Chapter Text
It was another day till Moonbyul and Wheein reached the cave. This cave looked like any other cave. An unassuming crack in the wall of a mountain. Byul looked up at the mountain in wonder. She had always loved looking at the mountain peaks from the windows of the palace.
''We're finally here Wheein! I have to be honest, I am a little nervous.'' She rubbed the back of her neck and looked at the small girl.
''You, mighty Emperor Byul, the one beats everyone's ass, are nervous? Why?'' Wheein poked Byul's side. She wanted to lighten the mood since a lot depended on her Emperor getting this right.
''First of all Haha very funny and second you know am I not as brave as I present to everyone. Especially when it comes to something so important. I don't want to fuck this up, you know our country depends on me. I need to get this right.'' Byul really looked nervous. She kept fidgeting with her reins. To calm her slightly, Wheein reached out to lay a soothing hand on hers.
''Oh Byul, please don't worry. I have full trust in your success. You may not be as brave as everyone believes, you are however stubborn so I know you won't leave the cave without getting what you came here for.'' She gave the taller girl a reassuring smile and a small squeeze of her hand to further show her support. Byul looked at her with gratitude.
'' You always know how to boost my confidence!'' She chuckled and shoved Wheein a little. The smaller girl almost lost her balance because Byul sometimes forgot her own strength and would use too much of it on her.
Byul got off of her horse and stretched her legs. Inside the cave, Solar was pacing up and down the small cavern. Her savior was here, she will finally be set free. In a few moments, she'd be able to breathe fresh air. And most importantly all of her powers would finally come back to her. She wanted almost to scream at Byul to get her shit together and enter already.
Byul was taking her sweet time. She really was nervous, so she kept her busy by tying up the horses. Making sure Wheein had a fire going in case she would come out late at night.
'' Byul, you need to go in soon. I don't really want to be out here at night alone in case you do end up being there long.'' Wheein knew that the only way to get Byul moving was to give her incentive. And making sure she was safe was a good incentive for Byul. That and the possibility of curing her cruse of course.
'' I know, I know. I really don't know why I am hesitating so much. This is my chance at finally being free of the curse. Ok, I'm ready, I'm going in there and getting this over with.'' Saying that she stood straight and marched straight towards the entrance and went in.
Wheein blinked in surprise. '' Bye, good luck, see you later.'' She murmured to the air with a light chuckle. Her best friend really was something else, but that's why she loved her. She sat there by the fire wondering what was happening inside and how long she'd be here alone.
Meanwhile, Byul had stepped into complete darkness, or so she thought until her eyes adjusted to the lack of light. She caught sight of a slight blue shimmer in the distance. Something was telling her that is the direction she should head to. So on she went, following that faint light. In a few minutes, she reached the source of the light after rounding a bend.
It was a wall of light, it was almost like water and smoke at the same time. It undulated and pulsed slightly. Byul was mesmerized by it. She had never seen anything like this before. She wondered if she will feel anything passing through it. Would it hurt, would be cold or would she feel nothing at all?
While the Emperor was gazing at the entrance, Solar was on the other side looking at her. Her side of the wall was not beautiful, she could see through it clearly. It was like another cruel punishment because she could see her way out yet was unable to cross the invisible fence.
She noticed that the Emperor was even more handsome than her visions had shown her. Her eyes had this light in them that drew Solar in, her lips were full and inviting, and everything on her face fit there perfectly as if sculpted by gods. Solar shook herself out of her thoughts just as she saw Byul step forward. She turned around, not wanting to be caught staring.
As Byul passed the barrier she felt a slight tingling run through her body, but it wasn't unpleasant. Once she was in the small cavern she looked around and saw a woman facing away from her. She had long brown hair that cascaded down her back. She was slim and looked a little shorter than Byul.
''Hello, I am Emperor Moon Byul. I don't really know what I am supposed to say here, but I came here to free you and myself I guess. You see there is this curse on me and I have heard you might be able to help me. So here I am.'' Byul could not stop herself and blurted this out in one breath.
The woman in front of her let out a little chuckle and turned around. Byul's breath caught in her throat. She was simply stunning. It was hard to find words to describe her beauty. She was smirking at Byul, and that created a small dimple near her mouth. Her cheeks were round and looked so soft that the emperor was tempted to reach out and touch them.
''Do you always ramble so much Emperor? I don't think that's an image fitting someone ruling a country. And I already know why you are here, so I need to explain yourself further.'' She slowly approached the Emperor and walked around her, examining her more closely. She had a light frame, but Solar knew that she was muscular underneath the clothes. She'd observed her fighting and exercising, of course out of curiosity of her savior, no other reason.
''I, well, no. I try not to ramble but I am a little nervous right now so please don't think of me as a mumbling fool. Also, how could you know why I am here besides to break your curse?'' Byul inquired with a tilted head. How could this enchantress know of her troubles when she had been trapped here for decades.
Solar had stopped circling Byul and was now standing in front of her. A little too close for Moon Byul's comfort. Not because she was scared or anything. No, it was just a little hard to breathe with the other woman this close to her. Byul could look deep into those beautiful eyes and see how they sparkled with interest and something else she couldn't place.
''I've been watching you, Emperor. I was curious as to what kind of person would be coming to my rescue. I did imagine it would be some handsome prince bursting in here. But here we are.'' She shrugged her shoulders and walked over to a flat rock that had to be her bed as it had some blankets and pillows on it.
Byul wondered if the enchantress's captors had been nice enough to provide her with these or if she had acquired them in some other way. Speaking of the enchantress, Byul did not even know her name. Yet she must know everything about the emperor since she had been watching her.
''Watching me huh? And I am definitely better than some handsome prince. They are nothing but big-headed slabs of meat with nothing in their brains. So actually you should be grateful that it's me here saving you miss Enchantress. What's your name anyway?'' Byul had squared her shoulders because the handsome prince's comment had touched a nerve.
Solar giggled a little at that, she could see that the Emperor was a little offended. But she was enjoying teasing her a little too much. '' Did I hurt your feelings, Emperor? I do like a big-headed slab of meat myself, you see.'' Solar chuckled at the disgusted look on Byul's face. She had not had a human interaction in so long that she was utterly enjoying herself. ''And my name is Solar if you must know.'' She crossed her legs and leaned back.
Byul was slightly annoyed, she was here to save this enchantress, this Solar girl, yet she seemed to be waiting for some man to sweep her off her feet.
'' Do you want to get out of her or not Solar? Because if you prefer to wait for some man you are welcome to wait.'' The emperor huffed out. She knew that was an empty threat she needed this enchantress as much as she needed Byul.
Solar knew when to stop so she stood back up and approached Byul again. She put a hand on the Emperor's arm. '' I am sorry, I didn't mean to sound ungrateful. I haven't been able to talk to anyone in decades so my social skills are a little rusty. Honestly, I am very glad you are here. I know we can help each other.'' To drive her point across she looked straight into the others girl's eyes and gave the arm a squeeze.
Byul looked away but she had seen the sincerity in Solar's eyes. '' I guess we'll have to work on those social skills then.'' She gave the shorter girl a wink, to show that she wasn't really offended.
''So how do we go about getting you out of here? As cozy as this is, I think we both would enjoy fresh air much more.'' Moon Byul inquired as she really wanted to know if this enchantress would be able to get rid of her curse.
'' Well, first we need to make a binding contract so that we both can't go back on our promises. By that, I mean me helping you break your curse and you breaking me out of here. But it has to be sincere. We both have to mean in it. And then we have to seal it in.'' Solar didn't mention exactly how the contract must be sealed because she didn't know how to bring it up yet.
'' Well I am very sincere in my need for my curse to be broken and I would do anything for that to happen so I promise you I will get you out of here and will make sure you never get trapped in here ever again.'' The Emperor held Solar's gaze showing just how much she meant every word.
''And I promise that I will do anything to help you get rid of your curse. Because this really isn't cozy at all and I want my magic back.'' Byul could see there was something else that Solar wanted, but she didn't want to pry. They had just met, Solar did not owe her all of her truths.
'' So how do we seal this deal, blood oath, sign a paper, or what?'' Byul questioned because she really was ready to leave now. Solar looked away for a second and when she looked back there was a glint in her eyes.
''We seal it with a kiss. It's the most sincere way of sealing a binding contract.'' The enchantress stated as if it was no big deal when it was a big deal to Byul. Kiss this beautiful woman, now, just like that. Solar could see the slight panic in her eyes so she gave her a moment to gather her thoughts.
''Don't worry, it's just one kiss. It'll be over quickly.'' She tried to reassure the slightly taller girl.
Byul sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. Just one single kiss. It's not a big deal. This kiss will mean freedom to her and the enchantress. It would be worth it. She gathered her strength and stepped closer to Solar. They looked into each other's eyes and saw the sincerity. They both needed this.
Solar was the one to lean in first. She was a breath away. Byul could feel the breath caress her lips, she closed her eyes and let herself go. Once their lips met it was like they had always met to meet. They fit so well together, their bodies had met just a second after their lips met. One of Byul's hands had landed on Solar's waist while the other was cupping her head. It was meant to last just a second, but this magic coursing through their bodies as they kissed was addictive and neither was willing to separate.
They had to separate once the need for air became too great. Their foreheads rested against each other as they took steadying breaths. They broke apart once they realized just how intimate their position was.
'' So is it done now? Are you able to leave this place?'' Byul looked everywhere but at Solar. That kiss had been exhilarating and she wanted more. But there was no way that would ever happen again. They had to get out and start their journey back and deal with her curse now since Solar's was or should be broken.
'' There's only one way to find out.'' Solar looked at the entrance of her cavern that had held her captive for so long. She took a few steps forward and recahed a hand forward. For a moment she hesitated, scared that it had not worked, scared that they had given her a false hope to torture her a bit more. Then she took a deep breath and stepped forward.
And she was free, the barrier was gone. She took another step forward just to check. The biggest smile spread across her face. The enchantress could also feel all of her old magic coming back to her. Byul was watching her and it warmed her heart to see the happiness in the other woman's eyes when she turned back to give her a thumbs up. The emperor hoped that she would love to experience that kind of happiness herself soon.
'' I am free! Finally! This is the best day of my life! Thank you!'' Solar was buzzing with so much joy she couldn't stop herself from jumping up and hugging Byul. The younger girl gave into the hug and held her tightly.
'' I'm glad it worked. Let's get out of here.'' Byul separated herself from Solar and motioned for the exit. Solar gave her a small smile and lead the way out, excited for what she would be able to do once she was fully back to her old self with all her powers intact