Kintsugi // ATEEZ [Ishihara Sequel] ✔

40 Cure

"Even though I've decided to trust you," Akira says, "I'll still have you locked up. I won't want to take any chances with you."

Jihyun nods. "Understood, Your Majesty. I'll take whatever you're giving me."

"But still," she manages, "I'll make sure that you're eating and sleeping well. Don't worry about impending punishments," she glances at Yunho, "I'll make sure the general will have you protected. Then I'll decide what I'll do with you until all of this is over."

She nods again with a weak smile on her face, completely following whatever orders the queen will give to her. All through the time she was locked up, she could say that she reflected a lot, and there wasn't even a moment where the queen was unpleasant to her. Even though Akira seemed to hate her at first glance, she knew it was only because she was being the persistent one- driven by her father's insistence on her toppling Akira from the throne.

When in fact, all the time spent with Akira only made her realize how nice the latter actually is, who only tries her best to rule a kingdom that once hated her.

Jihyun knows; no one deserves to be the rulers of the kingdom as much as the couple.

"Do we only take your word for it?" Jongho speaks up, to which all three turn to look at him. "Sealing a deal would be much better wouldn't it?"

"I'll seal the deal with my blood," Jihyun prompts. "And sign it."

Akira gazes at Jongho, to which he merely nods, understanding what she's alluding at. "I'll prepare the document."

He promptly supplies himself with the proper supplies for him to draft the document, before distancing himself from both Akira and Jihyun, and calling over Yunho to join him in drafting the document.

Akira can't help but smile as she looks at the two of them discussing as if they're school kids sharing a secret on how they can get more servings for lunch. She sees them occasionally nodding, or Yunho shaking his head as he pulls back Jongho's hand, before he takes the pen from the younger, his mouth mumbling something that the queen can't quite catch. They occasionally sigh, and seem to bicker for a moment as they discuss what they need to put in the document, the deal to seal Jihyun's loyalty towards Lucida's current rulers.

"Your Majesty," Jihyun speaks up, bringing the queen's attention to her. "After all of this is over," she doesn't specify which one of the 'events' being over she's talking about - either after Seonghwa is cured or after they've managed to put a stop to the opposing pact - "I'll bring you over all the letters that were exchanged between your father and mother, along with his journals. They're all in my father's possession." She pauses, "You deserve to know what kind of people your father and mother were, and I believe the letters and journals are at least enough for you to paint a picture of your parents together."

Akira stays quiet for a moment; after 25 years of not knowing her parents personally, especially her mother, it feels surreal to know that she might finally be able to know how she was as a person, since she has no memory of her parents at all. She clasps her hands, as if taking a moment for herself before she turns to Jihyun.

"How was it like..." Akira trails off, "...having parents to grow up with?"

Jihyun is caught off-guard by the queen's question that she blinks, trying to piece her answers as she has never thought about it; when something is given to you, you tend to forget how it's like to not have it. She has never lived away from her parents; despite her father harbouring a lot of grudge towards the Lucida royal bloodline, Jihyun had grown up with so much love from both of her parents. They had made sure she had enough to eat with a roof over her head and clothes to wear. They were a respectable family, despite the people around them having no idea that they're a family of pure white blood.