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there was a storm raising hell outside when Yeji found out that Jisu would not be coming home with her for the holidays.
they usually go home to Yeji’s parents the moment their respective leaves get approved, Yeji’s from the apothecary and Jisu’s from the hunting community. the travel home is not because of any romantic inclination, though Yeji would love to attempt to beg to differ, but rather due to the fact that Jisu’s parents do not speak to her for circumstances Jisu had failed to mention throughout the years of their friendship and Yeji is too much of a softie to let her best friend face the end of the year by her lonesome.
Yeji meets this news with furrowed brows, appetite disappearing as the hunter beside her tries to escape her questioning gaze, Jisu’s eyes looking everywhere else but her. nonetheless, she is determined to know the reason as to why Jisu would reject the offer of a warm house filled with Yeji’s nieces and nephews and dogs.
when she finally asks why, sternly, because Jisu refuses to even look at her at the first request of an explanation that consisted of what else do you plan on doing during the holidays , Jisu was quiet. way too quiet for Yeji’s tastes, even if the majority of their communication consisted of Jisu’s aversion to small talk and jokes. there’s a cloud in Jisu’s eyes that Yeji couldn't decipher but she could feel something brewing inside their body, similar to the build-up of smoke and magma within a volcano close to eruption.
then, after a painful moment of silence where all Yeji could hear was the crackle of fire by the hearth, Jisu asks if Yeji has ever felt like she belonged. she guesses that Jisu is speaking in rhetoric because before she could even give her answer of i don’t but i just did what i wanted to do , Jisu continues.
i don’t, even if i always believed i did.
i always felt like i wasn’t enough.
there was always something bigger than me, stronger than me, that i feel like i have to overcome every single time.
i want to change that.
Jisu then went on a long rant, something about searching for her purpose as a hunter and going on some dangerous, impossible tasks to prove herself and how all of it will ultimately lead her in finding what Jisu regarded as the most beautiful stone in the world. she points to a piece of parchment on the dining table, a rough sketch of a brown colored thing that would be put to shame if surrounded by diamonds and rubies.
the local myths called it the Tiger’s Eye, Jisu recites, a crystal that rumors say could grant wishes if the sacrifice was great enough for it to be satisfied. others say the whole wish-granting is a hoax but Jisu has no need for wishes. all she needs is the stone and nothing else.
there was no permanent record of it in any of the books Yeji has ever read in all of her life, but the look on Jisu’s face somehow convinces Yeji that it was all real.
(there is still doubt in her heart, but she doesn’t really have the heart to break Jisu’s).
Jisu says that by finding the stone, she could finally rest easy within herself, could finally call herself worthy of the title of being a hunter.
no more doubts, no more demons inside of her head.
just a girl with the Tiger’s Eye in her collection.
Yeji figured that there are just some loose screws in Jisu’s head that could be easily mended with some good Hwang food and company, but the hunter was not having any of it. Jisu scrambles to show Yeji a map of the adventure, a good three days’ trip (two days if Jisu is lucky enough) that would have the hunter encountering the worsts nature could ever think of offering.
there is a bridge, a bear cave, and some kind of magic tree but all of it flies right above Yeji’s head when she realizes that it’s a death march and Jisu is an all too willing participant. when Yeji asks when Jisu is planning on leaving, the hunter had the shame to be embarrassed in admitting that they expected to leave by dawn. the sleigh is already well-decorated with supplies and materials and the route was navigated weeks before and the pack Jisu has selected for the trip has already been trained to travel great distances without risking their health and safety.
for a good deal of time, no one spoke. the wind outside howled and rolled and the crackle of the hearth continued to fill in the silence. Jisu’s breaths puffed out softly after speaking for so long, eyes looking underneath Yeji’s chin as she awaits any sort of judgment from her friend. Yeji on the other hand is just fully convinced the hunter has gone insane.
the silence eventually made Jisu give in to speak, letting Yeji listen because after all of that, what else could she possibly say?
Jisu was in the middle of her long apology of how she didn’t mean to hurt Yeji (and by extension, the entire Hwang family tree) in rejecting her invite to the ancestral home for the year when Yeji surprises Jisu (and herself) by asking if her sleigh could accommodate one bag more. Jisu just sputters that her sleigh could make do with one more, two if needed be.
(she did try convincing Yeji to let her go on her own, that it’s something Jisu has to do by herself, but Yeji was adamant in coming. Suicide mission or no, she could not in her good conscience pretend that it was a good plan at all.
it became apparent that wherever Jisu goes, Yeji will follow).
so they set off at dawn, like Jisu had said, because the storm was predicted to be at its weakest in the morning. if they make good distance by then, they could reach the bridge without risking the brunt of the wind and snow.
Jisu guides the dogs and lets Yeji rest among their luggage, citing that the more voices the pack hears the more confused they would be. Yeji in turn makes herself useful by listing off the landmarks Jisu has marked on her map that decides whether they are making good progress or not.
King’s Anchor.
Grande Rapids.
The Plains.
they have just passed the latest landmark when the sleigh finally stops, Jisu letting out a loud heave! that had the entire pack heeling to a stop. even if jostled by the sudden pause, Yeji manages to peek at the large signage that greets them at face value.
suddenly, Yeji is close to regretting her decision to leave the comforts of her home once they have arrived at the bridge, or as what Jisu called the First Trial.
the bridge was nicknamed the Devil’s Drop. it’s a rickety, old thing, with the entirety of it consisting of missing floor boards and ropes that could snap with one wrong move. the worst of it could be attributed to the fact that the reason for a bridge was to connect two mountains with a distance Yeji can’t even imagine the length while there’s a readily-available information on the 500 foot drop into what was a river so far Yeji couldn’t even see it awaiting them should they fall off the bridge.
Yeji asks if this was really the only route to whatever magical cave was holding the crystal hostage and Jisu replies that while it is not the only route, it’s the fastest. The dogs would travel through the alternate path, that would be quicker in the absence of two riders, and would be able to meet them at the Third Trial that Yeji remembers was located at some random forest to bring them back to safety.
(that does nothing to quell the fear rising in her stomach, the stiffness that suddenly settled on the insides of her bones).
Jisu says that this was the easiest, that all they had to do was cross, but Yeji has already prayed to every god she remembers the name to that if ever they do survive the crossing, she would give Jisu a piece of her mind that it was only polite to warn your best friend of possible death after they decided to come with you to prevent any of that sort from happening.
after Jisu disassembles the sleigh into manageable parts that she fits onto the dogs’ knapsacks, she lets the pack go with strict instructions to meet where and when. with a satisfied yip! the dogs embark on their own journey while the beginning of Yeji and Jisu’s officially start.
Jisu, with some kindness left in her body, offered to walk first so that all Yeji needed to do was follow her exact steps.
easier said than done, especially at the brink of literal death, as Jisu begins the trip.
the first few are easy, with the floorboards completely intact and the rope has managed to age well without splitting. the next? not as much as the wooden planks begin to disappear here and there and the supports are frayed and tattered.
Jisu keeps talking to her throughout the crossing, making sure that Yeji’s distracted from the idea that she could very well fall through one of the holes and meet her doom at the river below without losing her own footing as well. Yeji appreciates the effort, trying her best to follow Jisu’s instructions as to where to place her hands and feet as they manage to navigate the middle of the bridge.
one step at a time.
look at where i put my feet, okay?
your grip on the rope should be firm, not tight.
keep going, Yeji, we’re going to make it.
Yeji trusts in her enough to follow that in no time, they’ve almost reached the end of Death’s Drop without a hitch.
but everything is apparently way too smooth-sailing that by some act of a naughty spirit, in the middle of Jisu’s tale of a mischievous wolf trailing her as she sets out to harvest some pine cones for tea, Yeji takes an accidental misstep on a floorboard, unaware of its state of being rotten to the core that just by the gentle pressure of her foot, it falls all the way through and all that is keeping Yeji high and alive is Jisu’s hand.
the scream she lets out is inhuman, adrenaline coursing through her veins while all her head could come up with is deathbyfalling on repeat as if she has yet to recognize the fact. her knuckles are white as she grasps Jisu’s hand with all of her might, gravity stopping blood flow as she could feel herself slipping.
Jisu’s own white-knuckled grip is unrelenting, something Yeji is thankful for, and the harshness of Jisu’s voice that tells Yeji to keep holding on, that she’s going to lift her up slowly but surely, slices through the ugly thoughts inside of her brain into silence. all she does is nod at Jisu’s deep breaths okay and tries to keep her breath even as Jisu makes good on her promise.
(nothing will ever taste as sweet as the breath she takes when she’s finally hoisted up onto a solid plank. nothing will ever calm her own demons the same way Jisu’s voice does).
are you okay?
does it hurt anywhere else?
can you still walk?
we can go back.
Yeji shakes her head, determined to brave through this attempt on her life and unwilling to give up at the very beginning of what would be a very long journey towards achieving Jisu’s happiness. she says that she just needs a minute to collect herself, to breathe, to remind herself that she’s alive and Jisu has saved her .
yet as much as they would like to regain their bearings after facing an almost-death, the wind was picking up and Jisu warns that if they don’t get out of there soon, she’s not sure if she could pull the both of them out of danger just like did now. with shaky legs and an even shakier will, Yeji pulls herself together to continue the walk, trying her best to steady herself as Jisu guides her along to safety.
when they have finally reached the other side, Yeji has never felt more relieved to feel solid ground beneath her feet as she lies flat on her front just to try to absorb the stability of the earth under her. Jisu lets her take a moment as she consults a compass, ensuring that they are still heading in the right direction, before double-checking the map she keeps at her breast pocket.
she tells Yeji that they have to keep moving now if they want to reach the Second Trial before night falls early. Yeji begrudgingly rises to her feet and trudges behind Jisu as the hunter leads the pace, but not without chancing a look back at Devil’s Drop.
(the amount of floorboards that dropped to god-knows-where when a gust of wind passed by had her scampering to stay near to Jisu).
the next Trial, according to Jisu, consisted of going through a cave system that’s inhabited completely by a family of bears. while bear slaying is not on Jisu’s list of things to do, she does tell Yeji that if ever the situation arises wherein she needs to do the inevitable, she asks Yeji to withhold her judgment until she has both ensured their safety.
they walk and walk and walk. over snow-covered terrain and rocky mountain exteriors until they have arrived at the threshold of the forest. the trees are looming in their height and upon a quick glance on the inside, Yeji finds that the foliage is so thick that none of the light from the dying sun is able to penetrate through.
they call it the Eternal Forest, Jisu murmurs, because those who wander through its vastness have the tendency to get lost forever. it wasn’t uncommon for hunters like them to receive search and rescue missions and while they do have some success in everywhere else, this forest promises no life is spared for those irrational enough to travel into the forest without a plan.
Yeji stares at it in awe while Jisu on the other hand stares through it fearlessly, probably already desensitized to the horrors that often lurk in forests. it’s a hunter’s curse, Jisu says after Yeji whispers how are you so brave , to be rid of any sort of fear imaginable to man that even in the face of death, they learn how to look at the Reaper with fierce eyes and a brave heart.
(is it not foolish, Yeji says in return, to look at Death unafraid?
maybe, but i have yet to learn how to look at Him differently, is Jisu’s only reply).
she latches onto Jisu’s hand, just a bit afraid of the dark and what lies within it but also a bit sympathetic of how strong Jisu always holds herself up yet crumbles underneath the weight of her own life’s existence (or lack thereof). she says nothing about it though, just content to do it just because she could.
in an act of unexpected tenderness, she’s surprised that Jisu slots her fingers in the spaces of Yeji’s, squeezing once to tell Yeji that it’s okay, that she’ll be right beside Yeji every step of the way. Yeji feels ashamed to realize that while she did come to accompany Jisu to make sure she doesn’t die, but it’s Jisu reassuring her that whatever happens, Jisu’s hand is there to save her.
Jisu’s free hand holds a torch she has made, the flame inside of the lamp bright enough to illuminate a clear path towards the Second Trial. Yeji, unwilling to be a complete burden, trains her ears to catch any sort of sound worthy of panic but finds nothing as they burrow into the undergrowth. all she could hear is an eerie silence that has a shiver crawling up the length of Yeji’s spine, but she stamps down the fear erupting in her heart by holding Jisu’s hand tighter.
the ground is uneven and the vegetation is abundant, Yeji finds, as she manages to trip over anything her feet has encountered throughout the walk. she gives all the praise to Jisu that even with a shorter stature, their build is sturdy enough to withstand the impact of Yeji’s stumbling. she jokes that she’ll finally take Jisu’s advice of exercising more when they get back, even go with her as they drive a sleigh down mountain slopes that she previously hated the thought of, and it’s met with an enthusiastic yes from the hunter.
they finally arrive at the entrance of a cave after what seemed like minutes, but Jisu reports that they have already been circling around the forest for hours. Yeji could have sworn that was a lie, but when they stopped to read the map at the front of the cave, she could feel the fatigue pulling down her eyelids and the ache forming at the bottom of her feet.
the map states that in order to reach the other side, navigation of the cave system is key. a lot of the inside paths would often lead to dead ends that if lucky, could be traced backwards into the main trail. those unfortunate enough to face a dead end that also serves as a bear’s den would be better off fighting the animal in order to escape, or pray to whatever god they believe in for salvation.
there goes again the weight of fear settling in Yeji’s bones, and this time Jisu catches on at the hesitance that made its way to Yeji’s face. after setting down the lamp, she gently takes Yeji’s face into her hands and even with the hunting gloves Jisu has over her hands, Yeji can’t help but lean into the warmth of them.
bears are usually docile in this season, hibernation and whatnot.
all we have to do is be quiet and follow the trail.
there’s a pocket inside where we could rest before going to the Third Trial.
i’ve tracked bears for most of my life, i won’t let them hurt you.
(Yeji is unconvinced but this is Jisu she’s talking to, whose honeyed voice asks her to trust so trust Jisu she does).
with a nod, they enter the caves.
the lantern light is turned down low that Yeji thinks the dark is playing tricks on her eyes, but bright enough for her to see the places Jisu puts her feet in. she tries her best to ignore the snap of bones that echoes with every step they take and their implications, but unlike the time when they crossed the bridge, no words are exchanged as they navigate their way deep into the cave.
no one to negate the fact that a lot of people have attempted to cross the very cave they were in, but were felled in defeat by an animal who will listen to no amount of begging nor recognize the call for mercy.
Jisu herself only guides her with her hands, placing one on Yeji’s hip for stop , a drag of Yeji’s arm for go , and a squeeze of Yeji’s hand for i’m right here .
(somehow it works, because in the silence where she could hear her own heartbeat in her ears, she could hear Jisu’s too).
she figures they have been moving forward for a good half hour, there’s an ache back in her legs and she was just about to whisper to Jisu if they could take a break, just a minute will do, when suddenly Jisu stops in her steps, causing Yeji to bump against the hunter’s back. Yeji would have complained if not for the dead silence that did not sound as quiet as it did just seconds before.
it’s only when a growl creeps up her ears that her body just shuts down, frozen and unwilling to move. she doesn’t need to hear the harsh breath Jisu intakes at the sound of it to know what she just heard. the flame inside of Jisu’s lamp flickers, and her eyes catch a shadow of a muzzle and fur that appears across the cave walls like an ancient painting.
the sound, the shadow, the stillness. suddenly everything slid into place like puzzle pieces inside Yeji’s brain.
there’s a bear right in front of them and their lives are in peril and Yeji doesn’t know what to do, so maybe it’s luck that Jisu does.
don’t make any sudden movements.
listen to me, on the count of three you will walk backwards slowly with your hand on the wall.
once you feel the wall parting, sidestep towards the inside and stay quiet.
i’ll take care of the bear.
Yeji wants to ask how Jisu is exactly planning to do that, but Jisu has already got to three! before she could even the phrase words right out of her mouth so she doesn’t speak at all. just goes backward one step at a time, all too aware of any sound her feet are making against the ground. her hand is shaking as she feels for the division Jisu has mentioned in the wall and with every second she fails to find it, her heart just goes a beat faster that she’s afraid Jisu would find it out of her chest.
(Jisu still hasn’t moved. she knows because there’s only one pair of feet that goes pitter-patter across the cave earth. what should have felt like seconds passed like hours in Yeji’s mind, moments too many that she does not recognize if Jisu is still alive and breathing).
finally her hand slips into empty air, their shot at salvation, so she sidesteps into it quickly, trying to catch her beating heart and muffling the sob she feels clawing up her throat.
not one minute later she hears a ferocious raw, a stomping of feet too heavy to be Jisu’s, that has her thinking of the worst as she tries and tries and tries to make out a semblance of Jisu among the noises ringing inside of her ears. she hears no voice nor a recognizable word that could confirm of Jisu’s existence, so all she does is wait and wait and wait.
her eyes capture the flickering of flame that floats across her vision, just a hint of it, before it flies to the opposite direction. before she could even recognize that the sight is actually the lamp Jisu was holding prior, a figure slams into her enough for her to stumble and fall backwards.
she wants to panic, already has her hands clenched together to fight off this intruder and writhing beneath them in opposition amidst the whispered stop moving! , if not only for the fact that her nose caught a familiar scent, of cedarwood and gunmetal that has now become close to her heart as her favorite smells, that she realizes that the intruder is no other than Jisu.
Yeji still asks, because she is sure that she will not be able to handle it if this is anyone else but the hunter. a grunt is all she hears in reply but it's Jisu's grunt so she lets the hunter maneuver her into a standing position, lets Jisu push her forward until they're walking again.
i distracted the bear but we have to get away.
a few kilometers from here is a burrow that is too high for hibernation.
we'll let the night pass there, or until it's safe to come out.
we don't have a light, so you'll just have to trust me.
Yeji just nods to the darkness, mind still scrambling that within just a few hours she's close to death agajn and it's still Jisu that comes and saves her. a bit counterproductive, Yeji thinks, because she insisted on coming in the first place only to be the very reason why Jisu even needed saving. she makes a point to apologize later, when they finally have the time to sit down and catch their breath and escape what would be a second attempt on their lives to date.
finally they arrive, guided only by feel and scent and Jisu's skills, thank the deities, and Yeji is so close to passing out. her physical state of working only in a clinic and apothecary has reduced her to only withstanding a some six hours standing and walking, a clear unmatch to the rigorous training that hunters have to endure to stay upright for days or even weeks. this is clearly evidenced by the fact that Jisu is barely out of breath while Yeji is convinced she will die if she doesn't get a moment to sit anytime soon.
still she keeps herself alert, especially when Jisu has figured the cave is deep enough to get away with lighting a fire. her ears pick up no noise, not even a growl of a bear or the howl of the wind, other than the familiar schick! schick! of two whetstones being ground against each to produce a spark. many attempts later, Jisu's ashwood catches the light and suddenly Yeji is no longer afraid of the dark.
(sometime later, Yeji will confirm to herself that it's the fatigue causing herself to think how Jisu is still so beautiful even in cave light, how their sharp jaw is accentuated by the flickers of flame and how their voice never changes from its honeyed state, threat to their lives or none.
but for now, she looks at the hunter and thinks exactly that).
Jisu says when the fire has finally come alive that they were fortunate the bear was docile, just angered enough to the point of chasing them out of the caves and not looking for its next meal. as far as Jisu’s knowledge of the burrows go, the bears of the system are usually in the beginning of their hibernation processes and would rather prefer to be unbothered than hunt them down. in other words, Yeji can finally rest easy and for a moment think about anything else aside from the near-death experiences she has had for the past twenty-four hours.
but aside from the awareness she now has for herself is the awareness she has for Jisu’s own physical standing. while the hunter does not seem to be close to passing out from sheer exhaustion, Yeji is pretty sure that the scratch on Jisu’s cheek is new and could be infected with every second it spends uncleaned.
the hunter didn't even seem to be surprised when she mentions it, as if Jisu has grown numb that maybe, just maybe, she's only human who gets hurt. somehow, Yeji doesn't like the thought of being reminded of their mortality.
it doesn’t look like a scratch, gods forbid the risk of rabies in such an isolated area, nor does it look like a bite mark either. further examination and the spots of dirt by Jisu’s cheek tells Yeji that this is all due to a random rock that Jisu had stumbled upon when she was being chased by the bear. the cut isn’t too deep, thank the gods.
Yeji tugs her down, healer voice sliding into place and unwilling to bow down to the hunter’s whining of it’s okay i’m used to it as she shushes Jisu into submission. good thing she’s trained long enough to always keep a disinfectant on her person as she cleans the wound gently, making sure to wipe away the blood running down the soft cheek and tries her best not to coo at the pout that has formed on Jisu's lips.
for a hunter that has a kill count higher than Yeji could ever count, sometimes she's just the Choi Jisu that Yeji has come to grow and love ever since she’s a child.
she finishes it off with a bandage which Jisu thanks her for, gingerly touching the spot and asks if it'll scar. Yeji replies that while the wound didn't hit any major facial artery, it could still lead to some scarring that could easily be healed with one or two trips to the doctors. Jisu smiles and says that it doesn't matter, that she already has plenty enough that one more scar wouldn't hurt.
and maybe Yeji is tired beyond grace and good manners that she asks where else Jisu is scarred.
(if Jisu pinks at her admission, she pays it no mind, eyes trained at the slow motion of Jisu reaching for the hem of her shirt and all too mesmerized at the increasing amount of skin being displayed all for Yeji to see.
it may be better that she's fatigued beyond comprehension or else she would have combusted right then and there if only she has just realized that her best friend for all of her years is practically stripping in front of her just because she asked her to. to hell that she asked out of curiosity).
Jisu points and explains. Yeji listens and tries her best not to doze off.
over her hip bone is a splattering of white scar tissue. burned myself trying to create some hydrochloric bombs. didn't go so well so we scrapped the idea altogether .
there's three holes in the span of her ribcage, old and healed. some rival hunter gang shot at us looking for some territory. we scared them off but i got these as souvenirs .
one hangs low on a shoulder in the shape of an animal's mouth. a wolf catching my shoulder as i was trying to rip out my spear from a fallen packmate. made a necklace out of their tooth as revenge .
the shirt is fully off now, and Yeji is sure that her cheeks are flaming with how hot she feels that she's sure the fire couldn't even begin to compare. while she’s not inexperienced with human nakedness, there is still somewhat a resemblance of shyness that colors her red because Jisu is Jisu , not some random patient that she has to patch up.
with her remaining shame, she asks Jisu to cover up again.
your turn, Jisu teases with a grin that Yeji is tempted to hit her. a hand to the arm could suffice, maybe even a kick to the face.
but it's Jisu and Yeji has never learned how to say no to Jisu.
so, Yeji takes off her own shirt and she could see how the blood burns bright at Jisu's cheeks as she tries to look away from all of the skin that is Yeji's stomach and chest, should feel smug at garnering a reaction from her usually stoic friend but there's something that crackles in the air and it's not the flames floating across ash wood.
Jisu’s eyes land there and she knows Jisu has seen it, the ring of claw marks marked white with age wrapped around her throat like a necklace.
it's a scar Yeji knows Jisu knows all too well, knows every bump and ridge and knot just by looking at it, and it really goes without saying because how else could Jisu memorize such a monstrously beautiful thing aside from being the very one who was there when it was made?
(it took a lot of towels and sweat and shaking hands but Jisu managed to stopped the bleeding. Yeji was on the brink of unconsciousness if not for Jisu’s manic screaming of don't you fucking die on me Hwang Yeji i will bring you back to life and kill you myself , eyes flickering with barely-there energy. the perpetrator, a bear thrice the size of a ten-year-old Yeji, lies a few meters away, dead with Jisu's knife sticking out of its throat.
the doctors said that if Jisu was just one second late from throwing the knife with all of her might, it might have been Yeji’s body buried under the snow that winter. since then, Jisu was resigned to the idea of being a hunter, of preventing another animal hunting another child for sport).
she could see the apology just waiting to spill over Jisu’s lips so she shushes her, tells her that it was beyond a decade ago and it no longer hurts and it serves as a promise that Yeji was once at the brink of death and all it took for her to live again was Jisu saving her. and Jisu hasn’t stopped saving her ever since.
(she hopes Jisu understands that, that all of the demons in the world could laugh at the blood in Jisu’s hands but it’ll be Yeji who sees them sullied and still chooses to hold them).
Jisu still apologizes because she’s Jisu, so Yeji accepts it at the end in the form of slumping against the hunter’s sturdy frame, the familiar scent of cedarwood and gunmetal wafting up to her nose and lulling her to sleep as she lays her head on Jisu’s shoulder. there’s an arm going around her waist that pulls her impossibly closer and all Yeji could think about is warmth warmth warmth so she doesn’t fight it at all.
even lets Jisu press the lightest kiss on her hair, or whatever it is that Jisu did that casted a spell over her and had her fall into slumber.
(she dreams of spring, when the frost beneath their feet has given way to green grass and Yeji's favorite flowers. she dreams of telling Jisu she finally loves her and Jisu says those three words back).
it could be anywhere in between an hour or a week when she finally came to her senses, eyes catching a stray beam of light peeking through the cracks of the cave wall outside of the burrow they were hiding in. Yeji finally comes to her senses when she realizes that while her dream was filled with the warmth from the fire and something else , the sight she wakes up to is anything but.
the fire is not alive anymore with the embers tamped down until they died with no hint of smoke in the vicinity and Jisu is nowhere to be seen.
she scrambles upright, mind racing at the thought of Jisu abandoning her when they're both so close at the end of the journey, stumbling to reach the mouth of the burrow and promptly bumping into the person she's been missing ever since she woke up.
Jisu catches her, of course she does, and before Yeji coupd spill every unromantic thing she's been thinking about, Jisu says that the storm has passed and they could finally leave. Yeji blinks back the remaining sleep as she tries to remember what exactly they came here for. the hunter offers the words, the Third Trial, and Yeji is more than willing to finish the adventure so they can finally go home and Yeji can properly discuss with Jisu the dream she just had and their implications.
so they go, Jisu leading the way and Yeji clutching her hand like letting go is the last thing she'll ever do. they fortunately do not come into contact with another bear so when Yeji finally sees the sunlight glinting off fresh snow, she finally could exhale the breath she's been holding ever since they started walking.
Jisu's map says that the magic tree, whatever it was, is just a shirt distance from the caves, a bit of a 10 kilometer hike uphill that has Yeji dying just a little bit inside but she says nothing, didn't want to ruin the positive gleam she sees reflecting in Jisu's eyes. just asks that if Yeji ever collapses, Jisu is free to either hoist Yeji up her shoulder like a lumberjack with their wood or leave her to get the Tiger's Eye first and just carry her back to Yeji's cabin when she's acquired the crystal.
the hunter just laughs and answers that she'll happily sling Yeji across her shoulders than leave her to fend for herself alone. Yeji takes that as an affirmation that while it could only be half-romantic, it's apparent that Jisu is devoted to her safety, comedic ways or whatnot.
they walk, and walk and walk and walk. because what is an adventure without walking?
(and stumbling, because Yeji is a clumsy little thing that trips over every other rock but she supposes that not everyone could be perfect.
except for Jisu who walks as if strolling across clouds, a very angel thing to do).
they reach another forest very similar to the one they had just passed before the caves and Yeji points that fact out. Jisu just affirms that they were indeed on the right track. the tree in mention, some authors have called it the Elder Tree, is written to be just like a tree from a fairytale, with long, winding roots emerging from the ground and there, by the middle of its trunk, lies the crystal, the Tiger’s Eye, encased in glass.
how that occurred naturally, the pair will never know, but if having the crystal meant the world to Jisu, then by all means Yeji will traverse the world in search for the magic tree that magically has the crystal in it.
Yeji could tell that Iisu is tired, from the journey or the near-death experiences she can't exactly pinpoint, with the way the hunter is practically lifeless with every step they take into the deeper parts of the forest, stiff-shouldered and quiet. the foliage runs thick but unlike the Eternal Forest, this place is loud with wildlife. Yeji could swear she hears a bear somewhere, mind racing at the bear they encountered yesterday finally coming to its senses and hunting them down, but Jisu reassures her, a tired little smile on their lips, that their scent is long gone thanks to the ashwood she lit up before they slept.
(the reassurance is partnered with a squeeze of Jisu’s hand to Yeji’s own, and Yeji didn’t even notice when did they even start holding hands out of instinct. the way Jisu’s fingers slot into the spaces of hers feels proper, like another step towards the right direction.
right direction of what , Yeji has yet to know, but she promises to herself that once this whole ordeal is over she’ll sit Jisu down and talk properly. she’ll make sure of that).
so she follows Jisu's lead, fills in the space with mindless chatter that Jisu, thankfully, reciprocates. Yeji is in the middle of recalling a story about a rogue patient who mistook a lemon for an orange when Jisu stops moving, Yeji catching herself to stop at the last second before she bumps into the hunter's back. her eyes float over the top of Jisu's head and she sees it, the tree they have been looking for.
a tree larger than what Yeji has imagined in her head, swooping vines hanging across its branches and the gnarled roots coming from the earth are dense enough to be sturdy. it doesn't glow like how she would have thought magic trees would do, but there is a glass encasing point-black in the middle of its bark like Jisu has told her and that's how she knows it's the right tree.
(there's a crystal shining in the middle of it, a brown stone that glows and shimmers and exudes a sort of warmth she couldn't put into words and Yeji begins to understand that maybe, maybe this is what Jisu needs to feel whole).
she’s the one who announces the sight, but unlike Jisu who surges forward with joy that takes over the entirety of their face, Yeji makes no move towards it. the hunter turns back to her with a puzzled look, a silent what are you doing? that Jisu doesn’t need to verbalize in order to be understood.
instead she stays rooted, eyes proud as she says that since it’s Jisu’s idea to drag the both of them in the middle of nowhere, it is only right that it is Jisu who should gather the prize. after all, the Tiger’s Eye would be just a pretty crystal to Yeji, but it would mean the world to Jisu.
the hunter is still unconvinced, the downwards turn of their mouth almost making Yeji laugh but she shakes her head instead. this leads to Jisu walking back and holding Yeji’s hand, saying that she wouldn’t have made it if it weren’t for the healer tagging along and making sure she doesn’t die in the process. Yeji would have wanted to argue more, say that all she did was put herself in danger, if only Jisu didn’t pull the most dangerous weapon in the world along with a squeeze of her hand: please .
how is Yeji to say no to that?
so she goes, walks with Jisu hand in hand to where the crystal is, Yeji seeing that the Tiger’s Eye is prettier up close and she could practically feel how nervous Jisu feels with the way she’s vibrating in place. Yeji looks over to the hunter for further instructions and Jisu's mouth opens but she ends up saying nothing, all bated breath as their eyes look through the glass.
it’s breathtaking.
i haven’t seen anything like it.
the Tiger’s Eye, it’s real.
i’m not dreaming, am i?
the grip on her hand tightens, white-knuckles and scared, and that's how Yeji knows that Jisu didn't know that she'll make it this far alive, that she’ll actually see the fruit of her struggle to get here. Jisu has doubted herself, and Yeji is having none of that.
gently, she takes Jisu’s hand to open, Jisu’s eyes looking at her in confusion to which Yeji pays no mind to, and lifts it with her palm facing outwards. before Jisu could ask why , Yeji leads it to the glass to press forward, expecting to see it splayed flat across the surface before it magically passes through. in a blink of an eye, the crystal went from untouchable to the outside world to the literal palm of Jisu’s hand.
Jisu’s right, the crystal is indeed breathtaking.
Yeji says so, as Jisu retreats back her hand. the crystal is small, nestled safe into the center of Jisu’s palm, the swirling brown and gold on the exterior giving it a shimmer that words could never describe coherently. she now understands the loss of its existence in books; its retrieval has only been done successfully once, and it is this moment happening right now. Jisu just nods, eyes focused on branding the look of the stone into memory as she whispers that she’ll definitely be writing about it once they’re home again, a little bit lost in their thoughts.
Yeji simply lets her take a moment, attention diverting to the sound of dogs that she hears in the background. it could only be Jisu’s pack, heeding the order from their master to follow them here. she would have turned to face them for a warm reunion, or at the very least a greeting, if not for the hand that Jisu places on their arm to keep them in place.
before she knows it, before she could even vocalize a what , the crystal has a change of hands, from the rough surface of Jisu’s scarred palms into the marginally smoother and softer healer hands of Yeji’s. it seems smaller now, with Yeji’s hands being bigger than Jisu’s, that she panics, all too knowing of her clumsy nature that the stone might inevitably slip from her grip and break into a million pieces with only a breath. she voices her concerns, do you really trust me with this , to which Jisu answers with a smile, completely fazing her because does Jisu not know how often she breaks things just by existing?
and Jisu, terribly sweet Jisu, just says:
i want you to have it.
to Yeji’s stunned silence, silence that meant her opening her mouth over and over but no sound comes out, Jisu continues as she gently folds Yeji’s hand over the crystal with both of hers, securing it into Yeji’s grip but doesn’t let go of her hold.
all of my life, i didn’t know who i am really.
i wanted more, and more and more and more until i didn't even know what more was.
until i realized, all i wanted was to belong, to fit into a space made just for me.
it took me two days of near death experiences to recognize that i already do.
then Jisu touches their joined hands to Yeji’s chest, right over her heart, and Yeji knows but Jisu says it anyway.
i belong right here, here with you.
i know that now.
they say that the Tiger’s Eye is for those who lack courage to navigate the unknowns in life, so here i am facing one of them.
i hope, and i pray, that you belong to me as much as i belong to you.
Jisu smiles again, all honeyed eyes and a smile that could rival the rising sun behind them, and Yeji feels like crying a bit. it could be the fatigue finally dragging her bones to the earth in the need for a proper bed back in her cabin, but it could also because she now carries the realization that Jisu has practically confessed her feelings after days of deadly ordeals and frankly, Yeji doesn’t have the brain capacity for this.
she guesses that Jisu has caught wind of her jumbled thoughts because Jisu actually laughs, as if she hadn’t just dropped a bomb that has possibly unraveled the careful hold Yeji has tried to wrap around her feelings until this whole adventure started. Yeji would very much like to give Jisu a piece of her mind but when Jisu’s forehead gently bumps into hers, almost sharing one breath, she doesn’t feel like pulling away.
so, she doesn’t.
instead she speaks, Jisu’s honesty breaking through the leash she has on the feelings that weighed both light and heavy on her chest. as much as she tries to swallow all of them back, it’s the shine in Jisu’s eyes that has her speaking honestly as well.
i have always belonged to you ever since you saved me.
the feelings… they came after when we were older and i finally had a name for the fondness i felt for you.
when you told me you needed this stone to finally feel like you’re worth something, i didn’t think twice.
you’re worth everything good and i needed you to know that.
she stops, because there’s tears lining the edges of Jisu’s eyes and Yeji thinks that it’s hardly proper to be confessing longtime feelings for one’s best friend in front of a magical tree in a forest that’s roughly a three-day journey away from a cabin she calls home. this is a type of occasion that could make do with wine and candle-lit dinner and proper conversation but she’s in love with Jisu ever since she could remember and they’ve never really done things properly.
Jisu just replies i know and it’s enough for Yeji’s mind to quiet, to let the words settle between them and just remain for what they are, true and honest and real .
(her heart is still a jumbled mess. she still feels like crying because she’s aching everywhere in places she doesn’t even remember that exist but also because she suddenly feels like she’s standing on the same page with Jisu and with just a bit more talking they could finally navigate to whatever unknown Jisu has in mind.
they’ll talk about this properly once they arrive back, clear things up of any possible misunderstanding that could have occurred in the haze of fatigue and pain. Jisu looks like on the verge of passing out while Yeji feels like she’s about to pass away any moment now. they’ll talk, and hopefully Yeji gets another kiss from that interaction.
but now, she needs a nap).
she says the last part out loud, doting the sentence with a yawn as she closes her eyes. she lets Jisu chuckle and gather her into her arms, thankful that Jisu doesn’t make good on her promise to sling her over her shoulder like some prehistoric human being and instead is kind, almost tender, in the way she makes Yeji sit on her sled again. she all but collapses, like a paper house exposed to the brunt of a snow storm. Jisu just lets her, her voice becoming background noise as Yeji drifts off to sleep.
all the while holding the stone close to her heart, a reminder of everything they have been through and how it led to this: the pair of them going back to Yeji’s cabin, going back home , where they can talk about the future and how they fit in the sharedness of it.
and somehow, Yeji is okay, very much okay , with that.