"Honey, are you almost done in there?" Da Qiao yelled from one end of the door.
Sun Qiao listened to her mother bang on the door as she sat in the tub, holding her knees to her breast. Her haired was up in a towel and her bangs hung out as well as bits and pieces of her other hair hung out. She was thinking of last night. Her first real fight with her parents. She never disobeyed and to find out the cause so soon… It was shocking. Why wasn't she informed sooner? It all made her feel so horrible. Sun Qiao had also become confused at what Sun Ce had said, "This is more normal for you than being a princess ever would be!" and the words played back in her head.
Da banged on the door again, "Qiao, dear, answer me! Qiao! Qiao!"
Sun Qiao rose her head from her knees, "Sorry mom, I might be in for a while longer."
"Alright.." Da sighed, "I'm going to Xiao's room to get ready over there then. Try not to stay in too much longer. Your father still needs to get in."
Qiao lowered her head back to her knees at the word "father" and replied, "Alright."
Da looked at the door, before turning and walking to the door that led to the hall. She grabbed the doorknob and looked back at Ce, whom was still in bed. She shook her head at him being lazy, and opened the door. Walking into the hall, she shut the door behind her and continued on ward to her sister's room. She wandered how Ce and her could have been so hard on Qiao so suddenly. It made no since to her, but she couldn't speak against her husband. He is king after all.
As Sun Qiao still sat in the tub, she lowered her legs so that the rest fully in the water. Sun Qiao grabbed a cat plushy (stuffed animal) and pulled it to her chest in a hug. She stroked it and made sure it didn't get wet. After the hug ended, she put it in front of her and twitched it's ear, and made it wave it's paw. Qiao sighed, and pulled the plushy beneath her chin.
"I feel so immature." Qiao said to herself, "I'm 15, and I'm still playing with plushies. I read about girls my age, and they've moved on from those childish things to men, chores, and mother hood. It's not fair. Why can't I have that kind of life?"
For awhile longer, Sun Qiao enjoyed the feeling of the hot water at her skin, and then stood with her plushy in arms. She drained the water as a maid had showed her. She grabbed a towel and set her plushy down while she wrapped her self in it. She put her hair down from the towel, though it was dripping wet, and she steadily brushed away the tangles. She then grabbed her plushy once more and left the bathroom, entering hers and her parents room. Sun Ce lay on his bed, still asleep. Qiao sighed seeing him and continued to the other side of the room where the drawers that filled with clothes were at. She opened up one and pulled out her outfit. Removing the towel and setting the plushy down, she dressed herself. Satisfied, she walked to her father's bed side.
Gently, Sun Qiao shook Sun Ce from his sleep, "Father, mother wants you to get ready now."
"Huh?" Ce mumbled, and turned to his daughter, "Okay, okay, I'll get up."
Qiao smiled, "Alright, I'm going to go read on my bed, alright?"
"Uh huh" Ce said in agreement as he rose from his bed rubbing his eyes.
Sun Qiao grabbed her plushy and a book she had started a few days before. Sitting, she opened the book to the page she had left off at. She set her plushy on her lap to where it also face the book and she began to read, playing the book as a dream in her mind as if she were in it. Ce grabbed his things and went into the bathroom, shutting and locking the door behind him. Qiao watched through the corner of her eye, to make sure that everything was clear. She marked the page again, set the book down, grabbed her plushy, and headed to the balcony door. She gave a sigh, and slowly opened the door. Fresh air swept in and filled Sun Qiao's lungs. For the first time, she was going outside. She had always wanted to know what life was like beyond these walls, and now she was finding out.
On the balcony, she left the door open to listen if anyone would come into the room or if her father had left the bathroom. The sun's warmth felt amazing as it beat on her skin. Sun Qiao held her hand as if to try and grab some of the sun's rays as they beamed down on earth. She lowered her hand and stared at the sky. It made her heart fill with joy that she had never felt before. Slowly, Qiao walked forward, lowering her head to look down upon the ground that lie before the kingdom walls. No one was at the sparing grounds, so she could see. She scoped the land to find that same boy who had the sabers, Lu Xun. She wanted to know his name, and learn more of his fighting skills, but she couldn't even be seen, so she ducked and observed carefully. He was just lying, looking at the skies as the clouds rolled by. Qiao watched carefully.
Time rolled by and Xun rose from his lay. He turned to the direction that Qiao was in and looked up almost directly at her. She moved back, hoping he hadn't seen. He still looked. Scared she hurried back into her room and quietly shut the door behind her. She rushed to her bad and sat there, and began to read from her book. Da had come back into the room as time had passed, and gave Qiao time to read many pages of her book.
"Your father finally awake?" Da asked.
Qiao nodded, "I woke him up so that he could get ready quicker, but he's been in there for a while. I hope he didn't fall asleep."
As Qiao turned another page Da walked over to the bathroom door and knocked on it, "Sun Ce? You awake?"
"Huh?" She heard on the other side of the door for a drowsy Ce, "Yeah, I'm up."
"If you say so." Da said, and walked to hers and Ce's bed. She began to make it so that it didn't look like a wreck.
Qiao smiled as she continued reading. A normal day. She broke a rule and didn't get caught. That's when she realized, she didn't have her plushy. She was scared that someone would see it outside. She hoped no one would find it. Every now and again, she'd look out the window from her bed to see if the plushy was there. She never saw it. She wandered if she had just misplaced it in the house somewhere. With a sigh, she went back to her reading, and tried to forget about it. How could she though. What if some one found it and learned of her being. He parents would disown her in her mind.
Lu Xun was in the sparing grounds, looking to the balcony where Sun Qiao was at. He thought he got a glimpse of a young girl, but figured his mind was playing tricks on her. Then he heard a thud on the ground a few feet ahead. He looked, only to find a cat plushy. It had fallen from the balcony. Perhaps it was Da's from when she was young, or perhaps it was Xiao's. It was something he had never seen before though, and decided to keep it. He picked it up and held it in front of him. It was warm in his hands, and he walked away with it.
"I think that you belong to one of the Qiao's… So I'll just call you 'Qiao' and I'll return you later." Xun Said to himself as he walked into the kingdom.
