One Tail at a Time

Learning to Speak

Skipping past several pages of lessons with my brothers, more failed realms visits and the odd appearance of men I never knew had come to visit him, I eventually reach yet one more event on this mountain I had completely forgotten about. And I am about to lose myself to that moment, when Mo Yuan suddenly walks in without warning.

"Qian Qian....?" he says as the manuscript is quickly dragged behind my back and making me look super guilty which I cannot hide, because he literally sneaked up on me.

"Mo Yuan.... what are you doing here? I thought you went to visit Lord Donghua Di Jun." I say sounding even guiltier than I look.

Looking at me inquisitively, he immediately closes the gap with his hand out which instantly has me taking a step back. "What have you got behind your back?" he asks with a small curious smile.

Instantly the urge to lie hits. Only the trust in his eyes along with the concern, has me dragging the manuscript back to the front for him to see. "I found them when I was cleaning out your study. I just wanted to read them." I tell him with a heavy dose of guilt in my tone as I lift the book up towards him.

I'm not sure what his reaction would be, but I assumed he would at least look all stern and Shifu like for taking his possessions and reading them without permission, only the soft chuckle and sparkling eyes immediately has me cringing.

"My dear, there is no need to hide them. Why do you think I allowed you to clean out the cupboards?" he asks lightly tapping my nose which only increases the embarrassment Im feeling for having hidden them in the first place, though I am wondering what he means by that.

"You don't mind me reading them?" I ask for verification.

"Of course not. Much of your history is in those books and a time when you were not old enough to understand much of what was going on around you. Of course, they are all my thoughts and should be taken as such, but they are as accurate a summary as I saw things. And that means, you yourself will no doubt fill in the blanks or make sense of things that I could not at the time." he says drawing me into his arms for a cuddle which I becoming more difficult because my belly is sticking out a mile.

"Im sorry... I shouldn't have hidden them from you." I say feeling super relieved that everything is out in the open now and I can read them without hiding. Actually, I really should have known better. Mo Yuan is not the kind of man to anger over such things, so I should have just said something from the beginning.

"There's no need to be. Actually, I came to see if you will be alright for a few hours. I do have to see Di Jun, but wanted to check on you first." he says which now has me wondering what is so important that he has to be gone for a few hours and as if reading my thoughts, he lightly shakes his head against the top of my own,

"It's nothing to concern yourself about my dear, just a few laws that need my attention." he says squeezing me a little tighter before moving back to lightly brush my hair from my face.

"Alright, but please don't be too long Mo Yuan, I wanted to talk to you about Fu Yu. He wants to make Kunlun Mountain his permanent home." I remind him having spoken to him earlier about my sprites request which means a new chamber of his very own and closer to the men of which he is one now.

"We'll discuss it when I return, in the meantime, do not over exert yourself with the manuscripts, you also need to sleep." he says softly kissing the middle of my forehead.

Our parting is being drawn out much longer than it normally would, because it is obvious he is not wanting to leave me being so close to delivery and especially with the pains that are still coming and going, but eventually he leaves me to sit among the manuscripts which I can now read without the need to hide. And no sooner am I settled on the cushions, then I am once again losing myself to the past.