Gǔjiàn Hé Gǔqín

Many years ago in the mountains that housed a hidden city there was a boy. The boy sought adventure and excitement. His cousin did not share his sentiments. She sought a life of comfort and safety for all. That day, her failure to tame him awoke fate. She was forced to walk her pre-determined path.

Her safety had gone.

我道歉

Rin stiffened. "What?"

Sasuke turned to her. "I said, 'my pet',"

She glowered at him. "No. You can't. I won't let you,"

He was close to stamping his foot. "Rin, please,"

The act of begging was below him. He had never had to do it before. He had no intention of doing so again. It made his stomach churn. Rin knew that. She knew how highly he was thought of. She had lived in the shadow of his family almost all of her life.

She shook her head.

Sasuke gaped. "But I said please!"

She shook her head again. "No is no. It could be like that thing before. It could be worse! We're going home now. Do you understand?"

He puffed his chest out. His head held high with indignation. He glowered at her challengingly before lunging at the poor creature.

"No!" shrieked a panicked Rin. "Sasuke, stop it! It'll kill us all!"

He exhaled sharply. His arms were star-fished, yet he had missed. The small creature was still curled around itself, dozing lightly. Up close, it looked harmless. Sasuke sat up, slightly surprised. There was nothing remotely threatening about it. It was puffy with fur and had a long, puffier tail, with a little strange head shaped like the top of a calabash bottle. Its mouth was too small to hold teeth like the first creature had.

Sasuke grinned and lifted it up victoriously. "Look, Rin! You worry over nothing!"

His joviality was lost on his cousin. Rin's jaw had almost hit the ground. She stammered and stuttered fiercely. Her legs shook violently. Slowly, she raised an accusing finger.

"Stop!" she cried.

Her warning came too late. The creature awoke to find itself upside down. A shrill squeal escaped and it tried to get away but succeeded only in swinging back and forth. It flicked its tail out, making a loud thunk against his wrist. It didn't work so the creature turned to using its teeth.

Sasuke dropped it. "Ouch!"

The creature ran. Sasuke had to twist around to see it scurrying away. He looked down to his hand and found long tendrils of tail fur caught between his fingers. He grunted in annoyance and shook it off. Then, as fast as he could, he gave immediate chase. He saw nothing but the streak of glowing auburn, heard nothing but its tiny paws.

The creature fled up the path and all but tumbled down to the bottom on the other side. An alarmed squeak rang from it. Sasuke threw himself at it. Dust flew up and turned the air brown for a moment. When the colour returned he found the creature with its back against a wall. It was crouched forward, as though ready to snap.

Then, it curled up.

He grinned. "I got you!"

A huge shadow fell over him. He was suddenly consumed with the fear of never seeing light again. Slowly, hesitantly, he turned. A gargantuan beast with scraggy, matted brown knotted fur towered above him. It rumbled with the power of a restrained roar.

Sasuke, acting on instinct, dived forward. He snatched the auburn creature up in his arms and ducked. The terrible wail of claws on the stone wall struck him to the bone. His ears rang and his sight was blurred. It took a long moment for him to regain his composure.

He scrambled to his feet and charged under its huge arm, whispering to the creature. "Okay… We're… Okay…"

He ran the way he had come: the creature dangling from his hand by its tail. He ran up and then back down the path. As he began the descend he started to wave his right hand frantically.

"Rin!" he cried. "Rin, I'm over here!"

She spun around. A look of happiness flourished across her face. She beamed brightly, almost weeping with relief. The next moment she was on her knees. Sasuke skidded to a halt in front of her. He dropped the creature as quickly as if it was alight. It landed with a loud thud and rolled onto its back.

The beast roared. It prowled forward with huge paws that each had long, curved claws. Its open mouth was lined with razor sharp pointed teeth. Its eyes were deeply set into its skull and deepest black. Its muzzle wrinkled as it bared its teeth.

Sasuke staggered back slowly. "Rin…?"

She gave an almost inaudible response. "… No… Don't want to die… Sasuke, why did you… This…"

He dropped into a crouch. His hands groped along the ground frantically whilst he kept his eyes on the beast. A large, rotund stone brushed against the tips of his fingers. He stretched and drew it close enough to lift it up. It was heavy. He couldn't hold it with one hand. Slowly, he rose back to his feet and began swinging his hands back and forth. The momentum slowly grew until he couldn't afford to wait any longer.

It sailed to the ground without touching the beast in the slightest. Another roar rippled through the air. The beast lumbered forward arrogantly, but stood on the stone. With a great roar it crashed to the ground. Its open mouth crunched against the ground and promptly shut. An anguished groaning sound came from the beast.

Rin grasped his wrist and pushed him. "Go!"

He snatched the creature up again and ran. He waited until he was out of that beast's sight before diving behind a tree. His ragged, panting breathes stung his lungs. Then, just as he came close to catching his breath a wave of nausea struck him. He jerked forward. The ground raced to greet him. His eyes suddenly saw nothing.

Teeth closed about his hand.

He yelped loudly and staggered back. The world returned. The colours were vibrant and glowing. The air was cold and fresh. He stared at nothing for a long moment. Then, his eyes settled onto the creature. It stood and curled round into a semi-circle. It glanced at him disparagingly before turning to the very important task of licking its paws. However, in doing so, the creature soon found that it had lost something.

It squeaked and staggered drunkenly. Loud cry after loud cry streamed from it until it came to a sudden halt. Then it curled its tail around. The tip was rounded and white. The creature's little legs shook violently and it slumped to the ground. The beautiful, pointed tip of vibrant auburn was gone.

Sasuke slowly began to approach. His fingers twitched eagerly. A sly grin was spreading across his face. The small creature paid him no heed. The shock of losing its tail was too great. It whined piteously and turned its large, teary eyes to him. It chirped in utter dismay.

His arms fell back to his sides. The creature's wide eyes were staring into his own. No word passed but a deep understanding began to pass between the two. However, the creature took the opportunity and fled. Its glossy coat was made invisible amongst the sun speckled fallen leaves and dusty pathways. Sasuke sighed in dismay.

In his heart a deep yearning was slowly awakening: the desire to know its beauty and wisdom.

"Ah…" he frowned. "I should find Rin, shouldn't I?"

He turned to leave but a shrill chirp soon caught his attention. He looked up at a small bird fluttering overhead. It descended and he held out his arm. The bird landed and ruffled its feathers elegantly. It chirped again.

His eyes widened. "She is? I thought that mother… No, never mind,"

The bird tapped his arm and chirped a third time.

He shook his head. "Rin's fine. She's just resting. She's close. I'll come back with her, okay?"

It took off, drifting with the breeze at first. Afterwards, it rose steadily higher and higher into the endless blue of the sky. He took his chance to slip back to the sleeping beast.

"Sasuke," Rin stepped into view. "Where are you going? The city is in that direction."

He smiled. "I was worried about you. I thought that you might have gotten into trouble,"

She shook her head. "I'm older than you. My common sense has matured. Actually, I've got common sense. You haven't. Let's go back before you get us into any other kind of trouble,"

The walk back was made in utter silence. The disapproval and aggravation set so firmly on her face kept him on his best behaviour. He concentrated on what he would say to his mother: if she would listen to him. He looked down at his hands and arms. There were clear cuts and scratches. He felt tired and knew that he probably looked tired as well.

As they reached the entrance Rin glanced back. "Sasuke, go first,"

He halted. "What? Rin, I said you'd come back with me! I'll be in trouble!"

She frowned and her eyes were unusually distant as though the world she saw and the world he walked were different. "You'll be in even more trouble if I tell your mother that you almost got both of us killed. I said, go. Go!"

His feet were hesitant at first but her annoyance was clear. She didn't look to have the patience that she normally had. She didn't look to have the sanity that she normally had. He bolted towards the sharp rise of the mountain. Once there his hands groped through thick vines and tangled branches. The entrance revealed itself in time. He charged through the short tunnel.

He sighed, skidding to a stop. The vast city stood mostly on great mounds of earth that jutted up erratically and were accessible only by the wide bridges that criss-crossed. The waterfall thundered in the distance. The plaza stood out amongst the deep wood of the houses. The land it stood on was wide and round. On it stood a circular raised platform with a hastily crafted fence comprised of rope and wooden stumps. The edges were decorated by evenly spaced pillars with a lit torch at the very peak. Depending on where you stood the great statue could be seen with one hand raised, holding a burning blue flame to match the torches.

He grinned, widely before racing back. There were flowers around the hidden entrance. He knelt down and inspected them. They were his. All of them were his. The whole city was his. Rather, the whole city would be his. He had a duty to ensure that every place, be it big or small, was to his exacting standards and that not even a single blade of grass was out of place.

In the city, in its warmth and enclosed by the walls of the mountain, he felt safe and even wondered why he had left in the first place.

"Oh?"

He jolted upright. There was someone approaching. She stopped a few feet away. Her right hand touched her sternum, her left hand swooped down and then up to her side as she leant forward in a bow.

"Sasuke," she spoke, her voice soft as the clouds that were conspicuously missing. "How are you? I haven't seen you all day. Have you eaten well? You look weary."

He grinned. "I went for a walk,"

She smiled. "Is that so? Was it fun?"

He nodded. "Yes, it was. The city is really, really big… There are a lot of places that I need to inspect,"

"Ah," her smile turned sly. "So you weren't allowed out yet? That's a pity. I thought that your mother would have let you after all this time."

He turned and stormed away a short distance. His arms folded firmly.

"It isn't your concern," he said unhappily.

The woman paused. "I'm sorry, I'll think before I speak next time. However, may I ask one question more?"

He stuck his chin out arrogantly. "What is it? I'm very busy, you know. I need to discuss matters with my mother,"

She nodded. "That is very well. Will one of those matters include the whereabouts of Rin?"

He stiffened.

"I trust that you are suitably occupied. I will leave first," she bowed again and departed swiftly.

When she was gone Sasuke chanced a glance at the entrance. Rin was still outside. He frowned and bit his lip. Had the beast awoken? Had it caught her? He wasn't allowed out again. If he told his mother what he had done he would be in a lot of trouble.

Author's Note: Trust me to forget which day I was meant to be uploading this chapter. I've already gotten up to chapter six on White Snake and started chapter three of Little Fairy! I'm hopeless… Ah, but I suppose that it's done now. It's rather good. The next chapter is going to be really, really good! That's when he finds it. That's also when the city *whistles innocently*. If you know what I mean, tee hee!

Thank you for reading.