Hi, I'm back! lol, I know, I know, I lost track of things (again) ... But the good thing is, I'm here now to fill in everyone reading these words right now on the latest chapter in the story! And of course, before anything else, thank you to everyone who reviewed (though I know I didn't really get that many:(), I really appreciate it! I hope this chapter makes all of you happy after so many ones w/out any romance when that's supposed to be the main genre of this fanfic...

Ooooh, and another thing, this chapter was specially hard for me to write, and it might seem really confusing in some spots, so please, PLEASE read ALL the paragraphs to fully comprehend what's going on, I IMPLORE you!

Well, anyway, without further ado, here's Chapter 17.

Enjoy!

"Da? Da, it's me. Get up."

Da Qiao raised her face from her pillow. She had been crying for what seemed like hours. But when she saw that Sun Shang Xiang's face also showed traces of tears, her own sorrows suddenly felt selfish and insignificant.

"C'mon, Da," Shang Xiang whispered. She walked up to Da, took hold of her hand, and attempted to yank her off the bed, but Da wouldn't budge.

"No. I don't want to. Please, just... just leave me alone."

Da's voice sounded as though it was made of cobwebs, as though she'd forgotten how to use it. All she wanted to do was curl up and stay in bed for the rest of her life. When she thought of how magical all this time she'd spent at Jian Ye Palace was, a lump would form at her throat, and then tears would come rushing out. It seemed like another age, another Da Qiao.

"Da, please," Shang Xiang repeated, the urgency in her voice startling, "You've got to. L-Lord... Lord Sun Jian wants you to."

Da leapt up abruptly, not to her feet, but high enough for Shang Xiang to see her look of terror.

"What? Why? Wh-what does he want us for?"

Da's face, which had been pink from sobbing, was now turning pale within seconds.

Shang Xiang looked at her, sadness reflected in her eyes. She was tired. She was miserable. Her father had received her with hardly a smile, coldly and frigidly. And now he was refusing to see anyone, save for Sun Quan. Why he had agreed to Quan's strange request of speaking in private, Shang Xiang didn't know. All she knew was that she was hurt. Hurt beyond words, for now, even her eldest brother hadn't looked her way. All day, ever since she saw him, he seemed like he no longer knew who he was.

"Not both," she said softly, bitterly. "You."

Sun Jian eyed his second son warily.

"Are you sure of this, Quan?"

"Of course I am, Father."

Quan cursed himself for having spoken too soon- soon enough for his father to raise a suspicious eyebrow at him. He prayed that his face would betray no emotion.

Unfortunately, it seemed as if it had.

"I am not yet convinced, my son."

Quan took a deep breath, even as his courage failed him.

Come on. You can do this. There's nothing wrong with it, nothing really. You wanted this. You're doing the right thing. C'mon, tell him already!

"Father, ever since Ce and Yu brought those girls here, I realized that something was amiss. It's an understatement to say that their behavior was inappropriate. They were always in each other's company for far too long. And they might have thought that the looks that they'd pass to each other escaped my eyes, but if they had, I doubt I'd be standing here right now."

Sun Jian remained silent, but his face had grown more and more intense as Quan spoke. He nodded, and Quan continued,

"Ce never even mentioned how they found those girls in the first place. After all, it's obvious that they come from a prosperous family, so they definitely have a home to return to, don't they? And any fool can see that they've been well-cared for wherever they come from. What's the point of keeping them here for so long? There's a limit even to hospitality the last time I checked, Father, and if you ask me, I'd say that not only has Ce crossed it weeks ago, but-"

Sun Jian cut Quan off with a wave of his hand.

"Quan, I have faith in you. But you forget that your brother is also my son. Any dishonor to his name will be unaccept-"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean him any disrespect," Quan said at once, and he meant it, too. "It's just that... Father, please forgive me- but it's just that thinking about all these past events- I somehow almost forgot that he was... my brother."

Sun Jian's eyes widened, then narrowed again.

I think I've said a bit overmuch.

Quan could feel himself sweating now.

"Are you certain you have not uttered these words out of pure spite, Quan?"

With all the strength he possessed, Quan calmed himself from a hasty, panic-stricken reply.

"My only intention is to save my brother from himself, Father. Nothing more."

Sun Jian lowered his eyes pensively. When he raised his head again, Quan was there, no longer fidgety, no longer nervous and restless as he had always been in childhood, but standing utterly still and patient, meeting his father's gaze without a flinch.

Sun Jian sighed heavily.

"Very well, Quan. You may go."

Quan bowed low to his father respectfully, turned on his heel, and made his way to the door to wrench it open.

Da was standing right under his nose at once when the door swung forth.

Quan began panicking right away. How long had she been there? Had she heard? Was she spying on him?

But when he saw the look on her face, he relaxed- she'd clearly only just arrived.

He suddenly became aware that her large eyes were fixed on his, seeming like fearful question marks. It was the first time he realized that her irises were of the exact same hue as his brother's. And they were pleading with him to stay and help her get through this. He could see that she'd been crying. She needed someone familiar to stand with her while she faced his father.

But he forced his ice-blue eyes to look away from her, and hardened his heart. He pushed aside all his guilt and stayed remorseless.

It's all for her own good. I've just helped her, too. She'll surely thank me someday, they all will.

He swept past her without a word and disappeared.

Da just stood there, afraid to enter on her own. She was simply shaking. She prayed to the gods for strength. She prayed that Sun Jian would be merciful towards her, unlike her own father. It was then that it occurred to her that no hardship she ever encountered was as unnerving and danger-filled as this one- perhaps because her sister had been with her through them all. But this time, she was alone.

"Please enter."

Da Qiao had to stifle her gasp. How did he know?

She took several deep breaths, and braced herself as she prepared to obey his command.

Don't be such a scaredy-cat, Da. Quan was here just a moment ago. His father's got to be more understanding after talking to him about us.

She slipped into his chambers and shut the door behind her.

"Yu!"

Zhou Yu had known that Xiao Qiao was there even before she screamed his name. When he whipped around, he knew what she was there for even as she walked towards him, her eyes ablaze with fury, her hands clenched into fists at her sides, her dress billowing about her as she strode nearer and nearer to where he stood.

Ordinarily, seeing Xiao like this would have worried him, or even frightened him, but now, for the strangest of reasons, he found himself gazing with fascination at all her perfection- her beautiful face, her hair- which had now come loose of its usual high, tight ponytail, and was flowing freely past her shoulders, almost to her waist- her body, her dress, even the anger itself in which she was moving owned a certain charm which had him taken completely. He had no idea why he was seeing all this more clearly than ever at a time like this- when he should have been praying to his ancestors to safeguard his life- but all he knew was that fear and guilt were two of the emotions he was not feeling.

When he had seen Sun Jian making his way towards the palace, he'd not believed it. But when he caught sight of Sun Ce following behind him, looking as though he'd lost himself, he knew exactly what had taken place in his absence.

He would have followed them if he was given his own way, but Yu knew better than to do that. Instead, he stayed in the gardens, pacing agitatedly, wondering what was going on at the palace as he alone dwelt in his own frustration, his quick mind trying to figure out what they were all to do once Sun Jian issued his orders.

And now, he felt all his anxiety and nerves melting away as he watched Xiao. He found that he couldn't wait for her to reach him. But when she did, she suddenly gave him a fierce push with both her hands and all her strength that, catching him off-guard, sent him flat on his back. He rose at once, just in time to dodge another push that was just as strong as the first.

"Xiao, I-"

"Shut up!"

Xiao was beside herself with rage. From the moment that Ce's father had left her to herself, she'd been looking for Yu, just to vent her anger on him. She found him quite a period later, pacing, his forehead drawn and confused. But that made no difference to her! She would rage at him if it was the last thing she ever did!

"How can you?" she yelled.

"How could you just lie to me like that? I trust you, and you can't even tell me that Ce's papa was coming back! Why can't you trust me, Yu, what's wrong with me? I thought you were my best friend, but now I guess you just never took our friendship seriously enough to tell me anything! Did you ever care about me at all? Because I don't think you did! You've used me, lied to me, hurt me, and- and... and why on earth are you looking at me like that? Stop it!"

But Yu found that he couldn't stop. Even though part of him wanted to, another part wouldn't allow him to. It was awfully hard to choose between the two.

"Yu? Uhhhh...okay, Yu, you're scaring me now, stop it!" said Xiao, taking a few steps back from him, alarmed that she hadn't received a reaction from him yet.

Without realizing it, Yu took several steps towards her. His face was clear of all emotion, only his eyes were alert, intense and searching her. He didn't know what had possessed him to act this way, but he knew it was not something that wasn't already part of him, and was therefore quite safe. His eyes were fixed on her intently, as though he were transfixed, as though she enchanted him.

Xiao backed away from him further, only to touch the bark of a large tree with her back. She was trapped!

"Okay, okay, Yu, I'm sorry! Joke's over, alright? You win. Can you please stop it now?"

Xiao's sweet, childish voice was shaking. This was most unlike Yu. Just what was he up to? She didn't like it, that was for sure! Yu closed in on her, coming even nearer now. Their noses were almost touching, and Xiao could see that even though his eyes were identical in color to hers, the qualities and characteristics they revealed could not have been more contrasting.

"Yu," she whispered, truly afraid now, "what are you doing, Yu?"

It occurred to her that he'd never before looked more handsome than he did now. Perhaps his being pretty had nothing to do with the reasons which Wu called him 'The Beautiful Warrior Zhou' for. Perhaps all that was only what she was forcing herself to think.

A strange, foreign feeling filled her, and her heart gave a funny little jolt. She felt herself growing numb, staring into his eyes like that! The fear that she was taken over by was now ebbing away. She couldn't think straight. What had she even come here for? Why had she been looking for him again? To shout at him? Had she actually been mad at him?

Yu still hadn't moved. Then, very slowly, he reached out and cupped her soft, apple-blossom cheek. Warmth spread rapidly through her body from his fingertips. What on earth was happening to her? Now he had her staring at him uncontrollably! Why was she doing that? It wasn't as if she'd never seen him before, was it?

But now it dawned on Xiao that the only other time she had ever looked at Yu properly was the first time they met, when she flattened him to the ground after falling from a ten-foot tree. And then she realized that Yu hadn't even known she was there. She'd come hurtling at him from out of nowhere, and he hadn't in fact been trying to help her, but actually had no idea what hit him.

Suddenly, she couldn't bear the sight of her savior, and she couldn't bring herself to turn away from him, either. All she became aware of was the warmth of his hand, and how wonderful he was making her feel. Why hadn't she ever paid such attention to him before? They always did what she wanted the two of them to do, it was he who always listened to her, she rarely ever asked him a single question about himself, his feelings, his thoughts his emotions; she never tried to see the world through his eyes, the way he always would for her...

And Yu had quietly and patiently borne it all, just so he could understand her.

She became filled with the knowledge that he'd occupied her every thought since she met him, that she always felt her heart pound with excitement whenever he was around, that she was always saddened whenever he was called away to tutor young Lu Xun, or to attend to his duties as the future strategist of Wu.

But what did it all mean? Did it make any sense? Should she ask him? She was sure he'd know, after all, he knew everything... didn't he?

"Yu, I..." she began. But then Yu's eyes softened, and his gaze grew so tender, it robbed her of her breath and rational thoughts, and cut her off from finishing her sentence.

Instead, she shut her eyes, and pressed the hand that was upon her cheek with both of her own, tilting her head to his touch.

Yu brought his face just a tiny bit closer to hers. His other hand slipped itself around her waist. Xiao's eyes fluttered open. She was so radiant against the sunlight, so lovely and unmarked. She stared up at him from beneath her long, curved eyelashes. Yu bent closer to her, but then stopped. She could tell that he was reluctant in whatever it was that he wanted to say, or do.

Xiao wanted to help make it easier for him, but she was too entranced to even try.

His eyes were right there, looking into her own, inviting her to something which she didn't quite understand- not yet. His face was right there, beautiful and shadowy despite the strong light surrounding them. His lips were right there.

On impulse, without planning it or realizing what she was doing, Xiao wrapped both her arms around his neck, brought herself to the tip of her toes, and pressed her sweet lips to his softly.

This initiation was enough for Yu, and he responded immediately. He covered her waist with his arms and lifted her off of her tiptoes, making her head perfectly level with his. His nose was touching hers, his hand slid up her back and settled on her cheek once more, pushing away the strands of hair from her face. She tasted so sweet, so wonderful to him! She was like an angel. But the best part was that she'd given herself up to him so trustingly, with complete submission. It made him feel...important.

Like a big person in her eyes, Yu thought, smiling against the kiss.

He held her closer so that their foreheads touched, her hair softly blowing around the two of them from contact with the wind.

Xiao couldn't describe what she was feeling. This was amazing, this was bliss, this was heaven. That Yu was so capable of a touch as rich and glorious as this both awed and thrilled her. Instinctively, she ran a hand through his chocolate brown hair, and when he finally began to pull away, thinking that she might feel insecure from their sudden intimacy, she leaned in towards him.

When Xiao refused to let go of Yu, he knew at once that he'd done the right thing. He held on for even longer, but he knew that they had to stop sooner or later. Most reluctantly, he pulled away from the kiss, but held on to her, his hand going underneath her chin.

Xiao's face was pink, and she was slightly breathless. Her eyes were wide from surprise. She blinked up at Yu a few times, noticed that he was still holding her up, blushed hard and covered her face with her hands, but not before Yu caught sight of a big smile across her face.

He set her down, gently pried her hands from her face, and kissed her forehead, nose and cheeks. She seemed to be recovering from her utter shock and embarrassment. She giggled, then dove at him, knocking him to the ground once more, but this time, he didn't get to his feet as the side of her head was tucked into his neck, her hand reaching for his.

For a long time, neither of them said a word.

Then, Xiao raised her head off his chest and half-rose until she was seated on him. She stared at him in wonder as she said,

"Wow, Yu."

Yu smiled. Her hand was already holding his, and he intertwined her little fingers with his comparatively massive ones.

She had no idea how much he'd been wanting this, how long he'd dreamed of it for.

"Oh, Yu, you've no idea how much I've actually wanted this!"

Yu blinked. What was that she'd said?

"I didn't either," Xiao went on, "until now, I guess. I mean, I never knew what I was missing out on, I was always such a kid, but now you showed me what it was, and I'm so glad, because now I know how much I wanted you to, and I really, really, never knew you could, but I think you're amazing, and that your lips are very nice when they kiss, and-"

Yu raised himself up into a sitting position and softly brushed his lips against hers in a kiss to shut her up. When he let go of her, he saw that her eyes had misted over. Could she be crying? He was alarmed.

Xiao lowered her eyes.

"Yu, I'm sorry," she whispered.

Yu was stunned. What was she apologizing for?

"Xiao, there's... there's nothing to be-"

"I never tried hard enough to understand you," Xiao said softly, still refusing to look up at him, although now she was sitting on his lap, facing him, still clasping his hand tightly.

"I was always doing everything I wanted to do, and you still listened to me. I hardly thought about how nice that was of you. I just..."

Breaking off, she looked up at him.

"Kind of took you for granted, didn't I?"

She had her other hand on his chest, and she could feel his heart beat rhythmically through her fingers. She wanted more than ever to let him know- to let his heart know that she was sorry, truly and genuinely sorry.

Yu fought the urge to scoop her up and kiss her again. He knew that there was much truth in her words, but the last thing he wanted to do was cause her more sadness. Besides, nothing she'd done had ever hurt him in any way, and he knew that she never meant to.

Instead, he let her go on.

Xiao took a deep breath.

"I guess that's why you couldn't bring yourself to tell me that Ce's papa- I mean, L-Lord Sun Jian was coming home, huh? Because you didn't think I'd understand?"

He caressed the side of her neck with his thumb lovingly.

"No, Xiao. It was my fault. I should have confided in you more. I don't blame you at all. You told me everything about yourself, and I barely told you anything about who I am. You were right to be mad at me when... well, when you got here."

He saw that she was relieved. She was smiling at him with pleasure.

He couldn't resist teasing her a little, however.

"You have been a real pain in the butt sometimes, though," he said, his eyes twinkling mischievously.

Xiao giggled, thumping him across the chest, then burying her face in it. Yu sighed and stroked her hair, inhaling its sweet fragrance.

Finally. She was finally his. He wanted to stay this way with her forever. He finally found her.

Yu suddenly became aware that she was murmuring something into his chest. Bending down, he heard a muffled voice saying,

"Yu? Couldn't you do that to me again?"

He straightened up, smiling. He knew very well what she was implying.

"I'll have to think about that," he said, causing her to jerk up and look at him petulantly.

But when she saw his smile, she knew that he was only teasing. Taking a deep breath, she said,

"Pretty please, Yu?"

"Absolutely," he said softly, and, drawing her in, he covered her lips with his, gladly entrapping her mind, body and most importantly, her heart, into perpetual bliss and joy once more.

Da stood before Sun Jian, her hands behind her back, her head bent. She forced herself to stay calm, forced herself to stand still. She felt Sun Jian pacing slowly about the room. She wondered what was on his mind. She wondered what was to become of her and her sister. But most of all, she wondered, desperately, if she was going to survive this encounter- if she could see Ce's face again after this.

"Would you prefer to be seated?"

His voice came out somewhat gruff, but on the whole, not unkind, Da thought.

"No, thank you, my lord."

Da's voice was a mere whisper. She tried to repeat herself more clearly, but she found that her mouth just wouldn't obey, and stayed shut.

She still couldn't bring herself to meet eyes with him.

"Very well, then. As you wish."

Sun Jian had stopped pacing, and know she could tell that he was facing her, probably contemplating her from head to foot.

"Who are you, young lady?"

She could sense the curiosity in his voice, and the urge to know what he had asked her.

For the first time, she raised her face to look at him properly.

Sun Jian had a powerful build, and he was tall and stately, giving the perfect impression of a regal warlord and emperor. He seemed as though he were aging, it was true, but still decidedly more young than old. As for his face, his eyes were an astonishing golden, and looked as though they were overflowing with wisdom and penetrating intensity. He had a strong forehead and nose, and even though Da had heard that Ce had taken most after his mother, Lady Wu, even to her, his resemblance to his father was clear.

She remembered herself, and hurried to answer his question.

"I am Da Qiao, my lord."

Sun Jian's eyebrows, which had been formed into a pensive knot all the while he had been looking at her, instantly raised themselves and cleared, as though he had received all the information he needed, as though his suspicions had been confirmed.

"And who is your father, child?"

This surprised her. She had a feeling he would ask of her parentage, but not so soon and so suddenly.

Nevertheless, she replied,

"His name his Qiao Xuan, my lord. The Duke of Jiang Dong."

Sun Jian was still watching her intently. She then realized her insolence and audacity to stare at him so obviously, and hastened to lower her eyes back to the floor.

She should have apologized for her cheek, but Sun Jian made nothing over this. She heard him rise from his seat once more, and rummage about the room for something.

She willed herself to stand stiffly through it all, never shifting her gaze from her feet.

When she heard him return to his place, she spared herself a quick glance at him, and noticed a piece of parchment held in his hand.

Then, he asked a most unexpected question.

"Does this mean anything to you, child?"

YIPPEEEEEEEEEEEEE! I DID it! Yu and Xiao have FINALLY kissed! Woo-hooooo! Am I the best, or am I the best!

Okay, please excuse the over-excitedness, I'm just glad that I could give you SOME fluffy romance after the long, boring interval of serious events... I hope all you Yu/Xiao fans are satisfied that their relationship's not underdeveloped ANYMORE! And that they finally understand each other completely now!

But wait a minute... what's Sun Jian gonna show to Da? Will Yu and Xiao's relationship hold after it? What's Sun Quan's PROBLEM? Where the heck is Sun Ce ANYWAY?

If you liked this chapter, and would like me to update soon, please, PLEASE send me reviews, I worked REALLY hard on this one to please you!