Atropa Belladonna

~~~二~~~

~~~在月光下耕种~~~

As sunlight began to filter in past the thin curtains, the only sound that could be heard in the room was small clacks as three, twelve-sided dice were rolled onto a small hardwood table.

One had the twelve signs of the zodiac, another had the alchemical symbols for various celestial bodies, and the last had the numbers one through twelve engraved into each side of it.

Upon seeing the symbols facing up on each of the dice, Diān Qié let out a sigh and placed the three dice back into her pouch as she thought, 'This is going to be one hell of a mess.'

Just as she stood from her kneeling position at the table, a soft knock came from the door, one that she quickly recognized.

"I'll be out in a few seconds, just go on and head down first," the ravenette called as she picked up her buffalo bone hair stick and stood in front of a mirror.

There was no verbal response, but she could hear quiet thumps against the floor that slowly got father away as she began doing half of her hair up in a ponytail.

Scrutinizing her reflection, the woman clicked her tongue and hoped that the prince wouldn't notice that she wasn't wearing the pendant or at least wouldn't bring it up right away.

When she arrived on the first floor, the first thing she noticed was her companion in white waiting for her by the main entrance of the inn.

"Thank you for your patronage," the innkeeper mused with a wave as the two walked out, "I hope you enjoyed your stay."

"So where are you supposed to meet this envoy?" the female asked, fiddling with the sleeves of her robes as they rode down the streets that were already beginning to fill with people and vendors who wanted to sell their goods.

"Bāgē," the male replied over the morning noise of Dulaman as a black carriage rode past in the opposite direction of their destination.

"The tea house?" the younger questioned, squinting her eyes slightly, "That is one of the least diplomatic places in this town, why would you agree to meet there?"

"It was the compromise decided between Emperor Father and the King of Tashya," Long Zhang bluntly explained, "We have no say in it."

'Compromise my ass,' the assassin thought with a huff as she rode steadily next to her companion, 'This is looking more and more like an attempt on Zhang's life.'

'I swear to whatever gods actually give a shit, if my clan is dragged into some stupid war because of some poor planning in the court then I will burn this empire to the ground myself,' she continued before the pair dismounted infront of the tea house and entered to see there were already some customers.

They were about to take a seat right in front of the stage where a story teller would be seated in less than ten minutes but a voice caused them to halt in their tracks.

"Diān Qié!" called a male voice from the balcony meant to get an aerial view of the stage, "Diān Qié, I told you that I would find you in the morning!"

Tilting her head as she recognized the grinning face of the male that was leaning over the railing, the ravenette asked, "Wūyā? Is that you?"

"Indeed it is, Young Lady, come on!" he replied before beckoning for her to join him on the second floor which earned a questioning glance from the prince.

She only shook her head in response and turned to walk towards the stairs, but before she could even make it two steps she was pulled back by her wrist.

"Your Highness," the woman whispered as not to attract any unwanted attention, "He was someone I gambled with before and he owes me, so he's only calling me up to pay me back."