~ a lily among thorns~

"i'm innocent"

It had been three months – three long months of waiting. The dark harrowing shadows of Silla's dungeon had hid away Nari for nearly ninety days now. She sat in the corner of her small slimy cell, her empty stomach growling and her once spotless white uniform now tarnished with dirt.

Her usual pink squishy cheeks were now thinned out and grey. She hadn't seen the sun since being imprisoned. With cracked lips and dreary eyes, she stared off into the distance, bored and lonely. But above all that, she was hurt. Not on the outside, although her bones were growing sore. It was her heart that was slowly ripping apart.

She felt hurt because she'd dragged Yoon-sung into her mess. She had no idea where he was now, but she desperately hoped he was alright. She felt hurt that she'd let her Father down. All this time he'd been trying to meet her, but she'd been too useless to interpret the message. She felt hurt that she'd been unable to avenge her mother. Her whole mission in Hwarang had now been completely extinguished. She felt hurt that the Queen would want to inflict something so terrible upon her. What prejudice did she have against her family? But mostly she felt hurt that Ji-Dwi, the person she'd given her whole heart to, had betrayed her in a split second. Had he tried to frame her purposefully, or was he just too scared to stand up for her against the Queen? Either way, Nari felt nothing but anger towards him now.

"Here's your dinner," a guard mumbled grumpily, sliding a tray towards her through the bars of the cell.

"I'm innocent," she replied, narrowing her eyes.

"You tell me every day," he answered, letting out a sigh.

Nari pouted, gaining no sympathy from her sentry. She had no idea when she'd get out of this prison. She certainly wasn't planning to stay there forever. Despite her hunger, she crawled up to the barred door, looking up at the guard she'd been talking to.

"How long will I be in here?" she asked earnestly, itching for her long lost freedom. She knew exactly what she'd do the moment she got out.

"Stop talking," the guard responded, rolling his eyes. "You shouldn't bother asking. You won't like the answer."

"Why?" Nari pressed on. "Is it another year? Two years? Three?"

"That's wishful thinking."

Nari gulped at the comment. "What do you mean?"

"Well, from what I've heard, and I've heard a lot about you, you've gotten yourself a life sentence."

"What?" the girl breathed, her stomach twisting. "Does that mean I'm in here...forever?"

"I'll tell you what it means," the guard grumbled. "It means I have to guard you until the day you die. I'm not overly excited about it."

Nari was at a loss for words. "Until the day I die?" The thought of it made her tremble.

"That can't be!" she cried. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Then why are you wearing that uniform?" the guard asked, causing Nari to fall silent. "Look, just be thankful you weren't sentenced to death. That's the usual punishment for such a crime. You must have someone in the palace rooting for you, that's for sure."

"No one in the palace would do such a thing...not for me anyway," Nari mumbled downheartedly, lowering her head. The guard shrugged in reply, before letting out a large yawn. "It's getting late," he sighed. "Why don't you eat your dinner and go to sleep. I don't get paid enough to deal with your antics."

Nari backed away from the cell door slowly, sinking to the ground with shock and despair. Her future was doomed. For a moment, she felt like giving up – letting herself rot away in the prison for the next fifty years. But then, she was reminded she had so many things to do. Nothing could keep her contained when revenge was boiling within her. Suddenly, she was filled with the motivation to escape. The idea frightened, yet excited her. But she believed that somehow she could do it...she just had to figure that part out.

The night began to draw on slowly. The only way Nari could tell the time was through the distant noises from outside. In the day, she'd hear the slight murmur of chatter through the walls. At night, she'd listen to the chirping crickets echoing in the distance. This night, however, she could hear crickets and talking. She poked her head around the corner to investigate.

She spotted a guard dragging a man in her direction. The prisoner, it seemed, was trying to struggle out of his grip, but the guard hung onto him tightly with both hands, cursing and groaning with frustration. "Keep still, you filthy dog!" the guard ordered, finally reaching the cell beside Nari. Nari's guard assessed the situation, before offering a helping hand.

"I'll unlock the door for you," he offered, pulling a set of keys from his belt. Nari watched closely as he stuck one key into the door, before pulling it open. The prisoner was pushed inside and both guards returned to their stations.

That's when an idea struck Nari...one that would take the uttermost stealth and precision to achieve. All she had to do was wait.