Shizhe opened her eyes and it was as though the room was filled with water. She looked towards where Wuye was but he was no longer there. She caught a glimpse of movement coming from behind her and she turned around as quickly as she could. A man with dark hair that drifted in the waters and eyes that looked deeper than the depths she was in. She couldn’t breathe, she was starting to panic. “Go on, take a breath,” the man sneered. “Accept my gift instead of hers and you won’t

Xinhua noticed rather quickly how Jinse’s mood soured the further they walked. She wished that she didn’t have to take him away so soon but it was obvious whatever was on his mind, he really could use Shizhe’s help. She hoped that the two really could help each other. Arriving at the palace, Xinhua guided Jinse and Wuye straight to Shizhe’s home. Before stepping up to the door, Xinhua noticed Shizhe was already waiting in the garden, watching the horizon with a distant expres

Wuye was waiting outside the gates of the graveyard. He was toying with the string of the little silk brocade pouch that contained the talisman that he made for Xueye, alongside a few materials that would help keep it active without someone giving it qi. He had been thinking about the situation he’d found himself in. He couldn’t help but wonder if his part in all this was in fact to protect the Moon Goddess’s children or there was something else he wasn’t aware of. He wished

Xueye had finally collected himself enough to set off to their next destination. He began to shed the blankets he’d been bundled in and began to fold them until the doctor came over and took them from him, dropping them in the seat Xueye was just in unceremoniously. Dr. Jingji then wrapped a scarf around Xueye, knowing he’d likely still be cold through the day. “Thank you doctor, but you don’t-,” Before Xueye could finish his sentence Dr.Jingji held his hand up. “It doesn’t

Jinse found Wuye right where he left him. Drinking at the bar in the Fox's Den despite the hour. It didn’t matter to the God of Wind what time of day it was. He was often referred to as the God of Revelry for a reason. “Maque, I have need of your talents,” Jinse called from the front door. The place was closed and would remain so that day but it was still a place of respite for those that worked under Jinse if they had no other place to be. At that moment it was just Wuye and

The door to Qingkong’s room was open. Xueye hoped that he hadn’t heard them downstairs. The last thing he wanted to do was worry his little brother. Qingkong glanced over at Xueye upon hearing his shuffling. Qingkong could tell from a glance that Xueye was uneasy about something. “Gege, what’s troubling you?” Qingkong held his hand out to invite Xueye to join him on the bed. Xueye flinched and hesitated. So much for not worrying him… Xueye thought rather dismayed. He was los

It was a rather warm spring day, yet Xueye still found himself pulling the extra robe he’d thrown on loosely just a bit more snuggly around him. The motion didn’t go unnoticed by Yushi and Jinse, who exchanged looks. Jinse reached over and tapped Yushi’s arm to weave his qi into Yushi to initiate a telepathic communication between them. “Did Shizhe tell you about Xueye’s blessing?” Jinse asked through the newly established connection. Yushi simply nodded in response. “ About

Emilios paced back and forth, reading a tome about the pantheon of Meihua. Ever since making landfall and taking up residence in the Ju clan’s estate, per Korina’s persuasion, he’d taken to their library as of late. Emilios had a hard time looking into Shendu’s identity in detail. The Water God was quite over bearing and ever present. When Emilios realized Shendu was asleep instead of just meditating like he usually does at night, Emilios felt more comfortable reading up on t

A storm raged, battering Xueye from all sides. It was freezing cold and the wind had whipped the rain up to be almost painful as it hit him. Xueye was confused, trying to look around for anything familiar but the rain water stung his eyes. This was different, nothing around was familiar, there were no voices nor sense of being watched like he’d expected with such strange scenes. Rather it was as though whatever was watching him before was focused on something else entirely an

Yushi sat at the table in the back room of Dr.Jingji’s shop, sipping the tea that the doctor had made to help him calm down. The shop was closed for the day with Lingyao spending time with her family and Dr.Jingji taking care of Qingkong, who was still resting upstairs. The doctor had set about gathering herbs for another remedy as Yushi was explaining his more recent concerns, eyes lingering on the snowdrop flowers growing from a small pot in the window. Their drooping white

Xinhua found herself pacing the library of Shizhe’s home in the early hours of the morning. Shizhe had just fallen back asleep after waking from a nightmare, but Xinhua could not fall asleep again. Her mind was wandering so she started turning over some of her own notes she'd started keeping hidden away in a hidden compartment amidst the shelves that Shizhe had shared. Yuliang had expressed that not even her own office was secure so Xinhua wasn't really keeping much of her pe

Jinse pinched his brow as he walked through the shadows of the streets, with Wuye radiating a smug energy quite close behind him. Jinse hadn’t felt so embarrassed in such a long time. It was just a few words but for some reason hearing Wuye stating aloud anything about Jinse’s affection towards Xueye made him panic more than hearing the news he had from Wuye weeks ago. Now Jinse was annoyed because he could tell Wuye knew just how those words were getting under his skin. “Car

The evening air of spring always tended to have a faint chill to it that seemed to go right through Xueye. Tonight though he was quite warm with alcohol in his system and the proximity of the body he clung to as they walked had him enjoying the cool night air for once. Even as he clung to Yushi he was stumbling but all he could do was giggle each time. “Careful,” Yushi warned with a gentle smile as he reached out to stabilize Xueye. “I might have to carry you at this rate.” “

The quickly cooling evening spring air did nothing to stave off the warmth that Xueye felt walking with Jinse and Yushi. He was quickly starting to regret agreeing to having them both come along at the same time. Even so he couldn’t help but feel complete when he was with them both. If only he could get his heart to stop racing so fast. “Are you alright, darling?” Jinse draped himself over Xueye’s shoulders. “You seem a little dazed.” “I’m fine!” Xueye said quickly, that heat

“It would seem the Styliani’s have returned to the city,” Riluo reported. It was one of the last few things on his list of subjects to update Yushi upon as they spoke in Yushi’s study. “Does she really think that will come without consequences?” Yushi practically growled. Recently, Riluo has noticed he sounded more beastly than he used to as he got irritated. Normally it only sounded like that when it rained but it was coming to the surface even on the clearest days. “Apparen

“Ah, how frustrating,” Xueye mumbled as he read the letter from Yahui. It was a report on how things were progressing with the growing of rarer herbs. Most of them seemed to be doing well after a bit of struggle, however some just weren’t taking very well no matter what she tried. She assured that it was still early so it could take time but Xueye couldn’t help but worry. The negotiation with Mingmai he’d put off scheduling the last few days was starting to sound like a nice

The springtime meant that Shizhe’s garden was very much in bloom. While typically it had flowers all year round, the ones that bloomed in spring were clearly her favorites. Xueye walked slowly as he admired them all. “Xueye? You made it,” Yuliang rose from her seat in the pavilion and joined him. “Yes, I've still plenty of work to do but it's mellowed a bit,” Xueye smiled. “I'm glad,” Yuliang couldn't help but return the smile. “As of late, Shizhe and Xinhua seemed worried y

Xinhua hadn’t seen Yuliang’s office before. Anytime Yuliang asked Xinhua about any of her work as a guard in the comfort of Shizhe’s garden during their weekly breakfasts. Admittedly, Xinhua was a little nervous. She was still wrapping her head around her new position. “Are you alright?” Yuliang asked, picking up on Xinhua’s unease. “Yes, Lady Shanfeng!” Xinhua said far too quickly. “You can call me Yuliang when it's just us,” Yuliang offered sweetly. “The upper court can be

Shizhe was used to the darkness. The starry night sky was her domain after all. However this darkness was different. Not a single glint...

“So you have nothing then?” Korina glared at her brother as he stepped into her cabin. His dour expression told her all she needed to...