Seokjin slept peacefully in the palanquin, murmuring as the soft rain outside and the warmth of the blanket that covered his motionless figure lulled him and kept him in a state of tranquility and comfort. He was rocked back and forth by the movement of the palanquin -- the bearers had woken up early to eat and ready themselves quickly so they could cover more ground. Time was of the essence on this trip, and the trio of aristocrats needed to see that Seonbi's family was safe and sound.

Seonbi couldn't catch a wink of sleep. Her heart was too full of worry; she had no time to sleep. All she could really do was stare off at the rather beautiful scenery of forests and mountains, detailed with iridescent spots of rain as if it were all just a blank wall, painted grey like the clouds of her imagination. A hand slowly reached behind her line of vision and ran itself over her shoulder, finally snapping her out of her trance.

"Seonbi-ah," her promised one whispered, his voice gently opening the door to her heart.

She welcomed him dearly, silently laying herself against his chest and sighing in some sort of final relief.

Knowing that she was awake with worry upon glancing at the weariness in her eyes, the puff in her cheeks, and the tearstains on her face, he pulled her closer to him and caressed her slowly, letting the patter of the rain mark the rippling silence around them.

"Sleep, love. You're tired."

Seonbi could barely argue. She knew he was right, and was too weighed down by fatigue to protest. Laying herself on his lap, she closed her eyes and gave in to a deep slumber.

Taehyung carefully picked Seonbi up and laid her on the soft carpet in the palanquin. Laying next to her, he covered them both in a blanket and drifted off into his wonderland.

"Your Majesty," the noble said, bowing before Namjoon.

A scoff echoed throughout the grand hall as Namjoon relaxed his seated posture. Fidgeting with the hem of his sleeve, he refused to look at the northern lord.

"The same one who betrays me calls me Majesty..." he mumbled, still loud enough for Seokjin to hear.

The man gasped, looking up at Namjoon to see for himself if he was really serious. This wasn't him. This couldn't be him. Was this some sort of elaborate joke? Could this truly be the Namjoon he came to love?

"Kim Seokjin...if you value your honor and your life, you will step down from your position as First Lord of the North and leave here immediately. I no longer wish to see you."

Tears streamed down the noble's face. "P-Please...Your Grace...tell me it isn't true..."

Namjoon closed his eyes and balled his hand into a fist. "Leave, Seokjin. Now."

"...I had hoped...we were worth fighting for...that I wouldn't be thrown away..." Seokjin croaked, barely able to contain his tears. "But...I guess I'm nothing but broken stone to you."

He stood, turned on his heel, and left the palace, running off to the forest.

Stopping at the lake, he sat right on the edge of the water. He remembered sitting there while holding Rinji in the last moments of her life. He remembered crying over her body and begging for it all to be a dream -- begging to wake up screaming and thrashing around, like it was all a horrible nightmare. It was all too real, too painful.

He reached down into the river and pulled out the arrow that first wove its way through the air and into Rinji's heart. No one would cry over his body, no one would attempt to save him, and he knew it.

It was better that way.

Pointing the arrow towards his chest, he took his last deep breath, before thrusting it towards his heart.

Blood spattered.

Time stopped.

The world grew dark, then lightened again.

"Seokjin-hyung!"

"Seokjin-hyung!"

The first lord awoke with a jolt, panting hard as his hand reached up to his chest to steady his heart -- and to secretly make sure there was no stab wound or blood gushing from it.

"Hyung, are you okay?" Taehyung asked, placing a hand on his back to help console him. Seokjin nodded, taking deep breaths.

"I'm alright, Taehyung," he panted. "Just a horrible nightmare."

Nodding, he offered the elder a handkerchief and some water. Smiling in gratitude, Seokjin took the cloth and wiped the beads of perspiration from his face, then sipped the water slowly.

"Don't worry, hyung. Whatever happened isn't real. Just a nightmare."

"Just a nightmare," Seokjin repeated, comforting himself.

"I remember those fairytales our mothers used to tell us," Taehyung sighed, smiling as the nostalgia seeped into his mind like a teabag in hot water. "Telling us that dreams could come true. They said nothing about nightmares."

Chuckling softly, Seokjin wrapped that small sense of hope around him and clung to it, doing the same thing with his blanket. Looking out at the forest, Taehyung's words repeated themselves in his mind.

Little did he consider that nightmares are dreams too.