WHITE

"And this is Jungkook!"

"Scythe." Ignoring my words, Morning nods her head at the boy. "Nice to meet you."

She doesn't look like it's nice to even look at his face.

"You can call him Jungkook." I say, kicking him sharply underneath the table when he gives me a glance.

"He's the same age as me."

"Oh." An innocent look appears on Jungkook's face, and he blinks at Morning. "So you're Noona to me. Hi Noona. Nice to meet you too."

My eyes flicker to Morning. I knew she was two years older than me— so I had to call her Unnie. But I'd always hesitated, because I didn't know if she'd be okay with it.

And now Jungkook has thrown out the words.

Morning looks up sharply, and my doubtful eyes accidentally catch hers.

"What?" She snaps, her voice slightly on edge. "Just call me by my name."

"Okay."

"So he's a good kid." My voice is more confident now, and I smack a hand on top on Jungkook's head. I ignore his protesting look, watching her expression.

"You won't need to worry about him."

"His Blessing?"

I laugh half-forcefully at her straight tone, trying to make it seem lighter. She really got to the point quickly.

"I'm a mind breaker!" He announces, and I sigh inwardly at his bright face. "Oh— and I can teleport. Yeah, I can do that too."

She nods, and looks at me.

"And I understand that you're a healer." She says, in that cool, icy tone. "You can make yourself untouchable for a short period of time, am I right?"

I nod vigorously.

"I mean," I add, with a thoughtful look on my face. "It depends on my Blessing. But yeah, that's basically it."

Then I hear the door opening, and I look in that direction to see V. He blinks dazedly at the three of us, one of his eyes still half-closed from sleep.

In the corner of my eye, Morning's gaze narrows.

Crap.

She doesn't like him at all.

I hurry to my feet, ignoring Jungkook's anxious, pleading stare. With my back to them, I give V a quick kiss on the lips and lead him back out the door.

"How do you feel? Want to get some air?"

"......."

When he doesn't say anything, I glance in his direction. I burst out a laugh when I see him staring at me with wide eyes, his cheeks slightly blushed and lips squeezed together.

"Let's go to the balcony."

I'm pointing towards the large indoor balcony, with the glass windows when he suddenly shakes his head.

"No." His reply is quick, and his blush gets a bit deeper. "I mean— I don't need to."

As if he's embarrassed, he turns his head to the side. "Let's go outside. I do want to get some air."

"Anything you want."

My heart leaps when I see him turn away quickly, the tips of his ears scarlet. His steps are faster than usual, and I almost laugh out loud.

Why was he so cute today?

It's nice outside— not the frostbiting chill that Winter usually had. It's almost even warm, with the sunlight stronger than usual.

But there's still snow on the ground, like there always will be.

When I look at V, he's staring at the sun. He's beautiful always— but with sunlight on his face and a soft smile on his lips, he looks more beautiful than ever.

And then I remember his frustrated expression with the broken swan.

I take his hand.

"You have no idea how much I love you." I say brightly, fingers tightening. He looks stunned for a second, but he smiles and nods.

Like he doesn't know what to say.

It was like loving the most innocent child ever.

_______________________

V

"You have no idea how much I love you."

Her words has circled my mind for the last hour, and I scrunch my eyes shut. It was just unbelievable that I'd been lying awake for an hour now.

Love.

It was so confusing.

I'm half asleep when I hear a sudden jerk. It's like wood hitting wood, and my eyes instantly flicker awake towards the window.

The sound comes again, and my body tenses.

Perfectly quiet, I slide out of my bed and approach the window. Something dark flashes in the night, for a fraction of a second.

But I know something is there.

My Blessing wraps around my body— a living weapon as I open the window. It's dark outside, and cold. My features twist the moment icy wind pours into my room.

The height below is terrifying, but I force myself to look up. Never down.

And then I see it.

Like instinct, I reach out. But nothing happens, and I feel a familiar feeling from a long time ago.

Powerlessness.

And I know who exactly speaks next.

"Hello, V."

My head starts to pound at the voice, and I don't turn to look at her. Because if I do, I'm too afraid that I'll lose myself.

Jimin's killer. She killed him.

And she's made me kill White, except she has no clue that she's sleeping peacefully just a few rooms away.

There's soft snickering to the side, and I recognize two others. Ave, from House Cross. And the other one— a dark haired man with golden eyes.

Kael, House Aila.

Dammit.

"You made me come all the way to Winter." Just hearing her makes me want to kill someone, and I squeeze my lips together. "I hope you realize that you're very special to me, V."

I can't help it.

"Is that why you killed him?"

"Is that why you killed Jimin?"

Her answer is like silk, and my head starts to hurt.

"It was punishment for your disrespect. I warned you, didn't I? Disrespect always leads to consequences."

"And what about White."

She can't know that she's still alive.

"Oh, her." She says, and my lips twist tightly. "That's something she brought on upon yourself. To save you— I guess in the end it was her life for yours."

A sudden dizziness washes through my body, and my fingers tighten on the sill. So it was because of me. His death, and her almost. And she'd nearly frozen because I'd blamed her for something that I caused.

Focus. Make her believe what you want her to believe.

Making my face pale, I look up with terror in my eyes. I finally meet her amber gaze, and she nods in satisfaction at the fear in me.

I can practically hear her.

That's the look I want.

"You haven't done anything to him?" I say, urgent. "Asher. It's only me you—"

She frowns again, the satisfaction gone. "Return with me to Amber Palace, and I give my word not to touch anyone else."

"Then I'll go."

Her lips purse in a grim smile.

I suddenly can't breathe when she comes close, her eyes glittering in the night. She touches the tip of her finger to my chest, and suddenly I can't remember how far up I am.

My mind goes black.

"I can't believe how much you've changed." She says, and the sweetness in her voice sickens me. My face stings when she brushes her finger down my cheek.

I can't move.

Stop.

"You've changed so much."

My features twist when she runs her hand through my hair, and I whisper out through clenched teeth.

"Just leave him alone."

Her yellow eyes flash to me, and I feel frozen again. She blinks seductively, but the only thing I can see is how twisted she is.

"I think you are the one you should be more worried about, V of Winter."