Chapter 15: The Bamboo Grove

It was around mid-day and cloudy when Chun decided to take a walk in the bamboo grove to clear her mind of everything that was going on around her. When she and China first came to his home she was bombarded with foods, fabrics, and plushies at every corner. It had been so long since she had seen any of those things (in good condition), and she wasn't prepared to have these things at her disposal. It made her want to cry because of all the memories they brought back, but she refused to do it in front of China since he had been such a good and kind host to her (except for the random hug attacks).

It was all too much for her, so when she thought she was far enough from China's house, she sat back on a piece of bamboo and cried into her hands quietly. This went on for ten minutes though it would have gone longer if she hadn't heard a twig snap behind her. She quickly got up and pulled out a meat cleaver, accidentally scratching her face on a sharp branch that was sticking out of one of the stocks of bamboo. She prepared to fight off the perpetrator, though when she saw that it was just a small panda she put her cleaver down and felt like an idiot when she felt the cut start to sting.

"Nǐ hǎo panda," she got onto her knees and put her hand out to the tiny panda that was chewing on a bamboo leaf.

The panda looked at her curiously and wiggled his little nose. "Come here little panda, I'm a friend aru." Chun waved her hand at the panda who stared at her.

He slowly began to walk toward her, still chewing a leaf in his mouth. He sniffed Chun's hand and then looked up at her face which was smiling even though she was crying minutes earlier. Then the little panda jumped onto her lap and settled himself there, almost giving Chun a cuteness overload; she put her hand on the snoozing panda's back and started to talk to him.

"Ya know I used to have a cute panda that looked just like you aru." She rubbed her hand down the panda's back.

She didn't know why but the moment with the panda brought her peace that she had been searching for…until she heard a shout that echoed through the grove.

"PANDAAAAAAA!" China yelled out, scaring the panda back awake.

China walked through the bamboo and came up to Chun and panda.

"Aiya, what are you doing here aru? It's about to rain." China picked up the panda and then helped Chun up.

"I was about to go back. There's no need to worry aru."

China looked at her face and noticed the cut and her eyes which were red from crying. He put panda in the basket on his back and placed one finger by the scrape on Chun's face to examine it.

"What happened aru?"

Surprised by China's hand, Chun jumped back and, by instinct, got into a fighting position which caused her hat to fall off.

"N-nothing aru, just enjoying the fresh air," Chun fell out of her stance.

Chun could feel a little drop of rain splash on the top of her head, but it wasn't noticeably raining yet. China crouched down and grabbed the hat and then walked to Chun who was waiting for him to give her back her hat, but instead he put the hat on himself.

"Very funny, now give me back my hat aru." Chun tried to grab it off China's head but he used his advantage of actually being significantly taller than someone for once to keep the hat on.

"Why were you really out here aru?" He smiled playfully even though the question was quite serious.

Chun frowned at him and lunged up to try and grab her hat, but failed again. She huffed and started to walk back to the house. "Fine, I don't need my hat aru."

She started to march down the grove but all of a sudden was pulled back and picked up by China. "AIYA! What do you think you're doing?!" She struggled to get out of his grasp but it was no use.

"So this is what it's like to be the holder." China said to himself.

"Put me down aru!" Chun demanded.

China started to walk down to the house while still holding a fighting Chun in his hands and a panda on his back. "Where did you get that scratch?"

Chun was frustrated with his remark since she didn't want to admit to being surprised by a little panda bear. "I've had it aru." She lied poorly.

"You can't lie to a man as old as me and get away with it aru."

"We're the same age -_-."

China stopped and tried to think of a comeback but when he couldn't think of one he started to walk again. Chun felt like she was slipping so she undesirably put her arms around a winded China's neck. China was beginning to slow down and eventually he stopped and had to put Chun down to rest.

"You should take better care of yourself aru." Chun nagged to the panting China who was sitting down on the grass.

"I take great care of myself. H-how *pant* do you stay so fit aru?" China panted.

"I train on a regular basis and I don't eat oil filled foods every day like you do aru."She sounded somewhat disappointed in China.

"Why?" Chun looked at him in surprise; she wasn't prepared to answer such a question.

"Why not, it obviously works aru." Chun sat down next to China.

"But how do you not use oils in your food aru?" China looked at her intently.

"I don't have any oil to use. It's all being contained or shipped out aru."

"Ah…Huh?" China didn't have a clue on why she would do such a thing.

Chun sighed and explained to him why. "When our world was invaded, many resources were cut, so we had to preserve and contain whatever we could aru. Cooking oil is one of those things aru."

China wanted to know more but he refrained from asking since he could tell the topic was depressing Chun. Rain started to come down a little harder so Chun got up and motioned for them to leave.

"Come on, it's starting to come down aru." Chun pulled China up.

China then grabbed Chun and put her over his shoulder even though he was still a tired. Chun tried to kick China but he restrained her legs and tried to walk normally back to the house.

"Again?! We'll get there sooner if you put me down you idiot aru." She pouted.

"But you haven't told me why you got the cut aru." China teasingly answered back.

Chun could feel her weight slowing down China whose breathing was becoming heavy again so she decided, in his favor, that she would just tell him. "I got it when I hit a branch because I thought Panda was a stalker aru. NOW PUT ME DOWN!"

China set her down and panted loudly, and then he fell in exhaustion while it was still raining.

"Aiya, what are you doing?" She pulled him back onto his feet and took her hat back.

"J-just tired, that's all aru." China didn't enjoy being like this in front of Chun but he couldn't help it.

Then Chun did something miraculous. She took China and threw him across her shoulder, showing off her incredible strength and embarrassing China at the same time.

"You need to exercise more aru."

China didn't have the energy to argue so he just glared at the ground embarrassed while the tiny Chinese girl carried him without issue.

The two made it to the house, somehow without getting drenched in the rain. The two sat down on a couch that had a lantern red and bamboo green printed pattern. China looked at the scrape on Chun's face again, and then he remembered that he had a Hello Kitty Band-Aid in his pocket. Feeling foolish for forgetting, he handed it to Chun who cautiously put it on her face. She thanked him and the two sat in silence while watching the Panda roll around on the floor, then China spoke up.

"Why were you really in the forest aru?"

Chun looked outside through the window and watched as the rain droplets came down. "Just getting fresh air aru."

"That's a lie."

"Why is that aru?

"Because I heard you crying aru."

Chun looked at China with a shiver going down her spine; she had gone into the grove so that she wouldn't have to tell China anything.

"I don't know what you're talking about aru." Chun tried to avoid the topic but China wouldn't drop it.

"Don't lie to big brother, tell me."

Chun looked at China's serious face and decided to tell him then leave to her room to sulk on her own.

"I hate not being able to fight for my country anymore. It's like I'm taking a selfish vacation while the others who are still in my world are fighting aru. I-I just don't want to lose anyone again." She cringed at the thought and got up to go to her room but China grabbed her arm and stopped her from going any further.

"Who did you lose?" His tone had become as serious as it could ever be.

Chun pulled her arm out of his grasp and started to yell at him. "DON'T YOU KNOW WHEN TO STOP ASKING QUESTIONS ARU?!" Her eyes were tearing up. "DO YOU REALLY THINK I WANT TO TALK ABOUT SOMETHING THAT'S KILLED SO MANY OF MY PEOPLE AND PANDA?! ARE YOU REALLY SO NAIVE?"

China sat motionless while Chun shook, finally releasing all the tension she had bottled up inside. She fell onto the floor and wiped away the tears with her huge sleeves.

Chun looked at China, feeling more defenseless than she ever had in the past. China felt dreadful inside for pushing so hard and not realizing it soon enough, but he knew now the pain that Chun was in. He realized that she was war torn from the constant death and fighting that went on in her world, but she had kept the pain hidden and only let out things that seemed to benefit those around her.

"Chun?"

"W-what," she sniffled.

"Can I have a hug aru?" China asked quietly.

Chun looked at her host for a moment then embraced him, never wanting to let go because for once in the past few years, she actually felt safe.

-I know China isn't one to be nosy and all but I didn't know how else to set up the story. Also, if you think of all the war, betrayal, and everything else China and Chun have gone through then add the destruction of an entire planet, that's just too much to bear for one person.

-I was listening to 4000 years by China and ended up crying a little. :'(. That's some deep stuff.

-Hope you guys liked it