Nod.
She received a wave of affirmative nods, after which she continued her explanation, "When you draw a card, there are two possibilities—either the card affects you directly with a 'truth' or 'dare' already written on it, like: jump in place, what do you love doing the most, or other similar things."
"The other possibility is drawing a card addressed to others, in which case you get to choose who will have to do the truth or dare, and they'll need to answer or perform whatever is written on the card."
She took a short breath. "And finally, when you're the one who has to answer or do a truth or dare, if you succeed, you gain a point. But if you choose to skip it, you won't get any points."
"And it's the first to get to 5 points who wins, but…" her eyes slowly moved from one person to the next, "there's no need to take the game too seriously. If a question or dare is too uncomfortable, no need to force ourselves. Still, try to genuinely play and have fun by attempting the ones you draw before instantly skipping those that feel a bit uncomfortable—but again, no pressure."
She took a deeper breath, clearly exhausted from having talked so long, "Was it clear?"
She received a majority of nods, with Lian'er being the most enthusiastic—she even spoke to show that she really really understood… "Yes Junior Sister, it was totally understandable, I totally understood, don't worry hehe…"
'She clearly didn't comprehend anything!' That was the collective thought that passed through their heads.
"Nevermind you'll see, it sounds harder to understand than it is, as we play you'll easily get it."
Following Lyra's words, the group of five all moved and took a sitting position, quickly enough they were all positioned in a circle around the deck of cards.
At this moment, everybody was watching these small cards with interest, clearly nobody was 'bored' or 'uninteressed' with this game—everybody had a varying degree of curiosity or intrigue toward it, even the previously tired Amelia and Mikael seemed to be paying attention, their interest caught.
And why wouldn't they?
It was after all the first time for everybody in this group to play a kind of Truth or Dare, nevermind a 'Cultivation edition', so of course their attention was caught.
Lyra went first, reaching for the top card with a strange mix of curiosity and anxiety, she flipped it open and read aloud:
"Karmic Backslash: An Inner Demon resurfaces during closed-door cultivation, skip your first round."
She blinked once, then let out a flat, unimpressed sigh. "Seriously?"
"Tough luck, better luck next time," giggled Lian'er, who was amused by her friend's 'misfortune'.
Lyra gave the brown-haired beauty a dry look but didn't otherwisely comment, and then it was the turn of the person to Lyra's right—which was Amelia—who flipped the card open. Instantly, her expression soured before she read it aloud,
"Trial of the Heart: While passing a trial to get a powerful inheritance you need to open your heart and reveal what lay within, what is your greatest fear?"
An hesitant expression appeared on Amelia's beautiful composure before she slowly spoke, "...My greatest fear huh? I would say that it would be to lose the people I care about once again…"
A heavy silence fell on the room, the previous casual atmosphere instantly disappearing under her sadness-draped words. Mikael, to Amelia's right, comfortingly rubbed her back, which brought her back to reality. As she sensed the heavy ambiance, she changed her expression from her previous somewhat melancholic one to a small, radiant smile that seemed to illuminate the room.
"No need to be so gloomy, I am past that, as you know…" her eyes fell on her Dao Sisters and her beloved, also passing over Lian'er—who had a clueless expression, clearly not understanding what it was about, "...and I have a new family with me."
Smiles appeared on the girls and Mikael's visage, with Lian'er awkwardly rubbing the back of her head, "If Junior Sister consider me her family it meant I am a good big sister hehe?" she awkwardly laughed.
Instantly, a hint of amusement appeared in Amelia's usually calm eyes as she mischievously spoke, "Lian'er, I wasn't talking about you."
"Huh?" Her utterly incredulous and clueless expression instantly made the room erupt in laughter, the previously heavy atmosphere brought by Amelia's words disappearing, returning to the previously casual one.
"Well, I guess it's my turn," murmured Mikael as he drew the card atop the deck, his gaze scanning its content—an amused smirk appearing on his lips, "Well look at that… Path of Madness: You obtained a powerful artifact capable of inducing Madness in anyone without a strong enough mind. Can ask a dare of your choice to anyone."
Mikael's emerald eyes landed on the girls around him. "Who should I choose?" he 'pondered' aloud.
"Not me!" Lian'er loudly spoke while waving her hands in front of her and shaking her head.
To which Mikael could only comply with her unvoiced request, and with a sigh he continued, "I see that my adorable Senior Sister is really enthusiastic at this idea~..." Ignoring Lian'er's frantically shaking head, he went on, "In this case, I can only send this Path of Madness to you, and the dare will be… hmm, yeah—dance for 2 minutes and it'll be done."
The previously lively Lian'er seemed to lose some of her energy as she angrily glared at Mikael, "Junior Brother, you are cruel! How could you do this to your adorable and super graceful Senior Sister?" she asked, while cutely tilting her head.
Mikael's answer was a thumbs-up, "2 minutes."
"Cruel Mikael," she murmured to herself before rising from her sitting position, a pout on her visage as she glared at the group—who all looked far too amused for her liking. "So what dance am I supposed to do?"
Mikael shrugged his shoulders, "Whatever you want, as long as it's for 2 minutes and it's a dance."
"What I want huh?" she murmured before stepping back from the group sitting in a circle, making sure she had enough space for her dance. Then, after a small sigh and a final complaint, she began.
She first raised her sleeve and, slowly—clumsily, if one was being honest—started moving her arms in what could generously be called 'graceful' patterns, her feet tracing hesitant steps across the ground. Her movements were tentative, her posture unmistakably revealing the embarrassment that even someone as naturally playful and mischievous as Lian'er couldn't quite suppress in front of her Junior Brother and Junior Sisters.
At first, a faint blush lingered on her visage—subtle yet visible—as her eyes lowered slightly, as if hoping their gazes wouldn't be too focused on her, but as time passed and motion began to ease into her limbs, the weight of that embarrassment quietly diminished, replaced by a slow immersion into the rhythm of her own body.
Her movements gradually picked up speed, and with a soft twirl, her black and silver Taoist robes billowed outward while her silky brown hair followed in a fluid arc, her body shifting from one pose to the next with a growing sense of ease as she glided along the floor, spinning and flowing with increasing suppleness, her earlier stiffness giving way to something softer, looser, alive.
"Lian'er is doing pretty well," murmured Lyra as she watched her friend dance, her voice low, not wishing to disturb the moment.
Hua Lianyu's long hair and trailing sleeves flew behind her with every swirl, catching the light as she moved with rising lightness, her feet brushing the ground as if she no longer felt it beneath her, the sunlight reflecting gently off her form and lending her an almost ethereal grace as she immersed herself deeper into the dance, gradually forgetting the presence of Mikael and the girls entirely.
Swish.
Her movement accelerated as her lithe figure cut through the air, her steps smooth and unbroken, her waist shifting, her hips rolling in rhythm with the rest of her frame, every part of her body flowing together in a quiet, continuous harmony.
Her dance continued like that for a while, fluid, beautiful, almost dreamlike, until finally, Lian'er brought it to a soft end and gave a small, unceremonious bow to the group seated in a circle, and then—
Clap, clap, clap.
A round of enthusiastic applause resounded from Mikael and the girls, and it wasn't just to support her for having done the 'dare', but also because her performance was absolutely… amazing!
"Wow, Lian'er, your performance was just wow!" declared Lyra while giving her an impressed gaze, and from the expressions of Mikael, Amelia, and even Kiara—who was usually relatively indifferent to anything not Mikael—it was clear that they were of the same opinion.
Lian'er rubbed the back of her head, "Hehe it wasn't much…" she mumbled, but then straightened up, her expression the image of a guilty one, "Okay I admit dance is a hobby of mine and something that I do occasionally, how did you know?"
Know?
Mikael and the girls exchanged a confused glance, they didn't 'know' anything, they didn't even speak or do anything really, but Lian'er was there, her expression guilty as she confessed liking dance and even practicing it occasionally, and in the way she worded it, it was almost like she was confessing a crime?
Still, even as they were confused, nobody bothered to question her—it was simply another oddity that was far too common and representative of Lian'er. After this small dance interlude, Lian'er retook her sitting position in the circle, but the difference was that she was now leading with 1 point.
Time quickly flowed as turn after turn passed without much pause, time passed amidst laughter and smiles as embarrassing, amusing, and intriguing 'truth and dare' were raised and subsequently answered—which was amusing to everyone involved.
Eventually, it was Kiara's turn.
She drew the top card of the deck and read it silently, then turned toward Mikael with a glint in her obsessive dark blue eyes. "Trial of the Heart: You force-feed a powerful heavenly and earthly treasure capable of revealing what lies within one's heart to someone. You may ask a truth of your choice to a person of your choice, and they must answer—or lose a point."
Her eyes sparkled as she locked onto Mikael. "So, darling~ I would like to know which is your favorite hour of the day between 8:15, 13:37, and 19:02?"
"What?" escaped Mikael as he gave the blue-haired yandere a weird look. "My favorite hour? Humm, if I had to say, I would say…" He paused, clearly unsure. "I aren't really sure, maybe… maybe…"
"Darling, you need to think it through—you need to give the real answer, not one you just came up with, okay?" she inquired while tilting her head, and he could've sworn her eyes were ominously shining.
"Okay…" Mikael outwardly accepted, but inwardly he was cursing, 'What is this weird question, Kiara? How am I supposed to know my favorite hour? It's just an hour!'
His gaze then landed on Kiara, who seemed to be excitedly waiting for his answer, and he couldn't help but inwardly smile, 'Okay, I'll admit that when she's like that, in her "gentle yandere mode," she's pretty cute.' He shook his head internally, 'Focus, Mikael—you need to find the answer, or else my cute yandere will be sad… so which is my favorite hour?'
He thought about it for a moment before speaking, "I aren't 100% sure of the answer, since your truth is pretty… unique, but I would say it's 8:15—since the day is just beginning, which leaves infinite possibilities for what can be done…" he explained, though his hesitant voice made it clear he wasn't entirely confident in what he was saying.
Not that it affected Kiara, who attentively listened and carefully placed this piece of information into the Darling~ 'folder' in her mind.
After Kiara's cute yandere moment, the game continued, with everyone answering truths and completing dares while steadily accumulating points. At some point, just as the game neared its end—with Amelia now leading at 4 points—Lian'er suddenly leaned slightly toward Mikael and Amelia.
The two had 'sneakily' shifted from their original spots to sit side by side, both with their heads tilted back against the couch in a posture that looked half lazy, half worn out.
Author Note:
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This chapter was both fun and hard to write, it was fun because we were able to see the 'reunion' in a way between Mikael, the girls and also Lian'er while showcasing them playing a Truth or Dare kind of game which is kinda weird in a cultivation context but I find it amusing so there's that.
It was also hard because I needed to capture their personalities and make their interaction vivid and lively so that their reunion can make one smile and I think this chapter and the one earlier does their job well so I am satisfied with the result.
If you have an opinion on how this 'reunion' had gone I would be interested in hearing it because I have the impression that while the chapters I wrote were okay maybe even pretty good bu …
At the same time I have the impression that I kind 'skipped' the reunion in a way and that on that point it could have been made a lot better but I aren't 100% sure so opinions would be appreciated.
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— End of Chapter —