I Love You to the Moon and Back (A Kaider Fan-Fiction)

Chapter Nineteen

Selene woke up to Kai gently rubbing her back, and calling her name. He leaned down and whispered in her ear. "Are you ever gonna wake up, sleepy head?" Selene smiled, and mouthed a "no" and pulled him into a kiss. Or, rather, she pulled his face down, while he leaned in, because she couldn't get upon her own. Selene was still laying down, from falling asleep under the stars, ever so peacefully. Kai then lifted her up bridal style, and set her down gently into the wheelchair.

When Kai set her in the wheelchair, he pushed her along the wooded path that went behind the palace. Because New Beijing was primarily in a temperate grassland, the palace grounds were famous for the wooded path, that went around it. There were not many forests located in the city, especially because it was so crowded, and forests didn't grow everywhere, again, because New Beijing was in a temperate grassland. An Emperor from years ago, wanted to please his wife, and that meant keeping the only forest left near the city, because it was the only forest left near the city, that wasn't already inhabited by some family or whatever. They got it as private palace lands as soon as possible, so no one could possibly take it down. Later on, no emperor ever saw the need to take it down, for it held to many memories for all of them, subjects and emperors alike, except for the most recent Emperors, who only married for the sake of having an heir.

Selene took in all of the amazing scenery the forest had to offer to them. She loved this forest, because of it's uncanny beauty. Kai and Selene had taken many walks before, but it never ceased to amaze her, today especially. The early morning sun shone through the canopy of trees. The birds were singing their early morning welcome. Kai smiled, and took Selene's hand. Little animals scurried across the forest floor. The only sounds were the squeaking of wheelchair wheels, and a soft breeze blowing through the trees, and cooling the couple, when the blazing August sun shone through to violently. The scene was truly serene. Up, until the point when Konn Torin came running up the path like a crazed lunatic. "Emperor, Kai. We, have, a, problem," Konn Torin managed to pant out.

"What is the problem," Kai asked, eyebrows furrowed together.

"It is the child. We fear she is dying."

Kai then pushed the wheelchair as fast as he could, until Selene took over, for she had become skilled at maneuvering the wheelchair on her own. He didn't need Konn Torin to tell him which child it was. He knew it was Peony.

All of the sudden, the forest wasn't as serene. It was pure chaos as everything in the forest was in upheaval. The animals were all stirring around, as If they had sensed what was going on in the palace. Ir, was it the the fact that an unknown object was flying past them at a remarkable pace.

When Kai and Selene got to the palace, after their escape from the forest, there was a nurse waiting to take them to Peony. Her face was flushed, from hurrying to get the Emperor and Princess. She had blood on her apron, from holding the coughing child.

"What's going on?" Selene asked, patiently.

"Well, Peony has been diagnosed with a first century disease called tuberculosis. It is a very rare disease, but she caught it alright. Poor child, she's been coughing up blood and everything. Where is her mother anyway?" The nurse asked, clearly concerned for the sick child.

"She, went out drinking last night, and we have no idea of her whereabouts at the moment," Selene said rolling her eyes, causing the nurse to gasp.

"She what?!?" The nurse said nearly crashing into the wheelchair.

"Yep, you heard me. She went out drinking last night." The nurse stood agape, as she stared at Swelene, trying to decipher the gibberish Selene spoke.

"How could a mother abandoned her daughter, when she nearly, she nearly died! If my daughter nearly died, I would be right there next to her!" The nurse exclaimed, nearly being run over by the wheelchair for the second time since they started walking to the hospital wing.

Selene and Kai looked in each other's direction, and nodded their heads as the decision was made through an unspoken language shared by the two. The couple would be seeing a social worker tomorrow morning about Peony. They could not let Pearl discard her own daughter, like she had done to Selene so long ago. Selene would not let one more person be hurt by Pearl and Adri. Not if she could help it.

When Selene and Kai got to the hospital wing, they immediately were shown, a small and quivering Peony. The child was covered in blankets, and had a mask on, probably to help her breath. She was propped up by three pillows, and if course they were pink.

Selene stroked the child's soft hair so gently, as if the child would break with a simple touch. Which, at the sound of the cough, that wasn't so far out of reach. Dearth surly would overcome the child, if they did not find the medicine soon. The nurse said it was coming in from the American Republic.

Selene immediately knew what she had to do. She had some guard go and find Pearl. Selene was afraid the child would not live through the night, as another cough stirred the child's well deserved rest.

For some reason, however, Selene had a vague memory of the same type of cough. Only question was, why was it so familiar? It hit Selene at once. Her mother died of a cough, didn't she? But, then again, Peony didn't say her mom died during childbirth? Okay, what the heck is going on here? Selene thought to herself, as she looked at the child, so silently sleeping.