The third day was a special kind of hell. The acute, feverish misery had been traded for a constant, low grade hum of desperation that made it impossible to think, to read, to exist. Every nerve ending felt exposed, raw and screaming for a sensation that was just out of reach.
Lan Yue had barely slept. Her mind had finally snagged on a memory a passage from an ancient text. It was a clinical, dry description of demonic biology, a footnote really.
'…for those of Omega or an Alpha designations experiencing heightened cyclical distress, the calming touch of a compatible Omega or Alpha… can often provide a non invasive counterbalance, easing the symptoms through resonant energy transfer…'
The battle within her raged for hours. Pride against need. Doctrine against desperation. Finally, pride lost. Her hand trembled as she pulled the cord to summon a servant.
"I… I need to speak with the Empress," Lan Yue said, the words tasting like ash and surrender. "It is… urgent."
The wait was agony. The door opened and Xue Lian stood there, her expression unreadable. "Gleeb said it was urgent."
Lan Yue could not meet her eyes. "I… I require your assistance."
There was a long pause. "With what?"
She forced the words out. "I read… in the library… that the touch of a compatible Omega can… mitigate the effects of… this."
Another silence. Lan Yue dared to glance up. "You want me to touch you," Xue Lian stated, her voice dangerously soft.
"It is a documented physiological response," Lan Yue said defensively, clinging to the clinical terminology like a lifeline. "A transfer of energy."
Xue Lian took a slow step into the room. "And if I say no?"
"Then I will… endure," Lan Yue's voice broke, betraying her utterly.
A flicker of empathy softened the Empress's imperial mask. "Alright," she said. "A physiological intervention." She held out her hand. "Your hand."
Trembling, Lan Yue placed her hand in Xue Lian's. The Empress's skin was cool, her thumb stroking slow circles over Lan Yue's pulse point. A wave of profound relief washed through her, so powerful her knees buckled. Xue Lian moved her touch to her shoulders, working out the knots of tension.
"Better?" she asked after a long moment.
Lan Yue could only nod. The truce, however, was temporary. Even as she savored the peace, a deeper, more insidious heat began to uncoil in her belly. The surface relief had only exposed the raging core of the fever. A violent shiver wracked her body, and she let out a choked sob.
Xue Lian's expression tightened. "This isn't enough."
"The text…" Lan Yue gasped, her face burning with a shame far hotter than any fever. "It mentioned… for acute cases… there was more."
Xue Lian waited, her gaze intense and unwavering. "What did it say, Lan Yue?"
The last of her pride crumbled to dust. She forced herself to meet the Empress's eyes, her own swimming with tears of utter defeat. "It said the resonant energy transfer… must be applied at the core nexus of the distress." The clinical words felt obscene coming from her lips. "It said the Omega… must touch… there." She took a shuddering breath. "To guide the energy to a point of… of release. Or the fever will not break."
The stark, technical description of such an intimate act hung in the air between them. Xue Lian stared at her for a long moment, the full weight of the plea settling heavily. The guilt on her face for Lan Yue had taken a blow meant for her to be in this state deepened into resolve. This was no longer just her decision; it was a desperate request she had to answer.
"I see," she said, her voice softer than before. "The energy is building without an outlet. It will tear you apart." She made her choice. "We need water. To keep your temperature from becoming dangerous."
Before Lan Yue could lose her nerve, Xue Lian was leading her through a hidden door into a vast, private bathing chamber. She guided her into the soothing water, holding her as another wave of tremors took hold.
"Xue... Xue Lian..." Lan Yue sobbed, her fingers gripping Xue Lian's now wet robes as the fever dream took hold.
"I'm here," Xue Lian said, her voice steady. "Does it still hurt?"
A tearful whimper was her only answer.
Sighing in resignation, Xue Lian knew what she had to do. Fulfilling Lan Yue's desperate request, she gently reached down through the water, sliding her hand along Lan Yue's abdomen before cupping her wet center.
"Tell me if it hurts, okay?"
She gently rubbed the wet and hot gap. Finding the steadily flowing entrance, she coated her fingers in the slickness and carefully eased the tip of one inside. Lan Yue let out a muffled groan, her hips moving almost imperceptibly, seeking friction.
Reassured, Xue Lian began to move, shallowly at first. The heat inside Lan Yue was intense, stickily enveloping her finger. After several dozen gentle thrusts, Lan Yue's breathing grew heavier, her body writhing with increasing urgency.
"Ahh..." A faint wet sound came from their intertwined bodies.
Xue Lian pressed a hand to her back, drawing her close. She withdrew her fingertip to pinch lightly at the slippery clit. A tearful cry immediately escaped Lan Yue's lips as she curled inward, her abdomen clenching as she shuddered, releasing a gush of wetness.
The climax broke the fever's peak, leaving only quiet, exhausted sobs. Lan Yue huddled in Xue Lian's arms, her shoulders shaking.
Xue Lian felt at a loss, carefully wiping away her tears. "Why are you crying?"
"Don't cry," she coaxed gently. "Did I hurt you?"
Lan Yue shook her head. Finally, she lifted her face, her eyes glistening and clear for the first time in days. She looked at the Empress who held her, then at her own body, and a deep flush of shame and confusion colored her cheeks.
"I... I'm sorry," she choked out. "I got you dirty..."
A soft sound, somewhere between a sigh and a quiet laugh, escaped Xue Lian's lips. It was a sound completely devoid of malice or mockery. It was… gentle. She shifted her hold, pulling the spent and trembling woman a little closer against her chest.
"Hush," Xue Lian murmured, her voice a low vibration against Lan Yue's ear. "There is nothing to apologize for." She used the water to gently rinse her own hand before her fingers brushed against Lan Yue's thigh, the motion purely practical, a simple act of cleansing. "It's just… biology," she said, deliberately using the clinical term that had started all of this. "It's proof the fever has broken. That's all."
Lan Yue flinched at the touch but didn't pull away. The kindness was more disorienting than any cruelty could have been. She was too exhausted to fight, too confused to process the sheer intimacy of the moment. She simply hid her burning face in the crook of Xue Lian's neck, her quiet sobs subsiding into shuddering breaths.
Xue Lian held her for another long moment, letting the stillness settle. Internally, her 21st century mind was screaming at the absurdity of it all, but the pragmatic survivor and the woman who was falling hopelessly in love pushed it all down. All that mattered was the person in her arms.
"Come on," Xue Lian said softly, her tone shifting from tender to practical. "Let's get you out of the water. You need to rest properly."
With a strength that belied her slender frame, she lifted Lan Yue from the pool, wrapping her in a thick, soft robe that was waiting nearby. She carried her back into the bedchamber and gently laid her down on the enormous bed, pulling the silken sheets up to her chin. Lan Yue was pliant, her body too weak and her mind too overwhelmed to resist. Her eyes, heavy lidded, watched Xue Lian's every move with a dazed, unreadable expression.
Xue Lian stood by the bed for a moment, pushing a damp strand of silver white hair from Lan Yue's forehead. "The fever is gone," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Sleep now. You're safe."
With that, she turned and left the room, leaving Lan Yue alone in the silent, opulent chamber, her body finally at peace but her soul in absolute turmoil.