The Princess Weiyoung: Out of The Darkness

Chapter 6: A Rescue Party?

A soft snore woke him.

She stayed.

Wonder washed over him as he glanced down at his fingers, which were bathed in the low flickering of the firelight, and the warmest he had felt them all day.

Still entwined with hers.

Tuoba Yu turned his head slowly towards Weiyoung, afraid that the slightest movement might wake her.

What will happen when she wakes? He mused. Others would be demanding political favours as soon as they woke, but she had been insistent that she was not interested in any of that.

Friendship would be a step too far as well. At least at this stage, but maybe I could try to win her trust when we discuss the letter. Yes, that's what I need to aim for. With her trust gained, I can slowly work my way into her heart. Weiyoung you will be mine, and you will come to me willingly.

Still, the moment of joyous certainty passed, and Tuoba Yu's mind shied away from what would happen when she woke. Better to focus on the moment, and pretend that it would never end.

Whilst falling unconscious on Weiyoung did not in any way count as sleeping with a woman, it was the closest Tuoba Yu had ever come to it. He felt that he had woken up a changed man. Even the semi-darkness did not scare him as much as it used to.

If I hadn't been born the next emperor then this could be the first day of the rest of my life. 

He thought to himself, conveniently choosing to ignore the fact that he was wounded in a cave with the woman who had said a few hours ago that she did not even like him. Time slipped by as he memorised the subtle softness that sleep had given her usually unbending frame.

He could still smell the rice water and osmanthus in her hair, and was remembering how soft it felt when his musings were disturbed by Jun Tao's voice. She was barking orders from what he assumed was the outside of the cave. The sound woke Weiyoung. Tuoba Yu closed his eyes quickly and pretended to be asleep.

Weiyoung sighed, gently disentangled herself from him. Then she rose and left without a backward glance. Tuoba Yu's heart contracted painfully. She was leaving already. Things were about to return to normal again, and he did not want that to happen.

Voices were echoing back up the tunnel. Cheng An, his servant who knew him better than any other living being, was asking questions, and not really listening to any of the replies he was receiving.

"You kept Prince Nan'an here? Wasn't it dark, Princess Anping? How did you cope?"

"Luckily there was enough firewood for me to start a fire this morning. As long as we get Prince Nan'an out of here and seen by a doctor everything will be fine. Just bear in mind the message I showed you a moment ago."

"Of course, Princess Anping. It is deeply disturbing."

I can't let the rest of them see me looking vulnerable.

Tuoba Yu stirred and tried to sit up, he just about managed and was staring at the entrance way when four people entered it: Cheng An, Weiyoung, Weiyoung's maid Bai Zhi, and, as he had expected, Weiyoung's infernal bodyguard Jun Tao.

Weiyoung looked surprised to see Tuoba Yu sitting up, and her eyes narrowed in suspicion as she looked at him. He shook his head feebly, as though trying to ward off any disagreements that might arise from his having shown more strength than he had in hours.

"Princess Weiyoung, thank you for bringing them in. Right, the five of us need to make a plan fast. Are you three," he nodded in the direction of Cheng An, Bai Zhi, and Jun Tao, "up to speed with what's been going on?"