"The shadow of darkness remains in the deep night
The moon is rising
Drawing out a light...
When dawn comes to find me"

Starry Night - MAMAMOO

Spice-O-Meter: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

✨

The dungeon door creaked shut with a rusty slam.

Why did I agree to this?

Setareh still faced outward, not wanting to see Jeongguk's reaction. No, she rather stare into the dark nothingness of the underground through gem crushed bars.

"So," His already arrogantly amused voice made her stiffen, "This was your plan to help me? Get thrown in yourself? I knew I could count on you."

Curse you Kim Taehyung. And my love-sick sister.

His laugh echoed around them as she let out a groan of frustration.

She whirled on him, her arms a crossed over her stupid, flimsy slip of a dress. Over dramatic if you ask me. His laughter quieted as he took in its thin fabric, the flesh that showed at her chest. Her enraged expression that never really stuck on such a soft face. He gulped as she stepped closer to him.

"What? It's not so funny anymore?" She paused, doing her best to remain intimidating. It was easier, when he sat in a corner on the floor.

She towered over him. Forcing him to look up at her with his rounded eyes.

The man looked up at her, slack jawed for a fee more seconds. He shook his head, his dark hair just as clean as it had been when he was first jailed. His white blouse a little unruly, but it looked like someone had artificially rolled it around in dirt. His face was clean, his feet covered. A plate of unfinished food sat by his side, a layer of blankets nestled in the other corner.

He took in her observatory glances, "Yes, I've been living like a King in here. I am quite alright with it. What I'm worried about, is you not being able to handle it, princess."

Setareh didn't bother correcting him. That she did not carry the same title as her sister, and that her family wasn't real royalty. Tenebris was much more strict on neighboring territories, and all governmental structures were prohibited.

Instead, she continued to remain insulted. Because if she did, she could put distance between them. And maybe, just maybe, she could survive being so close to him without doing something stupid.

"You know me quite well, I admit." She countered, settling down on the floor to the wall beside him. He quirked a pierced eyebrow, "But not well enough. This will be easy for me."

Jeongguk laughed one more time, shutting up after she kicked his leg.

"Can you at least tell me what happened?"

It didn't take long to explain her and his friend's various arguments. He couldn't help the smile from barging onto his face at that. She left out some details, like how Taehyung teased her about her feelings.

"He said that me being in here would help to quicken the process. No person has outed themselves yet, and I only have visions when I'm around you." Setareh said more quietly, avoiding his inspection.

"I hate when he's right." Agreed the noble. Though it said it with a fondness. Considering most knew the prince was never really wrong.

Except when it came to Leila, who always seemed to throw him off kilter. In the best and worse ways possible.

Setareh took in another breath, looking up to accidentally meet the man's eyes. Her heart sputtered pathetically.

They had only kissed once. Even after declaring their feelings, they had little time to act on them. Considering he'd been in this cell. They hadn't even had time to declare what they were to each other. After their kiss, she had fallen asleep on his bed. He had remained on the couch, not wanting to rush her.

And then she had that terrible, terrible vision.

Setareh wasn't really sure how to act. While she'd been with a couple men back home, she never really found herself in love. They were together for a couple nights, and then would wish each other well.

Jeongguk?

She watched his profile. His prominent nose, the sharp edge of his jaw. His soft breaths that seemed to keep her entirely bitten by the cold.

No, he wasn't hers for only a couple nights. And it frightened the living shit out of her. No matter how much she wanted him.

"Let's go to sleep. It was already late when I got here."

She eyed the cell awkwardly, again taking in the single "bed" in the corner. Jeongguk tracked her gaze, smirking.

"It's all yours."

"Don't you need it?"

"I'm an Immortui Setareh, we need sleep. Just much less than humans. I'm not tired, and you deserve it."

The young woman blushed, getting up and shuffling to the blankets. She settled under the several layers of goose filled blankets, the ground a little tough on her side, but she could manage.
Jeongguk shifted from his spot on the wall, moving further down so he sat by her feet.

They remained in comfortably silence for a few minutes. Setareh tried to quiet her breathing, not wanting to disturb his pensive disposition. She wondered if he was just as nervous and lost as she as for what to do about their feelings.

Forced proximity in a literal dungeon just exacerbated their hesitance.

"What is it like? Being an Immortui." Setareh asked, breaking the silence.

She had known about the legends of vampires when she was little. Azita had told her of the real creatures when she was sixteen. Savages, she would say. She recounted stories they were vicious, and cold-blooded. That they killed their young, and exiled their old. Blood lust turned them into predators, that would rip out the throat of any human that crossed their paths. They only enjoyed sex and parties and little else. And that Leila would be torn to pieces as soon as she arrived.

Funny, how Azita practically threw her body at the first "savage" she saw.

It had been one of the reasons she avoided Leila. Setareh had been prohibited to tell her divine sister about what she would have to face. The youngest sister couldn't look her in the eyes out of guilt.

Jeongguk sighed, his hand beginning to play with the bottom of the blanket she laid over her. Twisting the tassels at the bottom, weaving them through.

"It's not a sentence of forever, and I like that. We live our lives fully, because we know one day it will run out. Just, much later than humans. I am grateful that I get to experience abundance, because I have what many wish they could buy. Time."

Beautiful. It was a beautiful way to put it. And not as sad as other philosophers described immortality. He was not a simple mind, that is for sure. And he'd have years more to cultivate it.

She asked the next question slowly, not knowing if she was crossing a boundary, "What about the feeding? What-what is that like?"

His eyes met her own in the dim light, and her pulse quickened. She swore he glanced at her lips, but she couldn't be too sure.

"I don't want to frighten you."

"You won't."

Another thing that she liked about him, is that he took her word as the truth.

He started to explain in terms that a human might understand, "It's...euphoric," A broad smile spread across his face, "Imagine being the the desert for days without water. And then, you happen across the most decadent, clear, sparking spring. It is the one thing that can bring you satisfaction in that time of need."

Her stomach fluttered, "What does it taste like?"

She imagined warm, liquid iron entering her mouth. And promptly gagged.

Jeongguk laughed at her again, then quieted.
"It depends on the human. Some taste like utter shit. Vinegar tasting blood is the worst. The salt content is just too high," Another laugh escaped him, before his voice went deeper, "But some people taste like flowers. Like pastries. Sweet."

Oh deities. There was something wrong with her. Because him describing the taste of blood was making an ache form between her thighs. And it just shouldn't. Right?

"Have you killed a human before?" She asked, trying to ruin the mood for herself. Stumbling over the words as she did so.

Jeongguk gave no indication of noticing her conflict, "Yes. But not from feeding, I don't like to kill my meals. I did so out of self-defense."

"Do you dislike other Immortui that do?" Setareh had seen it here, a body drained until they were pale. Lifeless. Jeongguk had tried to shield her from it, but she still saw anyways.

The man lifted his chin, no judgement in his voice, "Do you judge birds for catching worms? Do you abhor wolves for hunting deer?"

Her answer was quick, the truth, "No."

"It is the same to me. I was born knowing us as the predator, and humans our prey. While I believe their lives our equal to ours, I also believe in the sanctity and fairness of the hunt. But, if my brethren are excessive in their killings, I do my best to have them tried and executed. There is no reason to kill for sport."

She understood him entirely. He didn't have to care about humans, and still he did. He explained it so simply, that there was little else to discuss. They had grown up knowing they had to catch their food, even if it spoke back. Even if they had hopes and dreams. Who is to say that humans who cut the heads off of bucks and mounted them to walls were any less cruel? It was a way of life.

A way of life that without her sister's title, could've killed her.

But somehow the thought of sharp, white fangs near her throat didn't scare her at all. No.

Staring at Jeongguk, watching all the shadows carve his face, made her think of other things. Like him gently pushing her head to the side. Kissing up the length of her vein. Scraping up the column of her throat with his teeth.

The silence had continued for too long. The noble had noticed. His head was cocked to the side in question, his hand paused by her feet as she shifted below the blanket. It was stifling now when it had once been cold. She lifted the material from her shoulders, pacing herself. Even as her heart throbbed uncomfortably in her esophagus, she asked the question she could no longer hold back.

"What does it feel like?"

Jeongguk rushed, much too quickly, to explain, "Well, you find the vein by-"

She swallowed harshly, "No, what does it feel like to be bitten?"

It went deathly quiet. She could hear every drip of moisture in far away cells. Every breath the male beside her did not take. He had pulled away his hand from her blanket like it was made of fire.

Oh no. She had insulted him.

"Jeongguk?" She whispered anxiously, shifting. Hoping she didn't hurt his feelings.

The man let out a shaky breath, the corner of his mouth tilted, "You really want to know?"

Setareh nodded, knowing he could see better in the dark than she could.

His voice was liquid when he spoke again, "It hurts at first when the fangs enter you. And then it feels," He paused, taking in her bare shoulders, how her chest began to rise and fall at a quicker pace due to his voice alone, "Like an ascent. A cresting wave of pleasure that knows no bound, nor end." The man placed his hand back on the blanket, higher up. Closer to her knee. And she melted, feeling every word as he described his bite, "You continue to rise, until you fall. Over, and over again. Slowly undone." Jeongguk was no longer unaffected, his words coming out through short intakes, "I know you'd taste the sweetest Setareh."

The young woman gasped, the sound shamefully loud.

He pulled his hand away, turning from her. No, no no no. Her body was so deliciously hot. Her heart rioting from his distance.

"I apologize. I didn't mean to say that aloud. That was-" He stammered, and she could hear him run his hands through his hair. Over his handsome face, "Ill-mannered of me."

Ill mannered? She wanted more of it, even so.

But he said nothing else of wanting to taste her. And she was losing her nerve as some of the heat died down. Did he not want to try? Did he not feel the same level of desire?

"It is alright. Goodnight Jeongguk." She said, turning on her side.

Knowing that if she didn't, she would have pounced on him like the wolf he had thought her to judge.

"Goodnight, Setareh." He said, voice satin in the dark as he remained her vigil.

And she fell asleep, her hand resting on the subtle hills of her veins.

How the hell were we going to survive this?

✨✨✨

Time did not exist in their little cage.

In there time together, neither did fear.

She learned everything there was to know about the man. What temperature he liked his blood, what wines he preferred.

What grief he felt after his mother's death. How Yoongi, had managed to revive him as they ruled in province that was nestled within the mountains.

"You'd love it," He said, smiling, "Well, I think you would. It's not warm like your home, or gloomy like it is here. It's just beautiful. Our tower has the shiniest of bells, that it reflects the moon onto the entire settlement. There's mountains, and a manor that shines with endless rubies."

"It sounds wonderful."

"I can take you there, after." He promised, eyeing her carefully. She smiled back at him, but she wasn't sure if he wanted more.

She told him of her life before. Of her mother and father, of her sister.

"Is it bad? That I used to accept their love blindly, even when I saw my sister ostracized?" The guilt pained her now. And she wondered how she could've ever lived with herself before.

Being in the darkness with someone she trusted allowed herself to ask the very real question she had been afraid to voice aloud; was she irredeemable?

"I don't think I would have been able to answer you before," Jeongguk had answered, his back flat on the floor as he spoke to her. His dark eyes met hers with a sorrow she understood, "My mother was partially responsible for killing the King, the person who kept us strong. Had desecrated the love and friendship between her and Sorina, ruining the line of decency my grandmother Clarisse had started. She stabbed people she loved in the back, and at someone's behest who lacked a soul." Jeongguk sighed, "And still, I loved her. I cannot take it back that I loved my mother. The same woman who killed a man before his lover, had cared for me so deeply. The bad memories do not erase the good, no matter how much you wish they could."

Because maybe then it would hurt less.

He didn't have to say it out loud. Setareh knew. The same mother who had rocked her to sleep, who called for her fondly, looked at Leila as if she were a stranger. Civil, polite. Proud, but not due to Leila herself, but for what she could offer. A father who had let her run around the kitchen as he cooked her favorite dish, had made no effort to know Leila past her name.

Azita. Her stomach revolted, as she curled up on herself. Her sister was the hardest to recognize with. Her sister had been everything. The person she stayed up with, laughing when they should've been asleep. And she was so fierce, protective of Setareh her entire life. Like she was born with the body of a human, but the soul of a wolf.

She had been vile to Leila, not just indifferent. But hateful.

And Setareh had been so afraid of losing her approval, her love she had been complacent.

Except one time.

When Farhad, another boy in the village had been executed.

Setareh had let go of all prejudice for Leila, all the lies that she was inhuman. She saw her eyes as that boy burned because he dared to defy fate. Because he dared touch her.

She saw remorse in her elder sister's eyes, even though her expression could be deemed blank by any passer by.

"I feel sorry for her."

The words sat between them, still. Azita had stalled while braiding her hair for their schooling the next day. As she always did at the beginning of every week.

She smiled easily, shaking her head as she always did when Setareh offered others kindness.

"She wouldn't have broken the rules if she cared. She knew what would happen to that boy if anyone found out."

"He deserved to die for a kiss? And she deserved to watch him burn?" She said it with her head tilted down. She had never talked back to her sister, and she did not want to see the disappointment in her coal black eyes.

'Leila is a witch'

'She isn't human'

'She is just a sacrifice'

But Setareh started to wonder, even if all Azita said about Leila was true, why would any of that justify her ill-treatment? They treated Elder Fareena with respect, a witch in all but her name. They prayed for the animals that were slaughtered at every full moon.

What made Leila below even the earth?

"Relax Setareh, she's a witch. And he's cursed for touching her. You didn't see what I saw that day, she had her dirty hands all over-"  Azita started, seething as she laughed. Her gentle tugs in her long black hair started to hurt. But that didn't matter.

The youngest sister pulled away, her voice quiet with her accusation. She needed to see her sister's face.

"You did it. You told them."

She waited for at least her to pretend. To deny it. But she did not even care enough to hide her own atrocities. She shrugged, her face impassive. As if they were simply talking about the weather.

"And if I did?"

"Do you not care? That someone is dead because of you! That a boy you liked ever since we were-"

The hit across her face was not unexpected. Still, it burned like a thousand grains of sand.

"Look at me! Look at me." Azita's dark eyes were unfeeling as she grabbed onto her younger sister's shoulders, "Leila killed him the moment she kissed him. I did nothing, except my duty to our world. To our home. To our life."  Her gaze narrowed, her voice cold, "If you tell her, I will have to do my duty once more."

The threat held her tongue for years.

Setareh told Jeongguk this story too. She waited, for the look of disgust. To be told she was just as terrible, for never standing up to her sister. The true

He told her she had been as brave as she could've been. That she proved herself again, when she gave Leila the first part of the curse.

"You were exiled from everything you knew because you helped Leila when she truly needed it. You rebelled despite the fear. You didn't do it for Leila to forgive you, you did it because you knew it was the right thing to do."

Setareh wished she was better with her words. Jeongguk was so eloquent. It would embarrass her to even try to articulate that she was lucky he saw the best in her. She rarely saw it in herself.

While loved, she was forgotten. Not bold like Azita, not powerful like Leila. Born to be admired, not useful.

But here, she had found herself. Slowly.

Soon enough, three days had passed in the cell. Being with him felt like she had the entire world at her fingertips. Their kind had an amazing memory, due to their elders and their records. Officials never dared confiscate from them.

In their time Setareh learned of the Romans, of empires. Of princesses, kings, and medicine. He told her of their country, and what it used to be like, their traditions and their culture.

She was enthralled with his every word, the way his lips formed stories. As if they swirled past his tongue, and kissed past the metal hoop on his bottom lip.

Ever since their conversation of what biting would be like, the man kept a healthy distance from her. She slept in the makeshift bed every night, while he sat at her feet. Watching her. Hoping that she would happen upon a vision when she went to sleep, or while she was awake talking to him. There was never a rhyme or reason, she just knew the images came when they wished.

He was acting as her friend. And while she appreciated every minute, she still wished for more. She wished for his dark eyes to drink her in as he had the first night. His hands to venture further than where he dared before.

He was too much of a gentleman. And she was too shy to initiate.

Tonight, I will try to get his attention once again to stray from propriety.

Setareh stared at him from her side of the cell, how he purposefully looked away. Every time she found herself insecure, she remembered Leila's advice. Sometimes when men look away, it's because they want you too much. At least, she hoped. But she also believed the man to be fearful, cautious with her.

It wasn't necessary.

She wasn't scared, she never could be of him. He had only ever protected her.

"How many women have you been with Jeongguk?" She asked, playing with the fringe of her night gown. It was no longer them playing pretend, as dirt covered her in a thin layer.

The man coughed, and she tried not to laugh. His profile was stark against the black stone walls, candle light illuminating his sheepish expression. She watched his throat bob as he swallowed, and she hated that she enjoyed the view so much, "A small number. Maybe three? I do not remember them well. Usually women who passed by our province would visit the manor and I-" He trailed off, his square teeth showing as he laughed awkwardly.

"I've had many men in my village."

"Oh?" Jeongguk's voice went up high, higher than she ever heard it. He shifted in the low lighting, as she tried to gauge his reaction. He didn't sound annoyed...just intrigued, "Anyone you particularly liked?"

She waited a few seconds.

"Setareh."

Now he sounded mad.

Setareh could not hide her giggle, "No. Gods no. I was just trying to remember. Most were handsome, but boring. Unskilled." She sighed, "I would have to tell them where to put their hands. It was awful actually, never passion filled. Just awkward fumbling in the pursuit of feigned pleasure. Boys, not men."

He said nothing, his hands fisting beside him. She could feel his eyes on her, though she pretended not to notice.

Their conversation ended early, as they heard several sets of footsteps approach. She turned, to find several servants carrying a tub. One opened the cell, as the others carried in the porcelain setting it on the ground between the pair.

Oh, deities.

A prayer had been answered.

A brunette male bowed, "A bath sent by Leila. She said to use it wisely, since it will only be filled once."

Leila. Setareh gritted her teeth, her cheeks burning. She didn't even want to look at Jeongguk. The servants filled the tub with hot buckets of water, taken from the pipes in the far corner of the room. The pair sat in silence as they worked quickly.

And soon enough, they were alone.

Setareh lifted her gaze to already find the man staring back. Her heart fluttered, as he stared through his lashes. Tension thick and blanketed, as she took in all the veins in his neck. The stillness of her other worldly body. How tightly he kept his hands sealed to the floor. All of the emotions they had denied for days, brought back to the surface.

They continued to stare over the lip of the bath. Neither sure if they would scare the other off.

"You first." The man murmured, his voice husky.

Her stomach rolled with delight, her heart somewhere in her throat. She almost refused, but looked down at the dirt on her skin, while he looked as prim as ever. Were the Immortui impervious to getting dirty too?

He licked his lips as she stood.

I hope not in the ways that matter.

"Um, can you turn around?" She asked, suddenly feeling bashful. What if she was not what he was used to?

All of them were so beautiful. Even the beings she didn't like. Suddenly those three women felt like a thousand in comparison to her.

The man just smiled, eyes glittering mischievously, "Yes Setareh."

As soon as his back was to her, she slipped off the dress. Placing it carefully on the bed she used. Her heart raced with nerves as she stepped into the warm water. She couldn't help but let out a small sound of satisfaction as the liquid wrapped around her skin. One of the servants had slipped in an oil that reminded her faintly of pomegranate.

Another gift from Leila.

"You can turn back around if you want. It will be awkward to speak with you facing the other way." She suggested innocently.

He did so without another word.

Their eyes locked again, and she swore she couldn't breathe.

"Setareh?" He said her voice softly, a whisper.

A question.

His eyes did not stray below the end of her chin. But it was clear he was fighting it. She was tired of fighting whatever was between them.

"Come here. They left scraps for towels, and I won't be able to reach my back."

The man's eyes somehow brightened further, two stars in the night. He crept closer, the tension boiling even as he made it to the lip. She turned herself away from him, knowing he could hear the frantic song of her heart. There was no way to hide it.

He did not bother hiding the quickness of his breath, as he picked up the rag from the side of the tub. She pulled all of her straight, black hair to the front of body so her neck and back were open. He dipped the rag, squeezing it slowly, before placing the gentle warmth on her back.

She had to keep herself from gasping, that single touch better than any other she had ever felt. And he was just washing her. The water dribbled down sensually as he situated himself onto his knees for her. She could feel his breath graze her skin, and she became littered with goosebumps.

"Sorry," He said. For making her cold. It came out breathless.

She lifted her arm, placing it on the side of the tub, "My arm too please. I am so sore from sleeping on that shitty bed."

The man chuckled, but did not protest. He knew what game she was playing, and he was a willing participant.

He swiped the water over her arm, and it felt heavenly. All the way to the olive toned veins at her wrist, where he paused and worked much more slowly. It did things to her body that kisses from other men could not.

"Pomegranate." He said aloud, his voice deeper. More inviting.

"The soap?" She asked, turning her head.

He inhaled, his bottom lip captive by his teeth, "No, your blood."

She strained her head more, needing to see his expression. His dark eyes were clouded by heavy lids, his mouth swollen. She wanted to conquer his lips once more. Moisture from the bath turned his skin dewy and flushed. His beauty only magnified by the metal jewelry that adorned his face. His shirt was unbuttoned at the top, his strong chest showing from underneath. A tempting sight, as he wore a cross necklace that dangled and disappeared.

"You can try it, if you like," She offered coyly, though she was unsure if she could disguise the desire in her tone, "I've been told I taste sweet before."

The man groaned, and all pretenses fell away between them. Water splashed as he grabbed onto her wrist, running his nose along her veins. The metal on his lips cold against her heated skin and fuck. She wasn't sure she could handle him.

Jeongguk eyed her, watching her reaction as he let his fangs grow. Making sure she was set in her decision, even despite his obvious want of her.

She nodded, barely able to move as her whole body ached for some sort of release.

The man groaned again, lifting her limb to his appraising mouth. His tongue graced upon the fragile skin of her wrist first. She could feel its gentle pry, it's commitment to memory as he gripped from the other side.

She barely felt the sharpness of his teeth enter her skin. And then, his eyes closed in ecstasy as he engulfed her essence.

He held onto her tighter, though his most was so gentle. Setareh could not hold back her noises if pleasure as the bite settled in. Like his fangs had become new modes of climax, like if he withdrew even the feeling of him taking his teeth out would send her over the edge.

His earlier description had revealed nothing of how truly good it felt. The water escaped around her as she mewled his name relentlessly, her free hand finding a way into his hair. Pressing him closer.

He released her veins too quickly.

"Don't you need more?" She asked, her chest heaving. If he had kept going, she would have met her end without him even touching her.

Blood coated his lips as he looked up at her with sheer lust. His lips diligent and lethargic against her skin even as he answered, "That was for you. Not for me."

The man continued his ascent, kissing all the way up to her shoulder. His mouth glorious, hot, over and over. The light scrape of teeth and molten tongue became desperate kisses as he reached her collar bone. His mouth taking in every bit of her he could.

"Can I touch you?"

I thought you would never ask.

"Please, Jeongguk. I need you."

The man sucked along her jaw, biting and nipping as he drew his hand into the water. Not caring about wetting his clothes as he found her slick thighs.

"You're so soft Setareh." He admitted, and her center nearly succumbed, "So soft."

He locked eyes with her as he moved down her chest, taking her peaked breast into his mouth. She arched into him, and his grip only grew with fervor.

His callused hands still only drew circles at her inner thigh, not touching her where she needed him most.

She tried to find the words as her mind grew more dazed with him. His scent, his touch, his words.

"You-um, you have to go a little-"

The man tsked, shushing her. He lifted his mouth from her chest, licking along her bones. Her jaw. Her cheek.

Sucking on the shell of her ear. She gasped out a pathetic moan, as he moved up her thigh. One tiny degree of separation.

"You don't have to tell me where to put my hands," He crooned, kissing just below her ear. Smiling arrogantly as he boasted, "I already know."

He proved it. Several times that night.

Setareh slept better than she ever had, with Jeogguk cradling her gently into his side.

Maybe, just maybe.

I am redeemable.

✨✨✨

"Let me out! For fucks sake, let me out!"

Setareh screamed at the top of her lungs, not caring as the palms of her hands were bitten. Red blood pooling and dripping down the black, gem encrusted bars. She did not care if they became scraps. Her voice was wild, frayed by the last vestiges of a nightmare.

A vision.

She had seen Leila, sipping on a porcelain tea cup. Then, subsequently falling to the floor. Silver leaking from her mouth and eyes as she stared, gone into nothingness. No one was there to help her. She did not see who had hurt her.

She saw the prince, bound by rope. Eyes closed. Unable to help.

No, Setareh would not let her sister die. Not now. She begged with her entire heart that what happened had not yet occurred.

She continued to pull, crying. Not caring as Jeongguk called for her, trying to gently pry her hands from their battle.

"Setareh! Setareh stop, you're hurting yourself."

He was successful at wrangling in her desperate limbs. Her cries filling the space between them, as he held onto her. Pulling her back to his chest, trying to coo her into a semblance of calm. But she could not find it.

"You don't understand Jeongguk, someone is going to kill Leila. I saw it, I saw her dead. And no one will be able to prevent it if we don't go tell them!"

"Taehyung would never let harm come to her."

"He was incapacitated. Alive, but asleep."

He slowly let her go, and she turned. Watching the realization settle on his defined face.

"Shit," He grabbed at his hair, tongue messing with the metal at his lip, "Shit! No one is scheduled to be down here until the morning to bring you a meal."

That was the truth.

No one would come to get them out. Not until it was possibly too late.

He had come to the same conclusion as she. A woman who had decimated an entire court of magic beings had not been able to break out herself. The bars made of gemstone were impossible for Jeongguk to warp, considering their lack of metal. Designed to keep their prisoners in, forever.

A cry welled within her body, her vision blurring with tears. Her voice muddied as she spoke, "We can't give up. We can't let her go, I just can't."

The man stepped forward, grabbing her shoulders with care, "We won't give up." Setareh lifted her head to look at him, surprised to find that his eyes with tinged with comparable sadness. "What? Just because I threatened to kill her once doesn't mean I don't care about her now. I know what it is like to lose family."

Setareh tried to smile. She failed miserably, and fastened herself around his torso. He held onto her, smoothing her hair as she sobbed into his arms.

"What can we do? How can we possibly get out? Or at least tell someone."

Jeongguk shook his head, "There was a way before you arrived. An amplifier, but a servant came and removed it."

"Why?" Setareh started, before Jeongguk fixed her with a look. Her cheeks reddened with bashful understanding, "Oh. That must have been Leila's idea. Who would have known it could be the reason she-"

The words would not come.

"Let's think, okay? There has to be a way out."

It was time for her to stare at him warily, "Sorina could not. We cannot."

Jeongguk let go of her shoulders, full of contemplation, "Are we sure? From knowing the King, I am sure he would have put a loophole in place. In case something happened to him, Sorina could escape by herself. I doubt he even told her, so that if her mind was invaded by the Queen, she would not know. But it would be something she could figure out in a moment of survival."

Her body filled with hope, "You could be right. Think!"

He had to be right. Leila's life depended on it.

Setareh's hands shook, her thoughts spiraling as they both paced through the cell. It had never seemed smaller. The day before, she had never wanted to leave. And now, now she needed nothing more.

Think, Setareh. Think.

Minutes went by. Minutes that Leila could've received whatever poison was in the cup. Another scream of torment bubbled in her throat. She ran her fingers over the open wounds of her palms, punishing herself for failing to come up with a plan. Leila would've known what to do. A sad smile pushed onto her face. She always knew what to do.

She stopped. "What?" Jeongguk called out to her, stepping closer to be by her side.

"Leila. What would Leila do to get out of here?" Setareh asked, walking away from the man to go crouch by the bars. Her red blood still pooled at the bottom of their cage. As she stared, Jeonggul followed to where she was again. Lowering to the ground and sitting beside her quietly.

"Did you see how they opened the cell for you to get in here?" He asked, breaking the silence. Setareh nodded, but he still explained, "Blood magic. One has to cut their blood and stamp it onto the needle. It is how all locked doors and rooms are opened in the castle. Anyone can open these cells."

Holy fuck.

Setareh grabbed onto Jeongguk's arm, not caring as blood smeared across it. His nostrils flared as she spoke, "Water. Mah, or Lunaith as you call to him."

"Yes?" The man questioned her barely formed sentences.

A frantic smile graced across her face, "Leila can control the ocean. Specifically, water with salt content." The man's eyed widened, and she forgot that her sister had kept that from most of the nobles, "What?" She rolled her eyes, "It doesn't matter right now, I will explain later. We descend from Lunaith, the deity of the moon. The moon controls the tide." She grew more excited as she spoke, "There is salt in blood."

Jeongguk continued to reel as Setareh pushed him to the side. She could not spare any more time to get him to understand. She'd just have to show him.

She lifted her hand and swiped her already cut palms on a particularly jagged piece of gem. Jeongguk protested, but she ignored his pleas. She looked out onto the floor, finding that one stone that was a little too wobbly to be set into the ground.

Mah, I know I am not the chosen one in our family.

She closed her eyes, nausea and fear stealing her edge.

But I need to save Leila. I need the power to save your blessed moonchild.

Setareh felt crazy, as she moved her arm through the bars. Shredding more of her arm. Jeongguk turned, unable to look. Not because of the blood, but because she continued to hurt herself and he could not stop it. But she did not even register the pain.

She had only ever prayed to the gods once before. Offering salt water to Mah, the day Leila had left their little village.

I will promise to keep her safe. She begged, more tears falling down her face, please.

She first felt a tug on her hand. Then a sensation of seeping, tenfold. Her eyes sprung open, and she watched in awe as her blood was suspended in the air.

This was not of her own ability, her own volition. She was being helped. Chills cascaded over her body.

"Do you see this?" She asked, barely breathing.

Jeongguk moved closer to the bars. His eyes widened in shock. "O binecuvântare," he whispered. Words from a language she did not recognize. He must have been really amazed if he wasn't speaking Tenebrian.

The blood shifted through the air, only arching when it reached that single flimsy block on the floor. And then fell with a bloody splash. It seeped into the cracks, and for a moment the world stilled.

And the cell door began to move.

Setareh pulled back her arm, winching at the new scratches that formed. Jeongguk helped her up, holding her to his chest. Eyes dark and determined as he realized he would have to get her to safety without running into hungry distractions.

And quickly. She held onto him firmly, newly determined.

Mah, give me the strength to keep my sister alive.

"We need to go."

They ran. As quickly as they could.

Leila's room was hell, it was everything. Setareh screamed her name, placing her blood on the chamber lock. She shook at the metal latch wildly, an animal as she attempted to claw her way to her sister.

Jeongguk tried the same. His face turning green as neither could make it through. It meant that whoever wished her harm was in there. And had been thorough enough to charm the door and keep everyone else out.

"Leila! I am here, I am here." Setareh yelled, her face burning red with rage, "I will kill you if you hurt her!"

At least here my voice.

I hope she knows I did not abandon her. That I am here now.

Jeongguk breathed heavily, thinking of who else could be useful if the prince was poisoned as well. His eyes lit with recognition, as Setareh continued to pound on the iron door.

"Aera."

It was their only option, considering she was the only other person gifted with the power of healing.

She did not remember the journey to Aera's dark, secluded quarters. She had only been once before, to convince the woman to come to the ball. Only to be met with a slammed door, and an annoyed groan.

She couldn't think of that now.

All that filled her mind was silver. Silver eyes. Silver blood. Silver memories. Silver regret.

Jeongguk took little time to prick his finger on the needle outside of her door. The woman behind it had no restrictions to who could enter. Confidence in her abilities? Knowing that most wouldn't dare to cross the line? Setareh could see both options proving true.

The door opened with an iron scrape, revealing an emerald fantasy. Jewels, metal, and velvet erupting from every corner.

And a dormant beauty, her dark hair falling over a black oak desk, and covering her pale face.

Sleeping? At a time like this?

Jeongguk decided to brave the slumbering beast, as Setareh rung her wounded hands together. Breathing through the frustration, trying to find the strength to explain. She watched the black adorned woman shake under Jeongguk's hand, her head falling forward. A single glass of wine by her head, which she slowly lifted.

Jade met terrified amber.

"What? What?! Oh." The disturbed woman asked as sat up fully, yawning. Have I ever seen a being of their kind yawn? "Little Anvari? Noble Grumpy? To what do I owe you escapees the pleasure?"

Setareh swallowed, looking to Jeongguk to answer. Aera was...frightening to say the least. She wasn't sure she'd be able to get the words out when that pale green was trained on her. Not at a time like this where every minute mattered.

Please be alive Leila. Please.

"Aera, Leila has been poisoned as well as the King. We can't get into Leila's room to see. We need to wake him, he might be able to undo the blood magic that was performed."

A lump filled in Setareh's throat. Shit. She hadn't thought about the fact Taehyung was the only one skilled enough to undo the enchantment.

So who made it in the first place? Chills ran down her spine.

"What do you mean? I've been watching-" No she had been sleeping. Aera eyed the goblet of wine that was only a quarter empty at the front of her desk. Setareh came to the startling conclusion as the other woman did. Aera's mouth pressed into a line, recognizing that something had been slipped into her wine, "Oh shit." She stood from her desk, grabbing a bone colored knife from a drawer, "Take me to him."

They had little time to explain more, so off they went. Setareh was still shaking with fear, but she couldn't help but be relieved that Aera had not drank enough of the unknown poison to truly disarm her.

Luckily, Jeongguk's blood had been enough to reach Taehyung.

Though, they were horrified to find Setareh's vision proven true.

The man was in the same position as Aera. His hand clasped around a golden goblet, his eyes closed. His dark clothing loose on his body.

She was afraid to move into the room. Jeongguk grabbed her hand, and she squeezed him gently.

"He is alright." Setareh promised confidently, though it did little to comfort the man. His round eyes took in his form painfully, also not daring to move.

Aera brushed past both of them, lifting up the golden cup. Facing them, as she scented the contents. Her darkly angelic face contorted.

"Huh...it smells like hemlock. But that wouldn't be enough to put an Immortui of his stature down. There's definitely some magic involved in this." Her jade eyes were sharp as they glanced around the room, at the unmoving prince, "Who collects flowers in the garden at ungodly times? Who moves around the castle like a skittish little mouse?" Aera lifted her cruel gaze, making Setareh surrender a step back, "Who knows a useless amount of information about plants?"

Setareh gasped out a name, "Lily." Fuck.

Could she have done this?

Deities sake, her breathing sped up. She had brought to Leila her suspicions. Had still dined and laughed with the women. I am going to be sick. She fell to her knees, hating every minute she hadn't done enough.

But it couldn't have been her acting alone.

"Jeongguk, you can fetch her right? Ask as if everything is normal and lure as close as you can get to his rooms. If she starts to struggle, do what is best." Aera ordered him as if she'd done so a million times. She turned to Setareh, "You stay here. You're too hysterical," And much softer, "Understandably so. But we can handle this. Okay? If I am right about my suspicions, we have time. Our enemy has a flair for the dramatic."

Jeongguk fled the room, leaving the two women. And it's wasn't uncomfortable, despite their lack of closeness and Setareh's rotting sanity. Aera just preferred her own company most of the time. Setareh couldn't focus much on whether she was liked or not. All she could think about was her sister. Of all the ways she had failed her.

I knew something wasn't right.

She thought of her visions, of the lack of either of the twins in them. Like they had always been hiding from the truth. A sea dyed the color of wine, and it's obscurity had been screaming about poison. About blood.

Aera kept herself busy, lifting the prince's hand and letting it flop back on the table. She held her hand in front of his nose, checking to see if he was breathing.

Setareh paced the dark blue quarters, shivering. Completely unraveling. "What if she's gone?"

"She's not." Answered Aera coolly, looking entirely unconcerned at the state of the prince.

"It's Jimin as well as Lily, isn't it?"

This made Aera pause. She looked up from her task, her expression suddenly remorseful.

"Yes."

It makes everything worse. Because Setareh had been close enough to see the lack of feeling in his eyes. Had known his apology to her and Leila to be false. But she felt crazy for thinking it, knowing deep down he had been right for hating Setareh.

"I was horrible to her for years, Aera. Years. I treated my own sister like an animal. Like some soulless deity." Setareh started to sob, "She doesn't even realize that she's the best of us. And I didn't get to tell her that. I've been given a blessing to know her now, but it is not enough." She stood up, grabbing Aera's cold wrist, "Please, please don't let her die."

The black haired woman didn't push Setareh away. Did not offer a witty quip.

She sighed, placing her hand over Setareh's, "I was pretty damn horrible to her when she arrived. Leila had no reason to forgive me. I'm still confused why she even likes me. But I am sure the same woman who gave a bitch like me another chance, holds no resentment towards her loving sister," She smiled softly, then grew serious. A stubborn will forming in her eyes that was not only for the sake of Setareh, "She will live if I have anything to do with it."

Jeongguk barged in, cutting off their conversation. Lily trailing in behind him, her linen dress clinging to her thinning body like rain. Her eyes were deep in their sockets, purple lining the flesh. She looked horrible.

Was it the guilt eating away at her?

Her mouth fell open in horror, taking in the sight of the prince. She went somehow paler than she had been. Her hands shaking.

"Oh, oh my god."

Setareh felt herself choking on her anger towards her. A person who had played as their friend, just to turn on them. She puts on a convincing act.

Aera started to clap, moving towards the center of the room. Closer to their unsuspecting catch.

Jeongguk closed the door. Locking it. Lily glanced through her tears, taking time to look at each person. When Lily looked at Setareh, she glared back.

It was then the young woman realized what was happening.

"No." She whispered, "No, no! I did not do this! I swear-"

Aera smiled. Setareh flinched at the malice behind it's razorblade sharpness. She would've felt bad for Lily, if she wasn't a snake.

"Lily, you tell a lie, I will break a single bone. I start with the smallest and work my way up. So," Her teeth were blunted, but they looked more menacing than fangs, "How do we wake up the prince? He's been poisoned with hemlock."

Lily continued to cry, as heaves wracked her body. But still, she sputtered out a response, "It wears off eventually, if done with blood magic."

"We don't have time."

Her lips trembled, her cries quieting. She was hiding something. Everyone knew. And yet, Aera made no mention of the reason for their urgency.

Aera stepped in closer, "Your femur?" She clicked her tongue, feigning regret, "Or your skull?"

"Water mixed with the blood of an immediate relative will revive him." Lily blurted out, making everyone in the room seize.

Aera bared her teeth, "Is this some sort of jest? I wouldn't have called you here to reveal something I already know! The prince has no living family. And Jeongguk is a cousin, but he's not close enough."

The room remained silent. And Lily just lifted her disparaged head slowly. Her brown eyes almost made a pale blue by her tears.

It occurred to Setareh first. Enlightened Jeongguk second, as the woman looked to him with shock.

It was Aera, who said what they were all thinking outloud, "What the fuck?"

Yet, none of the three companions stopped her as she wiped away her tears.

Silent as she grabbed the poisoned mug. Walked to the bathroom, and ran the water. She returned, placing it by the prince's slumbering form.

Then, she grabbed a pin from her pocket. Murmuring an incantation. And then pricked her finger.

And while Setareh understood, her body still jolted at the blue blood that seeped from the wound. Turning the water into a midnight sky with only a few drops.

Lily stepped back, despondent, "This will do."

"Oh it will have to," Jeongguk said angrily, "considering you're his fucking sister?"

Setareh couldn't breathe. But somehow, she laughed. Laughed and laughed and laughed until her stomach ached.

"How are we all such idiots?"

Aera grabbed the concoction from Lily, lifting an angled brow.

"Well, little Anvari has finally lost it. You, open your brother's mouth." Aera couldn't hold her tongue any longer, "And just so we're specifying, not the annoying and murderous one."

Lily offered no quip back, looking ghostly as she lifted Taehyung's head to the side. Gently prying down his chin so Aera could pour in the mixture.

"How do we get into Leila's room?" Jeongguk asked, as they worked on the prince.

Lily didn't look up. She knew all was lost for her anyways. "The blood of a relative-"

"Gods, we get it." Aera interrupted, cutting her off. "That's how Jimin got past the prince's blood wards. No one was supposed to get into that room tonight, even if they had been previously allowed before."

"We need to go now." Setareh insisted, her whole body shaking with trepidation. Please be alive.

"We can't until he's awake." Aera answered.

Setareh groaned, pointing to the door, "But Lily's blood-"

The other woman held up her hand, stopping her, "Can only be used for one undoing at a time. Taehyung is their only other relative close enough to do it." Revealing she knew much more about healing than any of them ever would, "And while we wait for him to revive..." She lifted her venom filled eyes towards the ever-fading twin, "You are going to tell us everything."

All they could do was wait.

And listen, as Lily revealed all that she was willing. Not once offering a defense for her actions. They wouldn't have believed her anyways.

They would have kept listening, if a growl had not garnered their attention from the corner. Something inhuman. Something so filled with wrath, it could no longer be the prince she had been brave enough to quarrel with.

"Where the fuck is Leila?"

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(A/n:) I love this chapter because it's more lighthearted than the last :)

But it also gives a lot of information! It wasn't necessary, but I kind of thought it would be cool to give some backstory as to wtf happened in the last chapter. And, as always, there is still more to reveal.

JK AND SETAREH 😍😍😍 they're so sweet. But also like damn chemistry lol, they're fictional but I can feel it.

So to plainly put it -> Setareh saved the day!!

And Aera served CUNT!!!! She left no crumbs.

On the next episode of solace...

Why was Taehyung at the castle? 😏 Why was Aera not surprised? 😏