Flame Of Wu

~A day in Wu~

Lu Mei woke up, groaning at the stabbing pain in her side as she sat up. She looked around for any medic that could help her as she couldn't help but notice Gan Ning was asleep in a bed next to hers. Did he... get hurt? She wondered but did not see any injuries on him. She slowly moved herself to the edge of the bed, playfully pushing Xue off the bed and forced herself not to laugh when it flailed its legs to avoid falling but landed on its back. Good thing for the poor pup, the bed was not that high up.

She got off the bed slowly and limped over to an area where the air was full of amazing smells, all of it food.  "What are you doing out of bed?! You're barely healed!" Ling Tong called out to her in shock and worry, noticing her side was still all bandaged up. He lead her back to the medical area and helped her back in bed. He walked out of the room and came back with some warm steamed buns and rice, setting the tray on her lap. "Go ahead and eat, everyone else already had some." She did not refuse and started to eat.

 "Why is he in here?" Lu Mei tilted her way towards the dozing Gan Ning. "I don't know. Something tells me you got him hooked onto you." Ling Tong leaned back, glaring daggers at him despite his teasing tone. Lu Mei noted the look on Ling Tong's face and felt herself grow curious: "Why do you hate him so much?? Did he do something unforgivable??"

"Yep." Ling Tong sat up straighter and leaned towards her bed. "See, when I was younger, I went out to battle alongside my father in Xia Kou. Gan Ning was known to be one of the fiercest pirates Wu has known. During the battle, he had the guts to downright kill my father in front of me and act all...boastful. I fought against him and would have killed him had it not been for Zhou Yu stepping in and recruiting him as a general." Ling Tong scoffed as he finished his story and looked at Lu Mei. "I guess you had gone through something like that huh?" Lu Mei nodded, remembering the loss of her own father. He got up and ruffled her hair, giving a friendly smile to her. "I have to go, get better soon!"

Lu Mei awoke again to see the reddish lights of the near sunset sky. She looked next to her but saw Gan Ning wasn't there, the bed having been freshly made. Looking at her side again, she noticed the bandages had been changed and there was some more food set on the desk next to her. She ate, feeling her hunger pangs strike again. 'Should I get up or lay back down??' She thought to herself; 'Maybe I should head out, considering the wound is kind of healed and I might be taking up space.' She barely got a foot off the bed when she heard something rustle. She rustling stopped and she saw Xue walking back onto her bed.

It lolled its tongue out and panted at her as if to say 'Oops I scared you haha.' She sighed to herself and giggled at the way she froze before a voice called out a little too close behind her; "I would get back on that bed if I were you." She whipped around and clumsily fell but was caught by a pair of muscular arms. "Geez, when will there be a moment where you don't do anything child-like?" She relaxed herself knowing it was just Gan Ning. "Well, I am glad you caught me but did you really have to call me a child?" Lu Mei stood up and brushed herself off. Getting back on the bed, she laid back and petted Xue to ease her boredom. She sighed tiredly and looked to Gan Ning, who watched her carefully the whole time.

"When am I getting off this bed?" "When you are fully healed. Now listen, just tell some idiot to get you something when you need it. Okay?" Lu Mei grinned cheekily as the suggestion made her a little mischievous, "Ok then, I need to bathe now so..." Gan Ning tensed. "Why me?," He sighed, "Come on, I'll show you, but I ain't touching 'ya." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~Later on~~~~~~~~~~~~

Night fell and the stars shone in the sky as the soft ambience made the environment seem more welcoming than before. Lu Mei looked up at them, remembering the times she spent with her family when they weren't so busy in battle. She smiled to herself as she reflected back on those memories, not noticing Gan Ning, who watched her smile grow for a moment before clearing his throat, breaking her out of her thoughts. With her attention now on him he looked away from her, feeling a little flushed.

"So...do you miss your family?" Gan Ning asked, studying the groups of generals that spoke with each other, mainly at Sun Quan, his sister, and his wife. Lu Mei nodded, "Yes, I do. There were times where my father would actually be- well, a father. Talking with us and being gentle in his manners, even laughing and playing with us." Gan Ning looked at her and chuckled, "I don't think I can ever see Lu Bu actually doing that." Lu Mei laughed along, covering her mouth slightly. "Of course not! He was only that way when the family had time alone. He would have made anybody who saw him act like that regret even witnessing it." Lu Mei sat on a bench and hugged her knees. Despite the pain in her side, she held her knees to her chest before looking up at him with a more intrigued look in her eyes.

"Do...you have a family?" Gan Ning looked down, his face growing somber as his eyes lightly flashed in sadness before he turned his face away from her view, speaking softly with a small gesture to her bandaged side. "I think you should head back to the medic. Wouldn't want that to open again." Lu Mei understood and got up from her seat, carefully making her way back to the bed as while noticing Gan Ning wasn't following. Not everyone could let their personal lives out so smoothly.