Winter Blossom

Physician

It was late morning before Mo Yuan finally opened his eyes and had his First Disciple been there, he may have thought the unknown Goddess had well and truly killed him.   He never slept passed Dawn, but to not only awaken to the sun on his face and the smell of food cooking, he felt as if he had slept for a week.  In fact, it was the aroma that woke him rather than the warmth of the sun that was bathing his body through the filtered glass windows.  

The smell was divine.  He could make out some of the herbs and spices being used, and as his tummy rumbled in anticipation of what she was cooking, he sat himself up to suddenly realize that not only was he fully dressed in Mortal Realm clothing, but his hair had been done up and his headpiece was in place.  

Rolling his hands lightly over his head, he couldn't help but marvel at how she had managed to dress him without disturbing his sleep when he normally slept very lightly, let alone get his hair into a perfect topknot without him feeling it.  Even a spell would have woken him.  Though as he thought over the past week, she had literally kept him awake every night so he could see how he had finally succumbed to exhaustion.  Though he didn't really think that was the only reason.  He knew that her being with him, had finally calmed him down enough to sleep. 

Though he did take a moment to wonder who the clothing belonged to, because they were definitely male.  And they were also rich silk robes, not heavy like most Mortal silks, but very light and flowing and not only were they a soft pastel blue, a colour he would never normally wear, they looked new.

In fact they were.  Bai Qian kept male clothing for herself for when she travelled to the mainland.  This was mainly for protection against the Mortal men who were not always honorable.  And seeing as she could wear them with a belt while also padding the insides to make herself look bigger than she was, they had kept her safe on much of her travels across the Mortal Realm of which she had seen much of it.

Now finding his feet, he quickly looked around.  He had been given no time to really take in his surroundings the night before and what he saw, more than impressed him.  This woman was obviously very wealthy and that only raised the question once again, as to who she was.  

Of course, there were many wealthy folk in his world, but this was on a much grander scale.  Very few would be able to afford such a home and that suggested her rank might actually be higher than he had first thought.

  Her home was certainly lavish by any mans standards, but unlike the Celestials who filled their homes in all manner of gaudiness, her wealth was obvious but understated and it was in the timber she had used.  Timber, that even in their world would have cost her a fair amount of wealth.

Polished teak floor boards met high rise windows that took in the view of the ocean that seemed to go for miles and from every direction.  It was winter in the Mortal Realm, so the mists he could see gathering in the distance had yet to reach the high waves that splattered themselves against the craggy rocks below.  

But what made her home so different to any other he had ever been into, was the simple elegance.  From a half cut, sanded and polished oak log that ran across the top of a lit hearth and held a collection of books that even he found interesting, to the plush fur rug he had been asleep on, the zither that sat on a small wooden table with an etched copper top that sat in a corner surrounded by music books, the leather upholstered sofas covered in soft felt cushions and the solid teak staircase that spiralled upwards to the bedchambers above him.

And in every direction were views of the ocean.  It was beautiful, warm, comfortable and with the aroma of food in the air, he made his way slowly towards the kitchen where he found her loading the plates with all manner of food that looked just as appetizing as her.  Dressed only in a silk robe that barely reached her knees, he quickly made his way towards her.  Then enveloping her waist from behind, he leaned over her shoulder to kiss her cheek.