The Consequences of my own Actions

“I swear to all that is holy, if you do that again, I don’t care who you are, I am going to punch you.”

“Calm down. I’m just checking in to see how the solution to my problem is coming along.”

“Swimmingly.”

Gui crosses his arms. “Very funny.”

“You should be glad I’m taking this seriously. You know what this pearl is for?”

“Of course I do. I know everything related to this world.”

“Then I don’t need to explain myself.”

“No need to be so haughty. I’m here for a courtesy call, just to warn you. There will be trouble once you emerge from the water.”

I look up to the surface, but it's so far away, so high above, I can’t even make out the moonlight on the waves. Everything is quiet down here, since time always stops when Gui appears, everything is motionless, looking like glass sculptures suspended in mid-air.

“Trouble?”

“Nothing you can’t handle, I just thought I’d give you a heads up, because of your general situation.”

Gui gestures towards my body and I look down… to find that I am still naked. Oh. I forgot about that. I resist the urge to cover myself and stare this so-called god down instead. He smirks, and it’s not mocking for once. It might even be approving. The sound returns as he fades, disappearing as quickly as he appeared, and my surroundings are dark once more. I look back at where the pearl is hidden, camouflaged for everyone who isn’t attuned to its specific brand of magic. The chamber won’t open for anyone except me, so it’ll be safe, I hope.

But then what is the trouble above? Gui didn’t call it a threat, but… I decide to surface some distance from the shore, hopefully hidden behind a rocky outcrop. My night vision in half-shifted form seems to also work on land, and I carefully observe the edge of the water where I left my clothes. Everything is quiet. No light, no movement except the gentle sway of the reeds in the warm desert wind. I listen for anything beyond the croaking of frogs and the ripple of water. There’s nothing. Did Gui just want to mess with me?

I approach the shore, my tail propelling me forward like a large swimming snake. I could get used to this, but it’s not like I can actually show this form to anyone else. With naked feet I climb over the rocks on the shore, unconsciously using my tail for balance, which works much better than just my arms.

“Shimei?”

The sudden question makes me misstep and slip on a rock, yet before I can hit the ground, there’s a flash of white and I’m caught, looking up at Liu Renqing, dumbfounded.

“Hey, don’t claim all the credit.”

Directly hovering behind him is Feng Yu, one hand on Liu Renqing’s shoulder.

“You just threw the robe, I caught her.”

Feng Yu pouts. “I protected her modesty.”

“I—”

“Stop it.”

Both of them are chastised into silence and Liu Renqing doesn’t resist when I detach myself from him, wrapping the robe closer around my body. With my improved vision, I can see that Feng Yu is actually blushing. He looks like he’s never seen a woman in this state of undress. With Liu Renqing, I would’ve expected that, but Feng Yu? Xiyang’s number one resident playboy? In the drama, he was usually found at the local joyhouse until Liu Renqing pursued Murong Zhiyu in earnest and he changed his patterns to appeal to her. Still, many of his previous conquests kept showing up, making Murong Zhiyu’s life difficult, which is actually one of the reasons he wasn’t as well beloved as Liu Renqing in the fanbase. A string of disappointed women doesn’t make for a particularly positive character growth. Now, however, he’s behaving like a schoolboy with a crush. It’s entirely too endearing. With that kind of charm, he would’ve had the fangirls lining up for him.

“Why are you here?” I ask.

“Why are you here?” Feng Yu counters.

Liu Renqing just stares, the same question implied. I sigh. My tail swishes angrily and the horns on my head start glowing as I concentrate my energy.

“As you can clearly see, that’s none of your business.”

“I thought you were a pure human,” Feng Yu says. “In all those years, not even during the tournament… I never suspected anything.”

“I don’t even think anyone in the sect knows,” Liu Renqing adds and I celebrate internally over the look they share, which speaks of bonding over their shared issue. Let that issue be me, as long as you end up together!

“Sect Leader Dai knows,” I reply.

“So what are you? You can’t be a dragon,” Feng Yu wonders. “The only dragons are of the royal family.”

“I’m a qili—”

“She’s a dragon,” Liu Renqing cuts me off.

“Excuse me?”

“There are subtle differences not easily apparent between qilins and dragons. My mother taught them to me. The main difference is that dragon scales shine in moonlight, qilin scales shine in sunlight.”

I don’t need to look down at my hands to see the silvery scales glow. Liu Renqing shakes his head.

“A dragon, then?” Feng Yu asks.

“Stand down!”

A harsh voice cuts through the conversation, leaving me to freeze up. Feng Yu and Liu Renqing are equally surprised—even more so when they are apprehended by several shadowy figures. One of them appears in front of me, somehow holding the rest of my clothes up. Their head is bowed, but with the hood and the mask, I couldn’t see their faces anyway.

“Please dress yourself,” the person says.

“Who—”

“Er-jie?” (*)

Another figure drops from the sky, this time not clad in black, but rather in flowing white, as brilliant as the moonlight. They remind me of Gui for a moment, but then I see their face, and it is one of a young woman, eyes wide in astonishment. Her hair is elaborately pinned up and there are countless flower ornaments adorning it.

Ah. I know who this is.

“San-mei,” I address her. (**)

Zhu Chun, third princess of Xiyang pouts, her cheeks puffing up, her mouth scrunching adorably. She points at my head and it takes me a moment to realise she means the horns and I close my eyes to concentrate. I feel much lighter without them and the tail, but also less powerful.

“Why are you here?”

She glances at the lake, and suddenly I feel really stupid. Of course an artefact as important as the pearl would have security. Of course there would be protective arrays and barriers. Just because I can walk though them without triggering the traps doesn’t mean they’re not activated. I look around at the shadowy figures, who must be her security detail.

“I should ask you the same thing,” Zhu Chun says.

I look over her shoulder, to where Feng Yu and Liu Renqing are detained, both of them glaring, but not stupid enough to go against the royal guards. I thank the heavens for small blessings.

“I had… reason to be concerned, but it was nothing,” I say, without giving away too much.

Zhu Chun deflates visibly, her stern expression melting and replaced with something anxious. She steps forward to take the clothes from the guard’s hands, then takes my hand and starts dragging me away.

“Come on, we can’t have you stand here half-naked,” she says and then turns her head towards the guards, barking the next orders. “You! Keep them here until we return.”

She leads me away from the group, around a few large rocky outcrops, until we’re secluded from the others. As soon as we're out of view, her expression changes completely, and she looks like she’s just about to cry. Scratch that. She is crying, holding both my hands so hard I think I’m going to feel her fingernail imprints for days

“Er-jieeeeeeee…” she whines. “What are we going to do?”

——

(*) Er-jie = 2nd sister, adressed by a younger sister

(**)  San-mei = 3rd sister, adressed by an older sister