It's walking along the palace grounds, memory rising within moments. There's the step where Prince Zen stood that night Obi had rushed to get him. The very step where he'd kissed Shirayuki, until her legs became unsteady, the very spot where he'd kissed her neck, telling her that he does sincerely love her and that he's close to her and trusts her more than anything. The spot where he'd practically melted with just Shirayuki in his arms, the spot where he imagined their future, not for the very first time, but with more hope than he ever has felt.
There's the gardens where Shirayuki would work with a smile on her face, and often either Ryuu or Obi by her side. The place where she thrived working alongside the plants. And just a little farther out is the greenhouse that she and Zen had gotten locked in, the very night that Prince Zen had worked like mad alongside her, until they'd managed to completely transplant a ton of the garden.
That was a night, a long one, an exhausting one, but a fulfilling one too. One where he'd seen for the first time just how awe inspiringly impressive Shirayuki is around her plants, how compassionate she is, and how hard working she is. Zen had never known someone who could completely impress him like she often does and often has, has never known someone who can steal his heart by her character alone.
And if he were to walk back in, he'd pass by the pharmacy. The very place that he'd held her close in a one armed hug when she'd cried over him, over all of the poison that he'd taken in small doses for years as a young teenager, a boy, now that he thinks back on those years, just how sick he'd been, how he'd built up immunity. And that moment, when Shirayuki's heart completely broke for him, had left him feeling less alone, left him hurting with her, wishing that he'd never have hurt her like this.
And he hadn't even known her when he was twelve. But yet, she'd hurt over him. It's a sign that when you love someone often your pasts even intertwine, and he still isn't sure why that moment fills him up with both an awe and a comfort, as well as the bittersweet pain that cascades in so easily.
And right in the pharmacy was where Shirayuki thrived, just as she did within the herb gardens, because she was in her element. It's where she poured in the long hours, where she continuously inspired Zen, like he worried she didn't know just how much that does and still does inspire him.
And when he walks back in, he'll pass by his office on his way to his room, and that's where Shirayuki often visited him before she worked at the castle, the very place where she'd relaxed next to him, studying for her herbology exam, to make it as a Court Herbalist, while he dozed next to her. A memory and a place that still make him feel so, so warm.
And when he makes it to his room, he'll remember how she climbed up outside after meeting his older brother for the first time, and how she'd hugged Zen as if she needed a lifeline, how she did not wedge herself between Zen and his brother, how she still loved Zen, how even this pain, even this heartache, only fueled her drive to stay by his side later on.
Just, he'll remember with almost heartbreaking nostalgia how she'd cried that day, and he could do nothing to stop her pain or to wish away the awfulness of his brother meeting her for the first time.
And when he's finally laying down on his bed, he'll wonder what she's doing so far away from home, and while thinking of his love, he'll fall asleep with a smile on his face. He misses her, but he loves her so much, and he knows that one day soon, she'll come on home again.