Linyue slowly opened her eyes only to be greeted by a pair of very large, very emotional eyes staring right into her soul.
"AHHH!" Song Meiyu jumped back and screamed, then immediately burst into tears. "Sister Linyue! You finally woke up!" she sobbed, as if Linyue had just returned from the afterlife.
Linyue sat up on the bed, and looked around the room.
In the corner, He Yuying lounged in a chair, one leg casually crossed over the other. He had a meat pie in one hand, halfway through a bite. He raised his free hand lazily in greeting.
"Sister Linyue," he said through a mouthful of pastry, crumbs clinging to the corner of his lips, "welcome back. We thought you had gone full Sleeping Beauty. Except colder. And without the prince part."
Song Meiyu wiped her eyes and threw her hands up. "DO YOU EVEN REALIZE? You've been asleep for five days! FIVE! DAYS! Straight!" She held up five fingers, shaking them so hard they blurred.
Linyue tilted her head. Then gave a small, serene smile. "Oh. Shorter than I thought."
Song Meiyu froze mid-breath, her mouth dropping open. "SHORTER?!" she shouted, one hand clutching her chest. "Do you even know? Do you even realize? How that Demon King was acting these past five days?!"
"…Did he set something on fire?" Linyue asked in her usual mild tone. Honestly, she didn't really want to know what Shu Mingye had done or how he acted. Whatever it was, it was probably dramatic or terrifying.
Song Meiyu clutched Linyue's shoulders. "You. Have. No. Idea." Her voice trembled with the weight of tragedy.
Linyue blinked. "Obviously."
"He stood there," Song Meiyu said, throwing one arm toward the wall as if re-enacting a crime scene, "for hours. Just… standing. Not blinking. Not moving."
From the corner, He Yuying spoke through a mouthful of meat pie. "Pretty sure he was breathing, though."
"Barely!" Song Meiyu shot him a glare before returning to Linyue. "Everyone else was too scared to breathe, because what if the Demon King heard?"
Linyue's brows drew together. "Why would they be scared of him hearing breathing?"
"Because he looked like he was deciding who to set on fire first!" Song Meiyu slapped her own chest for emphasis. "And then! I swear I saw him whispering to you. Like, leaning right over your bed and whispering."
"…What was he whispering?"
"No one knows," Song Meiyu said gravely. "Because when I asked, he looked me dead in the eyes and said, I wasn't talking. And you know what? I believed him for a second. Which is terrifying because I definitely saw his lips move."
"Maybe he was talking to himself," He Yuying said lazily.
Linyue let out a long sigh. "Perhaps you were imagining—"
"I don't imagine that!" Song Meiyu cried.
Before Song Meiyu could launch into what was sure to be another very long and very emotional rant, Linyue cut in smoothly. "Five days…" she murmured, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Does it mean it's Weeping Moon already?"
Song Meiyu nodded. "It's already the second day of Weeping Moon. The Demon King went outside the wall to fight the demons. He told us to stay here and look after you. Brother Zhenyu went with him too."
Linyue gave a small nod, her expression thoughtful. But Song Meiyu leaned closer, lowering her voice like she was sharing the darkest of secrets. "And I think I know what he was whispering," she said. "It was probably something like… Please wake up so I can gaze into your beautiful eyes again. Or maybe, Oh no, what if she never wakes up and I'll have to build a shrine in her honor?"
Song Meiyu went on, growing more theatrical with each word. "Or maybe… he was swearing eternal vengeance on that spring. Or maybe he was making a poetic vow about leaping into the underworld to bring back your soul if needed."
Linyue stared at her, her polite smile straining at the edges. "Or," she said slowly, "he could have been thinking about dumplings."
She sighed quietly and decided to ignore whatever fantasy Song Meiyu had in her mind. It was the second day of Weeping Moon already. She had really slept longer than she thought. Weeping Moon lasted three days. But clearing out the demons usually took four or five days, since soldiers had to killed and cleaned up the remaining demons around the wall.
Her gaze drifted to her hands. Something inside her felt different. Not in a bad way. Just… changed. Her spiritual energy pulsed gently under her skin, like it had been polished while she slept. Like the dream, or whatever that illusion was, had awakened something in her. She could not tell yet if it was a blessing or a warning.
Her eyes move to Song Meiyu, still grumbling about something on the edge of her bed, and then to He Yuying, who was sprawled in a chair with a plate of half-eaten meat pie balanced on his knees. A thought settled in her mind, small but firm.
If she had something precious to protect now, then maybe… it was a good thing.
A faint smile curved her lips.
Song Meiyu squeaked so loudly it almost startled He Yuying into dropping his meat pie. "Sister Linyue! That smile is so unfair! It's cheating! I'm falling in love with you all over again!" Then Song Meiyu launched herself forward and wrapped her in a bear hug.
Linyue laughed softly and hugged her back. "I love you too, Sister Meiyu," she said, her voice warm.
He Yuying muttered dryly around a mouthful of meat pie. "Touching. Very touching. Shall I fetch the Demon King now so he can join your group hug? Or should I warn him first to bring handkerchief to wipe snot?"
Song Meiyu shot him a deadly glare, still clinging to Linyue. "Shut up, Brother Yuying. You'll get your hug later!"
He Yuying arched an eyebrow. "Please don't."
Song Meiyu finally pulled back, only far enough to stare at Linyue. Her hands gripped Linyue's shoulders. "Sister Linyue… do you even realize what you just said? What happened to you? Are you okay? Was it the water? Was it the spring?!"
"Why? I just said I love you. Is it wrong?"
Song Meiyu let out a sound somewhere between a squeak and a scream. She slapped both hands over her mouth. "Oh no. Now she's so calm about it. This is worse. This is so much worse."
He Yuying groaned. "I'm leaving before someone proposes marriage."
"Too late!" Song Meiyu wailed, grabbing Linyue's hand. "We're soulmates now! You said it! There's no going back!"
Linyue tilted her head. "Do I get pie if we're married?"
He Yuying nearly fell off his chair.
"Absolutely yes!" Song Meiyu declared. "Unlimited pie, and foot rubs! And herbal tea every night! You just stay cute and mysterious and I'll handle everything else!"
Linyue's lips curved in the tiniest, most dangerous amused smile. A smile that could ruin lives and hearts if she ever used it seriously. "Well," she said softly, "at least now I know what I missed while I was asleep."
"Chaos," He Yuying muttered.
"Love," Song Meiyu corrected, hugging her again.
Linyue thought about the battle outside the walls. About Shu Mingye. About how strange and peaceful that dream had been and how deep the feeling still lingered inside her chest.
Still holding Song Meiyu gently, she rested her chin on her friend's shoulder and said in her quiet, calm voice, "I had a really beautiful dream."
Song Meiyu loosened the hug and asked. "Is that why you didn't wake up?"
Linyue nodded. "Yes."
Song Meiyu pouted immediately. "So… you planned to sleep forever?"
"No," Linyue replied. "I was afraid you'd do something while I was asleep. So I decided to wake up."
Song Meiyu burst into laughter. "That's fair. I did consider braiding your hair into a crown and declaring you Princess of the Nap Realm."
"I knew it."
"I was going to paint your face too," Song Meiyu added cheerfully. "You looked too serene. It was suspicious."
Linyue stared at her. "I should've stayed asleep."
"You would've woken up with eyebrows drawn like mountain ranges," Song Meiyu grinned. "Very majestic."
Linyue sighed. "A beautiful dream… ruined by the threat of bad calligraphy on my face."
"You're welcome," Song Meiyu said brightly, hugging her again. "I missed you so much."
Linyue's expression softened as she returned the embrace. "I missed you, too."
He Yuying, still in the chair, stuffed another meat pie in his mouth and muttered, "Can you both go back to sleep? I liked the quiet."
"No," Song Meiyu shot back, sticking her tongue out. "She's mine now."
"I don't remember signing anything."
"I'll write a contract. With glitter ink," Song Meiyu grinned.
Linyue closed her eyes for a moment and said very seriously, "I've changed my mind. I should have slept forever."
For a moment, the chamber was filled with soft laughter—warm, safe, and full of life again.