Chapter Two: Room Fit for an Emperor
The sound of songbirds twittering near the window awakened me, and I was all too eager to wake up. Sitting up, I rubbed at my eyes and looked out the window. Tiny birds of yellow and brown perched on the windowsill, the dawn light streamed into the room and cast their tiny shadows upon the floor.
I looked to my right to find my older sister laying beside me, still deeply asleep, her hands folded beneath her chin. I leaned forward and shook her shoulder.
"Nee-san, wake up!" I whispered loudly, not wanting to startle her. She squinted her eyes and mumbled something, but refused to be awakened. I shook her shoulder harder. "Nee-san? Come on, wake up!"
"Mmmm Just five more minutes" She mumbled, still half asleep.
I stood up, but quickly lost my balance and fell on top of Jun, sprawled across her stomach. She rubbed at her eyes and blinked while I'll struggled to stand once more.
"Let me help," she smiled and sat forward, picking me up and setting me upon the floor. "I'm awake now." Jun stretched her arms toward the ceiling and yawned mightily while I reached for my stuffed tiger toy and clutched it to my chest.
"Young master, young mistress," the soft voice of a servant announced as the door creaked open. "Breakfast is ready."
"All right," we shouted as one, feeling acutely hungry. A few servants marched in and began folding up the tangled sheets while others began attending to our clothing and hair. I didn't mind being dressed by the servants, but it was when it came time for them to brush my hair that I put up the biggest struggle.
"Hold still please, Master Ren," the woman said with infinite patience as she licked her palm and proceeded to press down my rebellious cowlick with the force of a tigress scouring her cubs with her rough tongue.
"Ah, leave it alone!" I squinted my eyes in frustration. "It's never going to stay down."
"That's what you get for being born in the Year of the Ox," I saw Jun giggling as the servants pinned up her hair in the purple barrettes and the little yellow ribbon. "A stubborn cowlick!"
I stuck my tongue out at her. "Hey! I like my hair the way it is." I squirmed from the woman's grasp and she quickly conceded to my whims. The servants never forced us to do anything against our will, unless it went contrary to Mother's or Grandfather's orders. So she instead began to assist the others with tidying up the room.
"Follow me, now," a young man bowed before us and we proceeded to march down the hall behind him. Jun walked in front of me, the sun reflecting off the silk fabric of her purple cheongsam. I was wearing a red silk shirt with long sleeves trimmed in gold, and black silk pants.
We passed though the halls as the 'silent ones' kept their vigil over all. I stopped and stared at one, always curious as to what they were thinking.
"Nihao?" I asked tentatively, a strange feeling of foreboding in the pit of my stomach. They seemed so strange, the 'silent ones'. Why did they never speak? Did they not have voices? Nee-san said they were alive, but I had yet to see one move. Perhaps she was playing a trick on me, and they were nothing more than stiff mannequins lined up against the wall for decoration. I reached a tentative hand forward, my chubby fingers twitching as I clutched my tiger stuffie tighter against my chest.
Before my fingers could even brush against the silk fabric of their pants, something snatched my hand back, nearly causing me to scream in fright. Jun's hand was clamped firmly, but gently over my wrist, her blue eyes narrowed in annoyance.
"What do you think you're doing?" She said sharply under her breath.
"Nothing!" I shook my head and backed away from the tall guard, my eyes never leaving its face. A yellow slip of paper with strange characters that I could not read was stuck to its forehead, obscuring its features, but I was acutely aware of a faint glimmer within its hollow eyes.
"Come on," Jun tugged on my arm and began leading me away.
"What are they?" I asked tentatively.
Jun glanced down at me, her green brows knit together in consternation. After a moment, she began, "I'm not quite sure. The 'silent ones' have been here long before I was born. I think that maybe they were once statues carved from the very stones that form the foundation of the Tao Manor, but a powerful sorcerer used a magic spell to bring them to life. They became his servants, but when the sorcerer died, they could not bring themselves to leave the only home they had ever known. In a way, they were born here, and so here is where they shall stay."
"Wow!" My eyes widened in awe and my big sister grinned at the effect her story had on me. "How do you come up with such good stories?"
"It's a secret," she winked. "And you know what? I bet that those slips of paper on their foreheads are talismans, and if they were ever to be removed, they would revert back into statues once more."
"But how come I never get to see them move?" I stuck out my bottom lip in a slight pout.
"The 'silent ones' are only used for heavy or menial labor too difficult for the other servants to accomplish." Jun glanced toward another row of the stiff guards keeping watch near the main entrance to the manor. I felt a slight shiver run through her body as we passed them. "I've only ever seen them move a few times, and it's not really all that great. Actually, they give me the creeps, if you ask me."
"I know what you mean." I gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and she smiled at me. "They creep me out, too."
"Master Ching and Mistress Ran await you," the voice of the male servant announced, calling us both to attention once more.
The double doors opened and when entered the huge dining hall. I put my tiger toy on the floor near my seat, being taught long ago that I couldn't bring him to the table with me. Two servants helped to seat us. I was still quite small and needed to sit on a pillow to reach the table properly. I swung my legs back and forth while the servants placed a bowl in front of me. Picking up the black lacquered chopsticks, I clumsily began eating, still not quite used to the delicate movements needed to manipulate them.
"Good morning, my precious children," Mother smiled at us, like the sun breaking through cloud cover. "Did you sleep well last night?"
"Yes, Mother, very well," Jun answered politely.
"Mmm Hmm," I nodded with a mouth full of rice.
"Ren, don't talk with your mouth full," Mother wagged a finger at me.
I swallowed my food. "Sorry, Mommy."
"Young Ren," Grandfather addressed me, his dark eyes glittering in the morning light. "You're going to be turning three years old in two days, right? Your mother and I have prepared a very special gift for you, in honor of this important year."
I nearly choked on my food. Grabbing a cup of milk, I quickly gulped it down, gasping afterward. "What kind of present?" I leaned forward slightly, barely able to contain my excitement. Jun smiled behind her hand at my antics.
"When you are finished with breakfast, we will show it to you," Grandfather smiled once more, but there was something odd about it. I took no notice, too excited to worry about the subtle meaning behind a look or a gesture.
"I get to open it, before my birthday?" I smiled wide.
"Of course," Mother gestured toward my unfinished meal. "Now hurry and eat, and then you may see it."
"All right!" I grabbed my chopsticks and began shoveling food into my mouth once more, grains of rice landing on the table and on my shirt front. Jun stifled a giggle. I didn't care. I was going to get my present today!
"Here, let me help you," Mother laughed a little and used an embroidered napkin to wipe my cheeks and shirt. I squinted my eyes under her tender administrations, even though she never rubbed my cheeks too hard. Using her own red lacquered chopsticks, she helped to feed me pieces of meat and vegetables that were too large for me to pick up without dropping them. I hated learning how to use those silly sticks to feed myself. I was doing just fine before, eating with my hands. If only my fingers were longer, then I probably wouldn't have so much trouble.
"Try some peaches," Jun, always helpful, offered one to me. "They're really yummy."
I pulled a face and shook my head. "Ewww! Yucky!"
"But they're really good." Jun sank her teeth into the tender flesh and smiled really big to emphasize her point. She wasn't fooling me.
"Gross!" I turned my head away as she brought one close to my face. "Get it away!"
"Why won't you try one, Ren?" Mother asked, taking the peach that Jun had tried to offer me earlier.
"I don't like peaches," I hunkered down into my seat, trying to put as much of the table between me and the nasty fruit.
"But you've never even tried one," Jun frowned while taking another bite out of her peach.
"I know I won't like it." I squinted in frustration. "They're fuzzy and gross."
Mother sighed with infinite patience. "You really should try one, just once. I know you would like them."
"Uh-uh!" I shook my head rapidly.
We quickly finished with our meal and the servants cleared the dishes away. Sliding to the floor, I picked up my abandoned tiger toy and followed the rest of my family out the door. Grandfather led the way as I clung to my mother's long sleeve. I liked my mother's pretty red dress with the yin-yang symbols on the collar. She always carried a long pink sash that she draped over her elbows. Sometimes, when Mother was sitting in the study, reading some musty old tomes, I would play on the floor near her feet and bat at the hem of her dress, much like a kitten. I liked the feel of silk between my fingers, so much like her long pretty hair.
I gently tugged on my mother's sleeve, curiosity eating through my thin wall of patience. "Where is it? How much longer? Is it a really big present? What is it?"
"We're almost there," Mother smiled and ruffled my hair affectionately.
We soon passed by our room and continued down the hallway. Jun remained close to my side, a look of confusion on her face. Wondering what could be troubling her, I asked, "What's the matter?"
"That's odd," her brows were furrowed, "I don't remember there being anything important down this hallway."
Before long, we reached the very end of the long hall and were greeted by a huge set of double doors. Both Jun and I gasped in unison. During all our explorations of the manor's corridors, we had never once noticed this doorway. It was supposed to be a dead end. It was then that I seriously began to think that our home might truly be enchanted, as my sister once told me. What other secrets remained hidden within the bowels of the Tao Manor?
"This is it," Grandfather announced while pushing on the doors. They swung open smoothly and silently. "Your very own room."
"Call it an early birthday present," Mother beamed down at me.
Both Mother and Grandfather stood to either side as Jun and I padded forward slowly, unable to believe our eyes. We both remained speechless as my lips spread into a huge grin. The room was — simply put — huge. Our old room was by no means small, but this new room could easily dwarf my old one. Our feet padded softly on oak floors covered by plush area rugs with intricate patterns woven in gold, red, and black. Even if I stared at if for hours, I would never be able to follow the pattern all the way through.
The walls were made of soft white plaster, the color of fine porcelain. Silk paintings hung about the room, depicting images of pouncing tigers, coiled dragons, or tree branches with tiny birds nestled between the leaves. Little snatches of poetry written in flowing calligraphy accompanied each work of art. On the east side of the room was a large picture window, crimson drapes pulled aside to let the morning light stream through. A large book shelf occupied the west corner, filled with leather bound tomes. Though I was only just learning the various characters and still unable to read, I knew that Jun would be pleased to have new material to read to me. She had been running out of stories, as of late, and I was worried that there would no longer be any new ones.
On the far wall was a huge bed decked out in silk sheets of crimson and gold. My sister and I glanced at each other for a split-second, devilish grins on our faces, before making a beeline toward the bed. Leaping upon it, we each grabbed one of the many throw pillows scattered about and began bouncing up and down, determined to knock the other off with our makeshift weapons.
Through our peals of laughter, Mother's voice pierced through, "Jun, Ren, please be careful. I don't want you to get hurt."
"All right, Mommy," I flopped onto my back as Jun gave me one last whack on the head. We both settled down, breathing heavily after our earlier exertions. I took a moment to catch my breath before investigating the rest of the premises.
Scattered about the room were various curios and sculptures; large porcelain vases of blue and white, jade figurines carved in the likeness of dragons and deities, and hanging on the far wall, above the mantle, was a huge kwan dao, it's blade polished to a gleaming luster, as if it had never known the heat of battle.
Crawling toward the foot of the bed, I noticed a large black chest, the sunlight glimmering off its lacquered surface. Kneeling down, I lifted the lid up to find a red satin interior, and that all of my toys had somehow found there way in.
"Wow! All my stuff is already here!" I smiled as Jun peered over my shoulder and laughed with delight.
"The servants have moved all of your belongings already," Grandfather hobbled forward and rested his bony hand on my shoulder. "This room is all yours, now."
"Really?" I felt my eyes widen in shock. "It's all mine?"
"Everything in this room belongs to you now," he smiled toothily. Again, I felt there was something odd about his smile, but I took no notice. After all, I was only a child, with no concept of deceit or guile. "A dwelling fit for an emperor."
"Thank you so much, Grampa!" I wrapped my arms around his bony frame, my head buried in his chest. "I love it!"
"I can't believe you're getting such a huge room all to yourself!" Jun said in awe. "It'll be so much fun to play in here, now."
"I'm glad you like it so much," Mother kneeled down as I sailed into her opened arms and hugged her. "You're growing up so fast, so we thought it was time that you had your own room."
"This is the best birthday present ever! Thank you so much, Mommy!"
"I'll leave you two alone and let you settle in," she released her hold on me and stood. "Please try not to break anything. Some of these ornaments are very old."
"Older than Grampa?" I asked as Jun stifled a giggle.
"Far older than I am," Grandfather laughed heartily. "Some of these pieces are over one thousand years old."
"Whoa!" I knew that if it was older than Grandfather, then it had to be old.
"If you need anything, just call the for the servants," Mother said as they filed out of the room and softly closed the door behind them. With that soft click, Jun and I raced toward the bed once more to continue our pillow war, our peals of laughter ringing throughout the entire room. But little did I realize, that with the announcement of my third birthday quickly approaching, I was being ushered into a role of responsibility that I would be unwilling to accept.
The day dragged on and we continued to play and explore in this new wing of the manor. Eventually, the sun began to dip below the horizon, and my sister and I were called away for dinner. We ate with enthusiasm, famished from all our activities. Mother and Grandfather seemed very pleased with my attitude toward my new room. What was there not to like about it? After we were finished, Jun and I took our baths and were dressed in our long pajamas, warm and snugly against the winter's chill.
As I followed my sister down the hall to my room, mother took my hand and led me away from the door.
"You must sleep in your own room, now," she smiled as I gazed at her in utter confusion.
"But what about Nee-san?" My lower lip stuck out slightly. Jun paused in the doorway to her room, unsure of what to do.
"She will be sleeping right here." She tugged on my hand and began leading me down the hall.
"But I want to sleep with Nee-san!" I didn't realize that by having my own room, I would be separated from my elder sister. "I don't want to sleep by myself!" Despite my insatiable curiosity and sense of fearlessness when it came to exploration, I was still afraid of the dark, and had never once left my sister's side, even for a moment. Jun exuded an aura of security, so much like Mother's, and I knew that no matter what, she would never let anything happen to me.
"What did you think would happen once you had your own room?" Mother squeezed my hand reassuringly. "You're a big boy now, and it's time you started sleeping by yourself."
We were almost to the doors now. The hall seemed much longer than it was during daylight hours. I looked over my shoulder to find the door to Jun's room only a few yards away, but it might as well have been a mile.
"I'm scared!" I tugged on my mother's slender hand and pressed my forehead against it, eyes squeezed tight. "Don't make me sleep in that big room all by myself! Please?"
Mother placed her hand upon the door, and they opened silently at her touch. The light of the nearly full moon streamed through the large window, bathing the room in pearly radiance. She slowly scooped me up into her arms and carried me to the bed, laying me down under the warm sheets. I pulled them up to my chin and hugged my tiger stuffie tightly, a look of betrayal in my eyes. Mother sat down on the side of the bed and smoothed back my bangs, the moonlight causing her normally pale skin to glow as white as alabaster. She seemed almost like a goddess, and I felt my fears beginning to melt away.
"You are a very strong child, Lian," she spoke softly, using my honored name. "There is nothing for you to fear. Now," she bent over and kissed me on the forehead, "go to sleep. You will have a long day ahead of you tomorrow, for many preparations are being made for your birthday."
"All right," I sighed, a yawn escaping me. "Will you make some rice cakes tomorrow?"
"Of course, but only if you go to sleep," she touched my nose with her finger and I smiled. She rose and began walking toward the door, her long robes trailing behind her. Reaching the door, she turned and whispered, "I love you, dear little Lian."
"I love you, too, Mommy," I said as the door clicked shut. I curled up under the covers, my tiger stuffie held tight to my chest, and quickly fell asleep.
Later that evening, I was awakened by a chill wind blowing through the room. Shivering, I sat up, and noticed white vapor escaping from my lips with every breath I exhaled. Glancing around the room, I discovered that the big window was wide open, the red drapes billowing in the winter air. Sliding out of bed, my tiger toy dangling from one hand, I crossed the chilly floor in my bare feet and quickly pulled the window closed. Clicking the latch into place, I wrapped my arms around myself for warmth and headed back toward my bed.
The moonlight reflected off the walls, casting long shadows and obscuring some details of the room while emphasizing others. I gulped as I looked toward the silk paintings of the tigers and dragons, their fangs and claws seeming particularly sharp and cruel in the light. I imagined that they might suddenly spring forth from their silk prisons and attack me if I stared for too long. I dashed for the bed and dove beneath the sheets, clutching my tiger toy for support.
Peeking my head out, I looked toward the foot of my bed toward the far wall, the huge kwan dao glittering in the moonlight. I sighed and was about to go back to sleep when I noticed an odd shadow in the corner of the room. I rubbed at my eyes, blinking away the sleep. There was no mistaking it; there was someone in the room with me!
The figure shifted, moving forward into the light. A huge man, taller than anyone I had ever seen, stood clad in black armor and white silk, a tattered red scarf adorning his throat. Beneath his polished helmet, two burning eyes of glowing crimson glared at me, and I felt my stomach lurch beneath his gaze. My fingers dug deeper into the soft pelt of my tiger doll as the giant warlord came closer, his footsteps making no sound on the wooden floor. A huge kwan dao rested in the crook of his arm, and I was sure I could see blood staining the blade.
With a shout, I bolted for the door and ran down the hall never once looking back. My feet pounded in rhythm to my heart, and I could imagined that I could feel the warlord's breath on the back of my neck. I pounded on the door to my former room, tears of fright streaming down my face.
"Nee-san! Wake up!" I pounded louder, faster. Who knew how long it would take before the warlord finally caught up to me. "Open the door! Let me in!"
In one final effort, I slammed forward into the door, throwing all my weight into it. I was surprised by the lack of resistance and soon found myself sprawled on the floor of Nee-san's room. She must have opened the door just as I was about to charge in. She stared down at me, a candle clutched in one hand, still half asleep.
"Ren-kun, what's wrong?" She yawned, but quickly popped awake upon seeing the look of distress on my face. Setting the candle on the floor, she crouched beside me and held my sobbing form close to her. "Ren-kun? What happened to you? Why are you crying?"
"There's--" I hiccuped slightly, clinging tightly to my sister and my tiger toy. "There's a monster in my room"
"Don't be silly," she rubbed my back, hoping to calm me down. "You know monsters aren't real."
"It's true! I saw it!" I lifted my gaze to her blue eyes sparkling like sapphires in the moonlight. "It's a huge demon carrying a kwan dao, and he's gonna chop off my head!"
"You have quite the imagination," Jun smiled reassuringly as she wiped the tears from my eyes. "I guess I shouldn't tell you scary stories before bedtime anymore."
"I'm not making it up." I felt angry, thinking that I could trust Jun to believe me. She was my elder sister, after all, and we could always trust one another. "It was real."
"Ren-kun, you probably just had a bad dream, that's all." Why did she have to try and rationalize it? Why couldn't she just believe me? "Let's go back to your room and I'll check for any more monsters under the bed."
"No!" I buried my head in her chest again and cried anew. "I don't want to go back. He'll kill us if we go back."
"Ren-kun" She said softly. I felt her arms wrap around me as she slowly lifted me up and carried me to her bed. Laying me down, she pulled the sheets up to my chin and slipped in next to me. I rolled on to my side, my tiger toy about to burst a seam I was squeezing it so tightly. The bed was warm where Jun had been sleeping and I began to relax, sleep tugging at my eye lids.
"I know you're not supposed to be in here," Jun's voice whispered in my ear, "but you can stay in here if you're scared. I won't tell, if you won't, all right?"
"All right," I closed my eyes and sighed, thankful for the familiarity of my old room once more. Jun wrapped her arm around me and held me close, and so we slept as we always had: together.
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Aw! How precious! chibi Ren-kun is so adorable! Just so you'll know, I'll be alternating the POV between Ren and Jun with every chapter, just to keep it interesting. Up next, the entire manor begins preparing for the big celebration in honor of Ren's birthday, and the children find out that they will finally get to meet their father. The mystery of the Tao Family begins to unfold as the children discover that the dead do not always rest in peace. How will Jun react when she realizes that Ren wasn't imagining things? Read and review, onegai!