3 years ago

"Would you like to go the festival downtown with me?" Seonghwa keeps his voice down low as his eyes never fail to maintain contact with Serim's.

As opposed to the prince, the lady-in-waiting is currently having her hands in fists, her eyes darting all around in an attempt to both break the eye contact with the prince and to keep an eye out for anyone who might have come across them; two people who should not even be seen in the vicinity of the other.

"Your Highness," she repeats again, the title flowing out of her mouth with ease, and will be so for possibly the rest of her life as that is what she's supposed to address them as. No matter how the prince insists on her calling him by his name when they're alone. "You should not be here." She wants to add 'with me' but having him here even without her presence is enough to claim all things wrong with it.

His face slightly changes at the mention of this, looking offended as his lips turn into a pout. His dewy eyes blink profusely, trying to gain sympathy from her. "Mother and Narae are not in the palace; they went to Kryon for a, as they call it, ladies night with the queen and princesses there. Only father is here, but even then he's busy having discussions the whole day; he's only asking to be served food in his study. And I just finished my lessons for today, nothing scheduled for the rest of the day."

"But why with me?" she blurts out.

He pauses, before replying, "Because I want to spend time with you."

"Your Highness," she desperately says, as if she has not just heard the confession coming out of his mouth. She's close to putting her palms together, ready to kneel to even beg so that the prince will leave. If things were any different, if she were not a servant and one of the princesses instead, she would have accepted the invitation in a heartbeat.

Who could resist the prince?

"And-" he quickly adds, realizing how he sounded pushy, "I know that you've always wanted to go, but since Narae is not fond of festivals like that you've never gotten the chance to. I thought it'd be a good place to bring you to. You can see a lot of other artists' works there, too. Maybe get some inspiration; I'm sure you'll enjoy it."

She keeps mum, brought to a speechless state as she doesn't remember the last time anyone would care for what she likes or doesn't like. "Your Highness, us going out together is something worthy of an execution for me. I must not be seen hanging around a royal I am not serving."

Seonghwa's eyes turn downcast, the edges of his lips pulled down too. The twinkle in his eyes seems to have died down along with his cheerful expression. "I wanted us to go out as Seonghwa and Serim, without those stupid titles."

She gets swayed by his offer, the added effect of his pouting lips and blinking large eyes. She bites her lower lip, rubbing her hand up and down her left arm as she utters slowly, "Only this one night... then you must not attempt to talk with me again. Both of us would face the grave consequences if Their Majesties happen to find out."

"No promises," the prince replies mischievously, without giving a chance for her to utter another word to cancel her accepting the offer. "Meet me at the south wing where the broken structures are, 7:30 p.m." He walks away before snapping his fingers and turn around, "Oh and, you might want to bring your sketchbook and pencil along. A lot of scenery to be captured." He winks.

If not for her sheer will of refusing to be completely swept off her feet by the prince, she would've spent the rest of the day feeling like she's walking on cloud nine. She remains focused on what duties she's supposed to carry out; that includes helping Princess Narae to get ready for her journey to Kryon Realm together with the queen. A trip that would give her a ticket to go to the festival along with the prince.

As soon as the princess and queen decide to embark to Kryon in a carriage - the two women do not like to travel by teleportation despite having the ability to do so, they say it messes with their heads and causes them to be in a bad mood - she tumbles into her room, already glancing at the clock knowing that she'll have to meet the prince by 7:30 p.m.

Her wardrobe gives little choice for her outfit for the night, and she grabs what she thinks is the most decent dress she has; the newest of her pile. She spends as little time as she has in front of the mirror, putting her coral hair in a braid and smoothing it down. She knows that no matter how much time she spends readying herself, she cannot compare to the natural beauty possessed by the Park siblings.

Instead of wasting time for something that she cannot achieve, she tries to mentally prepare herself for an evening with the one and only Prince Seonghwa, alone. Just the two of them, enjoying themselves at the festival. At somewhere where she has always wanted to go, with someone she just recently decided that she wanted to be with. Scared that something is going to come in the way of their plan, she leaves the room, bringing a bag along that she can fit her sketchbook and pencil into.

Her heart is palpitating along with her quick footsteps; nervousness, fear, excitement. Her fast journey to the south wing is also fuelled by the worry of being caught in the middle and asked where she's heading to. Surely an honest answer would immediately bring a red alarm to the whole palace; in fact they might even see the early return of the queen and princess. There are also some negative thoughts of the prince merely playing around with her, and she would be showing up only to find a dark, scary area with no one around. Or perhaps, it could even be a trap with her being punished under the pretext of 'seducing' the prince.

However, even she herself has no idea what she's currently doing.

She's feeding herself too much negative thoughts that she gives a genuine reaction of surprise as she sees Seonghwa rising from his seat he made out of the broken structures. Despite having most of his face hidden under the hood he has on, the fire burning on the nearest torch illuminates his handsome features, accentuating the smile he's giving to her.

"I'm glad you showed up, I was really scared you were going to leave me hanging," he muses.

Same here, but she doesn't verbalize it. Instead, she replies, "Your Highness, I hope that you truly don't think of me as taking advantage of you. It was simply a longtime dream of me to attend the festival and you offered me something that I found hard to resist."

He chuckles as he makes his way to her, saying one last thing before he puts on a mask that covers the lower part of his face. Conveniently, only his eyes are now visible but it still manages to make her feel like he's holding her captive only with his stare.

"You have a way with words, makes me feel... attracted."

A flashback of what happened in the library; he takes out his hand so that she'll be able to hold on. This time she is more resolved, holding it more firmly despite the tingling feeling dancing wherever their skins touched. She knows that they're going to be gone in a blink but she doesn't know what she's going to expect; in fact she's thinking that she's probably going to give the prince the most inelegant impression ever if she does puke in front of him.

Bile rises to her throat as they arrive at the back of a shop; she guesses that someone who possesses no powers like her would get a worse reaction. She almost doubles over but as Seonghwa pats her back, her stomach has calmed down and she's only letting out a sharp breath. She manages to subdue herself from making him feel disgusted, but she somewhat still feels embarrassed.

"Your Highness, I don't ask for much, but please pretend you didn't see that."

"Not unless you comply and not call me that. Especially since we're in public, it's only going to make things worse if the people find out who I am. Just call me Seonghwa... or even better, Hwaseong. Seonghwa is too much of a reveal."

She stares at him in incredulity.

He shrugs. "Unless you want to be caught and we get sent back to the palace. I won't guarantee that the effects after will be pretty."

After a moment of stubbornness, she relents, knowing that he is speaking nothing but the truth. It won't be easy if they know that the prince had come to town - knowing that he'll probably be mobbed, and to make matters worse, he's with someone he's not supposed to be with.

"I will Your-" Looking at Seonghwa's instant eyebrow raise, she corrects, herself, "Hwaseong."

"Much better." Even with the mask, she can see that he has a smile on, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "Now shall we?"

The lady-in-waiting has wanted to point out that the hood and mask he has on will probably be making people more conscious of their presence, how he will stick out like a sore thumb but she's glad that she has decided to hold back her tongue. Seonghwa looks more fitting in the crowd than she is, considering how the visitors of the festival decided that wearing hoods and masks are the norm. Males and females alike, they don something similar to the prince.

"It's kind of a tradition to wear clothes like this during the festival," Seonghwa explains, as if answering the question in her mind. "It's supposed to be a matter of enjoyment rather than competing on who looks better than who; brings the focus to the artworks on display rather than the artists and visitors themselves. That is why," he pulls down his mask lightly so that she'll be able to see his lips, "I had no qualms of going here because I know putting on a disguise would not grab the attention I wouldn't want."

"Do the people..." her eyes flick back and forth as they make it through the throng of people visiting the festival, "not recognize the son of their one and only ruler?"

He puts back on the mask, eyes looking at the hanging lanterns decorating the sidewalk as he clasps his hands behind his back. He looks at Serim from the corner of his eyes, the words he's saying directed both for himself and the girl beside him.

"Sometimes I hope that is the case all the time, because being a member of the royal family brings too much responsibilities, protocols and expectations. You're required to act a certain way, do certain things while keeping your own interests at the side. I'm lucky enough to be able to indulge myself in reading books," a small smile on his lips as he's reminded of their encounter, "but I don't think I would have the time for that once I take over the throne."

"There are others who wish to be in your place," she utters. "People who wish they are born with the throne waiting for them instead of having to kneel in front of the throne."

He lets out a sharp breath, nodding. "I know. That's why I feel like I'm being ungrateful for complaining about being one when there are others who wish they could kick me out of the palace instead. I wish... we're allowed to do what's normal, like..." he trails off before he's able to finish his sentence. "Well, that's enough about me. This is supposed to be your evening! You have always wanted to attend the festival, right? So enjoy it to your heart's content."

"It's... something new to have someone care for what I enjoy, because I find that even my mother does not take into account of what I do and do not enjoy. We're too caught up in wanting to survive from day to day."

Seonghwa wants to reply but he knows it's better to keep quiet. Whatever he says might break off the simple understanding they had of each other. How more complicated can it be, when the girl he has taken a liking to is his sister's lady-in-waiting, in which she is not treated like how a human is supposed to be? How more brazen can he get, but what is he supposed to do when he starts to acknowledge the instant mood lift he gets whenever Serim is near him?

As they go deeper into the crowd, enjoying what the festival has to offer, even though his eyes seem like they're only looking straight ahead, he does occasionally steal glances at the lady-in-waiting. Unknowingly, he tries to take a glimpse at the pages of her sketchbook as she takes it out, trying to make out her drawings, but she angles her body so that they're not visible. They stop at the end of the walkway, the crowd already thinning as the exhibit of the works of the artists under the night sky ends.

Seonghwa catches sight of a stall selling baked sweet potatoes so he lets Serim wait while sitting under a tree full of blossoming flowers, promising that he'll come back with some for them. While waiting, she tries to do a quick sketch but finds no focus, her hands somewhat trembling from the sudden realization that indeed, here she is, a lady-in-waiting for Princess Narae, going to a festival with her brother. She grips the pencil too tight and she stares into the distance, letting the sketchbook open before her; she doesn't realize that the prince has returned with two steaming sweet potatoes.

"Was that why you refused to show me your sketches?" Seonghwa takes a bite out of his sweet potato first, before he opens his mouth and mentions about how hot it is, trying to blow out the heat. "Argh that burnt my tongue." After much struggle, he swallows the bite before handing Serim's sweet potato.

With the avoidance becoming impossible, she looks down to the open page of her sketchbook; where her last drawing had been of the prince in the library. She takes the sweet potato with a shy 'thank you' before mentioning, "Ah... it was something I've never tried before."

"Huh, it doesn't look like me," Seonghwa utters.

She widens her eyes in panic. "I never had the intention to offend you by drawing you with my sub par skills. It was my first try-"

"The drawing looks too handsome to be me," he says jokingly, a playful smirk coming up as he takes another bite. "I'm sure I'm not that good-looking; you're giving me way too much credit."

She only manages a grunt coming out of her throat as she becomes speechless at the prince poking fun at her.

He munches on the snack and mutters, "You're a really good artist. There must be a way for you to showcase your talents. It's too good to pass up."

Involuntarily her eyes moves to his lips, which are bunching up as he chews on the food. His mask is placed under his chin. Guilty, she quickly diverts her stare, feeling the blush dusting her cheeks. "It's not my place to push forward whatever talent I have, I'll always be under the shadow of your sister." She never did intend to sound that melancholic or even accuse his sister, but it somehow came out that way.

"Narae... she gives you a really hard time, doesn't she?"

Despite wanting to shout the opposite answer, she settles down with a 'no' and a 'it's my duty to be her shadow'. They continue eating in silence, watching as the people go back and forth in front of them, their faces and figures a blur.

To end their secret excursion of the night, they decide to stroll along a nearby park, where several other visitors of the festival have decided to claim place, bringing along packs of food with them and laying out mats to enjoy a picnic. With several other people at the park, she expected the surrounding to be noisy; but everything seems muted and even the air is still. No wind blowing, only them and the chill of the night.

She never wants this night to end, getting to spend doing what she likes with the person she likes. But duty awaits and she knows that all good things must come to an end, no matter how hard she wishes in her heart. She doesn't know why she feels like tearing up, the night feeling like it's too good to be true.

As they step under a tree with blossoming red flowers, she looks up to see Seonghwa looking at her with emotions she cannot perceive through his eyes, his lower face covered. He takes off his mask slowly, then like everything turning into slow motion - maybe the prince did slow down the time - he kisses her.

It is her first so she stands rigid, pretty sure she's looking foolish as she closes her eyes, only letting him to take control. It's soft and slow; but it's not like she has any past experience to compare it with. The way the prince cups her face is so gentle that she feels as if he's not touching her at all. The prince pulls back first, but he immediately tears his gaze away from her.

She realizes why he's doing so; the prince of Inis is crying.

She is in no place to do so but she embraces him, forgetting about the difference in their ranks as she tightens her hold around his waist.

Thus the day of them building a relationship which is forbidden starts, a big secret that must be kept. It is also the day the poisonous flowers start to bloom, fully preparing for the day where they will finally let the poison takes its course in their veins, but the effects will not be the same. One will succumb to the poison, while one will resist.

Despite knowing that she'll be the one to receive the detrimental effects of the poison, Serim is willing to take the risk. She has finally found the person whom she wants to draw a portrait of.

Maybe... one day she'll find her own portrait beside his.

---

[A/N: Since most of you (if not all), suspect Serim... I'll say this. She does have a "hand" in Narae's "accident". That is all.]