~ a lily among thorns~

"your majesty"

"Did you hear what happened this morning? There was another sighting!"

The Hwarangs furrowed their eyebrows at the sentence in confusion, their ears still plastered to the large wooden gate in curiosity.

"Sighting of what?" Hansung mumbled to himself.

"Yes! I saw it! The ghost!" a voice rang out, followed by the scoffing of obvious onlookers.

Nari's mind raced, as her memory from the day before surfaced.

"What is this ghost that has been sending the town into uproar?" she wondered.

"The authorities have made it quite clear that it's all a baseless rumour," a woman suddenly dismissed, gaining murmurs from the unseen crowd.

"But I swear to you it is real!" the voice continued. "I didn't believe at first either. That is why I had no fear to wander through the forest. However, I lost my way and ended up coming across the eerie spirit. I saw it with my own eyes!"

"Did it talk to you?" asked another.

There was a pause, before the reply came.

"Well...I didn't exactly see it clearly, or even up close. I just...saw glimpses of it moving around me."

Hansung's mouth dropped a little, the thought of a ghost being so close to the town sending shivers down his spine.

"Do you think it's an evil spirit?" another voice sounded from behind the gate.

"I wouldn't know...but it hasn't seemed to have hurt anyone...yet."

The Hwarangs looked at each other sceptically. This talk was new to them, seeing as they hadn't had much access to the outside world.

"What do you think is going on?" Suho questioned Nari, but she just shrugged in reply, having absolutely no idea herself.

All of a sudden, large gasps filled the air, along with the sounds of hastily shuffling feet.

"Your Majesty," voices cried in unison.

Suho, Yeo-Wool, Hansung and Nari exchanged looks of bewilderment and confusion. However, before they could even say anything, they were flung through the air at the unexpected bursting open of the gigantic Hwarang doors. They crashed into the dirt a few metres from the entrance, their bodies tangled in an unkempt pile. Suho groaned, clutching his head. The others grunted in pain as they struggled to their feet, having no idea what had just hit them. Brushing the dust from their robes, they looked up, only to jump at the sight of soldiers glaring at them sharply.

"Ah!" Hansung exclaimed in fright, falling backwards into Yeo-Wool's arms.

"Kneel before your queen!" a guard demanded, pulling out his sword in case of disobedience.

Immediately, Yeo-Wool, Suho and Hansung fell to their knees, realising their current and vulnerable situation. However, Nari lingered upright, inspecting the figures before her. As expected, she found the Command standing emotionlessly next to the Queen herself, hand on sword.

"What a ruthless man," she spat under her breath so no one could hear, her glare then switching to the Queen. "And you, the mother of a murderer, not to forget a murderer yourself...the brutal controller of this giant game of chess."

A soldier stepped forward.

"I said kneel!" he yelled.

Nari fell to her knees in shame, feeling no pride in being reverent before the slaughterers of her family. Although it went against every bone in her body to pay respects, she knew she needed to be alive to carry out her plan on finding the king and bringing him to justice. Glaring at the ground, she lowered her head, muttering a low 'your majesty'.

"Proceed," the Queen instructed, and the band of soldiers continued leading the way.

As the queen passed the kneeling Hwarangs, she glanced down at Nari, suspicion lining her sly eyes. Nari felt the cold stare, but kept her gaze low. Eventually the Queen's attention was diverted elsewhere, to the incoming of Master Wi-Hwa, who was rushing to meet his important guest.

"You Majesty!" he cried, a broad smile across his lips.

The Queen began walking towards him, her expression dim. Nari watched carefully, alert to clues.

"Now you must lead me to your son."

"Wow!" Suho suddenly exclaimed, distracting Nari from herself. "She's so beautiful! She will be at the performance in a few nights, won't she?"

Nari rolled her eyes in disgust as she stood up along with the others.

"What did I just hear?" Yeo-Wool murmured, slightly taken aback by his friend's questionable words.

"Are you crazy?" Hansung added. "She's a queen, not a crush!"

"I'm just saying it out of admiration," Suho retorted, his cheeks turning red. "I'm just a mere subject commending his honourable leader."

"Honourable?!" Nari scoffed angrily, before barging past Suho, heading straight to where she could get peace of mind.

"She has no honour, along with the rest of her disgusting family."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Your Majesty!" Master Wi-Hwa cried, as the queen gracefully approached him. "It's been a while."

"Perhaps not long enough," the queen replied, her soldiers forming a guard around her.

Master Wi-Hwa chuckled with amusement.

"Perhaps," he replied. "How can I serve you on this fine evening?"

"I've come to inspect your progress. I expect the performance is coming along nicely?"

"Of course, Your Majesty. It is in honour of you, therefore worked on with great effort."

"Good," the queen answered coldly. "I would prefer not to be disappointed. You would prefer so as well."

"I guarantee your full enjoyment." Master Wi-Hwa assured with a smile.

The Queen didn't answer, and instead turned to look behind her. She saw the young Hwarang who had hesitated to kneel before her briskly walking away from the others who had been accompanying him.

"Master Wi-Hwa," she spoke, turning back to face him. "I see a very strange sight in Hwarang."

"Oh?" he replied curiously. "Please allow me to rest your concern."

The Queen raised her chin imperiously.

"I see a Hwarang with light coloured hair. Explain this to me."

"Oh," Master Wi-Hwa chuckled. "He goes by the name Mouse. He comes from the West, and I suspect from an interracial marriage. His hair is quite a sight."

"The West?" the Queen inquired. "How amusing. I haven't seen anyone from the West since a few years ago when an unpleasant incident occurred."

"I assume you must be referring to the western spy," Master Wi-Hwa guessed. "You need not worry. The Hwarang member Ji-Dwi is from the West as well. Mouse is harmless. He is but a boy."

"I see..." the Queen stated. "Very well. Continue to show me around."

"Of course! Allow me to lead the way!"

The Queen glanced back one last time to where she had seen the suspicious Hwarang, before walking away, her unsettled eyes betraying her calm composure.