They sat on their bed, the two sisters hugging each other. Homesickness was slowly eating at them, much like everything else. No tears were shed, having no new reason to cry, but they still held each other in a tight embrace. The mood hung outside their window, proving it to be closer to midnight, its silver light only causing them to wish harder for home.
Both sisters, though it remained unspoken, new they could not live long here. In only a weak they were walking shells of their former glory. Each time they saw a mirror they were reminded of how pitiful they were. Only a weak, and they had given up hope. How horribly pitiful they were.
Xiao's head rested on Da's chest as Da swayed back and forth. Their room was silent save for their heavy breathing when Chan knocked on the door. Da called out, allowing her entrance, and stared solemnly. Chan had lived through this for decades, and they were already falling apart. She wanted to hate herself, but could not bring herself to care.
"The wall cry for you," Chan said while taking a seat in a chair.
"You cry for us?" Xiao asked, still trying to wrap her mind entirely around Chan's problem. Chan only gave Xiao a small smile before turning her head to the moon.
"Is there a reason for this visit Lady Chan?" Da asked, releasing Xiao.
"There hadn't been, except I remembered this." Chan's smile widened a little, and she pulled out a mirror from her coat. Xiao slid of the bed and looked into the mirror. How broken she looked, Xiao thought and redirected her gaze to Chan's face.
"It is one of the magical artifacts that Lord Zhuo has horded. Hold it, and ask for anybody in the world, and it will show you them. I had thought, that maybe, it would help you feel better."
"Anybody?" Xiao's face lit up a bit, a small smile on her face. At Chans nod, she took the mirror and sat back on the bed. Folding her legs under her, she called out for her father. Da leaned of her shoulder to look in the mirror with wide eyes. The mirror swirled like a whirlpool and when it stopped, they looked into their father's room. He laid in his bed, looking worse then them. He was all bone, his skin a more yellow color than the soft brown it had been. His hair was thin, and his coughs seemed to take all of this energy.
Both girls gasped. Da brought her hand to her mouth, tears swelling in her eyes. Xiao's grip on the mirror tightened, and she bit her bottom lip. A maid walked into the room and held some water to the mans lips, helping him drink it. Sadly, he coughed much of it up and his soaked into the bed sheets and his shirt.
"Father," Xiao mumbled.
"Make it go away Xiao. It is horrible," Da said while averting her eyes to bed sheet. The picture swirled until it was just a mirror again.
"My sincerest of apologies! I had not meant to bring you more pain; I had only thought-" Chan started, frowning.
"No, I am glad we can see the outside world again Lady Chan. Only…" Da could not finish.
"Show me Yu," Xiao whispered. She swallowed the lump in her throat, ignoring Da and Chan. The mirror swirled again, and showed Yu. He looked as handsome as ever. His long hair fell loose behind his shoulders. He wore the customary red of a Wu general. His slender hands were clasped behind his back as he looked outward. Tents were behind him, and he looked out into some trees. Xiao gasped, jaw trembling.
She had thought seeing him would bring her strength. Instead, it made her feel like crying again. Her hands shook, yet the picture remained constant. "Do you… do you want to see my love Lady Chan?" Xiao stuttered, looking up. Chan stood and slipped onto the bed on the opposite side of Xiao to look. "He is marvelous Lady Xiao."
"I'm going to marry him," Xiao said with a smile. Chan opened her mouth to say something, but fell silent when Yu turned to talk.
"Soon we shall return, Ce," Yu said. Ce entered the view of the mirror, causing Da to gasp. He had not changed either. He strolled next to Yu and grinned.
"I'm glad Pops decided to come get them. It was difficult without Da," Ce said.
"In a day we shall be in their town."
"Meaning, in a day we will no longer be the most sought after bachelors," Ce joked.
"Quite right my dear friend," Yu said. Both men laughed. Xiao dropped the mirror, it landing in her lap. The picture swirled rapidly and the picture disappeared.
"A day!" She cried out, looking to Da. The tears fell from both. Their loves were so close, the castle not too far from their home. Their father had only taken a day to return home. Da cried out and fell face first into some pillows to weep as Xiao tried to stop the tears.
Chan's frown deepened as she looked upon the two girls as they wept. To have love so close, but not within reach was something she was all to familiar with. She had been planning their escape for such a long time, spending her days conversing with Lord Bu. She had always believed that even though he was stone, he could still hear her. But, she could never figure out how to get Da out. But with such strong men near by, who undoubtedly would help them, maybe they could escape.
"Dearest girls, you might escape yet," Chan started carefully. Both girls silenced to look at Chan with wide, disbelieving eyes. "My thoughts are shaky, and I am afraid of my plan, but it might work."
"A way to escape? Would you not have left already?" Da asked, wiping at her eyes.
"Not for me. This plan would never work for me." Chan smiled sadly. "The night you came, there was a feast on a table for you. Do remember?"
"Yes. Xiao flung it all from the table."
"And that is your saving grace! Lord Zhuo, in all his arrogance, made a fatal mistake in the past week that I felt no need to correct. On that night, he put a spell on the food. That is why you could not leave, Lady Da. By eating the food, that one grape, you were caged. Lady Xiao never took a bite that night, and she has yet to try and leave. I never told him Lady Xiao never ate, and he has never used the spell on you girls again."
"So, I could leave?" Xiao's face brightened.
"I had not told you before, because I had not thought she would fare well in the forest alone. Nor that she would leave you Lady Da. But, with strong warriors camping so close to this castle, I think that maybe she may leave to them. Leave to find help." Chan looked between the two. "Maybe, Lord Yu could think of a way to break this spell."
"Lady Chan! You are marvelous!" Xiao cried, wrapping her arms around Chan. "Never would we have thought of it!"
"I-" Chan stuttered, unused to human contact. "I shall be dangerous." Lord Zhuo would never agree to have only one Qiao. For this, they all could take a severe lashing from the lord. Or, herself and Da. Then the whole breaking the spell, Chan did not think there was a way other than to kill Zhuo. He worked in deep dark magic, and was careful with his spells. Loopholes were nearly non existent. But, if Lord Ce and Yu could kill Zhuo, that would be find.
Chan looked from Xiao to Da, and their eyes met. Da knew, Chan realized, how slim her own chances were. Da knew what would happen as soon as Zhuo figured it out, she would be in pain. But Da smiled, and nodded her head. "This is wonderful Chan. But, Xiao should leave now. The sooner she leaves, the less likely that fat man will be to catch her. Is there anyway to know where Lord Ce and Lord Yu are?"
"I can try and find out," Chan said, frowning.
"Thank you Lady Chan. You are saving us," Da said, smiling. "Xiao, find a bag and pack things up. You need to leave soon."
"The night is still young, you will have plenty of time," Chan said with a nod.
"What?"
"Lord Zhuo, at night, turns into a hideous beast. His side effect to the spell. He locks himself away, so as not to go on a rampage of rage. If he leaves the castle grounds, he will forever be that beast. He dwells in the tallest tower, locked away. I keep the door locked, for no world deserves something like that let loose." Chan quickly explained. "I am going to try and feel for a general location of your loves. Please, hurry Lady Xiao." With that, Chan slipped through the floor of the castle.
"I'd never get used to that," Xiao mumbled before pulling on a dress. When finished, she turned to Da who was packing away things. "I'll find them and return Da, for you and Lady Chan. Probably Bu too," Xiao added as an afterthought. "So don't worry okay?"
"Xiao, if there is no way to break the spell, do not return. One of us should be free." Da looked up with a stern expression. "I do no want you back here if there is not one. Zhuo would be none too kind to you should you return. Promise me, please."
"But-"
"Promise me Xiao. You will not return, no matter what, if there is no way to save us." Da grabbed Xiao's arm and stared her in the eyes. "Please."
"… I don't like it. You can't survive this alone-"
"Neither of us would survive long, Xiao. The man is killing us, even as we speak. You are allowed to go and live happily with Lord Yu. Do so. For me. I can have a form of bittersweet happiness if you can live on happy. Please."
"…I promise."
"Thank you Xiao," Da said, pulling her into a hug. If only one had to die, then only one should die, she decided.
"I'll keep looking. I'll always look for a way, Da," Xiao said into Da's hair.
"Get married and have lots of little babies with Lord Yu in the lands of Wu Xiao. Save Father and smile often." Da pulled back and handed Xiao the bag. "I am going to stay here, just incase. I'll watch from the window." Because I am not strong enough to watch you leave me, Da added silently. She smiled at Xiao, who shed a few tears, and hugged her sister for a final time. With a choked sob, she exited the room and silently made her way to the entrance gate.
Chan was already at the gate, and quickly pointed the way. Xiao half listened, her head turning to look at her sister who clung to the curtains and cried at the window. At Chan's harsh tone, she turned and looked the way Chan pointed. Xiao nodded her head, and choked back and sob when Chan bent down and kissed her forehead and mumbled good luck.
Xiao tenderly opened the gate, not sure whether she wanted it to really open for her. It swung open with a creak. It sounded so loud in the silent yard. Xiao took slow steps out, but dared not look back, afraid she'd break. Grip tightening on her bag, she started to run through the forest the way Chan had pointed. The snow made things difficult, and loud, but Xiao didn't care.
Her dress quickly became soaked with as many times as she had fallen, and she lost both shoes by time she felt lost. She was freezing, and she couldn't feel her toes. Rubbing her arms, she slowed to a walk and glanced around the dark forest. She didn't think it was a bad as the stories made it out to be, the dark forest. The snow caught a lot of the light, making it easy to see, and she had yet to see any yellow eyes staring at her.
But, she could see her breath, and she knew she would soon freeze out in the forest. And, she couldn't do that. She had to at least give Da the freedom, that rush she had felt when she couldn't see the castle anymore. And she had to see Yu again. She had to feel him hugging her again, and him mumbling those sweet words that told her she was his everything. Those words that made her giggle and feel so special. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Xiao continued forward.
Her legs started to hurt when she couldn't see the moon anymore. It was setting. Zhuo was waking up soon. Biting her bottom lip till it bled, Xiao tried to quicken her pace. Instead, she tripped and let out a shriek. Her face stung from the cold, and the snow was clinging to her. It no longer melted and soaked her, proving her body temperature to be dropping. Giving in to one sob, Xiao pushed herself up. She had to hurry. Da would soon have to face Zhuo alone. Da was alone. Sobbing again, Xiao broke into a run, yelling for Yu and Ce.
Her throat hurt from the screaming and ragged breaths when she caught sight of the small glow of a camp fire. There were sounds, telling her some soldiers who were traveling with the lords had heard her. She screamed again, pitifully, and fell to her knees. Some yellow glow was coming closer, telling her that they brought torches. Her arms fell limp at her sides, and when she could make out a face, she smiled. "Lord Yu," Xiao said, although somewhere in the back of her mind she registered that it really wasn't him. As she collapses, she heard the solder giving off orders.
Zhou Yu watched his friend pace the small space in the tent. He hadn't stopped since Xiao had been carried into camp. A soldier had come running in, yelling about a small girl saying his name. Easily, both jumped to their feet and dashed out to see a general carrying a battered, sick looking Xiao. Both he and Ce panicked at the sight of her. Some servants had taken her, and the healer quickly went to work.
Ce had quickly, even before consulting Lord Sun Jian, sent soldiers out to look for Da. They hadn't returned yet. Xiao was in horrible condition, although with care she would live. She was underfed and in the weather had easily caught a cold that at this point was bad. Her fever was too high, and yet she shivered in bed. She spoke in her sleep, that being about the only time Ce was still, and she told broken sentences of monsters and being alone.
How Yu wanted to just hold her, to lock here away somewhere safe. Whatever had happened in the weeks that they had left had left his little Butterfly broken with Da nowhere in sight. Hands clasped tight in her lap, he sat next to her bed and watched. Ce looked from her to Yu, and then to the tents entrance when it opened. Lord Sun Jian entered the tent, looking as he always did.
His red armor was magnificent, and his brown hair, though slightly thinning, was pulled into a small ponytail at the base of his next. He had a five o'clock shadow (no matter what time, Yu had never seen Jian without a type of beard) and his jade eyes scanned them all. They stopped on Xiao's face, and softened. "She is the one? One of the Two Qiaos?" Jian asked.
"Yes milord," Yu said with a bow of his head.
"Hn, she looks horrible." All three fell silent. Jian moved and took a seat opposite of Yu to look at Xiao more closely. "The other Qiao, she is-"
"We don't know." Yu said with a glance to Ce who stiffened.
"How terrible." Again, silence reigned. Xiao started to groan, twisting in the sheets. Everybody turned, not sure what to do. Xiao, when Yu touched her shoulder, lunged up into a seating position while gasping for air.
"Xiao?" Yu said, and Ce fell to his knees to look at her.
"Da is all alone!" Xiao cried out. "She's all alone and has to face that bad man because I left! We have to save her, before he touches her! He'll kill her!"
I had told somebody that there was going to be some fluff here, and I'm sorry there really wasn't any. But hey, at least were're getting to the whole "Knights in Shining Armor, Must go save Damsel in Distress!" part, right? Meaning this story is almost done. I'll have you guys know that this is almost 21 pages long as of right now. Its longer than I expected it was going to be, and that doesn't surprise me.