"Mother," Taehyung rushed into his parents' room where the queen was sat at the balcony window, a cup of tea in her hands raised to her lips. "Have you seen Dahyun, this morning?"
"My, you seem to be in a hurry. Did something happen?" His mother's question made the prince's cheeks bloom before she was setting her cup down on it's saucer before replacing it on the windowsill. "Did you finally admit that you loved the girl?" She chuckled as Taehyung's chip dropped and his mouth opened.
"You knew?" He asked, astonished.
"Call it a mother's instinct, darling." She teased. "Plus," she chuckled at the state of her son, "your shirt is half tucked in and your cloak isn't properly clipped." She rose from her chair and strode to her son's front, properly latching the golden string across his chest to let the royal violet cloak rest on his shoulders like it should. "Must have been in a rush to see her, huh?"
"I suppose so," he smiled down at the top of his mother's head. "I've been putting her through so much during our years of engagement, I don't want to be away from her when I don't need to be."
"That's a big admission from the Serpent Prince, isn't it," she jokes as Taehyung smiled wider and shook his head. He knew she didn't just see him as the 'serpent prince', and neither did his father. It was just a long running tease from when he confronted them about his 'destiny' when he was a kid- birthed from your young, innocent advice. His smile softened, another realization that opened in his mind of you. "Dahyun was called for an early singular devotion. The waves were rough, so she set out to pray in the fountain at dawn."
Taehyung stepped away from the queen, thanking her before kissing the queen's cheek and rushing off. She just chuckled as she readied a story to tell the king when he came out of his morning shower.
The shrine was deathly quiet as he walked through the doors as quietly as possible. For single devotions, it was required for the center priestess or priest at the time of management to be alone in the shrine for prayers. It would heighten concentration of spiritual power.
As soon as he entered, he could feel her power flowing through the shrine's interior like ribbons. He was one of a small circle of people who could enter the shrine anytime without reason no matter the devotion or time- a perk of being the descent of the island god. He walked through to the center fountain and just as he figured, there she was.
Her back was to him as she was knelt in the fountain water. her hands were clasped in front of her as her head was dipped, eyes shut and lost in her conscience. He leaned against a pillar, silent as he watched her. It was absolutely silent as she prayed, but he could stand there and watch her do nothing all day and be content.
He pushed off the pillar when you shivered and then gasped with a jolt. Losing my sense of balance, I teetered to the side, splashing my hand into the fountain to stop yourself from falling in completely. The water splashed up into your face and clung to your already soaked, white prayer robe.
He stopped mid step when I turned to look over your shoulder, seeing him there. He felt like he had just got caught in a crime, though he was technically not breaking any rules. He saw you exhale a breath, my rigid back deflating into a terrible sense of posture.
"It was just you, my Prince," I breathed. I sat back up, moving to stand from my kneeling in the water as i turned to walk out of the fountain. Taehyung rushed to the fountain's wall, offering me his hand as i took it and watched your feet as you stepped out.
Water followed you in a small wave when you hopped over the fountain wall and the shrine's marble floor became wet as your robe dripped more water along it. My robe was nearly translucent.
Taehyung could see the pink of her thighs and stomach all the way up to her ribs and around her back. It was proper attire to only wear a single white robe and nothing more when in singular devotion- a reason as to why it had to be cleared of all others in the shrine was to keep the body of the priest or priestess hidden from other's eyes.
