San remembered a time when she was younger. Ping and Shao had decided to be mean that day and refuse to let her play with them. She couldn't remember the game, but she did know that it involved their wooden weapons. That was what most of the boys in Shu had received when they reached a certain age. San had become angry and, during a struggle, broken Shao's mini sword. The boy had cried all the way to his father. She had been forced to apologize, and Shao had moped for a week before forgetting the incident. At the time, San hadn't cared much about the fact that she broke his toy. What she remembered most vividly was the annoyance on her father's face.

She hadn't thought that, many years later, he would still give her that expression. Yet here she was, nervously pacing outside of her parents' room, waiting for Zhao Yun to call her in. She vaguely remembered Tong and Guang passing by and jeering at her. A few servants had busied themselves in Lu Ba's room next door. At one point, a guard went in to give Yun some kind of report. Waiting had never been her strongest trait. What was taking so long?

"Zhao San." Her mother's voice sounded cold again. Gods, was this how Mei Li was going to address her daughter for the rest of her life? Her head dropping, San went into the room and was directed to a chair. Zhao Yun's face was unreadable. Li's was easier to figure out. "Would you like to explain yourself, daughter?"

She snorted. "Hasn't Lu Ba already told you?"

"Yes. Now we want your side of it."

"I was wandering around the hallways when I heard a noise in Ba's room. It sounded like there was a struggle. I rushed in to see him fighting with some masked man, the same one who attacked me. The three of us fought, Ba stabbed him, and he left. I was checking his wounds when you came in."

"That doesn't explain your embrace, San." Zhao Yun's voice was soft, but she could sense some confusion and disappointment.

"Well, I was…um…you see…" She struggled with words until she finally threw up her hands. "I don't know why. It just…happened. I don't have an answer."

There was silence, and she chanced a glance at her parents. Her mother's expression had softened. Yun, as usual, was difficult to interpret. Finally he spoke. "I did not expect you to." He smiled at her confused expression. "I am glad that the two of you are okay. I admit, I did not think I would come home to find that someone had attempted to kill two members of my household."

"San, you're shaking." Mei Li had taken San's hands in her own, but released them to wrap a blanket around her shoulders. "Is there something else?"

She shook her head. "I just…gods, it all happened so fast."

"Its okay, daughter," Li said, smoothing San's hair. "Lu Ba is also quite shaken up. Perhaps you can talk to him in the morning about it."

"Wait, wait," San said, waving her hands around. "Aren't you supposed to punish me for hugging a servant? You know, yell at me or send him to the dungeon or lock me in my room for a week or something? Why are you two so…trusting?"

Zhao Yun knelt in front of her and rested a hand on her knee. "We just needed to hear the truth, San. You have to admit, walking in on something like that is enough to make any father nervous." He chuckled, and she relaxed a bit. "Lu Ba seemed generally concerned for your safety and you for his. I admire what the both of you have done."

"So…am I going to be punished?"

"For what? For saving a man's life again? I think not. Nor will Ba be punished for saving you." He nodded to his wife, who handed him a piece of paper. "One of the guards in the courtyard brought me this."

San scanned the contents. "They found someone dead in the bushes. He had been stabbed and beaten…looks like robbery. Why are you showing me this?"

"Did you two not give him the same injuries? This man was a servant, one known for his loyalty to Liu Chan. My guess is that the night he attacked you, he was searching for Lu Ba's room. You got in his way. He nearly succeeded the second night."

"We killed him," San whispered to herself, wrapping the blanket around her tighter.

"No, you defended yourself. In the process, he was killed. But there's no need to worry. The guards seem to think that he was robbed, beaten and left to die. I see no need to change that information." San looked up at her father and noticed a small smirk in the corner of his mouth. "You need to rest, daughter. Everything will be fine in the morning. I need to talk to you after you've had a good night's sleep, as well. I promised to tell you all about the trip."

"Yeah, okay." Mei Li helped San walk back to her own room at the end of the hallway. Even after her mother had gotten her into bed and stationed guards outside the door, however, she could not fall asleep. It wasn't because of the attack. It wasn't because of her embrace with Ba. It wasn't even the fact that her father was home. No, despite everything that had happened tonight, San was still afraid to close her eyes and face the nightmares once again.

No one besides the Zhao family knew about the incident. News of the servant's death had spread by the time breakfast had started, but no one seemed to care much about it. The guards would catch him, everyone said. Tong and Guang had been unusually quiet during most of the meal. Guan Ping and Zhang Shao eyed the family suspiciously. San made motions to tell them what happened later from across the room. At one point, her father asked if he could talk to her after the meal, and she nodded her head. Her mind was still too full to comprehend much of anything.

San was glad that Zhao Yun had grabbed her attention immediately afterwards. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Liu Chan attempting to make his way over to them. She smirked a bit when she saw Ping and Shao halt his progress, hoping that Shao didn't try to do anything stupid. Feeling better, she followed her father out of the dining hall and towards the opposite end of the castle.

"Where are we going?" she asked when they were out of hearing range.

"Jiang Wei's quarters."

Her curiosity piqued. "Is he back from his mission yet?"

"No, unfortunately. There are things I would like to discuss with him." He grinned at her. "But I guess you will have to do."

Jiang Wei's chambers, San realized, were more difficult to get to than her own. Most people didn't know where she stayed because her room was at the end of a hallway. Jiang Wei's were in a similar location, but one would need a map to remember how to get to them. She had expected some kind of grand entrance into his private rooms since they were so well hidden. But inside, they were almost as plain as Lu Ba's. There was a bed, chest, and desk in the main room, along with a large table that was covered with a map. Doors led to other rooms which, San assumed, led to stores of scrolls and whatnot. Jiang Wei was always reading something. It wouldn't surprise her if he had his own secret library.

Zhao Yun rolled up the map and placed it on a shelf nearby. "He brought that out back when we stopped the Wu raid," he said.

"Really? He's been gone that long? What's he doing anyway?"

"Relax, San. Jiang Wei's mission has been rather secretive. Since the raid, he has been in private contact with members of Wu to try and reach some kind of peace agreement. How successful its been and how many details he is leaving out, I cannot say. He did, however, send a letter to me while I was away. That is part of what I wanted to discuss with you."

She nodded as he pulled out a long note from one of the table drawers. He scanned it quickly until he found the part he was looking for. "He was most intrigued by your decision to spare the young Lu Ba. The people in Wu that he has been speaking with believe him to be dead, but his family will not accept that. Jiang Wei wishes to meet him, but he cannot leave his post. He said he will try and come up with some kind of plan to make this happen."

"But why does he want to meet Lu Ba so badly?"

"Who knows? Maybe it has to do with his family. My guess is that he wants to use your friendship with him to cement this treaty with Wu."

"So that's why you weren't more angry about me and Ba last night?" San grumbled.

Yun sighed. "I knew that you two had a bond. Last night made me realize how strong it was. That is all, daughter."

She wanted to argue but decided against it. Her father looked strained enough. "When will we know more about Jiang Wei's plan?"

"He promised to send the details in his next letter. Normally, Zhuge Liang would have more of a hand in this, but he as been preoccupied with other matters." He rubbed the bridge of his nose, a trait San had picked up. A headache was forming. "You have heard, I'm sure, of Liu Chan's meetings with his father."

"Yeah. No one really knows what its been about though."

"I spoke with Lord Liu Bei briefly when I returned last night, before your encounter with the masked man." He paused as if unsure that he wanted to continue speaking. "There is no easy way to say this, San. Liu Chan wishes to break off his engagement to Zhang Fei's daughter in favor of you."

Soberly, she shook her head. "That's what Ping and Shao have been saying. But you must know I'd never want that. Father…I would sooner leave Shu than be married to that prick."

Despite his tired face, Zhao Yun smiled. "I know, and I relayed that much to Liu Bei. With different wording, or course, but the point remained the same. Our lord is torn in his decision right now. He knows Zhang Fei would be upset if the engagement was broken, but he also knows that it is Chan's decision ultimately. I will speak in your defense, and Jiang Wei would, too, if he were here. Zhuge Liang has been hard pressed to offer advice."

"Why hasn't he?"

"He shares Liu Bei's concern. They have been close friends for a long time, San. I think Zhuge Liang is also hard pressed to listen to Jiang Wei. They, too, share a deep bond that is stronger than one of master and disciple. They value each other's opinions. Right now, those opinions differ."

The pair was silent as they contemplated what to do. San would sooner run away than have to spend the rest of her days with Chan. It was a match that would tear her family apart. But, she thought, if Liu Bei could be persuaded that the match was better than the one with Xing Cai, there would be no stopping it. "There's more to it," she whispered to herself.

"More to what?" her father asked.

San looked up to meet his eyes. "Everything is happening so fast. These plans with Wu, the engagement debates…I can't help but wonder why they're happening now. I think…Father, I think this has to do with Lu Ba,"

"How is that?"

"Chan and Ba dislike each other. No, that makes it sound childish. They hate each other. Chan thinks Ba's nothing more than a Wu bastard that should be killed without mercy. Ba thinks Chan's a spoiled brat who plays with people like they're pawns in his game."

"A valid point," Yun said. "Perhaps Jiang Wei is justified in his urgency. Very well, I have an idea. As soon as Wei sends me word of his plans, you are to travel to him straight away. I will talk to Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to see if their sons can be spared for the journey as well. The hardest part will be getting Lu Ba to go with you. But we will make it happen." He reached across the table and laid both of his hands on San's. "I have a feeling, daughter, that this will be the toughest battle you face. Stay strong, put on a brave face, and trust your instincts. Remember that we are all on your side."

"Thanks, father," she said, giving his hands a gentle squeeze. "I'm a Zhao. I will not fail."

"I know. But I am still your father and I still worry." He released her hands and leaned back in his chair. "Now go and find your mother. Tell her that Lu Ba is not to be left alone except when he is in his room. I want at least one member of my family with him at all times. She will understand."

She nodded and left the room. She paused in the doorway to look back at her father. The concern was still written across his face, his eyes closed in silent meditation. She realized how serious this whole situation was at that moment. Feeling a little fearful, she hurried down the maze of hallways in search of his mother. Mei Li would be able to soothe some of her fears.

San had made it to the courtyard when a hand reached out and grabbed her arm. "San, we need to talk." Her fear increased as she turned to look into the cold, piercing eyes of Liu Chan.

"What do you want?" she spat.

"To talk to you."

She shook his hand off and crossed her arms defiantly. "So talk to me."

"What's going on between you and that servant brat?" His face turned a slight shade of red, likely out of anger. "I overheard your brothers talking about the two of you. They said you were in his room last night."

"Boy, you get right to the point, don't you?"

"Tell me the truth. What's between you two?"

She grunted at him. "Why do you care? There's nothing more than friendship there. We were both attacked last night. Oddly enough, the perpetrator was one of your own servants." San didn't care that she wasn't supposed to share this information. Chan was touching on her last nerve, and she'd had it. "Hiring other people to do your dirty work? That's low."

He was starting to shake. Chan may have inherited some good traits from his father, but control wasn't one of them. But, then again, Liu Bei could explode when provoked. Maybe the apple didn't fall as far from the tree as she had thought. "My servants would never do such a thing. What is beyond me is why you would choose to befriend someone like him. He's nothing!"

"What, you think he stole a friendship we could've had? Sorry to disappoint you, but that never would have happened."

A few people were starting to gather. San couldn't tell who they were and it didn't really matter. "You never gave me a chance. Ever since you started hanging with those two boys, you've cut me off. We never talk unless its to argue about something. Now tell me that I'm not justified in my anger."

She threw her hands in the air. "Don't you put that guilt on me! You could've been a part of our group, Chan. Instead you chose to belittle our friendship and prance around like you're better than all of us."

"I'm a prince of Shu, next in line to the throne. You would be the same way if you were in my position."

"Grr. I've had it with this conversation! All you want to do is complain about things that you can't change. Get over yourself! You're nothing but a spoiled weakling!"

There was a crack, and San stumbled back. A red mark had formed where Liu Chan had slapped her face. "Silence your filthy tongue, woman!"

"Don't you touch her, Chan!" She hadn't realized that Guan Ping and Zhang Shao were a part of the group. Ping had to grab Shao's arm to keep him from attacking the prince. San stayed where she was, holding her cheek and forcing hot tears back into her eyes. Chan stared back at her, a mixture of hurt and satisfaction projecting from his eyes. Xing Cai pushed her way through the crowd and latched onto Chan's arm. She managed to guide him away, but not before he spat on the ground towards Shao. Ping had to use all his strength to hold his friend back.

San wasn't sure what happened after that. All she remembered was running, away from the crowds and her friends, away from the hurtful words and the physical marks. Shao had shouted something to her, but Ping must have still held him back. Everything was a blur until she finally stopped. There, in front of her, was her mother's tree. Collapsing under the braches, she let the tears flow. San ran out of tears eventually but lacked the strength to move. It was all happening too fast. She wanted everything to just go away. I have a feeling, daughter, that this will be the toughest battle you face.

"Lady Zhao, are you alright?" Surely they wouldn't send him, of all people, to find her. And yet, as San cautiously looked up from her arms, there was Lu Ba standing in front of her. Her heart rate accelerated when she saw the worry on his face, and the tears flowed again when she remembered what Liu Chan had said before. "What's the matter?"

She buried her face in her arms again as he knelt beside her. "Everything," she said. She heard him sigh, and suddenly she found herself in the warmth and comfort of his arms.

A/N: Aaaaand we're back! Apologies for the delay in posting new chapters. But happily, all of my files are back and my computer is working! San's journey is now becoming much more interesting and complicated. And Zhao Yun isn't helping. What's his motivation? Who knows?! I'm so cruel!

I'd like to point out something that I've been emailed about, despite the author's note in my profile about giving me grief over the naming system, that the more known version of Liu Chan's name is actually Liu Shan. Chan was the first one I came across when I started the story waaaaay back when, and so that is the name I stick with. Get over it.

Thanks again to my reviewers and readers. You guys are the best!