A marriage written in the stars

Star crossed

Hey hey kids, it's your...er...a-AUTHOR ALPHA! Y-yeah! (...nailed it.)

Guess who's been procrastinating until now. I'll give you a hint, it's me.

...The...the answer is me...yeah.

BUT! Anyhoo I am now ON THE ROAD so to speak (not literally because I'd probably be dead from the driving) but the mini-Zhu Ling arc is about to close and I can safely say we are about half way through the story! At the rate I write this and the chapters I got planned, I think this story will be max 18 chapters including Epilogue WHICH IS GOOD because that means there's a definite goal out there to finish this, even if it takes me all year or something. (Something tells me DW9 will be out before this. Don't quote me on that lest I jinx it though)

That doesn't mean however this is the end of their story, OH NO it ain't. Who else is gonna torture Liu Shan, SIMA ZHAO?! HA! HA HA! Hah. Yeah, no. Also quite likely will be a few one shots, maybe a sequel story about their life together and what not (spoiler alert). I also have another story for a completely different fandom planned but you guys probably aren't interested in that.

So yeah, enjoy and bring on the reviews! Give me a reason to write stuff with other stuff.

I don't own a company though I do own an account on that WONDERFUL Dynasty Warriors Unleashed where they JUST SO HAPPEN TO NOT INCLUDE LIU SHAN WITH HIS WONDEROUS BENCH OF AWESOME?! BLASPHEMY! ...ahem. I also don't own Koei. Or Dynasty Warriors. Or Liu Shan sadly.

Chapter 8: Star crossed

It became apparent to Xingcai that Zhu Ling was unlike any other man she had ever met. It had been only a couple of minutes after Liu Shan had left, his sad smile burned into her mind when her mother suddenly announced that she was retiring to bed for the night.

"Oh! Are you tired already, mother? Wouldn't it be better to stay for a bit longer?" Xingcai nervously glanced at Zhu Ling.

"No, I'm sorry. Mr. Jade needs his sleep so I should prepare him for bed." Lady Xiahou yawned. "Don't stay up too long."

"Goodnight, mother." Xingcai frowned. She didn't want to be alone with Zhu Ling yet.

"Sweet dreams, Lady Xiahou." Zhu Ling added.

Lady Xiahou gave a tired nod before retreating to her bedroom. A second passed. Zhu Ling turned to Xingcai both amused and bemused.

"Mr. Jade?" He asked with a chuckle. "What is that?"

Xingcai looked at him with furrowed brows. "My mother's doll. She loves it as though it was a person."

"A doll?!" He laughed, but it wasn't a pleasant sounding laugh. On the contrary, this evening, Xingcai found his voice to be particularly grating in instances of humour. "I bet she worships that thing. Probably even dressed up cutely and looks not a day old! Where'd she get it? Did she make it?"

Xingcai looked down grimly. "...my father bought it for her."

"...I'm sorry?"

"My father bought this for her when I was just a baby. She was sad, grief-stricken because of the things my father put her through and as an apology, he got her the doll." She paused to look at Zhu Ling but is surprised that he did not say anything yet. She continued, "She loved it. She still does. Cares for it and washes it and fixes it up whenever she can. And now, as one of the only gifts he ever got for her in his lifetime, sometimes I think it is a surrogate for him." Xingcai sighed, "I don't understand how she could love a man like that."