~Beauty~

Quote from George Meredith. Request from Elena Hurley.

Well, I have been a busy bee! Yet I still haven't heard any opinion on an upcoming story of mine, whose summary is on my profile. So, I'm posting it on here for all the lazies out there (it's okay, I'm lazy too :D). Here it is!:

"... And She Prayed- AU, modernized, and humanized. Tigress and Crane are keeping many secrets. Adopted fathers? Secret siblings? A story of romance, jealousy, secrets, abuse... And who could forget drama? VERY graphic violence and hints of rape. You've been warned..."

Let me know what you think!

~Kitty~

Sniffling, Xue slowly slithered up the stairs, hearing the laughter behind her. At her first day of school at five years old, she had been teased ever since her father had dropped her off. Whether it was her scales, her eyes, or her fangs; she just didn't get a break. She hated it.

"What a joke!" a slightly older pig boy laughed.

"Did you see her fangs? Priceless!" a rabbit giggled.

She squeezed her eyes shut, slithering away faster. She didn't understand. Her father had red eyes, and he was never made fun of. And Uncle Crane had white feathers; what big of a difference was having white scales? And her mother had no venom, so why was she being teased for that? And so what if her fangs were little? What had she done differently that everyone teased her and not her family? Not that she wanted them to be teased; she just wondered.

"Hey, sweetie." She jumped and tackled the source of the voice, not really noticing what he or she said or the voice of the person.

Mantis laughed and pushed the barely-larger-than-him snake from him. "I knew you were gonna be a fighter from the first time I layed eyes on you."

She smiled, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. Mantis frowned. He knew something was wrong with his daughter. "What's the matter, Xue-Xue?"

She sighed. "Daddy, what's wrong with me?"

"What do you mean? There's absolutely nothing wrong with you." Why was she asking that?

"That's not what these kids say," Xue sniffled. "It's my eyes, my scales, my fangs- why am I so different?"

"You're a good kind of different, love," he smiled, patting her head. "You're beautiful, no matter what people say."

"What's beautiful, Daddy?" Xue asked, tilting her head.

He thought a moment. Xue was... slower than other children. She was smaller, almost a runt, but no one would ever call her that because Mantis and Viper would kill them. They wouldn't want to anyway; she was too adorable. "Well... It's like being pretty, but it's not just looks. Many guys like girls who are beautiful on the inside rather than the outside."

Xue made a face. "Ew, they can see our insides?"

Mantis laughed. "No no, I'm talking about your personality. You are a very sweet little girl, and quick-witted, too. You know, there's a saying. 'A witty woman is a treasure; a witty beauty is a power.' You are a witty girl, and you have a witty beauty. I wouldn't have you any other way." He kissed her forehead and she smiled.

"Thank you, Daddy. But what if they tease me again?"

"You just leave that to me and don't worry..."

The Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior had a mission that evening. After telling Master Shifu about her being able to tackle him, Shifu had decided to teach Xue the basics of kung fu. Mantis had talked to the teacher of the school Xue went to, and had sorted out a few things. After sending the other five to many other houses, he decided to just go to one...

"Mom, it's Master Mantis!" a seven-year-old shouted as he opened the door to his house. Mantis nodded to the rabbit's mother.

"May I speak with you and your son?"

"Of course!" she shouted, ushering him inside. "Anything for a savior of the valley!"

After they were situated, Mantis started talking. "Unfortunately, I'm not here on a good cause. Today at your son's school, my daughter was teased."

"Oh, that's just terrible," the woman said. Her son sunk in his chair, looking extremely nervous. "I hope you find out who did that to her."

"Actually, I do know," Mantis said, looking at her son. "It's your son."

The next day, Xue came home and immediately lept into her father's arms. "Whatever you did, Daddy, it worked! They were nicer to me today!"

Mantis smiled and kissed her head. "Anything for my powerful treasure."

~Kitty~

Satisfied, Elena? I didn't know if you wanted something really fluffy or not. But I like writing emotions, and what better way to than to make a father/daughter fluff? Oh, and LEARN FROM MANTIS, SHIFU!

Still accepting requests :)

~Kitty~