Antifragile

Sakura awoke to the sound of loud chatter around her, but her vision was still blocked by the bag. She shifted around slightly, trying to alert whoever was there that she had awoken. Granted, it was hard to move when the girls had firmly tied her to a chair. A hush fell over the gathered group as the bag was slowly lifted up, and Sakura was greeted by the cold glare of an unfamiliar girl. Sakura vaguely recognised her as the girl who had ordered for her to be captured, but that was about all she knew.

“Speak. Who sent you, what do you want? Are you a spy?” She demanded coldly.

Sakura glanced behind the girl, trying to gauge the reactions of the others. The entire group had gathered, with Chaewon protecting the younger few. Sakura tried to flash them a friendly smile, but the girls shrank further into Chaewon’s arms. Chaewon was staring at her curiously, but her eyes were fiercely protective of the girls.

“I mean no harm, honestly. I just happened to see one of you stealing from the fruit vendor and followed you back here. I was planning to leave after making sure you were all safe, I swear!” Sakura promised.

“How can we believe you? You might be a spy from a rival gang.” Yunjin challenged.

“Would a spy be wearing clothes from the royal palace?” Sakura countered calmly, glancing at her robes.

Yunjin exchanged looks with the seeming leader, sighing as she shook her head. The leader grabbed a stick that was lying around and pointed it at Sakura’s neck, waving it around in what seemed like a threat.

Sakura wanted to laugh, even with her hands tied the stick posed no threat to her. She had been trained in all forms of martial arts since she was young, and she could disarm even the strongest of soldiers in the palace. The untrained girl was not a danger.

“I think she’s telling the truth Eunbi unnie. Let her go. We don’t want to anger anybody important. Don’t forget we are still on the run from the soldiers, we don’t need more trouble.” Chaewon advised.

Eunbi sighed and lowered her hand, hesitantly untying Sakura. The other two girls who had been with Eunbi earlier helped Sakura stand up, and they seemed to be much friendlier than earlier.

“Hi, I’m Yena. This is Yuri, my best friend. And the girl in the middle is Eunbi, our leader. The three tall girls hiding behind are Yujin, Wonyoung and Yunjin. The one guarding them is Chaewon.” Yena said cordially.

Sakura gave them each a graceful dip of her head, greeting them as a princess would. Eunbi recognised the rehearsed and elegant way Sakura moved, realising with horror that they were currently holding THE princess Sakura in their tiny ragtag house. Eunbi quickly fell to her knees in front of Sakura, gesturing for the others to follow suit. The other girls hesitantly obeyed, unsure of why their usually spunky leader was suddenly being so demure.

“Forgive me princess. It was not my intention to harm you. If you wish to seek revenge, then punish only me. These kids are innocent, they have done no wrong.” Eunbi begged.

Sakura gently helped Eunbi to her feet, reassuring her with a warm smile. By now, the others had realised who Sakura was and were pale with worry. One word from Sakura and all of their heads could be strung up on the palace gates. Their lives were in Sakura’s hands.

“Relax, I will not report you. I followed Yunjin out of curiosity, and I admire the bravery you all have. I know that stealing is wrong, but you were only trying to survive. I will not fault you for having the will to live. Rest assured your secret is safe with me.” Sakura assured them kindly, her voice soft.

Eunbi relaxed ever so slightly, the others following her lead. Sakura peered around the room, noticing the absence of one girl.

“Where is Eunchae? Is she alright?”

“Just how much did you see?” Eunbi asked stiffly.

Sakura gave them a sheepish grin, scratching her head awkwardly. She didn’t want to admit that she had been watching them for nearly an hour.

“Enough to know that you are definitely highly wanted by the soldiers, and probably that vendor Yunjin keeps stealing from. My advice to you, don’t keep going back to the same store. It’s easier to be recognised that way.”

“Are you giving us advice on how to steal? Aren’t you a princess?” Yena asked boldly.

Eunbi nudged Yena slightly, briefly glancing at Sakura. Sakura noticed how tensed Eunbi was, trying to reassure her that she wouldn’t have them executed. Eunbi refused to make eye contact with Sakura however, choosing to stare at the floor instead.

“Just because I’m a princess doesn’t mean I’m a goody two shoes. I’m not here to preach or whatever, I just want to make sure that you don’t get caught. I won’t be able to bail you out if you get into trouble with the soldiers. I don’t command enough respect yet, even as a princess.” Sakura admitted.

Sakura was stunned by herself. Her mouth seemed to move of its own accord. Why was she here revealing such private information to a bunch of girls she barely knew? A secret like this could plunge the country into chaos, once it was known that the soldiers were refusing to respect the royal family. Yet here she was, rambling on and on as if she were talking to her best friends.

“That’s…interesting. And to answer your question, yes Eunchae is fine. She’s just washing up.”

As if on cue, Eunchae retuned and was stunned to see the sudden turn of events. Yunjin quietly filled her in, Eunchae’s face paling when she saw Sakura’s royal robes.

Suddenly, there was a loud and frantic banging sound coming from the front door. Everyone rushed to their hiding places while Eunbi and Chaewon readied themselves. Sakura stood in the middle of all the chaos until Yena apologetically shoved her into a tight closet. The closet smelled old and reeked of mould, but Sakura just held her breath and accepted it. She didn’t want to get this ragtag group of rebels into trouble.

Sakura heard Eunbi open the door, followed by Chaewon’s loud protests as somebody stepped inside. Their visitor was obviously frantic, her voice growing louder and louder. Eunbi and Chaewon remained calm, trying to escort the visitor out.

“She”s really not here, I’m afraid that you’re mistaken.” Eunbi’s voice drifted into the closet. Sakura noticed that she was speaking Korean, meaning that their visitor was not a soldier. That little bit of information provided her some relief, they were still safe for now.

“I saw her come in, I’m sure of it. Where is she?” A female voice demanded anxiously.

Sakura paused, she knew that voice. She had heard it everyday since she was around 5. She quickly unlocked the door to the closet and stepped out, searching for Kazuha.

“Princess! Are you alright? Are you hurt? What did they do to you? Guards! Gua-“

Sakura slammed her hand over Kazuha’s mouth, warning her to be quiet. Eunbi and Chaewon stared at them tensely, unsure of what to do.

“I apologise for her, she gets a bit overexcited. This is Kazuha, my lady in waiting. Kazuha, these are our new friends. We won’t hurt our new friends right?” Sakura’s words were laced with a heavy warning as she released Kazuha.

“We won’t. Now we need to go home princess. Your parents are worried sick.”

“My parents or the servants? Last I remembered my father tried to kill me and my mother wanted to disown me.” Sakura remarked sarcastically.

“Your highness.” Kazuha warned, glancing at Eunbi and Chaewon.

“They already know I hold basically no power, letting them know this is nothing. But you’re right, we should go before we put them in danger. Thank you for your hospitality and I wish you well. Don’t get caught by the guards.” Sakura advised them.

Eunbi bowed awkwardly, nudging Chaewon to follow suit. A few of the others slowly emerged from their hiding places, and Sakura could feel Kazuha stiffen beside her. She gently shook her head, reassuring her that they were no threat.

“Your secret is safe with us. I promise.” Sakura swore.

“Take care! Stay safe!” Yena called in a friendly tone, waving goodbye.

Sakura waved back enthusiastically, reluctantly leaving the house with Kazuha. It was obvious that her lady in waiting was far from happy, but she held her tongue.

“Let’s go back, I have some things to do.”