Earth- Hong Kong, China- 11:15 PM

Wufei walked down the street, pushing his hair out of his face as rainwater literally poured from the sky, soaking his trench coat and any part of his body that appeared from under the safety of an awning or an umbrella. He made his way through the crowd, watching the people from all walks of life- the teens, about his age or younger/older, working or making their way home, joking and laughing with friends- the elderly and middle aged, reading the newspapers and watching the televisions on display in the town, shaking their heads and their fists in anger or dismay, cheering whenever the news was good- the soldiers, staunch Communists and non-reformers, third or fourth generation British people raised as Chinese citizens. Each person had their own agenda, with their own concerns and dilemmas- so different, and yet so alike.

He made his way toward a restaurant that was still open in the late hours of the night, making his way inside. A man at the bar looked up at him.

"Good evening, sir, is there anything I can get you?"

Wufei nodded politely. "If you have coffee, I'd appreciate it greatly."

The man at the bar filled a cup with black coffee, giving it to one of the servers, a young girl. "Be careful with this cup now, Chang!"

Wufei turned, raising an eyebrow at hearing his surname being spoken. He looked to see the man behind the counter being lectured by a girl, who looked to be about thirteen or fourteen years old.

"Mr. Yoshi, I wouldn't have fallen and broken that coffee cup if someone had told me that the floor had recently been waxed and mopped! I wasn't the only person who fell either; twelve customers fell onto the floor, including those American tourists! And you had to pay for their clothes being stained by floor wax, so next time, put up some warnings and we won't have this problem!"

With that, the girl walked away from Mr. Yoshi, leaving him with his mouth open like a gasping fish. She set the coffee cup onto the table where Wufei sat, and bowed respectfully to him. On the left side of her face was a burn scar, a deep one, on her cheek.

"I'm sorry you had to hear that, sir…"

Wufei narrowed his eyebrows at the girl. "You should know better than to lecture your elders and betters, even if you are right."

The girl straightened her back, crossing her arms and glaring at the boy in front of her. "And you should know better than to correct someone who may know more than you do!"

Wufei gritted his teeth, glaring at her. "Listen, woman, if you don't stop this, I'll…"

"Woman?" The girl looked in confusion at Wufei, then her face broke into a grin and she laughed. "You called me 'woman'! You sound just like my cousin, when we were children."

Wufei looked up at the girl, his teeth easing from their gritted position, his grimace fading to a smirk as he raised an eyebrow. "You and your cousin must have had fun, if you let her get away with that…"

"No, my cousin was a boy. He kept calling me 'woman', he said that I ran too fast sometimes…"

"Like a phoenix through the sky?"

The girl looked at Wufei in shocked surprise. "Yes… that was what he said… we would play make-believe, I was a phoenix while he was a dragon…"

The smirk on Wufei's face became a kind smile as he stood up, looking at the girl in front of him. "It's been a long time, Lin Yao."

The girl's eyes filled with tears as she embraced the young man in front of her. "I knew you would come back someday, Wufei…"

Earth- Hong Kong, China- A.C. 190

"Hurry up, Long! I can't wait forever, I have to fly!" Lin Yao, the six year old daughter of Wufei's aunt and uncle, jumped down one of the grassy hills and ran, holding her arms up like the phoenix she admired, laughing joyfully.

"Hang on, Feng! Not everyone's as fast as you are, onna! Besides, my name is Wufei, I was born to fly!" Wufei, a ten-year-old scholar and Lin Yao's oldest cousin, ran after her, tucking his glasses into his shirt to make sure they didn't fall off and hit the ground. Lin Yao slowed down, smiling at the boy who was the closest to her age in her family and was more like a brother than a cousin.

"Why did they name you Wufei? It sounds kind of… weird," she finished, shrugging. Wufei caught up to her, narrowing his brows at her.

"The reason my parents named me that," he said, picking her up as she laughed, "that is because I'm the fifth firstborn son born in the family Chang… at least, for our family."

"How come?" Lin Yao kept asking questions, always curious, as six year olds usually are.

"Well, we're related because our parents are related. My mother is your aunt, as your mother is my aunt. But our mothers are sisters, and they pass on the family name to us, whether we're sons or daughters."

"And you're the fifth oldest boy in our family with the last name Chang?"

"Yes."

"Why does your name mean 'fifth to fly'? I don't get it."

Wufei set down Lin Yao onto a grass-covered hill, which he sat down on, looking out at the view of the city and the surrounding countryside. "My parents were visited by a wise man, before I was born. He said if I were named Wufei, I would bring honor to my family."

"You'll bring honor to us?"

Wufei shook his head. "I don't know if it's to you or to the Long family. I have to marry their heir, Meilan. I've never met her, and I have to marry her when I turn fourteen!"

"Maybe she'll be nice… with a last name of 'phoenix', she'll be proud and probably nice, too!"

Wufei smiled at Lin Yao, who was brushing grass off of her kimono, her dark eyes twinkling at him. He got up, brushing off the remaining grass on her and him, and took her by the hand, leading her back home.

"I know one phoenix I'm going to miss. Lin Yao…whose name means "beautiful jade treasure". You're a good cousin, and a good friend."

Lin Yao looked up at her cousin, hoping one day to be that strong for someone someday.

"Are you going to stay with us, Dragon?"

"Sorry, Phoenix… I have to go back to school. I came back here just for a visit. But I will come back."

"Do you promise?" Lin Yao looked up at Wufei, her eyes watching for his reply. Wufei held her hand, nodding.

"I will come and see you again someday, Lin Yao. I may be gone a long time, but I want you to be brave and remember me, alright?"

The girl nodded solemnly. "I promise. One day, though, I'm going to be a student too, and a warrior!"

Wufei looked at his cousin, raising an eyebrow. "You should be learning what your mother teaches you to become a young woman, not a warrior."

"But what about Mulan? She was a warrior!"

Wufei smiled. "Alright, Phoenix," Wufei swept up Lin Yao and held her piggy-back style, smiling as she laughed, "let's fly home."

The two children rushed down the hill, the boy carrying the girl, laughing as the sun set behind them.

A figure wearing a trench coat looked through the window of the restaurant and smiled at the two hugging inside. He turned away, the note he had left on the doorstep waiting to be found, later. Now, it was a time of happiness. After eight years, Wufei had kept his promise, and had returned home.