It was a mad night. Mad enough that when I returned to my room the next morning, I was sore all over and too tired for my daily practice, so I had a simple breakfast and decided to go for a walk in the garden instead.
Autumn leaves rustled in the cool breeze, stirring a wave of gold as I passed. The sweet osmanthus tree was already laden with flower buds, and I wondered idly if we would be here to watch it bloom—the trip to the Jade Temple was starting in just a few days. Osmanthus fragrance was one of my favorites, and I had hoped to go moon-gazing under the tree on the night of Mid Autumn with Bai Ye.
Jade Temple probably had sweet osmanthus trees as well, though moon-gazing with him there would be too difficult. Which day was Mid Autumn again? Would it still be before the trip?
I was searching the commoner's calendar futilely in my mind when I realized that, while wandering aimlessly, my feet had taken me to the sealed door of the cave chamber.
Well, maybe that was a good thing. I had to make sure that I memorized the carved illustrations well enough to be able to practice without them on the trip. Now would be a perfect time for it.
I had been somewhat reluctant to come back to this chamber ever since I saw that vision with Twin Stars. Even more so after learning that there was more to the swords' past than what Bai Ye told me during the tournament. Fortunately, nothing surprising had happened recently, and I hoped it would stay this way. Maybe after we returned from the Jade Temple, I would decide that my progress in swords isn't worth the risk to the future between us, and I could stop practicing this meditation routine to end those visions for good.
I entered the chamber and sat down into the meditating position. Keeping my eyes off of the carvings on the wall, I recalled the steps from my memory and started following through them.
The routine practices had etched the whole process well into my mind, and I had no trouble remembering when and where to guide my spiritual power. I led the flow smoothly through my body, pushing on it lightly, and as I progressed through the steps—
That strange yet familiar pulse of energy suddenly called to me again. A whisper on the edge of my consciousness, a faint throbbing in the back of my mind.
I winced. Opening my eyes and darting a glance at Twin Stars lying next to me on the floor, I could see the crimson light glowing through the opening of the sheath. Don't touch it, I told myself. Don't stare into the blades. The visions aren't necessary for this meditation technique.
But just as I closed my eyes and tried to resume, a white flash glowed in front of me. The next moment, I found myself standing in a room, watching … Bai Ye shining his sword.
Did a vision still manage to reach me? Even without me touching Twin Stars?
"Master!" A girl's voice rang from beside me as I tried to regain my bearings. "Look what I found in the garden!"
I turned, half expecting to see my younger self running through the door, but it was a beautiful girl in a bright red dress that came into my view. She looked like sixteen or seventeen, doe-eyed and full-lipped, her thick long lashes fluttering in excitement as she dashed across the room and knelt at Bai Ye's side. "Look!" she exclaimed and held something up in her hands for him to see.
My heart skipped a beat. Was this … Su Nian? But I found few similarities between the features on these two faces, and there was a drastically different air about this girl in front of me. She was … dazzling. Vibrant as spring meadows, fresh as summer rain. Even Su Nian didn't have this natural beauty that glowed and sparkled from within.
Who was she? And why was she calling Bai Ye "master"?
Bai Ye didn't pause shining his sword as the girl waited for him with expectant eyes. Instead, he frowned. "I told you not to bring more things inside from the garden," he said and darted an annoyed look at what she was holding. "Throw it away."
"Master!" the girl protested. "Can I keep it please? It's hurt. It'll die if we leave it in the garden!"
My eyes finally landed on the thing she was holding. It was a little bird, lying meekly in her hands with one wing folded, the other stretched out at a weird angle. It must be broken. She stroked the bird's feathers gently as she spoke, and the little thing chirped.
"This is the fourth time you found a hurt animal this month." Bai Ye gritted his teeth. "I'm not an animal farm keeper! And how old are you? When will you learn better than running all over my garden digging for things like this all day?"
His reaction startled me. Back when I was younger, I used to do the same sometimes, bringing fuzzy little animals back to our hall and asking if I could keep them. He had always given me a doting smile and told me that his hall was my home, and I could do anything that I wished to. It was hard to imagine that he would respond to the same questions from this girl so harshly.
When and where was this? How could he have changed so much? I looked around. The room was unfamiliar, and I wondered if this could be his old hall before he moved off of the main peak.
"I don't know how old I am," the girl mumbled. "And what am I supposed to do otherwise? Practice swords all day? I don't like swords!"
It wasn't until then that I noticed there was a pair of swords hanging on her belt. It wasn't until then that I noticed … those were Twin Stars.
"You don't like swords?" Bai Ye glared at her. "YOU, out of everyone, don't like swords?"
The girl smiled a bit embarrassedly. "Don't be angry at me, Master," she begged sweetly and batted her long dark lashes. "I'll practice … I'll practice right away if you let me keep this little bird, please?"
"You say this every time—"
"And I kept my promise every time! I'll do even more if you want me to … I'll practice extra for the rest of the week!"
She inched closer to him, and it looked like she was going to rest her hands holding the little bird in his lap when he jolted away. "F-Fine," he said with a defeated sigh. "Last time this month. No more after this, no matter how much you beg."
The girl's large, innocent eyes lit up at his words. "Thank you, Master!" she exclaimed and got back to her feet. "You are the best person in this world!" she shouted as she ran back out of the room.
Bai Ye's gaze followed her until she disappeared into the garden. Then he sighed again, shaking his head. "What have I gotten myself into?" he mumbled to himself.
With another flash of white light, the vision faded.. My eyes snapped open, and I was back in the cave chamber again, Twin Stars still glowing by my side.
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