This is in the Canon universe. That's right, I actually am writing something not AU. Let's see how good I can write this.
Sun Ce smiled, sitting atop his war horse with pride. Finally, Lu Bu had been dealt with and they were able to return home. He to his pregnant wife who awaited him with a giant belly and open arms. How he had wanted to return to her. As soon as he had heard she was with his child that was all he wanted. Zhou Yu had been making snide remarks about it since they began their march home.
Ever since his father had been killed he had taken over Wu and things had gotten hectic. Of course, some of the things he had planned for his legacy weren't going to be picking daisies and singing about peace with Cao Cao. But it left him with even less time with his beloved, and that was hard. He would have been happy to have just settled down with her somewhere peaceful and warm in Wu. But then, if he was able to do that he probably wouldn't have been able to marry her, he thought critically. The wheels of fate, he thought with a frown.
The castle was coming into view, and the grin got bigger as the trumpets roared their welcoming tune. He forced himself to keep the horse in a light walk. He couldn't rush. That would be too damn unseemly. How he itched to just gallop up to her, her and his child. Zhou Yu matched him with a knowing stare, and Sun Ce just laughed. Soon it would be Zhou Yu who would want Xiao Qiao. He couldn't see the younger woman to be letting her older sister out due her by much. But instead of saying that he returned his attention to the top of the stairs where she stood.
Her outfit was ornate with the red cloth vibrant, her hair tied up in twists and knots as the Queen and as a wife. The outfit was gorgeous, and it didn't hide her baby bump. He grinned at that. So happy that she was proud to carry his child. Proud and announcing it to the empire. That made him glow. He dismounted and as quickly as he was allowed made his way to her. The people gave a cheer as he wrapped his arms around her and then gently rubbed his hand over the baby bump. "I've missed so much," he whispered, and though his voice was sad he couldn't stop smiling.
"We will make more memories together. With our child," she said a hand on his over her belly. He nodded as the crowd continued to cheer, Zhou Yu staying a few steps below him to smile up at the touching picture of the two so deeply in love. It was a picture of the future, he thought.
Sun Ce made a point to be around her more often. She said she still had a month or so left of the pregnancy. He would be around for the birth. Of that there was no doubt in anybody's mind. But more so he made a point to watch his wife as she made her way around, hobbling through the halls with that content smile on her face. That or pain. Her feet hurt often, and her lower back at times. But she never officially told him that. That would have caused him to do something stupid to try and fix it for her. For the baby. She smiled more when she thought about that and his doting ways.
He was also so careful around her anymore. Especially in bed. He made sure she was comfortable before even thinking about joining her on the bed. It was becoming a little tiresome. He had always taken care of her, treating her like a precious treasure. But being treated like porcelain was not going to work for a full month. It had been bad enough putting up with Huang Gai and Lu Meng for the months that Sun Ce was away. They were technically worse then Sun Ce, but she was around her husband more then she had been around them. She smiled as she fished out her nightgown, getting ready for sleep. Sun Ce was late, but that wasn't totally unusual.
Her husband was currently being surrounded by the court healer; magician. "I am sorry to bother you so late, my lord. But I did a scrying. Lady Da Qiao is close, and I thought it fitting to tell the tides of the world. What I saw was nothing good. The moon is full and evil is afoot this night Lord Sun Ce. I do not know what has happened that they are able to shift through to us, but nothing good can come from it. Please my lord, this night, be safe," the healer said, giving a chant for protection over him.
"Da-"
"I have already given her protection, my lord. I only pray that my little power is enough to protect you this night," the healer said, gasping for air.
"I am sure you do enough. Go rest yourself old man," Sun Ce said, gently guiding him out of the main hall. The old man nodded, mumbling about something else. As soon as the old man was out of sight, Sun Ce hurried to his wife. Full moons were always ominous, divine almost. But what the healer said truly worried the lord. Neither of them spoke about it, but Sun Ce curled around her more defensively that night.
It was late into the night that Da Qiao stirred, blinking back the feeling of being awake. But it didn't work, and she was forced to sit up and see what woke her. Sun Ce mumbled something, his arm holding her a little tighter. She smiled fondly down at him, cooing to him in his sleep and gently pushing a strand of hair away so she could kiss his temple. He mumbled something else and she straightened again with a slight stretch. The child in her kicked, hard. She stared down at her belly with a frown. While the baby was active and strong, never had it been so violent.
Then she saw it. The giant thing that blocked out the light of the moon. It perched on the window seal, staring into the room with its bright red eyes that burned like hot iron. It scanned the entire room until its gaze fell on her. Blocking the light, she couldn't get a perfect view o f the monster, but the glowing runes over its body gave her an idea. It was wiry, and humanoid in shape. But its legs and arms were longer then humans, and the tusks seemed to have grown too large for its snout. The horns reminded her of a billy goat as they rounded around its pointed ears. Its large leather wings were spread wide, blocking the window fully.
She went to jerk back. She tried to scream. She wanted to wake up Sun Ce. She needed to protect her baby. And yet, eyes locked with the monster, she found she could do none. She thought it laughed outside the window, and she found it hard to breath, let alone move. The monster fell back a little, using a clawed finger to draw in the air, a red light following its finger. She watched, tears streaming down her cheeks. It was drawing a pentagon, she thought. When it finished, she felt something break. The healers spell. Her body began to move of its own accord, silent as it carefully maneuvered around her slumbering husband.
Sun Ce groaned, reaching for her. She knew it would be a moment until he fully woke. A moment too late. She jerked, for her baby, for Sun Ce, she jerked against the evil of the magic. The monster seemed a little shocked, cocking its nasty head to the side, some drool spilling from its mouth. Her tears fell quicker, dripping from her jaw onto her husband. He blinked away the sleep when she stood from the bed and took the few steps to the window. The monster was making her hurry. Was it afraid of Sun Ce?
"Da?" he mumbled, turning over. He stilled then, eyes wide in terror. Her tears fell freely as she opened the window, the monster leaning in and scooping her up. The monster was hot, almost burning against her petal soft skin. She couldn't even turn to look at her love as the monster gave a screech and launched itself from the window seal.
Sun Ce grabbed his dagger that he kept at hand and launched it at the monster. It embedded itself in the monster's hip. It gave a cry, staggering a little in the air before glancing over its shoulder at Sun Ce. The man was already dressed, reaching for his spear and on his way down to the stable for a horse. There was no time to sound an alarm. The monster was wounded. It would need to land, he hoped. His soldiers all stopped to ask him what was happening. He wanted to hit them all. None of them saw it? "Open the gate!" he ordered as he swung himself up onto the back of his horse. Not time for a saddle.
"My lord?"
"Now!" They did so, one running off. Obviously to Huang Gai or Zhou Yu. That was fine. But he didn't have time to wait. Da Qiao had been abducted. He wasn't going to wait. Zhou Yu would kill him over it, but that was just fine. Assuming he made it back (since the only way he was coming back was with Da Qiao in his arms, alive). He raced out, seeing the steam from the monster trailing down. And the smell of brimstone. That too was a good indicator where to start looking. The monster better pray Da Qiao wasn't hurt by the time he got there.
His horse stopped going as he came to the hills, rearing back with a whine. He swung off without a fight and dashed towards the billowing steam. It must have been a cold night. He couldn't tell though, as he raced forward. Da Qiao was laying on a rock, unconscious, but otherwise looked perfectly fine. The monster however stood above her, the dagger that had once been embedded in his hip pointed dangerously to her baby bump. Sun Ce reached down, without stopping his run, and picked up a rock to throw at the devilish fiend.
The monster swatted the rock away turning to him with its burning eyes. "You cannot win," the monster hissed, lowering the dagger to its side. "You are but human. Take pride in that I find you great enough that I will use your child to meet my needs. Be honored, human." Sun Ce never slowed as he charged; spear ready to execute the monster. It stepped back and to the side, avoiding the swipe with a hiss. Only to get a boot in his face.
The monster staggered again, screeching in pain. But Sun Ce never slowed. His pace quickening, adrenaline pumping through every muscle, he continued the attack. The monster was quick, and avoided fatal blows. But neither could it get off the ground. Get respite from the attacks. "What are you?" the monster asked after having the spear nearly take off its arm. "What are you that you fight with such vigor? Against a creature such as me, you are able to land multiple hits. You do not slow. Why are you not questioning yourself, human," the monster said, falling back. Farther away from Da Qiao. Farther away from the monster's prize.
Sun Ce stopped for a single moment, his breathing uneven. The few swipes the fiend had returned were deep. Not fatal, but deep. Sweat trailed down his jaw line, his clothes damp. He had no armor, and if the monster was able to get in a good hit, it was likely to be damaging. From the few responses the monster had given, it was strong. Without answering the questions, Sun Ce charged in again. More violent then before. With no fear, no questions, he charged in. The monster gave a wail as it tried to dodge the unexpected attack. He had honestly thought he was going to answer!
Finally, Sun Ce was able to knock the monster off its lanky feet and held the spear to its neck. He would have followed through without a second thought if not for the fact that the monster turned to smoke and raised above him, floating in an almost physical form it seemed. The smell of brimstone and sulfur almost suffocated Sun Ce as he watched. "What an amazing man," the monster drawled. "To force me to retreat, to this form. Truly, I had chosen a good heir for my plans, but did not plan this out well at all. How sad." Its voice seemed to boom, and yet retain the raspy sound of before.
"Be gone monster," Sun Ce said, swiping with his spear.
"Fret not. Though you won't be, your wife and child are safe. You came too fast, too sudden for me to start." The monster glanced at the slumbering Da Qiao. "Like all things this night, my spell will break at sun up. My kind cannot live to see it rise. We must be gone before it breaks through the horizon. But before I go, answer my question? I have reduced myself to this. I cannot fight back."
"You are lying."
"I am everything. I am nature and evil and hate. I have no reason to lie to a human. Even one as magnificent as you. Tell me how you were able to charge a monstrosity such as I without a doubt in your mind. You would not have stood a chance had you at any point held back."
"For Da," he said, leaning on his spear, suddenly feeling like his veins were burning him. "For Da Qiao, I do not doubt. There is no reason to doubt. I would save her. No question to this. For her and my unborn child, there was no reason to doubt anything. I might not have lived. But that didn't matter. I planned to. I want to. But it doesn't matter. I will not question that."
"You would die for this little woman?" The monster eyed her again.
"In a heartbeat."
"What a strange choice of words," the monster said with a lop-sided a grin. "I wonder how long your body will hold out against my poison. It will fight away it all. And the pain will disappear until your body weakens. Until your body cannot fight anymore. And then the pain will come again. This pain. And it will take you. I wonder how long you will last, human."
"As long as I need to keep her safe."
"No. This death for you will be slow. And the baby will be of no use to me once it is born. It will be a year again before the realms meet at the seams and I am able to cross again. You will be safe. She will be safe," he said, motioning to her. "But I wonder if you will live a year. I bet you will. I bet you'll live to see it all. And that will be the best, watching you suffer for interrupting me. Punishment, if you will."
"The sun is rising," Sun Ce said. As the monster moved to disappear Zhou Yu fell through the foliage just in time to see it float away. Zhou Yu stared after it, quite dumbfounded. Sun Ce however forced his legs to move, his body feeling like hot lead, and scooped up Da Qiao. He then sunk to the ground with her in his lap, hunched over her body protectively. He would have liked to of rushed back to their room and put her in bed. Tell her it was all a bad dream when she asked. But he couldn't. Getting home that fast wouldn't work. She'd wake probably. Not to mention they both probably smelled of sulfur and brimstone.
He hoped it wouldn't bother the pregnancy. The doctor had already said it might be a problem, since Da Qiao was so small. With this added stress, it would be a problem. He felt like crying as the cold fear and panic filled his body. Finally, he let himself feel as scared as he should have been when he saw her taken away. Zhou Yu carefully made his way to kneel in front of him, staring at Sun Ce for a moment before gently moving some hair from Da Qiao's face. "I heard everything," Zou Yu said. "I didn't come in until the end. I didn't want to provoke it more."
"Don't tell Da about it. About the curse or whatever it did to me."
"You believe it."
"It was painful. But it's gone now. No need to worry anymore. Only the actual wounds hurt anymore." Sun Ce looked up from Da Qiao, looking haggard and tired. "Don't tell her. Please."
"I swear," Zhou Yu whispered, giving a long sigh, worry etched into his features.
I hope I got it across that this was on Halloween night. They wouldn't know Halloween and all, so yeah I couldn't say that. So, because it's Halloween when all the devils/imps/monsters come out to play, one decided to play against Wu. And, in DW5 when you watch Sun Ce, every time he falls, his hand goes to the heart. Well, in this, instead of a magician or arrows, the devil/imp/monster caused it years before. But his body is able to fight it for a long time. But when his body weakens, it starts to take over. Yeah. That's how it fits into history. Reviews appreciated. This won't be the only installment of my Halloween fics. I have a few more. Some really on Halloween night, others not.
Happy Halloween!