"Did you ever think we'd end up here?"

"Hmm?"

Soo stretched her legs, touching the tip of her shoes together. So, sitting beside her, turned his gaze away from the happy crowd to look at her. Somewhere not far from them, Baek Ah and the Queen of Baekje shared their first kiss.

"Baekje. Did you ever think we'd call it home?"

So lifted his gaze to the lanterns, flying and shining in the night sky.

"I didn't even know if we'd survive. The fact that we're here at all is a triumph."

Soo turned to him, tracing his scar with her eyes. A mark of war, of their survival after Goguryeo. The servants who survived their king. A proof of their bond, their destinies intertwined in blood and tears. It never felt heavy to look at it. Her chest was light in Baekje, in the protection Woo Hee granted them. It was hard to think of it as a burden with those eyes accompanying it, his eyes in speckles of sincerity and welcoming warmth. They had known each other since they were children and she was happy to remember. Ever happier still.

"There were times," she began, trailing off, just observing the people passing by. She started again. "There were times, in the forest, when I thought we might never see people again. That somehow the world would end and we'd never see anybody or anything again. There'd only be us and the silent, undead forest."

She knew what he was thinking without him ever uttering words. The slow blinking of his eyes, his head hanging low, and his hand taking her hand, both of his hands taking hers, a subtle embrace amongst the crowd. The smiles he always gave her on those peaceful days were not there at that moment. She knew. She knew he must have thought it too and the helplessness was too much to speak of.

"And then came the idiot."

The air left her in delighted giggles. Said idiot was playing with So's adoptive brothers and it was no surprise to them that he got along with Jung and Eun so well, a merry song accompanied by ridiculous dances, Eun's laughter, so thoroughly missed the very moment they heard it again, echoing in the night.

"Still," said Soo, intertwining their fingers. "As bad as it was, didn't you feel like it was kind of our world?"

Her cheeks were hot but her middle was cold. It was lonely, such a lonely thought. Bittersweet. She could feel it on her tongue.

"To wake up and wander the woods with nothing but hope, but we rejected everyone until Baek Ah showed up. They couldn't do it, and we didn't want them to because it had to be us. But we never made it past the gate so we wandered and wandered and I knew that forest like the back of my hand, just like I knew your every whim and favorite things."

She didn't notice she was trembling until she felt him hold her hands tighter. He leaned forward, tucking her bangs behind her ears, their eyes meeting with ease.

"Are you scared, Soo?"

She nodded and he hid her from the world, hid her weaknesses and insecurities against his chest and heart, in his embrace.

"Can I really be what Lady Woo Hee expects me to be? Will I really know what's best for Baekje?"

The festival music was cheerful but all she heard then were his breathing, his heartbeats. Steady, always steady when it needed to be.

"It isn't like you to overthink, Soo. Trust your instincts, remember?"

She inhaled profoundly in memory, the part of her life that she liked best, even in their worst moments. She didn't have anyone to disappoint then. Couldn't hurt anyone, always safe in his presence. The world might as well have ended and it was scary but she wasn't alone. She still wasn't alone, she was going to marry him, but there were so many people now. Crowds, terrifying, overwhelming crowds. Woo Hee and her court. One mistake and...

"Do you want to leave?"

His whisper was perfectly audible against her ear. She backed away to read his thoughts in his eyes.

"To Silla?"

He nodded.

"Baek Ah would be glad and I doubt Lady Woo Hee would oppose. We've done our share of duty, Baekje can flourish without us."

"But you want to be here."

How selfish and fragile could she be, and how fragile and willing could he be still, touching her softly as one would a flower?

"I want to be with you."

Baek Ah's heart would probably race like hers if he heard. The keeper of the forest, captain of the palace guard, sworn enemy of sorcerers, laying himself at her feet. So much, she had so much, and he was so much and she couldn't always be strong but she didn't fall apart in his arms. She felt silly. She smiled.

"Do you remember?" She wrapped her arms around his middle, his chest a warm pillow. "When Woo Hee taught us how to dance when we were younger?"

"You mean when she tried to teach you how to dance and you failed for a frustrating amount of days."

She could hear and feel his chuckles. She didn't feel teased, not then.

"And you learned so well because it was a lot like learning new swordsmanship."

"I'm not that good at it."

"You are." She propped her chin on his chest and she liked the angle, he was all that she could see, his hair framing his face. "Our wedding dance is going to be so beautiful, I hope Baek Ah can paint it."

"He can. There are no arts our Baek Ah hasn't mastered."

Her eyes were thin half-moons, all of their light illuminating her, making him kiss her, a kiss promised before the sorcerer cast his spell, a kiss that bubbled in her chest in her forest. Time; time was eternal, like the flowers that were always in full-bloom, she'd fall in love with him time and time again.

"I don't want to leave," she said after, giving a sheepish smile. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I felt melancholy all of a sudden."

"You don't have to be strong all the time," So said — echoed, adjusting the strands of her hair that had fallen out of place. "Don't worry, Baek Ah doesn't have to know that. If we don't have an intimidating leverage, he might just be too much to bear."

She giggled, both at his attempt to cheer her up and at his comfort, recalling all the times he fell apart in their little haven in the woods, scared and frustrated and sad, it was so sad not to remember, she knew it all.

"Can we still visit Silla, though? I really want to see it. I hear it's so lively."

He nodded, he and Soo looking at the other two, their Queen and her prince, a constellation in the distance.

"Why not? It's going to be our second home."

Soo felt big with contentment at his words. With her love, her friends and two places to call home, she felt like the luckiest girl in the world. She felt that everything could work out, even despite one's mistakes.

Adviser Hae Soo felt strong in New Baekje.