A/N: This is the grand finale! Well, kind of. I couldn't exactly come to a decision on the ending for this, so I'm writing two versions. One is hypothetical, where everyone is happy and things are wonderful. Then a more realistic version, where things are sad and depressing and angsty. Since I've been in a good mood for awhile and I think you guys might like this version more, I'm uploading the happy ending first. The next and final chapter will be the sad ending. Sorry for the sappy and cheesy-ness of this chapter. It's so fluffy in some parts it could rot your teeth. (As in the bromance is so fluffy, not that you couldn't take it in another way if you wanted to, hint hint.) Anyways, I hope you enjoy this!
Disclaimer: I don't own Dynasty Warriors.
Early in the morning, Wen Yang made his way out to Jia Chong's tent. He rubbed his eyes and stretched before silently going inside. The advisor looked a bit better, though he was still quite pale.
"Master Jia Chong, are you still asleep?"
"…No," came the quiet, raspy reply. Jia opened one eye and glanced at Yang almost apprehensively. He hesitated before saying, "Thank you for helping me. I really am thankful."
"You're welcome." Yang nodded before sitting down next to the bed and making some more medicine. He handed the fresh cup to Jia, asking, "Do you think you can drink this?"
"Yes, of course." The raven gradually sat up, taking the cup. "I appreciate all this help." He took a deep breath before downing the drink in one gulp, grimacing and setting the cup down. He laid back down, looking relieved. "By the way, there's really no need to call me 'Master.' I'm just Jia Chong."
"My apologies," the knight stood and bit his lip. "M-...Jia Chong, I believe Lord Sima Zhao is outside. I'll send him in, and check in on you later."
"Alright," Jia nodded. "Thank you again."
Yang shuffled out of the tent, smiling knowingly when he saw Sima Zhao standing outside. "He's alright, my lord. You can go in now." He bowed his head before going to the recently made fire in the middle of camp. Xiahou Ba was already making breakfast, having made a full recovery from yesterday's events. Perhaps things really would be fine and return to normal.
"One can dream," Ba said softly as Yang sat next to him, seemingly reading the knight's thoughts.
"You're right. I'm content to dream, for now," was the reply. The two friends fell into comfortable silence, enjoying the crackling of the fire and the knowledge that for now, life was good.
Sima Zhao's face lit up upon hearing Wen Yang's good news, and he wasted no time in going inside Jia Chong's tent. His advisor looked up and smiled wearily.
"Hello, Zhao. It's nice to see you," he greeted. Zhao grinned and sat at the foot of the bed.
"Jia, I'm glad you're alright. You seriously scared me. What would I do without you?"
"You'd continue to play a fool and wander around aimlessly awhile, until you finally had some sense knocked into you by Lady Yuanji," Jia replied, gingerly sitting up. He idly played with the sheets.
"You're probably right. But you forgot to add the whole 'me being really depressed' bit. Because I would be," Zhao's grin faded. "Please don't do something stupid like that again." He paused and held out the raven's pendant. "And don't lose this again, either."
Jia took the pendant and looked at it for awhile, falling silent. After some time, he tied it around his neck. "I won't," he said firmly, nodding. "I swear, I won't. I'll be more careful. I don't want to make you upset, Zhao. I apologize for have doing so."
"It's okay. You're not dead, that's all that really matters now." The general glanced at his friend, who was nervously biting his thumb. "Chill. I'm just really glad everything will be fine."
"Mm…I'm sure things will calm down after this. After all, we did just win a major battle," Jia reluctantly lowered his hand, deciding to fidget with the sheets again instead.
"I wouldn't call you nearly dying winning, but whatever. You defeated Lian Shi and I took out Ding Feng, so it's sort of a win," Zhao frowned faintly. "Do you ever relax?"
"No."
"That's stupid. As soon as you're okay again, I'm helping you relax. I refuse to take no for an answer."
The raven paused before laughing quietly and smiling. "Okay. Whatever you say, my lord. You are the master of relaxation, after all."
Zhao relaxed and smiled in return, shifting on the bed and moving a small bit closer to his friend. "You know, it's really nice to see you smiling and laughing. You hardly ever just let yourself be happy."
The other man looked thoughtful. "You're right. I don't let myself be happy often. What a nasty habit. I guess I'll have to work on that, hm?"
"Yes, yes you will," the general said almost sternly. "You're usually such a downer, and you think too much. Start by stopping to smell the roses. Just doing that will be a huge help to you, I'm sure."
"I don't think too much!" Jia protested, "I simply plan ahead! I think of every possibility-"
"That's so over-thinking," Zhao countered. "I just go with the flow, and I find it to be much easier and beneficial."
"Well, someone has to do the planning, and as your advisor, the responsibility falls to me. I'll try to relax more, but I can't change everything about myself," the raven huffed and sighed, running a hand through his hair. He looked tired.
"I know that. I'm sorry." The Sima studied his friend carefully. "You don't look so hot. I'll leave you to rest and come back later, okay?"
"Thank you." Jia laid down and closed his eyes. He fell asleep shortly after. Zhao smiled faintly and stood, stretching.
"I really am glad you're okay, Jia." He carefully pulled the sheet up to his sleeping friend's chin. "I'll see you soon, then."
"Lord Sima Zhao?" Xiahou Ba timidly poked his head inside the general's tent. "You have a visitor."
Sima Zhao looked up from his desk, blinking. "Wait, seriously? A visitor? That's kinda weird. Send them in."
"He wants you to come out and see him, though."
"…Oh. Uh, okay," the Sima reluctantly stood and walked outside. To his surprise, his father was standing outside the tent. Sima Yi looked much older than Zhao remembered, and much more tired.
"Son," the renowned strategist looked at his only living son in slight concern, though it barely showed. "You need help? I came as soon as I could after receiving your letter..."
Zhao tilted his head. "Hello, father. Well, I did need help. Jia Chong was injured. I do believe he's alright now, though."
Yi looked stunned. "He was injured? May I see him?"
"Sure. Just talk to Wen Yang, he's who's taking care of Jia."
Sima Yi nodded and made his way to Wen Yang and Xiahou Ba, who were still happily chatting. "Wen Yang, I have a question."
When Yang heard that voice, he could have sworn he nearly had a heart attack. Immediately, he turned around and bowed his head. "Lord Sima Yi! I'll answer readily! As long as I am able to answer the question, of course. Which I should be able to. I don't see why I wouldn't be able to-"
"That's quite enough blabbering. I only want to know where Jia Chong's tent is, and if I may visit him," The strategist chuckled very quietly. Yang could feel his cheeks getting hot.
"You're welcome to visit him, though he may be asleep, my lord," he replied, pointing to the correct tent.
"Thank you." Yi nodded and went into Jia Chong's tent, taking off his hat. "Jia Chong?"
Jia yawned and sat up, rubbing his eyes. "Lord Sima Yi, what a pleasant surprise. I didn't expect to see you here."
"Nor did I expect to find you injured. Are you alright?" The Sima sat at the end of the bed, looking relieved to be off of his feet.
"I suppose. My chest hurts, but I did have an arrow lodged in it just…well, I don't know how long ago. It may be a day, or it might be two, or it might have been a week. I'm not quite sure any more," the raven realized, tilting his head. "How are you, my lord?"
"Tired," the elder man admitted, sighing. "I'm glad to hear that you're doing well. You're very important to my son."
"That's good to hear," Jia replied, idly twiddling his thumbs. "My lord, I've been wondering…should I perhaps tell Sima Zhao why I've been so secretive about everything? He still seems a bit upset after the whole Zhuge Dan incident. And what's going on with Zhong Hui? Did you knock some sense into his thick skull finally?"
"Zhong Hui will be returning to the army soon enough. I did manage to make him realize the error of his ways. My wife did as well, of course. In fact, it was mostly her…" Sima Yi looked a bit uneasy for a few moments, but he shook it off. "As for telling Zhao, you probably should. That would be my recommendation."
"I suppose I ought to let him know, then," the advisor sighed almost forlornly, "and of course we were just starting to become friends. What if he hates me after I tell him?"
"That's ridiculous. I don't think Zhao can truly hate anyone. It's one of his many incapacities."
"You're probably right, once again, my lord…"
"Why do I get the sneaking suspicion that my best friend and my dad are talking about me?" Sima Zhao peeked his head inside the tent, grinning. Jia returned the grin with his own, albeit small, smile. Yi just laughed quietly.
"Because we are," the strategist responded. Zhao shook his head and sat next to Jia on the bed.
"I figured. I heard some of your conversation. Not a lot of it though. Just that I apparently can't hate anyone."
"I'm going to leave you two to have a little chat," Yi announced, gingerly standing. "I'll be by the fire with Wen Yang and Xiahou Ba."
"Alright. Thank you for stopping by, my lord," Jia said quietly.
"See you, dad."
As soon as Sima Yi left the tent, Zhao visibly relaxed.
"So um…what were you and my dad talking about?" he asked.
"Many things. Zhong Hui is back in the army. He was just being a smug and insolent brat. Also, I need to tell you a few things. It's rather important…" the raven shifted uncomfortably and shivered.
The general blinked, looking a bit confused. He picked up his friend's jacket and handed it to him. "Here, you look like you're going to freeze to death. You need to talk to me? You've needed to talk quite a lot recently, huh?"
Gratefully, Jia took the jacket and put it on after retrieving a folded letter from one of the pockets. "Thank you, Zhao. I guess I have needed to talk to you a lot. My apologies. I think this letter should explain pretty much everything that you need to know…"
Zhao took it and slowly unfolded the note, reading it aloud. "'Zhao, if you're reading this, it means I'm either dead, or I'm alive and just letting you know my darkest secrets.'" He paused. "You're lucky it's the latter. Anyways, 'I suppose this all started when Zhuge Dan started conspiring with the emperor. The emperor wanted you dead. Zhuge Dan wanted you dead. You get the picture. I didn't tell you because I knew you would try to talk to him, try to change his mind…but his decision was already made. His fate was sealed the moment he talked to the Emperor. Actually, his fate was sealed the day he decided he disagreed with your leadership. He considered you a brute, unlike your brother. As you know, he rebelled. But you probably didn't know that he was conspiring with Wu and the Emperor. I had to take care of him. All problems have to be taken care of. So I did. I killed him. Another thing you probably didn't know…he was my friend. To some extent. Despite what most think, his death affected me quite a bit. That's why I've been so distant. I have nightmares about it most nights. I'm sure you're wondering why I haven't just told you these things. I'm better with a pen and paper than I ever will be with words. I know you've been angry with me because of the incident with him. I'm sorry I haven't come clean…I should have. Well, now I have. The emperor ending up dead because he was plotting against you. My highest priority is protecting you. Please understand that. That's why I've been secretive. I'm just trying to keep you safe. That is my purpose in life, and I'm happy to fulfill it. By the way, in case you were wondering, I was being sarcastic when I said my darkest secrets. They're only some of my secrets concerning you.'"
When the general finished reading the letter, Jia averted his eyes in embarrassment. "It's true. They're only a fraction of the secrets I have about you. Not that I mean that in a bad way, of course. I'm sorry about not telling you before now. But…I had to keep my secrets for awhile."
Zhao set the note down silently, biting his lip. He swallowed and hurriedly wiped his eyes. "You're so damn dumb, you know that? Seriously. I'm so lucky to have someone as loyal as you. I can't believe…" he trailed off for a few moments, struggling to find the right words. "You killed someone, your friend, for me. I mean, you've done way too much for my family and I. It's me who should be grateful to you."
"That's not true. You did spare my life after I ordered Cheng Ji to execute Emperor Cao Mao."
"Yes, but…" the general sighed softly. "You've always been so loyal. How could I possibly execute you for doing what had to be done?"
"Zhao, I helped kill an emperor. I'm not exactly popular anymore, after that," Jia laughed quietly. "I'm still grateful that you spared my life, though."
"You know, I really wish I knew more about you," Zhao said, "I mean, I know you. But I don't know that much about you."
"I'm not all that interesting," the advisor shrugged. "But I can tell you some of the details, if you'd like."
"I would like to know."
"Mm…alright. Well, my father was Jia Kui, who was a military general under Cao Wei. I inherited his title once he died. I eventually came to serve your brother, Lord Sima Shi, until…as you know, he died. Then I began serving you. I discovered that Zhuge Dan was being rebellious, of course. My first wife was Lady Li, daughter of Li Feng. Li Feng was apparently involved with the conspiracies of Emperor Cao Fang. I divorced Lady Li to show my loyalty to your brother, though she did bear me two daughters. Their names are Jia Bao and Jia Yu. I haven't really talked to them lately. Next I married Lady Guo Huai. No, she is not the same Guo Huai as you probably just thought of. I'm still married to her. We have two daughters, Jia Nanfeng and Jia Wu. We did have a son named Jia Limin, but…." Jia shifted uncomfortably, looking away. "My wife killed his wet nurse. Apparently I was having an affair with her. So Limin ended up growing ill and dying."
"So are you scared of your wife like my father is scared of my mother?" Zhao looked faintly amused.
"Yes, I think I am, considering she's murdered a wet nurse and consequentially my son," the raven muttered, sighing. "She's a nasty, cruel, and jealous woman."
"The cruel part seems a bit hypocritical, Jia," the Sima pointed out.
"Hmph…I wouldn't consider myself cruel…"
"If you say so," Zhao chuckled. "You're really crazy about the Simas, hm? You divorced your first wife, you executed your friend, you helped kill an emperor…jeez."
"I'm simply loyal. Besides, you're a better friend than Zhuge Dan ever was," Jia rolled his eyes and fiddled with his thumbs.
"What, wasn't old scowl-face a good friend?" The general started snickering. "That was probably kind of mean, huh? Not that I really care."
"Zhao, how rude," the advisor lightly whacked his friend on the arm. The expected response was a whiny, 'Hey, what was that for?!'. Instead, Jia felt himself being yanked into a hug.
"I already said I don't care," Zhao said quietly.
The raven looked at the other man with slightly wide eyes, a light blush tinging his cheeks. "I was only teasing." Tentatively, he hugged Zhao back, relaxing a small bit.
"Oh, I know. I'm sorry, Jia, but I'm going to have to check on everyone else soon. Are you feeling better for sure?"
"Yes, I'm feeling much better," Jia murmured, closing his eyes. "…you probably should stop wasting time here. I wish that wasn't the case…"
Zhao smiled faintly and shook his head. "I'll be back later, if you'd like. But I do have to go now."
Reluctantly, Jia released the Sima, sighing softly. "You don't have to come back. I ought to sleep, I think. So goodnight, Zhao."
"Goodnight, Jia." Zhao ruffled his friend's hair before standing. He grinned before walking outside, looking extremely happy. His father raised an eyebrow upon seeing him.
"You certainly look cheerful," Yi pointed out, looking faintly amused.
"That's because I am. Jia Chong is alright. I know tons more about him now. And I think he's finally starting to relax. Mission accomplished," the young man sat next to his father. "I feel so much better, knowing that he'll be alright."
"My, I wonder what Lady Yuanji will have to say…" the strategist smirked faintly, patting his son's shoulder. "I'm afraid I have to get back to your mother now, Zhao. Tell Jia Chong that I said goodbye." He stood and smiled faintly, walking to his horse.
That was the last time Sima Zhao would see his father, and he knew it. But that was okay, because their parting note was a positive one, despite years of quarrelling. That was all that mattered. Night soon befell the little camp. Even though Jia had told him not to, Zhao decided to slip into the advisor's tent and sleep on a chair next to the bed, deciding to surprise his friend.
Needless to say, the next morning nearly ended in disaster when Jia woke up with a random person sleeping on a chair in his tent. Luckily, he fully regained his senses rather quickly and tragedy did not ensue.
The duo became rather inseparable throughout the next few years, even more so than before. When Zhao received news of his father's death, Jia was there. When Jia received news of his second son's death, Zhao was there.
Eventually, the Sima did die, and they were separated. Though Jia Chong lived on after him and tried to keep everything in order, nothing was the same. He died years later of a lingering illness that had never seemed to quite go away…
Though at his funeral, his daughters could have sworn they saw a man with unruly brown hair and a clearly laid back personality leading their father to another place, hopefully better than the one he had known in life.