Shen was tossing and turning in her bed, moaning as her dreams filled her head.

…

Someone was carrying her as they and another person ran. Screams of horror were heard in the background and men yelling, giving orders as well. Suddenly, they paused and turned around to see a dark figure, glaring at them coldly. Shen looked up to see a woman. She had dark brown hair, long in the front, short in the back, light skin, and she had gold eyes, same as Shen's. She wore a purple kimono and a black sash around her waist. The woman drew a sword, quickly kissing a man who had light brown hair, brown eyes, and tan skin. He wore a white button shirt and blue jeans. The woman then smiled down at Shen who tried to reach for her. "Be fierce, Shen." She whispered then darted off to the man who threatened to destroy her family while yelling, "RUN!"

"REN!" Shen now realized who these people were. It was her mother and her father.

"Run, now!" Her mother, Tang Ren ordered. Her father, Tang Lee, hesitated then ran with his crying daughter in his arms, ignoring the scream her mother let out when the man stabbed her. He ran into a house and hid Shen under the floorboards. "Everything is going to be ok, Shen." He sealed her away and not even a moment later, his screams filled her ears.

The dream then changed and Shen was at the spring festival, her favorite time of the year but how was she here? The Spring festival is still a while away. Shen then heard screams and whipped around to see the figure, the same figure who killed her mother and father, towering over Yoshi as he struggled to get up. "Hamato Yuuta will know how it feels to have your family ripped from you!" He figured shouted before jumping up in the air, preparing to kill Yoshi on the spot. "YOSHI!" Shen screamed in terror and tried to run to him, but she bolted awake from her dream and looked around in fright, only to see that she was safe in her room.

Shen held her head, confusion and fear written all over her face. "What was that...?"

...

Later,

"Sheeen! You are late! My mother had me do all this work by myself!" Kitsune complained immaturely while scowling at Shen who gave her an apologetic look. "I am sorry, Sue but...something weird happened to me last night."

Kitsune's scowl turned to interest. "Like what? Did you finally find your yokai prince charming?" She teased slightly, remembering when Shen told her that she would imagine a magical yokai coming to rescue her and asking her to marry him. Shen chuckled. "No. Not yet. I am still waiting."

"Then what?" Kitsune asked, genuinely curious. "Should I not wait to tell you later? We still have work to do around the infirmary, do we not?" Kitsune rolled her eyes. "That can wait. We have no patients today, so no need to rush things."

"Well, if you are sure." Shen said as she took a seat, Kitsune sitting across from her as she waited patiently for Shen to talk. "Last night...I had a dream, but it did not feel like a dream...It felt almost like a memory but not quite. It felt real, like I was really there but I wasn't and honestly...it was not the first time this has happened, but it felt almost...stronger this time."

Kitsune leaned a bit closer, starting to get eager "What was in this dream?" Shen hesitated, feeling sadness and slight anxiety wash over her. "At first, the dream was of me, my mother and my father. We were running from something, but we were stopped by a man and I...I saw my mother..." Kitsune's face turned to sympathy as she continued to listen. "Sh-She went off to fight the man, to give my father and I a chance to escape then- *Sniff* she died...and later so did my father"

"What happened next?" Kitsune asked gently and Shen wiped away her upcoming tears. "The dream changed. I was at the Spring Festival, at first, all seemed fine but then, the same man who killed my mother came and attacked Yoshi, I tried to save him, but I woke up."

Kitsune hummed and leaned back, staring up in thought. "That is...a very unique dream." She then looked at Shen. "Was it accurate?"

"Huh?"

"Your dream. Is that really how your parents died?"

"I do not know." Shen answered. "My grandparents never really told me how they died."

"Then ask them!" Shen shook her head sadly. "I can't. Believe me, I have tried to learn everything I could about them, but it is still a hard subject for my grandparents. My grandmother completely shuts down and my grandfather changes the subject."

"That is unfair! It is your family; you have a right to know!" Kitsune said while pounding her fist on the table next to her. Shen knew she was right, she did have a right to know and she did want to know, more than anything but no matter how many times she asked, her grandparents just could not bring themselves to do it. "What do you know about your parents?"

Shen took a minute to think. "Their names were, Tang Ren and Tang Lee. My mother was a shinobi and my father was the previous owner of our restaurant. My mother was raised in China and my father was raised in Fukuoka." Kitsune blinked a couple times. "That is it?"

Shen nodded.

"No stories or other family members?" Shen shook her head and Kitsune scowled. "Even I know stories about my father and my mother hates him!"

"What can I do? As much as I try, my grandparents just will not tell me." Before Kitsune could say anything, Kuzunoha came in, looking crossed. "Kitsune! Tang Shen! What are you doing?! You two are supposed to be gathering plants for the medicines!"

"Sorry, Miss Kuzunoha! We will go right away!" She said, already grabbing a basket and running out the room with Kitsune chasing after her. "Shen! Wait!" Kuzunoha watched as her daughter and her friend ran off, shaking her head but a slight smile was on her face. She was happy her daughter was making friends and she hoped that she would continue on this path, instead of the one she followed...

...

While Kitsune was grabbing berries, Shen wandered off to the horse stalls and smiled at the black house that she has grown fond of since she was a little girl. "Hello Saku." Saku gave a soft nicker in response while bending down to Shen so she could pet her. Shen gave her a couple of berries, thinking that there was no one around but she was wrong. "I knew there was someone besides me, feeding the horses off their schedule."

Shen turned to see a familiar girl, riding a beautiful brown horse. She had short black hair, greenish-yellowish eyes, and she wore a simple red gi. "Oh, hello!" Shen said while bowing politely. "Akemi, right? I have seen you training with Mistress Atsuko. My name is Tang Shen."

Akemi smiled. "I know. Everyone in the clan knows who you are. After all, you are best friends with our master's sons." Shen chuckled. "Yes, I suppose that is true."

"Do you know how to ride?" Akemi asked while getting off her own horse. "Yes, Master Yuuta taught me when I was small." Akemi huffed a laugh. "And you chose to ride Saku? She can be a little hyper sometimes. Just yesterday, one of the ninjas almost broke his arm because she decided she wanted to jump over a fence without any warning. She is clearly not fully tamed."

"She does not need to be tamed, just understood." Shen corrected before smiling at Saku. "You are wrong, Saku is not hyper, she is just a free spirit. Sometimes you have to let go of control of the horse and allow yourself to trust them. Let them lead you instead of you leading them."

Akemi stared at Shen dumbfounded then cracked a smile. "Where did you hear that?"

"Oh, Atsuko told me when I first rode Saku. I kept trying to do it right, but I kept falling. I was so focused on trying to ride her perfectly that I did not think that maybe she wanted something differently."

"Atsuko is a very wise woman." Akemi said and Shen nodded in agreement. Just then, Kitsune came. "Shen where did-! There you are! I was worried the wolves might have come back to finish what they started." She said with a smirk then noticed Akemi. "Oh, hello Akemi. How is your leg?"

"Perfectly healed, thank you." Akemi thanked and Shen looked at her questionably. "Training accident." She said simply. "Do you guys want to go for a ride?"

"Yes, please! I need a break!" Kitsune exclaimed, abandoning her basket and grabbing her own white horse. "But Sue, what about Miss Kuzunoha? Won't she be upset?" Shen asked in concern, she hated disappointing and upsetting her mentor, but Kitsune did not seem to have a care in the world. "Shen, my dear you must learn how to live a little! My mother will be fine! Besides, this might help get your mind off your dream."

Shen looked at her basket then agreed, "Alright but only for a little while."

"Whatever you wish." Kitsune said while sending a wink to Akemi without Shen noticing. Shen grabs Saku and gracefully gets on her before she starts riding, Kitsune and Akemi quickly following her. Shen smiled as she rode Saku, loving the wind in her hair and the smell of nature feeling her nose. Shen just felt absolutely free, no worries, no rules, no anything, just her, Saku, and her friends, adventuring in the woods. 'I wonder if my mother loved to ride horses.'

(Thank you to the people who comment and gives their support! :)