Chapter 7

A Chapter by Rose of Gondor

“What is it May--” Chrysanthemum caught herself before she gave us away in front of the innkeeper, “Tatsu? You don't really seem yourself.”

Wen-Ling shot her a sharp, warning glance. We were still getting used to our new names, and once in a while, at places were we least expect it, we would blurt out our real names. Strange, really, how I”m adjusting and actually enjoying pretending to be a boy. It's like a delicious secret kept between three people, and whenever someone would address me as “Master Tatsu” instead of “Madame” or “Milady” or “Miss”, I would feel a strange swell of pride at how well I was playing my part.

It was strange. A few days ago, I detested boys (well, mostly the one I'm betrothed to, but that's beside my point). Now, I'm trying to talk like one, walk like one and act like one.

We had arrived at a small town named Nagumi near the great mining city Ka Dun

“Nothing, really,” I told Chrysanthemum, “I've just been...thinking...”

“Here's the keys to your rooms,” the innkeeper handed the keys to Wen-Ling, “Now, if I may, I shall take your leave. Mistress. Young Masters.”

He bowed and we did the same.

Our rooms were quite grand. Wen-Ling's room was right next to ours, and Chrysanthemum and I shared a room. It was a well-furnished little room, with simple decorations. It gave a simple yet elegant and pure essence to the room.

“Don't you ever look back?” Chrysanthemum asked once we were alone in our room. She lay flat on her back on her bed, staring at the ceiling. “You know. Think of your family?”

I grimaced, turning to lie on my side to face her. This was a subject I had been avoiding for a long time.

“I...I suppose I do,” I replied quietly, “Although...Papa...He...I miss Mama and Lan and home and..oh, Chrysanthemum, can we please talk about something else?”

“I'm sorry,” she said softly, “I didn't realize...I was being foolish.” She strained to come up with a different topic.

“Don't you ever think about your fiance? Ever? And 'think about' doesn't meant thinking about how much you want to strangle him. Do you ever think of him fondly?”

I stuck my tongue out at her and made a face.. I knew she was just trying to tease me to lighten the situation, but still...

“No,” I said, a little too fiercely, “No. I doubt I ever will. He's rude, he's cold, he's hotheaded and arrogant. And his eyes,” I shivered, remember the silent stare he had given me on the day we first met. I didn't know what to think of those two eyes that burned with intensity. “When I meet his gaze, it's like I'm a bird, trapped inside a cage of fire without any means of getting out. The longer I stay in that cage, the more scathing hot it becomes...I...I...”

There was a lapse of silence between us.

“So,” After a while, Chrysanthemum walked over to come sit beside me, a smile playing at her lips, “Are you saying that he has beautiful eyes?”

“Ha! You villain bender of words!” Grabbing one of the bokkens from a nightstand, I brought it down towards Chrysanthemum's head.

She ducked and rolled out of the way. A grin spread across her face.

“So, it is to be war between us!” she shouted dramatically, a devilish glint in her eyes as she snatched up her bokken, “Surrender now, fiend, for my sword knows no mercy!”

I laughed. “I shall not, for a true warrior never succumbs!”

“Then, await your disgracing defeat...” she grinned.

And then the wooden blade of her bokken hit my left leg, and I yelped, surprised, hardly registering what had happened when her blade hit my shoulder, too. Having been hit twice, I started paying attention to Chrysanthemum's surprisingly quick movements.

And then the blades of our bokken met. We both broke away from combat, panting.

Chrysanthemum grinned. “Impressive.”

And then she charged at me again, bokken raised. I received a blow over the head. Instinctively, I raised my bokken to protect myself as Chrysanthemum continued to slice at me with her wooden blade.

I was sure I'd been hit twice over the head with the hilt, since I was dizzy, when I saw Chrysanthemum take a stab at me. I parried her sword away. At this point, I didn't feel like I was fighting to avoid hits from a wooden stick anymore. This was a real fight.

The sides of our bokken connected.

She pushed.

I gritted my teeth and held my ground, biting my tongue to keep from grunting and crying out as I resisted her push.

“Impressive strength for a lady,” she commented, apparently through a clenched jaw as well.

Beads of sweat ran down my forehead.

And then she gave one final shove. I gasped as I was sent staggering back, my bokken flying out from my hand.

I hit the ground, lying flat on my back.

Knock, knock. Knock, knock.

“I'll get that,” Chrysanthemum said cheerfully. Strands of Chrysanthemum's fine, silky black hair fell from her topknot, and she looked the most girlish in days.

She opened the door.

“Chrysanthemum,” Wen-Ling walked into the room, frowning, her brows knit with worry. She tsked at Chrysanthemum's hair and made her redo her topknot.

“Mayflower,” she told me, “I think you'd better read this.”

She handed an article to me.

I read aloud:

“ Missing: Mayflower Hsia, daughter of Lord Hsia of Luk, Betrothed of Prince Rin Lu, son of the Emperor. Kidnapped by a woman and a young girl. Reward: 10,000 yang.”

Below a portrait of me (I figured it was for the people to be able to recognize me), were three wanted signs.

“Wanted: Trin Lee, for harboring criminals.

Wanted: Wen-Ling Wu, for unlawfully abducting Lady Hsia and corrupting young minds.

Wanted: Chrysanthemum Lee for unlawfully abducting Lady Hsia, Plotting with criminals, harboring criminals and associating with criminals.”

I crumpled the paper in my fists.

“But none of those are true! They're all lies, the bunch of them! You haven't kidnapped me at all! I cam here of my own free will!”

Wen-Ling gave a grim smile. “You know your father will do anything to get the pearls first. Even rewards are issued. He wants to capture us. We cannot afford to be reckless now,” she glanced at Chrysanthemum, “Did you know that the Emperor himself issued a part of his army to come looking for you? A group of six thousand soldiers under the command of General Liu, and do you know who the lieutenant is? Prince Rin, the king's youngest son,” she looked over at me, “You're fiancee. This general is not to be trusted,” her expression darkened, “But the Emperor doesn't know that. We must be careful. Not only is the kingdom at stake, the whole world is if the pearls fall into the wrong hands...especially the Pearl of Fire. These are powers beyond human control,” she gave both Chrysanthemum and I a stern glance, “We must succeed. Find the Guardians and warn them, and of course, keep our own lives while we accomplish this. Be careful, girls. To them, we are the prey, and they the hunters. They won't hesitate to capture us or even kill us.”

Chrysanthemum glanced at me worriedly, all trace of her former humor gone, color draining from her cheeks.

“So we're really being hunted.”

Suddenly I realized how uncomfortably cold the room was and I hugged myself closer. Chrysanthemum's words echoed through my mind.

We're being hunted.

They are the hunters

We're prey.

We're being hunted.

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