life may not be fair but it sure is beautiful

Point of no return

Jungeun knew that her life would get harder as she got ready to execute her master plan to see Jinsoul and her lover unite. She was prepared for it. But what she wasn't ready for was the princess' absolute hate and coldness. As soon as Jinsoul told her about the engagement Jiwoo became the spitting image of a bitter royalty that never looked into the eyes of her servants. She only gave her commands and she got even worse when Jung Sungman announced that the wedding ceremony would be held in a month in the bride's hometown. Jungeun physically felt a wave of cold wind coming from the girl in question.

As the day grew near, Jungeun did everything in her power to let everyone in the capital know she was star struck by Jinsoul. She had to do all she could for their plan to go as smoothly as possible. Every morning when she woke up, she picked flowers from a nice field nearby and dropped them off at the Jung house before leaving for guard duties. She paid musicians to serenade for her in the middle of the town, she arranged poets to praise and compliment her beauty and personality very publicly, she sent gifts of every kind she could find, books, jewelry, perfume, dresses, shoes... Maybe these were over the top, but she had to, and it was a refreshing feeling to see her father worked up and ready to blow but not having the courage to do so. It was thrilling.

But with every gesture she made to declare her 'love' for Jinsoul, the distance between her and the princess grew. Jungeun knew if she listened to her heart she would be down on her knees, begging for forgiveness. She didn't understand why the princess was acting this way, but she knew her personality. Jiwoo being the youngest of all her siblings and being from another mother, was alone most of the time. She, as observed by Jungeun, only had her guard for a genuine friend. Jungeun hated leaving her alone but she needed to be clear of any palace gossips that have been going around forever. If she wanted to make people believe that she was absolutely swept off the ground by Jung's daughter, she had to be clear of any other doubts.

Jungeun sighed as she put on her shoes to get out of the house. She had two days until the ceremony and Jinsoul already left the city to get ready back at her hometown. As the tradition required them, they would not see each other until the ceremony. Jungeun would ride alone to her house on horseback and she would knock on her door thrice. Then her father would open the door and ask why she was there. She would answer truthfully and ask for the price of the door opening. Jungeun honestly hated this with a burning passion but she already pushed the limits of traditions by meeting, talking, and worse, being alone with her before they eloped. She would have to follow the book from now on.

When she got to the palace she found the princess up and ready to go out. They haven't had a training session since the engagement and Jungeun wasn't sure how to feel. This could be Jiwoo's way of forgiving or punishing her.

"Get ready Junghyun-ah. We will leave to wander around the forest. I am positively bored out of my mind from sitting all day." Jiwoo said, not really looking at her. But she dropped the honorifics, so it was a good sign. "Are you going to stand there all day or are you going to accompany and protect me throughout the trip?"

"As you wish, your grace." Said Jungeun, watching the princess' eyebrow twitch with annoyance with a secret smile. She gathered her equipment and the princess' bags to mount them on their horses. Jungeun kept a pair of her clothes in the palace for the princess to wear while training, she got them from her hiding place and she headed back to the stables. The princess was ready to go, waiting on top of her horse.

They didn't utter a single word until they got out of the palace and city grounds. Jungeun broke the silence.

"It has been a while since we've done this. I've missed it." She said with a sigh, checking Jiwoo's expression with a subtle look.

"Yes, I've missed a lot of things, but I wasn't aware you still had your brain intact to remember something other than your puppy-love. My apologies, I underestimated your abilities." The Princess answered with an underlying aggressive tone. Her face wasn't saying much but her body language was ranting. Her hands gripped the reins way too tightly and her legs didn't sway casually, they were unmoving.