The Bride of the Serpent is Silent

The vibrant garden filled with cicadas chirping contentedly amidst the shade of the trees that lined the walls of the estate. There was not a breath of air to move the waters or stroke the sweat, which clung to Jing Li's fine brow as she watched two dragonflies hover lazily above the serene lotuses in the pond. Their wings shimmering in the sunlight, there was a vivid kaleidoscope of colors to be discovered just in the tiny creature's movements alone that Jing Li had never appreciated prior to this moment. 

The intensity of these daily observations lessened with each passing day in the Other Realm. Jing Li's eyes had gradually adjusted to the ethereal light found in the estate. No longer overwhelmed by the landscape surrounding her, Jing Li was now able to enjoy the sights and sounds of the property's extensive grounds at her leisure. Continuing to watch the winged insects' dance over the tepid waters as she wilted over the side of a pavilion that extended out into the pond. Jing Li felt the heat of the day more severely in the unforgiving fabric of the light blue hanfu her maids had dressed her in that morning.

None of the lady's maids, able to tolerate the sun at midday, her excursions into the gardens were one of the rare instances where Jing Li had been left alone with her thoughts. Spying her reflection in the water as she hung over the painted wooden railing of the pavilion dejectedly. Jing Li barely recognized the healthy color and blossoming appearance of her cheeks as she peered at herself curiously. The lady she saw now, possessing more of the air of a refined beauty despite her posture, Jing Li admired her elegant attire and beautifully coiffed hair for a moment in the calm surface of the pond.

This obvious change in her appearance, not the only undeniable alteration she had identified within herself. Jing Li could acknowledge now that she was slightly prouder and more confident than before. These modifications to the way that she carried herself and acted in the presence of others, hardly noticed by anyone aside from a vague awareness that existed within her. However, even with her newfound poise, Jing Li was still ill at ease in her new circumstances as the water god's bride. Feeling that each day brought her further from the life she once knew. The comfort and luxuries of her current lifestyle only served to instill a deep-seated guilt within Jing Li, if she were ever to enjoy them. 

Not a moment passing without her thoughts somehow turning to whose she had left behind. Jing Li wondered whether the night she had shared with Shui Long had done anything to relieve her village of its hardships. Touching the water distractedly with her hand as her mind began to meander inevitably towards the feelings of regret that had so often plagued it in recent days. Jing Li was saddened by the memories of how she had left her ailing mother and faithful friend Fu Guo on the morning she was sent to the bottom of Xilian Lake. Ripples, disrupting the mirror-like surface below her as Jing Li dipped the fingertips of her dangling arm into the water. She was too absorbed by these somber reflections to notice as someone approached her from behind. 

Gasping as he caught her by the waist, Jing Li flinched as she was pulled into an embrace. Feeling his tall frame behind her whilst Shui Long hugged her to him. The god prevented his new bride from falling into the waters she had been admiring with the force of his dependable arms, before settling them both down onto the bench beside the railing. Amused that he had startled Jing Li from her glum attitude, Shui Long chuckled as her head flopped back onto his chest. A vague pout, making itself known amidst her features as Jing Li spun around to regard him. There was a mischievous smile that graced Shui Long's lips as their eyes met. Embarrassed that her immediate reaction had been to behave crossly towards him, Jing Li once again averted her eyes from the god as they sat next to each other in the little pavilion. 

Jing Li's cheeks tainted with an intense pink hue by the heat of the day and his sudden proximity to her as Shui Long still held her to him. Feeling his cool breath brush past the heat that had risen so obviously in Jing Li's fair complexion, the water god whispered, "What burdens your mind this day, my bride?" Jing Li's brows, forming a little pleat between them at the challenge that this question presented her. She knew that even if she were able to explain her reasons for wanting to return home, that these feelings might be perceived as a slight toward the god and his hospitality. Appreciating the difficulty of bringing up her homecoming so soon after her arrival, she thought of a moment on how she might go about it. However, at a loss for words as usual and perceiving the task to be too daunting, Jing Li abandoned thoughts of broaching this topic for the time being. 

Eased into his company by the patience and consideration Shui Long had displayed during their recent encounters. The god's charms were not enough to abate the feelings of remorse that Jing Li felt towards the few people that she had loved. Afraid that she might risk forgetting them in this new and dazzling world. Jing Li had begun to gradually regress back into her former attitude of woe, when Shui Long hazarded a guess in regard to the source of her melancholy. Observing how her round topaz eyes contemplated the dragonflies circling the lilies in the pond, he asked, "I suppose you have not yet become accustomed to living away from your family?" 

The question, almost a sigh of disappointment at the thought that Jing Li should desire to leave him, Shui Long leaned back onto a pillar of the pavilion. The god's mood also appearing to be deflated by this revelation, he too shifted his gaze onto the water. His dark irises searching for an answer amidst the coy in the pond, Shui Long eventually added contemplatively, "Would you like to see your village again?" Jing Li's heart, leaping from her chest upon hearing this question, she turned to regard Shui Long. The hope renewed in her eyes as she eagerly accepted this proposal. There was an air of chagrin about the water god's thin lips as he went on to clarify. 

"Understand that I cannot yet release you of your service. This would merely be a glimpse into your village." He explained adamantly. Agreeing to Shui Long's conditions keenly, despite them falling short of her expectations, Jing Li nodded again. However, the god, not the only one who seemed mildly bothered by this development. Their conversation provoked a comment from the attendant waiting irritably in the heat on the walkway outside the pavilion.

"Do you think that really wise, Master?" said Shan Yu, his thin whiskers twitching with his annoyance, "Are you really in any condition to exert yourself for the whims of this selfish human?" The water god, not taking too kindly to this opposition towards his judgment nor his capabilities. He returned a glare to the attendant who had posed the query. 

However, there was to be no further objection issued from the walkway, before both Shui Long and Jing Li were to lean over the surface of the water. The god, still maintaining a protective guard around Jing Li's waist with one arm as they observed their handsome reflections within the pool. Shui Long, then sloped down to dip a few of his digits gracefully into the water. His touch arousing mild ripples from the pond, their images wavered and then blurred as others emerged to take their place. 

The banks of the Xilian, coming into view the longer they stared into the water. Jing Li spied boats bobbing along the peaceful shores near to the village. The men onboard, glistening with sweat as they hoisted nets up from the depths of the lake. There were elated cheers that sprung up from them once they were to find that their traps now contained fish. Their hauls less plentiful than in the past, but more generous than the days before. They were to rejoice in this improvement to their fortunes as they toiled in their labors. The joyous hollers from the vessels, mingling with the laughter of the children that were playing on the embankment.

The youths could be seen running and splashing in the shallows where a few more tenacious lotuses had appeared. The young, overseen by a group of women washing linens beside them. There was to be the occasional prudent warning issued to remind the children of their surroundings, were they to stray too far into the lake during their games. The people's happy countenances bathed in the warm light of the day. Jing Li smiled as she felt their energy conveyed through the narrow scope of the window Shui Long had opened for them. Jing Li's heart delighted to see that blessings had been bestowed on the people of her village. She bent closer to the images as they played across the water in the hope of spotting Fu Guo among the men that occupied the vessels. 

Only allowed to progress so far over the edge of the pavilion before she was stopped by the god's firm grip around her midsection. Jing Li hovered contentedly over the small portal into the realm that she had once inhabited as the sphere of its vision traipsed through the puddles and pails along the village's streets. Eventually able to glimpse her home as it was seen through the lens of a bowl, which had been placed to catch the slow drops that fell from the leaking roof. Jing Li's heart sank and smile soon faded, once she was to observe the somber mood that permeated the house. The bleak interior, a stark contrast to the merriment discovered outside. There was barely a fragment of light in the structure to illuminate the diminished figure that was lying in a darkened corner of the room. 

Sensing her daughter's quiet presence in the crippling solitude of the home they had once inhabited together. There were tears that rolled from the woman's eyes as her weak voice called to her in the gloom. 

"Jing Li? Is that you?" she said, her speech fractured like her soul. Jing Li quickly clamped a hand over her mouth as she witnessed the horror of what had become of her frail mother. Knowing that she was unable to call out across the space that divided them even if she were to be granted the miracle of speech at this time. Jing Li regretted that not even her hand could reach out to comfort her mother as she spoke again. "Please forgive me." she gasped. 

The woman's body left too depleted by her grief to even summon a tremble. All of her capacities seemed to fail her as issued a strained apology to her daughter. "I have not always been a caring mother to you." She said, "Ever since you were born, I was hoping that you might fill the void left by your father. But you should know that you were a loyal daughter and I cherished having you in my life, Jing Li." Her words nearly strangled by her struggle to breathe, there were tears that seeped into the blankets swaddling the woman as her speech descended into labored gulps for air. 

Fan Yi's daughter weeping, whilst she watched her mother slowly slip from existence on the other side of the illusion. There were droplets of moisture that fell from her soft cheeks into the pool as the sound of the woman's feeble wheezing had begun to subside. Sorrow and compassion, compelling Jing Li to reach out to the image of her dying mother. She was moved by her distressed heart to lunge over the side of the pavilion. This desperate and futile act prevented by the very person who had granted her this vision. Shui Long secured Jing Li tightly in his arms. Struggling to be released from him, Shui Long did not relent in his hold on her. 

Pitiless to Jing Li's efforts or desolateness of her tears. The god pulled her away from the railing as the image of her mother gradually disappeared into a series of ripples across the surface of the decorative pond. Staring after the woman's departed reflection as she mourned the loss of her mother for a second time. Jing Li's shoulders shook violently from the anguish that this wound inflicted on her soul. Faulting her actions once more for her suffering, Jing Li knew now that she could never again return to the home she had grown up in or share one last meal with the woman who raised her. 

Her hands, rising up to hide the pitiful emotions of grief and sorrow that appeared on her face. Her sobs were muffled in the fabric of Shui Long's robes as he gently brought her head to rest upon his chest. Hugging her to him as Jing Li's disconsolate cries filled the pavilion, he stroked her back lightly as he spoke the words that had not parted his mouth since the days of his youth. "I'm sorry." he said, "I did not mean for you to suffer like this." The sincere apology, spoken in a tone that could only be heard by them. These words could not be felt as strongly as the tender comfort of Shui Long's embrace in Jing Li's mourning.