The Pheasant, that fell from the Sky || Hwarang

- 21 -

»Yeseul!«, her mother shouted as she stormed into the workshop-part of the shop. Yeseul looked up startled from the hanbok she was sewing. Why was she so excited? Her mother came to her with an open, golden envelope and a letter in her hand. Irritated Yeseul looked at her. A part of her hoped for a letter from Yeowool. Another part of her panicked at the thought that her mum had opened a letter from him.

»This letter is from the Palace!«, her mother told her. Shocked Yeseul put down the things in her hand and looked at her mother.

»What?«, she asked, »The Royal Palace?«

»Yes«, her mother nodded, »They want you as a seamstress tomorrow in the morning.«

»Me? As a seamstress?« Yeseul was irritated as she didn't understand why the people at the Palace invited her as seamstress when they didn't even know her. How could they know her work? Another thought came to her mind. Would she stay in the Palace forever? This thought scared her. She knew that people who worked at the Palace couldn't leave it that easily. She enjoyed the freedom she had a lot. What if she wasn't allowed to leave the Palace anymore?

»Is there anything about for how long?«, she asked her mother a little concerned.

»Temporarily, they wrote«, her mother answered, »I guess for maybe a year. That's great! That will make our shop do well when you come back!«

She could understand her mother a bit. They lived in poverty when Yeseul was younger until about two years ago when they were finally able to build up the shop. Now every time her mother saw the possibility to make money, to secure their surviving, she got excited and determined. Sometimes this made her a bit greedy, making her forget other people's feelings for a moment.

Before Yeseul could say anything, her mother had already gotten back to work and left the letter with her daughter. She looked at it. The paper really had the Palace sign on it.

A while later in the evening Yeseul was hanging up fabrics they had washed. A warm wind blew through the alleys of the houses. The perfect condition to get the fabrics dry faster. In the morning they would be dry and she could fold them. If it wasn't for the fact that she would go to the Palace tomorrow morning.

Suddenly she heard footsteps and pushed aside a hanging cloth to see who it was. Yeowool came towards her. He was silent, not greeting her as energetically as he did usually. She saw how his eyes were a little red and immediately put aside the other fabrics. Yeseul hugged the Hwarang as he arrived in front of her.

»Hello«, he said in a monotone voice.

»Hello«, she greeted back, »Hanseong?« Yeowool nodded and Yeseul pulled him to sit down on the pyeong-sang. The Hwarang started sobbing when they sat down on the wood, still hugging each other, the fabrics swinging in the warm wind around them. Yeseul soon started sobbing to, while she caressed Yeowool's hair and back again. When he noticed she was crying too he as well started caressing her back trying to comfort her. They sat there for a while crying over their gone friend before they slowly stopped sobbing and calmed down. Yeowool ended the hug by letting his hands slid down her arms to her hands and holding them while looking at her.

»Anything new here?«, the Hwarang asked. Yeseul stayed silent for a moment, looking down a little sad on the floor. She thought about how she should tell him about her going to the Palace, possibly for a longer time.

»I'll be at the Palace for some time«, she just told him.

»At the Palace?«, he asked surprised, »How come?«