"Have you ever considered leaving the gypsy clan?"
Lianghu looked up at Bai Jian as they walked along a garden path quietly. They were on one of their usual walks before the ball; Bai Jian seemed to be a bit tense about it. It had become a daily routine for the two of them to wander along a path around the palace, Bai Jian claimed it was good to get fresh air.
"…I have on occasion, but once a gypsy is a member of the clan, they are members for life. I could never abandon my people or my father, they are my life."
The tiger cleared his throat, "I see…if, you know, for some reason you ever wanted to change your mind," he rubbed his neck awkwardly, "you're always welcomed here, Lianghu."
She stopped in her tracks, looking at the young leader beside her. How had he gone from throwing her into a murky pit to offering her a place to stay? She had noticed that he had begun to treat her differently; his language was softer and more gentle when he spoke with her, and he went out of his way to make time for their daily walks. Lianghu had noticed that her attitude towards him had slowly begun to change too. She enjoyed and even looked forward to walking with him and talking about life, he seemed truly interested in how a gypsy lives. How had they gone from sworn enemies to close friends?
"Bai Jian…are you feeling well?"
His eyes widened, a slight blush coming to his face. "Of course I am."
"Oh…well, thank you for the offer. I'll definitely keep that in mind."
"The reason why I'm saying that is because your father has made contact with us…He is moving the gypsy people well beyond our borders, and plans on retrieving you as soon as he can."
Lianghu's heart sank at those words, for she knew what that meant.
"I-I see…thank you."
He nodded as the two began to make their way back to the palace. They could already see people walking through the entrance and filing into the main corridor.
Li Ai hummed as she finished dressing and looked at herself in the mirror. Her graceful features and markings had been groomed to perfection for tonight. The princess loved balls, it was the only time Bai Jian allowed her to interact with other royals of society. He claimed they were too uppity, but Li Ai found them amusing. They were fun to discuss politics and economics with, for she rarely had the chance to carry on a real conversation with the inhabitants of the palace.
A soft knock at the door interrupted her thoughts.
"Come in."
Da slowly opened the door and stepped in, "Are you ready?"
Li Ai turned around to face him, making his heart stop for a split second. She looked….beautiful. Her gown was a deep wine red velvet material that flowed gently over her, bring out her golden eyes.
"You look…stunning."
She chuckled, "Thank you Da, you can close your mouth now. Let's get going before it ends."
Li Ai walked out the door and into the hall, leaving Da alone in the room. He still couldn't get over how amazing she looked. Eventually, he came to his senses and quickly followed her out, shutting the door behind him.
Lianghu watched from her window as people filed into the main hall. She sighed dreamily and rested her chin in her hand as royals from all around China stepped out of their carriages and walked up the stairs leading into the palace. It seemed almost like a fairytale; one that she knew she could only be a part of tonight. She was a poor gypsy girl, and these were the elite class of China. They would never accept her for who she truly was.
Lianghu slipped on her shoes and looked at herself in the mirror, her hands trembling slightly as she adjusted her necklace. The dress Li Ai had picked out was made from a deep blue satin material, fitting nicely up top and gently splaying out from her hips. Even though it was beautiful, the gypsy felt out of place in the dress. She was used to running around the countryside barefoot and feeling the wind whip through her fur. She was used to dancing around the fireside at night, letting the stars be her nightlight. Dressing up and attending a party strictly for royals wasn't her. She needed to get out of here, if someone found out who she truly was, she would be killed. She felt the world beneath her begin to spin as her breathing rate picked up. They would see right through her disguise and cut her head clean off. She needed to leave, and now! If anyone saw-
"Lianghu? Are you coming?"
The girl turned around to find Li Ai and Da standing at the door, watching her curiously.
She nervously smiled, "Oh um y-yes, but you two can go on ahead without me. I still need to uh…finish getting ready."
Li Ai raised an eyebrow, scanning the girl over. "Well, if you say so…Come on down when you're ready, I'll introduce you to some people."
Lianghu nodded as the princess and Da left the room. She sighed in relief and sat down on the bed. The gypsy girl had avoided disaster, for now.
Bai Jian held his chin in his hand, sitting on his throne as dozens of women crowded around him, asking how things were going at the palace and if he had killed that "dreadful" leopard king.
He tapped his fingers on the armrest, clearly bored with all of it. Just a couple more minutes and I'll leave, he thought. Li Ai was talking and mingling with everyone as usual, her faithful guard Da never leaving her side. Bai Jian smirked at them; if only his sister knew how crazy Da was about her, and if only Da knew how crazy she was about him. They pretended to hate each other, but Bai Jian saw straight through their disguise.
"How is the gypsy girl?"
The question interrupted Bai Jian's thoughts.
"She's uh…fine, I suppose."
Another girl smirked, "I heard that she runs around barefoot and even has names for stars."
Bai Jian rolled his eyes in annoyance. "They're called constellations," He stood up, "If you excuse me, I have more important things to do than just sit around and gossip like school girls."
The group of girls stared in shock as the leader walked through them and out of the ballroom.
Bai Jian sighed in relief, grateful to get away from the talkative girls. He never really liked conversing with strangers, especially those of the opposite gender.
He made his way down the hall, his mind set on going to his office and scanning his map just like the dozens times before. He would call for-
THUD!
Bai Jian rammed into and tumbled down with a figure much smaller than his own. He sat up, rubbing his head.
"I'm sorry, are you o-"
He recognized those bright blue eyes. She was wearing a beautiful blue satin gown, the color bringing out her aqua eyes.
"…Lianghu?"
She quickly scurried to her feet, the words spilling out before she could think. "I-I'm sorry, Li Ai said it would be okay for me to come and that you wouldn't mind and I'm really am truly sorry and I'll make-"
Bai Jian held up his paw as he stood, "Lianghu, it's fine. You deserve to have a little fun after being stuck here for so long."
She blinked, "You…don't mind?"
"To be honest, as long as I'm away from those stupid girls, you can do whatever you want."
Lianghu smiled lightly, "Thank you, Bai Jian…"
"But, there is something is something I'd like for you to do."
She raised an eyebrow, "What is it?"
"And that one is called Orion, the Hunter."
Bai Jian looked up, squinting his eyes at the stars. "I don't see it."
Lianghu giggled, "Just keep looking, you'll find it."
They had gone out onto the front balcony of the palace, sitting on a bench as Lianghu pointed out different formations of stars. It was peaceful and quite; the hustle and bustle of the party was out of sight and out of mind.
"It's literally just a bunch of random stars."
"A bunch of stars that form something."
"I guess so."
Lianghu looked at him, seeing how his handsome face was buried deep in thought as he tried to make out the constellations.
She smiled, "You don't use your imagination much, do you?"
He shrugged, "I have no need for it."
"I see…" She fell quiet, looking back up at the sky.
Bai Jian looked at the girl beside him. She was no longer a prisoner in his eyes…instead, she was someone that Bai Jian wanted to have around, always. He wanted to protect her and keep Lianghu safe, something that he never would have thought four months ago. He couldn't let her slip through his fingers without him at least trying to make her stay.
"Lianghu…"He said softly.
She looked back down at him, her blue eyes meeting his deep green ones.
"…yes?"
"Stay here, at the palace…with me."
She bit her lip, "Bai Jian, I…I can't. My father needs me, and I can't abandon him."
He swallowed, searching her eyes. The tiger saw remorse, and fear within them.
"Just…think about it."
By this time the two tigers didn't realize how close they were to each other. Bai Jian could smell the scent of Li Ai's borrowed perfume on her, but he didn't mind. She was beautiful without makeup painted onto her face or jewels dripping off of her neck.
Lianghu looked at him, the smile that was on his face just a few moments ago had disappeared. He was serious now, asking her to stay with him. She wanted so desperately to say yes, but she knew that she had let herself fall far too hard for him already; she couldn't comprise everything that had been planned out so carefully…But here he was, ready to take her away from the nightmare she was in…She could say yes, and have the whole ordeal be over with. Surely her father would understand, wouldn't he?
"Bai Jian…I-"
His attention was quickly diverted as two soldiers burst through the door, dragging a white fox behind them. Da quickly followed after them, a stern look on his face.
Bai Jian quickly stood, "What is the meaning of this?"
One of the soldiers stood at attention, "Sir, this gypsy was caught stealing rice from the palace's storehouse. When we arrested him, we noticed that this was his third offense just this week."
The tiger's eyes darkened as he looked over the gypsy. The fox's white fur was matted and grimy; the creature smelled like he hadn't bathed in a month.
"P-please sir," the gypsy begged, "I-I was separated from the others, and I've been trying to just survive on my own. I haven't eaten in three days! I was starving, surely you can-"
Bai Jian interrupted the fox, "Da…give me your sword."
The captain of the guard hesitated before slowly drawing out his weapon and handing it to his leader. Lianghu's eyes widened as she realized what he was going to do, she couldn't let this happen!
Li Ai stood at the door's entrance to the balcony, watching what was happening. She had seen Da slip away from the party after a soldier talked to him and she quickly followed after.
The Tiger Clan's leader took a few steps forward as his soldiers pinned down their prisoner. The fox didn't struggle, it seemed that he almost welcomed death.
"Bai Jian, don't," Li Ai pleaded, her eyes etched with fear.
Lianghu had frozen in her place, she couldn't move because of the terror that gripped her.
"Gypsy, as punishment for your crimes against the people of the Tiger Clan, you are hereby sentenced to death."
Bai Jian raised his sword, his eyes dark with revenge. In that white fox, he saw the same gypsy who murdered his mother and father in cold blood. That gypsy would have justice, and Bai Jian would deliver it.
"…May you be a lesson to all gypsies who dare step foot in this territory again."
And with that, the sword came crashing down.
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"NO!"
Lianghu ran in front of the fox at the last possible moment, shielding him from his death. She couldn't let one of her own kind be slaughtered in front of her, and if it meant death would come to her also, then so be it.
Bai Jian's sword froze halfway down, his eyes wide with what he saw.
"….Get out of my way."
"No," Lianghu's blue eyes met Bai Jian's stern green ones, "…He was just trying to keep himself from starving, you cannot kill a man for trying to survive. Let him have my food, and if you want him to die, then you will have to kill me as well."
The tiger's eyes filled with rage.
His paw clutching the sword trembled with anger, "MOVE!"
"I said no Bai Jian."
He glared at her, blind from rage. The sword clattered to the ground as he stepped back. He could not kill her, and she knew it.
He looked back at the fox, who was still trembling with fear. "…you will pay, gypsy."
Bai Jian fled the room and stormed down the hallway. He had just lost his first battle…and it was to someone he never thought he would lose to.
"Here, take some soup."
"Thank you, Lianghu."
The fox took a bowl of hot broth as he sat by the fire, trying to warm up from his bath. Li Ai had gone to bed already, and Da was giving his report to Bai Jian. It was just the two of them in Lianghu's chambers.
"….Have you heard from my father?"
He nodded, "He asked me to give you this." The fox pulled out a crumpled piece of paper from his back pocket, "But don't read it until you have gotten close enough to the prince, then open it."
Lianghu bit her lip, "I…I don't know if I can do this anymore Kai."
He raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean? You can't defend our people and bring justice to those who have persecuted us for countless years just because you're a bit uncomfortable? You HAVE to do this Lianghu, it's our only hope!"
"I-it's not that, it's just that I…I don't want them to get hurt. They're wonderful people when you get to know them, Kai. I know Bai Jian may seem a bit intimidating at first, but he truly is genuine a-and kind…and a brilliant leader. He just wants what's best for his people."
"What?" Kai's eyes slowly widen in realization, "Wait a minute, you've fallen in love with him, haven't you?"
Lianghu was silent, her blue eyes were downcast to the floor.
The fox was shocked, "I can't believe this, you're in love with the man your father has ORDERED to be killed!"
"I didn't mean for it to get out of hand."
"Well it has! The Rom Bora will NOT be happy Lianghu."
Her eyes narrowed, "My father will not find out about this. If you want to get out of this palace, then just tell him that everything is going as planned, and that I'm waiting for his signal to strike."
Kai raised an eyebrow, "Are you sure you can go through with this?"
"I can certainly try."
Another chapter finished!:D let me know what you think guys! Helpful hints, comments and suggestions are appreciated!
-Kung-Fu-Tigress
