The Dragon Prince's Warrior

Cohabitation

The night had passed with struggles to light a fire, challenges in dividing food meant for one person among three, and the trials of sleeping on the hard ground. In the end, it had been a stormy night, but one thing Yun was sure of was that they would have fared much worse outside, where fierce animals roamed more frequently and icy gusts threatened to freeze them completely, possibly leading to hypothermia.

When Yun began gathering wood for the fire, Mei had peeked to see what he was doing. She observed the bow he had made for some reason but didn't ask about it when he returned. She found his behavior quite curious.

Throughout the night, neither Yun nor Mei had been able to get any sleep. Concerns for their loved ones outweighed any thoughts of a good rest. What surprised Yun the most was that, as midnight arrived and Mei and Yun had finished their dinner and were preparing to check on the recovering Siu, something had changed during that interval.

"Well... It seems that Miss Siu has regained color in her face," Mei said cheerfully.

"Sure, that's good... I guess," Yun replied, but all he saw was that the wound he had inflicted on her with the sharp weapon, when that man had used her as a shield, was no longer there. It was as if something had completely erased it.

"Could it be possible that I dreamt about cutting her face? I'm starting to feel like I'm losing my mind. Maybe I didn't hurt her... but then again, maybe I did. By Buddha, what confusion!" Yun thought as he moved to settle somewhere in the cave.

"Is something the matter?" Mei inquired, very curious about the expression Yun had worn a few moments ago.

Yun remained silent for a few seconds. He didn't want to sound like a lunatic, but the uncertainty of whether she remembered the same thing or not consumed him greatly. Eventually, his emotions got the best of him and he broke the brief silence that had piqued Mei's curiosity even more.

"Well, it's just that..." The words threatened to get stuck in his throat, but he refused to let that happen. "Do you happen to remember if this girl had a wound on her face? Right on her right cheek..." Yun scratched his head subtly, trying to alleviate his anxiety.

"Let me see..." Mei leaned over to examine her.

As she touched Siu's cheek with the tips of her fingers, Siu's eyes began to open; now her gaze had more brightness than a few hours ago.

"Miss!" Mei exclaimed upon seeing her reaction.

"Hello..." Siu smiled subtly. "Where are we? Is everything okay?"

"We are on Mount Yumai," Yun replied without moving from his spot.

For a split second, Yun wanted to immediately sit up beside Siu, but something in his mind made him hold back, considering the situation. He had noticed Mei's knowing look, as she observed them with mischief while he wanted to be polite to the archer girl. If his mind wasn't failing him, she was probably starting to think there was something between them, when there wasn't, not by a long shot.

Yun thought about his real mission, which could go wrong at any moment. He wasn't in for teenage romances, as it was clear that neither of them were teenagers anymore. He was a grown man; he had to show that at twenty years old, he was mature and respectful towards women. Thus, he kept his distance and spoke to her from where he was sitting.

"I see..." Siu said as she sat up and observed Yun's indifference, but she quickly perked up. "And who are you? I hadn't seen you around Yumai," she asked when she saw Mei.

"I... My name is Mei, and to be honest, I just arrived near the village. I'm a widow, and when I saw that abandoned cabin, I couldn't resist the urge to settle there."

"I would have never thought you were a widow. You look so young, about my age, and I haven't even experienced love," Siu said, surprised.

"Yes, well..." Mei lowered her gaze a bit. "The truth is, I rushed into marriage and having children at a young age," the widow clarified with a shy smile.

Mei passed Siu the bowl of food they had left for her. The taste was familiar to her, as her mother had cooked that delicious stew, accompanied by perfectly cooked white rice. Siu didn't hesitate to start devouring it; she was too hungry.

"It seems that's astonishing. Your life has been very brave. And... which house are you referring to? That abandoned one far from the village?" Siu inquired, adjusting herself to hold the bowl more comfortably as she ate. "My whole life, I've been intrigued by that shack, because they say that a hermit lived there a long time ago. Almost no one talks about him, but they say he was one of the ones who created the Fenghuang monument at the top of this mountain."

"Really?" Mei responded, surprised. "I had no idea, and honestly, I took quite a risk wanting to live alone there after my husband left me to seek new job opportunities and died during the journey. It was very painful for me, and now..." The woman choked up before continuing. "An evil man took my four children, and I have no idea if they are still alive." As she finished the last syllable, Mei began to cry bitterly.

"I'm so sorry," Siu said, her eyes welling up.

Siu was truly moved by Mei's pain. So much so that she got up and crawled over to where Mei was to pat her on the back and try to console her in her crying. Yun couldn't take his eyes off her actions.

"Her confidence with people is impressive," Yun couldn't help but lean his elbow on his knee and then rest his chin on his hand as he observed the scene. "What a strange girl, but with a noble heart. I'm genuinely glad she's okay."

"And you..." Yun snapped back to attention when Siu addressed him. "How are your wounds? I saw everything when that tiger attacked you."

"I'm perfectly fine, thanks to the care of the lady present here," he said with a sly smile, causing Mei to blush slightly.

"Indeed, you're quite skilled at helping people," Siu praised Mei.

"Oh, come on, it's not that big of a deal," Mei replied, a little embarrassed. "I'm just glad I can help those who supported me during this difficult time."

Yun smiled and nodded his head slightly towards Mei. Then his smile faded, and he turned to look at Siu; she immediately returned his gaze.

"By the way, Siu... What were you doing there, wherever you were watching us from? I truly didn't think you would come, even though I asked you not to get involved. You almost ended up in the clutches of that wretch," Yun said sharply, with a touch of annoyance.

Siu fell silent for a split second. Her mind took her back to the moment when, hidden among the trees, she had been following that stubborn and proud young man who had refused help. Something told her she should guide him to the monument, and she had somehow been intrigued by him.

She remained still, watching as Mei tended to his arm wound after she shot that arrow at the black tiger. Siu's heart immediately raced in a strange way she didn't recognize. Was it anxiety? Concern? What was that feeling?

She had no idea, but what she was certain of was that she wanted to get a closer look at what those two were doing. When he smiled at her and vice versa, something made her lean further on the branch, causing it to snap in two and making her fall from the tree, right onto that evil man.

Siu snapped back to the present after recalling that, and she prepared to respond with a question:

"Is this how you show gratitude, Mr. Sourpuss?" Siu crossed her arms. "And here I thought we were friends. Friends are supposed to support each other; otherwise, what's the point?"

"I never told you we were friends," Yun replied sharply.

Mei's mouth slightly fell open at Yun's response, and she refrained from making any comment.

"There are things that don't need to be said," Siu debated. "But I guess I was wrong to come following you. I had no idea how much you despised me." She lowered her gaze. "Don't worry, I'll leave as soon as it's morning. I promise."

The pleasant conversation had turned into an argument that Yun had unintentionally initiated. Did he really want her to leave? Of course not, he just didn't want her to get hurt by some ruffian because of something that wasn't her concern. He wouldn't forgive himself. Was it so hard to say what he really wanted to express, instead of being so abrupt? Yun looked away, feeling bad about what he had said, and couldn't help but respond.

"It's just that..." Yun was frustrated "Don't you realize you got hurt? I'm just worried that you're putting yourself in danger. Besides, I explained that my mission was a solitary one. Can't you understand? If something happens to you..."

Siu, who had been looking away, turned her gaze back to Yun.

"... So, you're only concerned about me?", she asked curiously, with a faint smile.

"Y-yes, of course. Why on earth was he stammering? A girl like you should be safe at home. Look at what you've just been through, you could've been killed"

"But look! I'm good as new, without a scratch", Siu exclaimed with enthusiasm.

The archer stood up and twirled around, causing the hem of her qipao dress to sway gracefully and lift slightly above her knee. Yun felt warmth in his cheeks and looked away to another part of the cave, while Mei observed the whole scene.

"Well, it's already late and if we don't sleep, tomorrow will be tough. Good night", Yun said and curled up to sleep on his side against the cave walls, without saying another word.

Siu was left puzzled, but when she saw that Yun had fallen asleep, she sat back down next to Mei.

"Yun is a bit strange, but I like him", Siu said. "I just wanted to help him, honestly".

"So his name is Yun...", Mei said.

"Yes, of course. Didn't I tell you?", Siu asked.

"I don't think you had the chance. Do you realize that... his name is similar to the youngest prince of the Qing Dynasty?"

"Well, it could be just a coincidence", Siu replied, not dwelling on the matter.

"You're right", Mei mumbled as she yawned "Well, rest up" Mei lay down to get comfortable and started to drift off to sleep as well.

Siu did the same, and as the fire crackled, she relaxed and let sleep return to her body. Her gaze settled on Yun, and his image moved through the dancing flames. She promised herself she would return home. She didn't want to ruin his mission. Even though they were strangers, he seemed too important to him. After all, they were just strangers who knew nothing about each other.