Chapter 1
A Normal Day in Wu-not
Part 1
The Tree Times
xq pov
I am Xiao Qiao. Just a brief story to say, I pledge my loyalty to the Wu Kingdom. I use fans like my older sister Da Qiao. There are no wars going on for now, so I spend my free time playing around the huge garden outside the castle but inside the premises, if you know what I mean. I play around with my childhood friends Sun Shang Xiang, daughter of the ruler Sun Jian, Gan Ning, an ex-pirate I don't try to know, and Lu Xun, the younger Wu strategist.
Sun Shang Xiang, or Shang Xiang, is my best friend. Ever since I arrived in the grounds, I felt that the brown chin length haired girl would be my best friend soon. Though the charkam wielder is a few years older than I am, I don't care. All that matters is that we are friends.
Oh, there's also Lu Xun, Xunie as I call him at times, is my other good friend. We met a few weeks after I arrived and as I loved doing, I was horsing around. Actually, my best friend and I were making a "territory" by the base of the apple tree. Anyways, I was trying to reach a faraway apple and yep. The basket was released from my grip and the twigs (we collected them too) and apples fell on his head and of course, got angry. He did not let me get off until I pleaded.
And don't forget Gan Ning, or his new nickname, Ning-ning. He's not exactly my best kind of friend. He's just a distant friend, closer to Xunie and Shang Xiang than to me. I said he is an ex-pirate, right? But then again, I think he's too much sometimes, and I guess he liks Shang Xiang and Lord Sun Jian would NOT be pleased…
Anyways, the four of us were hanging around by The Tree. The Tree was where all four of us would play and do stuff. The Tree was the place I met my second best friend, though I spent time there with Shang Xiang at first until he and Ning-ning came along and convinced us to let them use it too, since I was overprotective of it.
Usually I was the one who stayed on The Tree. Though I am youngest throughout Wu, my friends are somewhat pranksters too, in a weird way.
The Tree was not always deserted, so it was rare to be alone. Like today, my friends were there.
"What do you wanna do, Xiao?" Shang Xiang called to me from the ground. Usually, I had the ideas.
"Ask Xunie or Ning-ning." I replied, hanging upside down from a thick branch, seeing the tip of my light brown hair. Oh yeah, I give nicknames too.
""Ning-ning! C'mere!" she was giggling and so was I. Thus, I swung around and climbed higher. 'Ning-ning' was the new nickname I had given him, I invented last week. It's still fun to make him get pissed off.
Alas, Ning-ning stalked up to Shang Xiang, fuming. Xunie was behind him suppressing a smile as he sat down on the grass, back facing the tree.
I giggled to myself quietly and stealthily grabbed his red hat, which looked like a supposed-to-be Wu Gong.
Though he's two or three years older than me, he was good at climbing too. He gave me a frown and started after me. He almost caught me but I sent the Wu Gong like a disk and landed neatly on the side of the roof just above Lord Sun Jian's room window.
"Xiao!" he frowned, but I saw his brown eyes dancing. "That's a third!" then he started to let out a laugh. I burst out too, but I fell of and hit the grass. I doubled over to stop.
Shang Xiang came over and helped me up and let me catch my breath for a few moments.
"What now? The Roof again, huh?" she mockingly scolded me.
That's what we called it, so you get the corny idea anyways.
I looked in the direction of the roof top. The hat was still perched there, as Ning-ning tried to knock the red accessory off while Xunie was pacing around by his side.
Normally the incident wasn't a really big deal (because it reaaaaally isn't) but for once it was. Actually, "big sister" made it a not-so big deal, as her habit that makes everything I do as a big deal. That's because as she planted her flowers she saw an unidentified out of place thing (you know) and saw that Ning was already hurling rocks at it.
"Xiao Qiao!" she burst out at me, her eyes blazing. "How could you do that to Lord Lu Xun!" Da Qiao, the no fun sis, squealer for being playful.
"There isn't anything wrong!"
"Well look at that!" she pointed to the roof, only the two were hurling things at it.
Sun Jian's window opened and a stick was sticking out and poked the hat off.
Da shot a glare at me, her dark eyes flashing that I could easily resist. "Why can't you be more mature?" she shouted coldly, enough to attract attention. "You are SUCH a disgrace!"
I felt a pang of hurt and anger, but not regret. Never. How dare she call her sister a disgrace of Wu? What's with her constant snapping?
"Well, you don't have to shout, big sister!" I retorted, a sting of tears threatening to fall, but I held them back. I never talked this way to her. "But who cares? All you care about is yourself? You don't know what the word 'fun' is and you are just so jealous that I have a best friend, unlike you!"
"All I said was grow up!" she hollered, raising her voice. "I think you get offended too easily that you'd cry. You bawl. Even now, you can't fight away your own tears!"
I was stabbed at those words, but I didn't stop there yet. I must win this, for the sake of humiliating my "mature" sister.
"Who cares what you think!" I spat, holding my tears back, and not minding the rare sarcasm that rang in my voice as I held up my hands in disgust. "Well if you are too mature for me, why don't you mind your own self for becoming older then? You know what sister dear? You're just one of those wimps who loiter around the library for who knows what and oh so scared of fighting. You say I can't fight back tears? Then why can't you come out of your book and fight, unless you're scared of your own tears! Oh wait. You don't cry when you mature!" The words rolled out faster than the words I thought of about her.
Then to my triumph, Da gasped, eyes widening and face scarlet. She recovered quickly, but I caught her off guard. I shot her a smug look, and she glowered at me. But I did not expect her to reach forward and hit my face with her left hand with a sickening slap, then turned away and headed back to the library, I guess. Well duh, she would go to her camp site.
I mocked her, "Is that mature respect? I thought only the immature do that!"
Then I sped to The Tree, climbing to the highest branch, twenty feet above the ground.
I always go there when I wanted to be alone. I slipped upside down and let the held tears flow down my forehead, for I was upside down.
I touched my right cheek, which burned from the slap my sister hurled at me. A tear trickled down. I hugged myself for comfort and let all my tears flow down.
Da wasn't being fair at all. She thinks she's my mom, always overprotective. Sure mom died when we were young, but we grew distant and besides, she shouldn't mind what I always do. It's my life.
"Xiao?"
I longed to go down, but I can't. I wanted to be alone.
"Hey Xiao!" Shang Xiang's voice rang into my ears. But she should think I'm not there. It was always that way.
"Xiaaao!"
I sighed softly. I won't budge, though I longed to go.
There was silence, until I heard that dreaded sound. The leaves rustled and the branches swayed. I dreaded the finding ever since I found this spot. My eyes flew open in alarm as I swung myself upright.
"Hey Xiao…" Shang Xiang was there, her voice trailed. "It will be fine…"
"No." I answered stubbornly, as I started down. My friend looked at me with huge eyes.
"Okay, just to get you down from here." She said as we clambered downwards. I bounded off before she did and I came face to face with Xunie. "Um… Hi." I muttered, a warm feeling creeping in. "I- ohm… I'm s-s" I stammered with difficulty. I never apologized to him or any of the three. "Sorry, Xun." I blurted out, looking at him in the eye as I said it, telling him I'm truly sorry. Then I stepped back in case of an outburst like Da. Instead, he gave a look of confusion. "Why?" he asked me.
I sighed. Didn't he get it? "Your hat." I said flatly. And I saw a playful twinkle in his eyes. To my surprise he gave me a hug (FRIENDLY) "That's okay." He murmured. "It's all just fine and don't be the wee bit formal with 'Xun' 'cause only my friends call me that. I mean excluding our group. Besides, it's just our type of fun. It's not your fault. Really. Lady Da is just… Well…"
"Having an affair!" Shang Xiang piped as she tossed the hat to me and I handed it to Xunie. I peered at her, curious. I mean, Da with an affair?
"What? Who? How did you know?" I demanded. There were tons of ideas flowing into my head. "Why is it a secret? When did they meet? How long has it been? Is it Zhang He? Sima Yi?" I continued as we huddled into a circle.
"It's Ce." Shang Xiang giggled. "It's no wonder they act weird now, like the time Ce was going to the library. He claimed that he was visiting Zhou Yu-yuck! Anyways, I heard them saying something about poppy not knowing anything about a relationship and also mentioned something about marriage. They were saying something about a secret for almost a year already!"
"So maybe that's why she's so sure about maturing, becoming a suitable wife for Ce so Sun Jian will approve of her." I mused.
"Exactly."
"We could-"
"Yeah! Blackmail!" Ning whooped.
"We might not." Xunie disapproved, looking at the sky in thought.
My hopes sank. "Why?" I whined. It was a good plan, really.
"Sun Jian might not approve is a very small chance." He started. "So Da has an advantage to that, and-"
"You stop the strategist talk!" I laughed, playfully swatting him.
"Yeah." My best friend agreed. "Let's just pull pranks on her then." She suggested.
"And loosen her up." Ning added, grinning.
"Put something in her food." Ning suggested.
"No way! Her drink." Shang Xiang said.
"Then why not both?" Xunie said.
"Then why can't it be a mystery date instead?" I piped.
"Okay."
"Fine."
"Sure."
"Then it's the day after tomorrow"
"No way it's the next, next, next day. And the date is Zhang He of Wei."
"We'll all have to go. Keep watch off her and Ning should tip over their boat." I said.
"Not so bad." Xunie said. "So you'll go to Wei."
"Yup." I agreed.
Ning-ning smiled with pleasure, something an ex-pirate rarely did. No, not that pirate with an eye patch. Ning has a lot of tattoos and bells. He also has some head band on his head.
"I'm going with Xiao." My friend piped.
"We'll go tomorrow at dawn." I confirmed, and looked at the sky.
'Now we're even, sister.' I thought with triumph, a thrill within myself. 'You'll learn why you should never mess with Xiao Qiao. You'll be sorry that you ever messed with me. I promise you that.'
So how was it? It's my first fanfic so don't go hard on me!
R&R!
