A Gentle Torment

Heavenly Mother's Ploy

AN: Nu Wa's actual meeting with Su Jin isn't shown here -- it's going to be used in the future. On that note, happy holidays~! I'm spending most of mine cat-sitting for my mother out-of-state, so I'll have plenty of time to update both of the stories I have going currently.

o~O~o~O~o

Guan Yin waits quietly as the carriage she's riding in makes its way down a familiar path. It was finally time to take Hua Dong and Hua Ye back to the city for them to resume their fates. Their little stint outside of the mountain had finally come to a close, and as such, the village that's become a flourishing city needs its rulers to return.

Stopping the carriage when she spots a familiar landmark, she carefully climbs out. Watching to make sure she hurts nothing in the process, she thanks the carriage driver and his horses (conveniently all figurines) before moving further down the path. She knows it's going to be hidden by a barrier, however, Yan Zhi's home should be right about...

"Mother?" Hua Dong stops in his tracks, dropping the bundle of firewood in his arms when he spots an ethereal white gown hidden under a thick fur cloak. The woman turns to face him, as she had in the many dreams he once had in his youth, offering him a soft, gentle smile.

It's her.

"Mother..."

o~O~o~O~o

Nai Nai exits the chamber Bai Qian is resting in, shutting the double doors behind her quietly, "She's close to falling asleep, your Maj-"

"Hush," Nu Wa's eyes crinkle in amusement, "The less anyone knows about this visit, the better. Don't use my proper titles while we're here."

Nai Nai nods obediently, following her as they make their way back to the peaceful lotus pond they passed when they arrived.

"I've already asked ahead. Once I reach the lotus pond, our 'guide' will take you to the libraries. Hopefully, you might be able to find something on your mother there."

"You think she may have ties to the Forgotten City, my lady?" Nai Nai tilts her head curiously.

"It's not an impossible thought, is it? If she isn't in any of the records within the Celestial Palace, Qing Qiu, or the major cities within most of our territories, then it's possible she could have come from the ghost realm or from within the city itself. From what I understand, when they leave for marriages, the women of this city often change their surnames as a right of passage."

o~O~o

Nu Wa sits down on the edge of the small lotus pond, allowing tendrils of her cultivation to probe the waters as she delicately runs her finger along the surface. Everything was indeed how it should be.

When the Forbidden City was created, it lacked any significant healing or divine energies (quite the opposite, in fact). Now, however, there was at the very least the start of a sacred land. The energies might be sub-par in comparison to Kunlun Mountain, but it's better than the Ghost Realm itself.

Soul tracking magic will be the best route in this situation, at least to check on the well being of the child. 

o~O~o

Nu Wa continues to walk through the thick, charcoal-colored fog. She had been warned that Yan Zhi had created a barrier to protect the child from other citizens of the Ghost Realm, but she wasn't quite sure how effective (and safe) it would be.

Reaching a sudden rift in energies, she passes through a thin, dense layer of the dark fog when she reaches the center.

Asleep on a lotus pond that looks eerily similar to the one found on Kunlun Mountain, a small white dragon lies in the middle of one of the pools of water. White, opalescent scales are visible from Nu Wa's spot on the ledge. She doesn't dare lean in any closer for fear of disturbing the sleeping little dragon as she lowers herself off of the ledge and onto the ground.