(Ahmret Jen. The capital of Shu Han)

We're all fools, she thought, gazing at her giant emerald engagement ring. If we hadn't been fools, I wouldn't be in this predicament right now.

King Nikolai Lanstov, Grand Duke of Udova, sole sovereign of the great nation of Ravka, and Princess Aeolian Kir-Taban, daughter of heaven, most Ethereal of the Taban Line, would like to welcome all and sundry to the grand celebration of matrimony in the royal chapel of Os Alta.

The wedding would take place one month from now. Plenty of time for her to plan, her raven black hair accessorised with strings of white pearls. Her arm cuffs, bracelets, necklaces, earrings, rings all made of gold and emeralds—the jewelleries she'd not worn in months. She'd missed wearing them, they were a part of her—they were her medals, her pride.

She had to keep them hidden for long and even though she'd suffered with money in her past, she knew she could never sell a single piece of her precious jewels; she'd rather starve to death than trade them for bread. And when her times comes, she'll be buried along with them.

The Shu princess sat on the terrace, her emerald eyes glinting in the sunlight as she appreciated the burbling fountains of the royal gardens below. And beyond them, the plum orchards of Ahmrat Jen. The blessed land of Shu Han, where the sun always shone warm. "Lush, green and full of life," that's what the Royal Palace and the city is called. Nothing compares to Ahmrat Jen and the Grand Taban Palace, which is a marvel of engineering and beauty.

The news of Sakura and Aeolian heading to Shu Han reached the ears of the Empress before they had even stepped foot on the kingdom. And to Aeolian's shock and utter surprise, the Empress had welcomed them back with open arms. She'd even apologised to her daughter and her granddaughter for all her misdeeds and cruelty. Aeolian didn't buy it, she knew her grandmother had something or the other up her sleeves but Sakura was kind unlike her evil mother and so she'd accepted her apologies and had even talked Aeolian into submitting to her grandmother once more.

Aeolian had only accepted her grandmother even though she didn't deserve it, because Sakura really wanted her family back together. She'd been apart from them for far too long and all her hatred and anger towards Leyti had diminished with time. She'd forgiven the Empress for killing the love of her life, for exiling her and separating her from her only child. And if her mother could show mercy, Aeolian could too because at the end of the day—she was her mother's daughter and she wanted to be like Sakura, not Leyti.

In a way, her grandmother had tried to make amends for their broken relationship and trust. She'd exiled Donghai, the man who's family owned the operation of The Desert Blade. The vicious man, who had stolen the firsts of many girls in the operation. Even the thought of him makes Aeolian's skin crawl, he'd never be able to touch her ever again. And he'd never dare to.

There were nights when she'd dream of him, his lips pressed on her neck and his hands circling around her throat. When she dreamed of him, she'll wake up shaking. She'll pray to the Divine to give her strength, to take away her nightmares and with the passage of time—the bad dreams started to diminish. And she'd learned how to control herself when a memory strikes.

And now, she was back home and miles from here was the Desert. The Desert made her and broke her, and now the Desert was going to be the death of Donghai, she didn't feel sorry or sad for him. She knew he didn't deserve death either and if the desert doesn't take his life, one day they might cross paths again—and saints forbids that ever happens for the sake of Donghai.

"We should be rejoicing," she heard her voice and smelt the scent of pure exquisite sandalwood. Leyti Kir-Taban the Empress of Shu Han appeared before her. Wearing an enormous gown embodied with silver and gold. She was fanning the grand wedding invitation. "The wedding that will seal an alliance between our two great nations."

Leyti tossed the invite on the table and removed the heavy crown from her head. It was pure platinum, thick with emeralds. "This always make my neck ache." Servants were meant to attend to these needs but at the terrace they weren't allowed, it was a safe space for the royals and away from the prying eyes of the guards or the spies. The reason why Aeolian always spend her free time here.

Aeolian poured herself another drink, there was no sweeter plum, than the plums from the royal orchards and it makes the perfect wine—fit for the most celestial Empress herself. "This marriage feels like a trap." She mumbled.

"Most marriages are." Leyti sat down gracefully.

"Do I have to marry him?" Aeolian sipped her drink.

"Just think of it as a contract," Leyti poured herself a drink. "The year will just fly by, Sunnu." Sunnu means granddaughter in Shu.

Aeolian huffed a breath of disbelief. "A year will be like an eternity."

"This alliance is a necessity," Leyti said. "We need the Ravkan's, they've the Grisha, they have the technology."

"If the Shu government hadn't killed half of the Grisha in their experiments," Aeolian muttered. "We'd be ahead of the Ravkan's by now."

"Everyone learns from their mistakes." Leyti leaned back. "I did too." Then she slowly turned towards Aeolian. "The Ravkan King is quite the charmer, in a year's time you might change your mind about him."

"Or maybe, you should marry him instead." Aeolian squinted.

Her grandmother smirked, "I just might."

Aeolian picked up the invitation, ran her fingers through the words like she did back then when Kaz had paid her debts. But now looking down on the invitation—she wished the words would disappear. Their world was in turmoil, Nikolai had informed that the Darkling was still alive and Ravka was facing enemies from all corners. Now more than ever—the Ravkan's needed the alliance of the Shu's.

And the Shu government did need the Ravkan's to build their airships because the best engineers were the Grisha in Ravka. But after what the Shu's had done to Grisha with the jurda parem and the khergud soldiers, the Ravkan's were not willing to help the Shu's but if there was an alliance between their leaders, both parties would've no option but help each other. From this union both the kingdoms would benefit; the Shu's will get the help needed in perfecting their airships and the Ravkan's will get soldiers to fight their wars.

It was a win-win situation according to her grandmother but Aeolian didn't see it that way. Unlike her grandmother, she hold something's sacred in life—like religion and marriage. She didn't want to fake a marriage to help the crown, walking down the aisle of the chapel and exchanging fake vows and rings, that hold no meaning to her life. Even though it'll end in a year or so, as both parties had agreed in secret. But to their kingdoms and the world it'd be a spectacle of power and unity.

After her grandmother had left, for a long moment Aeolian sat alone looking down at the royal gardens as the gardeners groomed their hedges, their heads bowed down. They weren't allowed to look up or speak to the royals and even if they stroll in the gardens, the servants weren't allowed to look directly at the royals.

She finally rose up, she'd spent almost half of her day at the terrace doing nothing but being here had helped with her frustration. She walked back into the Queen's sanctuary, the part of the palace where only the royal's reside. The palace had been built by the first Taban queens—warriors who, accompanied by their return of tame falcons had come down from the highest mountains in the Sikurzoi to rule the Shu.

Taban yenok-tub, they we're called. The storm that stayed. And even after generations, the palace was still a marvel of engineering and beauty. It belonged to the Taban dynasty. It belonged to the people. And for his brief moment—it belonged to her grandmother, her mother and then Aeolian.

"Nuer," Sakura called as she walked towards Aeolian a string of maids behind her. Nuer means daughter in Shu.

"Muqin," Aeolian smiled as she saw her mother. Muqin means mother in Shu.

Sakura stood before Aeolian, in red silks embodied with gold, the scent of cherry blossoms lingering in the air. "You haven't still decided on your wedding gown yet." She gestured the maids as one of them came forward head bowed with a stack of papers, filled with gown designs.

Aeolian couldn't belief she had to actually choose a wedding gown for her fake wedding, if it was her choice she'd have walked down the aisle, in a black cloak for all she care. She pointed at the first design without bothering to look at the others.

"This?" Sakura raised her brow skeptically.

"Yes," Aeolian responded and looked at the maid. "It's totally my type isn't it?"

The maid bowed her head respectfully. "Yes, it is, your majesty."

"See," Aeolian turned to her mother. "Now if you will please excuse me, I have to pen a letter to my fiancé." She made her way out of the room, as soon as she was out of the Queen's sanctuary. The palace guards in black uniforms, and square black caps over pulled black hair, fell into step behind her. The Tavgharad guards of the grand palace were the most elite force of female warriors, trained to serve the queen of Shu Han and protect the royal family.

Tolya Yul-Bataar was waiting for her. If she told the guards to slit his throat, they would do it without hesitation. He is Shu with dark hair, bronze skin and golden eyes built like a huge, tall boulder. He and his twin sister Tamar are trusted companions of Nikolai.

"Your majesty," he bowed his head. "Do you have a moment?"

"Do not disturb us," she instructed the guards as she and Tolya headed towards the garden. As they were far from preying eyes and ears, she asked. "What business?"

"You've still not left the Kerch way of life, princess," he almost laughed as she realised what she had said.

"What's the news on Nik?" She asked.

"He's busy with the preparation of the grand wedding and of course, the transportation of the Darkling." He said. "They're moving him to a more secure location."

"Hmmm," she murmured. There was no stopping to the menace of the Darkling, even in captivity.

"Don't worry," he looked at her. "He won't be a problem for the wedding."

She rolled her eyes. "Like I care about the wedding."

"Just put on your best persona," he almost smiled. "You're the best actress out there."

There was a way to speak to the royals, but Aeolian had been a spy long enough that she didn't have the pride of the Empress in her. And in all of Shu Han, Tolya was the only one who was keeping her sane.

"If I have to kiss him again_" she crossed her arms.

"The ceremony will end with a kiss," he told her. "It's all part of the act. You can't stand at the alter and say, you won't kiss the groom."

Aeolian huffed a breath of disbelief, "Nik is enjoying this, I know."

At their engagement ceremony, in front of the crowd. Nikolai had slipped his arm around her waist. "Please don't punch me," he whispered. Then he yanked her hard against his chest and kissed her. The crowd began to cheer and as they got off the stage, she'd warned him. "Next time you try something like that, I'd stab you."

"Nikolai's trying his best to do what's best for his country, for his people." Tolya said. "You saw how Ravka is princess. You can't blame him for trying so hard to do the right thing."

In a way Aeolian could understand Nikolai's frustration; his country was in turmoil of depts and problems, he's fighting a never ending war with the Darkling, and the Fjerdan were creating problems for the Ravkan's. And this union would help him to an extent, even though they didn't see eye to eye. He'd helped her and her friends, she didn't forget it and she won't forget it. She wanted to help him, she really did but not like this.

"Bring me a yellow plum," the princess ordered Tolya out of the blue.

"They're sour!" He responded.

"It's not a request," she smirked.

The fruit was high in the trees, towards the southern wall and it would take time and ingenuity to reach. But if Tolya really wants her to kiss Nikolai again for Ravka, he could at least bring her a plum.

"Of course, your majesty." He bowed, she knew that he knew what she was doing but without another word he jogged towards the trees.

◾️▪️◾️▪️◾️

Now all alone in her humongous royal bedroom, Aeolian fiddled with the envelope that Kaz had given her back then—before she left Ketterdam. She had thought about Kaz ever since her engagement with Nikolai. He'd have gotten the word, he might have even seen the wedding invites. She wanted to pen him but she couldn't risk it. It wasn't safe to send even a sealed letter or a message to Ketterdam, if anyone apart from them even had an inkling of knowledge that this was all a foul play—things would turn bitter real quick.

Kaz Brekker isn't a fool, he's the smartest and the sharpest person she knew. He must have figured it out by now that this union isn't real. But what if he didn't? What if like the rest of the world, he has been blinded as well.

He'd told her back then, that she deserve the finest and he couldn't give her that. And she'd told him, that she'd pick him over anyone.

She'd left Ketterdam with a promise that, she'd find him again wherever they end up next. If only her thoughts could reach him somehow. Her heart is still the same, it's his.

The heart is an arrow, it demands aim to land true.

She'd met her old teacher from The Onyx, Yuen Qiu. The one who put the believes in her about the gifts of Grisha power. She's now on her eighties, and she'd retired to her gardens at the countryside. The first thing Aeolian did, was visit her and she'd confessed her sins, the Grisha lives she'd taken. Starting from her very first Grisha kill inside the chapel at Os Alta to save Kaz Brekker.

How without a second thought she'd threw her dagger at the Inferni, for someone she barely knew and how angry it made her, that she'd done something so terrible at such a holy place for a lowly barrel thief. Her mind fought with her heart back and forth for saving him, but she hadn't realised back then that she'd saved him because her soul had recognised him, before she even could.

When Aeolian was finally done explaining herself, Yuen had said. "We made you into a weapon and told you to find peace, you've been a product of war. Look at your other sisters from the operations, they're soldiers, they don't weep, they don't feel, they only obey...but you my child, you've become someone none of them could." She grabbed hold of her hands. "By saving him, you found the parts of you that makes you feel, that made you human again. And you should never apologise for it."

Aeolian had looked into the golden eyes of her old teacher, and she could see what the old lady was trying to tell her. The others, none of them were like her—they were all soldiers, they were all puppets who only obey. She was one among them but by saving Kaz, she'd saved herself as well. If she hadn't done what she did back then she'd be lost like Dunyasha, serving a lost cause. Our work is death and it is holy.

Back than her life was empty, there was always something missing in it—even though she'd accomplished so much in so little time. And she thought she'd find a little bit of peace and rest when she kidnaps the Sun Summoner for the crown. But she had been wrong, she had found peace somewhere she never thought she would. Kaz had given her peace in a lifetime of war.

She'd betrayed her faith for him. But in a way, he betrayed his faith too—by believing in her. They'd found each other in a dark paradise. She knew she could be anything, but she wanted to be his.

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🎵 🎵🎵

All my friends tell me I should move on
I'm lying in the ocean, singing your song
Ahh
That's how you sang it
Loving you forever can't be wrong
Even though you're not here, won't move on
Ahh
That's how we played it
And there's no remedy for memory, your face is like a melody
It won't leave my head
Your soul is haunting me and telling me that everything is fine
But I wish I was dead
Every time I close my eyes, it's like a dark paradise
No one compares to you
I'm scared that you won't be waiting on the other side
Every time I close my eyes, it's like a dark paradise
No one compares to you
I'm scared that you won't be waiting on the other side
All my friends ask me why I stay strong
Tell 'em when you find true love, it lives on
Ahh
That's why I stay here
And there's no remedy for memory, your face is like a melody
It won't leave my head
Your soul is haunting me and telling me that everything is fine
But I wish I was dead
Every time I close my eyes, it's like a dark paradise
No one compares to you
I'm scared that you won't be waiting on the other side
Every time I close my eyes, it's like a dark paradise
No one compares to you
But there's no you, except in my dreams tonight
Oh-oh-oh-oh-hah-hah-hah-hah
I don't want to wake up from this tonight
Oh-oh-oh-oh-hah-hah-hah-hah
I don't want to wake up from this tonight
There's no relief, I see you in my sleep
And everybody's rushing me, but I can feel you touching me
There's no release, I feel you in my dreams
Telling me I'm fine
Every time I close my eyes, it's like a dark paradise
No one compares to you
I'm scared that you won't be waiting on the other side
Every time I close my eyes, it's like a dark paradise
No one compares to you
But there's no you, except in my dreams tonight
Oh-oh-oh-oh-hah-hah-hah-hah
I don't want to wake up from this tonight
Oh-oh-oh-oh-hah-hah-hah-hah
I don't want to wake up from this tonight

🎵🎵🎵

March 02. 2022