Feiying crossed her arms, her gaze shifting from Yuanli's sharp, judgmental face back to Xiaochuan. The room had gone quiet, the other omegas pausing their stretches to watch the drama unfold.
"There's no use telling him to dance Feiying. The theme is Cāng Yuè." Yuanli sneered, her blonde hair flowed smoothly down her shoulders, it was so neat and healthy it made Xiaochuan jealous. She gestured dismissively at Xiaochuan's head. "He looks like a stray peach blossom that fell into a lake. He'll ruin the symmetry of the formation. We are supposed to be a team of elegance."
Xiaochuan felt his face heat up, matching the color of his hair. He instinctively reached up to touch a stray pink lock. His pink hair had always been a rare trait that had always made him a target for stares in their poor district.
Most found the beauty in it, and some….they just found it weird.
"The symmetry is fine, Yuanli." Feiying said, her voice dropping an octave in warning, unlike the cold voice she used earlier. "And the Moon Festival isn't just about a color. It's about the spirit of the dance. If he has the skill, the hair doesn't matter."
She turned to Xiaochuan, her eyes firm. "Like I said, show me a reason why I shouldn't throw you out right now. Can you follow a rhythm, Xiaochuan?"
"I...I can dance.' Xiaochuan said, his voice trembling slightly before he steeled himself. He thought of his mother, coughing in their damp shack, and the empty rice jar in the kitchen. He wasn't sure if this plan she came up with was going to work for them, but he had to try.
"I've practiced 'The Lament of the Silver Stream' since I was a child."
Which was true. Out of his mother's sight, at the side of the lake, whenever she'd send him for washing. He'd spend few hours dancing to the beautiful tunes of The Lament of the Silver Stream in his head, few hours swimming naked in the water, and then some minutes actually doing what he went there for and walking back home.
But he hadn't had the chance to dance for the past few weeks. He'd been too busy with work that barely did anything for him. So he prayed to goddess that he wouldn't mess up.
Yuanli let out a sharp, mocking laugh. "That's a soloist's dance. Impossible for someone who hasn't been trained in a formal academy."
"Just let him show us," Feiying countered, gesturing to the center of the wooden floor. "Music please!"
The musicians began a slow, haunting melody on the guqin. The other dancers retreated to the walls, whispering and casting side long glances.
Xiaochuan took a deep breath. He closed his eyes, ignoring the cold floor and the hostile scent of Yuanli's citrus bitter pheromones. He imagined the moon over the river, the only beautiful thing he saw every night from his window.
And then he started moving.
Unlike the fluid and slightly stiff, practiced movements of the other omegas. Xiaochuan's dance was fluid, almost erotic. His pink hair whipped around his face like silk ribbons. When he leaped, he seemed to hang in the air for a second too long, defying gravity, defying the sense of grace that the other omegas thought they had.
As he spun, a faint, sweet scent began to drift from his skin, wild plum blossoms. It was faint, but it filled the room, clashing beautifully with the intense atmosphere.
By the time the music faded, the room was dead silent. Even Yuanli was speechless, her mouth slightly agape.
Feiying walked forward, a triumphant glint in her eyes. "Pink hair or not," she whispered, looking at Xiaochuan's heaving chest, "you're going to be dancing with Cāng Yuè Wû Duì on The Moon's Lament festival. Congratulations Xiaochuan."
————
The air was cooling as the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in vibrant bruised purples and deep oranges. Evening time was always the most beautiful moment in Shuangyue, the beautiful colours in the sky always left a beautiful glow on the kingdom.
Xiaochuan's legs felt like lead from the hours of rhythmic jumping, bending and twisting, but the thought of his mother waiting in their small, dimly lit shack fueled his pace.
Xiaochuan pushed his body to its limit. He was behind the others, having missed weeks of preparation for the Moon Festival. He practiced with a group of six other omegas, though he noticed something strange.
Yuanli was practicing with a separate group of seven omegas, all with blonde or blue hair. They were dancing to the same haunting melody, but while Xiaochuan's group steps were a bit aggressive and sharp, Yuanli's group was practicing movements that were fluid, low to the ground, and very erotic.
Why are we split?
He wondered, catching Yuanli's icy glare across the room. And why are there thirteen of us total? Formations are usually even.
But the exhaustion was too deep to solve the puzzle now.
———
When Feiying finally called an end to the session, the other omegas began bidding each other pretty goodbyes. Xiaochuan was gathering his things when his heart dropped. It was now that he just remembered his mother sent him fruits from the market. She had specifically asked for the seasonal dates and pears for the festival offering.
"Oh no." He whispered to himself in mortification. Zhiqing would bite his head of if he goes back home without the fruits.
He didn't wait to say goodbye. He broke into a sprint, his feet flying over the cobblestones. The sun was already a sliver on the horizon, and the marketplace was beginning to dim.
Iff he didn't make it through the forest before the last light faded, the Night-Stalkers, king Zhou Yiran's elite guards who patrolled the woods, would be out. And he was just a poor omega with a sweet scent and low tolerance for the teasing and hungry eyes of those Alpha guards.
He skidded into the marketplace just as some vendors were beginning to pack their stalls.
"Wait! Please!" he panted, leaning against a wooden pillar. "Two pears and a handful of dried dates, please."
The old vendor grumbled but took Xiaochuan's meager coins, handing over the fruit wrapped in a scrap of burlap. Xiaochuan tucked the bundle against his chest and began the trek toward the outskirts of the city, but halted in his tracks when the voice of the old vendor called out of him.
"You might want to take the other route, young Omega." She said as she continued to pack her goods into a wheel cart.
Xiaochuan's brows furrowed in confusion. "Why?" He asked, wondering what could've gone wrong with the route he usually takes home.
The old woman paused and gave Xiaochuan a boring look. "You don't know about the parade?"
"What parade?" Xiaochuan asked cluelessly.
The woman sighed, as if she was starting to get fed up with the conversation. "King Zhou Yiran and Emperor Xiao Chengyuan are doing a friendly parade through the city. That side of the market you're headed to is crowded and you might not easily find your way back." She finally explained and immediately pushed her cart along, walking away from him.
Xiaochuan stood in silence, staring at the space the woman stood few seconds ago.
The Emperor?
Maybe this was his chance. He thought as he headed in the direction the old woman just told him not to go to.