Kiyomi stood still despite the urge to turn around. Between his brows some suppressed nervousness lingered: Big Pie Chu. This meeting was fundamental to his revenge against the empress, the chancellor and his brother.
'I will not let this enchanteress distract me!'
Having said that, as he was about to resume his steps an invisible force had grappled his body, and his feet, as if string-operated, were manipulated to move in the opposite direction. In spite of him, he felt a strong pull lifting up his knees and stretching out his legs, as if wrestling with an invisible puppeteer but not to avail. Finally his torso was flung round and faced the bench where the young woman was sitting, soon after his feet followed.
Though he was awake, it felt as if his brain still needed to wake up, and the words flying from his mouth were not of his own accord: "Young Miss, did you not promise me a delicious meal?"
Emika's excited heart flipped.
Straightaway, Kiyomi frowned at his own words with an intensity of displeasure clearly visible on his face. He could not, should not, bring her along at the teahouse!
Noticing his unwilling expression, she blew out a long shaky breath and raised gracefully on her feet. She remained still for a moment, steadying her breathing while he stared at her icily. It hurt her that the man standing before her now was no longer the man who once cherished her so deeply.
Upon seeing this small face of hers gradually bursting with sunshine and the tender curve of a smile widening out, Kiyomi blinked away the reluctance from his eyes at once. Her image had drawn out from his mind a random piece of his past. A warm memory. He vaguely remembered the picture of a woman he had painted years ago though the image of the beauty who had posed for him was blurry.
They followed the path which led away from the Pavilion of Enlightenment and to the bustling main street. At that, the crowd threw at her quite a few glances and the nosy tongues were more interested in finding out who this woman was than in badmouthing her any longer.
Walking a few steps behind him, observing the passersby's reactions, Emika thought it was like nothing she had ever experienced in the past for they could never meet up in public, since she was the daughter of the Great General Hishoku. And this prince being seen together would have undeniably ruined her reputation. However, when they happened to wander in crowded places it was always under a disguise to hide his face.
But now Emika finally got to see how he drew everyone's attention without even trying. It was the first time she acknowledged the full power of his aura.
He had the kind of appearance that made young and old women, even men looked twice. The sudden pause in a person's natural expression when they look his way followed by an overcompensating smile or a timid look, pretending they weren't enraptured by the image before them. His presence exuded a certain simplicity and yet grandeur, and a nobility in demeanour despite his seemingly unassuming manner.
He towered with a consciousness of his dignity as an emperor.
But back then, she had remained blind to his brilliance due to his brother Taizong radiating sublime power, being the glorious sun eclipsing the silver moon.
Kiyomi glanced quickly over his shoulder at the stranger making his heart uncomfortable. He then realised that, except for Li Ji, he had never walked the streets accompanied by a woman.
In the past, he rarely left his palace and didn't appear much in public, unless he was summoned by his father Emperor to receive some kind of punishment. Sadly, on the rare occasions he entered the inner palace, he never met with his father but his chief eunuch instead. The high officials passing by would not bestow upon him the required etiquette in their respect towards him. Even the servants begrudged bowing to him and mocked him behind their fake smiles of deference.
Nevertheless, he never retaliated nor showed his unhappiness and simply kept on swallowing the bitterness. Left alone with no power, what could he ever accomplish? Moreover, how could he expect respect, when even his father Emperor seemed to treat him as a good-for-nothing?
And as the years went on there were no more court officials that would mention the young prince's name or his achievements. There were no more talks of the astonishingly bright and talented prince. This harsh world had taught him that the friendships of officials is as thin as grass paper.
As the seasons went on and turned into years, within the palace, no one dared to mention his name in front of Empress Yū Miko and Emperor Akishino. Finally, as there wasn't anyone willing to make relations with this demoted prince- -except for his master, he had no connections within court. And consequently without imperial duties, he was thus labelled among the populace as "a useless prince spending time in idleness."
But this useless prince would soon retaliate. Today was Yi Mao: An auspicious day to remove any undesirable elements in one's life and to make successful plans.
Today was the day closer to his revenge.
Big Pie Chu. He moved faster than he thought, and before long he had left behind the young woman who in that moment narrowly knocked over a man carrying an enormous jar of wine.
"Miss, you should watch carefully where you thread or you might hurt someone!"
She had regained awareness and was very apologetic about the incident.
You-might-hurt-someone. Those words attacked her heart with stabbing pain. The prince had once told her those same words: "Do not listen to unsubstantiated words, do not adopt undeliberated plans. When the sky is filled with grey clouds, rain does not always follow. Em, you are too impulsive and easily misguided. You might hurt someone."
If only she had acted differently she would not have had played a part in the prince's tormented life.
When one sins, reflection and rectification follows. She had now become conscious of her faults. In the past, she never was a level-headed individual who planned her actions and consider the consequences. She was an impetuous girl acting rashly upon her desires and emotions. And if need be she would go out of her way to get what she wanted even if it weren't necessary and could unwittingly be detrimental to others. Owing to this flawed temperament, four years ago, her misjudgment had been detrimental to many lives.
She still suffered a great guilt incinerating her whole body.
The prince abruptly stopped his steps and had turned around to look for her; she, following behind him in a daze, bumped her head directly into his strong chest and hit her nose. She lifted her head and could see her image swallowed up in his long and narrow eyes. He was staring at her with a playful glint.
"Young Miss, why are you all of a sudden acting demure and timid? Where is the audacious woman who was touching me so provocatively?"
She shrugged his words away and lowered her head to hide her blush, returning her attention to her slightly red nose and rubbing the soreness away.
Still feeling shy, even more so now beneath his piercing stare, she didn't dare to look at him. He smiled in amusement and commanded: "Walk by my side and not behind me like a pet dog."
He had grabbed her wrist to pull her by his side. He could only have touched her skin for a couple of seconds, but to Emika, her body electrified under the warmth of his touch; it felt like forever.
Blood rushing. Heart racing. She found herself walking though memories that she'd been trying to forget.
That winter night and his body against hers heating up the wrinkled sheets, his fingers tracing heat along her skin…