Wang Yo took a breath and glanced around him. The throne room was empty, with no one but Choi Ji Mong standing off to the side reading a proposed doctrine. The smell of herbs and parchment laced the room, adding a sense of nostalgia for him. Yo rolled his eyes and slammed his fist against the table, feeling quite irritated that yet another issue had arisen about the capital being built in Songyeok.

"Ah! Ji Mong, how long is it going to take?" Yo yelled, quickly startling Ji Mong. Shaking his head in frustration, Yo snatched the doctrine and flung the roll to the far side of the throne room. Pacing to and fro, he looked towards the entrance and cocked his head up in mere curiosity to see who would dare enter when he was in a state of anger. In walked Court Lady Hae with her tray and one of a kind tea that managed to always calm him and, as he recalled, the late kings before him, down. She was wearing standard Damiwon Court Lady apparel but her milky skin seemed to luminate amongst the light dimming of the room. As she walked towards the throne, she noticed King Yo observing her and felt a slight feeling of uneasiness rise in her chest.

'Ah, what does he want now?' Soo pondered thoughtfully, still keeping her head bowed in a sign of respect.

Yo turned abruptly and gracefully stood in front of Soo right before she could walk up the steps to the throne.

"Jungji. Now tell me, Hae Soo, what makes you think you have the right to disturb me?" King Yo questioned, quirking an eyebrow in morbid amusement at the blushing arising in her cheeks. He knew it was of anger, not of embarrassment.

Soo glowered at the palace floor, knowing that he was only doing this so he could let out his frustration on the 'harmless court lady.'

"Well, your majesty," she bowed deeply while still managing to keep the tray upright,"it is now time for your tea. In all due respect, pyeha, I have d-delivered your tea the same time as any other day." Hae Soo remarked, courageous enough to talk back, but hesitant enough to stutter.

Wand Yo regarded her in a new manner, fully observing her from a new eye. How could his brothers be infatuated with this, this thing, he didn't know. She had average looks, not anything you'd notice, and her body shape was nothing special. Her attitude, howver was a different story. She always managed to be respectful and kept her boundaries, but she also had a slight lilt to her tone that made Yo think she was mocking him. It amused him, but it angered him that a lowly Damiwon Court Lady would dare to taunt him like that. With a slight shake of his head, he strode back up to his throne and settled in, ready for his tea. When she didn't move, Wang Yo rolled his eyes.

"You may continue," he ordered, beckoning her over with a curt nod of his head.

Hae Soo glided up the steps in a practiced manner, set down the tray, and focused her attention on pouring the tea, gratefully basking in the scent of her herb concoction she hoped would help calm the king's temper. Though she despised him, King Yo tended to express his exasperations towards many of the staff and ministers which would fare badly for his reputation, and therefore Wang So's. As Soo expertly poured his tea, she noticed, once again, the king keenly observing her. Glancing up, she accidentally spilt some of the and ended up burning her fingers. With a low hiss, she conveyed her apologies and as she was about to dab her hands with a white linen cloth, King Yo stopped her. With a slight smirk, he grasped the linen from her and dabbed her fingers while scorching her with his piercing gaze. As she gulped, knowing that to refuse would be a direct insult, Hae Soo bit down her lip to prevent a spew of curses spilling from her mouth.

Yo gazed at Soo, satisfied with her reaction. In his opinion, she was too composed for her own good. With her secret taunts and calming tea, Soo irritated him beyond a level of sanity. So when he saw her spill tea on herself, he took it upon himself to do the thing that would likely irk her the most- be nice. Of course he did that to watch her disgusted expression, not because he actually wanted to be nice to her. Once he set the linen back on the tray, Soo quickly snatched her hand back, collected the tray, and hurriedly turned back to the entrance to the throne room, in hopes of avoiding another encounter with King Yo.

"Court Lady Hae, did I dismiss you?" Wang Yo inquired, waving her over with a wave of his hand. Soo inwardly groaned and bowed, insincerely mumbling an apology.

"Have you and So contacted each other even since his departure a year ago?" Yo interrogated, leaning forward with his chin resting upon his hand.

"Ani, pyeha." Soo answered back. It was true after all, So hadn't sent her any letters. and she hadn't had the brave stupidity to send one to him either. She supposed it was better this way after all, he did say for her to forget him. But she couldn't help but wonder if her was bring truly honest with her. They did have so many memories, so how could he-

"Hae Soo!" King Yo barked, irritated that he had to call her name multiple times in order to get his attention. Soo blanched and mentally scolded herself. There she was, again, thinking about Wang So.

"My dearest apologies, my king." She pleaded, shameful of her third mess up today. Wang Yo just stared at her, and dismissed her with an indignant grunt and a dismissive hand wave. As Soo backed out of the throne room, Yo found himself swallowing the rest of his tea in annoyance. What was she thinking about to get her so distracted? He shook his head in an attempt to shake off his anger and commanded for Choi Ji Mong to continue his task of reading proposals.

Just as he was finished with the day, Wang Wook's name was announced and the eighth prince strolled into the throne room. Wang Yo felt his past irritation simmer amongst the surface as he looked at his traitor of a brother.

"What is it now, Wook? I'm king now, I don't have time to listen to your endless babblings of books." Yo snarled, hardly keeping his temper in.

"Hmm, pyeha, I just wanted to apologize for my past discrepancies, Surely you know I wouldn't purposefully turn my back on your excellency. What happened that day, it was my mistake. I should've trusted you completely. It is my fault, but I beg of you to forgive me and take me as your loyal supporter." With a practiced dropping to his knees, Wook fluidly delivered his speech, secretly knowing Yo was in need of allies, and was in no need to refuse.

Wang Yo clenched his fist in seething anger. How dare he? But realizing the little amount of people he actually trusted in the palace, perhaps he could once again confide in Wook. Of course he wouldn't trust him completely, but in an age where obtaining the throne is hard, but keeping it is harder, maybe they could come to an understanding.

Hey guys! Please feel free to leave reviews. How is this so far? Was the chapter too short? Let me know! Btw Wook is gonna be a total snake in this fanfic.

ps. Thank you guys so much for the reviews! It makes me really happy to see how many of you are excited, haha I am too. I hope I don't disappoint!

-Jaeni PJ