Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Oh fuck this! Fuck all of this!”

Beomgyu lifted his blade into the air, waving it at the fleeting light of the sun, and let out the most colorful curses that he could muster. The day’s tortured travel erupted in the most agonized, frustrated shout as he felt himself almost want to give up. As he slowly set his sword down, he looked into the thick of the forest — the dark branches framed an unknown path, the broken light peeked through the sprawled leaves and tempted him into it. Beomgyu closed his eyes, taking a deep breath as he tried to calm himself down.

“I am the Prince of the East,” Beomgyu reminded himself, “I am the Prince of the East and my people are counting on me. I have to go in there. I have to break this stupid Curse and get rid of the darkness and impending winter. I have to. I have to.”

Despite the mantra being repeated, Beomgyu had remained rooted in his spot — worry and fear had started to spread through him, nestling within his mind and heart. With another deep breath, Beomgyu forced himself forward. He took a glance at the drawn map in hand and nodded. “This is the only way,” he reminded himself, “You are the Prince. You are the only one who could do this.” He pressed his lips together into a thin line then nodded again, “Okay, you can do this. You can break this Curse. You can do it.”

It was truly unfair that Beomgyu was the one who had to break the curse. Especially when the Curse hadn’t been his fault in the first place — whoever decided to pass curses down through generations should be criminally punished, honestly. 

Even more troubling was that his Queen-mother and the entire Kingdom had attempted to mask the truth of the Curse …

“Mother, I refuse to be part of your insanity any longer. I understand that you want to keep our Kingdom moderately happy, but throwing a ball isn’t going to help,” Beomgyu folded his arms over his chest. The Prince’s brow creased, deepening as his mother paced the throne room. He let out an audible sigh, “I know you’re just doing your best to keep the peo—“

“You’re right,” his mother’s answer took him by surprise. Her shoulders rose and fell as she looked onto him, “You’re right. A ball isn’t going to help our Kingdom. Not right now.”

“Exactly, Mother. That’s what I’ve been telling you,” Beomgyu sat up in his seat. The tension in his expression softened as he said, “We have to do something about the Curse. Now, from what managed to gather from the gossip and uncensored history, there’s a Prophe—“

The Queen let out a shrill cry of disagreement. She pointed at Beomgyu accusingly, “It is forbidden to speak of the Prophecy and the Curse.”

Beomgyu should have expected this — every time the conversation began to shed light on the Curse that had seized their Kingdom, his mother would change the subject immediately. The Prince frowned, arms folded over his chest in defiance as he slouched in his seat. He knew it looked childish, but this was to be expected.

“Mother, you can’t keep pretending that the Curse isn’t happening. Our Kingdom is suffering,” Beomgyu tried to reason with her as he looked on, “The Darkness from the Forest has covered our Kingdom and has caused an unending frost in our lands. The crops are failing. The animals we hunt are nearly extinct. This frost has prevented anything from growing. Mother, we need to fight this Curse. We need to go into the Forest and break the Curse.”

The Queen rolled her eyes as she paced the room. “Our crops are failing, sure but our country has never been known for agriculture,” she excused the issue, “The animals are in hibernation, Beomgyu. There’s nothing wrong with them. They’ll be back later.” She was a master at finding an excuse when she needed it. “Stop talking about that Forest. No one is going into the Forest.”

“Why not?”

“Because nothing is wrong,” she insisted. 

“Mother, you know that’s a lie,” Beomgyu stared at her, “You know fully well that the Curse has become almost unbearable. The Darkened Frost has spread into the Kingdom. You must feel the temperature’s sudden drop.”

The Curse had reached its peak. Even before the peak was reached, Beomgyu had already begun his inquiries …but his Mother insisted on protecting him from any information regarding it. Which Beomgyu exactly one thing: He was directly involved in breaking the Curse . Despite her attempt to hide the truth, his Mother had raised him well.

“Oh, my darling,” she strode across the throne room. She gently placed her hand on his cheek and sighed, “You know that I adore you with my entire heart, Beomgyu. You must know that.” Her thumb brushed against his cheek as she smiled, “We live a wonderful life, my dear. We live in a beautiful castle, we have all the luxury in the world and you are able to do as you please all day. Why must you keep insisting on looking into that wretched Forest for?”

“Mother,” Beomgyu stared at the Queen. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to calm the sudden growing headache before he nodded. He looked in his Mother’s eyes, pleading with her as he brought the appeal of their people, “Our people are suffering. We have to do something. We need to save them. We can’t keep living this lie.”

“Beomgyu, our lives are fine. The world is perfect. Everything is perfect,” she insisted, “As long as you don’t look too closely.”

“Mother …, that sound criminally incompetent. Please listen to me,” Beomgyu repeated, “If you aren’t going to do something about it, then at least, let me do something. Let me save our Kingdom from the Curse.”

“You are the Prince, you needn’t worry about the Curse,” The Queen waved it off. She frowned for a moment as she looked away from Beomgyu. Her eyes lit up as she reached for his hands, clasping her hands over them she smiled and said, “Actually, you’re right.”

“I am?” Beomgyu’s eyes brightened as he smiled. Perhaps his Mother’s insistence had finally met its end. Maybe she had finally understood him. 

“You are. You need to do something,” she nodded, “As a Prince, it is your duty to do something for the Kingdom.”

“Exactly! That’s exactly what I’ve been saying,” Beomgyu agreed with excitement. His head nodded along with enthusiasm as he said, “As I mentioned, I managed to collect information using the gossip and uncensored history in our libraries and I think the only way to defeat the Curse is to go into the depths of the Forest. Once we get into there, I’m sure we can find the necessary ways to defeat the Cu–”

“No one is going into the Forest,” his mother repeated before she shook her head, “But you are going to do something for our Kingdom.” Her smile widened as she nodded, “It’s about time for you to get married and for us to expand our Kingdom.”

“I am not getting married,” Beomgyu stated, “I am not .”

“It’s your duty .”

Although the Queen had been lackluster in anything to do with the Curse, she had been quick to prepare elaborate, elegant, and painfully unnecessary parties – Beomgyu stood at the center of the stairs, watching their castle be decorated for a ceremony that he wanted nothing to do with. He frowned, his brows furrowed as he shook his head. 

“Don’t frown,” the Queen stood beside him, “When the guests start to arrive, don’t frown. No Princess wants to marry someone who looks upset the entire time.”

“I’m not going to get married,” Beomgyu repeated. This wasn’t the first attempt at finding a Princess for Beomgyu to marry …and Beomgyu knew that this, much like all of the times before, would be a failure. Not that there was anything wrong with the Princesses that his Mother had chosen, but Beomgyu just …didn’t feel connected to any of them, he didn’t feel any attachment to any of the choices that his Mother had chosen. He shook his head, “I’m not attending this party.”

“Oh, but you are,” his Mother smiled, “You have to fulfill your Princely duties, my son.”

“No, Mother. I will not,” Beomgyu bit the inside of his cheek for a moment. He tried to calm himself down, letting out a sigh as he said, “I am not going to marry a complete stranger just for you to distract the Kingdom from the problems you keep running away from.”

“Of course not,” his Mother’s agreement had surprised him. She nodded and said, “You’re marrying for Love, Beomgyu. Obviously.”

“I am not in love,” Beomgyu said flatly.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you fall in love.”

“No, Mother, you won’t,” Beomgyu frowned. His Mother’s ability to deny the truth stretched far beyond simply ignoring the Curse – it weaved its way into her understanding of her own son. Beomgyu pressed his lips into a thin line, letting the corners turn downward; his eyes moved away from the busy individuals of the castle to the ground …one of the problems with being a Prince was that he couldn’t be as honest as he would have liked to be. Another sigh escaped him as he descended from the stairs – this wasn’t the life that he wanted, this wasn’t what he wanted to do as the Prince.

“You know,” the voice of the Royal Advisor took his attention. Beomgyu looked up from where he had sat, surprised that his Mother’s most trusted advisor had come to visit. The man put a hand on Beomgyu’s shoulder before he sat down beside the Prince. “When I was younger, I was also expected to marry someone for the sake of my family.”

“If you’re looking to play the guilt card,” Beomgyu responded, “My Mother’s already got that covered. She’s been using everything she can to insist that I get married to some Princess.”

“On the contrary,” the Royal Advisor said, “I was going to commend you on your choice. Sometimes, our families and loved ones want the best for us but they fail to realize that what they want is not what we want. Marriage is included in that. I understand more than you know, Prince Beomgyu.”

“... so you never fell in love?” Beomgyu asked, feeling sorry for the Royal Advisor. 

“No, I fell in love multiple times. I never got married.”

“Why not?”

“Because our Kingdom and my family were not ready for that sort of relationship. Not yet,” he said. He looked over at Beomgyu, “Times have changed since my time, truths are allowed to be lived now. You can be exactly who you want to be and be with who you want to be, Beomgyu.”

Be exactly who he wanted to be and be with who he wanted to be – Beomgyu’s eyes flashed upward, glancing over to the man next to him. The Royal Advisor didn’t have to say more for Beomgyu to understand what he meant. 

“You …,” Beomgyu started but the Royal Advisor shook his head. The older man smiled at Beomgyu as he said, “I am just happy that you are able to grow in the world where you are able to make the choices that I could not."

“But, now, you can …you ca–,” Beomgyu’s attempt at encouraging the older man was halted as the temperature began to drop at an exponential rate. The Prince stood up, frantically looking around for the sign of danger …but as expected, he didn’t see anything. The temperature just continued to drop, descending to a near freezing point. Beomgyu turned to the Royal Advisor, “Let’s get you inside before the Frost starts to ge–”

The Frost shivered through the castle grounds – the grass was bated with frozen breath, painting the fresh green blades into chilled, icy white; the castle walls brilliant sparkled as they were bated with the touch of frosted air; the temperature’s drop could be felt as warm breath remained, suspended in the chilled air. Each breath that Beomgyu took hung in front of him …he needed to get everyone inside. He needed to move all of the people into the castle, into the warmth.

“Come on,” Beomgyu held a hand out to the Royal Advisor, “Let’s go before the doors freeze in place. Let’s ge–” but the suggestion was muffled as the ice came down. Icicles began to descend from the darkness – the sky rumbled with thunder but attacked with hailstones and icicles. The guards came out fending off and battling the attack of ice to the best that they could … but this was an attack that was fueled by the Curse, on that they could not win.

“My Prince,” the Royal Advisor reached for Beomgyu’s arm. He gripped tightly, forcing Beomgyu to look at him, “You need to go into the Forest. You need to break the Curse. Only the Prince can break this Curse.”

“I–,” Beomgyu paused. He knew that. Curses and Prophecies often involved Princes, after all. 

“My Prince,” the Royal Advisor unsheathed his sword – a fine blade marked with the Royal Family of the East’s insignia. He held the blade to Beomgyu, “Take this. You’ll need a weapon.” Before Beomgyu could even argue, the hilt of the blade had been shoved into his hands. “Here,” the Royal Advisor handed Beomgyu a rolled parchment of paper, “You will need this when you get to the Forest. Go, my Prince.”

“But my Mother, she–”

“I will take care of her. You,” the Royal Advisor put his hands on Beomgyu’s shoulders, “The Curse can only be broken by the Prince. The Prophecy states it.” He looked into Beomgyu’s eyes. There was a hint of worry, the slightest flash of concern before his expression softened, “I believe in you, Beomgyu. I believe that you can break this Curse, My Prince.”

“Stupid Forest. Stupid Curse.” Beomgyu muttered as he stared in the depths of the Forest. The further he looked into the woods, the less light seemed to break through; the more he squinted to see, the thicker the brush of trees seemed to get — everything about this was a red flag and Beomgyu should have walked away. Unfortunately, his birthright took that option away. He took in a deep breath, letting it out softly before he took a step forward. It was time to be the Prince that he knew he could be. 

With the Royal Advisor’s sword held out in front of him, Beomgyu entered the Forest — ready or not, his Quest had officially begun. 

Every step that was taken sent a flurry of worry through the air — paranoia spread its grip through the shadows, making sure that Beomgyu was skittish the further he went into the Forest. As expected, it was colder in the woods; the soft, icy chill blanketed Beomgyu as he took another step forward. The frosted breath of the Forest froze the noise, letting only silence greet Beomgyu’s descent into the darkened woods. 

“Wait a moment,” Beomgyu spoke his thoughts aloud. He stood rooted in his spot, letting his sword slump beside him as realization hit him. His eyes widened, brimmed with surprise as he said, “He didn’t tell me how to break this stupid Curse.”

A colorful array of profanity ran through Beomgyu’s mind. He turned around, almost ready to head back toward the castle to question the Royal Advisor of his next step… but when he fully turned, it looked as if the trees had shifted during his walk. The trees and bushes all looked different from what he had just walked through. The path behind him held no familiarity; the dark cast from the tall foliage made it difficult to get his bearings. He sighed, a frown immediately appeared on his face.

“… am I even going to be able to use this stupid map?” Beomgyu’s frown deepened as he reached into his pocket, fishing out the map that the Royal Advisor handed to him. The Prince was skeptical, wary about the accuracy of the map as he unfolded it. However, this worry was laid to rest as he held the map in front of him. The map, like the Forest, seemed to be imbued with Magic — as the Forest moved, the lines on the map followed its movement. “Okay…,” he smirked, “I’m in a Magic Forest. I would have a Magic Map.” He paused for a moment, almost wanting to question the sanity of this course but he shook his head, “Anything that helps me break this stupid Curse isn’t something that I’m going to question. Let’s go.”

According to the map, Beomgyu needed to go to the Hollow… it was where the bright lines led to, practically insisting that Beomgyu follow its lead. There was no point in questioning it, he needed to just follow through. Despite this uncertain faith in the Magic Map, Beomgyu walked forward — he held his sword in front of him, just in case…

“ Fuck ,” Beomgyu hissed as he heard the threatening buzz of a wasp. The Prince was brave and could be brave if the situation needed it… but like most people, the Prince was also human. Like most humans, the Prince had many fears… insects being on the top of that list. He felt his skin prick, bubble up with the conscious fear of bugs. He knew there would be bugs, this was a Forest after all… but why did there have to be bugs ? He held his sword in front of him — maybe he could kill the bug if it came toward him, he could do it. He could… the buzzing came from behind him.

Beomgyu closed his eyes for a second as he attempted to encourage himself against this creature. Once he opened his eyes, he turned around, ready to fight the wasps that were headed his way. With his sword in hand, he rose it up to slash the wasp but his eyes opened, veiled with a new fear as he looked on at the wasp. He had expected a small wasp, maybe a large number of small wasps but now, that seemed like a stupid fantasy — he had been greeted by a giant wasp, one so big that Beomgyu was sure that one stab from the wasp's stinger could have him severely wounded.

“Damn it…,” Beomgyu’s eyes immediately bounced around, searching for something that could protect him from the giant enchanted wasp. Unfortunately, everything seemed to pale in comparison to the giant stinger that was headed his way. There was no choice. Even with the tight grip of fear around him, Beomgyu had no choice but to face this creature head-on.

The buzzing from the wasp grew louder as the large insect flew toward him. The mechanical flap of its wings sent a shiver down Beomgyu’s back, almost convincing the young Prince to just run… but if he ran now, how was he going to face whatever was in the Hollow? How would he be able to break the Curse? With fresh conviction in his eyes, Beomgyu dug his heels into the ground, holding his sword in front of him as he waited for the giant wasp’s attack — the creature buzzed loudly as it seized the opportunity to rush toward Beomgyu. When it finally drew close enough, Beomgyu dove to the right — he rolled to the side, barely missing the tip of the stinger as the wasp flew past him. Quickly, he scrambled to his feet, sloppily getting up as he held his sword in hand. He raised the blade in the air and brought it down on the wasp — he lifted it again, then put his weight as he slashed it downward. Over and over again, he continued a ballistic barrage of slashes until the wasp’s buzz stopped.

The buzzing stopped and the silence returned.

“Phew,” Beomgyu said as he pressed his back against the tree. He slid against the tree until he sat down — all of the strength in his legs had vanished as he began to understand what had just happened. “Did I just slay my first Forest monster? I mean… it was more insect than a monster, but I’m going to count it,” Beomgyu grinned, “Prince Beomgyu, 1 — stupid Cursed Forest, 0.”

This celebration was short-lived.

Beomgyu’s ears picked up an increase in buzzing. He blinked a few times, trying to make sure he could hear properly. It wasn’t buzzing, right? It couldn’t have been buz—his eyes moved slowly to the right as he saw the mob of giant wasps headed his way.

“Stupid, stupid Cursed Forest…”

The mob of giant wasps was not one that Beomgyu could beat — he could take on one wasp, but a mob of them? He started running, unsure of which direction he was going to take but he knew he needed to go. The Prince had always been quick, and right now, he prayed that his speed would help distance him from these creatures. He dodged the trees, moved past the brush, and hopped over the fallen logs; he nearly tripped over his own feet as he skipped over steps and leaped over the stones. Why was this Forest so big? Why were there so many trees? Why did everything look alike? Beomgyu’s mind was a mess as he kept pushing himself to run — the sound of the buzzing kept getting closer and closer.

Beomgyu’s eyes bounced left and right, skipping through the openings between the trees and looking for a place to hide. This stupid Forest was supposed to be Magical and yet when he needed some kind of Magic, this Forest fai—

“Damn it!”

“Ow,” was the only sound that Beomgyu managed to make when he landed. He closed his eyes, wincing in pain as he realized he had landed on his back. He groaned to himself, trying his best to keep his voice low — the giant wasps could find him if he was too loud, and yet, there was no buzzing. “Ow,” he said, forcing himself to open his eyes. He palmed around, trying to force himself to sit up from where he had laid. He felt the hilt of his sword and immediately drew it to him. “The wasps!”

Beomgyu jumped to his feet, holding his sword in front of him, ready to fight the mob of wasps…but there was nothing in front of him. The wasps were gone? He looked up, seeing a patch of fading light above him. He blinked a few times, “I fell. I fell from there.” He spoke the words aloud, trying his best to make sense of what had happened.

Giant wasps were after him.

He ran away.

He fell into a hole.

And he woke up here — where was here exactly?

Without much thinking, he pulled the map out. His eyes scanned across it as the lines danced across the page. It spelled out the words “The Fields of Desire” — Beomgyu read the words a few times, then reread them again. “The Fields of Desire and yet…,” Beomgyu’s nose scrunched as he smelled the place he was in. He tilted his head to the side, looking at the ground, “It’s all mushrooms? The Fields of Desire is full of smelly, disgusting mushrooms?” His frown returned as he walked forward. “I need to get out of here.”

Beomgyu took a step forward — he stepped on the mushrooms and as he did, it released a disgusting odor. Beomgyu choked out a cough, nearly gagging at the scene. “Oh, this is disgusting…,” he pushed forward. He hung his sword against his belt as he used his free hand to cover up his nose. Each step caused the mushrooms beneath to squelch under his weight; each of the squelches released a disgusting scent. “Ugh…this the worst,” Beomgyu mumbled, trying everything not to breathe it in,” he grimaced with each inhale. He coughed, inhaling more as he did. As he moved forward, he blinked a few times — he breathed in again, “Wait…that’s starting to…,” he breathed in again, “Wait, it’s not as bad as it was before?” He took a step forward, another squish of the mushroom and the scent rose around him. “Wait a second…,” each step made the mushrooms release a better scent, a nicer one, a sweeter one. 

“Wait, it doesn’t smell that bad?” Beomgyu laughed, almost confused at his previous thoughts. He breathed in, inhaling the smells that came from the mushrooms, “What was I thinking? This place smells pretty good?” There was a pause in his movements as he took a deep inhale and then he laughed, “I don’t know what I was complaining about before? This place smells so good? Like lavenders? Daisies? Fresh flowers?” Beomgyu let out another laugh as he spun around, “This place is amazing. Maybe I should live here? Maybe I’ll ask those wasps to help me live here?”

Beomgyu laughed, smiling at where he was. He felt so happy, so hazy — the last time he felt this great was at a party where he accidentally drank too much wine. This scent, this sweet, seductive scent intoxicated him — where did it come from?

“ Oh darling ~ ,” a voice sang out to him.

“What the—who said that?” Beomgyu spun around, looking for the owner of the voice, “Is someone here?”

“ I said it. Is that you, my darling ?”

“Darling?” Beomgyu snickered at the word, feeling his cheeks turn bright red. He blushed as he squirmed to himself, “I mean, yeah. I could totally be someone’s darling.”

“ Where are you, my darling ?”

Beomgyu felt his words start to slur as he looked around, “I’m… I am here. Here in the bottom of a pit. Where are you?”

“ I’m here too, just further down! Come here, darling! Come find me ~ ”

“Oh! You’re here too? It’s so dark in here,” Beomgyu chirped as he looked around. He shook his head, feeling dizzier than before. He looked around, “Wait, wait. How do I find you?”

“ Just follow my voice, darling. My song will show you the way. Once you find me, we can be together, ” the voice sang out and then whispered, “ Forever. ”

Beomgyu nodded and smiled, “Oh! Okay, that sounds nice.” He folded the map, placing it into his back pocket as he walked forward. He listened for the voice and did his best to follow it.

“ This is the song that I sing to my love, aren’t I lucky you fell from above? When we’re together, my cute little pup. I’ll hold you and squeeze you and gobble you up!”

“Gobble me up?” Beomgyu stopped moving. He blinked a few times and shook his head, “What do you mean you’re going to gobble me up?”

“ … metaphorically speaking ,” the voice replied and then continued to sing, “ Life without love is like love without your heart. You came along to bring us together, we’ll never be apart. You’ll fill up my heart … and also my stomach! ”

“What? Stomach ?” Beomgyu stopped moving again. His eyes widened — was he hearing things correctly? He shook his head, feeling even dizzier than before. He forced his eyes shut for a moment, trying to clear his mind of everything around him.

“ Forget that last part, my darling. ”

Beomgyu continued to walk forward, continuing to listen to the voice. He squinted as he saw the lights in front of him. He blinked a few more times, "… hey pretty singing voice, is that you? Are you the light?”

“Yes, that’s me. You’re almost here, just a few more steps, darling .”

Beomgyu took those last few steps, stepping into the bright light. His eyes widened with surprise and shock as he was surrounded by a multitude of flowers. He had never seen this many flowers, never even dreamed that there could be so many. His lips pulled into a bright smile as he looked around in awe. He giggled, “This place is so beautiful. Just so perfect. Is this the Fields of Desire?”

“Yes, of course,” the voice returned his smile with her own, “Isn’t it beautiful? You should stay here, my darling. Beautiful creatures like you should be surrounded by beautiful things.”

Beomgyu laughed, feeling content at the compliments that this voice had given him. He smiled at her, still feeling intoxicated with the scent; he felt his head grow dizzy but he just smiled, “You’re right. You’re so right… but actually, I think I was headed somewhere. Somewhere important… I’m going to…,” Beomgyu looked down, staring at the ground as he tried to remember but he couldn’t, “I don’t remember. Why am I going? Where am I going?”

“Oh darling,” the voice spoke as the field of flowers opened. A beautiful creature emerged in the center of the flowers; she looked like an angel — soft rosy blushes on her cheeks, eyes that sparkled with stars and flowers scattered across her hair. Her ruby lips parted into a smile as she said, “Darling, you should stay here.”

“Oh, you’re the voice. You’re really pretty.”

“Thank you, darling. Won’t you come closer? You’re so far away.”

“My name is Beomgyu, you don’t have to call me darling,” Beomgyu answered as he walked toward this creature. He carefully stepped over the slithering vines around him; he nearly tripped over them, he thought it was trying to wrap around his leg but that couldn’t have been.

“Come closer.”

“Oh, sure, sure,” Beomgyu said as he stepped closer to the creature, “Although, I should tell you that I am not really looking for anything romantic right now. I just wanted to be upfront about where I am emotionally,” Beomgyu said as he walked forward. He stood in front of this plant-like woman, “Yeah, not ready for anything. I just want to be honest so that there are no hurt feelings and…” Beomgyu paused as he felt vines slowly wrap around him. He tried to push it off, “What are these things?”

“Those are my tendrils of love. Don’t be scared, they only want to caress you.”

The vines ‘ caressed ’ him, wrapping themselves around him, tightening their grip around him. Beomgyu twisted, shifted around as he tried to break away from the vines. “Huh…these are a little…,” he laughed uncomfortably, “These are really constricting…can we take a pause?” Beomgyu cleared his throat, trying to push himself out of this grip, “You’re really nice and all, but I need some air…the smell… it’s just too…”

“Full of love?”

“No. I can’t focus, it’s too distracting,” Beomgyu tried to reach for his sword, but the vines tightened around him even more. He gasped, feeling the air squeeze out of him. He squirmed more, kicking up at the vines and trying to pry them off him. “I need to leave. Something’s wrong. I need to leave.”

“Oh, but darling, no one leaves the Fields of Desire.”

“What the…,” Beomgyu's eyes widened as he struggled. Whatever beauty he had initially thought his creature had disappeared; the rose-colored view of her he had shattered as he saw a decaying, green spindly plant. It continued to wrap its vines around him, pulling him toward her. “What the hell are you? Let me go! Let me go now!”

The plant creature attempted no answer. All it did was continue to pull Beomgyu toward its center, trying to bring him closer to her mouth, “I haven’t had a meal as big as you in ages. It’s time for me to feast.”

“No!” Beomgyu shouted, kicking and twisting as he continued to struggle. He kicked up, trying to break away from the vines, “Don’t eat me! I can’t be eaten! Not yet!” The vines wrapped around him, barring him from reaching his sword. This couldn’t be the end. Not yet… he hadn’t even broken the Curse. He literally just started this stupid Quest into this stupid Forest to break this stupid Curse — how could his journey just end here ? Beomgyu continued to struggle, to fight his way out of the vines but each time he moved, the vines tightened around him. “Stop…,” Beomgyu cried out again, “Please stop. I can’t breathe… it’s too constricting.”

“Because you’re struggling,” the creature said. “If you stop struggling, it won’t hurt anymore.”

"I can’t… I can’t breathe,” Beomgyu’s voice had suddenly dropped into a whisper as his strength left him. He tried once more, kicking legs to the right and twisting around, anything to loosen the grip the vines had on him. Each time he moved, the green tendrils tightened, gripping him with all of the strength that this creature had.

Beomgyu’s eyes slowly shut, began to drift into a forced darkness.

This was it.

This was the end of his Quest.

What a sorry excuse for a Prince — Beomgyu cursed himself. This failure was his fault. He was careless. He was stupid. He… he just wanted to do what he could to save his Kingdom, to save the people that he cared about and he couldn’t even do that. Maybe he deserved this. Maybe this was the fate reserved for failures like himself? Beomgyu’s eyes shut all the way, darkness surrounded him. He stopped struggling, ready to be devoured by the creature…

Any moment now.

Soon, he would be eaten alive.

… soon.

… any mome—Beomgyu opened his eyes. He was still here. The vines were still around him, tightening as the seconds passed but it seemed as though this creature was distracted? Beomgyu looked around — maybe he had given up too early? His eyes scanned the area, searching for something. As his gaze panned around the Forest of Desires, he landed on a Knight — a beautiful, handsome Knight with his sword drawn out. Beomgyu tilted his head to the side, blinking a few times as he wondered if he was dreaming. Could this be real?

“You stupid human!” The enchanted plant shouted at the Knight. The mysterious Knight’s plump, pink lips stretched into a smirk as he looked up at the plant. The man said nothing; instead, he brandished his blade, lifting it into the air. The man swung the blade downward, slicing into the vines that had surrounded Beomgyu. The creature groaned, screamed in pain but before it was able to do anything else, the man’s sword cut through it again. The man’s blade danced across the broken vines, slicing through the thick green tendrils — eventually, the man had cut enough that the creature dropped Beomgyu to the ground.

The man turned to Beomgyu, “Go back the way you came. Just keep running. I’ll take care of this creature.” Beomgyu stammered, trying to protest but he tripped over his words, clumsily skipping over what he should have said. The Knight turned to Beomgyu, glared directly at him as he said, “Leave now if you want to survive. I’ll take care of this monster.”

“… okay, okay,” Beomgyu agreed, snapping back into reality. He scrambled up as he followed the man’s orders. It was easy to track back the way he came… but as he ran, Beomgyu stole a glance backward at the man. He wondered how this man showed up.

Maybe this forest was Magical, after all .

“Wow,” Beomgyu panted, gasping for air as he looked around. There was a pause as he tried to catch his breath. His eyes narrowed at the entrance of the Fields of Desires. He breathed out heavily, breathed in hungrily; he gently put a hand on his chest as he tried to calm his heart. “That wa—that whole thing was intense. What was that thing?”

The dark-haired Knight turned to face Beomgyu. He gave Beomgyu a quick glance, his eyes lingering across Beomgyu’s figure before he nodded slowly. “I don’t know what they’re called,” the mystery man said he looked away from Beomgyu. He returned his sword to its sheath, carefully securing it as he continued, “I just know that the Forest is full of them.”

Beomgyu stared at the man, admiring how handsome he looked; his eyes traced over this mysterious man’s features, noting the seriousness in his feline-like eyes and the plump pout of his lips. The Prince cleared his throat, attempting to focus on everything else except how handsome the stranger was. “Well, I’m really glad you came along. Thank you! Thank you so much for rescuing me and for being so beautiful.”

“What ?”

Beomgyu’s eyes widened as he choked out a cough, surprise shimmied through him. He deepened his voice as he corrected the word, “ Brave. ” He cleared his throat again as he said, “Thank you for being so brave , not beautiful. Wow, sorry. That was…,” he forced a nervous laugh out, attaching a smile to the end of it. “That was so weird. I don’t know why I said that. I think those toxins are still messing with my head…you know, they’re still in my system and making me say some really weird things.” He laughed again, even more, nervous than before. He could feel the stranger’s eyes on him. “I don’t… I don’t think you’re beautiful. Not saying that you’re ugly or anything!” Beomgyu could feel that nervous anxiety in him swell into this uncontrollable word vomit. “I mean, obviously , you’re not ugly. I just mean that if I had to choose… like if you put a sword to my neck and asked, ‘ Am I attractive or ugly? Pick one!’ Obviously, I’d have to say that you are attractive because objectively speaking, it’s true. But it’s not like you’re so attractive that I can’t stop looking… am I talking too much? I feel like I am talking a lot.”

The man nodded, “You are.”

Beomgyu let out a breath, another attempt at clearing out all of his nerves. He looked up at the man and gave him a genuine smile, “I meant to just say, ‘ Thank you ’. For saving me. I don’t know what could have happened if you didn’t. So, thank you very much. I really don’t know what I would have done if you didn’t come by.”

“Then, it’s a good thing that I followed you.”

Beomgyu paused. His brows creased as he looked at the man; his mouth dropped open, just slightly as he tilted his head to the side. “…You were following me?” Beomgyu rose an eyebrow, concerned at the man’s sudden admission.

“Back when the wasps first got to you. When you fell, I took care of the stragglers… I didn’t expect you to be captured by that thing,” the man explained. He shook his head as he looked at Beomgyu. He pointed at him and flatly said, “You’re very reckless. I’m sure you’re aware.”

“This is a Cursed Forest,” Beomgyu folded his arms over his chest as he said, “I don’t think anyone could be prepared for any of the events that will happen here. No one is that prepared.”

“Only a fool isn’t prepared.”

Beomgyu’s eyes narrowed at the man — why were attractive people so mean for ? He looked over to the handsome stranger and shook his head, “Unfortunately, not everyone is as prepared as you are… sir ?”

“Prince,” the man said, “I am Prince Choi Yeonjun of the Western Kingdom.”

Of all the luck in the world, Beomgyu would run into the Prince of the Rival Kingdom in the Cursed Forest. Although, he stole a quick glance at Yeonjun… he was surprised that the man didn’t look like the Monster that his Mother said he would have been — everyone in his Kingdom, the Eastern Kingdom (arguably the best Kingdom, if you ask Beomgyu) had always painted those from the Western Kingdom as monsters, vile and ugly beings that have been titled worse than trolls. Yet… as Beomgyu continued to admire the other man, he wondered why did everyone lie to him for so long ?

“Of the Western Kingdom?” Beomgyu quirked an eyebrow up, tilting his head to the side. Why would the Prince of the Western Kingdom be here ? It couldn't be a coincidence — there had to be some kind of Magic conspiracy theory at hand. Two Princes from Rival Kingdoms meeting in the Cursed Forest? That was too much a coincidence. Beomgyu shook his head as he tried to form a plan — he needed to find out why Yeonjun was here and how he could use that to his advantage. He looked over at Yeonjun, blinking in confusion as he asked, “What are you doing with that rope?”

Yeonjun twisted the rope in his hands, then looked up at Beomgyu and smiled kindly, “Well, you see, I’ve been wandering around this forest for a few days and you’re the first person I’ve run into.” He took a step toward Beomgyu, that kind, and gentle smile still on his face. “I’ve got a lot of questions to ask and I’m sure you’ll be more inclined to answer more truthfully if I tie you up, dangle you from a tree and aim my sword at you.”

“Actually, that’s true,” Beomgyu nodded in agreement, “I mean, that’s a really good tactic to get honest answers. I don’t think anyone wou—HEY! No, don’t! Do not! Get away from me! Don’t you dare get nea—!!”

Beomgyu decided that people from the Western Kingdom were indeed terrible monsters (great at knot tying but terrible monsters, nonetheless). He didn’t care that Yeonjun was more attractive than the entire menagerie of Royals that his Mother attempted to marry him off to. Good, kind people would never tie him up to a tree and threaten him with a sword — Yeonjun was a monster.

“What is your name, stranger?” Yeonjun called out from the ground. His sword was drawn and aimed at Beomgyu, “Answer my questions, stranger.”

The rivalry of the Eastern and Western Kingdoms bled into their history, long before this Cursed Forest even grew. If Yeonjun was in the Forest, then perhaps the Western Kingdom was facing the same issues that they were. However, Yeonjun didn’t need to know who Beomgyu was…

“My name is…,” Beomgyu struggled to come up with a false identity. His eyes scanned around the trees — the flock of birds that flew inspired him. He smiled and said, “Toto. My name is Toto.”

Yeonjun stared at him, “That’s not a name.”

“Yes, it is. That’s my bird’s name. It’s a very goo—”

“So, it isn’t your name,” Yeonjun replied. He raised an eyebrow at Beomgyu, “Look stranger, you are in no position to be lying to me.”

“Well, sir , you could be the one lying to me,” Beomgyu responded. He stared at Yeonjun incredulously as he suggested, “You might not even be the Prince of the Western Kingdom, for all I know. I mean, you could just be some guy that came into the Forest to admire nature and prete—”

“No, I am Prince Choi Yeonjun of the Western Kingdom, the Heir to the Golden Throne, the Hero of the Unmatched Blade, the Champion of the Eternal Flame, and the Protector of the Sacred Truth. I am here to eradicate the Curse that has ravaged my Kingdom into its terrible Frosted Darkness. I will defend my Kingdom and eliminate those who are from the Eastern Kingdom,” Yeonjun recited as he aimed his sword toward Beomgyu. “How dare you imply that I am not the Prince? I am the one who is here to defend my Kingdom and free my people from this wretched Curse.”

“Wait, wait,” Beomgyu said as he looked up. His eyes searched the sky as if he attempted to recall something. He asked, “What was that third one? That third thing that you just said.”

“The Champion of the Eternal Flame?”

“Champion of the Eternal Flame…,” Beomgyu repeated slowly. He gasped as if he finally remembered it but then shook his head and said, “No, no. I’ve never heard of you.”

Yeonjun grunted, shook his head as he said, “Then you must be from the Eastern Kingdom. Who are you?”

“I am…Beomgyu,” Beomgyu said as he smiled with as much charm as he possibly could. Although, from the scowl on Yeonjun’s face, he wasn’t sure that he would be able to charm the Prince of the West as easily as he could have charmed anyone from his Kingdom. Beomgyu shook his head as Yeonjun aimed the blade closer to him. “I’m not lying this time,” Beomgyu panicked, “My name really is Beomgyu. I swear it, I swear it.”

“Why are you here?”

“I… live here ?” Beomgyu responded dryly. He nodded slowly, almost as if he was convincing himself. “Yes…yes, I live here.”

“You live here? In the Cursed Forest?”

“I was… ban… ished? I was banished from the Eastern Kingdom. I am a… thief ? Yes, yes. I am a thief. I stole something from the Eastern Kingdom…,” Beomgyu’s eyes looked around for a moment. He opened his mouth in excitement as he realized, “I stole this sword. It is engraved with the Royal Family’s symbol. That is what I stole.” Beomgyu wondered if this had been believable. He knew that his delivery of the lie had been awful, but if Yeonjun asked, he would just say that he felt panicked — there was no way that anyone could speak with a blade pointed at them.

“I see,” Yeonjun nodded. He withdrew his blade, returning to its holder. With a gentle smile, he nodded at Beomgyu, “Then I will take my leave. I will let the Forest deal with you.”

“You’re going to leave me up here?” Beomgyu asked, “You can’t leave me up here! What if one of those cursed plant things comes back? What if a monster comes and tries to eat me?”

Yeonjun looked at him and shook his head, “I am not about to let a self-proclaimed thief wander around this Forest. Especially one that I’m navigating by myself. I’m not an idiot, Beomgyu.”

“If you’re as smart as you say you are, then I know you’ll want to get me down and have me help you during your travels through this forest.”

“And why would that be, thief?”

Beomgyu smiled, “You don’t think that the sword was the only thing that I stole from, do you?” He tilted his head forward, eyeing Yeonjun slowly. Yeonjun might have been a brave Prince, but Beomgyu was a much craftier one. His smile broadened as he said, “I have the map for this Forest. I took it from their Forbidden Library. It’s a Magical Map that changes along with the Forest. I can’t get lost here.”

 Beomgyu quickly noted Yeonjun’s quick-expression change — it was always so pleasurable to see someone realize that he had the upper hand. “I think it's in your best interest to have me as your guide. Especially if you’re going to try and break the Curse.”

Despite being a Prince, this was the most times that Beomgyu had ever had a sword pointed at him (he had even been Prince-napped once and even those people didn’t hold a sword him this often or this long). Beomgyu folded his arms over his chest as he listened to Yeonjun ramble off a list of rules — the Prince of the West demanded that all of his insane rules be followed. Beomgyu didn’t remember all of the rules, but he nodded along and smiled whenever Yeonjun looked at him. He needed to get on the Prince of the West’s good side long enough to make his escape.

“Here,” Yeonjun said as he tossed a knapsack at Beomgyu, “Since we are going to be traveling together, you are going to need to carry some of my provisions.”

Beomgyu caught the knapsack and immediately regretted it. He let out a yelp of pain as he tried not to drop the knapsack. He looked at Yeonjun in concern, “What do you have in here? Rocks? A dead troll?”

Yeonjun looked at Beomgyu and shook his head, “There are extra weapons in there. There’s also rope, a stone pot so that I can cook dinner. My Kingdom is known for our delicious noodle dishes,” there was pride in his voice as he explained. He grinned and said, “I will cook our supper tonight, thief. I will show you the flavors of the Western Kingdom.”

“You carry a stone pot?” Beomgyu stared at Yeonjun, “What’s wrong with you?”

“The stone pot makes the food taste better,” Yeonjun stared back. He looked at Beomgyu and explained, “There are also jugs of water in that knapsack.”

“I cannot believe you carry this,” Beomgyu grumbled as he adjusted the straps of the knapsack. Although, now that Beomgyu thought about it, Yeonjun was far better prepared than he was… Beomgyu came into the Forest with a sword and a Magical Map. “Whatever, I’ll carry your bag, Yeonjun.”

“ Prince Yeonjun,” Yeonjun corrected. He looked at Beomgyu, “Address me by my title correctly, thief.”

“You can call me Beomgyu, you know,” Beomgyu rolled his eyes. He had forgotten that not all Royals were as kind as he was. He cleared his throat and turned his head. “The map says we should be heading that way.”

“Oh, Beomgyu,” Yeonjun looked at him for a moment. He walked over to Beomgyu, closing the gap between them to mere inches as he said, “If I catch that you’re lying to me about anything , I swear that I will feed you to the nearest enchanted plant. Got it?”

Beomgyu nodded — people in the Western Kingdom seemed to have such a temper on them.

“Keep up!” Yeonjun shouted as he cut down the branches in front of him, shoving the dark wood out of their way. He turned back and rose an eyebrow at Beomgyu, “Come on, thi—Beomgyu. You can’t fall that far behind.”

“I am trying to keep up,” Beomgyu shouted, “But I have to carry your stupid stone pot.”

“It’s not stupid,” Yeonjun rolled his eyes. He rose his blade in the air, slicing through tree branches. “When mealtime rolls around and you get to taste the flavors it brings out, you’ll regret insulting it.” Yeonjun paused and turned to face Beomgyu, “Are you really struggling? The knapsack isn’t that heavy.”

“You literally have weapons, a stone pot, and jugs of water in here,” Beomgyu blinked aggressively at Yeonjun. He stared at him, “It’s heavy.”

“Oh, come off it. I used to carry heavier things than that when I was younger,” Yeonjun turned back to clearing the branches ahead of them. His blade sliced through, crafting the path in front of them.

“Why…?” Beomgyu’s eyes were covered with confusion as he asked, “Did your parents hate you? Why would they make you carry such heavy things when you were younger?”

Yeonjun stopped, turning around entirely to face Beomgyu. Confusion was also on his face as he said, “My parents loved me, that’s why they had me carrying things like that. I was training to be the Prince and the Prince should be able to carry all of the burdens of his Kingdom without any problems.”

“… that doesn’t mak—," Beomgyu squinted at Yeonjun in confusion. He blinked a few times, trying to soothe his confusion away before he shrugged. There were just some things that would never make sense to him. “…Okay, that’s an interesting theory,” he didn’t sound believable but he continued to ask, “What else did your Princely training consist of?”

“The usual: riding, archery, proficiency in swords, rapiers, daggers, spears, lances, ropes, maces, shields, battering rams, catapults and obviously, hand to hand combat as well,” Yeonjun listed off his training in details. His fingers tapped the air as he continued, “Then, there were my academic studies, of course. Mathematics, science, history, astronomy, oration, law, ethics, foreign languages, biology, commerce, and of course, my favorite, the musical arts.” Yeonjun shrugged and said, “As I said, the usual. Why do you sound surprised?”

“No reason…,” Beomgyu trailed off, unsure of how to explain to the other Prince that his princely training had not been as intense. In fact, now that Beomgyu thought about it, he wondered if he even had princely training — his Mother had focused solely on the idea that distraction would keep their Kingdom safe and trained Beomgyu in the arts of ‘ entertainment ’ and ‘ conversation ’. It seemed that distance was not the only thing that separated the Kingdoms of the East and West.

“I will admit though,” Yeonjun sighed. The tip of his blade dropped from the branches and vines in front of them; he held his sword limp beside him as he sighed, “As much as I am thankful that I was given the opportunities to learn, I wish I had more time to do… other things.”

Beomgyu swore that for a brief moment the intensity that had shielded Yeonjun broke away, cracked aside to let a glimpse of a truth that was supposed to remain hidden. That was an expression that Beomgyu knew well — that muffled sorrow hidden in the back of his eyes, the quiet loneliness that was considered a weakness for Princes, Beomgyu was familiar with it. There were differences between their Kingdoms, but perhaps, they were more similar than they had realized. The histories that Beomgyu had been taught often depicted the brutality of the people from the Western Kingdom, painting them as anything but human. Initially, Beomgyu had assumed the same for Yeonjun but that momentary crack in the man’s persona was all that he needed to see.

“I get that,” Beomgyu agreed, following along as Yeonjun continued to clear the branches in front of them. He trailed behind Yeonjun, adjusting the bag strap on his shoulder with each step that he took. “I rarely had time to do things that I wanted to as well…,” Beomgyu spoke, then paused as he felt the confusion in Yeonjun’s gaze. Oh, right . Beomgyu cleared his throat and said, “You know… as a thief…I have many different tasks to do and… yes?”

“There is no honor in theft,” Yeonjun remarked. He continued forward, “Perhaps, after this, I will have been a good influence in your life and you will consider a career change.”

If Beomgyu could have rolled his eyes further into the back of his head, he would have. “As a Prince, there must have been a lot of pressure placed on your shoulders,” Beomgyu decided to change the subject. Amusement tugged at the corners of his lips as he recalled what his Mother had insisted was his princely duty. He smiled and asked, “Was your Mother, the Queen of the West, obsessed with getting you married? My Mo—the Queen of the East had been incredibly determined to get the Prince of the East married. At least, from what I had heard.”

“Why would my Mother be obsessed with that?” Yeonjun shook his head. He explained, “My mother’s only obsession was trying to find a way to break this Curse and save our people.”

“Oh, I see…,” Beomgyu replied. Perhaps the differences between the Kingdoms were much deeper than he had previously assumed. He looked over to Yeonjun, “Your Mother must be proud of you then. If she’s that determined to break the Curse, then she must be really happy that her son is here to break the Curse.”

Yeonjun did not answer. He turned ahead, facing the woods in front of them. He scratched the back of his head as he asked, “How long until we get to the next location? I feel as though I have been chopping down these branches for hours.”

Beomgyu knew that deflection technique. He let out a short scoff, “Your Mother doesn’t know you’re here, does she?”

“Sometimes as the Prince, you have to do what is right, not what is easy,” Yeonjun said as he faced Beomgyu. He frowned, “I hate that I had to lie to her. I hate lying, but I need to protect our Kingdom.” He sighed, his brows creased as his eyes were shaded with shame. “In this case, it will be easier to ask for forgiveness than it would have been to ask for permission,” he nodded, “When I break the Curse, my Mother will understand.”

They were both on the same Quest — it was a coincidence that started to feel less and less like one. There had been mention of a Prophecy in some of the uncensored, restricted books that Beomgyu had managed to get his hands on. Perhaps the Prophecy had tied both of their journeys together… there were a lot of things that surrounded this Curse that he didn’t know, he needed to pull information out of Yeonjun.

“… so,” Beomgyu looked at Yeonjun as he asked, “How exactly are you going to break that Curse?”

“None of your business,” Yeonjun replied. “How long do we keep heading this way?”

“ Actually ,” Beomgyu tilted his head to the side as he squinted at Yeonjun. He shook his head slightly and said, “Since we are traveling together, technically it is my business. Like, I’m your guide, so I think I do deserve to know what needs to be done to break the Curse.”

“ You aren’t part of breaking the Curse,” Yeonjun responded. He let out a soft breath as he shook his head, “Consider yourself lucky that you aren’t the Prince of the East because breaking the Curse involves both of us.”

“It involves the Prince of the East?”

“It involves both of us,” Yeonjun raised an eyebrow at Beomgyu, “You must have been living in this Forest for so long if you haven’t heard the details of the Prophecy. Regardless, I need to get to the Hollow of the Kings before the Prince of the East gets there.”

“Why?” Beomgyu’s eyes sharpened, more and more concern wavered in his eyes. The lump in his throat started to grow as he waited for Yeonjun’s answer.

“I’ll spare you the details. I’m sure the Prince of the East knows already,” Yeonjun’s fingers gripped around the hilt of his sword. He tightened his hold and nodded, “He knows that when we meet, I will be the last person that he sees. I’m sure he already knows this.”

Trust me, he doesn’t know — Beomgyu thought as he listened to Yeonjun’s vague answer. To get the truth, Beomgyu knew that he would need to be even craftier. Especially since Yeonjun had continued to guard everything that surrounded breaking the Curse. Information regarding this Curse was protected, even people outside of his own Kingdom did their best to keep its truths hidden. Beomgyu pressed his lips together, looking at Yeonjun. He would find a way to get the truths out from Yeonjun, whether the other Prince wanted to tell him or not.

“So, when yo—”

“You are asking a lot of questions,” Yeonjun shook his head, “I asked you to be my guide in this Forest. I didn’t ask for someone to interview me.” He looked over to Beomgyu, eyeing him slowly as he said, “How much longer until we get to the Hollow of the Kings?”

“I get that you want us to be a strictly business relationship, but I think it would make our journey more bearable if we we—”

“ Relationship ?” Yeonjun raised an eyebrow. He shook his head, letting out an annoyed breath as he said, “There is no relationship here. You are supposed to be my Guide, thief. That is all.”

“… okay,” Beomgyu muttered. He knew there wasn’t going to be a relationship. He already knew that Yeonjun didn’t have to completely shut everything down. He sighed, “Fine.”

What an unbearable Prince .

Night had fallen during their trek through the Forest — their surrounding area had darkened even further than it had already been. Yeonjun had been the one to suggest that they set up camp for the night: “Only a fool would continue to traverse any woods in the darkness.”

“I am spent,” Beomgyu sighed as he sat down on the ground. As he stretched, he could see Yeonjun preparing his camping materials — Beomgyu really should have been more prepared before he entered the Forest. He leaned back against the tree, looking up past the branches and leaves. If this Forest hadn’t been where the Curse originated, it could have been so beautiful; even with the trees above, the stars still shone brightly.

“Here,” Yeonjun’s voice drew Beomgyu’s eyes away from the stars. The Prince of the West held a blanket out to Beomgyu, “The Frost comes through without warning. I’ll start a fire to help us keep warm.”

“... thank you,” Beomgyu took the blanket from the other man. “Wh—?”

“I can’t have my Guide freeze to death,” Yeonjun said as he began to work on building the fire. He threw together fallen branches, building a small campfire between them. “I know I have been harsh on you, but please understand, not only are you a thief …but I have the weight of my Kingdom on my shoulders,” Yeonjun explained as he slowly lit the campfire. “I know this isn’t exactly something that a thief probably wants to do or could ever dream of doing.”

Beomgyu had to agree. Yeonjun had been almost unbearable — the man would get short-tempered and snap at him whenever he attempted to strike up a conversation, all Beomgyu wanted to do was lighten the mood during their journey. However, despite how harsh-toned Yeonjun had been, the Prince of the West was also kinder than the image he portrayed. Beomgyu unfolded the blanket, wrapping himself in its warmth as he continued to watch Yeonjun build the fire.

“You have a lot of pressure on you,” Beomgyu nodded, “I get that. My Mother, she always insisted that I follow my Roy—she used to put a lot of pressure on me to be a certain way. Sometimes, it was so unbearable that I would get so angry and snap at her.” He frowned, “I know she meant well, but she was so determined on making me something that I wasn’t.”

“But you’ve made your own choice. I mean, you’re a thief now, but that’s your choice,” Yeonjun said, “I hate to admit this, especially since I am a Prince but I wish I could be allowed to make my own choices like that. I would love to have that freedom.” 

There it was again — the side of Yeonjun that Beomgyu understood better than anyone else. Duty was always given and assigned to a Prince; a Prince always had to act in order to benefit their people and most of the time, that meant that they had to hide their truths and their desires. Beomgyu understood the frustration in Yeonjun’s heart.

“Ah!” Yeonjun said as he moved away from the burning fire. He walked over to his bag, rummaging around it as he pulled out that stone pot. He held it out in front of him, beaming as he showed Beomgyu, “You insulted my stone pot, but let me show you its true wonders. My Kingdom is known for our unbelievable, delicious noodle dishes. I will show you the flavor of the West.”

Beomgyu snickered, “The flavor of the West?”

Yeonjun pointed at him, “Don’t doubt my skills.”

“How much longer?”

Beomgyu looked over at Yeonjun, staring at the Prince with such obvious annoyance. It was only eight in the morning and Yeonjun had already demanded that they continue their journey. If Beomgyu had been back home in the Kingdom of the East, he would have still been asleep — any time before noon had been almost nonexistent in Beomgyu’s schedule. With his eyes half opened, he pointed accusingly at Yeonjun as he asked, “Why would you wake up so early?”

“I have a Curse to break,” Yeonjun said, “You know this.”

“Right …,” Beomgyu rolled his eyes as he leaned against the tree. He closed his eyes for a moment, almost losing himself to sleep as he reached for the Map in his back pocket. His eyes remained closed as he opened the Map. “Okay …,” Beomgyu opened his eyes to read the new direction of the Magical Map, “According to the Map, we should be reaching an open area ahead,” his finger traced the movements of the Map’s lines, “Once we get there, we should make a right and head in that direction.”

“Are you sure this Map is accurate?” Yeonjun said as he took a step toward Beomgyu. His brows furrowed as he asked, “How can we tru—”

Beomgyu pulled the Map toward his chest before he folded it. He glared at Yeonjun, “This Map was protected by the Royal Advisor of the Eastern Kingdom. How dare you ask if it can be trusted? The Royal Advisor is a Man of Honor.” As the words left Beomgyu’s lips, the twang of worry shuddered through him — he hoped that the Frost had not taken over his Kingdom, he hoped that they were all safe.

“... right, I apologize,” Yeonjun said as he pressed his lips together. 

“It’s fine,” Beomgyu waved a hand toward Yeonjun, “The Royal Advisor was like a Father to me.”

“Like a Father … to a thief?” Yeonjun raised an eyebrow.

“Oh,” Beomgyu closed his eyes, feeling slightly frustrated at himself. It was far too early for him to remember the lies that he told Yeonjun. He sighed as he fumbled through an explanation, “Remember …I didn’t used to be a thief?”

“Ah, yes,” Yeonjun nodded, “I remember. Perhaps helping me break this Curse will put you back on good terms with your Mother and Father-figure?” Yeonjun shrugged as he said, “Then, that’s all the more reason why we need to keep going, right? Breaking this Curse will help both of our Kingdoms.”

The rest of their morning fell to silence — Yeonjun walked ahead, announcing that he would slay any creatures that headed their way. Beomgyu agreed. Yeonjun could exert all of the energy he had, Beomgyu would reserve his as he trailed behind the older man. Despite being sleepy, Beomgyu looked around their path — every so often, the noises of the Forest would make Beomgyu flinch. The shudder of wind through the trees, the skittered movement of an animal, the movement of the Magic through the Forest … Beomgyu felt himself on pins and needles, tensed at any sudden movements.

“Relax,” Yeonjun said, “I’m here. I will protect you.”

“That’s easy for you to say,” Beomgyu grumbled, “You were trained for this your entire life.”

“Exactly. That’s why you should relax. I will keep you safe,” Yeonjun said proudly, “After all, I am Prince Choi Yeonjun of the Western Kingdom, the Heir to the Golden Throne, the Hero of the Unmatched Blade, the Champion of the Eternal Flame, and the Protector of the Sacred Truth.”

It was too early for this — Beomgyu walked past Yeonjun, shoving past the Prince as he begrudgingly continued ahead. He had no patience for the Prince and his stupidly long titles. Who had the time to memorize that anyway ?

Despite Beomgyu’s growing annoyance, he was thankful for Yeonjun’s immediate response — the Prince of the West shielded Beomgyu as he pulled his sword out from its sheath. He looked fearless, undaunted by the sounds amidst the trees. For as much annoyance as Yeonjun showed toward Beomgyu, he held no reservation in protecting him. At every sound that edged, Yeonjun would shuffle their positions to make sure that Beomgyu was behind him. 

“There,” Yeonjun finally whispered. 

The Prince of the West moved first — he pulled his sword back, then lunged forward and forced the tip of his blade into the bush ahead of them. The sword ungracefully entered the body of a creature — the beast let out a pained growl that sent shivers down Beomgyu’s spine — and Yeonjun pulled back his weapon before he lunged it forward again. He withdrew his blade, separating it from the beast as he took a few steps back to remain in front of Beomgyu.

“It’s coming back,” Yeonjun warned, “Stay as close to me as possible, Beomgyu.”

Beomgyu had witnessed the soldiers of his Kingdom fend off against unknown creatures before (majority of the time, he would watch from the safety of the castle) but he had never seen it in person. The Prince of the East felt his heart tremble with fear and excitement but he followed Yeonjun’s orders — the calmness in Yeonjun was admirable, especially in battle. The years of training that Yeonjun bragged about during the last few days was clearly on display.

This time, the creature attacked first.

Beomgyu let out a sharp yelp, fearful that the monster was about to attack him but Yeonjun reacted instinctively — the Prince of the West was embedded into a quick battle with this beast. When the creature fully emerged, Beomgyu’s face scrunched into disgust. The beast was large, the size of three men stacked on each other — its mouth was large, opened with sharpened fangs as its tongue lashed out in hunger. Its claws buried into the ground, pulling out dirt as it kept walking forward.

“What is that?” Beomgyu asked as his fingers clumsily reached for the hilt of his sword. His inexperience with a sword was obvious, his fingers slipped past the hilt of his weapon. “Yeonjun, what is tha—”

“I don’t know,” Yeonjun admitted as he took another step back. He held his sword in hand, using it to keep the distance strong. There was a short breath that came from him as he revealed, “I’ve never seen this creature in any of the printed bestiaries. It may be from this Cursed Forest…,” Yeonjun frowned again as he inhaled a sharp breath. “Beomgyu,” Yeonjun’s voice remained low, serious as he continued to speak, “I’m going to engage the creature in battle. Once I start, you need to run.”

“What?” Beomgyu’s voice rang with surprise.

“Yes,” Yeonjun answered, “You need to run. You said that there is a clearing up ahead and once we see it, we make right, correct?”

“Yes, bu—”

“At my signal, you need to run and head there,” Yeonjun did not give Beomgyu a chance to argue with him. He turned slightly to face Beomgyu. Their eyes met for a moment before Yeonjun nodded and turned his attention back to the beast in front of him, “I’ll meet you there, Beomgyu.”

Insane.

All Beomgyu could think was that Yeonjun was insane.

“No,” Beomgyu snapped at Yeonjun, “… if we fight together, we can do better. I know yo—,” The words were coming out without much thought — Beomgyu may not have been trained for battle the way that Yeonjun had been, but that did not mean he lacked courage. He put a hand on Yeonjun’s shoulder, pulling the other Prince to turn and face him. “We can fight together .”

Except Beomgyu’s bravery was rejected by Yeonjun.

The Prince of the West turned back around, focusing his attention on the creature in front of him. He shoved Beomgyu back and warned him, “If you don’t get out of here, I will kill you in half.” Once the threat had been out, Yeonjun targeted the monster with his blade — he lunged forward, aiming the tip of the blade into the beast again. Once the weapon pierced through the mound of flesh, he twisted the blade onto its side before he dragged it toward the right; once the blade exited the beast, he withdrew it, pulling the weapon closer to him before he ducked low.

The creature thrashed about, wailing its limbs around in the air before it twisted. It dragged its tail across, nearly hitting the Prince as it did. Yeonjun did his best to avoid the attack, he dropped aside, rolling to the right as the tail smacked into the ground. He quickly jumped to his feet, hopping over the tail as he ran closer to the beast — attacking the body and limbs would do him no good, he needed to aim for the head.

It took just a moment for the Prince to recalibrate rated his strategy plan — a Prince should always be able to handle any form of challenge; whether it be the demands of his people or an attack of the beast, he needed to be able to solve the problems at hand.

Yeonjun ran forward. Hesitation was a luxury for those without responsibility.

With his sword drawn back, Yeonjun rushed toward the beast. He dodged the swaying limbs, avoiding the monster’s attacks as he picked up his speed. Once he reached the beast, Yeonjun lifted the blade — he forced the tip of the blade, pushing the sharpened edge with all of his strength into the creature’s jaw. The monster thrashed about, trying its best to get rid of the weapon but Yeonjun held fast, he pushed all of his strength upward.

Yeonjun needed to eradicate the ancient Curse.

A beast like this would not be able to stop him.

“Why did I listen to that bastard?”

Beomgyu paced the open area — there was a clearing amongst the trees, almost as if there had been no growth in this area at all. The Prince of the East walked paced along, walking in a circle as he adjusted the strap of Yeonjun’s knapsack. Worry tensed his eyebrows, arched up, and twisted them in frustration as he walked along trying his best to calm his mind but nothing came through — all of his thoughts rushed around repeating: “ You left him and let him die. You left him and let him die. You let him die! ”

“Okay,” Beomgyu stopped as he fixed the straps of the backpack, finally adjusting them comfortably before he turned. He pulled out the blade from his side, placing both hands on the hilt of it as he took in a breath. “Okay,” he decided, “I’m going to save that stupid Prince. I’m going to do it.”

Just as he chanted the mantra, he took the first step and stopped.

“If you are aiming your blade at me,” Yeonjun spoke as he pointed his sword at Beomgyu, “You must be ready to fight to the death, thief.”

Beomgyu dropped the blade, letting it clatter to the ground as he ran toward Yeonjun. Relief took over his instincts as he ran toward the Prince. He pushed aside Yeonjun’s blade and gave him a hug.

“I thought you died,” Beomgyu admitted as he continued to hug Yeonjun.

“You thought that I would die?”

“I was worried,” Beomgyu had never been one to avoid caring for others. He sighed, “I’m just glad that you’re alright, honestly. I was worried that you could have gott—”

“Thief?” Yeonjun interrupted Beomgyu’s confession.

“You can call me Beomgyu, you know?”

Yeonjun let out an annoyed huff before he said, “You can stop hugging me, thief Beomgyu .”

“No,” Beomgyu said as he continued to hug Yeonjun. He closed his eyes as he said, “This is the least you can do for worrying me while you fought an unknown creature.”

“Wha—”

“A Prince should be able to show affection to their worried citizens,” Beomgyu said. Yeonjun may have been a strong Prince, but Beomgyu was a more cunning one. “If you can’t even show affection to someone who was worried about you, how are you going to take care of your citizens?”

“… fine,” Yeonjun said as he awkwardly patted Beomgyu’s back. “There, there, thief ,” he said, not sounding convincing at all.

“Was being comforting not part of your Princely training?” Beomgyu asked.

“My Mother didn’t think it to be as important as being prepared for battle,” Yeonjun admitted. He cleared his throat, “Is that a problem ?”

Beomgyu laughed before he pulled away from Yeonjun. He looked over to the Prince, eyed him slowly as he teased, “Well, I hate to say it but the Prince of the East is much, much better at being comforting than you.” He shrugged his shoulders, letting them fall up and down as he shook his head slightly at Yeonjun. “The Prince of the East is amazing at dealing with people, especially on a personal level. He treats everyone fairly, even thieves like me. That’s why he’s nicknamed ‘ The Prince of the People’.”

The change of expression in Yeonjun’s eyes was the most entertaining thing that Beomgyu had ever seen — the harshness in the man’s eyes softened, veiled into one of confusion, and then shifted into worry. Those pretty, plump lips pressed together into a thin line as they twisted in frustration; he opened his mouth to say something but then closed it as he frowned. He sighed as he sheepishly asked, “… is the Prince of the East that impressive?”

Beomgyu smirked.

“ Impressive ?” Beomgyu’s eyes twinkled with entertainment as he looked on at Yeonjun. His smirk turned into a full grin as he nodded — Yeonjun knew nothing about the Kingdom of the East and that was the best thing for Beomgyu. He gave Yeonjun another smile before he decided to embellish his history, “Yes, of course. The Prince of the East is beloved . His people love him. Any time that the Prince gives a ball, his entire Kingdom would be in attendance.” Although, a majority of the time, the Queen was the one who demanded that they all attend… Beomgyu fluffed it up a little more; Yeonjun had no way of fact-checking, after all. “He is often called a Prince of Comfort, as well. Many of the citizens of the East will say that just the mere presence of the Prince helps them calm down, but ever the one fond of his people, he will often meet them in the center of the city. He will sit at the fountain with them and bask in their joy, their dances, and everything that they would show off to him. The people and Prince often shared memories together that aren’t written on the scrolls of history.”

Despite the Queen’s attempt to shield Beomgyu from the darkness of the Curse, it was the people that made Beomgyu’s childhood so safe — they were the ones that kept him protected and so loved, they did their best to share their happiness with the Prince. His Mother might have attempted to live in a land of delusion to protect Beomgyu, but it was the people that saved Beomgyu with their love.

Beomgyu loved the people of his Kingdom.

He would do anything for them.

“Hey, Yeonjun,” Beomgyu turned to face the other Prince, “Can you really break this Curse?”

“I won’t fail.”

“Okay,” Beomgyu smiled, “Let’s make sure you break it.”

Although Yeonjun’s desire to break the curse had made him an unbearable travel partner, the man would always be the one to call for them to set up camp. When the blanket of night blinded them from continuing their journey, Yeonjun would call out to Beomgyu, “Let’s set up camp for the night, Beomgyu. We shouldn’t travel in the dark.”

Beomgyu was thankful, of course — he was still in charge of carrying Yeonjun’s stupid knapsack with the stupid stone pot. 

“This is a good spot,” Yeonjun decided as he set his second bag down, letting it lean against the rocks beside them. He gestured for Beomgyu to sit down, “It’s away from the main road, hidden from most sightlines. If something were to attack us, we can easily hide among the rocks.”

As Yeonjun went on to discuss the vantage points of this location, Beomgyu had zoned out of the topic. He took off the knapsack, letting fall beside the other bag before he sat down. He stretched his arms upward, then stretched his legs out in front of him. This was more physical activity than the Prince of the East had done in the last half-year. Beomgyu leaned back and closed his eyes; he stretched his back, feeling the tightness from their long walk loosen as he did. When he opened his eyes, he caught Yeonjun’s eyes on him.

“... what?” Beomgyu’s brows furrowed, slight embarrassment turning his cheeks pink. The heat of Yeonjun’s gaze was strong enough to paint a blush on Beomgyu’s cheeks. “I’m not doing anything wrong, am I?” Beomgyu asked, “You’re not going to yell at me, are you?”

“You’re fine,” Yeonjun responded before he turned away. He cleared his throat — he suddenly was the one that looked embarrassed. He stood up, looking around for a moment before he excused himself, “I’ll go collect wood for the fire. You can just rest for now.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Beomgyu sighed contently, “I’ll be here.”

“Just …just shout if something comes your way,” Yeonjun said as he quickly tore his eyes away from Beomgyu. He turned completely away and pointed to a direction, “I’ll get firewood and find something for dinner. Just stay here, Beomgyu.”

“Aye, aye, Prince of the West,” Beomgyu saluted him as he made himself comfortable. He turned to Yeonjun and smiled, “Come back safe, Yeonjun.”

Yeonjun turned back as if he wanted to say something. Their gazes met — Beomgyu’s eyebrows looked up, asking for Yeonjun to say something. Except, Yeonjun didn’t. Instead, he just turned away and started to walk in some direction. 

“... not even a goodbye,” Beomgyu muttered as he accepted the Prince of the West’s obvious dislike of him. He sighed, slightly frowning as he rolled his eyes. “Of course,” Beomgyu accepted, “There was just no way that he would. Besides, why would I care if that stupid Prince even likes me? He’s always so angry and like always stupidly intense about everything. Always so serious. His eyes get all focused and sharp and like …okay, maybe it is kind of attractive.” Beomgyu frowned, scrunching his nose as he said, “Why does he have to look so hot when he’s fighting and protecting me? And why does he have to show kind parts to him …why couldn’t he just be a complete bastard like everyone says the people of the West are like?” Beomgyu brought his hands over his face, rubbing it slightly as he said, “I don’t have time for this stupid shit.”

This was something that Beomgyu had grown familiar with: convincing himself that he should not pursue anything with another man. For all of his life, everyone had insisted that he should follow his heart but when he showed even the smallest piece of it, he was met with disgust. His heart was too precious to be given to just anyone.

“You have that stupid Curse to break,” Beomgyu reminded himself. “There is no time for whatever this is,” Beomgyu mumbled as he closed his eyes. He shook his head as he remembered, “... we need to figure out how to break the Curse. I need to get that information out of Yeonjun.”

"Beomgyu,” Yeonjun’s voice carried over the crackle of their campfire. It was a lot softer, more gentle than the way that he normally spoke. He turned over from where he had laid down to face Beomgyu, “Beomgyu, are you still awake?”

“I was trying not to be,” Beomgyu admitted as he turned to face Yeonjun. He looked over at the Prince and sighed, “Why are you still awake? Don’t you need to wake up at the crack of dawn and force me into early torture?”

“We can sleep in tomorrow morning,” Yeonjun announced. For a few moments, he didn’t say anything. Silence embedded itself between them as Yeonjun continued to look at Beomgyu and just like previously, Yeonjun’s gaze continued to spread a nervousness through Beomgyu. Yeonjun bit his lip as he said, “Can I ask you for a favor?”

“Aren’t you already ?” Beomgyu raised an eyebrow, “Isn’t me being your guide through the Cursed Forest already a favor?” 

“Do you think you can help me learn to be as charming as your Prince?” Yeonjun asked, looking more embarrassed than Beomgyu could have ever imagined him to look. 

The temptation to tease the man was hard to resist, especially with the attitude Yeonjun had carried through all day. It would have been easy to tease Yeonjun by saying, ‘ A Prince is asking a thief for advice ’ but there was such honesty and earnestness in Yeonjun’s eyes …Beomgyu looked at him, feeling his heart’s pace beat a little faster. He cleared his throat, trying to force that stupid feeling down. 

“You don’t need to learn,” Beomgyu answered, “You just need to be more honest.” The statement looked as though it confused Yeonjun. Beomgyu smiled gently as he explained, “You don’t need to keep forcing yourself to be tough all the time. I know you’re the Prince and you need to carry the burdens of your Kingdom and everything but you can be honest about how you feel too and what you think.”

Yeonjun turned away, laying on his back as he looked up at the stars above them. He folded an arm under his head as he said, “I want to be more honest but it’s not a luxury I was ever given. My entire life has been led by this duty to be prepared for battles that may not even happen.”

That was the unfortunate duty of Royalty. Beomgyu knew this — he was so familiar with needing to be more than what he was but unlike Yeonjun, he hadn’t been dragged into battlefields. He looked over to the Prince of the West, catching the burning desire in Yeonjun’s eyes.

“How about …,” Beomgyu started, “You be honest with me? You don’t have to worry about any of that Prince stuff. After this, you don’t even have to worry because who’s going to believe a thief anyway, right?” 

“Why?” Yeonjun asked, “Why are you being so kind?”

“Everyone has some kind of pressure on them. Why shouldn’t we lend each other a hand from time to time?” 

Yeonjun didn’t say anything, All he did was turn to Beomgyu and give him a smile — a genuine smile so soft that it made Beomgyu’s heart skip a beat. 

Just as Yeonjun promised, the morning hours had been allotted for Beomgyu to enjoy the luxury of slumber just a little longer. Although the extra hours of sleep had been granted, Beomgyu woke at the sound of the Prince of the West’s early morning excursion. At the first light, Yeonjun had quickly paced the perimeter of their make-shift. Beomgyu was certain Yeonjun had said something, but the words had been muffled by the desire to sleep a little longer. Once Yeonjun left their camp, Beomgyu could not get back to sleep. He lay awake, wondering when the Prince would return … he wouldn’t leave him, right?

“If that bastard left me for dead, I ’ll kill him,” Beomgyu decided as he stood up. He dusted off the dust and dirt that settled from the night’s air. Without thought, he started cleaning up both of their sleeping areas — he folded his blankets and then Yeonjun’s blankets before he stared that both of the knapsacks that had been left. He glared at the bag, “You know what, I’ll kill him with his stupid stone pot. Yes.”

“ Who are you killing with my stupid stone pot ?”

“You,” Beomgyu replied as he turned to face Yeonjun. He did his best to hide the relief in his expression when he saw the Prince of the West. Unlike before, the Prince of the West did not don the armor and formal wear — Yeonjun was dressed down, a white dress shirt and casual pants. Beomgyu raised an eyebrow, “What happened to your armor?”

Yeonjun looked over to Beomgyu, “I took it apart.”

“You took apart your armor?”

“We’re traveling together and I need you to stay alive,” Yeonjun explained as he handed Beomgyu two steel pauldrons, “I took apart my greaves and did my best to turn them into pauldrons for you. These go on your shoulders and extend to your arms. Most of the creatures aim for our arms, so I wanted to make sure you can be protected for them.” Yeonjun gestured for Beomgyu’s arms then to his legs, “Since we keep moving, I figured it’s best to pro—”

Beomgyu blinked at Yeonjun, staring at him so intently that Yeonjun paused. Maybe Yeonjun didn’t hate him. Beomgyu took the armor into his hands and inspected it. “Thanks,” Beomgyu’s eyes moved from the armor over to Yeonjun, “Really, thank you. I appreciate it. I’ve never had someone take apart their own armor for me.” Beomgyu smiled at Yeonjun, “Thank you, Yeonjun.”

Then Yeonjun did a funny thing: his cheeks turned bright red and he sputtered out some excuse before he turned away. Yeonjun walked a few paces ahead, then paused as he said, “Clean up the camp, Beomgyu. I’ll be back with breakfast for us.”

The day’s journey was uneventful compared to the previous day’s — Beomgyu was thankful for it, honestly. Despite gaining new armor from Yeonjun, there was a lack of confidence in being able to fend off against whatever creatures the Forest would send their way. While Beomgyu had gained a few victories against smaller creatures (the Wasps being the biggest one that he managed a victory on), the larger beasts that came their way were taken care of by Yeonjun. The Prince of the West instinctively moved before Beomgyu could even think; Yeonjun always protected Beomgyu, pulling him out of the way and shielding him from being hurt.

Beomgyu was thankful but he hated that.

“Yeonjun,” Beomgyu called out as they walked to the next location on the map, “You don’t have to save me every time, you know. I can handle myself.”

Yeonjun scoffed and rolled his eyes, “Your fingers tremble every time you hold up your sword.”

“Well, that’s because this isn’t my sword,” Beomgyu made an excuse as he frowned, “This was the sword I stole from the Royal Advisor of the East, remember? If I had my sw—”

“You should be able to fend off anything whether it’s your sword or not,” Yeonjun interjected but he looked over at Beomgyu, “Then again, I’m not surprised.”

“What?” Beomgyu’s voice raised with offense as he glared at Yeonjun, “I’m not some weakling that can’t even defend himself! I’ve been doing just fine even before yo—”

“I was saying that I wasn’t surprised because it’s difficult to gauge the kinds of battles that could happen in this Forest. Even I am having a hard time fending against these creatures,” Yeonjun admitted. He looked over at Beomgyu, “Do you assume everything that I say is a criticism against you?”

“You literally tied me up to a tree and threatened me with your sword,” Beomgyu reminded Yeonjun. He punctuated his sentence with a glare and shrugged, “Don’t forget that you almost decided to leave me hanging from the tree. What was it that you said? ‘ I will let the Forest deal with you ’?”

Yeonjun frowned, looking more embarrassed than Beomgyu could have ever imagined him. The Prince of the West looked to the ground, feeling sheepish as he said, “I am sorry about that. It had been a long day for me. I had been wandering around the Forest for a few days after my horse ran off. You were the first person I ran into and you turned out to be a self-proclaimed thief. Could you blame me?”

“ I wouldn’t have tied anyone up to a tree and threatened them with a sword,” Beomgyu pointed out at Yeonjun. He raised his eyebrows playfully as he grinned, “It’s okay. We can just call it a meet-cute.” Perhaps, Beomgyu had been seeing things or maybe they had been in the Forest for far longer than he expected …but he swore that he caught a smile on Yeonjun’s lips again. “Hey!” Beomgyu shouted as he put his hands on Yeonjun’s shoulders.

“What?”

“You know how I’m teaching you to be more personable and lovable for the public,” Beomgyu explained as he ignored Yeonjun’s attempt to correct him. He grinned, “We can do an exchange. I’ll teach you that and then you can teach me how to be a badass with a sword. I know, I know. You’re thinking ‘ Beomgyu, you are a genius. How did I get so lucky to travel with someone as brilliant and amazing as you .’”

Except, Yeonjun’s eyes moved away from Beomgyu and lifted above him.

“Get behind me,” Yeonjun said.

“No, didn’t you hear me? I said that you’re going to tea—”

Yeonjun pulled Beomgyu behind him as he quickly pulled out his sword. He swiped his sword, slashing against the snarling creature’s mouth. “First lesson,” Yeonjun shouted back at Beomgyu, “Always be on alert. You could have easily lost your head just now. Stay behind me, Beomgyu. I’ll protect you.”

I’ll protect you .

The rain turned brutal — Beomgyu stood at the mouth of the cave, staring at the torrential downfall in frustration. He crossed his arms over his chest, letting his frown deepen. The weather in this Forest was unpredictable. Everything had been clear skies and sun, but with the blink of an eye, a storm came forward — he wondered if the Forest’s Magic had something to do with it. As with all things Magical, Enchanted or Cursed, there was so much that was left unknown. 

“Staring at it isn’t going to make it stop,” Yeonjun called out as he finished kindling the fire. He set the sticks down gently before he sat down next to the campfire. He looked over to Beomgyu, “At least, we were near the cave before the storm started up. I guess I can thank you for that. You’re not the worst guide that I’ve ever had.”

“We need to work on your complimenting skills,” Beomgyu said as he walked away from the cave’s entrance. Though he strayed from the opening, his mind remained unchanged about the Forest’s unpredictable nature — everything that happened so far seemed to be guiding them toward a direction. All of the creatures that crossed their paths, the changing of the trees, and the sudden weather change … all of that could not be coincidental. He was surprised that Yeonjun hadn’t called attention to it.

“Smart thinking on your part for getting us into the cave before the rain took over,” Yeonjun said. He smiled at Beomgyu and said, “Thank you, Beomgyu. You’ve been doing a great job.” 

“You know,” Beomgyu said as he sat across from Yeonjun. He pointed at him and grinned, “You’re a lot nicer on a full stomach.”

“My Mother used to say the same thing,” Yeonjun smiled as he nodded, “She used to say that ‘ The Prince must always be well fed if we are to have peace ’. Our chefs at the castle took that to heart and would do their best to always provide food. I used to tell them that they didn’t need to do that and would insist that they rest. They wouldn’t hear it though. So, I eventually asked them to teach me to cook.”

“Are they the ones who gave you that stone pot?” Beomgyu chuckled.

“Yeah. Right before I left for the Forest,” Yeonjun explained, “I went through the kitchen. The head chef tried to stop me. She warned that my Mother would be cross about me leaving but she knew that I wouldn’t stay. That I needed to go.” He smiled, turning his eyes to the ground as he said, “She gave me the stone pot right before I left and said, ‘ If you’re going on a journey, you must eat well. An empty stomach never saved anyone .’” 

Beomgyu watched Yeonjun’s expression — there was such fondness in the man’s eyes, such a lovely softness as Yeonjun spoke about the people from his Kingdom. He admired the expressiveness in Yeonjun’s eyes, his lips, and his hands; the Prince of the West was so animated and so enthusiastic about the people from his Kingdom …but there was a different attachment when he spoke about the chef. 

“Did you …did you love the chef?” Beomgyu asked. He felt stupid as the words left his mouth. He cleared his throat and quickly followed up with, “You don’t need to answer that.”

“Love her? No,” Yeonjun shook his head, “She got married when I was six.” He laughed, “If anything, she was like a grandmother that spoiled me. She always gave me extra cookies whenever my Mother wasn’t looking.” He leaned back and sighed, “Maybe when we break this Curse, I can take you to visit my Kingdom. I can show you the beauty of the Kingdom of the West.”

“You’d invite a thief to the Kingdom of the West?” Beomgyu teased.

Yeonjun laughed, “By the time we break the Curse, I would like to believe that you’ll decide to choose a different career path. Maybe, you’ll be my Guide a little longer.”

“A Prince and a thief?” Beomgyu grinned, continuing to tease Yeonjun …although, being the one to tease Yeonjun made it easier to hide the happiness that started to bloom in his heart. He looked over at Yeonjun and said, “Well, if that’s the case …maybe after visiting your Kingdom, we can visit mine? I know I was banished but if we break the Curse, I’m sure they’d let me back home.”

“If we break the Curse, they’ll carry you as a Hero,” Yeonjun said, “If not, I’ll be emissary and demand that the East recognize you as one. They should have a parade in your honor. Perhaps a ball.”

“A ball?” Beomgyu laughed before he sighed. “I used to hate balls. My Mother used to throw them all the ti—,” he paused, the lie he spun lingered in his mind. He cleared his throat as he said, “I would love to go to a ball with you. The food, the music, and the dancing! I would love to dance again.”

Yeonjun smiled before he stood up. He walked to Beomgyu, holding a hand out to him, “It’s not much but I think we can manage to do that here, Beomgyu.” Yeonjun held his hand out to Beomgyu once more, “Beomgyu, can I have this dance?”

Beomgyu stared at Yeonjun’s hand. For all of the dances and balls that he had attended, not once had he ever been asked to dance with another man. He felt himself grow nervous, feeling uncertainty in the pit of his stomach the longer that he stared at Yeonjun’s hand …but when he looked up from Yeonjun’s hand and looked into Yeonjun’s eyes, there was honesty in them. Beomgyu nodded as he took Yeonjun’s hand, letting the older man pull him up from where he sat.

“Here,” Yeonjun moved Beomgyu’s hands, placing them on his shoulders before he put his hands on Beomgyu’s waist. They looked at each other, eyes meeting nervously before Yeonjun smiled. “Do you trust me, Beomgyu?”

The question took Beomgyu by surprise. He felt his throat seize as he struggled to find his voice. Beomgyu’s mind swirled, tripping over itself as he blinked. He looked back at Yeonjun, gazing into the man’s eyes and accepting the warmth in them. Beomgyu nodded, “Yeah. I trust you.”

“Then, I’ll lead,” Yeonjun said.

And that was it, they swayed in the light of the campfire. Their soundtrack was the rain that fell outside of the cave. 

For the first time since he entered this Forest, Beomgyu felt warm.

“There’s this song,” Yeonjun’s voice had softened, almost a whisper hidden behind the rain. Beomgyu rest his head on Yeonjun’s shoulder, letting his arms fall lax around Yeonjun’s neck — this was nice. He remained quiet, feeling Yeonjun’s voice echo through him as the Prince continued to explain. “When I was younger,” Yeonjun said, “My Mother used to sing this lullaby to me. She said it was from before the war of the West and the East.”

“A time before the fighting?” Beomgyu asked.

“Yeah,” Yeonjun nodded, “She used to sing to me all the time and I started to think of it as a wish.”

“A wish?” Beomgyu lifted his head, looking at Yeonjun, “How did the song go?”

“ I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream. I know you, that look in your eyes is so familiar a gleam ,” Yeonjun sang the lyrics and as he did, Beomgyu tilted his head to the side. “ And I know it’s true that visions are seldom all they seem .”

“I know this song,” Beomgyu said — this was a song that his Mother had also sung to him. If Yeonjun knew it and Beomgyu did, he wondered if their Kingdoms could return to that state of peace. He smiled at Yeonjun. With Yeonjun, he could see a future of peace, one that they all wanted.

“Do you?” Yeonjun asked.

“Yeah,” Beomgyu smiled, “ But if I know you, I know what you’ll do. ”

“ You’ll love me at once, the way you did once upon a dream .”

Beomgyu gazed into Yeonjun’s eyes; Yeonjun mirrored it. They both looked as though they had something that they wanted to say. Yeonjun tried to start the conversation. He nervously ran his tongue across the bottom of his lip, biting it back before he said, “Beomgyu …”

“Yes,” Beomgyu pleaded, looking at Yeonjun, “Yeah?”

But whatever Yeonjun wanted to say had been silenced as the storm beyond the cave grew. The rain’s roar picked before the crash of thunder hit the cave. The first time that the thunder hit, the pair looked at each other in surprise. The second time that the thunder slammed outside, Beomgyu immediately panicked — he pulled away from Yeonjun, attempted to run outside but the lightning came down again and again. Stronger each time. 

“Oh, my—,” Beomgyu’s eyes widened with panic as he shouted, “We’re doomed. We’re doomed.”

“I’m here,” Yeonjun reassured Beomgyu, “Don’t panic.”

Every time that Yeonjun suggested for Beomgyu not to panic, it only made Beomgyu panic even more. With the burst of thunder and the flashes of lightning outside of the cave, it was impossible to stay calm. Even with Yeonjun’s reassurance.

“What do we do?” Beomgyu shouted, trying to make sure that Yeonjun could hear him above the thunder. “What am I supposed to do? I don’t want to die in this cave.”

Yeonjun remained quiet as he fumbled around his bag. He pulled out a torch, leaning it against the campfire, lighting it up. “Okay, let’s see,” Yeonjun said as he waved the torch, brightening the darkness of the cave. “The lightning seems to have sto—”

The lightning interrupted Yeonjun’s words. The sound of thunder cracked through the air before the force of lightning slammed into the cave. Nature’s attack shook the rocks around them, causing them to tumble from their places and fall across the entrance — their original path was now blocked.

“That’s not good!” Beomgyu shouted as his eyes widened in fear. They were trapped in a cave. Beomgyu ran to their blocked exit. He palmed around the rocks, trying to push them aside but another strike of lightning caused him to leap back — more rocks tumbled down.”How are we going to get through all of these rocks? It’ll take days to get through here! Days! We’re going to starve to death.”

“Actually,”  Yeonjun tilted his head to the side, “We might run out of oxygen before that. Taehyun mentioned to me once that when it comes to cave-ins, most people die from the lack of oxygen.”

Beomgyu stared at Yeonjun and shouted, “How is that better?”

Yeonjun stared at Beomgyu, “Stop shouting. It’s not going to help us, okay?” Despite the attempt to calm Beomgyu down, Yeonjun had also started to raise his voice — panic had managed to make its way through him too. He licked his lips, trying to find a way to get them out of this — he paused as he stared at the torch in his hand. The flame flickered, shifted to the right. “Wait, wait,” Yeonjun smirked, surprised at the movement of the flame, “Beomgyu, look at the torch. Look at the flame.”

Beomgyu slumped himself against a fallen rock as he whined, “Oh, great.” He closed his eyes as he dramatically said, “Not only are we going to starve and run out of oxygen, we are also going to burn to death.”

“Stop being dramatic for a moment,” Yeonjun said as he walked over to Beomgyu. He pulled him up, “Look at the torch, Beomgyu.”

Beomgyu groaned before he opened his eyes and looked at the torch. “I know fire is pretty, Yeonjun but we are about to die in this cave and I haven’t even had my first bo—why is the fire moving?”

“Judging by the way it’s moving, it means there’s another opening letting air through. It means that there’s another exit,” Yeonjun looked over at Beomgyu. He nodded further into the cave, “That means that our exit is down there.”

“Why is it that ever since I met you, my life is always threatened?” Beomgyu’s brows furrowed as he shot a glare at Yeonjun. “I get that you’re trying to break this Curse but couldn’t you do it without having me nearly get killed every time that you try something.”

“Enough dramatics,” Yeonjun said, “Let’s get out of here.”

The deeper into the cave they went, the more worried Beomgyu got. Of course, Yeonjun swore that he could keep them safe but they wandered into the depths of a cave in the Enchanted Forest — Beomgyu half-expected there to be a million Enchanted Plants ready to eat them. Beomgyu fumbled for the Magical Map, pulling it out of his pocket as he trailed behind Yeonjun. 

“Yeonjun,” Beomgyu called out, reaching for the man’s shoulder. “Give me a second to read my Map. Maybe it can help us figure out where to g—”

The thunder gave them a short warning before the heaving wave of lightning slammed down. It came with a strength so strong that the cave shook. Beomgyu had a second to register the movement of the effects of the lightning’s strike before Yeonjun shoved him forward …then the cave collapsed between them. 

“No, no, no,” Beomgyu shouted as he scrambled toward the wall of rocks that separated them now. He clawed at the rocks, pulling them with as much strength as he could. “No, no,” Beomgyu cried out, panicking as he desperately tried to move the rocks, “Yeonjun! Yeonjun! Please tell me you’re okay, please. Please, please .”

“Beomgyu,” Yeonjun’s voice was muffled, hidden amongst the wall of rocks.

“Yeonjun,” Beomgyu sighed, just the smallest sliver of relief within him. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to catch his breath as he rest his hand against the rocks. “I’ll get you out of here. Just give me a second, I can figure this out.”

“You should go,” Yeonjun said. “Just follow the wind, Beomgyu. Find a flint and light a fire, you can find the exit if you follow the way th—”

“No!” Beomgyu shouted. He was appalled, confused at the words that Yeonjun was saying. “Why are you talking as if I’m going to leave you behind? I am not leaving you behind, Yeonjun.” The fury in him echoed as he shouted, “I don’t care what happens. I am not leaving you behind.”

“It’s faster if you go ahead and get out of here. It’ll be safer for you to just head out without me. It’s impossible for us to move all of these rocks,” Yeonjun called out, “I—”

“You said that you were going to break the Curse, Yeonjun,” Beomgyu shouted as he started pulling the rocks away. He could feel his vision blur as he pulled the rocks away, pulling them out of the pile and letting them fall to the side as he said, “I am not leaving you behind. You and me? We are never leaving each other behind. Don’t try to change my mind, Yeonjun.” Beomgyu could feel the quiver in his voice as he pulled a rock out of its place, “So, you have to help me. You have to help me so we can get you out of here and we break this stupid Curse together.”

Yeonjun didn’t say anything.

“Yeonjun!” Beomgyu called out.

“Okay,” Yeonjun said. Beomgyu could hear the faint movement from behind the rocks; Yeonjun had started to move the rocks that he could away. 

Time worked differently when panic was in someone’s mind — Beomgyu wasn’t sure how much time had passed by. All he knew was that he didn’t seem to care. He kept pulling rocks out, pushing them out of them and once they were able to break through a small gap, he peered into it. When he looked into the gap between the rocks and he saw Yeonjun, Beomgyu smiled. They could do this , together.

When the gap had finally opened wide enough, Yeonjun nearly tripped through it.

“We did it,” Beomgyu cried out as he ran toward Yeonjun, catching the Prince into a hug. “We did it.” Beomgyu tried to pull away, ready to lead them out of the cave but Yeonjun pulled him back; Yeonjun’s arms circled around Beomgyu’s waist, tightening around them, unwilling to let go. The embraced surprised Beomgyu before he hugged Yeonjun back, “You said you would protect me and I’m telling you that I won’t leave you behind.”

“Thank you,” was all that Yeonjun managed to say.

“The map says that if we keep following this path,” Beomgyu showed Yeonjun the Map. He trailed his finger across it as he explained, “We will end up in a place called ‘ The Hatchery ’.”

“The Hatchery?” Yeonjun asked as he picked up the knapsack beside Beomgyu. He shouldered both of the bags as he looked over at Beomgyu, “As in like chickens?”

“Yeah, chickens,” Beomgyu said as he folded the map back up. He slid the piece of paper into his back pocket as he asked, “Do you think there are different kinds of chickens?”

“Different kinds of chickens?” Yeonjun raised an eyebrow as he followed behind Beomgyu, “Aren’t there only roosters and hens?”

“There are those emo chickens,” Beomgyu explained, “Those dark ones that litter the cities and try to steal all of the food that gets dropped. Sometimes, they’re the ones doing the dro—”

“The ones in the city?” Yeonjun raised an eyebrow, staring at Beomgyu as he flatly said, “Those are pigeons, Beomgyu. We have those in the Kingdom of the West too. They’re not chickens, they’re pigeons.” Yeonjun let out a laugh as he walked in front of Beomgyu, “You’re so ridiculous.”

“Hey, I made you laugh,” Beomgyu ran up to Yeonjun’s side before he poked him. He smirked, “But I do hope that the Hatchery does have chickens. Maybe we can get some eggs for our journey. That would be great. We can add it to your noodles. I bet eggs would taste good.”

“Maybe …,” Yeonjun nodded.

Beomgyu knew that there should have been haste in their journey. They needed to break the Curse, after all …but as he listened to Yeonjun talk brightly about himself and the things that he liked (outside of Princely duties, of course), he felt happy. He felt like himself …this was something that he hadn’t felt in a long time. The Curse was important of course, but Beomgyu wouldn’t mind if he got to travel with Yeonjun for a little bit longer …

“Is that the Hatchery?” Yeonjun asked.

In front of them, in the middle of this cave, was a haphazardly made shack —  thin wood panels with splatters of golden straw on the roof and a hand painted sign that said, ‘ The Hatchery ’. The windows were boarded up, blocked them from peering into the shack. 

“I’m going to knock on the door,” Beomgyu decided but before he could take another step forward, Yeonjun pulled him back. “What are you doing? I am going to knock.”

“No, you are not going to knock on the door,” Yeonjun glared at Beomgyu, “We should just leave and be on our way.”

“No, I’m going to knock.”

“No, we’re leaving,” Yeonjun said as he grabbed Beomgyu’s arm, ready to pull him away. “It looks condemned, Beomgyu. I’d rather we avoid being killed b—”

“ Are you two travelers? ” 

“Yes,” Beomgyu answered immediately, which caused Yeonjun’s expression to fall flat. Beomgyu wriggled out of Yeonjun’s grip, pulling away and running toward The Hatchery. “We are travelers,” Beomgyu confirmed as he stood in front of the door, “Our map led us here, and honestly, I was hoping that there were eggs here.”

The door to The Hatchery opened, revealing a very friendly and kind face. The person smiled, grinning at them before they titled their straw hat down; they bowed to them and smiled when they rose. The person’s name tag read out, ‘ Savv ’ —  they adjusted the straps to their overalls as they smiled at Beomgyu and nodded. “What an egg -cellent hope,” they said as they gave Beomgyu two thumbs up, “There’s no yolk -ing about it because we’ve got eggs a plenty. Do not be terri- fried because I’ve got eggs -tra eggs to give and I know the perfect one for Princes.”

And just like that Savv entered back into the shack.

Yeonjun walked over to Beomgyu, grabbing his arm and pulling aside. “We should go,” Yeonjun whispered, “Why are you suddenly trusting a random person in the Forest? Are you insane ?”

“I trust you,” Beomgyu whispered back, “I just want an egg, Yeonjun. I am tired of eating vegetables and roots and whatever creatures you slay and cook. I don’t even like fish and you keep giving me fish.” Beomgyu whined as he begged, “Let me have an egg. Let me have one.”

“No, we do not need to get eggs from someone that this Forest probably created to kill us,” Yeonjun hissed as he grabbed Beomgyu’s arm, “Come on, let’s get out of here. I’ll find you eggs, let’s just g—”

“ Here you go ,” the owner of The Hatchery said as they placed a very large, yellow egg into Beomgyu’s arms. They put their hands on their hips and nodded, “All of our eggs decide who they will go home with and this one has been crying out for the two of you for months now.”

“For us?” Beomgyu said as he looked at the egg. He carefully held the egg in both hands, terrified that he would drop it. He held it up to Yeonjun and said, “This egg chose us, Yeonjun. It wanted to be with us.” Beomgyu beamed at the egg and then frowned as he realized, “We can’t eat it.”

“Eggs can’t choose people, Beomgyu. Besides, why are we accepting eggs from random strangers?” Yeonjun asked, raising his brows at Beomgyu before he sighed. He turned to speak to the owner of The Hatchery, “Look, we appreciate the offer but we can’t take this eg—Beomgyu,” Yeonjun called out, pulling Beomgyu’s attention away from the egg. “They’re gone. The Hatchery is gone?”

Beomgyu looked up, blinking at the empty space before them. The shack was gone, the owner was gone. It was as if nothing had ever been there, except for the egg in Beomgyu’s hands.

“Well,” Beomgyu said as he held the egg to his chest, “This is our egg now.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me?”

Yeonjun was mad — the Prince of the West didn’t need to say anything for Beomgyu to know that he was mad. The silence soured the air between them but regardless of Yeonjun’s anger, Beomgyu was not going to give up on the egg. This was their egg now, whether Yeonjun liked it or not. 

“I know you’re mad that I accepted the egg,” Beomgyu spoke as he hugged the egg, “But you have to understand, it’s our responsibility now. How can you be a Prince if you don—”

“That’s not why I’m mad,” Yeonjun grumbled as he continued to walk ahead of Beomgyu.

“You can use your words, you know,” Beomgyu said, feeling more annoyed than previously. He pouted, “I’m not a mind reader, Yeonjun. I can’t just read your mind and figure everything out.”

“I’m mad because you and I were reaching a good point but when you get excited about something, you refuse to listen to me. Luckily, they gave us an egg and disappeared but what if it had been someone who wanted to harm you?” Yeonjun turned to face Beomgyu. There was concern in his eyes, turning them into a soft shade of worry as he spoke, “I can fight monsters and beasts and things like that, but what am I supposed to do if that person had been Magic? What if they were intentionally aiming to harm you? I want to keep you safe, Beomgyu but you can’t just decide to go into things without thinking about it.”

Beomgyu blinked. Surprised seeped into him as his eyes mapped out the concern in Yeonjun’s expression. The Prince of the West cared, he cared a lot.

“Oh …,” Beomgyu bit his lip and apologized, “I didn’t mean to worry you. I just got really excited …”

“I promise to protect you, Beomgyu,” Yeonjun frowned, “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Yeonjun really did care about him.

“Yeonjun …,” Beomgyu started but froze in his place. His eyes widened as he looked up at Yeonjun. Concern stretched his expression, pulling his eyebrows upward as his mouth dropped open. 

“Why are you making that face?” Yeonjun sighed in frustration, “I’m trying to be honest with you and have the nerve to ju—”

“The egg.”

“I don’t care about the stupid egg,” Yeonjun rolled his eyes before he threw his head back, “I’m trying to tell you that I care about you and that I want to keep you safe but you’re focusing on the stupid egg. Beomgyu, can you figure out your prioriti—”

“No, it’s hatching ,” Beomgyu looked down at the newly formed cracks on the egg. He held the egg up for Yeonjun to see and as it rose in the air, the cracks increased, spreading across the egg. “Do you see that the egg is hatching ?”

“Put it down ,” Yeonjun demanded, “Put the egg down and get over here.” He quickly drew out his sword, pulling it up into a defensive position as he said, “Put the egg down and get behind me, Beomgyu.”

“You’re going to fight the egg?”

“I’m not fighting the egg. We don’t know what’s in it,” Yeonjun said, “Just get behind me, Beomgyu. I’ll keep you safe.”

Beomgyu nodded, gently putting the egg on the ground before he stumbled behind Yeonjun. He placed a hand on Yeonjun’s shoulder as he peered over, trying to see what creature would come out of the egg. He wished it was a chicken because a chicken dinner could be delicious but the egg was too big to be a chicken …what could it have been?

The egg cracked — the shell broke apart, the cracks branched out in every direction. The top of the shell was kicked off, breaking completely as a pale, yellow head popped out. A small scaled creature emerged from the shell. Its big red eyes searched around, blinking wildly as its head moved left and right. It clumsily came out of the shell, stumbling out and breaking the rest of the eggshell when it landed forward. It tried to sit up but its small claws slipped, causing it to fall forward once more. When the creature landed on its face, it looked up and then let out a cry.

Yeonjun held the sword in front of him, preparing to go on the offensive if the creature moved.

“I’m going to pet it,” Beomgyu decided as he walked past Yeonjun.

“Beomgyu!”

“It’s a baby,” Beomgyu said as he walked to the creature. He carefully held his hand out toward it, waiting for the creature to sniff his hand. Once the creature decided it was safe, it climbed into Beomgyu’s hand. The pale yellow creature curled itself into Beomgyu’s palm before its tail snaked around Beomgyu’s wrist. It looked up at Beomgyu with big, bright red eyes and Beomgyu smiled back at it. “Yeonjun, it’s a baby,” Beomgyu said as he held the creature toward Yeonjun, “I normally can’t stand things like this. Like snakes are terrifying and disgusting but like, this one is so …so cute, Yeonjun.”

Yeonjun returned his sword to its sheath as he looked at the creature. He blinked a few times before he finally said, “Beomgyu, I think that’s a dragon.”

“A dragon?”

“Yeah …a dragon,” Yeonjun tilted his head to the side as he took a few steps toward Beomgyu. He cautiously approached him before he slowly reached to pet the dragon’s head. The dragon growled softly, enjoying the touch. “I can’t believe it’s a dragon. I thought they were extinct.”

“Yeah, me too,” Beomgyu admitted as he watched the baby dragon move around in his hands. He grinned at Yeonjun, “I never dreamed that we’d meet a dragon.”

“I remember when my Mother told me that dragons were extinct, I cried so hard,” Yeonjun admitted. He sighed and said, “I wanted to have my own dragon and teach it to fly around the castle. I was so sad when my Mother told me that.”

Beomgyu smiled and nodded, “I was too. I can’t believe we have one now.”

It was about half a day’s worth of travel when Yeonjun realized it. He stared at Beomgyu — his eyes squinted at the younger man, confusion settled into his pupils. Slowly, he opened his mouth to speak but when the words refused to come out right away, he pressed his lips into a thin line. The confusion that initially graced his expression panned into one of annoyance.

“Beomgyu!” Yeonjun finally spoke. He pointed an angry finger at the younger man. “Dragons were rumored to be extinct, remember? They were hunted down to the point that they literally vanished from any of our sights.” He began to dole out a history lesson about these fantastic (and nearly extinct) creatures. Unfortunately, it seemed as though his history lesson had quickly bored Beomgyu. Yeonjun let out a huffed breath before he said, “These were fearsome and terrifying beasts that almost wiped all of humanity out.”

Beomgyu stared blankly at Yeonjun before he shrugged, “Get to your point already, Yeonjun.” He smiled at their baby dragon — the fearsome creature rolled over, cuddled itself around Beomgyu’s leg.

“I am ,” Yeonjun rolled his eyes before he took a sharp breath. He looked at Beomgyu, “ My point is that dragons are known to become these regal and terrifying beasts and you ! You are naming this one after a snack!!”

“He chose his own name, Yeonjun,” Beomgyu lifted the chubby, baby dragon toward Yeonjun. He beamed, “I asked him if he wanted to be named something scary like Skullcrusher or Megadeath but …,” at the mention of those names, the dragon cowered in Beomgyu’s hands. Beomgyu brought the dragon closer to his chest, letting it nuzzle into him safely. “He doesn’t like those names.”

“ Tteokbokki ,” Yeonjun said the word as he glared at Beomgyu, “You let it choose to be called Tteokbok—,” Yeonjun couldn’t get the last syllable out; the baby dragon rushed out of Beomgyu’s hands and flew right into Yeonjun’s — it may have been a baby, but it knew the sounds of its name.

“ See , he likes that name,” Beomgyu smiled as he watched the dragon settle itself upon Yeonjun’s shoulder.

Yeonjun frowned.

“Don’t make that face,” Beomgyu laughed as he walked over. He held his hands out; the dragon flittered from Yeonjun’s shoulder and into Beomgyu’s hands. “You can’t be mean to him anymore. Our son isn’t goin—”

“ Our son?” Yeonjun stared at Beomgyu.

“Yes, our son,” Beomgyu placed a hand over the dragon’s ears (well, what he assumed were the dragon’s ears). He shot a glare at Yeonjun as he harshly whispered, “First, you don’t like his chosen name and now , you’re acting like we didn’t just watch him hatch out of the egg a few minutes ago. Tteokbokki is our son now. You need to apologize to him.”

Yeonjun stared at Beomgyu, bewildered at this situation. A little over ten days ago, he embarked on this Quest to break the Curse that had ravaged his Kingdom …never did he expect to become a new parent to a dragon named Tteokbokki. Despite his annoyance, when he stole a glance at Beomgyu, who was now coddling their ferocious baby dragon and singing a lullaby, Yeonjun decided that it wasn't that bad. He stepped forward, standing before Beomgyu and Tteokbokki as he said, “I’m sorry, Tteokbokki. It’s a good name and you will be a good dragon.”

“See,” Beomgyu grinned at Yeonjun, “It wasn’t that bad, right?”

“Yeah,” Yeonjun nodded and admitted, “A lot of things are actually pretty good. At least, with you.”

“Oh …,” Beomgyu cleared his throat and nodded, “Yeah, I like being with you.”

“Me too, Beomgyu.”

The next few days went by in haste — Beomgyu had lost track of how long they had been in the Forest. Although the days started to blend together in snowy memory, Beomgyu didn’t seem to mind. There was a Quest, of course. He never forgot that they needed to break the Curse …but was it really a Curse if he got to meet Yeonjun because of it? He looked ahead of him, catching Yeonjun raising their baby dragon with both hands in the air (he swore that all dragons could breathe fire and that he could help Tteokbokki learn to breathe fire). Beomgyu smiled, laughing at the new childlike side of the Prince of the West. 

“That’s enough of a flight lesson,” Beomgyu called out as he unfolded the Map again. He called for Yeonjun to come over so they could look over the path. Beomgyu traced his finger along the moving lines on the Map as he said, “It says that we’re supposed to go through here — it’s an old swamp. We could go around it but I think it might be faster if we go through it. If you look at the map, it looks like this might be a faster route?” He paused, tilting his head to the side as he said, “The Map keeps guiding us to the Hollow of the Kings. I think that’s where you’re supposed to break the Curse.”

Beomgyu looked up from the Map. His face scrunched into disgust as he looked at the swamp in front of them — there was so much mud bubbling up. Old decaying trees and their dead leaves mapped across the skyline. The scent was worse than the image. It brought Beomgyu back to those mushrooms from more than a week ago. His lips twisted in annoyance.

Yeonjun’s eyes sharpened as he nodded slowly. The playful aura shuffled away from him — Tteokbokki fluttered away from Yeonjun and nestled himself against Beomgyu’s shoulder. “Yeah, got to break the Curse,” Yeonjun frowned as he nodded, “I hope the Prince of the East makes it there in time.”

Beomgyu’s ears perked up at the mention. Up until this moment, he had forgotten that he was also needed to break the Curse. If Beomgyu was honest, he had gotten very distracted these past few days. Initially, he assumed that he needed to be cunning to get the truth out of Yeonjun but now, he wondered … “Yeonjun, how are you going to break the Curse?” Beomgyu decided to simply just ask.

“There’s a Prophecy,” Yeonjun answered as he walked ahead of Beomgyu. That original intensity returned to his eyes as he explained, “It’s one that most people barely remember. Even the texts from my Kingdom needed to be translated into our current language. I don’t know if the Kingdom of the East had the same information, but the Prophecy dates back to when the Curse first began. You know it right?”

“I know how the Curse started,” Beomgyu admitted. Everyone knew how the Curse started — two greedy Kings decided that they would conquer the Forest, taking it for their own but they met each other in the Hollow. The meeting drew out a battle that filled the Forest with blood and death. The Forest had been so drenched with the inhuman brutality of their respective Kingdoms that the Spirit of the Forest drew a Curse out to punish the Kings for their greed — the Kings disappeared and their Kingdoms were plunged in a Frosted Darkness for centuries. Beomgyu sighed, “Everyone knows that part but the Prophecy is a little harder to decipher. Most of the information about it in the East is gone.”

“Gone?” Yeonjun rose an eyebrow, “All of the information?”

“The Queen of the East made a law not that forbade any mention of the Curse or the Prophecy in the Kingdom,” Beomgyu explained. While Beomgyu never thought much too much about that, saying it out loud made him realize how ignorant it sounded — a Queen preventing talk of a Curse that affected the Kingdom. Though, now that he knew that he was directly involved in breaking the Curse, he knew why his Mother made the decision that she did. He pressed his lips together as he revealed, “She wanted to protect the Prince.”

“By letting the Curse run rampant?”

Beomgyu frowned. He knew his Mother’s actions had been wrong but he understood why — a Mother’s love for her son had been the reason she had been blinded and why she had focused solely on distractions. When the decision came down to saving the Kingdom or her son, she chose Beomgyu — it was ridiculously irresponsible for a Queen to make that choice, but this was a decision that a Mother would stand by. 

“She wanted to protect her son,” Beomgyu said, “She had already lost a husband and a son to the Frosted Darkness. She just wanted to keep her son safe …it wasn’t a decision made by a Queen, it was one made by a Mother.” He paused and looked over at Yeonjun, “Does the Prophecy say anything that would make the Queen of the East worry about her son?”

Yeonjun frowned. His brows furrowed as he walked ahead. “If the Prince of the East doesn’t know …,” Yeonjun sighed, “I don’t fee—he needs to know before we meet at the Hollow.” He started to mumble, taking long strides ahead of them. Although Beomgyu called out a few times, Yeonjun did not pay attention; the Prince of the West kept walking forward. Beomgyu wondered how Yeonjun was able to walk across this muddied swamp with no problem. 

Beomgyu exchanged a look with Tteokbokki before he chased after Yeonjun. He ran after Yeonjun — he paused for a second, raising an eyebrow as he realized that the ground started feeling strange. He shook his head, continuing to chase after Yeonjun …he stopped, staring at the ground. Why was the ground so soft? 

“Yeonjun …,” Beomgyu called out.

Yeonjun, however, did not respond. The Prince of the West continued to walk ahead. His footsteps were light as he sped through the swampy ground. He was ranting about something that Beomgyu could not hear. Well, Beomgyu couldn’t even attempt to try and listen.

“YEONJUN!” Beomgyu shouted this time. He didn’t give Yeonjun the chance to ignore him; he repeated the Prince’s name, “YEONJUN!”

“What?” Yeonjun finally turned around, realizing that Beomgyu had been steps behind him. “Why are you still back there?”

“I can’t move.”

“Stop fooling around, Beomgyu,” Yeonjun responded, “You said that we were getting close to the Hollow. Let’s go.”

“No, I really can’t move,” Beomgyu said as his face twisted in disgust. His brows knitted together as his expression turned into a frustrated grimace. “I can’t move my feet,” he said, “It feels like I’m sin—I S THIS QUICKSAND? ”

“First of all, wrong. That's not quicksand. You’re standing in mud,” Yeonjun corrected as he said, “We were walking through swamp mu—stop panicking.”

“You need to stop saying that because everything you do , things keep getting worse,” Beomgyu tried to lift his feet, but despite the strength, he put in, the mud dragged his leg deeper in. The more he struggled, the more that he sunk into the muddied ground — Beomgyu hated this feeling. The mud around him was fine …as long as it didn’t touch him or get on him. Clearly, that was not the case and with Yeonjun’s instruction to stop panicking , Beomgyu wondered if this would be his finale. He wouldn’t even see the stupid Curse get broken …

Maybe, they should have taken the longer path instead of trying to go through the shortest one. Shortcuts in Magic never worked well for anyone. No matter who was casting the spell — Magic, despite what most of the Royalty believed, was a live, ever-shifting power that always made sure to be known.  

Beomgyu swore that he could hear Yeonjun say ‘ Don’t panic ’ again — Yeonjun really needed to work on his comforting technique because saying that phrase does nothing to calm anyone down. He swore he heard Yeonjun instruct him to stop moving around, but as he sank deeper into the mud, Beomgyu immediately began to flail around. He thrashed about, kicked his legs around, and waved his arms around… but all that did was cause him to drop deeper into the mud.

“ Beomgyu!”

Yeonjun’s voice sounded so panicked. Was this the first time that Beomgyu heard him panic? He couldn’t remember anymore. Beomgyu raised his head, straining to keep it above the mud. Yeonjun might have said that this wasn’t quicksand, but regardless of what it was, Beomgyu was sinking further and further. His face twisted in pain — the mud was sticking to every part of his body, dragging him further and further down. While he tried his best to keep his head above it, he couldn’t feel the bottom; the mud felt as though it was tightening around him and… Beomgyu took in a deep breath, closing his eyes as he sank below the mud.

What a sorry way to go .

“Beomgyu!” Yeonjun shouted. He normally tried his best to keep calm but he didn’t do anything to mask it. Not when Beomgyu disappeared. This didn’t make sense. This wasn’t quicksand… but normal rules did not apply, not in a Cursed Forest. He tried to rush toward Beomgyu, but as he tried to run through the swamp, he felt the cling of mud. Each step took more effort than previously — they really shouldn’t have attempted to go through the swamp, they should have just taken the safer route.

Yeonjun’s eyes widened as he watched Beomgyu sink into the mud. The man disappeared completely… just the final bubble of air before it was gone.

“No!!”

Yeonjun scrambled over, falling onto his knees as he tried to search for where Beomgyu was. Nothing . He couldn’t see anything. He reached a hand through the mud and he couldn’t even feel him. How far down did Beomgyu sink? Yeonjun got up from his knees. He walked over to the slightly higher ground, tossing his gear onto it.

Tteokbokki let out a cry, a scream for Beomgyu. The dragon circled around where Beomgyu had sunk into, fluttering around as it cried.

“I know, I know,” Yeonjun said as he fished through his bag. He opened the pockets, pulling out the rope. “Don’t worry, Tteokbokki. We’re going to get Beomgyu back. I can’t lose him,” Yeonjun tied one end of the rope around a nearby tree trunk, tightening it as securely as he could. Then, he tied the rope around his waist. “We can’t lose him, Tteokbokki. We can’t.”

Yeonjun used where Tteokbokki circled as a marker. He dropped his sword to the side, letting it hit the ground; he removed his armor and anything else that could add weight. With a deep breath, Yeonjun dove into the mud. He could hear Tteokbokki crying and he tried his best to reassure the baby, “I’ll find him. Just wait, Tteokbokki.” His hands palmed around, trying to reach to feel for Beomgyu. “Where are you?” Yeonjun grumbled as he felt around for Beomgyu. He was too far up. Beomgyu might have sunk too deep. “Okay,” he said, “I’m going to find you, you stupid thief.”

With a deep breath, Yeonjun closed his eyes and went under the mud.

The mud was so thick that even if Yeonjun wanted to open his eyes, he wouldn’t be able to see beyond what was in front of him. All he could do was feel around — he stretched his arms ahead of him, trying to grab at anything. He palmed around… he reached, grabbed, and tried his touch something. His lungs tightened, reminding him that he needed to breathe. Just then, he felt a hand — Beomgyu.

Yeonjun wrapped his hand around Beomgyu’s hand, he pulled as hard as he could. His fingers tightly wrapped around Beomgyu’s, not willing to let him go. With one hand around Beomgyu’s hand, he reached for the rope with the other hand. He pulled Beomgyu as close to him as he could before he started to pull along the rope. Yeonjun had been trained for many years — he was thankful for that preparation as he relied on his strength to pull them up.

Yeonjun was going to save Beomgyu.

No matter what.

Once they broke through the surface, Yeonjun gasped for air. He flailed his arms, trying to pull Beomgyu above the mud. Tteokbokki let out a loud, excited cry when they came out. The baby dragon flew above them, using its claws to grab at Beomgyu — despite Tteokbokki’s attempt to help, the baby dragon’s strength was nowhere near a full-size dragon’s. Yeonjun appreciated the dragon’s attempt, of course. He was sure that if he told Beomgyu about it, he would smile.

When they reached solid ground, Yeonjun laid Beomgyu on his back. Though he thought that Beomgyu would wake up right away, he didn’t and that shook him to his core. Yeonjun reached for Beomgyu, shaking him slightly. “Beomgyu,” Yeonjun called out, shaking Beomgyu with more intensity. “Get up,” he said, “Get up, Beomgyu. You have to get up.” Panic slowly crawled into his voice as he shook Beomgyu more. Tteokbokki must have heard it because the dragon crawled beside Yeonjun; the baby dragon bit at Beomgyu’s hands, nibbling at it to try and wake Beomgyu up.

“Come on,” Yeonjun said, trying his best to wake Beomgyu up but nothing. When Beomgyu didn’t stir, Yeonjun reached for his face. He placed his hands on Beomgyu’s cheeks, turning his head left and right. “Get up, Beomgyu. You can’t die,” Yeonjun felt the panic come into him, seizing him as it forced itself out through tears. His vision blurred the more he looked at Beomgyu. This was wrong. Beomgyu shouldn’t be unmoving like this — Beomgyu should be loud and talkative and teasing him; Beomgyu should be singing some made-up song about how stupid Yeonjun’s stone pot was or laughing while he played with Tteokbokki. “Please, Beomgyu,” Yeonjun pleaded, “Please wake up. You can’t die. Not like this. I forbid you to die. Do you hear me? I forbid you to die. You are not allowed to die on me. You said that we don’t leave each other behind and if you die, you’re leaving me behind. Don’t do that, don’t leave me, you stupid thief. I need you, Beomgyu.”

At this point, Yeonjun knew that he was crying and he didn’t care anymore. Beomgyu wasn’t supposed to die. Not like this. They didn’t even break the Curse yet. Yeonjun didn’t even get to co—” Get up,” Yeonjun whispered as he brought his fingers to Beomgyu’s cheeks. He brushed aside the mud, trying to clean it off Beomgyu’s face. “Get up, Beomgyu. Please. Please get up, I need you with me.”

Despite how much he pleaded, Beomgyu didn’t move.

“Damn it,” Yeonjun whispered as he closed his eyes. Why was he so useless. Why couldn’t he save Beomgyu? Why couldn’t he save the person he wanted to? “Damn it.”

Tteokbokki cried out.

“I know,” Yeonjun frowned, “I know. Stop crying.”

Tteokbokki cried out again but this time, it was accompanied by something else: Beomgyu’s cough.

“You’re alive,” Yeonjun cried out, immediately hugging Beomgyu. “You’re alive, you stupid, stupid thief.”

"Yeonjun…,” Beomgyu coughed out painfully as he said, “You’re… crushing… me.”

Yeonjun let go of Beomgyu, jumping back as he did. The temperature of his cheeks tinged them red; he was glad that his face had been covered with mud to mask it. He cleared his throat as he said, “I’m glad you’re alive, Beomgyu.” He looked away, trying to avoid eye contact as he said, “I still need you to guide me to the King’s Hollow. So, I needed you to still be alive.”

After Beomgyu caught his breath, a smug look came onto his expression as he nodded slowly, “Uh-huh. You were worried about me, Yeonjun.”

“I wasn’t worried about you,” Yeonjun shook his head, turning away from Beomgyu as he said, “It wa—it was Tteokbokki. That dragon was worried about you. I’m pretty sure it thinks your its mother. So, it was crying a lot. It really panicked, you know?”

“Sure,” Beomgyu smiled as he looked at Yeonjun, “You know, you can just admit that you worried, Yeonjun.”

Yeonjun glared at him but that expression didn’t last for long. He sighed and said, “I’m glad you’re okay, Beomgyu.”

“Me too.” Beomgyu smiled at Yeonjun. Then let out a deep breath as he said, “I want to take a bath. I have mud in places that mud should not be in. This is awful. This is disgusting.”

Yeonjun laughed as he nodded — this wasn’t a Quest he wanted to complete without Beomgyu.

“I can’t believe this,” Beomgyu placed his hands on his cheeks as he walked behind Yeonjun. He squished his face together as he continued to whine, “I cannot believe you allowed me to be covered in mud, Yeonjun. You should have acted faster and saved me before I drowned in mud. Actually, I can’t believe you had me sleep while I was covered in mud. Do you know how disgusting this is?”

Yeonjun shrugged as he continued to walk ahead of Beomgyu.

“Don’t shrug at me,” Beomgyu stopped at his spot. He gaped at the back of Yeonjun’s head, glaring at him as he said, “You could have at least let me take a bath before you let me sleep or something.”

Yeonjun turned around to face Beomgyu — it was unfair that Yeonjun was also covered in mud, but he looked fine. He let out a sigh as he told Beomgyu, “If I was Magic, I would totally let you take a bath. Unfortunately, I don’t have the abilities to summon a bathtub out of nowhere, Beomgyu.” He sighed and said, “Honestly, I would love to have a bath too. I’d even take it if it would rain again, you know?”

“If you say it loud enough, it might just happen,” Beomgyu laughed, “You know how this Forest works.” Although he suggested that, Beomgyu knew that the Forest was too unpredictable. Beomgyu was starting to wonder if the Forest did these things as a way to push them in a particular direction. He trailed behind Yeonjun, following a few steps behind him as he wondered. What did the Forest have planned for them?

“Beomgyu,” Yeonjun was the one who stopped this time. He raised his head up, looking around before he asked, “Do you hear that?”

“Oh, please don’t say that,” Beomgyu whined as he rolled his head back. He closed his eyes and whined, “Every single time that you say that a monster comes our way and tries to eat us. I really don’t want to be eaten by a monster today. I wouldn’t even be appetizing. I’m covered in mu—”

“It’s water,” Yeonjun grinned, “It’s running water.”

“Wha—,” before Beomgyu could finish asking his question, Yeonjun ran ahead of him. Tteokbokki flew after him chasing Yeonjun with all of its might. A loud frustrated cry came out of Beomgyu as he watched the Prince of the West run. He didn’t want to run; he didn’t want to follow Yeonjun into some unknown part of this stupid, Cursed Forest. Beomgyu wanted to drink wine while he took a bath…but no, he was supposed to break this stupid Curse. “Why is it always like this?” Beomgyu continued to whine as he began to trudge after Yeonjun.

“It’s a waterfall,” Yeonjun grinned as he dropped the bags beside him, letting them fall with a loud thud. He sighed as he put a hand on Beomgyu’s shoulder, “You said you wanted a bath.”

“Like a bath with a bathtub,” Beomgyu grumbled, “This is literally a waterfall with a lake.” He watched as Tteokbokki jumped into the lake and swam around. He couldn’t keep a serious expression as he watched the baby dragon swim around. “At least, Tteokbok—,” Beomgyu turned to look at Yeonjun. His eyes widened as his cheeks turned bright red. “Wh—what are you doing? Yeonjun, what the hell are you doing?”

“I’m going to swim in the lake,” Yeonjun said as he stripped off his armor. He unbuttoned his shirt, letting it fall to the ground as he grinned toward Beomgyu, “I know we’re on a Quest to break the Curse, but I think we’ve gone through enough life-threatening situations that we can take a few minutes to enjoy the lake.” He took his pants off, stripping all the way down to his undergarments before he took a final look at Beomgyu. “Tteokbokki’s got the right idea,” he said before he ran toward the lake, “Hurry up, Beomgyu.”

“Yeonjun!” Beomgyu said, suddenly feeling overly nervous. He knew his face was beat red as he watched Yeonjun run into the lake. This was unfair. He couldn’t take his eyes off the Prince of West — the way the water rolled off of him, the way his hair looked slicked back with water, or—Beomgyu hated this. This was just unfair. He frowned as he said, “We don’t have time for this, Yeonjun. We have to break the Curse! What if there are monsters in the la—”

“Beomgyu, if you don’t get in the water, I going to drag you in here with my bare hands,” Yeonjun threatened from the water.

“No, don’t go near me with you bare anything,” Beomgyu called out. “I’ll come in, I’ll come in. Just stay away from me.”

Beomgyu turned around as he started to unbutton his clothes, removing his shirt slightly as he tried to give himself a pep talk. “It’s okay, Beomgyu,” he whispered to himself as he slowly shed his clothes off. “You’re just going for a swim with your friend… your stupidly, good-looking, really fit friend but it’s okay. It’s just a friendly swim. He doesn’t think of you like that. So, you shouldn’t think of him like that.”

“Beomgyu!”

“I’m coming!” Beomgyu shouted at Yeonjun.

Although Beomgyu had been finicky about the situation, the moment that he sank into the water, he had to admit that Yeonjun had been right. The water felt so warm and welcoming. He couldn’t help but smile as he swam in the lake water. There was no hiding how happy he was that the mud was shedding off of him.

“Hey,” Yeonjun called out from the center of the lake. “Beomgyu, come here.”

“What?” Beomgyu asked as he turned around.

“Come here,” Yeonjun called for Beomgyu again, “Seriously, come here.”

Beomgyu was hesitant as he swam closer to Yeonjun. He wanted to keep their distance — most of the things that Beomgyu wanted had always been just an arm’s length away. It would be better to keep Yeonjun that far away from him. “Is this okay?”

“No,” Yeonjun shook his head, swimming toward Beomgyu, “Come here.”

With that final demand, they were both swimming in front of each other. Beomgyu did his best to stay afloat as he looked on at Yeonjun. A nervous smile played on Beomgyu’s lips as his eyes met with Yeonjun’s.

“Hi,” was all that Beomgyu managed to say.

“Hi,” Yeonjun smiled back at him. There was something in Yeonjun’s smile, like he wanted to say something to Beomgyu but couldn’t. Instead, he reached a hand out for Beomgyu, “Do you trust me, Beomgyu?”

Beomgyu stared at Yeonjun’s hand, then at Yeonjun. This wasn’t the first time that Yeonjun had asked him but despite that, Beomgyu’s answer was the same. He took Yeonjun’s hand into his and nodded, “Of course, I trust you, Yeonjun.”

“Okay,” Yeonjun smiled, “I trust you too.”

As Beomgyu swam under with Yeonjun, his mind traveled to one thought: he needed to tell Yeonjun the truth.

Beomgyu stared at his hand — he swam with Yeonjun for at least two hours and the entire time, they had held hands. He had never even held hands with a Princess before, but he held Yeonjun’s hand. All his mind could do was tell him that it felt right. Their hands had fit together nicely…he didn’t want to let go of Yeonjun’s hand.

“This place is amazing,” Yeonjun said as he walked over to where Beomgyu sat. “For a Cursed Forest, the lake situation here is pretty good,” he grinned as he took a seat next to Beomgyu. “Maybe after we break the Curse, we could meet here once in awhile, you know? We could hang out with Tteokbokki on weekends and just enjoy the lake. Imagine having summer here?”

“That would be incredible,” Beomgyu laughed as he looked at Yeonjun. They were a lot closer than he expected, but with Yeonjun, Beomgyu never minded the closeness. He felt Yeonjun’s arm brush against his… and he felt their fingers trail against each other. Yeonjun’s fingers reached for his, brushed against them until they managed to lace their fingers together. Their hands laced together, holding each other gently.

“I know we’re on this Quest to break the Curse,” Beomgyu said as he leaned against Yeonjun, resting his head on the Prince’s shoulder, “But would you believe me if I told you that these have been the best days of my life?”

“Really?” Yeonjun smiled at him, nodding in slow agreement. He looked at Beomgyu, “Hey, what’s with that face? Are you okay?”

“Honestly, I was thinking about my Mother and my life before all of this,” Beomgyu watched the waterfall, “I wonder what she would say if she could see me now.”

“I think she’d be impressed,” Yeonjun teased, “You’re literally holding hands with the Prince of the West. Not everyone can mix with Royalty like this.”

“Maybe,” Beomgyu smiled and said, “I wish we met earlier”

“Me too. I wish we had more time.”

“Maybe if we met earlier, we could have been …,” Beomgyu knew what he wanted to say. Perhaps Yeonjun did too. “Maybe we would have hung out together more.”

“I don’t know. I don’t think I would have hung out with a thief,” Yeonjun laughed, “I mean, under these circumstances and getting to know you, sure. But if it were earlier …”

“Well, if we met earlier, maybe I wouldn’t have been a thief,” Beomgyu laughed, “Maybe I could have been a Prince?”

Yeonjun shrugged, “I guess dreaming is free.”

“Excuse me, I am be-love-ed ,” Beomgyu laughed, “I will have you know that everyone says I have a very regal jawline. Most people wish they could have my Princely jawline.”

“Being a Prince is vastly overrated,” Yeonjun said with a frown. “It’s not as great as you’d think it was.” He paused for a moment, inspecting Beomgyu’s expression before he pressed on, “It still looks like you’ve got something on your mind, Beomgyu.”

“All my life, I felt as though I was playing a role that was assigned to me.” He pressed his lips together into a thin line as he took in a breath. “My Mother had always wanted me to be a certain person. She wanted to be someone that wasn’t me and that’s all she could see. I know she meant well, most Mothers do… but it always felt as though she couldn’t see me. Like, she didn’t want to see the real me.” He bit the side of his cheek as he frowned. His eyes moved from the waterfall to the ground as he continued, “And then I came here to try and break the Curse. I think a part of me thought that if I break this Curse, my Mother would finally see me. See the real me.”

“For what it’s worth,” Yeonjun said, “I see you, Beomgyu. I see you and I like you.”

Beomgyu laughed, “Yeah, up until I annoy you and drive you crazy. Then, you’ll snap at me.”

“No, I’m serious, Beomgyu. I like you,” Yeonjun said, “I like more than anyone I’ve ever met." He sighed and said, “I guess, I get what you mean about playing a role. I’ve been training for this my entire life and I never thought much about it… I was so busy being the Prince of the West that I didn’t realize how much I missed out on.” His lips turned up, tugged into a small smile as he said, “But somehow, even though we had a rough start, getting to spend all of this time with you… having someone to share things with, to experience things with? It’s nice. I want it. I want this happiness, you know.”

Beomgyu looked at Yeonjun. There was a seriousness in Yeonjun’s eyes, a longing that Beomgyu understood. “Me too,” Beomgyu agreed, “Maybe we could just walk away from the Curse and just raise Tteokbokki here.”

“I wish it was that easy,” Yeonjun said.

“I mean, we could. We could probably have a few good days between us before everything gets too Frosty,” Beomgyu teased but he saw Yeonjun’s expression. He already knew. He nodded and said, “We need to break the Curse… we’re so close.”

“Exactly,” Yeonjun nodded.

“Yeonjun,” Beomgyu spoke softly as he started, “I… you—”

“What is it?”

“I have something to tell you and I don’t know how you’ll take it,” Beomgyu started slowly. He paused for a moment as he stole a glance at Yeonjun. The Prince of the West’s confused expression pleaded for Beomgyu to continue. 

“You know you can tell me anything,” Yeonjun said.

Except, Beomgyu knew that this would change everything. He remained quiet, uncertain if he should continue but if he wanted Yeonjun to truly see him, he would need to, right? If this thing between them were to develop, shouldn’t he tell Yeonjun the truth? Beomgyu closed his eyes for a moment before he lifted his head off Yeonjun’s shoulder. He slowly untangled their fingers, letting go of Yeonjun’s hand.

“Okay, so you know how I said I was a thief,” Beomgyu spoke slowly, “I’m not a thief …I didn’t get banished from the Kingdom of the East. I left on a Quest to break the Curse because I am a Prince …I am the Prince of the East. I wa—”

“Get away from me,” Yeonjun shouted as he stood up from where he sat. The softness expression had changed. Anger seethed in his eyes as he drew his sword, aiming at Beomgyu. “I shouldn’t have trusted you, Yeonjun said as his eyes moved around, shifting from anger to something …frustration, sadness? He shook his head, “I should have known. I should have fucking known. Was this your plan all along? To trick me like this? Get me to trust you and then you’ll betray me at the end?”

“No, no,” Beomgyu said, “I never wanted to betray you. That’s why I’m telling you this now because I want you to know the truth. Because I trust you, Yeonjun.”

“I should have never trusted someone from the East,” Yeonjun spat out as he glared at Beomgyu, “So conniving, so sneaky. I should have known that. Were you even leading me to the Hollow? Or were you trying to get  me lost on purpose?”

“No,” Beomgyu stood up as he tried to defend him, “I would never do that. I may have lied about not being the Prince but everything else was the tru—”

“Did you lie about being the Prince so you could fulfill the Prophecy?” Yeonjun snapped at him. He glared at Beomgyu, “Did you do that so that I could let my guard down and you could be the one to finish the Prophecy?”

“I don’t even know what the Prophecy is?”

Yeonjun closed his eyes for a moment, letting his frustration surge through him as he looked at Beomgyu. His eyes weren’t angry anymore. There was a sadness in them as he finally explained the Prophecy. “The only way this stupid Curse will be lifted is if we fulfill the Prophecy. That’s why my Mother didn’t want me to go here,” Yeonjun said as he frowned, “The Prophecy states that ‘ The Prince of the East and the Prince of the West must meet in the center of the Forest. Upon meeting in the Hollow they will realize, two Kingdoms will enter but only one will rise .’”

Beomgyu looked at Yeonjun — his heart dropped at the revelation of the Prophecy. He tried to open his mouth, tried to force words out but nothing came. He frowned, his vision started to blur as he looked up at Yeonjun. It didn’t make sense. “What?” His voice cracked as he spoke.

“It means that the next time that I see you, I will be trying to kill you,” Yeonjun said, firmly keeping his eye contact with Beomgyu. He sighed, frowning as he said, “Why couldn’t you have just stayed as the thief, Beomgyu? Why did you have to be the Prince of the East?”

Beomgyu closed his eyes tightly, letting the tears force themselves out. “I …I didn’t know. I didn’t know what the Prophecy was …,” he felt his voice shake, tremble as he spoke, “I’m sorry. I wish I wasn’t the Prince.”

Yeonjun lowered his sword, “You really didn’t know?”

“No, I told you. My Mother made it forbidden for anything about the Curse or the Prophecy in our Kingdom,” Beomgyu bit his lip, trying to stop himself from crying. “I would never want to fight you.”

“We have to,” Yeonjun said as he withdrew his blade. He returned it into its sheath as he looked at Beomgyu, “I will meet you at the Hollow tomorrow, Beomgyu. Until then, stay away from me.”

“Y-you can’t just leave,” Beomgyu stammered, “It’s too dangerous for us to travel alone. We have to talk about this. You can’t just deci—”

“I will see you at the Hollow tomorrow.”

“It’s okay, Tteokbokki,” Beomgyu pulled the dragon toward him, giving it a hug before he kissed the top of its head. “It’s not your fault,” he reassured the dragon as he walked ahead, “You didn’t do anything wrong, okay? Yeonjun just needs to go on his own for a little bit.” 

It was quiet now. Quieter than Beomgyu thought that it could ever be. How could one person make that much of a difference?

Beomgyu tried to keep his cool, but the truth was, he hated this. He hated all of it.

“You know, it’s not fair,” Beomgyu said as he petted Tteokbokki gently. The dragon looked up at him — big, bright red eyes just blinking up. He wasn’t sure if Tteokbokki could understand the words, but he was certain that the dragon could understand his feelings. He closed his eyes, letting the tears fall as he continued, “Maybe this is why I’m not supposed to tell the truth? Maybe I should just never be honest about who I am …god, I am so stupid.”

Tteokbokki stayed in Beomgyu’s arms. It didn’t know what to do, just that it wanted to make sure that Beomgyu was okay. It cuddled against Beomgyu, making small noises as it did its best. 

Beomgyu carried the dragon, walking toward the Hollow of the Kings. He wondered if Yeonjun had already gotten there …he hoped that the other Prince hadn’t gotten lost in the dark. The Forest moved so frequently that without the Map, he was certain that Yeonjun could have gotten lost …hopefully, Yeonjun didn’t run into any monsters. Beomgyu frowned — why was he still thinking about Yeonjun ? 

“Don’t be stupid,” Beomgyu said as he walked on, “Yeonjun doesn’t care about me. Why should I keep thinking about him?”

Tteokbokki looked at Beomgyu curiously before it let out a sigh. 

“Oh, don’t sigh at me,” Beomgyu shook his head, “I do not—it’s not like that, Tteokbokki.” He frowned but the dragon’s expression caused him to relax his expression. “I know, I should have been honest from the start but you weren’t there. He probably would have stabbed me if I sa—don’t make that face at me, Tteokbokki. It’s hard enough that he hates me again. I don’t need you to look so sad.” He lifted the dragon, looking into its eyes as he said, “We don’t need him, okay? You and me? We’re strong, independent and we both have very regal jawlines. You’re starting to grow into a nice one,” Beomgyu chuckled as he petted Tteokbokki’s chin. 

As Beomgyu continued on through the Forest, he heard a skittering sound around him — traveling with Yeonjun these past few days had taught him to keep alert, especially for sounds that were out of the ordinary. He was certain that if Yeonjun had been here, the Prince of the West would have instructed him to ‘ Stay calm, I’m here ’. Except, he wasn’t and Beomgyu could handle his own —

“I’m armed,” Beomgyu warned as he drew out his sword, “I don’t know what you’re aiming to do, but I am armed. I’m having the worst 24 hours. So, if you try and attack me, I will not hesitate to kill you.”

“ Ah, a Princeling ,” the voice creaked out. A loud skittering of steps surrounded Beomgyu — this creature was in the trees. “ Arachne is quite pleased to see a Princeling in the Forest. The Forest had been praying for the arrival of the Princelings. We hear its cries .”

“The Forest wanted me here?” Beomgyu asked, gripping the hilt of his blade tightly. He turned, trying to listen to the creature. “You know what the Forest wants?”

“ Of course, Arachne knows what the Forest wants. Arachne was here when the Forest was created ,” the creature said before it crawled out of the trees. It spun its web, creating a safety line as it slowly descended in front of Beomgyu. It was a spider that was the size of Beomgyu. Except it didn’t look fully like a spider; the spider’s face was that of an angelic creature — soft, round cheeks whose rosiness matched her lips, doe-like eyes that made all of her words believable. 

Beomgyu held his sword up, keeping the distance between them as he said, “If you were here when the Forest was created, then you must know of another way to break the Curse.”

“Arachne knows many things, young Princeling,” the spider spoke as it circled around Beomgyu, “Arachne knows that your heart wants a different route. Perhaps your heart is in line with what the Forest wants.” She circled around Beomgyu a few times before she paused in front of him. Her smile turned sinister as she spoke, “Arachne believes that no matter what the Princeling does, he will not be able to win unless he is true to himself. The deepest Magic only works with honesty.”

“Honesty?” Beomgyu scoffed at the mention, “Every time that I’m honest, something goes wrong. No one wants my honesty.”

“Then Arachne will enjoy the Princeling,” the spider hissed at him as her limbs flickered in the air. She tightened the webbing she had spun around him, pulling it with as much strength as she could muster. The webbing constricted Beomgyu — his grip around his sword went lax causing the blade to hit the ground. “Fears make you taste better, Princeling of the East.”

Tteokbokki flew up to Beomgyu, shielding him from the spider. The baby dragon growled but its voice was so soft — the spider reached for it, but Tteokbokki bit down on the spider. Arachne hissed, tossing Tteokbokki aside before it shot out a web around the dragon. 

“I will eat you later, dragon,” she decided, “I haven’t eaten a Princeling in so long. The sorrow in this one smells so delicious.”

There was temptation in letting this monster eat him — Beomgyu thought about how it could have been so easy to succumb to this. Yet …he could hear it. Tteokbokki cried out loudly,  trying to untangle itself from the web. If Tteokbokki was fighting this hard, then Beomgyu would too. 

“Let me go,” Beomgyu shouted as he tried to wriggle out of the web. He twisted and turned; he kicked his legs out, trying to break the web. Each time that he broke through the web, Arachne would spin out more. Beomgyu would break out from the webs and more would be spun around him — it was a repetitive, tiring cycle that tempted Beomgyu to give up. However, when he was ready to give up, he could hear Tteokbokki cry out and roar.

“Give it up, Princeling,” Arachne whispered in his ear, trickling through him. She returned in front of Beomgyu. Her smile twisted her face, painted with sinister malice as her eyes scanned over Beomgyu. “A scared Princeling will taste the be—”

“ Get your hands off of him! ”

He came back.

Before Beomgyu could raise his head, the webbing that encased him was cut. He fell to the ground, landing ungracefully on his back. Without hesitation, he scrambled for his sword — quickly picking it up and holding it at the ready. When Beomgyu turned to face Yeonjun, the other Prince gave him no greeting. Despite the coldness from Yeonjun, Beomgyu was glad to know that the Prince of the West was doing fine …perhaps Yeonjun wasn’t as angry with him as Beomgyu expected. He did come back and that was a good sign, after all.

“Get Tteokbokki and get out of here,” Yeonjun said, “I’ll take care of this spider.”

“I–we shou–,” Beomgyu tripped over his own words as he tried to respond. He bit his bottom lip and nodded, “Okay.” He had never been docile when it came to Yeonjun but the air between them remained tense. He could figure this out later. For now, the most important thing was to get Tteokbokki out of there.

Beomgyu’s blade sliced through the webbing that held Tteokbokki in place. He carefully cut the baby dragon loose. Though he attempted to hold Tteokbokki, the moment that the dragon was loose, it flew right to Yeonjun’s side. 

It was fearless.

Tteokbokki was less than a week old but the baby dragon was fearless. It did as pleased and held nothing back. Beomgyu blinked a few times as he watched the dragon fly next to Yeonjun, snapping at the spider. Tteokbokki didn’t care about whether or not it could do something, it just acted — there was no hesitation, no thoughts behind, just pure instinct. 

So, why was Beomgyu the one standing still?

Beomgyu was done waiting.

He was done waiting for people to do things for him, to decide for him. Too much time had gone by where he let other people decide what role he was going to play. Beomgyu was done.

While Yeonjun battled with Arachne, one of her limbs twisted behind him — it pulled back before it began to strike at him. At the sudden sound, Yeonjun turned around. He tried to swing his sword to block the attack but he was too slow. He cursed, trying to move aside from the direct attack but he braced himself for impact — but the attack never landed.

Beomgyu’s blade slashed through Arachne’s limb. He put all of his strength through it, making sure that the blade went through completely — Arachne cried in pain, screaming as she drew back from where they stood. Beomgyu smirked as he took the spot beside Yeonjun. 

For a second, the two of them made eye contact. Maybe Beomgyu had wanted to see it, but he could have sworn that there was a smile that tugged at the corner of Yeonjun’s lips.

“There are two Princelings,” Arachne giggled as she skittered up the tree. There was a growing cackle that came from her as she hovered around them, traversing through the trees as she kept her eyes on them. “The Forest will have its goal completed,” she said proudly. The monster began her retreat as she whispered, “I will let the Forest deal with you, Princelings.”

“You came back,” Beomgyu finally said. He watched as Tteokbokki fluttered around Yeonjun before it settled on the Prince’s shoulder. The dragon immediately nuzzled against Yeonjun’s cheek. 

“I had no choice,” Yeonjun frowned.

“What do you mean?”

Yeonjun looked at Beomgyu, almost bewildered at the question. His brows furrowed for a moment as he finally said, “If something kills you before I do, then the Curse doesn’t get broken.”

“Oh …,” Beomgyu nodded. Of course. That was the only reason that Yeonjun would have come back. He should have expected it. “Right, the Curse,” he said as he looked over to Yeonjun, “Regardless, I’m glad you’re okay. We’re glad to see you. Tteokbokki especially.”

Yeonjun petted the dragon gently. In turn, Tteokbokki growled happily at Yeonjun. 

The sweetness in Yeonjun’s expression turned bitter as he looked toward Beomgyu. His eyes narrowed at Beomgyu as he said, “I’ll travel with you to the Hollow. I have to make sure that the only person that gets to kill you is me.” 

“Right,” Beomgyu nodded. His gaze lingered on Yeonjun. That heavy intensity from when they first met had returned — that unbearable weight that had been on Yeonjun’s shoulders when they first met had returned. That’s where they were: back to the beginning.

The entire day passed by with an insufferable silence. Yeonjun had insisted that they make their way to the Hollow. He claimed that they had wasted too much time and that the faster they get to the Hollow, the better it would be for them. The Prince of the West couldn’t even look at Beomgyu. Every time that Beomgyu attempted to start a conversation, Yeonjun would shut it down — they really were back to the very beginning, as if nothing between them ever occurred.

How could a person just choose to ignore everything? — Beomgyu walked behind Yeonjun as he wondered if everything that had happened between them even meant anything to the other Prince. 

“Yeonjun,” Beomgyu called out. Tteokbokki had been flying between them, but the dragon’s fatigue had finally gotten to it. The baby dragon’s wings gave out and it slowly fell. Beomgyu dove forward, catching the dragon safely. He stopped walking as he called out, “Yeonjun. We should stop here. I’m exhausted. Tteokbokki is exhausted — he nearly fell right now.” Yeonjun hadn’t stopped. So, Beomgyu raised his voice this time, “It’s dark and we’re exhausted. Weren’t you the one who said that only a fool would travel in the darkness?”

Yeonjun finally stopped. He turned to face Beomgyu slowly. There was an anger in his expression as he glared at Beomgyu.

“I’m just …saying, we should rest for tonight …,” Beomgyu felt his voice grow quiet under Yeonjun’s glare. He avoid the man’s eyes, looking away from him as he said, “At least, for Tteokbokki. We should take a break …even for a few hours. You can kill me tomorrow.”

“Fine,” Yeonjun said, “We’ll camp here for the night but as soon as the first light of day comes out, we’ll head out to the King’s Hollow. No excuses.”

“Of course,” Beomgyu said as he carefully laid Tteokbokki down. He tried to gather leaves on the ground, an attempt to make a makeshift bed for their dragon. Beomgyu knew that he wouldn’t rest much tonight, but at the very least, he wished that Tteokbokki could get a good night’s sleep. 

The dragon, of course, did not even register that there was any issue. It fell asleep in the bed of leaves, tossing around as it swam in the beauty of dreams.

“Yeonjun,” Beomgyu called out, “Do you …do you think we could start a fire?”

“If you want to start a fire, then start it,” Yeonjun snapped at Beomgyu, “You don’t need to ask me to do it, Beomgyu. You need to do it yourself and stop asking me to do these stupid things for you.”

Beomgyu was taken aback at Yeonjun’s reaction. He frowned as he apologized, “Sorry, I just wante—Tteokbokki gets cold at night. I thought a fire would be better for him.” He pressed his lips into a frown, “I didn’t think—”

“That’s right, you don’t ever think. You keep acting reckless and getting caught in these situations that almost get you killed,” Yeonjun spat out. His anger seeped into his expression — brows knitted with frustration, annoyance tightened his lip into a thin line as he glared at Beomgyu. He threw his hands up in defeat as he said, “You keep doing things and acting out of kindness and you don’t even realize how serious these things are. Do you not even care how you almost died right now, Beomgyu?”

Beomgyu felt so small — he and Yeonjun weren’t that different in stature, but as the older man yelled at him, Beomgyu felt so small. He bit his lip down, his eyes looking to the ground unable to maintain eye contact with Yeonjun. 

“Yeonju—”

“No, listen to me,” Yeonjun glared at Beomgyu, “You’re too kind, too soft, and too understanding. You’re involved in so many things without even understanding what’s happening. You keep going based on your feelings and every single time you do, you almost die and I have to save you.” The strain in Yeonjun’s voice was obvious. He shook his head and said, “You can’t keep doing this, Beomgyu. I can’t keep saving you. I can’t save you, Beomgyu. I can’t … not this time. This time, I can’t save you at all.”

“I’m sorry,” Beomgyu muttered. His voice was so quiet, almost inaudible; he chewed on his bottom lip, trying to stop himself from saying something more. He knew that if he tried to talk, his feelings would swell up and cause the tears to fall. 

“I can’t save you,” Yeonjun repeated as his voice wavered, “I can’t save you.”

Beomgyu lifted his eyes, looking up at Yeonjun — the tough Prince of the West, fearless and bold, strong and brave … he was the one crying. That was when Beomgyu realized it: Yeonjun wasn’t angry at him, Yeonjun was angry that he couldn’t save Beomgyu.

Without thinking, Beomgyu stood up from where he’d sat and walked over to Yeonjun. He knelt in front of him and hugged him tightly. Yeonjun’s arms wrapped around Beomgyu’s waist as he buried his face into Beomgyu’s chest. He whispered, “I’m so sorry, Beomgyu. I’m so sorry. I can’t save you.”

The campfire burned brightly — Yeonjun had insisted that he would collect firewood and start the fire as soon as he got back. He claimed that it would be safest if he went since he could fight off whatever monster would come, but Beomgyu suspected that the older man just wanted time to cry alone. Regardless, Beomgyu just nodded and accepted it. Just as he promised, Yeonjun built the fire up so that they could all bask in its warmth.

“I didn’t mean to,” Beomgyu apologized as he sat down, cautiously taking the seat next to Yeonjun. The moon’s beams spotlighted the apologetic expression that gently etched itself onto Beomgyu’s delicate features. He looked over to Yeonjun, “I didn’t mean to lie about who I was. It’s just …when we first met, you were on your whole ‘ I hate the Kingdom of the East and I want all of the members of their Royal Family to suffer ’ and you had a sword,” Beomgyu pouted at Yeonjun as he gently nudged him. He folded his arms over his chest as he continued, “What did you expect me to do? I thought you were going to gank me after you tied me up on the tree. I couldn’t imagine how much worse it would be if I told you that I was literally the Prince of the East Kingdom.”

Yeonjun let out a breath before he stole a glance at Beomgyu. “I was kind of intense.”

Beomgyu scoffed, followed by an eye roll. “ Kind of ? Do you want me to show you?” He stood up from where he sat, reaching for a nearby fallen branch. He picked it up, pretending that it had been a sword. “I’m going to be you right now,” then he paused, “Don’t get mad at me. My imitation game is so strong. It’s so good that everyone in my Kingdom insists that I should become an actor.”

Yeonjun rolled his eyes.

Beomgyu beamed as he held the sword out in front of him. “This is right after you came in and slayed that evil plant thing. The thing that was trying to literally eat me alive.” He cleared his throat, changing his voice to sound as similar to Yeonjun’s as he could make it. “ I am Prince Choi Yeonjun of the Western Kingdom, the Heir of the Golden Throne, the Hero of the Unmatched Blade, the Champion of the Eternal Flame and the Protector of the Sacred Truth — I am here to eradicate that Curse that has ravaged my Kingdom in its terrible Frosted Darkness. I will defend my Kingdom and eliminate those who are from the Eastern Kingdom. I am really attractive and intense all the time . ”

“Okay, okay. Shut up,” Yeonjun reached for Beomgyu’s arm, pulling the younger man to sit back down beside him. He shook his head, “You’re right, you’re right. That was intense. Can you blame me though? I got lost in the Forest for awhile and it took me so long to even find someone.”

“And you just so happen to find me ,” Beomgyu grinned, “You were so lucky.”

“You lied to me.”

Beomgyu stared at him, “Do you want me to do my impression of you again? I can do one where you cry.”

“No, no. That’s enough,”  Yeonjun shook his head. He let out a sigh as he looked over to where Tteokbokki had nestled in. “I’m sorry,” Yeonjun said as he looked over to Beomgyu. Silence fell as he continued to gaze at Beomgyu. “I just—we spent all that time together and I really got to know you. God , you’re so annoying.” Beomgyu immediately smacked Yeonjun’s leg and stared at him with full offense. Yeonjun sighed before he smiled, “But I don’t know, I liked you. I felt like I was me, you know? I didn’t have to be the super-intense Prince of the West the whole time.”

“I mean, I like you too …,” Beomgyu said quietly, then he let out a nervous laugh. He turned his attention to the moon, sighing as he said, “I know it was wrong of me to lie about who I was, but I want you to know that I only lied about not being the Prince. Everything that I said, everything that I felt …that was all me, Yeonjun. All of that was true.” He looked to Yeonjun, making sure that their eyes met as he said, “What I felt the whole time with you, all of that was real.”

Yeonjun looked at him, gazing into Beomgyu’s eyes as he said, “For me too, Beomgyu.”

“God,” Beomgyu ran his fingers through his hair, “I hate this stupid Curse. I hate this Prophecy. I hate all of it so much.”

“That’s why I got so mad when you said you were the Prince,” Yeonjun admitted. He frowned, shaking his head, “I’ve never opened up that much to anyone, and the one person that I opened myself to …”

“It’s not fair,” Beomgyu said, “We didn’t even ask for this. It’s really unfair that the Forest brought us together like this, you know? It gave us a baby dragon. It let me meet you and then …,” Beomgyu sighed as he leaned against Yeonjun. He felt Yeonjun shift slightly, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. Beomgyu leaned into the warmth of the other Prince, “If you win tomorrow, promise me that you’re going to raise Tteokbokki to be the best dragon that he can be.”

Yeonjun let out a quiet chuckle as he said, “I don’t think Tteokbokki wants to be raised by anyone other than you, Beomgyu. He thinks you’re its mother, you know that?”

“Still, please promise me that you’ll take care of him,” Beomgyu decided.

“If you win tomorrow, can you tell my Mother that I’m sorry I let her down?” Yeonjun asked.

“No,” Beomgyu shook his head. He looked at Yeonjun, “I won’t do that. I won’t tell her that you let her down. I will tell her that you are the best Prince that I have ever met. The bravest, the strongest, and the most steadfast Prince that I have ever met. That you did everything you could to save your people but that you also did everything with such honesty.” He smiled at Yeonjun but just as he was supposed to start his next sentence, Yeonjun pulled him into a hug again. 

Beomgyu squeaked out a surprise as he felt Yeonjun pull him to him. Beomgyu adjusted himself lightly, turning so that he could hug Yeonjun back. He smiled into their hug, “We’re supposed to be prepping to kill each other, remember? We shouldn’t be hugging like this.” Although Beomgyu teased it, he didn’t want to let go and he didn’t want Yeonjun to let go either.

“Exactly,” Yeonjun said, “When am I supposed to be able to hug you tomorrow?”

There had to be another way to break this Curse. 

It couldn’t end, not like this.

Beomgyu woke first — normally, it was Yeonjun that had risen early but Beomgyu was awake, even before the sun came out. Even in the pale blue, twilight glow, Yeonjun looked so peaceful. Beomgyu smiled at the other Prince, wishing that they could have enjoyed the night’s calm a little longer. He looked up at the stars — he caught sight of a falling star and wondered if the Heavenly Bodies above were crying for them.

It really wasn’t fair .

“Beomgyu,” Yeonjun murmured as his eyes opened. He rubbed the back of his hand against his eyes, trying to remove the blurriness of sleep away. A yawn came from him as he stretched his arms up. “The sun’s not even out yet,” he reached for Beomgyu’s arm as if he wanted to make sure that Beomgyu was still here. “Stay with me a little longer…”

“I can’t sleep,” Beomgyu admitted as he reached for Yeonjun’s wandering hand. There was a shared warmth as their hands laced together. He smiled at how perfectly their hands fit together, puzzle pieces that were always meant to be. He sighed, “In another life, we would have met much earlier than this…”

In another life…

Yeonjun had attempted to go back to sleep. Beomgyu watched in amusement as the older man turned, trying to pull Beomgyu along but gave up quickly. He let out a defeated sigh as he sat up. “Why did you have to get up early today of all days?” Yeonjun asked, “You liked to sleep on all of the other days, but today is the day you decided to get up early for?”

“I’m anxious,” Beomgyu admitted.

“Me too,” Yeonjun said.

“Are you sure we can’t just walk away from all of this? We still have time to take Tteokbokki and start a new life somewhere in the Hinterlands or something,” Beomgyu teased, but he knew the answer. Both he and Yeonjun were Princes and unfortunately, as Princes, they had to do what was right. He sighed as he said, “I saw a shooting star earlier.”

“Did you make a wish?” Yeonjun asked, “They say that honest wishes of shooting stars come true.”

“I did,” Beomgyu smiled, “I made a wish but I can’t tell you. Not yet. If I tell you, then it won’t come true…,” and Beomgyu wanted it to come true so badly.

Yeonjun opened his mouth to speak but drew quiet as the air started to freeze. The temperature started to decline, dropping down as quickly as possible — Beomgyu felt it, the Forest was telling them that it was time. A cool mist danced between the trees, swirling around them and trailing into a certain direction. The Forest was calling out.

Beomgyu took in a deep breath, letting out a heavy sigh. The warmth of his breathing hung frozen in the air — a frosted reminder that they had their Kingdoms to save. He bit his bottom lip, chewing on it as the silence between him and Yeonjun continued to grow. It seemed that neither of them wanted to go on. Beomgyu closed his eyes, collecting his thoughts for a moment. Mentally, he started to say goodbye to the people that he loved. He wished that he could have seen them one last time, given them one last hug.

“Okay,” Beomgyu opened his eyes as he looked toward Yeonjun, nodding at the older man. “It’s time.”

“Yeah, it’s time,” Yeonjun frowned.

Yeonjun got up from where he sat first. He held his hand out for Beomgyu, pulling him up with such ease. They shared an unspoken glance at each other, eyes brimmed red with their unspoken confessions and their accepted defeat. Yeonjun swallowed hard as he nodded at Beomgyu. Beomgyu tried his best to smile, but no one would have been able to smile at this situation.

“Should we wake up Tteokbokki?” Beomgyu asked, casting a glance at their still asleep baby dragon.

“No,” Yeonjun answered, “He shouldn’t have to see what we’re about to do.”

“You’re right,” Beomgyu agreed. He carefully walked toward Tteokbokki, gently petting the dragon’s head before he pressed a kiss on top of his head. The dragon didn’t wake; instead, it turned over and kicked its feet in the air. “I hope you wake up in a better tomorrow,” Beomgyu smiled at the dragon.

The Prince of the East walked toward Yeonjun. He stood beside the other Prince, reaching for Yeonjun’s hand and holding it tightly. He sighed and said, “I’m not holding your hand because I’m scared.”

“Of course not,” Yeonjun played along, but he held Beomgyu’s hand just as tightly.

“I’m only holding your hand to make sure that you don’t run away.”

“I’m not leaving you.”

“I’m not leaving you either.”

Promises could be made with wishes, after all.

The mist guided the two Princes to the King’s Hollow.

Beomgyu shivered — the air was thick with frost, each breath felt like icicles in his lungs. In the twilight hour, the moon lit their frigid path. The Forest moved, separated the trees from their path; everything parted, cleared out of their way as they walked hand in hand to the King’s Hollow. 

This was it. 

“Are you sure we don’t want to just walk away?” Beomgyu teased but he never stopped walking alongside Yeonjun. While Beomgyu had been able to joke, Yeonjun had grown quiet. He hadn’t said anything as he followed their icy trail.

The King’s Hollow was a clearing in the center of the Cursed Forest. There were no trees in the Hollow; barren, broken trees surrounded the Hollow, encasing it in a deathly reminder of its past. A gust of wind swept through the air — as the wind blew through the branches, it shuddered through the hollow bark, making it cry out in pain. The air was thick here, suffocating as they stepped fully into the Hollow.

“I don’t like it here,” Yeonjun finally said. “The air here, it feels evil.”

Yeonjun didn’t need to say it. Beomgyu could feel it. 

The thing about Magic was that for the most part, it wasn’t noticeable but once it started, once it began its course and took over …it was impossible not to feel it. Each step they took into the Hollow felt heavy — the Forest had invited them, it had roles for them to complete. 

The vines from the trees trailed down, wrapping themselves around the tree trunks as the pair walked in. The mist continued to gently push, swirl around them in their destined path. Once they reached the center of the Hollow, the empty clearing where the trees strayed away from, the mist stopped. The light of the moon beamed at them, spotlighting them two of them with heavy intention.

The Prince of the East and the Prince of the West must meet in the center of the Forest. 

Upon meeting in the Hollow they will realize, two Kingdoms will enter but only one will rise.

“It’s time,” Yeonjun said as the Frosted air expanded between them. 

Beomgyu swallowed nervously, scared to let go of Yeonjun’s hand but the Forest leant its aid. Between them, ice began to crop up — it came from the ground, nipping at their hands until the cold air forced their hands apart. The icy bit at them, threatening them with its harsh temperature. Beomgyu took a step back, trying to distance himself from the center but a gust of wind pushed him back — the Cursed Forest had its demands and they needed to fulfill them.

The vines from the trees trailed through the ground, creating a circle between the two of them. The roots uplifted the ground, enforcing the circle between them. The ice froze the roots and vines, strengthening the desire of the Forest. 

Beomgyu stood across from Yeonjun — how was this fair? How did they let the darkness of this Cursed Forest take over so much? Why did they allow this to happen? Why did it have to be Yeonjun ? 

The wind nipped at Beomgyu’s hands. He reached for the hilt of his sword and the moment he did, the icy temperature calmed down — it wanted them to fight, It wanted them to fulfill the Prophecy to break the Curse. 

This was unfair.

Despite Beomgyu’s struggle, he heard the sound of a sword being removed from its sheath. His eyes darted upward, looking directly at Yeonjun. The other Prince held the sword in hand — this majestic weapon that had kept Beomgyu safe from so many monsters looked so deadly. 

Yeonjun looked as though he wanted to say something but Beomgyu met his gaze. He shook his head, telling Yeonjun not to say anything. They both had a duty to fulfill.

Beomgyu’s fingers gracefully wrapped around the hilt of his sword. He slowly pulled out the sword.

It was time.

The Prince of the East had never been trained to fight, to kill . He had been trained in the basics to defend himself, but in the face of an opponent that had been trained his entire life for this fight …he felt nervous. He could feel the tremble in his hands as he looked on at Yeonjun — Yeonjun’s eyes had shifted, narrowing as they did whenever he prepared to take down a monster that attacked them. But Beomgyu was no fool. During their journey together, Beomgyu had observed Yeonjun’s fights — he could remember the way Yeonjun moved, the other Prince’s speed and strength, his strategies. Beomgyu remembered them.

Yeonjun moved first — he rushed at Beomgyu, raising his sword up before he sliced downward. If Beomgyu attempted to cut the attack down, the battle would have ended immediately. Instead, he dashed forward and moved to Yeonjun’s left side (the Prince of the West always favored his right side in battle, after all). He swiped at his leg as he passed, but Yeonjun blocked it.

Beomgyu attacked next — he turned to his right, bringing his sword toward Yeonjun but he blocked. It was here where Beomgyu realized how big of a gap their experience levels had been. Yeonjun had moved swiftly, encircling him before he twisted his elbow into Beomgyu’s side — Beomgyu let out a yelp of pain as his free hand reached for the wounded area, but as he did, Yeonjun’s blade lightly kissed his arm. Beomgyu hissed at the cut and feverishly thrashed his sword toward Yeonjun.

The blade missed Yeonjun and before Beomgyu could pull his sword back, the other Prince two-stepped around him. Yeonjun hit Beomgyu’s side with the handle of his blade — Beomgyu stumbled, tilting slightly to the right. 

“Stop pulling your attacks,” Beomgyu shouted. He glared at Yeonjun, “I’ve seen you taken down monsters in no time. You’re pulling back.”

“I’m not pulling back,” Yeonjun responded as he took a step back, creating distance between them. He looked at Beomgyu, “I’m just getting started.”

Beomgyu decided that this time, he wouldn’t dodge. He stood in front of Yeonjun, sword at the ready. From what he could remember, Yeonjun always relied on three basic moves in the beginning of battles — he would bulk his attacks up, relying heavily on his strength to make his moves inflict more damage. Just as he expected, Yeonjun charged toward him but Beomgyu held his ground.

Yeonjun’s sword swung down at him, Beomgyu blocked it with his own — Yeonjun was serious now. Beomgyu felt the other Prince’s strength forcing his blade down; it felt as though his bones would have shattered if he kept it up. Regardless of the strength of Yeonjun’s attack, Beomgyu’s block had been successful and that took Yeonjun by surprise. The forward block had been enough to shock Yeonjun — he didn’t notice Beomgyu’s foot snake out from beneath and sweep at his feet. Yeonjun fell backward, hitting the ground as he did. 

Beomgyu didn’t attack right away. Rather, he took a step back. He forced a smile out, trying to hide the pain that began to trickle through his hands. Why did Yeonjun have to be so strong for ? 

There was a growing pain in his shoulder and Beomgyu cursed as he felt it spread. He understood why Yeonjun boasted about the titles that he did. That stupid Prince truly earned those stupid titles. Instinct kicked in and Beomgyu immediately went on the defensive; he didn’t have a chance to attack and the Forest wasn’t letting him escape. 

Why ?

The hilt of his sword felt slippery — he wondered if it was from the sweat in his palms or from the blood that trickled down from the cut from earlier. He could go his entire life with finding out the answer. He steadied his hands, lowering the blade slightly, and prepared for another attack.

But why did they have to?

Beomgyu waited for Yeonjun’s attack — why did this have to be the answer? Neither of them wanted this. Neither of them asked for this. He looked at Yeonjun, even with the other Prince’s focus on attacking, his eyes felt hollow. He didn’t want this either .

Yeonjun rushed forward, ready to attack but he drew back.

Beomgyu dropped to his knees.

“Beomgyu …,” Yeonjun’s voice sound strained. His sword dropped from its attacking position, he let it hang down. “You have to get up,” Yeonjun said, “You need to get up.”

“No,” Beomgyu looked up at Yeonjun, tears brimming in his eyes. “I don’t want to. I don’t want to do this. I don’t care if this is what the Forest wants or what this stupid Prophecy demands of us. I don’t want to do this.”

“You can’t give up,” Yeonjun stressed as he looked at Beomgyu. His face twisted in frustration as he said, “If you give up like, I still have to kill you. If we keep fighting, we can …maybe we can stall a little longer? Maybe we can …don’t give up like this. I don’t want to kill you.”

“I don’t want to do this,” Beomgyu said as he looked up at Yeonjun. He let the tears fall as he looked up at Yeonjun. 

“Then I have to …,” Yeonjun’s voice broke as he trailed off. He couldn’t bring himself to say the final words. He looked at Beomgyu, pain in his eyes as he kept trying to plead with him.

“Then do it,” Beomgyu said.

“Beomgyu, please …” Yeonjun pleaded.

“This entire journey has been the best time of my life,” Beomgyu confessed, “I never had someone that really saw me the way that you did. I know I’m annoying and I can be obnoxious, but you never left me. You never tried to change me. You’d yell at me, but you’d always come back.” Beomgyu could feel the tears running down as he said, “I was so happy.”

“Beomgyu …”

“You said that no one really saw you for who you were but I did,” Beomgyu smiled at him, “I saw you, the true you. The honest you and I like him. I like him so much. That’s who is going to be the King.” Beomgyu let go of his sword as he said, “I want you to be the one to unite both of our Kingdoms. You are strong and kind and very awful at conversation, but when you take over my Kingdom, please ask my Royal Advisor to help you with conversation. He’s amazing at it.” Beomgyu tried to laugh but he said, “I know you’re going to be a great King and my people will love you.”

“No …I don—”

“I know they will love you,” Beomgyu smiled, “Because I do. I wish we had more time together.”

“Why would you do this?” Yeonjun frowned.

“I don’t want to spend the last moments of my life fighting. Not with you.”

Yeonjun’s sword fell to the ground but he walked over to Beomgyu. He sped toward him, closing the distance between the two of them. He knelt down, placing his hands on Beomgyu’s cheeks, tilting his head up as he leaned in and kissed him. Beomgyu’s eyes widened as their lips connected, shock had caught him before it registered: Yeonjun had kissed him . It was messy, clumsy …almost desperate but Beomgyu could taste everything that Yeonjun had wanted to say. Beomgyu returned the favor, letting his feelings come through. There had been so many unspoken thoughts between them and now, they were desperately chasing them.

They were breathless when they parted.

“You stupid thief,” Yeonjun muttered as he looked away from Beomgyu. 

Beomgyu sat, stunned. He brought his hand up, fingers trailing along his lips as he blinked. He had kissed Yeonjun …Yeonjun kissed him.

Before they even had a chance to understand what had happened between them, the Forest reacted first: the wind picked up, thrashing around and slamming through the air. Beomgyu winced as the violent wind destroyed the ice that had formed. He tried to shield his eyes, but Yeonjun had been the one to cover him; the Prince of the West wrapped his arms around Beomgyu, holding him tightly.

The Frosted Darkness was pulled apart — the evil that had been in the air of the Hollow drifted away, being stolen apart. The Forest started to shift again, rushing around past them as the trees and the ice were crushed. There was a swell of energy that erupted, piercing through the night sky. Beomgyu tried to watch, but the strength of Magic made it hard for him to look. He slid his arms around Yeonjun, burying his face against the other man; the two of them held fast to each other, not wanting to lose the other.

Beomgyu didn’t know what happened.

The icy air had disappeared and it felt … warm?

Yeonjun let go of Beomgyu as he slowly stood up. He held a hand out, helping Beomgyu up from where they had been. The two of them looked around, the Forest was different …it was no longer dark, no longer cold. 

From the center of the Hollow, Beomgyu could see his Kingdom in the East. He turned his head and he could see the Kingdom of the West. It was the first time that he had been able to see the Kingdom of the West so clearly …the Forest had kept them both in the darkness, shielding them away from each other.

“ The Prince of the East and the Prince of the West must meet in the center of the Forest. Upon meeting in the Hollow they will realize, two Kingdoms will enter but only one will rise ,” Beomgyu slowly recited the Prophecy. He looked at Yeonjun, “... we were looking at the Prophecy the wrong way.”

“We were never supposed to fight,” Yeonjun said, “Our  Kingdoms were supposed to unite .”

Beomgyu gazed at Yeonjun for a moment before his smile broke loose. He let out a laugh, “This is so stupid. So stupid.” Beomgyu covered his face and then remembered the cut. He pointed at Yeonjun, “You cut me! You did this,” he gestured to his arm expressively as he shouted, “You—”

Yeonjun walked over and reached for Beomgyu’s arm, “I’m sorry. If we get to my gear, I can take care of this and fi—”

“Is the Curse lifted then?” Beomgyu said as he looked over to Yeonjun. Yeonjun tore off a piece of his shirt as he wrapped it around Beomgyu’s wound. Beomgyu repeated the question, “Is the Curse lifted?”

“Well, the Forest wanted us to unite,” Yeonjun said, “If we don’t, I think it’ll come back …”

“Well, Prince of the West, I think we can work on uniting our Kingdoms,” Beomgyu smiled, “I think it’s about time that we stop living in the Darkness and start bringing everyone to our Light.”

It was uncertain where the future would lead them but Beomgyu knew one thing: If the Prince of the West and the Prince of the East can keep their Kingdoms united without falter, then everyone would be granted peace and they could live happily ever after.