Morning light filtered through the window gauze, weaving a warm halo across the bed.
The faint glow of the night-luminescent pearl had long since faded.
Yiyi was the first to open her crimson, slit-pupiled eyes.
Her lashes fluttered lightly, her just-awakened gaze still a little hazy, but her nose caught the faint scent of dragon’s breath on Xiamier before anything else.
Warm and familiar—it was the scent that had allowed her to sleep soundly last night.
Yet that warmth didn’t soften her heart; instead, it stirred up a mischievous urge.
She secretly glanced up, watching Xiamier’s lowered lashes, the steady rise and fall of her chest, and the arm draped around her own waist, calculating quietly in her heart: After having her feet kneaded and being “mocked” for not being weaned last night, today she had to be the first to slip out of bed.
She would wait for Xiamier to wake, then pretend she’d been up for ages, basking in her own triumph!
Cautiously, she moved her fingers, gently lifting Xiamier’s arm from her waist.
Her fingertips brushed the other’s warm skin, even feeling the faint rise and fall of Xiamier’s breathing through her arm.
Yiyi paused in fright, and when she saw Xiamier was still asleep, she dared to continue.
Slowly, she began to scoot her small body, inching little by little toward the edge of the bed.
Her short legs quietly stretched downward, her toes nearly touching the carpet at the bedside.
Just then, a faint rustling sounded behind her.
Yiyi’s heart tightened, and before she could react, a silver-white scaled tail suddenly coiled around from behind.
The tip of the tail gently hooked around her waist—not with force, but with a gentle grip impossible to escape, like a vine entwining leaves, pulling her back.
“Mmph!”
Yiyi let out a low cry as her body, just at the edge of the bed, was pulled back into Xiamier’s embrace.
She could feel Xiamier’s tail pressed against her back, the sensation of the scales delicate and warm.
At the same time, Xiamier’s arm circled her waist once again, holding her even tighter.
She turned to glare at Xiamier, only to see that she still had her eyes closed—those golden, slit pupils remained hidden.
Yet, at the corner of Xiamier’s lips, a faint curve appeared, her breathing still steady, as if this was just an unconscious motion.
Yiyi puffed up her cheeks in frustration and tried to pry the tip of the tail from her waist with her little paws, but that tail seemed to have a mind of its own, gently brushing her waist.
It tickled, with a hint of coquettish affection, instantly sapping her strength.
“Drat!”
Yiyi muttered softly, but her cheeks had already turned pink.
She could feel Xiamier’s tail still swaying gently, the tip occasionally brushing her hem as if making sure she hadn’t run off.
She’d planned to sneak away, yet was “caught” by a single tail—and the small anger in her chest was oddly soothed by this gentle force.
She tried again, wanting to push the tail aside, but as soon as she touched the scales, Xiamier’s tail only wound more tightly.
At the same time, Xiamier’s head nuzzled lightly into the crook of her neck, her warm breath brushing Yiyi’s earlobe: “Don’t fuss… Sleep a bit longer.”
The voice was rough, still tinged with drowsiness.
Yiyi puffed out her cheeks, her little paws pressing against Xiamier’s chest, wanting to push her away, but Xiamier’s arm held her close like a warm vine, wrapping tightly.
Even the silver-white tail gripped her waist with renewed strength, the tip still softly brushing her hem, as if coaxing a child.
“I don’t want to, let me go, I wasn’t fussing!” she retorted in a small voice, but the earlier firmness was gone, replaced by the lilt of someone freshly awake.
Xiamier’s breath fell on her earlobe, ticklish, making Yiyi shrink her neck and deepening the flush on her cheeks.
She could feel the fine scales of the tail pressed warmly against her back, even more comforting than a fluffy nest.
But the thought of “getting out of bed first” hadn’t left her, and her little body was still struggling just a bit.
Yet Xiamier seemed not to hear her resistance at all, her head burrowing deeper into the crook of Yiyi’s neck, her voice even rougher: “Stay with me a little longer… just a little…”
With that, her arm tightened again, hugging Yiyi even closer, her breathing growing even and steady, as if she might drift off once more.
Yiyi’s face was pressed tightly to Xiamier’s warm chest, her nose instantly filled with that faint dragon’s breath, and she could clearly feel Xiamier’s steady heartbeat.
Thump—thump—thump.
Like a little drum, it throbbed through the fabric, making the tips of her ears tingle.
“Mmm… let go!” she protested fuzzily, her little paw thumping Xiamier’s waist—though without any real force, it looked more like a display of affection.
Her face pressed against the soft fabric, the warm heat wrapping around her, more comfortable than even last night’s nest.
Still, the thought of “not losing” kept her moving, her body wiggling slightly, trying to break free from the embrace that made her limbs go weak.
“I don’t want to…”
Yet Xiamier seemed not to notice her tiny struggles, tightening her arms even more.
She trapped Yiyi completely in her embrace, even entwining her own silver-white tail tighter, the tip gently rubbing against Yiyi’s back, soothingly.
Her breath fell atop Yiyi’s head, lazy and just-awoken: “Good girl, Yibao, don’t move… Let Mother sleep a little more…” Her voice was hoarse and soft, warmer than the morning sun.
Yiyi’s struggles gradually slowed, her cheek pressed to Xiamier’s chest.
She could feel every rise and fall of Xiamier’s breath, and the steady heartbeat that made her feel safe.
The thought of “getting out of bed and showing off” faded, swept away by the comforting warmth.
Her little paws slowly relaxed—not pounding anymore, but gently grasping the fabric of Xiamier’s clothes, her fingertips touching the warm skin beneath.
“Hmph… just—for a little while!” she muttered softly, her voice muffled against Xiamier’s chest, still stubborn but no longer struggling.
The blush on her cheeks spread from her ear tips down to her chin, even the pink heart at the tip of her own tail quietly unfurled, brushing gently against Xiamier’s tail.
Xiamier seemed to sense her surrender, the curve at her lips deepening, her breath evening out as she drifted.
Morning light poured through the window gauze, gently spilling across them both, silver-white tail and Yiyi’s small tail entwined together.
Within the warm embrace, only the sound of each other’s even breathing remained—quiet and content.
…
When Yiyi next opened her eyes, the sunlight had already reached the edge of the carpet at the foot of the bed.
Xiamier’s breathing fell evenly atop her head, and that silver-white tail still loosely circled her waist.
She wiggled her fingers, thinking of trying to “slip out of bed” again, only to find Xiamier’s arms had tightened at some point, holding her securely in the embrace.
Yiyi puffed up her cheeks and poked Xiamier’s chest with her little paw.
This dragon was clearly keeping her eyes closed, yet she acted as if she had eyes in the back of her head!
Just as she was pondering this, Xiamier’s tail tip gently brushed her waist again, the unique fine-scaled sensation making her squirm from the tickle.
Right then, a low, amused hum came from above her head: “Yiyi, being held by Mother like this, does it feel good?”
Yiyi jerked her head up, meeting Xiamier’s opened golden slit pupils, full of teasing, with an obvious curve at her lips.
Her face flushed scarlet, her little paw gripping Xiamier’s collar as she insisted, “N-not comfortable at all! If you weren’t holding me, I would have left ages ago, hmph💢”
Xiamier looked at Yiyi’s flushed cheeks and heard her words that said one thing but meant another, and couldn’t help but chuckle.
The vibration in her chest passed lightly into Yiyi’s palm.
She gently rubbed Yiyi’s blushing dragon horns with her fingers, her voice tinged with laughter: “Not comfortable? Then who was it just now gripping my clothes and refusing to let go, whose tail tip was rubbing against mine?”
“I-I did that by accident!”
Yiyi retorted at once, turning her little head away but refusing to release Xiamier’s collar from her grasp: “It was your tail that wrapped around me, I wasn’t rubbing you!”
“Oh? Is that so.”
Xiamier deliberately drew out her words, her other hand gently pinching Yiyi’s waist.
Startled, Yiyi shrank further into her arms like a frightened little beast.
Then, Xiamier’s tail tip gently brushed Yiyi’s own tail tip again, warm and scaled: “So now, if I let my tail go, will Yibao get out of bed by herself?”