Purple Dawn Till Dusk: Dearest through the time

The first thought that crossed her mind was: hidden room!

There must be a secret room inside the library, because it's almost impossible to hide him in plain sight. If she did, then what was the whole point of hiding him!

Senja tried to push every bookshelf hoping it would move. Her third attempt found a small, almost invisible hook attached to the wall beside the bookshelf. She leaned over to reach it.

After a 'click' the bookshelf beside her moved revealing a small passage. Senja felt a mix of excitement and eeriness. **Who knew what would be inside the room?! **

And yet, Senja stilled her heart as she stepped inside.

The moment she stepped in she could feel the damp smell lingering in the air. Even though Senja saw there were three air vents on the side of the wall, they're insufficient in this closed room.

Senja saw the stack of blankets on the other side of the wall. The other Senja had mentioned she had kept several blankets handy in case someone locked her up again inside the library.

As she went in, she felt this place was more like tunnel. However, Senja didn't want to walk further than she had already. She had quite an aversion to closed, narrow places.

**Should I bring Xiao Tianyao here?** Senja was pondering over as she considered the possibility of revealing her true identity to him.

**But, how would he react?!**

........

At night.

Senja was practicing the moves that Utara had taught her, they were in battle mode. However, she was preoccupied and was almost cut by his sword.

"What has happened to you?" Utara snapped at her.

He looked insouciant, but the moment he got serious he could be quite scary.

Utara went over to Senja to check on her. He scanned her hand carefully and sighed in relief when he saw she was unscathed. Miffed, he knocked her head.

"Purple, when you handle your sword, focus….'cause it doesn't have eyes!" Utara reprimanded her.

"Something's bothering me." Senja sheathed her sword.

"I can see that." Utara nodded, "Want to talk?"

Senja walked to the big rock nearby and sat down.

"Tell me about… me in the past." She wanted to know about the former Senja and what had actually happened to her.

Utara furrowed his brows and deliberated on Senja's inquiry. He wasn't sure until what point he could reveal.

"You were not an open person."

"Did my mother die soon after she gave birth to me?"

"Yes, she did."

"Did I get abused by my stepfamily?"

Utara nodded. "I guess so."

He knew pretty well because he had investigated her for four years before she disappeared a year ago, "But, I am not clear to what extent."

"Have I met Xiao Tianyao before?"

"Yes, of course you have met him a couple of times. He was training under Elder Dam when he was young and lived in this mansion for a few years"

Senja looked at Utara who was standing in front of her intently until Utara jerked away by the intensity, "What happened?"

"What happened between me and him back then?"

"What do you mean?"

Senja could feel Utara's uneasiness caused by her question.

"He suspected me about something when the first time I met him, as did you."

Utara sighed. "You must ask him about that."

"Will he answer my question?"

"Senja….." Utara called out her name helplessly, ".....Because you think he won't answer your question, you are asking me? Do you want to cause me trouble?"

Senja grinned, "He is not here, and I will not tell him anything if you tell me."

"Are you trying to bribe me? It won't work." Utara folded his arms with finality.

"I will change the question then." Senja tapped her chin while thinking. "What happened to Xiao Tianyao's late wife?"

She couldn't ask this to Xiao Tianyao directly. Their relationship had yet reach the point where she could ask this question or any questions casually.