, however, and Hak said slowly, "Your Majesty, the play is taking place within the hour, correct?"

King Il sighed. "Yes, I know this means she will probably miss at least some, if not all, of it, but I think this is an ideal learning opportunity for her. Yona needs to learn to prioritize her studies more."

Realizing that he was stuck with this task, Hak bowed. "Very well, Your Majesty. I'll go relay the message to the princess." Turning, he continued on his path towards Yona's chambers, although he wasn't walking as quickly now. He wasn't looking forward to being the one to inform her that she likely was going to have to miss the play she had been so looking forward to.

Despite his slow gait, he was soon standing in front of Yona's chambers. He knocked on the door, and Yona called from within, "Enter."

Hak stepped in, closing the door behind him, and found Yona bent over a jewelry box, obviously selecting accessories. She was already dressed and her hair had been done by her maids, although they now were nowhere in sight. Yona looked up from the box and graced Hak with a broad smile. "Ah, Hak! Wait just a moment, I'll be ready soon, and then we can go."

Hak shifted awkwardly and took a few steps towards her. "Well, Princess, I actually have to talk to you about the play."

She laughed. "Don't tell me you're finally excited too?"

"Not exactly. I ran into King Il on the way here, and he asked me to pass along a message to you. He said that your history tutor has complained about outstanding assignments you have, and that you have to complete those before you can attend the play."

As he spoke, Yona's face dropped, and her hands fell limply to her sides as she stared at him in horror. "But, Hak, I have at least an hour of work to do! I'll be late if I do it all now!"

Hak's heart twinged for her, but he held firm. "His Majesty said he realized that, but that you have to take responsibility for your work."

Yona's eyes filled with tears, and she stomped her foot. "That's not fair! If he was going to make me do this, he had plenty of time to tell me I needed to get it done! He didn't need to wait until right before the play!"

"Princess, I realize you're frustrated, but being upset won't fix anything. Can you show me what has to be done? I'll help you organize it so you can get started."

She looked at him with wet eyes, and nodded wordlessly. Normally he would have expected her to argue more, but she seemed to recognize that in this situation, time was of the essence. She hurried to her work table and produced a set of scrolls that she handed off to Hak. He took them and glanced through them all quickly, putting them in order. Handing one to her, he said, "Here, do this one first. The others will make more sense after that."

Yona sat down obediently, then looked up at him sadly. "Hak, you don't have to stay here while I do this. You should go to the play. I can get one of the guards at the door to take me when I'm done. If I even finish in time," she added miserably.

Hak was certain his heart was aching as much as hers was. He hated to see her upset and deflated like this. He plunked himself down decidedly into the seat across from her, looking carefully away from her as he said gently, "I'll wait."

There was a momentary pause before Yona answered in a small voice, "I'll do my best to finish quickly." He sneaked a glance at her, and noted with some relief that her eyes appeared to have dried up, and she instead wore a look of determination as she scribbled away at the scroll. He allowed himself a small smile. He fully expected that they would make it to the play on time. When she set her mind to it, there weren't many things that his princess couldn't do.