That night, as Mia laid on the bed, facing the ceiling, she felt that the moon and the stars looked rather unpleasant. So, she flipped to the side and glanced at the glass wall from where she could see the waves of water hitting the shore in the distance.

But...

Even the sea looked ugly.

She brought her palm near her face and a glow appeared on the center, soon transforming into a mirror.

Did she look just so-so?

If she compared herself to the women with a golden figure that came over to his penthouse, she looked rather different from them.

Although people got their hair dyed, but very few had naturally silver hair like her in this world. Even then, the shade of it won't be this prominent as hers. Her mother's hair was also silver but she looked divine...but what about her?

Her eyes...hazel in color looked rather ordinary compared to her mother's and father's beautiful eyes.

She slowly raised her hand and gently lifted her bangs, revealing the crimson lotus mark on her forehead.

She let out a deep sigh and the mirror in her hand disappeared. She glanced at the stars through the ceiling.

''One sheep...two sheep...three sheep...'' Perhaps this will help her sleep, a thing that she did not do usually after she turned into a fox spirit but she picked it from Yu Mei who slept like a panda most of the time. ''...Ninety-nine fox....hundred foxes...hundred and-'' Her head nodded off to the side as her usual mischievous expressions washed off her face, her face reflected a childlike innocence as she slept.

But a sleep after centuries did not come as peaceful to her...

In the Queen's chamber of Royal palace.

A young Mia stood beside the bed, looking at the woman who was curled up in the sheets.

Face as white as paper, coughing rapidly.

Tears kept flowing down her cheeks, ''Mother, nothing will happen to you. You have been holding on for years. Father will find a way to break the curse this time...''

But there was no response, only her body jerked. Her lips turned purple, ''M-My girl...'' She opened her eyes. Deep purple eyes that once shone like stars were dull now.

Mia sobbed hard, looking at the beautiful woman in front of her who now looked like a dried leaf.

The woman raised her hand and placed it on her shoulder and Mia felt a weird warmth flowing inside her body. Suddenly, she felt something popping up on the side of her face. She touched the thing curiously and it felt furry to touch. Furry ears...like her mother?

The woman laughed. Her gentle laughter sounded like that of soft bells crinkling but amidst this, she let out a series of coughs, spurting blood in her fist.

''Mother,'' Mia's momentary curiosity disappeared as she held the woman's hand, tear welled up in her hazel eyes.

The woman pulled her daughter to the bed with her remaining strength as she stroked her back, ''My Liuliu has never cried before so the...cough...cough...these tears don't look good on you.''

Mia, Xiao Liuyue, cried harder when she heard her mother's words. She hugged her tightly, ''Don't say that...Liuliu will be very obedient. I won't go to brothels to flirt with handsome men and I won't tease pretty men in the court too...'' She sobbed, ''I will always listen to you. I will not be so mischievous...''

The woman laughed as some blood dripped near the corner of her mouth.

Xiao Liuyue panicked.

But the woman kept stroking her back softly as she closed her eyes, ''I..Cough... You inherited a little of my powers when you were born. I gave some more of them to you so that you can live long and fulfill all your wishes with these powers...Cough...'' Her voice was a little calm as she leaned in her daughter's embrace, placing her head on her lap ''My Liuliu will find a man who adores her as her father adores me. My Princess will have children who would be as naughty as her...''

Xiao Liuyue blinked, trying to keep her tears at bay as she extended her trembling palm towards her mother's head. She stroked her head.

''When your..cough...''

''Don't talk,'' She begged.

But the woman just smiled as she opened her eyes, ''When your father comes..cough... tell him that his subjects need him, some ministers are playing underhanded tricks in the royal court, tell him to deal with all this...'' Her voice got lower towards the end, ''Tell him that he is the best thing that happened in my immortal life. And thank him for bringing me you, a reflection of him, in my life....''

And just like that, the ever so beautifully speaking purple eyes fluttered before closing forever.

Mia sat up on the bed with tears streaming down her cheeks. She blankly stared out of the glass wall and brought her palm to her face, wiping her tears.

Her chest felt like it was squeezed in someone's fist. She felt weirdly suffocated.

Her throat ran dry.

She got off the bed and walked downstairs before striding towards the dining table. She poured herself a glass of water before drinking it in a few gulps.

Walking towards the staircase, she sat on a stair with her hands folded on her knees. She brought her knees towards her face and placed her chin on her hand.

It has been a long time since she saw this dream. After being contracted, she stayed in Mei's body as fox spirit most of the time but now that she regained her physical form...

Mia leaned her head on the railings of the stairs, her heart was aching terribly. A feeling that was a rare occurrence to her now after all these years.

Her mother told her to tell those things to her father because she wanted him to be distracted and move on from his death with the burden of work and passage of time.

Mia understood it.

By the time her father was back from the other kingdom with a way to break the curse, her mother was no more.