Dancing With The Blossoms
I have decided, because it's in the plot, there will be a little unintentional yaoi, but please, if you don't like it, I beg you not to take it seriously. The story will be the cannon pairings as they have been so far, so please don't worry. It'll all turn itself right by the end.
Chapter 9
"Where is Lu Meng?" Zhou Yu asked Gan Ning as he walked through the camp hurriedly, followed by two Shu officers and his wife. The pirate shrugged.
"Erecting the dining tent again I think, and the princess was looking for you." The pirates eyes lingered over the two Shu generals with distrust, "may I ask where you are going?" Zhou Yu looked over his shoulder, "Where do you think? Lu Xun needs help."
"Yep! And we're going to save him!" Xiao Qiao piped up, running ahead to find Lu Meng. Coming back moment's later with the surly strategist in tow.
"What?" Lu Meng scowled, crossing his arms over his chest.
Zhou Yu glared right back, "Lu Meng, I need you to prepare a group of ambush troops to wait in the woods. With a majority of our generals missing, we will need it in case Wei decides to attack us."
"Wei just did attack us, and we were going to strike them again tomorrow." The sour general pointed out, "And then we can all go home and sleep in real beds again."
"If you can make this succeed, we can all go home tomorrow," Zhou Yu insisted.
Lu Meng stopped sulking, suddenly interested. "What did you have in mind?"
Outside of the Wei encampment
"Now what my Lord?" Da Qiao asked, creeping along side her husband in the underbrush. Sun Ce put a finger to his lips, picked up two stones and threw them expertly at the two guardsmen. They fell to the ground, unconscious in an instant. He darted out of the underbrush and before she could even gasp, he was back, dragging their bodies behind him.
"Sheesh...could they have been any lighter?" Sun Ce gasped, dropping the bodies to the floor. "Just grab off the outer tunic Da, Yu and I have done this plenty of times." Ce smiled, covering his clothes with the larger mans coat. Da Qiao did the same, a little more sheepishly, as the coat fell down to her shins and the sleeves, well past her hands. "Ah, and here, you might want some shoes." Sun Ce handed his wife the smaller of the two's shoes, and Da put them on, wincing at how large they were. "Ready? Okay let's go." The couple ran out and into the partially open gate.
"Hey, get back out there! You're shift hasn't changed!" The gate captain yelled.
"Yeah it is, and we're starvin'!" Sun Ce yelled, "anyway, we've got some thing's to report to our commander, so just shut it!"
"Do you really?" The gate captain scowled.
"No, we just decided to come back in of our own accord!" Sun Ce said sarcastically, "Of course we do, and I don't have time for this! See ya'!" Sun Ce walked away, Da Qiao followed hurriedly. Once out of eyesight, they slowed, looking back and forth at the Wei troops as they strapped on armor and readied their weapons.
"Looks like their going to fight again," Da Qiao said softly, as Sun Ce stopped dead in the middle of the road. "My Lord?" Da Qiao looked up at him, before turning to look where he was. What they saw was a familiar girl coming out of a tent, clothed in an uncomfortable garment. "Lord Lu Xun!" Da cried, her voice muffled by her sleeves.
Lu Xun himself looked up in surprise at the familiar voice and ran quietly to them, "My lord, my lady," he bowed his head silently. "I have troubling news. Wei is launching an attack on us in Wu this very night! If we don't hurry-"
"Don't worry, Yu's got it all planned out. But do you have any idea of how we are to get out of here?"
"Yes, follow me," Lu Xun went to the gate that Sun Ce and Da Qiao had entered from earlier.
"Halt-!" The gate captain stopped, bowing his head.
"I am Zhang He's daughter," Lu Xun said quietly, using the alias that Zhang He himself had used to get him inside the camp. "These two are my guards, please allow us to pass with little trouble."
"I am sorry, my lady, but we cannot allow you to pass at the moment, we are about to attack the enemy."
"Under whose orders? Lord Cao Cao has yet to recover."
"Sima Yi's orders my lady."
Lu Xun made his face look affronted, "I was told that I only have to listen to my father and Lord Cao Cao. No one else, not even a snake like Sima Yi." With that, he walked out the gate, followed by Sun Ce and Da Qiao. Once on the trail again, Lu Xun sighed and collapsed on the ground.
"Thank you for coming after me my lord," Lu Xun said, watching as Sun Ce and Da Qiao took off the stolen tunics and hid them in the bushes.
"No problem. It's boring siting around doing nothing in that stupid camp. "However, I can't express how much of a pain it is to not be able to do anything about Sima Yi's plot.
Lu Xun sighed, "You don't know the half of it. Sima Yi was the one who poisoned Lord Zhou Yu and I."
"What!" Sun Ce cried, "I'm gonna go wipe that punk and all his stupid tricks into the dirt!"
"No my lord, stop!" Da Qiao grabbed onto her husband's shirt. "We must wait for Lord Zhou Yu and Xiao!"
"Yeah? Well he better hurry his ass up then!"
"Lord Sun Ce?" Lu Xun piped up suddenly.
"Yeah?" Ce answered, brushing a brown lock of fair out of his eyes.
"Did you two bring your weapons by any chance?"
"I did, and Da brought her mini fan, why?" Ce asked, turning around, eyes widening at the bandits that had formed a semi circle around them. "Oh, I see..." The Little Conqueror took out his tonfa from his belt. "They must be trying to get payback for the guys we wiped out earlier, huh Da?"
"Yes my lord," Da Qiao said quietly, withdrawing the small fan. "I hope they bring my fan's along when they come."
Lu Xun stood up, grasping a stick tightly in both hands. "I hope someone remembers to grab my weapons as well my lady."
On the trail
"H-hey! Wait up!" Xiao Qiao called to her husband and the two Shu officers as they scaled the hill quickly. She carried her fans and her sisters fans together, as she ran up the muddy hill on the now much traveled trail.
"Come on Xiao," Zhou Yu called, a little ways ahead.
"Lady Zhou, I hear the sound of battle in the distance." Zhao Yun called, from the top of the hill. "Shall we go and assist if it is you missing officers?"
Zhou Yu's eyes widened at the idea. "Yes, please do!" He shouted, as Xiao fell in the mud yet again. He looked back once and sprinted up the hill as fast as possible.
"I don't get it!" Xiao groaned to herself as she finally reached the top of the hill. "How can there be so much mud when it hasn't even rained!" She slipped, losing her balance and falling on her back, sliding down the hill. She ran into Zhou Yu, who had been picking his way carefully along the hill and the two rolled to the ground, covered in mud.
"Xiao..." Zhou Yu began, but sat up upon hearing Sun Ce's voice shouting. "Come on, lets hurry."
A little farther along the trail
Lu Xun ducked a blow for his head, and smacked the bandit in the face. "Hey! Fight me! Now her!" Sun Ce yelled, and a simple blow to the neck felled the bandit in one blow. "You okay?" he asked Lu Xun, before he realized that about five more bandits had made their way to attack his 'unprotected' back.
"Lord Sun! Behind you!" A Shu general, Sun Ce forgot his name, came out of nowhere and slashed all five bandits to the ground.
Da Qiao slashed at another bandit with her fan, feeling a sense of dread as she realized that the fan was slowly losing its touch. A bandit ran at her suddenly, and she brought it up to block the man's attack.
"Here we go," the young Shu general, Xing Cai, said in her light voice, slashing the bandit with her weapon, sacred light. "Are you alright?" Xing Cai asked her, helping the elder Qiao to her feet.
"Yes, thank-you," Da Qiao smiled gratefully.
"I'm afraid that your fan will not work as a weapon anymore, you sister is coming and she has your twin fan's with her."
True enough, Xiao Qiao appeared, covered in mud, but otherwise fine. "Da!" Xiao cried, taking her sister's fans and unfolding them, tossing them at her with a small cry. Da caught them easily.
"Thank you Xiao," Da yelled above the bandits screams.
"Lu Xun!" Zhou Yu called, rushing to the young strategists side and handing him his twin sabers.
"Thank you my Lord!" Lu Xun smiled.
"Alright! Let's show 'em what we've got!" Sun Ce cried, "They don't stand a chance against all of us! No matter how many bandits they have!" As if on cue, a couple dozen more bandits came out of the trees. "Think of it this way guys, with these jerks out of our hair," Sun Ce smacked one in the gut, spinning around and kicking another in the face, "the countryside will be much safer!"
"Right!" Xiao Qiao cried, turning to the bandits, "Here comes trouble!" She cried, somersaulting in the air and cutting people down easily.
Lu Xun spun around, slashing people with his twin sabers as he did.
Xing Cai sidled along side Zhao Yun as they disposed the enemy. "You know, these people from Wu aren't that bad, a little clumsy, but it's not like I haven't seen clumsiness before."
"There are no good people, and no bad people in this world, however, Lord Liu Bei is my only master."
"Yes, I know, same with me, but, sometimes I question even out lord." Xing Cai said, disposing of the last bandit with a controlled slash. "I was just commenting on the officers, not the Lord's." The two Shu general's watched in silence as the five Wu generals joked around.
"Alright Yu! Wanna tell me why you were so late?" Sun Ce asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Sun Ce don't be a jerk! Yuie bear would never be late on purpose!" Xiao yelled, slamming Sun Ce with her closed fan.
"Ouch! Hey! I was just wondering why Zhou Yu would be so late!" Sun Ce shouted, grabbing Xiao Qiao's fan with his hands.
"Ce, knock it off." Zhou Yu scowled, looking at Lu Xun, who had opened his mouth.
Zhao Yun beat him to it. "Wait a moment, did you just call her Zhou Yu?"
Xing Cai added her piece, "we thought she was his cousin! What is going on?"
"Sima Yi gave us a poison and changed us into the opposite gender." Lu Xun said bluntly, getting giggles from almost everyone except Zhou Yu and Zhao Yun.
"Really?" Xing Cai said, "That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."
"Ridiculous or not, it is the truth." Lu Xun said to Zhou Yu, who accepted it without question. "I found out where the antidote is too. Its in He Fei castle. And, I discovered something else." Lu Xun took a deep breath before saying it. "We have five days before this becomes permanent."
Zhou Yu's eyes widened in disbelief. "Only five days to get all the way to He Fei castle!" At Lu Xun's nod, he stood, catching everyone off guard. "Then we are leaving now. No one else has to come, But I am leaving this instant." He turned to the Shu officer's and bowed, "Thank you for your help, it is very much appreciated. However, you need not accompany us any farther." He turned to go, with Lu Xun following behind quickly.
"Hold it." Zhao Yun said. "If you are willing to go all the way to He Fei, by yourself, then I guess I have no choice but to believe you. I shall accompany you to He Fei to see that this is turned right."
Xing Cai hesitated only a moment longer before her eyes became sure, "I will too, there's no way I can let you go all by yourself!"
"You know I'm in Yu! There's no way I'm backing down from this!" Sun Ce smiled jovially. Two more shouts followed, and Xiao Qiao slung her arms around Zhou Yu's neck.
"Im in too! There's no way I'm leaving my Yuie bear all alone!"
"And me as well. If I didn't accompany you, how would I be able to keep Lord Sun Ce safe?" Da Qiao said, standing up and holding onto Sun Ce's hand, looking up into his eyes.
Sun Ce sighed, smiling cheerfully as he slung his arm around Da Qiao's shoulder's. "C'mon Da, you can call me Ce you know."
Zhou Yu chuckled, "Well then, come on, if we are ever going to get this set right, we should move out." He eyed Ce, knowing what was coming.
"Okay!" Sun Ce smiled at his best friend, "To He Fei castle! Let's burn it to the ground!" He cried, getting cheers from the Wu officers.
Xing Cai raised a slender brow. "What is it with Wu and fire?"
Zhao Yun chuckled, "I guess it just fit's their burning personality."
"Perhaps, but Wu is like a big pyromaniac family."
Xiao Qiao heard her and giggled, "you hear that? Were a big family of pyromaniac's!"
Zhou Yu smiled, "Well, I guess that's sort of true," He said, looking at his best friend with twinkling eyes. "But it's all Ce's fault."
"What!" Sun Ce yelped, "How is it MY fault! If anything it's father who is at fault here!"
"No, I'm pretty sure it started with the eldest Sun child and his best friend playing in the garden." Zhou Yu smirked, as Da and Xiao giggled hard as they walked along side their husbands.
"..."
Ah, the end of the ninth chapter! Sorry, but I couldn't help putting some banter at the end. Anyway, thank you so much for all of your nice words! I'm so happy you are enjoying this! Well, till the next chapter then!