Da, behind Ce, moved to near the fray. Ce stopped her by grabbing her upper arm. The third rider seemed to be trying to keep Tong away from them. That, or Ce was over thinking things. A group of soldiers had gathered around, but nobody was moving to stop Tong. It showed how far their hate went. Ce glanced down, Da and Xiao glaring up at him, and he craned his neck to look at Yu.
"Tong!" Yu cried out, and Ce moved in to grab the boy. Tong faltered just a hair in his swing, and Ce used the opportunity to twist his arm behind his back.
"That," Ce hissed, "was entirely out of line, Ling Tong." Tong scowled, before stopping his resisting all together. Ce jerked him around and into the crowd of soldiers that had formed to root him on. Lu Meng grabbed him, dragging him away with an expression full of rage. Watching them go for a moment, nodding to Meng, Ce then turned back to the rider. "My sincerest of apologies. He will be suitably punished for the outbreak."
"Do what you will. I ain't worried about the boy. I've been rushed by more fearsome of beasts," the male rider shrugged, his grin cocky. "I am called Gan Ning."
"A pleasure to meet you all, then," Ce said. The two girls quickly made their way to Ning, fussing over him in their language. He shrugged them off, scowling at them. They quieted down, Xiao glaring up at Ning with her hands on her hips. She had the final word, if his scoff wasn't counted.
"It will not happen again," Ce put in, their distress bothering him.
"We expect the malice," Ning said with a shrug, the two girls nodding solemnly.
"It will not happen again," he said again, Yu nodding. The group again fell silent, until Jian walked over to the group. He looked each of the riders over, surprised at Da and Xiao, and then looked over to Ce and Yu.
"It was Tong?"
"Yeah."
"How unfortunate," Jian sighed before turning back to them. "I have rooms made for you three, but I have no idea where there would be room for your… dragons to be comfortable."
"They shall find a place within the outskirts. Fret not about them. They do prefer the open to a barn," Da said.
"Yep. They've probably already got an area in mind." Xiao giggled a bit.
"That is alright? I would have thought you would have wanted them close," Jian said, looking again to the massive beasts.
"They shall be close enough."
"Alright then. If you would give the servants your things, they shall take them to your rooms. I, unfortunately, cannot give you a grand tour of the castle. Ce, my heir and eldest son, however will. I do hope he will suffice." Ce rolled his eyes.
"Whatever," Ning mumbled, pulling off his gloves. He threw them in the bag at his hip, and then turned to his Wyrm. The two girls followed suit, talking quietly in their guttural language. They then pulled off their bags, one each, and walked back to the maids. The Wyrms flapped their wings violently, each giving a screech before taking off into the sky one by one. When the dust settled, the only thing left of the dragons was the ruined cobblestones and shaking trees.
"That's never going to get old," Yu said quietly next to Ce, staring up into the sky with a slack jaw. Ce nodded in agreement.
Jian was quicker to compose of himself, fixing his clothes with a cough. "Again, my apologies. But the maids will escort you to the main hall, and from there Ce shall give you three the grand tour of the Wu Estate," Jian said. He gave a bow before taking his leave. Ce and Yu watched as the trio followed the maids, shortly behind Jian. As the crowd dispersed, the gossip mill already starting, Ce turned to Yu.
"Hey," he caught Yu's attention, "don't you feel… weird around them?"
"This is why I let you do the talking." Yu nodded.
"As much as I wanted to see her… them again, it feels odd."
"After a year of pining, finally getting what you want, I assume would feel weird. A feeling of content, when not felt for so many months, is foreign probably."
"Content…" Ce trailed off. "More like, I feel whole again." Yu didn't respond, simply shrugged and started towards the steps. They had no idea when the Riders would arrive to the hall, and it wouldn't due to make them wait.
The Riders came out with a change of clothes, Xiao already complaining that it was hot. Ning was topless, his vibrant tattoos catching the eyes that his chiseled physique didn't. A sword was strapped to his waist, curved in shape, and a red headband held a red hawks feather in it. Da wore a simple skirt and shirt, her sleeves short. Her shoes had a slight heel on it, but added nothing to her height. Her dark hair was pulled up off her neck. Xiao wore some shorts and a shirt, hair in a high ponytail, and boots. The lack of cape put the two men in awe. While they had known the Riders were lithe, neither had expected the girls that small.
Ce took them through the tour, from the rooms, to the kitchen, to the library and on. He paid special attention to Da, of course. But she stayed reserved, and aloof. Her answers were short, and she avoided eye contact. Still, Ce noticed what she liked. He couldn't say why, but he had a feeling that the library had made her happy, as well as their illustrious garden. It was easier to tell in the garden. She stared more, and a small smile graced her face.
Xiao went on to tell about how in their homes it often snowed most of the year. The girls probably didn't see such greenery often. Yu made an effort to point things out to Xiao, grinning like a fool as she bounced around. Ning had disappeared then. He had said something about a nap and walked off. Ce couldn't say he missed him. Neither of the two, however, missed the scowl Ning had thrown them before walking off down the trail in a lazy stroll. Ce had turned to Yu, rubbing the back of his neck with upturned eyebrows.
"No idea," Yu mumbled back. "It would be much easier if I understood them, as a whole, then trying to figure out one man first."
"Well, we now he ain't going to spill," Ce whispered back. A squeal from Xiao shut them up. They quickly spun around to see Xiao being harassed by a bee, Da trying to slap it away. Their next stop had been the infirmary, where Xiao got a patch for the giant red bump on her wrist where the bee had left its mark. Da didn't leave her side, and Ce then assumed that they didn't have bees up north either.
This one is a bit shorter. And I'm not sure I like it too much. Its hard to keep it simple in one person's point of view. I prefer ominiscent P.O.V. So it'll probably stop just being in Ce's. But I don't want to give away too much of the Riders Culture by putting it in their point of view. And, a quick question, is Gan Ning alright people? He's not really big yet, but so far is he alright? In character or whatever? Help appreciated.