It occurred to Jin, and not for the first time, that this whole festival was a silly idea. It was a nice enough day that she decided to walk, somewhere along the road from home to the Royal City. Her legs moved and her mind wandered, as she was free for work in the first time in weeks. How possible was it that both the prince and princess could find their Destined mates, among a crowd that would likely have hundreds, if not thousands of candidates?  What if that person had fallen in love along the way, going to be the wife of a fisherman rather than a future queen? What if the Princess’s destined husband was someone who would make a horrible king?

It felt like people didn’t think about these things, or were so convinced that the Animar would just make everything perfect, that they banished the thought that it could go wrong. Jin often found herself just on the verge of such thoughts, but that was a toe too close to blasphemy. She might not honor the gods as much as she should have, but that was a line she was unwilling to cross.

As her boots crunched through the grass at the side of the road, she stared down at the discolored patch of skin that surrounded her Mark. Years of working with either a bandage or a glove covering her hand had left that part of her hand noticeably paler than the rest. She was so used to keeping it covered that it felt almost wrong to have it in the open. A few people back home knew that she had it, aside from her family. The first boy to bring her flowers had found out all too soon, his fondness for her fading as fast as a smile. The innkeeper’s daughter had found out about it too, in between secrets and stolen kisses; telling Jin that you didn’t have to love someone fully to enjoy them all the same. That memory just brought more thoughts tumbling through Jin’s head. What if the Princess’ Destined ran off with another boy, to live a happy and meaningful life not with the person the Gods designed him for? Certainly, their happiness wasn’t wrong, was it? Wasn’t it? 

Part of her was wishing she hadn’t been convinced to go. Certainly, her family would have understood if she just said no. There was always work to be done at home, time that could be spent being busy. Besides, Jin was rather far from the kind of sparkle-eyed romantic who thought she’d meet one man and fall hopelessly, perfectly in love with him and never have any problems again. Although she could never say it out loud, Jin was deeply jealous of the sort of person who’d lived such a pretty, kind life to be able to dream that way. Jin had been too practical for too long to think that way. Not to say love didn’t exist. It did, of course, it just wasn’t perfect. Even her adoptive parents, who loved each other beyond words, had scathing rows every now and again. No matter what, they always held each other after, full of forgiveness and sweet nothings. 

A faint commotion overrode Jin’s thoughts. She was nearing a tavern, now, and it looked like a party had gone out of control. There was arguing and cursing and crashing, and most stunning enough, music over all of it. [color=630460]“…well, that’s new.”[/color] Whoever could sing over what sounded like a hell of a brawl was either crazy, brave, or both in the same moment. Unfortunately, this place looked like the closest for a drink. Jin strode her way there, and opened the door with great hesitation.