다프네★彡

You’re not exactly sure when or how you ended up in the rear palace—it all happened so suddenly.

The day began like any other, the sun beaming in the sky as its warms rays reflected off the water. The wind was heavy, blowing against the sail as it carried the ship to its next destination.

The deck bustled with life, each crew member tending to their assigned duties and preparing for the next trade. Your father’s voice echoed in the background, assigning tasks and keeping things in order.

You let out a quiet sigh, leaning your chest over the railing of the ship and staring at the water below. This was the kind of life you had known since birth, the sea being more of a home to you than any place on land.

If it weren’t for your mother telling you otherwise, you simply would’ve assumed that you were born on the very ship you stood on — the feel of its deck more natural to you than solid ground.

You closed your eyes, drowning out all background noises and relishing in the feeling of the wind gently kissing your face. Other than at night, time to yourself was rare, so you took advantage of it every opportunity you got.

A sudden tug on your sleeve caught your attention, pulling you from your thoughts and back into the world around you. You shifted your head, glancing beside you and at your younger sister.

She was born 10 years after you, making her 8 years old as she stood at half your height. Her round, [e/c] eyes glanced up at you with genuine, childlike curiosity.

“Yes?”

You ask in your native language. You had learned to speak many languages within your years of traveling—some taught to you by your parents, while others you picked up by listening to others or interacting with native speakers you encountered.

However, your younger sister does not have that experience quite yet; so you communicate with her in your family’s native language.

“Where are we going now?”

She asked softly, her head tilting slightly. You couldn’t help but smile, finding her childish mannerisms adorable. Shrugging your shoulders, you looked back at the rippling waves,

“I don’t know. We can ask father when he’s not busy.”

Before your sister had the chance to respond, the ship suddenly jolted—the force so harsh that it threw you off balance and caused you to fall to your knees.

“What was that?!”

Your sister shrieked, holding onto you for support as she frantically looked around. You did the same, your heart dropping and eyes widening when you realized what had happened.

Pirates had found your ship.

The deck erupted into chaos, violence roaring in the air as pirates rounded the ship from all angles. You held onto your sister as tight as you could, attempting to find a place to hide as your legs carried you as fast as they could go.

The two of you were quickly caught, forcefully torn apart and dragged onto separate ships. You barely even remember what happened after that, the following months filled with nothing but depressive emotions.

You stayed quiet, keeping to yourself and doing everything you could to avoid gaining attention. You hid your glasses and pretended to be illiterate, as well as pretending that you were mute.

The last thing you wanted was for people to find out that you’re multilingual—you were sure that would make things a lot more complicated and freedom a lot less likely.

You eventually ended up as a servant in the rear palace, and you couldn’t be happier. You had been to the rear palace many times, it was one of your father’s favorite place to do business—so you were very familiar with the area and how it works.

Despite how obvious it was that you weren’t from the area—or from China at all—you managed to keep a low profile, desperate to finish your contract as soon as possible and find your family.

You were doing so well, avoiding attention for years and going about your business with ease.

So…how did you end up here?

You swallowed nervously, body instinctively tensing as you had to fight the urge to run away. Before you stood a eunuch, one you desperately tried to avoid due to the amount of attention he drew wherever he went.

His beautiful, feminine features and charming personality instantly made heads turn wherever he walked—not to mention the power he had since he was the emperor’s favorite.

However, despite him being the highest authoritative figure in the room, he’s not the one that intimidated you the most—it was the girl beside him.

She was younger than you by about a year and stood at a mere 5 feet, but her stare carried all the intensity her stature couldn’t.

“Tell me…”

She slowly began, watching your every move.

“…You’re not actually mute and illiterate, are you?”

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❀A/N❀

Hi guys!!! I’m sorry I’ve been so inactive :’) So much shit has been happening and I’ve been going through THE WORST writers block. Like- this is literally something I wrote within the span of 15 minutes on the toilet because I want to write SOMETHING