He'd been nervous about requesting an audience with the empress by himself, but, thanks to the little bird still atop his shoulder, the guards waved him through. He stopped before a maid at the door to the pavilion and nodded his head slightly to silently tell her that he wished for access. She bowed and hurried inside, returning a few moments later to hold the door open.

"Her highness will see you," she said quietly, earning another nod, this time as thanks, before Zen stepped inside the warm room.

The scent of cinnamon calmed his nerves as he was guided by a second servant into a side chamber. The empress had changed out of her formal robes and was wearing a much simpler, yet more comfortable-looking one. It was a pale pink with little cardinals dotted on the bottom.

"Oh, what a treat. Hello there, young one. To what do I owe the pleasure of a second visit today?" she asked as she set aside the book she had been reading with a gentle smile.

Zen returned her smile with his own as he walked forward and took out the little box, then offered it to her with a slight nod.

"For me?" the woman asked as she leaned forward and took the item with an intrigued look in her eyes.

She opened it slowly, then lifted the box to her nose.

"Oh my, what a divine scent. Did you and your master pick this out for me?" she asked, her eyes alight with happiness that made Zen proud.

He quickly nodded, allowing his smile to widen a little.

"I absolutely love it. Please, sit here," she said excitedly as she patted the arm of a chair beside her.

Zen hesitated for only a moment before taking the offered seat, then turning to look at the empress.

"What a sweet lad you are. Please, tell me about yourself," she said as she reached forward, offering her palm so that he could write.

He reached forward nervously, but as he began to write, he relaxed more and more. He'd never had anything close to a mother figure, so it was quite enthralling talking with her.

They spoke of all sorts of things, and when the woman started to delve into her own upbringing, Zen listened carefully, enraptured by the story of another's life. He was so engrossed in said story, that he hadn't heard the front door open, nor the sound of footsteps until someone cleared their throat, drawing their attention.

Oh... no.

Prince Yuen stood in the doorway to the room, his robes clearly heavy with frigid water.

"Oh my!" the empress said as she leaped from her chair to run over to her son, gripping his wet shoulders with worry.

"What on Earth happened to you, my Huang?"

The prince looked past his mother to lock eyes with Zen, but quickly averted them back to his worried parent as he gently lifted one hand to pat her back.

"I am fine, mother. I was careless while fooling around by the dragon fountain," he said, surprising Zen.

He's not going to tell her that I had done it?

"Little one?"

Blinking, Zen realized that the empress was now addressing him, and quickly stood.

"Do be a sweetheart and help my poor son, please?" she asked sweetly.

Oh.

Swallowing, Zen nodded and walked forward. As soon as he was within reach prince Yuen gently but firmly grabbed his wrist with frigid fingers, then smiled at his mother and pulled him into an opposite hall. As soon as they stepped into a darkened room at the end of it Zen plastered himself against the wall and narrowed his eyes on the prince as he released him and stalked across the room to light several of the candles there.

Once he had finished, he turned back around to face Zen with a knowing smirk on his face. When he held his arms out to either side, Zen felt his heart shiver.

"You know how to do this, I am sure," the prince said, his words describing his need to be undressed.

I will never do such a thing for anyone but my master! Zen hissed angrily through his thoughts, refusing to move from where he was pressed against the wall beside the door.

Prince Yuen blew out a breath on a laugh and walked over as he undid the soaking wet belt at his waist.

"You are the most disobedient curse I have ever had the displeasure of creating," he said as he reached up and wrapped his belt around Zen's neck before cinching it at the front and yanking him forward by it.

Creating?

Releasing the belt with a roll of his eyes, since he clearly hadn't gotten the response he'd been looking for, prince Yuen turned and shrugged off his robe, letting it drop to the floor as he picked up a length of silk to tie his hair up.

Without thinking, Zen quickly shrugged the belt off, then allowed his feet to follow the other man, and when he moved to pull his hair back, he took the fabric, making the prince glance over his shoulder at him.

Zen fought to not look away as he carefully tied up the man's hair in order for it to dry without wetting the clothing he intended to change into. He had so many questions he wanted to ask after the prince had spoken, but he knew that he wouldn't be getting answers so quickly after having thrown him into the water earlier.

Once he was done, he stepped away, still adamant about only serving his master.

"Is the creator not the master?" prince Yuen questioned absentmindedly as he pealed away his soaked shirt from his skin and tossed it to where his robe lay on the floor.

Zen took that time to truly look at the man. His skin was pale, nearly white from the cold of the water and temperature outside. His hair, while tied up, still had several pieces that hung in tendrils brushing his shoulders and the left side of his face as he leaned over to remove his pants.

Once done, the prince wiped off his damp skin, then retrieved a pair of clean pants from a dresser nearby and tugged them on. He then pulled on a black robe while facing away and fastened it with a new, dry belt.

When he was completely finished, he grabbed his sword to tie at his waist and turned back around. The silence between them after that point was unnerving, but Zen couldn't just walk away.

"Answers will do you no good," the prince said as he brushed past him and opened the door. "Come. Let's not keep mother waiting."

Zen hesitated, but then turned and hurried to blow out the candles, then returned to the prince's side. When they stepped back out into the main room, he could see the empress rise from her seat in the adjacent one.

She met them at the doorway and took her son's hands in her own.

"You look much better," she said with a tired smile, then looked to Zen.

"Thank you for tending to him, sweetheart. I know he is not your master, and that he has his darker side, but he will always be my light," she said, her love for her son clear in her words.

Reaching over with one hand, she took Zen's and quickly guided both of them to the table they had sat at previously in the day. There were two fresh dishes of food in the spots they took.

"I had asked the kitchen to whip up a little from the leftover ingredients for you two," she said cheerfully, but instead of sitting at the head of the table like she had before, she leaned over and pressed a kiss to the top of the prince's head, then to Zen's before stepping back with a smile.

"I am going to retire for the evening, but please do not rush. Eat as much as you wish, and thank you once again for your gift, Zen. Pleas be sure to pass my gratitude on to your master."

Zen nodded, truly glad that she had enjoyed the gift they'd bought.

Once she took her leave, Zen looked down at his plate. It wasn't nearly as full as the other prince's, but he still couldn't find it in himself to eat.

"Do not bother with it," prince Yuen said as he reached over and took Zen's plate, adding the smaller portion to his own before returning it to sit before him, empty.

"You have eaten far more than necessary recently," he said before taking a bite of the beef, rice, and vegetable dish.

I do not feel well when I eat too much, but besides that, I never notice any other ill effects.

The prince took his time chewing, then swallowed before pointing his chopsticks toward Zen's belt.

"You have already drained my seal, even though I had just refilled it recently," he said, ignoring Zen's previous thought.

Zen blinked down at the item, undoing it from his belt after a moment and holding it out to the man. He definitely needed its energy refilled, but when the other prince just raised an eyebrow at him, Zen frowned.

Prince Yuen swallowed another bite of food before licking his lips and taking the seal by its length of fabric with his chopsticks.

"I gave you this to protect your master, yet it seems that every time you get the chance, you use it against me, instead. Now tell me, little guard, why should I continue to exhaust myself for such a cause?"

Zen wasn't sure what to say.

"On top of giving you large amounts of my own spiritual energy, I'm also keeping a barrier around your curse so that my father can't use it against you."

Feeling his palms begin to sweat, Zen looked down at his hands in his lap.

I apologize. I have been abusing your good will.

He well and truly had... and he suddenly felt terrible for it. If what the man said was true, about creating him, then... Looking back up, he met prince Yuen's tired eyes.

Why do you hate me so much, if you are the one who created me?

That had the prince giving a light huff as he let the seal drop back down to Zen's lap and reached over to grab a lock of his hair with his chopsticks, instead.

"Would you not hate an abomination you made by mistake, that tore out a piece of your soul so that it may somehow live?"

Zen twisted his hands in his lap and he found his gaze lowering to them for a second time.

I...

He was at a loss. Even after so many years, he'd always wanted answers. For both himself, and his master, but now he wished that he had never heard such words.

Feeling a tug on his hair from the prince's chopsticks, Zen slowly looked up again. The fight that had previously been in him during their many other meetings, suddenly gone.

"Pardon me, your highness, but there's a young man requesting entry at the door. Prince Qi..." the maid said as she stopped by the entryway and bowed.

Shaking his head, prince Yuen stood from his seat and followed the maid to the door. Zen, of course, jumped up and followed, running ahead so that he could wrap his master in a hug the moment the door opened.

Qi seemed surprised, but he didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around him in return and hold him close.

"Your highness," prince Yuen greeted as he stepped outside. "I was just about to walk your little guard home."

Zen felt like he should be angry with the man's joke, but he couldn't find any upset within himself. Instead, he quickly wrote on his master's chest.

"Let's go back, please."

He could feel his master's body tense, but then relax as he nodded and reached up to gently rub at his hair for a moment.

"Alright. Let's go back," he said as he released Zen, then took his hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

He was just turning with him to start walking when his master paused and looked to the side where the other prince had moved to begin descending the stairs.

"Your highness?"

Prince Yuen stopped and looked over with a curious expression.

"Did Zen tie up your hair?"

Prince Yuen chuckled and brushed aside a few lengths of his raven black hair that had fallen into his eyes, and tucked them behind his ear.

"He did. He also pushed me into a fountain right before we were about to share a kiss."

Without further explanation prince Yuen smirked, bowed slightly, then dismissed himself and walked away.