A/N: I just can't get this idea out of my mind. I so just wanna write a story about my beloved character, Sun Shang Xiang and it's bugging me…all sorts of possibilities kept comin' up for storyline twists…kidnappings by Wei, her marriage in Shu, Wu collapsing, Japanese invasion…Heck, even a bunch of yuri pairings…But I finally settled on the one that triggered it all…It hit me after a certain Sun Ce quote in DW 5…but anyways, here goes nothin'…well, actually, somethin' but don't let's get technical 'ere, alright?

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the plot and a bunch of secondary OCs that I have to help move the story along…lolz

Something To Be Proud Of

Chapter 1: When the Dust Settles

The man leaned against the wooden rail, taking in the morning breeze. Ah, the salty, damp sea air…It wouldn't appeal to most…but most didn't include this man. He looked at the view from the deck of the ship. The sun was shining brightly, people bustled about joyfully, and last but not least, peace had come to the land. Yep…China was China once more, not Wu, Wei and Shu…but China. Everything was going fine…no, great. So great, it made the grim man almost crack a smile…almost…

Why hadn't he? He was staring straight into the palace gardens. No, they weren't in a mess after a Qiao flower-picking spree, or a Lu Xun experimental fire attack, or Tong vs. Ning, the rematch of the rematch of the rematch of the…how many times was it again these days? The things that happened back in the day…when the young Shang Xiang would always burst into the dining hall with a shattered pot of lovely lilies or roses or whatever she had managed to salvage from the wreckage and yell out, "WHO IS IT THIS TIME?"

Now, after replanting it time and time again, it stood there much more majestic than ever, a testament to the strong will, what some might say was stubbornness, of the tomboy princess although, ironically, it was pretty much the most feminine thing she'd ever done. The flowers were blooming in a well thought out rainbow of colours, the pathways through well groomed, and the new magnificent monument in the centre…the grandiose setting had not one hint of gloom…to someone looking from the ground.

But on the majestic junk's quarterdeck, the man could clearly see one flower was in pain. Not like it would matter with the thousands planted there, but this wasn't just any flower. This was Shang Xiang, the warrior princess herself.

Err…princess? No…not princess! She wasn't a princess any more. Why couldn't he stop calling her that? She hasn't been a princess for what? Sixteen years? And yet she had insisted upon it, for it was somehow helpful to her. She confided in him things she never told her best friends, her strategists, her husband…err…husbands, her trainers, her maidens, her family, her child…and through it all she had asked him to call her Shang Xiang…just plain Shang Xiang, the princess that never was...

Who was he? The bodyguard. To everyone else, just a bodyguard. To Shang Xiang, her grip to sanity on bad days, and the target of excitement on good days. He sighed and turned once more to look at the princess, crying in front of the monument she had ordered built, clutching her broken arm, which was slowly healing, and slowly living through memories of what that monument stood for…or rather who…

Should he go and comfort her? No…that was a job for her new husband, who he saw had just rushed into one of the garden entrances yelling for her. She would do just fine, like she always has, especially with such a trusty, if rather rowdy man by her side…And by the feast tonight, she'd be feeling great…again…hopefully. Memories…why did people have to be stuck with both the good and the grim?

The man heard hurried footsteps behind him and turned to face whoever it was. Unfortunately, he forgot to look downward from his tall frame and was totally unprepared for such a humongous hug from such a little girl who squealed out, "Unca' Tai! I found Unca' Tai! I win!"

An older lady, in her early twenties, came running after her, "Okay…so you win. You want to grab the next piece of paper from the hat and let's see who's next in our little officer finding game."

Tai's brow rose, "Officer finding game…?"

The lady whispered, "Have to keep my little cousin occupied or she'll mess up all the preparations…and since we couldn't busy Auntie too much, well…I'm stuck babysitting."

Tai nodded as the young ten year old grabbed a piece of folded paper from the hat, taking her time to spin everything around and giggling. Zhou Tai then resumed his conversation with the lady, "Why…Lady Sun Ren…After all these years…Lu Xun…He still thinks Ning steals it…"

"I didn't steal it. Ning told me to hide it. He figured I was the last person he'd ask," replied Sun Ce's daughter with an incredulous look.

Tai just smirked and said, "Right…" as he saw the little girl finally draw a slip…an oddly long one compared to the others in the cap. Tai knew who it was the second it was pulled and grabbed it out if the girl's hands before she could finish, "Hey, it's momm-!"

The girl gasped in horror and the lady looked on in surprise as Tai ripped the piece to shreds. The kid started to cry as the lady exclaimed, "Hey! Don't make my job worse. She's hard enough to baby-sit when she's happy!"

Tai only glared at her, and suddenly silence prevailed, except for an occasional wail from the girl before he replied, "Then...Don't make mine..." and he nudged his head towards the gardens. Lady Sun only gasped as she saw her aunt sobbing in her husband's arms beside the newly erected memorial in the centre. Tai continued as he watched the shocked woman's faced, "Don't bother her...She needs to let it out...That paper...It had her name..."

Lady Sun nodded and then suddenly started fishing for something in the hat. She grinned and fished out another name.

"I guess her husband's out of the question too..." she said before ripping it up gently. She resumed, "Well, how to calm her down..." she pointed to her cousin.

The girl moaned, "You cheats! I don't want to play anymore. You keep removing all the officers!"

Lady Sun tried to say something but halted after, "Xia He..." having no idea what to do with the little child of the line of Tigers from Jiang Dong that bore the name. Just like her aunt, she was no good with children, although less tomboyish.

She turned to the grim veteran and begged, "Hey, c'mon, Tai, please. Pretty please...You gotta help me. It's your fault she's crying!"

Somewhere in the middle of that plea, Tai's vision went blurry and his legs buckled. It took a second before the world snapped back to normal. He clutched his head and slumped down against the rail, causing both Ren and Xia He to stop. Ren knelt down and asked, "You okay, Lord Tai?"

"Don't call me lord...Just a bodyguard, okay...? I...Had a flashback...You sound so much like your aunt..." Tai groaned slowly before adjusting his position to be more comfortable. The two girls both stared at him blankly, not a hint of comprehension on their faces.

He looked at Sun Ren, who was much closer and scratched his chin, "Hmm…Occupy Xia He…Well…" muttering that quietly before continuing out loud, "You two up for a story?"

Xia He nodded. Sun Ren was unsure. She felt she might be too old for this, but then again, she was supposed to not let her eyes off Xia He, even for a second. But if this leaves Xia He drawn in 'til the feast, then so be it, and so she nodded.

Tai's dark eyes spared one more glance out into the garden before he started, "We celebrate the war's end today…Ren…You fought through some of it…Yet this…I've held all these memories down for so long…For a friend…But China is China again…And my tale is thus…Why it divided… Why we are where we are…" and he went into a whisper once more as a single tear fell from his right eye, "Why she cries…"

XXXXX

"Hey, c'mon, Tai! Please…Pretty please! I gotta come help you! It's my fault he charged out too far…" insisted the anxious teenage girl in tight red and black clothes, whose voice dropped into a sullen whimper, "I called him useless and dishonourable because he wouldn't advance as fast as Ce…" as she hung her head.

Zhou Tai glared at the young princess, barely sixteen, who glumly yet resolutely barred his path, mentally beating herself for her earlier outbursts. Tai couldn't help but pity the kid, who couldn't understand that she wasn't the sole reason fro all that had happened. However, the sturdy veteran couldn't bring himself to violate a direct order from Lord Bofu.

Yet every moment wasted here could be fatal to any chance of bringing this to a satisfactory resolution. And he had wasted many going back and forth with the lady. He needed to go…she was in the path…Sorry, milord.

"Alright…But be it on your head…Not mine…Lady Sun…" he finally caved in. Hints of a grin showed on the teen's face.

She replied, moving beside Tai's horse and grabbing his arm with both her hands and shaking it, "Thanks, Tai! I owe you…" and she started to rush off to grab her own steed and her small pair of circular rings with curved blades which she called 'chakrams'. Such a unique weapon for such a unique warrior…She hastily halted and added with her astonishingly brilliant smile, "Oh, and it's Shang Xiang, alright?" before heading onward.

Tai only nodded, mesmerized for a moment, before he turned away and sighed. It was nice to finally see her happy. Too bad he'd lied.

He goaded Kamikaze forward. The troops with him started to march as well. A lieutenant suddenly rode alongside him.

"Sir, I don't feel right doing this to the princess," stated the lieutenant, voicing his concern.

Tai simply shrugged, "She asked to come…Never said nothing about waiting…" Then he spurred the horse inward even faster, starting to leave his troops behind. He could probably keep his target safe until the troops came. It was a gamble…speed before safety…But what point was numbers when the mission had already failed?

As clouds of dust sprouted from beneath the warhorse's legs, he could have sworn he heard a shriek of anger from a lady that sounded awfully like someone demanding he slow down…

Sun Shang Xiang gritted her teeth to keep any dust from entering her mouth. She had kept yelling for Zhou Tai to slow down for mile after mile as they rode but had finally been forced by the choking clouds to shut up. But at least it meant she was getting closer.

Through the foul air, she saw the quiet swordsman hack his way through a squad of hapless soldiers. As he brushed through enemy lines, a squad got between him and the princess. Shang Xiang had learned pretty fast how to use her chakrams, what with such great warriors as Sun Ce and Huang Gai helping her along, and she was fairly decent rider. Yet, she hadn't gotten to the part yet about learning to charge with the circular blades on a horse. Well, there was a first time for everything.

She picked up speed, as she saw Zhou Tai had done. However, she knew she couldn't just hack away with the blades. The range was much too short. They had to be flung with right timing. The teenager gulped as she neared the five soldiers. "C'mon, girl…You can do this…" she muttered to herself…and she threw…

It was perfect. Each blade had hit two of the men and knocked them down of killed them. Meanwhile, her pure white stallion Starfire had trampled the leader of the bunch. She grinned and her confidence soared high.

She saw a lone figure through the dust to her left. She wanted to try it again and headed for the lone man. "This is gonna be easy!" she exclaimed cheerily, preparing to swing…

All Zhou Tai saw as he turned to glimpse how his 'pursuer' was doing was Starfire rearing, a surprised yell of pain and a sick thud as the princess was abruptly dismounted. He halted and turned his horse around.

He burst through the dust clouds, yelling her name, "Princess! Lady Sun! Sun Shang Xiang!" He raised his blade as a spearman came flying his way. He looked from where the airborne corpse had come from and saw the girl draw back her right arm after the solid uppercut.

She finally noticed him after recovering her balance from a series of spins she had conducted. Some of the peasants that had been flung by her chakrams were hacked to bits by Tai's katana as he jumped into the air. She called to him, "Tai! You came back? But Qua…" but stopped as she realized why he was pointing jerkily at her after he landed. He wasn't. He was pointing past her and so she spun around, chakrams at the ready in front of her chest.

Unfortunately, the blow was headed for her head and she stumbled back, no time to recover as a rod hit her chest, now unprotected as her arms had swung aside after the first hit. A third one shot pain through her shoulder. A lull then occurred for a brief moment, which only allowed Shang Xiang to realize tears were steadily flowing from her eyes and to hope that the next blow wouldn't hurt as much…No such luck.

A fierce series of swings battered her upper body in a swift rising crescendo. The poor girl was totally disoriented and had worn out her voice in consecutive agonized shrieks by the time her attacker gave her a devastating final blow which caught her full in the abdomen. The princess was flung into the air and ended up tumbling hard on the ground before finally sliding to a stop, flat on her back.

She let out a soft moan as she tried to catch her breath, her green eyes blinking rapidly to clear her vision. She spat out some blood in her mouth as she groggily tried to sit up while the powerful warrior neared her once more.

Without warning, her view of her opponent…well, more like tormentor, was blocked by a whirl of velvet black armour. Sharp blade clanged against blunt club repeatedly in front of the astonished, and very relieved, lady. Until she realized they were being delayed.

"Tai," she stood up hastily, and then fell back down with a soft grunt, her balance still affected by the pain and blood loss. She tried once more and was successful, shaking her head frantically. She repeated, "Tai…We have to go get my brother!"

The bodyguard nodded and unleashed a series of wild swings, which finished with a devastating downward stroke that flung his opponent away. However, the man had blocked most of the damage with one club and was getting up, ready to advance once more.

Tai used the momentary lull to step back towards the waiting girl. He grunted, "Get your horse and go then…" without even looking back.

Shang Xiang weakly put her right arm on Zhou Tai's left shoulder, turning her wrist so that the chakrams it held blocked him from moving forward. Tai cocked his head exasperatedly towards the princess.

She was totally bewildered that the man had actually suggested for her to continue alone. Had he even looked at her properly since whomever that club-wielding fiend was had manhandled her? Her hair was in disarray, some of it blocking her eyesight, despite the headband that should have held it back; her crimson clothes and her usually shimmering face were now covered in dirt and grime; blood was trickling from a wound on her forehead, a cut on her lip and a few scratches here and there, staining her shirt; her clothes were soggy with sweat, with the rips and small cuts through already stretched fabric in quite a few places and she had barely enough strength to withstand the pain, stand up and clutch her weapons. She half whispered, half mouthed, "Why…aren't…you…coming?"

"I need to keep the route back open…My troops have to get through…If Liu Yong's forces cut us off…We would all be dead…" he answered gruffly.

"But Tai…I'm hurting. Bad. I'm bound to mess this up by myself. This is my first serious battle…and, well…Just look at me!" the girl pleaded as she lowered her chakrams and switched it to the other hand so it carried both blades. Meanwhile, she attempted to keep her hair out of her eyes with her free hand. She let out a soft moan as pain hit her shoulder once more as she raised the bruised limb.

Zhou Tai finally looked properly at the begrimed, fatigued youngster. Still, he kept a wary eye on his opponent, who was patiently watching, amused by the talk and waiting to see his next move. This made Tai burn with anger, but it did not show on his calm exterior. Yet he knew, inside, he was laughing at them. Get everything straightened out before going in. That was a simple key to making any plan work. And he hadn't done that with the princess.

However, Tai himself was having second thoughts about sending the inexperienced fighter on such a dangerous mission, especially with her obvious importance to his lord. And yet leaving her here to try keep the route open would be just as bad. Caught between the devil and the deep blue sea...as sailors like him would say. She would have to make the choice herself...Just like earlier. No...not like earlier...lives hung on this decision.

Tai laid it before her calmly, "Princess...Choose...Stay here and try to contain Liu Yong's most dangerous officer...Or take on Yan Baihu's encirclement of your brother...You came along for this...Well, decide for this...Which one?"

Shang Xiang grimaced. Tactics and battlefield decisions were another thing she was just starting to learn. All she had were a few scanty, vague "lessons" from Zhou Yu in his scraps of spare time, although they usually evolved into her struggling to keep herself from glomping the young strategist. Everyone knew about her little crush, which she already knew was headed nowhere with Yu being already married to her good friend Xiao.

But what did that all matter now? She was bloodied and bruised, standing with the enemy seemingly everywhere and she had a decision to make. A life and death one. Everything rested on her small…and aching…shoulders.

She looked at their opponent. Now, she realized he was vaguely familiar. Her brother, Ce, had told her about him before he had headed off to battle. Taishi Ci: the rod-wielding warrior who many deemed equalled the Little Conqueror himself…and also an amazing drummer… With such a portfolio, Zhou Yu had been working overtime, trying to figure how to get such a general on their side.

They had settled on the idea that Sun Ce was to test that theory of them being an even match… However, this didn't exactly take into account that Ci planned to capture a sibling of the young general and use him as bait…him determining the obvious target, for he had been headed to finish off Yan Baihu's encirclement of Sun Quan. But plans change, and when a hardened veteran catches another dear sibling, riding almost unprotected and unwarily through the field, he will obviously switch his plans.

However, the new target had no way of realizing that. All she cared about was that Quan was in trouble, it was her fault, and she had to help. And she was going to be no help if she wasn't going to be any help if she just got killed trying to halt the mighty fighter. She had a crack at him earlier and he had practically cracked her to pieces. She needed to try her luck on the other choice then.

"I'll see what I can do to help Quan…and when will you learn that it's just plain 'Shang Xiang'!" she replied hesitantly before erupting into her usual correction, now noticing Tai had already gone back to battling Taishi Ci. Had all that just been a few seconds? Was that what battle did to a person? For the moment, she didn't care. She whistled her horse over and, after two failed attempts due to sharp pain in her right shoulder, managed to mount it. She swivelled to see Tai, who was backing away after being hit in the jaw by a club blow.

The bodyguard spat out blood before exclaiming to the princess, "Go…Good luck, kid…Besides, you have a certain way of getting through to people…Don't forget this: You can do it…" before hacking away at the crossed rods that blocked him with his katana.

Shang Xiang gave an uneasy grin at the unexpected sarcasm before spurring her horse away…She was coming for her brother…

And back in the fierce deadlock of combat, Tai added two words under his breath that he hoped the princess hadn't heard. Ironically, they were, "I hope…"

XXXXX

"Well, I guess it wasn't half bad…" shrugged Zhou Tai as he finally took a sip from a cup of wine that a handmaiden had brought him while he was in the middle of the narrative.

"That's it?" asked Xia hysterically.

"No…But I'm not sure I should share the rest of it to someone just your age…" Tai grunted, taking yet another sip. This revealing yourself to others wasn't that easy. Then again, he might have guessed that after so many years of not doing so, it would take some time.

"But mommy's stories are always so blunt, and daddy's are always very improbable…" Xia groaned.

That was expected. If he knew Xia's dad, his stories would be loaded with one-man raids and wild achievements…with a ton of male chauvinism, of course…which were always very improbable…Then again, the man was the master of the improbable.

And Shang hadn't exactly been very willing to talk about the past. She always looked towards the future, and that was how she kept a grin on her face…most of the time…When she just couldn't bear it, there was always the garden…and when she needed someone mobile, there was always this bodyguard. For years, he'd been a sponge, helping soak up all the times that had her bummed out. He was her guard, both physically, and spiritually. He was…her friend…

"So you really want to go on…? I thought you hated hearing about it when your mom got hurt…?"

"You just told me that Taishi Ci once turned mom into a tent peg. It didn't hurt that bad," she fired back at him and crossed her arms angrily. Zhou Tai's brow rose. She was just as feisty as her mom was when she became more experienced in the field.

He nodded, "Well then…What about you, Ren?

The lady blinked blankly, rapidly trying to gather her wits, "Um…well, I've heard those stories, except, in a more blunt and factual manner like Xun would usually do. Like 'What's his face died…' or 'I can't remember how it happened but he killed a hundred men…' sort of things. Violence dulls the minds of most. But evidently, not you…Please continue…"

Tai smirked. Man, she was fast with words. But he knew what she had been thinking of. If Shang had her crushes, then so did Ren…and Taishi Ci was one of them. And once again, they had that old age gap problem…

He drained the goblet. It was still many hours before the feast. They had time.

"Well…Then, I will…

A/N: And it is done! First chapter up and running…Does Shang Xiang pull it off? What will Zhou Tai say next? Where the hell is Sun Ce in the story? How many rematches have Tong and Ning had? Will Sun Ren start drooling over memories of Taishi Ci? The answers to these questions and more, next chapter…(except the fourth one…it's one life's great undefinables…and counting has never been my strong point…and if I can trust Tong's jokes, I believe it ain't one of Ning's either…j/k)

Please tell me what you think. And I demand you give me helpful criticism, okay? Heck, I'm fine with flames. So then, y'all go read and review! I beg of you! LOL!