My Little Shifu

One Side of a Smile

It had been a very long time since Bai Qian had flown off the Grove and into the denseness of the clouds that billowed thickly for miles.  Her brother had told her that's where all the cloud riding clouds came from because the ocean currents below ensured the water droplets that the walruses flicked into the air, were warmed by the sun,  and as they rose, the moisture condensed and that was how clouds were made, but because the walruses were an enormous sea dwelling tribe, the clouds never lifted.  And for centuries she had believed him.  Her brother had a wonderful way of explaining absolutely everything though she couldn't help but laugh at the memory of a visit to the far West when she was little.

Her father had called a cloud to return them back to the Fox Den which was in the East and during the entire trip she wondered how the cloud came all the way from the Grove when it was miles and miles away.  And why didn't her father just use one from the West, because the sky in that part of the world had plenty of them.  The look of confusion on her fathers face soon had her telling him the story of the walrus tribe and how they made the clouds for everyone and he should invite them to the den so they could thank them properly.

After explaining that the walruses were a water creature and could not maintain a human form long enough to manage a visit to the fox den due to lack of cultivation, she decided that she would thank them in a different way and so once a year, she would toss a full basket of the new harvest peaches over the edge in the hope that they would gain immortal form quicker.

Now leading this stubborn Goddess directly into the thick swirling nebulous mass, Bai Qian honed in on the blue silk robe that was swirling in that moist mass for her prey.  Behind a barrier, she could see her clearly, yet the Goddess could not see her and so for a while, she merely observed.

The anger seemed to be far higher than the day before which to her mind was a pity because the woman was truly beautiful.  She could imagine her smile would light up a entire hall, only her eyes were daggers in that sea of clouds that could sense her presence and the anger was rising to a dangerous level when she couldn't see her.

"Show yourself, you little witch." the Goddess snapped in frustration.  The denseness of the clouds only seemed to warp her voice, it echoed off every cloud around her, yet no matter which direction her head moved, the dark moist air gave away nothing.  Her prey was well hidden and it only made her angrier that this girl would dare to hide herself.

"Who are you, and what are you doing in my Grove?" Bai Qian replied calmly.

"Who am I?  I am the Queen of the South, and who exactly are you to call the Grove yours?" she almost screamed at her while her eyes swiveled in the direction of her voice.

In fact, Bai Qian was hovering only a few steps away from her, but being in that dense mass of clouds, her voice was also warped.

"I am the Goddess of the Peach Tree Grove and you Queen, are a long way from home.  What exactly are you doing here?" she asked as her voice hardened.  Women like her were the reason why she did not attend functions or official meetings.  The arrogance in her tone told Bai Qian that this woman was not used to being questioned, but having yet to determine the reason for her anger or even presence, she remained calm as the Queens hands tried to reach out towards her.

"I don't care who you are, I am a Queen and a very powerful one and you Goddess of the Peach Tree Grove are overstepping your mark.  High God Mo Yuan, is my intended, and what you are doing is a sacrilege.  How dare you take another womans man, who do you think you are, you are nothing more than a Forest fairy and though I have a lot of repect for the High God of the Peach Tree Woods, I can make things very difficult for both of you if you don't back off." she screamed at her before diving towards the voice, only to hit the barrier with a sickening thud.