200 and some odd years ago...

In a dark corner of a quiet hallway the Crown Prince of Kon and a soothsayer from the Xora Court found a false sense of privacy. Uling held Ka’shin’lai’s paralyzed hand in both of her calloused but slender and beautiful musician’s hands. She traced a thumb over the scar on his forearm.

The silence was suddenly broken when Uling let out a breathless laugh, tilting up her chin to look at him. The big smile she forced onto her face made her eyes narrow into slits. It would’ve looked genuine, if not for the furrow of her brows. “It... pains me to leave so soon. I would’ve really rather our first reunion not be when everything is so... apocalyptic.”

Ka’shin’lai’s other hand came up to cup Uling’s cheek, gently brushing his thumb under her eye, relaxing the tension in her face. He didn’t say a word at first, instead just looking down at her with a subtle soft smile, his eyes mapping every inch of her face. Uling’s forced cheerfulness slowly melted into fond confusion. Finally, Ka’shin’lai spoke, “in our time apart your features blurred in my mind. I need to drink you in deeper so I don’t forget how beautiful you are.”

Uling let out a strangled giggle, leaning into his hand more, a genuine smile on her face. She let go of his hand to instead hook her arms around his neck, twirling some strands of his long black hair around her fingers. “You charmer,” she teased through her giggles. His smile became just a tad bigger and he leaned down to kiss her. She returned it happily, arms tightening around his neck.

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Footsteps echoed in the hall and Uling suddenly let go, stumbling back to an appropriate distance. A servant rounded the corner, stopping in her tracks when she saw them. Lung resisted the urge to wipe her mouth. The servant bowed low, a shocked, “Your Highness” falling out of her mouth.

When Ka’shin’lai just silently nodded and waved his hand, the servant scurried away a look of relief on her face. Once she could no longer hear the girl's footsteps, Uling sighed in relief. But she struggled to put her smile back on, her mind latching on to another buried fear to keep her heart beating at its panicked rate. “I’m sorry that my prophecy is putting your brother in danger. I didn’t know,.. I wouldn’t have.. I won’t let anything happen to him, “ she said, raising her head once more to look at him with determination.

He fondly smiled back, “don’t worry about him. Eun and Tejara both would sooner die than see him lose even one hair on his head.” He stepped forward, closing the small distance that had been put between them, cupping her face as well as he could with both hands. “Just... focus on keeping yourself alive and coming back to me. By the time you return I will convince my father to let me marry you.”

Uling’s eyes widened, “you-?” the question on her tongue was stolen away as he once again captured her lips in a kiss.