The arrow pierced through the air and target with ease.
I let out the breath I had been holding during my shot and smiled as it hit its mark again.
"Perfect yet again my beloved niece. Not surprising at all."
I turned around to see the woman who had helped me more than words could explain these past few years.
"Only because of you Auntie," I said with a smile as she handed me a cloth to clean my hands with.
She breathed in deeply, "Psh we've been through this. I was just on the sidelines. That was all you Yu-ri. All your own strength."
"Aniyo, you have been like a mother to me and you know that," I said smiling widely and pulling her into a hug.
Despite her protests, she ended up hugging me back tightly and I couldn't help but feel grateful.
"I don't know where I'd be if it wasn't for you."
-
I stared out at the small pond in the back. It had quickly become one of my favorite spots to sit and reminisce over the past 3 years...
I had changed for sure since then. Back then I had been just a naive, lovestruck child without a care in the world until I was forced to grow up and face the harshness of reality. It wasn't pretty.
Sometimes however I was guilty of letting my mind linger...
Did my friends still think of me? Did they wonder what happened to me? Was my brother doing well? Did Soo-ho...
"Excuse me, my lady, there is a letter that has arrived addressed to you."
I turned toward the soft voice and saw an envelope outstretched to me, making my eyes narrow.
"Thank you Soon-ri." I said with a small bow that she returned.
The envelope was wrapped in a silky blue fabric and as I unfolded it, I was met the familiar handwriting of my brother.
"Yu-ri. I hope you have been well since I last wrote. I'm sorry for the lack of letters sister, much has changed. Don't worry about your older brother however, I am always well of course! I do have to inform you however that I can't say the same for our family... Our father has passed. I know you have been unwell for a while now, but it would be nice to have you back during this time... I miss you, especially now. I hope to see you again, Yeo-wool."
I dropped the letter next to me.
So. Father was dead.
I tried to cry... My own father had died after all, but no tears came.
My last encounter with him was anything but kind and true to his word, he hadn't written to me once or even asked for me. It was as if I disappeared from his life. Or like I never even existed.
We hadn't ever had a close relationship, but I know that Yeo-wool and he had been closer. Despite my brother's insistence that he was always well, I knew he must be hurting at least some right now. He would now be the head of our house and he'd have to take on those responsibilities on top of the ones he already had within the King's Hwarang. And he was doing it all alone.
I hadn't even ever seen him in his Hwarang uniform. After he told me about that, I had tried to picture my handsome brother in a noble uniform riding horseback protecting the people... I had no doubt, despite his sometimes strange vanity, that he would be a wonderful Hwarang... And as much as I had wanted to go and see him, I had the strongest reason not to.
"Eomma?" Came a little voice clutching my skirts.
My biggest reason to never return to Silla.
I reached down before picking up my daughter tenderly.
Her large dark eyes looked at me unsure, while her semi-wavy hair fell into her face like it always did.
"Yes, my little flower?" I said tickling her belly, causing her to laugh loudly and fidget around.
She was the light of my life.
Jin-a had been born on a stormy summer night and while the process was extremely difficult and I had some complications, I regretted nothing. The moment she was in my arms I vowed to love and protect her with everything I had.
And now gazing at my child I couldn't help but feel conflict rise within me. Do I go or do I stay?
There was no doubt Auntie would care for Jin-a well if I left alone, but I always had a hard time leaving her in fear that something could happen while I was away.
But if I brought her with me...
Yeo-wool did not even know he was an uncle.
And her... father... well he had even less an idea that she existed. For all, I knew he could have cared less that I even existed...
"Let's go inside and play with Auntie okay?" I said to my daughter as I squeezed her tightly.
"Okay... I love you," she said in her squeaky voice.
My heart melted.
"And I love you."
-
"Well, this is unexpected..." My aunt spoke as she set down the letter on the table.
I nodded as I took a sip of warm tea, "Yeo-wool wants me to come home... But how can I?"
She looked over at Jin-a who was playing with a doll by the table. She was so innocent in all this. She had no idea the circumstances of her birth or anything about her extended family.
"We both knew we couldn't hide this forever Yu-ri. It was only a matter of time I suppose. You should be there, for your brother. He writes often enough, but I know it isn't the same as seeing you personally." She said taking a sip of her own tea.
I sighed, "I know... I have missed him terribly too. I miss him picking on me... Calling me ugly when I wake up in the mornings... Bringing home beautiful things he'd find at the market... Talking about the latest gossip he had heard walking around the other True Bones..." I admitted, my cup shaking slightly with the emotions rising.
I tried to be strong and not let myself get sad about my circumstances, but looking at my brother's handwriting and imagining him wiping away tears as he wrote it was a bit too much...
A soft hand covered mine and I looked up to meet my Aunt's kind gaze.
"You must go. It will be okay. Your father can no longer hurt you there and you'll have your brother. He might be a pain in the side sometimes, but I've always known he's cared for you. We'll go and do this together." She said squeezing my hand and smiling sadly.
I finally let out a small sob, "I-I've missed him... I've missed my home..."
"I know darling. I know."
-
Sometime later in Silla, a return letter arrived into the hands of Kim Yeo-wool, who eagerly tore it up.
"Oraboni, please expect Auntie and me to arrive soon. I have missed you too. I await your hugs. Be strong Yeo-wool and please forgive me for being away and more. Sending you all my love, Yu-ri."
With a happy cry, Yeo-wool got up.
His sister was finally coming home after nearly of them 4 years of not being together.
4 years where so much had happened.
Hwarang. Hansung. Various missions. His father...
A lot of memories, both hard and good that he wished he had his sister to share them with.
He allowed himself to smile for one of the first times since his father passed, "I wonder how much more beautiful my little sister has become over these past few years."
Right outside the door, paused before knocking, was another Hwarang, Soo-ho, who had heard everything.
"Yu-ri?" He whispered, thinking back to the young girl he had once had a fiery fall romance with before she disappeared from town without a word.
Rumors had circulated, but from what he had heard she had suddenly taken severely ill and was sent to live with family that could care for her further in the countryside.
While their romance was short-lived and secretive, he had to admit that he admired her beauty and sincerity. It was rare among women. He had been just a stupid young boy at the time however and took full advantage of her naive nature, before moving on to yet another to do the same for entertainment.
He had sometimes wondered in part if her becoming ill was due to him, but he couldn't ask around much without attracting questions.
Now she was coming back after nearly 4 years and if he was honest, he suddenly didn't know what to feel or think... He just stayed frozen by the door as he heard Yeo-wool happily prepare for his sister's arrival.