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Restless | May & Ling

The last remaining vestiges of sunlight faded from the blue-gray sky, giving way to spangling of stars and constellations blooming into view. The moon hung large and pale on the horizon, illuminating her steps as she weaved her way through the fragrant palace gardens. She was alone for once, and glad of it - well, except for Xiao-Mei, who was always with her, of course. The tiny panda sat perched atop her shoulder, peering through the folds of her ravened hair, and letting out a slight yawn. Likewise, May issued a quiet sigh, her tarry black lashes fluttering, stopping now and again to pluck a flower the bouquet that she was making. She kept them bunched neatly in one hand for the time being, but didn't bother to arrange them, yet. She'd do that once she got back to her bedroom.

It wasn't the first time that she'd given those pesky bodyguards the slip after they'd thought she was safely tucked away in bed. And it wasn't like she ever went anywhere dangerous, anyway. Besides, she could take care of herself - she didn't need bodyguards, or anyone else to do that for her. She padded across a wooden bridge, her ebony tresses swinging long and loose at her back, a stark contrast to the complex braids that she normally wore during the daytime.

Upon reaching the other side, she paused for a moment, then turned, blinking once, mouth faintly pursed, passing underneath the shadow of a cherry tree and its carpet of pastel-pink pedals, Xiao-Mei still bobbing to her right. She would've liked to stay out longer, but knew that it would probably be better to get back indoors as quickly as she could. That way, there was less of a chance that someone might find out she was gone. With this in mind, she forged a new path for herself, cutting straight through the center of the gardens, rather than taking the long way around and retracing her steps from before.

She hummed softly under her breath as she walked, rounding a corner, where her eyes fell unexpectedly upon another person seated on a bench up ahead. She startled and skidded to a sudden halt, feeling her heart leap into her throat, squeaking and ducking behind the nearest blossoming shrub. Too close----she hadn't thought that she would come across anyone else at this hour. She sucked in a little breath and poked her head back around the side of the bush, eyelids flickering, head tilting a fraction of an inch to one side.

She squinted through the darkness, and Xiao-Mei did the same as the two similarly attempted to identify the person seated up ahead. A split second later, her face fell, and a tightly-knit frown creased her moon-washed features.

That figures----it's him.

She gave a short sniff and swept her waist-length locks back behind her shoulders again. Even at this distance, she knew Ling Yao when she saw him. She puffed out a small sigh and exchanged a sidelong glance with Xiao-Mei, rosy mouth twisting dryly at either corner. At first, she thought about turning right around and finding another way back to her bedroom. She didn't really want to talk to him, or explain what she was doing out here after dark. And besides, she got the feeling that he probably wouldn't want to talk to her, either. It wasn't like he'd tried to, lately. She watched him for a moment longer, cheeks stinging with heat, lightly flushed as she tried to make up her mind.

Truth be told, she didn't really know how to feel about him, right now. She hadn't for a long time. He'd been so kind to all of them, and it seemed like that alone should have been enough to make it easy - but it wasn't. Actually, it was a feeling that her confused her a lot. She knew that she had no reason not to express gratitude towards him, when her entire clan was indebted to him for his generosity. But that was just it. That was what made it so hard. And maybe that was why she always looked for reasons to avoid being around him. Even after so many months, she still didn't know how to swallow her pride.

Still, her curiosity got the better of her, and so she didn't turn around. Instead, she continued to survey him from where she stood out of sight. Her nose crinkled a bit more. For whatever the reason, he didn't look very good. He had dark circles under his eyes, even worse than the last time that she'd seen him. And what was he even doing, sitting out here all by himself at this hour, anyway? Her body tensed a little, and a faint breath escaped her lips.

He seemed almost sad. Had something happened, she wondered? Was he all right? Had he been crying?

She bit her lip, head bowing, tugging at the folds of her nightclothes, inky tresses spilling down as she glanced at the flowers she was holding. She didn't want to approach him, but what else could she do, when he was sitting there, all alone, and looking so sad like that? She stiffened and huffed a little, puffing out a small exhale. She couldn't very well just leave him there - and besides, she assured herself, this wouldn't take long.

At last, she stepped out from her hiding place, and hopped across a trickling stream flowing over polished stones, her bare feet carrying her near silently across the cobbled path, Xiao-Mei still clinging to her shoulder. She didn't want to feel sorry for him; it almost made her a little mad. Still, she couldn't help herself. As she approached, her posture slackened, and her features softened, too - and for a moment, it didn't matter who he was, or what he had done. She didn't like seeing anyone look so sad.

She hesitated only briefly upon reaching him, then plopped down lightly onto the bench beside him, and set the flowers in his lap.

"Here." She canted her head a bit and glanced sidelong at him, dusting a loose strand of hair from her cheek, lips adopting the gentlest of curves. "I was going to put these in my bedroom, but you can have them, instead." She paused for a moment, speaking softly, blinking once before adding, "You look like you need them more than I do."

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