#ttfb

A soft knock on the door wakes Aura from her dreamless sleep. It is already light outside. The sun is shining through the gaps of drawn curtains. 

Another knock on the door, a more urgent one this time. “Aura? Can I come in?” She quickly recognizes the Mingi’s and allows him to come in. His clothes are different to the ones he was wearing during the night. 

“Good morning.” He says with a smile that doesn’t reach his flickering eyes, barely hiding the worry on his face. 

“Good morning, Mingi.” She responds. “Did you manage to get any rest?” She feels worried about the man in front of her. There are dark circles visible under his eyes. 

“I was actually revoked from my position until midday. As soon as I arrived at my chambers to change clothes, a message from the King came, saying I should rest.” He smiles kindly at her. Now that he mentions it, he does look a bit more rested. Yet still restless. 

The Duchess continues to worry as well, about one particular person, but as if Mingi reads her mind, he quickly waves a hand at the matter and responds to her thoughts. “Yunho is the same. He arrived in our servant quarters soon after me.” 

She nods, feeling more assured but then the realization dawns in on her, and she can’t help but comment on it with a sly smile decorating her lips. “So, you two share a room?” 

To which, Mingi blushes heavily, rubbing his palm on the back of his head. He nods timidly, which makes her smile even wider. “Good for you.” She responds and shifts her weight on her feet. 

The clerk seems to be lost in his daydreaming for a few seconds until suddenly he comes back to consciousness, remembering why he came to the Duchess’ chambers in the first place. 

“Oh, yeah. The King asked for your presence at the audience hall.” He quickly shudders, switching back to his professional mode. 

Ah yes. The moment of truth has come upon us. King Chan’s verdict on the course of things. Now they will know what happens next. And how the whole case of fishermen’s guild culminates. She is especially eager to learn the verdict on her foolish, wannabe-heroic actions during the night. The king seemed to let her off easily when he dismissed her. Question is, will he have followed through with the rest of his decision in that same mood? 

Never one to fall while unseen, Aura takes time to look her best. She wears a wine-colored coat with brown pants and boots. Her hair is tied in a simple braid to her left side. She hopes dearly that these aren’t her last moments in the Wolfshowl kingdom. She won’t be able to live with herself if that is the case. 

Even though she hasn’t eaten anything since dinner, the Duchess couldn’t care less about food now. Her stomach is twisted in several knots, awaiting the King’s decision. 

They both arrive swiftly at the audience hall, King Chan already talking to some officials and Yunho. San is standing there next to them, already looking at the direction of the two new arrivals. His beaming smile is back to shine in Aura’s way. 

Both Mingi and her bow at the King taking notice of them. He nods his head in return and gestures towards the exit of the hall. “We are going to Buckman’s guild. He expects us to be there. All of us.” He says as he looks sternly in the Duchess’ direction. 

Good heavens. The time has come. 

They go by carriage. Aura sits next to Mingi, across from the King and tries to focus on anything but him. She is still unable to look him in the eye properly. The humiliation holding her back and clouding her vision is too great to ignore. The scene he had to witness this morning of her being a complete emotional mess, still lingers in her mind. The Duchess desperately hopes she doesn’t look completely pathetic in King Chan’s eyes. 

Maybe it started when she first saw the King up close when he came to kiss the back of her hand during their first meeting. Maybe it started when he was so open, ambitious, and kind during their work in the few mornings they spent together. Who knows? It might have started during the lunch that followed those mornings when they didn’t care about their nobility. 

Maybe, just maybe, it had started even before that. Whenever Jisung spoke warmly of his brother back in Cloudburst. Even then, the Duchess was curious about this kind, smart and ambitious king, who her dear friend called brother. 

All in all, the thought of His Majesty, sitting across from her in the carriage looking down on her, seeing her as nothing but a mess or a hindrance, hurts her. In the few days spent in this foreign kingdom, she came to quite like him. She simply cannot stand to disappoint him. 

Curse her deeply rooted issues, that made her want to suck up to any authority. Maybe if she begs hard enough, if she makes enough of a fool of herself, she will be noticed, right? 

While lost in her thoughts, they suddenly arrive at the town of their destination. Its streets are quite rowdy, much more than at night. People go to markets, have conversations, tend to their houses, or attend meetings. 

Soon the carriage stops on its way, and Aura steps out of it alongside Mingi and the King. Buckman is already standing in front of his guildhall, his hands fidgeting together in nervousness. He makes a low polite bow and greets them all. He must have realized that the King is knowledgeable of his treason. 

Buckman invites them all to his office where seats are prepared along with tea and light snacks. Several servants are tending to all three visitors sitting on the chairs, the clerk and the Duchess on each of the King’s side. Buckman’s business partner, Warson, is also present, sitting by his side as well.  

“I didn’t expect Your Majesty to come so soon, when the report is to be handed in in two days.” The guild master speaks with shaky words. But the King keeps his gaze steady and stern. “You know, I am not here for the report, Mr. Buckman.” 

You could hear a feather drop in the silence that follows. But the King continues soon after. “Your crimes are heavy, friends. The deeds done already and the deeds to be done yet. You know that I presume.” 

Warson keeps looking at the ground with a terrified look, his business partner fidgeting with his hands to keep himself busy. His forehead is sweaty, and his breath is irregular and heavy. His eyes sometimes go in the direction of the Duchess as if looking for an answer or maybe signs of spite. 

“It would be wise to raid down your buildings, go through all your documents, take the gold from your vaults and coffers and take over your business while your workers rot in prison, and you get executed.” 

Buckman swallows dryly. He looks like he wants to beg for mercy but doesn’t know where to start. He turns around and looks at the small picture of his daughter. Then he looks down at the floor and twists his head back to face the King again before he responds. 

“I won’t protest against it, Your Majesty. I failed in my task to do one necessary thing, and my life is not important anymore. I suppose you gathered all the needed evidence to our disbandment.” He says with his voice sounding defeated. And Aura’s heart breaks. 

“Not so fast, friend. I want to hear it directly from your lips. Why?” The King urges him on. 

“I have a daughter, Your Majesty. She is very sick. And with the money from the crown for our services, I didn’t have enough to cover her medical bills or medicine to ease her pain. She is hurting so much that she cannot sleep at night.” 

The King nods at that information and waits for Buckman to continue, as he does. 

“The lads confided in me that they didn’t earn enough to live properly. Some of them having to work three times as hard and sleep around in barns with nothing but hay to cover them at night. I was worried about my lads and my daughter, Sire. I am bound to take care of both.” 

He sighs and looks at Warson, who in the meantime lifts his face to look at his guests. He takes over the conversation to continue in his partner’s stead. 

“It was amid those problems when we got the offer to ship some of the fished goods to the western ports. We knew very well what we got ourselves into. But the profit was too necessary to turn a chance like that down.” 

“What about your plan to blow up the boats? How would your western friends like that?” Says Mingi. His face is stern and professional. The two fishermen look at each other and Warson continues. 

“It was more of a plan to disappear. Blow up all the evidence, all the money and goods and go with our other ships to the west under a new name, since we already knew how their trade worked.” 

That angers the Duchess. She cannot help but ask. “How would little Melania come to that? What if she couldn’t make it to the west? What if she collapsed?” 

Buckman looks in Aura’s direction and instead of spite or hatred, she finds genuine sadness in his eyes. He takes the picture of his daughter in his hands and rubs his thumb over it. 

“I failed her, Your Grace. I bet she can’t even look at me without pain. Without disappointment. You see, her mother left as soon as she came to know about the sickness. She denied her and wanted to do nothing with a defected child. But I could never leave her. We would just have to try our best.” 

“Who is your most trusted worker, Buckman?” asks the King. His face remains neutral. But the tone of his voice is serious. 

“That would be Dellis. My best sailor. He is trusted among the fishermen, and he knows a lot about the craft.” 

Warson only enthusiastically nods. “Yes, he is very good. The lads like him and he is smart in this business. He didn’t like much the way of our illegal trade. But he did it for them. He knew that leaving them would result in more trouble and they didn’t deserve that.” 

King Chan seems to take all of the information into consideration. He gets up from his chair and walks around the room. He stops at a picture of boats hanging on the wall and looks back at Buckman, who is still looking at his daughter’s picture, holding onto it like a lifeline. 

“I sentence you to prison. Both of you for 10 years. After releasement, you will be banned from fishing or any form of national or international trade.” The King announces. Then he comes close to Buckman and gestures for him to look up. 

“But you, Mr. Buckman.” His voice softens. “You are to serve your sentence in the castle with your daughter under the care of the royal physician. She will be mostly taken care of, by you especially, while you train and educate your successor in the guild. Be it this Dellis, it's up to you to decide.” 

All the eyes in the room are on the King. But he continues. “Until your daughter’s last days, you are to serve your sentence by her side and after that, you will move to a proper prison to serve the rest. With immediate effect.” 

Aura is shocked. He actually listened to her. Melania won’t be alone. She will be in the comfort of the castle with the most precise care for her health. She will not die alone in pain. But by her father’s side. 

“And about the business profit. When I asked you to increase the quota, I did so with the intention of increasing the profit for a pound of goods as well. After meeting with your successor in the castle, let them know, that the crown will buy the goods in increased amount with the rise of the price up to fifty percent.” 

Buckman and Warson fall to their knees, tears bursting out of their eyes, thanking the King endlessly. He shushes them soon, telling them to calm down. 

“Don’t thank me, gentlemen. Be grateful for the Duchess of Cloudburst. She is the one who persuaded me to think more of little Melania and her wellbeing as well as the wellbeing of the lads. I wouldn’t know about your daughter’s condition, if it weren’t for the Duchess.” King Chan says, as he looks at the woman in question. She flashes him with a confused look on her face. 

When Buckman hears it, he crawls on his knees to her and starts uttering incomprehensible words. He is crying too loudly. “Tha-Thank… Thank you so much, My Lady. Thank you so much!” He weeps again and Aura doesn’t know what to do. “I am so sorry for ever thinking ill thoughts of you. I am forever in your debt. Please forgive!” 

The Duchess pats his shoulder and smiles at him. She definitely did not expect that. When she looks at the King, he gives her a mischievous smile with a side eye. She smiles back at him and returns to the man crying his heart out at her knees. 

“Please don’t cry, Mr. Buckman. Be grateful it all ended the best way it could.” He nods frantically and puts his palms together. “I am most grateful, My Lady. Thank you again.” 

King Chan deems it was enough of that, so he gestures Yunho, who had been witnessing the whole interaction from the side of the door, to help Buckman back on his feet and take him away. He follows all his orders and soon they leave the town. 

The atmosphere in the carriage is now much more lifted than on the previous way to the town. The King doesn’t let the silence take its place for much longer until he speaks. “Mingi, as soon as we arrive back at the castle, have a carriage sent to Buckman and his daughter right away. Take Yunho with you and any more guards that he deems necessary.” 

Mingi takes notes of all the orders and nods his head. But the King’s speech doesn’t end there. “Can I entrust the welcoming of our little guest to her new home to you, My Lady? You can ask Lydia, the head maid, to pick a suitable room for her.” 

Aura nods and smiles. “I can certainly do that, Your Majesty. Thank you.” King Chan only nods in response and looks out of the window. The Duchess feels a massive relief. Melania won’t be alone. And she even gets to meet the little brave lady. It all couldn’t take a better turn. 

She looks to the man, sitting across from her, again. He could have been cruel; he could as well have not taken her words and pleas into consideration. She is after all a stranger to him. But after today, yet again, the Duchess is firmly convinced that she doesn’t want to be a stranger to this brave and generous king. She wants to be his friend. 

All the preparations go according to the plan. She picks a perfect little room near the lower floors of the castle, so Melania doesn’t need to climb all the crazy steps into the tower. She prepares the room accordingly, dusting it off, opening the windows and putting colorful sheets on the bed. 

Soon enough Buckman and his daughter arrive at the castle, with him helping the servants carrying the luggage with the help of servants. He soon lets others carry the luggage as he has to help his daughter up the stairs. 

Lanie is absolutely captivated by the interior of the castle, all the colors and high ceiling. After getting into their room, they are met with the Aura and the maid doing finishing touches of the room in a hurry before their guest arrives. 

Through the door steps a young girl in a white and brown polka-dot flowy dress. She is visibly trying to keep her steps steady, but her body is weak, so she leans on the wall by hand. Melania is tall and skinny, her skin a pale milky white and her eyes are a little fallen but still full of life. Her auburn hair is woven into a twin braid, and her eyes shine a striking green color. A galaxy of freckles adorns the young girl’s face. 

Melania is as if struck with the force of a star when she sees the Duchess. “No one told me, girls can wear pants!” 

Aura finds it incredibly difficult not to burst into laughter at the bold exclamation but quickly responds. “No one told me either, I told it to myself, so I wear them!” She announces with a smile, showing off her outfit. Without the coat now, she took it off because she felt hot from all her moving around the room. 

“Please forgive my daughter, Your Grace. She didn’t leave her room much in the last three years and the only women she saw in that period were mostly nurses and caretakers.” But Aura just shrugs it off, taking those proud words like the warmest compliment. 

“No problem, sir. It is very endearing actually.” She puts on a smile and bows. 

“Hello Melania. My name is Aura. I took the liberty of preparing this room for you with the help of Lydia. I hope you will like it.” 

The girl in question bows properly, and the Duchess answers it in the same manner. Now they have been properly introduced. 

“Daddy said, you’re the nice foreign lady who saved him. Thank you, Miss Aura.” Lanie says and bows again very formally. Aura again does the same thing and responds. “It was my honor, dear Melania.” 

After that, the Duchess and head maid Lydia help them settle in. Buckman is still very humble, as he should be, this being a part of his sentence. He tries to help his daughter as best as he can and is very skilled and gentle with her. The little girl is however utterly mesmerized by the purple-haired woman in the room. She doesn’t take her eyes off her. 

It makes Aura blush. She hasn’t met a lot of kids since joining the court in general. Yet she must admit that it is quite nice to feel the admiring gaze of a little girl on her. 

After settling in and unpacking their luggage, Buckman quickly gets to work, preparing himself for Dellis’ succession. He apparently informed the man and got a positive answer. So now he has to prepare the needed paperwork for transferring the deals and contacts to him. 

Suddenly the room ruptured with the sound of a stomach growling. It belongs to the Duchess. Her face is immediately flushed, and she apologizes for the disturbance, explaining that she hasn’t eaten breakfast. 

“Can I join you for lunch, Miss Aura? I also haven’t eaten, but my stomach is not as loud.” The little girl giggles. Aura chuckles at that but responds. “It would be my honor, little friend.” Melania asks her father for permission, but he has no reason not to allow it, still being grateful to the Duchess. So, they are quickly on their way. 

Lanie is a pretty young lady, but she looks much younger than she actually is, her body being very skinny and weak from the rough illness. When the older of the two offers her hand to the little girl, she accepts without hesitation, putting on a smile. 

They are soon in the castle kitchen, and they happen to see a very interesting scene in front of them. 

“Sannie, I have to work! You’re distracting meee!” says one honey toned voice. 

“But I missed you so much, baby. My shifts have been really shitty lately and we haven’t gotten to see each other lately. Just one kiss and I’ll be on my way.” Says the other voice. This one is deep and familiar. But it has a very sweet undertone to it. Which makes it less familiar. 

When Aura and Melania go around the corner to see what is going on in the kitchen, they both gasp at the exact same time. There are two men. A guard and a cook, lovers in tight embrace, the cook trying to fight the guard off. But the Duchess cannot believe her eyes. The guard none other than San. 

The other man is the first one to notice to realize they are not alone anymore, so he quickly pushes his lover away, almost making him trip and fall. When San also realizes that someone has entered the kitchen, he freezes on spot. And when he realizes who entered the kitchen, his eyes go incredibly wide and his cheeks red. 

“Your Grace.” He quickly says. “I did not expect you to come down here.” He audibly panics in his speech and looks at the little girl who has her mouth agape and goes even redder. Aura simply measures the flustered guard with her knowing stare. Spending several months around a newlywed couple, she is no stranger to scenes like these. Curse her for trying to get some fun out of it by teasing said couple. 

“Oh, I was just hungry. I haven’t eaten anything yet today. And Melania here offered to join me, so I wondered if there was anything we could munch on.” She admits calmly. 

The other young man quickly takes over the conversation from that side of the kitchen. “Of course, My Lady! Let me whip up something quick for you!” 

Aura and Melania take their seats on the bar stools at one of the counters where servants usually eat. San notices that he is no longer needed, and he definitely won’t go back to messing around with the cook, so he bows his head and excuses himself. 

The Duchess makes a mental note in her head to later ask Yunho and Mingi about it. She won’t meddle in, however. Still, she can’t help herself but be curious. 

The cook soon serves them both smoked mackerel with mushrooms and bread. The food is delicious like always, but the flustered blinking of the young man is much more entertaining than the fish on her plate. Aura has a lot of work with suppressing the need to tease the poor man. After looking longer at the cook’s face, she notices a mole under one of his eyes. Cute, she thinks to herself. 

After lunch and a calm conversation between the ladies, the cook serves them moon cakes with a silent smile. A smile saying, "Please don’t tell anyone”. The Duchess understands the message and nods with a smile as her response. She is not here to cause trouble among the servants. 

The cook leaves soon after that, bowing and excusing himself. But Melania is quick to speak following his departure. “Does this happen often in the castle?” She asks with innocence in her eyes, munching on the moon cake. 

Aura chuckles to herself and responds. “I don’t quite know to be honest; I have been known to a different pair of secret lovers here, but I only arrived a few days ago.” 

The younger hums to herself. But Aura cannot help but ask. “Would your father be okay with knowing that?” She asks cautiously. She doesn’t want Buckman to spout nonsense into the little girl’s head. 

“Well, he doesn’t have to know, does he?” Lanie responds matter-of-factly. At which the Duchess smiles widely thinking of how clever the girl is. She thinks she will grow very attached to her, and she doesn’t mind one bit. 

“What is the doctor like here?” The little girl asks. But there is silence after that, followed by an unsure response. “I don’t know. I haven’t seen him yet. I only know he will come today to check up on you.” 

“I’m scared of him. The doctor’s back in our hometown wasn’t very nice. He always gave me injections that made me uncomfortable.” It makes Aura’s heart ache. But she offers a solution. 

“If you want, I can stay with you through the examination. If that makes you feel any better.” That makes the little girl light up instantly. She smiles widely at the Duchess. “You would do that? Thank you miss!” she lets out and hugs the woman next to her. Who doesn’t know what to do with herself. She has never been hugged by a child. 

She pats the little girl on her back, later they quickly finish their cakes after that and head back to the room. When they arrive, Buckman is still focused on his papers and doesn’t notice much of them. Melania, however, takes her dolls and sits on the bed. She gestures for Aura to join her on the bed, which she does. 

“Will you play with me, Miss?” The girl asks. And the Duchess’ heart melts at the question. She would like nothing more. “It would be my pleasure.” 

She never had dolls as a little girl. She did play, but she played with her friends on the street. Throwing dice, stones, chasing each other, or playing monsters, she would always come back to their little house completely exhausted but happy. 

Thinking back on it, Aura might have been around Lanie’s age when her mother fell sick and died only months after that. Her lungs went out. She never had much connection with her mother, only ever spending time with her friends outside. 

But after her mother’s death, she stopped playing outside. Only staying at home being lectured on the Cloudburst kingdom, its agriculture and art. But she wasn’t that alone, receiving those small gifts and letters from her father, the King. When he died at war, she was alone again, until Minho approached her. 

But she doesn’t feel alone now. Even so far from her home, she has accepted that her home is now also Wolfshowl. And people, especially children, like Melania, depend on her doing well at her mission. 

She reaches for her neck, trying to find the pendant and reassure herself. But it’s not there. That’s right, she didn’t put it on today. She was too ashamed to look at it after she lost it at night. Now she wishes she had put it on earlier. 

They play with the dolls for a while, not caring about the man in the room. And they quite enjoy themselves. Until there is a knock on the door and Aura goes to open it. A man with a medical bag stands there. 

“Good afternoon, Your Grace. I’m Brooke. The royal physician. I am to check up on a small girl here?” 

She nods and lets him inside. The checkup goes over all well. Melania is very weak, but she is holding on. Buckman, on the other hand, seems restless. He asks about the opium, but the doctor slides it off the table. Melania is after all very young to be taking such a strong drug. The little girl seems elated to hear that news. 

Her father accepts it as well. He doesn’t have much space to oppose. He is in no place either. The doctor prescribes some sort of medication kinder to her mental stability, than opium and upon the Duchess’s request, he also gets her a mix of herbs to prepare tea for the sleepless nights. 

They all thank him, Aura the most and set him on his way. After another period of time playing with the dolls, Melania seems very tired. The trip to the castle and everything else has probably exhausted her plenty. 

So, the Duchess asks the girl’s father to prepare her for bed and gets ready to leave. The small girl stops her with her fragile hand. “Will you come again tomorrow, Miss?” Her eyes are big and glossy and the look on her face is almost desperate. How could she ever say no to that face? 

“I will make time for you, don’t you worry. I don’t know when yet, but I will come here for sure. I can show you a bit around the castle if you want.” Lanie smiles at that and nods excitedly. 

The Duchess bids them good night and leaves the room, going straight to her chambers. Even cut in half, today has been another long day. 

She picks one of her books from home and starts reading. She needs some pleasant distraction. After some time passes, there is a knock on the door. She springs up from her chair and goes to open it. It’s Yunho and Mingi. They bring dinner. 

They all have another nice conversation, with the men finally addressing her in a friendly way without any formal filters. She appreciates that. In the end she decides not to approach them about what she saw in the kitchen earlier that day. If San ever wants to speak about it, he will let her know. And she can definitely count on Yunho to confirm to him that Aura would never say a word about it, if he ever asks him. 

The Duchess relaxes in the feeling of calmness for the rest of the evening, talking with her friends and eating. Her mind often wonders back to Melania and brings her the feeling of sadness and joy at the same time. 

She is happy that the little girl is in a safe place and gets to rest properly, enjoying her last bits of time with her father and even her new friend to entertain her. But the realization that she has no idea how long Lanie will be there with them breaks her. She shouldn’t get attached to the child too much. 

But she just simply cannot help herself. She wants the little girl to feel happy.  

Both Yunho and Mingi leave with the plates with the help of servants and bid Aura good night. And when loneliness takes control of her room again, she drifts back to the thoughts she had earlier about Melania. 

She cannot help herself but feel also a little frustrated. Maybe even angry. Not at Buckman or the doctor or any other human. Simply angry that there is no cure for Melania’s illness. That she will die one day, young and barely kissed by life. 

Even after a bath and a thorough preparation to bed, the Duchess still seems restless, her thoughts endlessly going back to the little girl. And to the memories of herself. If only there was something, she could have done. 

Is this what it would feel like to have a child? Or maybe a younger sibling? But she quickly disbands that thought, because it would bring only more sorrow. This is not the time for sorrow. She must tell herself that. 

Phew… This is going to be a long night.