tea was something hayoung was more than familiar with. as the only daughter of her household, her mother made sure she knew how to properly make it. she prepares her father’s teas at home and so the ceremony was a breeze for her. still, she was sure there were things she could improve on. that she knew for sure.
the chief state minister’s daughter stared at the tea set in front of her, noting how elegant the images on the cups were. she had to admit, she zoned out a little bit as the head court lady talked about tea and it’s importance. these days, hayoung has been more and more distracted lately. it wasn’t like her. if her mother was here, she would have gotten a handful. thankfully she was among other ladies and she prayed nobody noticed. hayoung tried hard to focus, as she began decanting the hot water, praying it doesn’t spill over. she remembered as a young girl how she burned herself with the hot water.
“i cried one time because the tea spilled all over my hands and the tea pot broke because i let go of it. how clumsy i was back then.” shaking her head, letting out a sigh. “— i apologize. that wasn’t meant to be said out loud,” turning to lady dahye beside her.
𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒔 are a breath of fresh air in her otherwise mundane life. it’s the first time that she’s had a chance to leave the estate in years by mandate of her father, too ashamed to allow his daughter into the light when she was just so ... ugly. dahye cannot blame him, but at the same time, being locked in a cage can still wear down even the strongest of birds. dahye wishes she was a phoenix, destined to burn to ash only to be reborn anew. once upon a time she thought she was one.
now she’s not so sure.
the classes themselves are more of a refresher course for her. with nothing else to do within the confines of her estate, dahye spent hours and days studying to at least appease her father in this way. if she couldn’t be a pretty daughter with her scars, at least she’d be an obedient one. perhaps then it wouldn’t be so bad if he had to keep her at his side for the rest of his life instead of marrying her off like he wanted to.
it was almost a surprise that he told her she’d be attending the courses themselves. with not much interaction with the other noble girls, or much talk even from the girl who began to serve her after her last attending servant passed away in the fire, it leaves her a little nerve wracked, but looking forward to the future. perhaps with these courses, she’ll be able to find a friend.
perhaps, maybe, she’ll even find a husband to help assuage her father’s rage at her.
it’s with these thoughts that she zones out, forgetting that she’s in a room full of girls and before her, the tea ceremony studies that she’ll be practicing on whenever the head court lady allows it. the sound of a voice beside her finally pulls her from that reverie, making her blink and turn her head to the side slowly. it’s not often that she’s used to people speaking to her. “ please don’t apologize.” she finally says, the curl of a smile tilting her lips upward just slightly. “ and as for your issue with the pot.. everyone makes mistakes when they’re younger.” her eyes cast down to the tea before them, then back to lady hayoung with a slight bow of her head. “ it’s what we learn from them that makes the difference.”
𝒂 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒆 graces her features at the sight of the young lord, recognition filling her gaze and warming her heart. it’s been a little while since she’s seen him, but dahye will be forever grateful to yejun after what he did for her with the brutes that wouldn’t take an apology for an answer. it’s perhaps the first time he’s seen her with her hair tied back though, worn up in the way of a married woman and perhaps that’s the reason for his question.
her eyes are still warm after she dips her head, hands folded neatly at her belly before she lifts her gaze back to him. she’s not too sure how to answer the question, though - her honest truth would likely have her punished, but it’s the way of the court to gently lie or sidestep a question. she chooses the latter. “ we’re settling into the marriage.” dahye finally says, which is still the truth regardless.
she simply doesn’t tell him about the loneliness she feels, or the uncertainty in her heart. “ and yourself ..? how are you faring?”
; okay! i’ve finally written an updates post for all four of my kids! it was a lot more in depth than i thought it would be l -lol so it took me a little longer than expected … sorry about that orz. but with that being said, if you’re interested in plotting, please like this post! i’ll hop into your dms unless you would prefer to plot on discord or twitter. mine are luvloonas ( twitter ) & wonho lovebot#4077 ( discord )!
here are links to the updates posts, along with character intros for easier plotting:
pressure amounts to a weight on his shoulders. one akin to the heaviness he once felt all those years ago ; one that had eagerly lowered his inhibitions and had gotten him to turn in three long years of his life for the cruelty of war. he had given his life back then, this time it comes back in a tenfold, hankered down by the views of the world and the approval of a father who never really saw deoksu as filial as he vowed to be.
it builds until he feels suffocated, going day by day with his father’s voice in his ear and his expectations sung through an intricately-spoken speech. deoksu knew what was expected of him but, he was wary. could he really subject someone to a lifetime with him? knowing where his actual loyalties lay? wasn’t that, too, just as cruel as the life that’s been handed to him?
( but pressure is a funny thing, it frustrates a person – continues to feed off the stress they accumulate through continuous delegation until they give in and, he breaks )
his sights are on a girl he’s known for much longer, filled with his secrets she had promised to keep and he knows no one better to bring such a proposition to. it’s why a soft hand tugs at her own, pulling her close to seclusion where ears could not hear them and his own voice could fill hers.
“dahye-ssi,” he pauses, suddenly realizing how compromising his next words may be. it’s been so long, could he really do this to her? “i have something to ask of you.”
for most of her life, dahye had gotten used to being avoided but here, in a place full of party guests, she seems to have garnered a crowd. she’s not too sure if it’s because of the rumours about her, and how she’s covered in the ugliest of scars or if people are just genuinely curious about a girl that they’ve not seen in public for years. the socialization is exhausting, but all the same, at least it’s something. ( she wonders, still, if things would have been different had she not been in the fire. perhaps she would be living an entirely different life than she is now. )
it is with that thought that dahye dims, her eyes cast down and quieting with the storm that rages within. the colours dull and the noise that people make quiets; even in the loudest room, she feels all but forgotten. it’s not unusual for her.
a soft gasp escapes her when she feels the touch of a hand tugging at her own, wrapped around her glove and it lifts her gaze in alarm. and before her stands someone she’s not seen in years: choi deoksu. her brow furrows together and it’s confusion that unsettles her eyes, bowing her head as she stammers out words when they find themselves secluded. “ m - .. my lord -?”
dahye’s brows furrow and she stills, finally folding her hands neatly in front of her as befitting of her station. his request seems formal, and it softens her - for this man, whose secrets she holds, she would grant any wish. he’s suffered long enough. “ how is it that i can help you ..?” she trails off, voice gentle and her eyes finally raised to his. “ if it’s in my power, i’ll do it.”
; okay! i’ve finally written an updates post for all four of my kids! it was a lot more in depth than i thought it would be l -lol so it took me a little longer than expected ... sorry about that orz. but with that being said, if you’re interested in plotting, please like this post! i’ll hop into your dms unless you would prefer to plot on discord or twitter. mine are luvloonas ( twitter ) & wonho lovebot#4077 ( discord )!
here are links to the updates posts, along with character intros for easier plotting:
・ ・ ・ ・
THESE ARE THE INBOX PROMPTS for our seollal event! remember your rp karma: try to send out as many prompts as you receive. if necessary, make sure to change pronouns to fit the muse in mind. these can be used as starters, or just as drabbles - it’s up to you! these will be available to reblog until the end of our event on february 12th. have fun!
“ keep your apology.”
“ everybody wants to change the world.”
“ you have to be what tomorrow needs.”
“ are we having fun?”
“ i think i better go now.”
“ here, i got this for you.”
“ you are so good for me.”
“ and so it is.”
“ i know it won’t be a good year.”
“ i hope it will be a better year.”
“ i don’t care if it’s tradition -”
“ it’s tradition.”
“ i’m not eating that.”
“ the future is looking grim.”
“ this was a lovely night.”
“ i know it’s not traditional. i wanted to get you something different.”
“ i made a promise.”
“ did you see the lights?”
“ how is your family?”
“ we’re not supposed to be meeting like this.”
she attended the red wedding, where she was approached by deoksu after not seeing him in years. there, they planned to make good on their promise made before he went to war that if worse comes to worst, they could get married and she’ll keep his secrets about loving someone else
that doesn’t mean she expected him to take care of her during the bloody events. 100% thought he would go to the girl he was in love with, but instead, he decided to protect her first after her family ( it may or may not have made her fall in love with him a little bit )
he visited the jung residence with the left minister to ask for dahye’s hand in marriage ... but ofc, dahye’s dad was a dick and deoksu got mad about it because he has a temper. he ran off with her and was outraged on her behalf, and that’s step Two of dahye maybe falling in love
they had their wedding in the beginning of february after a ( very short ) betrothal period. their first night was probably step three of dahye falling in love, but! she realized what she was doing and suddenly started feeling really guilty because .. she shouldn’t be falling for deoksu when he already saved her from a messy family life. she’s supposed to keep his secrets! she shouldn’t be wishing for anything more than what she has.
so begins her internal conflict of heart vs. head
･ﾟ✧ 𝒑𝒔𝒚𝒄𝒉𝒆 、
feeling the beginnings of guilt, and a fluttering heart
keeps to herself mostly in the choi household aside from moments where lady choi asks her to spend time with her .. or when deoksu comes to her rooms
a little lonely, but when isn’t she really
misses her cousin desperately but doesn’t feel like it’s her place to ask deoksu to allow him to visit right now when they’ve just been married
just generally feels out of place and like she doesn’t belong ( at deoksu’s side, in the choi household .. anywhere really )
still quite awkward about allowing anyone to see her scars
･ﾟ✧ 𝒇𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒔 、
simply wants to make as little noise as possible and bother deoksu + his family even less. all in all, just wants to be a good wife to him
“ don’t you believe there’s someone for everyone?”
𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒔𝒊𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆, his words ringing in her ears like a bell that won’t stop sounding. already they give her a headache. though dahye wishes it, she can’t pull her eyes away and tell him that he should think before he speaks, considering who it is that he’s speaking to. perhaps he doesn’t realize the cruelty of his own question, coming from his lips, to her - it cuts like a knife.
for choi deoksu is the man who intends on marrying her, but not for cause like love or anything of the sort. it’s an arrangement of convenience: no one lines up at the door of jung dahye for her hand in marriage, he doesn’t want to love anyone except for yi hyeyeon. ( at the very least, she thinks, she’ll be free from the flames that lick her heel. )
“ would you like it if i believed that, my lord?” she asks cryptically, finally managing to pull her eyes away. “ truly, though, i think - ..” her eyes cast instead in the direction of his - towards a certain princess, the one that holds his heart. “ you only have someone if you’re pretty.”
・ ・ ・ ・
THESE ARE THE INBOX PROMPTS for our first royal wedding event! remember your rp karma: try to send as many out as you receive. if necessary, make sure to change pronouns to fit the muse in mind. these can be used as starters, or just as drabbles - it’s up to you! these will be available to reblog until the end of our event on january 15th. have fun!
“ i wish i knew you earlier.”
“ i heard the princess opposed .. the poor groom.”
“ i would look a little happier if i were you.”
“ i think i’ll need more wine to get through this.”
“ love isn’t all too important, not to us.”
“ just the two of us at sunset.”
“ will she come to love him, do you think?”
“ he deserved better than this.”
“ i want to choose you.”
“ it looks like you’ve had enough to drink.”
“ i need to be somewhere else.”
“ don’t you believe there’s someone for everyone?”
“ that’s not the way a marriage works.”
“ i was so enjoying the silence.”
“ she doesn’t look ready for the marriage bed.”
“ you look beautiful.”
“ your smile looks a little forced.”
“ they don’t look very good together, do they?”
“ i feel like a child in clothes far too big for me.”
“ well? how do i look?”
“ one of these days, it’ll be your turn.”
“ i wish he would ask for my hand already.”
“ would you like to sit with me?”
“ no .. i don’t need more time.”
“ i have something i’d like to get off my chest.”
𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆, dahye learns that the world isn’t as bright as it seems from inside the walls of her cage.
on her way back to the estate from the court lady’s courses, she simply tries to keep her head down. it’s easier, most days, when the streets are busy and buzzing with the sounds of the market - everyone trying to get a customer’s attention to buy their wares, things like that. dahye usually keeps her covering over her head, but this time, something caught her eye - perhaps just a flash of light from a pretty piece of glass at a seller’s stall, but it causes mayhem.
it takes but a moment for her cover to slip down to her shoulders as she bumps into someone, eyes blinking in alarm. they don’t take to it well, heckling her and all she wants is to just go home. ( the pretty glass is by now, forgotten. )
“ i’m sorry, sir .. i was just hoping to pass through when something caught my eye - i didn’t mean to bump your shoulder ..” she mumbles, trying to make peace in the situation - trying, at least, to appear brave when her lip is trembling.
dahye wishes her cousin were here. maybe he’d know better how to quell his anger with words, but he’s not and she’s just all alone.
𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒔 what things were like before the fire.
every morning, the sun was warm and she’d giggle with her handmaiden as the girl braided her hair and helped her dress. every morning, she kissed the petals of roses as tea touched her lips, hot but not burning. now, dahye lives in a world of fire. everything feels like it burns.
hyukun, though, is like water. when he manages to make a visit, she feels cooled from the flames that always lick her skin - whether it be from her father’s constant venom, or the hell she puts herself through. but hyukun cools, hyukun is relief - her cousin is like the tea that was hot, but not too hot. he is a sign of relief because though he looks at her with pity, he doesn’t find her ugly.
whenever he visits, dahye makes sure that her room is neat. she makes sure that the plaits in her hair are set perfect, because she doesn’t want her father to reprimand her for appearing before a man - even if he is just her cousin - with the look of someone disorderly. he already has to keep her for the rest of his life, he already hears the rumours of her disfigurement everywhere he goes. he doesn’t need more rumours about a messy girl, as well.
she knows hyukun wouldn’t say anything, but still, for herself, she wants to look nice. she keeps her hands hidden beneath the gloves that were specially made for her to hide her discoloured hands. and when hyukun sits across from her with a smile, she manages to smile too - eyes warm, belying nothing of the flames.
hyukun cools.
“ good day, cousin. are you here to tell me poetry again?”
･ﾟ✧ mama mia, here i go with the late af intro post! hello, this is my darling daughter jung dahye and she’s ruined from the get go, i’m sorry. i don’t really have anything much to say besides like this post to plot! you know what to do by now, don’t you? there’s some info and a few vague plots listed under the cut, so if that helps you out when trying to brainstorm, then great. i’ll come into your inboxes and answer my welcomes here in a bit!
trigger warnings for fire, death mentions, parental abuse, and burn injuries
meet jung dahye, only child and only daughter of section head general jung
he obviously wanted a son, but figured that his daughter was good looking enough to potentially marry off into a more powerful position since he’s one of the lowest ranked head generals. but life doesn’t always work how you want it to, does it general jung? no, it doesn’t.
getting off into the basics, she’s the only cousin of jung hyukun and he’s honestly the only male she’s probably ever been in contact with aside from her father and her uncle.
she was in a fire at the jung estate when she was younger. hot oil and a candle met, and we all know that’s never a good combination .. she was stuck in the fire for a little while, not because she couldn’t get out but because she was trying to help the personal servant girl she grew up with out of the fire. it was too late though; the girl had already inhaled too much smoke and dahye had to save herself.
unfortunately, that left her with a scar. in this time period, that’s almost like a death sentence for women who were expected to be pure beauties. her father had a fit when he found out about it and instead of being thankful she was alive, scorned her because he’d never be able to marry her off now. this also means he’d be stuck with her for the rest of his life, and he blamed it on her.
she thought she was brave for trying to help the girl out of the fire, and even thought that she was like the legendary phoenix. but unfortunately, no one else saw it that way. so dahye is constantly belittled by her father when he’s home, and honestly not really allowed to leave the estate.
there are a lot of rumours about the daughter of general jung - namely that the fire made her horribly disfigured. this isn’t the case; she has a scar on her arms from the burns which is true, but not so much that she’s ugly. she’s actually quite pretty in the face, but because dahye constantly hears that she’s ugly, she doesn’t really believe it to be so.
the only person she’s generally close with is hyukun. he comes over to read her poetry since she hasn’t really been allowed out of the estate ... until now.
she’s finally been released into the wild ( !!! ) to attend the lessons held by the head court lady. she will struggle a bit with needlework because her nerves were damaged in the fire, however, she is good with tea ceremony and also floral arrangement.
someone, please teach her that she’s worthy of being loved >:
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