Soo was losing track of time, every day seemed to blur into another. While she may have refused to languish in her rooms, she wandered aimlessly around the grounds, gardens, and palace itself – staying for hours in the library, trying to read. She longed to submerge herself in work, hoping that the completion of menial tasks would cure her of the helplessness she felt in isolation. But even that 'luxury' was denied to her. What kind of highborn woman (a king's wife, to boot) was to work? She was frustrated, bored, lonely – and the trail of court ladies that seemed to follow her wherever she went offered no help. As their overseer, the senior court lady, nicknamed 'Queen of the Damiwon' – Soo had known each and every woman and girl, all two hundred and some of them – if not by name, then by face. But now, they treated her with blank, deferential politeness – seeming to have forgotten that she had once been one of them – and even lower as a water-maid of the gyobang. They called her 'milady' and bowed to her with empty eyes.

A small, quiet gray, gloom descended over her, something akin to depression. She heard that Baek Ah had been sent away to his hometown by his mother. Eun was still staying in the capital with Soon Deok, but she had not seen them at all. Jung was nowhere to be found, and the one person that she wanted to see most of all… So – did not come to see her. She wondered if it was Yo that had forbidden her from meeting with him again.

Yo, himself had not even spoken to her since the wedding. Occasionally a note written in sharp, controlled characters, informing her of his brothers' whereabouts arrived in her quarters – but those notes very pointedly avoided telling her about So. Of course, if it was known that the king's third wife was having an affair with his younger brother, it would have serious consequences for everyone – but she longed just to catch a glimpse of So's profile as he passed her by, or the corner of his mouth twitching up in a secret smile as their eyes met.

After all, she could not live out the rest of her life this way, could she?

Did she have the strength or the power to act? What could she do? Cut off from all sides, where could she turn?

Unexpectedly, the answer came to her in the library. One of the rare times when she was alone – she sat at the table and leafed through books, hoping that one of them would interest her. It was already night – but she did not feel tired at all, and she thought that the court ladies who came to 'collect' her and take her back to her quarters for a meal and sleep – must have forgotten about her. She got up to put back the growing pile of books in front of her and began to place them back neatly on the shelves, when she heard a footstep behind her and whirled around.

Jung grinned at her from behind a bookshelf, badly-hidden worry in his eyes. "It's been a while, sis," he said. He strode over to the window and opened it, cool night air lifting the motionless, tepid dust of the library. The moonlight shone in brightly, brighter than the flickering lantern that sat on the table.

Soo smiled, feeling a surge of relief. "Your Highness," she said, putting the last book down and approaching him. "I'm glad to see you."

"Yeah," Jung said slowly, putting both hands on her shoulders, searching her face for something that he didn't seem to find. "…Are you alright?" he asked.

'No,' Soo wanted to say. 'I feel trapped and alone, and I haven't seen the fourth prince at all. I don't know how much time has passed – and after that farce of a wedding, the king is all but ignoring me – the only thing I am glad for.' But she did not say that. Instead, she smiled and nodded. "I'm fine, Your Highness. Just a bit lonely."

Slowly nodding, Jung stepped back and sat down, motioning for her to sit across from him. He leaned his elbows onto the table and smiled at her. "Baek Ah is back from his hometown. Eun and Soon Deok haven't left Songak yet for some reason," worry clouded his face for a moment, "And So… The king has kept him very busy. I've finally been able to find you."

Soo felt cold. "What do you mean?" she asked warily.

"His Majesty…" Jung said with a wince, a flash of anger, then a carefulness in his voice that Soo had never heard before, "His Majesty has kept you very well-guarded." He looked around warily, then leaned over the table and very quietly said, "So you don't run away. Baek Ah went to his hometown hoping to take one more 'hostage' out of the equation." Jung sounded much older. "But the king called him back to court." He settled back again – and Soo noticed that he had armor on under his dark robe.

"Your Highness," Soo said quietly, looking up into his eyes – eyes that barely bore a trace of the freckless, cheerful boy that she once knew, "Are you doing something dangerous?"

He said nothing for a while, grinning at her and shrugging the question off. "Hey – aren't you glad to see me, Soo?"

"Of course," Soo said.

Jung grinned again, taking her hand that had been resting on the table. "I'll definitely help you," he promised. "No matter what it takes. I won't let anyone get hurt either, Soo. I'm on nobody's side but yours."

Soo looked at him and smiled again, not aware she was doing so. The young prince was so earnest – and she patted his hand. "You don't have to put yourself in danger, Your Highness. I'll be fine. As long as… I still have friends," 'As long as I still have him at least,' "I'll be fine."

The expression that passed over Jung's face was heartbreaking sorrow, soon replaced with a weak smile. "You always say things like that, Soo…" he said, shaking his head and looking down. For a moment, Soo thought she saw the glint of tears. Then, he drew his hand back from hers, passed a sleeve over his face under the guise of getting something from his other sleeve. When he looked up again, he was smiling mischievously. "Guess what?"

"What?" Soo asked.

He lay a wrapped package on the table, full of sweet cakes, just as on the night of her 'engagement'. "Didn't I say?" he said, smiling. "Food always makes everything better. You're looking skinny – so let's eat."

"If I eat all of this, Your Highness," Soo protested with a laugh, "I won't just stop being skinny – I'll blow up like a ball!"

"It's a princely command," Jung said, handing her a sticky rice cake, "You've gotta eat at least one." He paused, a genuine, unworried smile on his face briefly. "You finally laughed," he said softly. Then, he quickly began to help Soo with the 'demolishment' of the smuggled sweets.

When he left, soundlessly, Soo was unaware of the little smile that stayed with her until the court ladies came to escort her to dinner.

"Milady," a court lady said tonelessly. "His Majesty requests your presence at his dinner table tonight."

Soo's eyes widened. In her chambers, she was quickly dressed in the elaborate hanbok that she usually scorned – and adorned with gold, a cool brush full of makeup dragged across her lids and lips – and another across her wrist, covering the scar.

In a whirl of embroidered outer robes and quick, silent footsteps, she stood outside the king's chambers. Before she could draw a deep breath in, the door was opened.

The king, sitting comfortably at the table and already eating looked up and raised an eyebrow. The candles and lamps reflecting off his gold-threaded robes were unpleasantly bright. The doors swung shut behind Soo – and they were alone. She bowed and murmured greetings.

With a careless gesture, Yo gestured at the chair across the table from him. "Sit," he said.

She bowed and sat.

There was a silence. And then, breaking it, his tone slightly amused and the smirk on his lips bearing her no good will, Yo said, "You know, if you're going to have an affair with Jung, you could be a bit more discreet about it. The court might think you don't like me at all."

Soo's eyes widened and she looked up. "Your Majesty-" she began, her throat constricting with fear. 'He wouldn't hurt Jung, would he?'

"Obviously, there's nothing between you other than some friendship and one-sided puppy love – ridiculous things like that," Yo continued, silencing her, "But it looks rather suspicious when my youngest brother goes around sneaking into the library in the middle of the night."

'Was it that late?' Soo thought detachedly, still eyeing the king distrustfully. Then she did her best to keep her eyebrow from twitching angrily. 'If this jerk didn't keep me isolated, then nobody would have to sneak around!' Then she paused her thoughts. 'How did he know? The fourteenth prince only met me two hours ago.'

Yo looked at her, then shook his head. "Your little clandestine meeting was witnessed by one of the Queen Mother's ah, confidants. Since Mother doesn't approve of my choice in wife, she really tried to make a stir with this. Of course, I got rid of that… Rumor."

Again, Soo's eyes widened. "Her own son?" she whispered, not realizing she had done it out loud. 'I thought she liked Jung, that she wanted to protect him!'

Yo's lips twitched in what could have been a smile or a snarl. "You seem surprised," he said dryly. He ran a hand over his forehead with a wince, as if he was in some pain – then began to eat. From there, the 'conversation' (if one could call it that) turned into unsubtle jabs at Soo from Yo – while Soo received them with silence and (feigned) calmness. But this only seemed to serve to exacerbate the king's frustration. "What is wrong with you, you wench?" he finally snapped, glaring up at her, his golden earrings glinting in the candle-light.

Soo could tell, by the way his eyebrows were drawn together and by the way he kept rubbing at his forehead and temples that he had a headache – that also seemed to be contributing towards his bad mood. Therefore, instead of asking him what the hell was wrong with him, because she was fine, thank you very much, Soo calmly asked, "Your Majesty, do you have a headache?"

He raised an eyebrow at that. "…Yes," he said, pointing at her with his chopsticks rudely, "And you're not helping." He resumed eating.

Soo repressed an exasperated sigh. "Will Your Majesty deign to tell me what I have done to exacerbate Your Majesty's royal headache?"

"You exist," muttered Yo bitterly, then looked up at her disbelievingly. "…Yah. Are you making fun of me, woman?"

"Of course not, how could one such as me-"

"Oh, just shut up," he cut her off.

"Yes, Your Majesty," Hae Soo said sweetly and inclined her head.

They ate in silence until a court maid entered the room to clear away the plates – and Yo looked up at her to study her. Soo did not flinch under his gaze. Finally, Yo asked her, "How fond are you of the eighth prince?"

At this unexpected question, Soo was taken aback. Finally, after thinking out a fitting answer to the question she began to say, "Quite some time ago, I stayed at his house, even after I lost my memory – I am very grateful to him for that." She did not add how awkward it was with his affair and his purposely badly-hidden feelings for her – and how he had taken advantage of her disorientation and her naivety – and hurt Myung Hee. How, after Myung Hee's death the 'realization' that actually, he had loved her all this time- Soo was not going to get angry or sad in front of the king.

However, Yo did not seem to miss the layer of falseness in her voice or the slight curl of her fingers against the skirts of her robe. He smirked, then let out a laugh. "You don't like him at all anymore, do you?" He shrugged. "No matter."

He did not dismiss her, so she sat with the empty table between them. Yo's headache looked as if it was getting worse as he was now rubbing his eyes and looking at least ten times more displeased than he usually did. Finally, Soo decided to risk it. "If I may take the liberty of suggesting something to Your Majesty…" she started off.

Yo raised an eyebrow, his mouth twisting wryly.

Soo sat up slightly straighter. "Mint is very good for curing headache," she said. "If you take some mint oil and rub it on your temples, that is very effective, because it produces a cooling effect. Lavender is something that may help you to relax, so if you had a little bit of that kind of oil rubbed in the backs of your hands, that could also be helpful in reducing stress-induced headache. Since you're working a lot, it must put a lot of stress on your eyes too, so frequently looking up and having sunlight is good. Eating a bit of ginger helps take away some irritants and swelling that may also be internally causing problems. Ah… What else?" She paused for a moment, looking up towards the ceiling, and then looked over at the king. "Oh, and if you tie your hair up too tightly, that can be a factor," she added. "Your Majesty should drink a lot of water – and stay away from alcoholic drinks like soju. Try to breathe a lot of fresh air and sleep well."

The king was staring at her, looking equally bemused and surprised at her, not sure if he should make fun of her or whether he should ignore her completely. Finally, he slowly asked, "…What's su- 'stress'? Use words that make sense, woman."

Catching herself, Soo realized that she had gone off on quite a tangent. "Ah… That is – tension and anxiety," she said, ducking her head again. Curse her and her modern terminology and curse these Goryeo hicks for not knowing proper Korean. She shouldn't have tried to help him and left the 'doctor-ing' to the doctors. Oh well, too late now. "It's a term from my, ah, hometown. …Forgive me, Your Majesty, I have been too presumptuous."

Yo snorted. "I'd say." He glanced sideways at her. "You're ridiculous, woman."

Soo quickly excused herself, and he let her go.

/

The eighth prince's study was dimly lit by a few candles on the large desk. The house was quiet, and the closed windows did not let the cool night air into the warm, slightly stuffy room. His hands clasped over his chest, the eighth prince himself leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowed – no longer holding any pretentions of gentleness. He was thinking, and thinking hard, his brow creased sternly.

The ninth prince sat in a chair nearby, his elbows resting on his knees, leaning forward eagerly, the flickering light of the candles throwing dancing shadows over his face. "The tenth prince and his wife are leaving on the morrow, Elder Brother. The wedding has been held and there is nothing more for them here. What are you going to do?"

"Slow them down in any way you can. I will do my best to make the king see sense," Wook said slowly.

"Bandits?" Won asked cheerfully. "I can arrange for a few of those. Taking a leaf out of our third brother's book."

Wook looked hard at his ninth brother. "Careful," he said warningly.

"Of course, Elder Brother. Caution above all else," Won smiled. "That is your style, isn't it? We don't want to be implicated in the tenth prince's upcoming exile." He paused, seeming to think about something troubling. "What of the Queen Mother? It is widely known that she disapproved of the marriage."

"It has been a very advantageous marriage for the Hae and the Hwangbo. We are very happy about this, especially after Mother's exile all those years ago. The Yoo are not happy, that is understandable," Wook said. "She thinks he has gone too far in securing his hunting dog's leash. But, from what I know, His Majesty has unintentionally thrown his mother from the game."

"How so, Brother?" asked Won curiously.

"'Live comfortably, Mother,' he said, and sent her away from the palace," Wook said with no small tone of satisfaction.

Won laughed. "Oh, I'm sure she didn't like that."

"It is no laughing matter," Wook said sharply. "She is a dangerous woman, even if she is no longer in the thick of things."

"Of course," Won said soothingly, nodding.

/

Wang Yo was equal parts amused and very confused. That woman was absolutely crazy – that he could decide right here right now. The fresh air did seem to be helping his headache, not that he would admit it. 'What kind of ridiculous person starts lecturing their worst enemy on headache cures?' he wondered, a disbelieving laugh escaping him. If it was himself, or anyone else, really – they would leave him to suffer in silence, unless he commanded them to do something.

Hae Soo was a ridiculous mass of contradictions in the shape of a fragile-looking woman with annoyingly expressive, large eyes – and a larger temper – which was hidden under an even larger shield of stoic politeness. Yo shook his head. 'What a character.'

"…I am very grateful to him…"

Yo snorted. She could lie with a straight face, too.

Over the wall-tops, the moon began to rise. It would soon be autumn – the weather had already turned cooler. The light breeze picked up and turned into a chilly night wind – Yo's headache was almost completely gone, and he let out a breath. A servant with a bowed head came to him. "Their Highnesses have arrived, Your Majesty," he said in a faint voice.

"Tell them to come up," Yo commanded, not looking away from the dark horizon.

The first to come up the stairs to the wall-top was the ninth prince, wrapped in a dark cloak. He bowed, smiling slightly. "Good evening, Your Majesty," he said cheerfully. "We are having very good weather at this time of year."

Yo didn't bother answering him.

A few steps behind his ninth brother, Wook came softly up the stone steps, his soft boots making no sound. He bowed deeply. "The eighth prince greets His Majesty," he said formally.

'Oho. Look who's trying to butter up to me again,' Yo thought dryly, raising a skeptical eyebrow that Wook did not quaver against. "So he does," Yo said, smirking. At a gesture from him, the guards and servants backed away towards the lantern-lit section of wall, a respectful distance away, out of earshot.

Won smiled and Wook began to speak. "We have received news that the tenth prince and his wife intend to stay in Songak for longer than expected."

"Bandits or some such," Won added, shaking his head and sighing. "How unfortunate."

"Indeed," Wook said, his tone implying that it was anything but. "Your Majesty," he said, "The ten-"

Yo threw back his head and began to laugh loudly as the two princes stared at him. When he finished, he looked at the two conspirators. "No," he said. "The tenth prince is as harmless as a child – and Wang Gyu wants a cure for his arthritis, not the throne. You must come up with something better."

"Your Majesty-"

"Is that all?" Yo asked, his voice growing dangerously smooth. "Otherwise, there's a cute little wife waiting for me in my quarters that's a lot more pleasant to… Converse with." Obviously, there wasn't – but the carefully blank look that descended onto Wook's face at those words was worth it. Yo smirked.

The eighth prince bowed low and then left, the ninth prince seemed as if he was going to follow, but at the last moment, he turned around, bowed, and approached Yo again. "…Actually, Your Majesty," he said, "I have just realized that you are right. My king, it is not the tenth prince that has designs on the throne. The thought just hit me, forgive this lowly prince for doubting your words earlier." He smiled, tilting his head slightly, as if testing the waters.

Yo's smirk grew into a sharp grin. "You finally see reason, Won."

"Of course, Your Majesty." Won smiled pleasantly. "Always."

/

Soo managed to ditch her trail of court ladies when she got outside, ducking into the garden. Now, she was finally alone. She waited, looking carefully around for any sign of the fourth prince.

Only this morning, she had received a letter, given to her by one of the court maids. The girl said that it was from 'His Highness the thirteenth prince' and then blushed – which seemed to mean that Baek Ah had managed to get the letter to the court maid in person.

The letter, however, was not from Baek Ah. It was from So, his spidery writing slanting hurriedly down the page. It only said, 'The place where and when you showed your overflowing talents in watering sleeping princes.' He wanted to meet her. At noon, in the gardens, near the mulberry tree. Her heart swelled and she quickly burned the paper, knowing that if it was found, she would be accused of plotting, or having an affair, or worse. Yo needed her alive, but that was all. Damage done to her didn't matter as long as she still breathed, she supposed.

A quick burst of joy, a quick burst of fear – then a warmth settling over her that would not go away. She had not seen So since the brief moment from the window – and that did not count. She longed to see his face, reach out and touch him – speak with him and reassure him – tell him that she was alright and that she would be alright. That while Yo was definitely neither kind, nor gentlemanly towards her, but he did nothing more than simply be a jerk, and seeming to be strangely holding back on the jerkiness, at that.

She wanted to see So – and now she would. Through the day, she kept hiding her involuntary smiles at the thought behind her silken sleeves. 'Thank you, Baek Ah,' she thought loudly, hoping that he would hear her. 'Thank you so much.'

The sunshine dappled her shoulders with light through the pale green leaves, there was the sound of a cicada somewhere far away – but no sound of footsteps up the gravel path, no rustle of leaves parting – no-one calling out her name. She waited and waited for what felt like hours – and the sun had moved quite a bit, from its high noon positioning slowly off-center, gradually down – a cool breeze beginning to blow from the lake. 'Where is he?'

It was getting cold and she bit her lip with anxiety. Had something happened to So? Where was he? Why wasn't he here yet? But if she left, she might miss him, for he might come after all… She chewed her lip more, her hands slowly growing cold, twisting in her sleeves.

Suddenly, her ears picked up a rustling and she saw a dark figure move quickly from behind a tree, to the bushes beside her. Soo's eyes widened and she clenched her fists, moving so that her back was against a tree, so that she could not be snuck up at from behind.

But the man in dark clothing that emerged from the bush was So. She breathed out in relief, but the more she looked at him, the less relieved she felt. He looked haggard and tired, his eyes were too sharp and angry – and he was trying too hard to appear calm and happy. "Your Highness," she said, looking into his eyes.

So tried to smile. "Soo," he said. "Are you… Are you alright?" He looked her over with concern, tentatively reaching out for her shoulder.

"Yes. I'm fine, Your Highness." She smiled and took his hand in both of hers, placing it over hear heart and keeping it there. He stepped closer to her, wrapping an arm around her waist, drawing her in. His eyes flicked over her hair, styled as the wife of a king. At her beautiful, rich robes – fit for a queen. At the gold sparkling in her ears and around her neck and fingers. He took in all that marked her as Wang Yo's.

His jaw tightened, and his eyes were sad. "I wanted to see you, Soo," he said. "I don't know the next time I will be able to. There's… A traitor that the king wants me to 'hunt'," he said quietly. "It's… Nothing for you to worry about," he added.

There was a careful blankness as he said it that put Soo briefly on guard, but she waved it away, knowing that So was none too happy, serving as the king's dog. It wasn't that he was trying to hide something – that was just her being paranoid – so she leaned her forehead against his chest in answer, quietly saying, "You do what you have to, to survive."

At those words, he relaxed slightly. Until evening fell, they stayed in each other's arms, by the edge of the lake, sharing languid, slow kisses in the bottom of a rowboat. For a moment, it seemed as if everything was back to normal, when So let out a small chuckle at something she said, when she smiled at him reflexively.

Yet – too soon, much too soon, the sun had sunk into the lake leaving the sky an electric blue color that quickly faded to indigo. Crickets began to chirp, and they drew reluctantly away from each other. "I have to go," Soo said quietly. "I've already been absent for too long."

So nodded and turned away first, his hands folded behind his back, his shoulders stiff. "I'll see you again, Soo," he promised.

She watched him go, until she could no longer see his back, then relaxed her back against a tree, letting out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding.

She returned to the palace, her court ladies slipping into line behind her, ascending the stairs that led up from the outer court to the inner palaces. The air seemed to be fresher than she had remembered, and her footsteps had a confidence that she had not had since her farce of a marriage. Across the courtyard, another procession was approaching.

The king with his courtiers trailing behind him was exiting the throne room. She brought her train to a halt and they waited with bowed heads for the king to pass them.

As Yo walked by her, sparing her a single, scornful gaze, Soo barely caught the hint of mint and lavender in the air as he passed. Her lips twitched as she tried to repress a self-satisfied smile. 'And he called me ridiculous,' she thought triumphantly. 'The jerk looked better too – like he was only ready to punch someone in the throat, rather than stab them through the throat.'