Work Text
Prologue
“Bogo shipda! Bogo shipda,”
The Korean lyrics blasted through Quinn Hargrove’s car speakers at a volume that would make most people wince. Since Quinn’s goal was to drown out their own thoughts, it was perfect. A brief remembered moment of the Spring Day choreography flashed through their mind and they smiled as they continued to sing. The wet road rushed beneath their tires as they drove, keeping a careful eye on the other cars as they drove.
They really shouldn’t be driving right now. They knew this. They should have called Jen and had her come pick them up after what they’d learned. But all they could think of at the time was getting away. As Spring Day ended and moved on to Transformer, Quinn took a second to wipe the damp tracks of tears from their cheeks.
~~~~
Quinn gasped for breath as they pushed themself out of the warm water. What the fuck? Hadn’t they just been driving? Did they black out? There was shouting from behind them, and they turned quickly to look. They nearly fell over when fabric tangled around their legs. They wiped water from their face and then stared in shock at the young man that was staring up at them from the water. “Baekhyun?’ Quinn muttered. The young man, who looked very much like one of the Exo members, was scrambling away from them, calling for his brothers.
It was then that Quinn noticed the other men in another section of the room. The entire space seemed to be mainly made of wood, and was decorated in candles and flowers. The other five men were shirtless, and had their hair pulled up in visibly traditional hairstyles. Quinn started backward, confused and disoriented. As they turned around again, trying to get a better sense of the space, they spotted a girl hiding behind the rocks. “Lady!” she gestured for Quinn to come to her, and they decided quickly that getting out of there was probably the smart thing to do.
They pushed their way through the water, and climbed up on the rocks, allowing the girl to pull them away. She spoke quickly, her voice high with panic and her movements frantic as she pulled the struggling Quinn through some kind of cave structure and then out into the open air. “You didn’t come outside for so long, I was worried!” she told Quinn, still pulling them along. “Then the Princes started bathing, and I couldn’t even go in to get you. This is just insane. Hurry up! Let’s go!” Quinn pulled them both to a stop and put their hand to their head, trying to fight the dizziness that threatened to pull them under. “You’re feeling okay now, aren’t you?” the girl asked, finally turning to look at them.
“I’m sorry, who are you?” Quinn asked, squinting at her face. They didn’t recognize the girl at all. The sun felt incredibly bright, and their clothes were way heavier than they had any right to be. “I don’t understand how…” Quinn pressed their hands to their head, trying to get everything to stop spinning. It felt like it was getting worse.
“What do you mean?” The girl’s voice kept getting higher, and it was just making Quinn’s headache worse. “How do you not know me?”
“Where am I?” Quinn asked, hoping that would get a better answer.
It didn’t. “What do you mean you don’t know where this is? This is the largest washing area in Songak.” Quinn let their eyes follow her gaze as the steam that had been surrounding them finally wafted away enough for them to see further than a few feet. There were people all around them. Many in various stages of undress, cleaning themselves in the warm pools of water that stood amongst the rocks. All of the clothing was distinctly traditional Korean, as were the hairstyles on the few people who had their hair done.
“Oh, I see,” Quinn muttered. “I must have died.” They couldn’t hold out any longer and collapsed to the rocks below. A sharp pain shot through their head, and then they knew no more.
Somewhere in the cosmic spaces, a thick file was pulled from a shelf. “Let’s see if we can fix this mess.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Chapter One
Begin
Fourth Prince Wang So pushed back his hood as the doors to the palace opened. It had been years since he’d been able to set foot in his childhood home. This time, he had no intention of leaving. “I will leave a servant with you, Prince,” the voice of his escort from Shinju buzzed in his ear. “Once the ritual is over, do not delay and return to Shinju. You are also an adopted member of our Kang household, so do not forget. Please uphold our family name in the king’s presence.”
So scoffed quietly, “An adopted member?” He turned to look at the other man, “And here I thought I was your hostage this entire time.” He didn’t wait for a response. He simply urged his horse forward through the large gates, dismounting when he heard them shut behind him. The palace guards around him bowed, and So stopped, thinking for a moment. Turning back to the horse, he drew his sword from its scabbard on the saddle and swung it down at the horse’s neck. As the guard stuttered out that he couldn’t use his sword inside the palace, So made a promise to himself. He would not be returning to Shinju.
~~~~~~~~~
When Quinn opened their eyes, they were glad to note that the spinning and dizziness from before had faded. They were less pleased to see an unfamiliar bed canopy above their head. They pushed themself up into a sitting position and looked around at the traditional architecture and décor. On the wall across from the bed, there was a pretty dual painting of flowers, framed by a heavy-looking wardrobe on the left, and a pretty candle holder on the wall in the shape of a metal butterfly. There was a chest, covered in a cloth with a tea set and some small decorations directly below the paintings. It was all very pretty. And utterly unfamiliar.
Their attention was caught by the sound of a cough, and they turned to see a lady in an elaborate-looking hairstyle sitting at a table in another section of the room. She was facing away from Quinn, so she hadn’t noticed that they were awake yet. Quinn shifted further, preparing to slip out of the bed, but stopped, hissing when a pain shot through their head. That got the lady’s attention, as well as the girl they’d seen before, who was seated across the table from the lady.
“Soo-ya!” the woman turned and began to stand as Quinn lifted a hand to the spot on their head that hurt. The two women were soon standing in front of Quinn, and they looked up at them, still wincing from the pain.
“You’re finally awake!” the girl said, smiling happily. Quinn was finally able to get a good look at what the two were wearing. While the woman was in clearly good fabrics in a light aqua with designs worked into the fabric, the girl was in simpler clothes in a yellow-orange color palette. Her hair was partially up on top, but hung down in two tails over her shoulders. She was a little taller than the other woman, who had a slightly sickly pallor to her skin, and who’s hair was woven into an intricate style around her head.
Quinn winced again. “Are you still in a lot of pain?” the woman asked. Her voice was gentle and soothing, which Quinn appreciated.
“Did I get very hurt?” Quinn asked, still trying to make sense of everything.
“Don’t even bring it up!” the girl insisted, worry also clear in her voice. “You fell so hard, I thought your head would burst! Do you know how worried Lady Hae was?” She directed her attention to the woman, and Quinn was happy to finally have a name to go with the face.
“Hae Soo,” Lady Hae began, but Quinn interrupted.
“Sorry. Where am I? I don’t…” a memory of cold water rushing over them, of the heavy weight of their car dragging them further into the river flashed through their mind. “Did I die?”
“You didn’t die,” the girl said, shaking her head. “You nearly did!” The words were meant to be reassuring, but Quinn felt a knot of panic twist in their stomach.
“What?” They finally stood, looking down at themself as they did so. They were wearing a white dress. Lengths of straight, dark brown hair fell around their shoulders. Even their hands were different, the fingers looking longer and slimmer than they were used to. The panic climbed into their throat, and they slipped past the women to the door that led them outside to a courtyard. The architecture that surrounded them was distantly familiar, like they’d been dumped into a drama set. But there was a level of authenticity to it all that made Quinn realize, with a sudden certainty, that what was happening was real.
They turned as Lady Hae and the other girl exited the room behind them, calling that name again, “Soo!” Quinn’s eyes were wide with fear. “Get the doctor, now,” she told the other girl, who turned to move away.
Quinn stepped closer, grabbing Lady Hae’s hands desperately. “What is this place? Who am I? When…” That was the real question of course. When?
“Are you unable to remember at all?” the Lady asked gently. “Your name is Hae Soo. Hae Soo. I’m your sixth cousin, Myung Hee.” Quinn sucked in a breath and covered their mouth in shock. Were they in someone else’s body? Was the other person still there, shoved into a corner of their own mind? Myung Hee reached out and took Quinn’s hands, trying to look reassuring. “Think about it carefully. Take a close look at me. You are in Songak right now. This is the home of the Eighth Prince Wang Wook.”
“Songak?” Quinn had to think. They had only recently started a class in Korean history in anticipation of traveling there. While their grasp on the language was good, the history was a bit spotty. Even so, Songak sounded familiar. “Is this Goryeo?” The knowledge finally clicked. “Goguryeo, Baekje, Silla, and Goryeo… That Goryeo?”
“So you remember now?” Myung Hee asked. “Yes, it is that Goryeo.” Quinn pulled away, holding their head as the implications settled in their mind. Not only were they on the opposite side of the planet from their home, they were also over a thousand years separated from their time.
~~~
Quinn wasn’t sure exactly when they made it back into the room with the door shut. They’d been sitting still on the wooden floor long enough for their butt to fall asleep, trying to search their mind for any sign that Hae Soo was there. They could remember their accident now. The bright headlights of a jackknifing semi-truck had blinded them out of nowhere. Before they realized it, they’d smashed through the guardrail and into the freezing river below. Their poor old car had smashed apart, water filling the cabin before they could even try to scream. They’d been trapped, cold. And then they were emerging from warm water on the other side of the planet. Displaced in time by over a thousand years.
They looked up at a round mirror that hung near the bed. A completely unfamiliar face looked back at them. Brown, almond-shaped eyes, a small nose, and full lips, all framed by long, straight, dark-brown hair. The girl who belonged to this body had also drowned. Had they swapped places? Was Hae Soo now trapped in Quinn’s body, terrified by the lights and sounds and technology? Quinn hugged their knees to their chest as the memory of the cold water washed over them again. No. Quinn had died. Even if Hae Soo’s consciousness had swapped over, there was no way the poor girl had been rescued in time. Quinn hoped that she hadn’t noticed. That she’d managed to go on to whatever afterlife she believed in.
But that still left Quinn here. Also surrounded by unfamiliarity. Could they do this? Could they pick up Hae Soo’s life and live it for her? Was that even their only option? They looked up as they heard Myung Hee and the girl calling for them and banging on the door. They didn’t want to go back out. There was a whole world out there that they didn’t know. They were scared.
With a loud bang, the door was suddenly kicked off its hinges and Quinn yelped. A man stepped through, his hair was done up in a topknot on his head, and he was dressed in blue robes with a distinctive circle design on the front. He took a step toward Quinn, who shrunk in on themself. Just what they needed, an unfamiliar man barging in. They braced themself for yelling. “Soo, do not be afraid.” Quinn looked up. The man’s voice was gentle and soothing. He spoke calmly and reassuringly. “I brought you to this place. So, I will help you until the very end.”
Quinn wasn’t sure what he meant by that. He’d brought them there? No, wait. He’d brought Hae Soo here. They had no idea that Quinn had replaced the girl they knew. All they knew was that the person they cared about was suddenly terrified of them. “Avoiding this will not change anything,” he said. “You have to be strong.” He moved forward slightly, extending his hand down toward them. “Won’t you trust me and come outside?”
Quinn looked up at him. At his reassuring eyes and kind face. They made a decision then. At least until they could try to find a way home, they would need to do what they could to live the life that had been placed upon them. They needed to be Hae Soo. They took a deep breath and reached out to take the man’s hand. Hae Soo didn’t know what was going to happen next, but they did know that they wouldn’t let their first chance at experiencing time travel be wasted by hiding in their bedroom.
~~~~~~
That night, after his attempt to see his mother had been thwarted, So found himself on a balcony of the palace, remembering the moment that everything had changed in his life. His mother, shouting at his father, the king. Mu’s attempt to shield him from the fight only for Queen Yoo to drag So out to kneel before the king. She was angry he was taking another wife. Their child had only recently died, and he was already moving on? So’s child mind didn’t know exactly what all had happened that night. The queen threatened to kill herself and So. Before the little boy had known what was happening, he was screaming in pain as blood ran down his face. Mu had tried to comfort him. The scar that had formed from the wound had dictated So’s life from that moment onward.
“Have you brought me here to be one of the Crown Prince’s men?” So asked without turning. He knew the king was behind him.
“I don’t know if you will be a shield for the Crown Prince, or a sword out to get him.” So didn’t reply. He hadn’t decided himself how he wanted to handle all of this. He knew he wanted to stay in the capitol. He refused to return to Shinju. Would Mu accept him? Would his brother welcome him as he had when they were young? There was really only one way to find out.