It was a beautiful summer day. The warm rays of the sun tickled my cheek in the palace garden as we celebrated Fuhua’s third birthday. All of the family except Raiden was present. Our father had broken his promise, but no one wanted to bring it up. “Here are your noodles, Hua.” Ruolan passed a steaming bowl of thin egg noodles to her daughter. “Thanks.” Hua sounded spiritless, at least compared to her usual self. “So in Feng, you eat noodles on your birthday to represent living a long life?” Himeko asked out of curiosity. “That’s right. We also have longevity peach buns, like the ones here.” Ruolan pointed to pink and white peach shaped buns on the table.” “These are really pretty!” “Please, have as many as you like, little princess.” “Thank you!” On the other hand, Himeko was being cheerful, but I knew that she was putting on a brave front to lift Hua’s spirits. Mei’s handmaiden brought out a large box and set it in front of Fuhua. “What is this?” Hua looked up at Mei. “It’s your birthday present.” Our mom told her. “Oh.” Despite her poor mood, Hua enthusiastically opened the large box, revealing a beautiful silk purple plum blossom kimono. “I don’t want it.” Fuhua stated rudely. Himeko opened her mouth to say something but quickly closed it. “Dad would know what to get me.” Hua continued. Even I was starting to get frustrated with my little sister. “Your dad would be disappointed in your behavior.” Ruolan was the one to speak first. Mei tried to calm her down. “Ruolan, it’s okay.” “No it’s not, empress. You worked very hard to sew this gift for my immature daughter, and she treats you this disrespectfully. It’s absolutely unacceptable for one of the dragon clan.” Tears started pooling in Hua’s eyes at the harsh words, and she ran off after saying “I hate you mom!”

“I’ll go deal with her.” Ruolan stated matter-of-factly, and followed her daughter. I was thankful. Himeko was a very well behaved sister, so I had minimal experience in dealing with issues like this. “Are you okay, Himeko? I know father being gone is hard on you as well.” “I can understand how Hua feels, but it doesn’t excuse her being discourteous to mother like that. If father was here, everything would be alright.” “Believe in our father. After he wins, he’ll come back home. But in the meantime, it’s up to us to protect our family.” “Yes, onii-sama, I won’t let anyone hurt you.” “Those should be my words.” I gently patted my little sister’s head as I usually did. Ruolan soon returned with a calm Fuhua in tow. Hua approached my mother and bowed her head. “Empress, I am very sorry for my rudeness. Thank you so much for the gift, I’ll use it well.” She glanced at me as she said the last few words. “It’s alright, Hua. It’s a hard time for all of us, so let’s try to enjoy today as much as possible.” I stepped next to Ruolan. “What did you say to Hua? Her attitude is like night and day.” “Well, I told her that you were weak to kimonos, and that if she put it on you would faint.” “... You saw that?” “Fufu.” What a dangerous woman. Next, Ruolan gave Hua a wooden training dummy like the ones I’ve seen in kungfu movies. “What is that, mom?” “You’ll know soon enough.” Ruolan smiled mysteriously. Finally, it was my turn. Himeko and I had combined our efforts to come up with our gift. “Our gift is somewhere else, so follow us, Hua.” We reached our hands out to our little sister at the same time and she held onto them tightly.

“Where are you taking me? “It’s a surprise.” I said. Escorted by a pair of palace guards, we walked along the dirt path into the forest behind the castle, listening to the rustling of the bright green maple leaves in the wind. Fuhua looked even more confused. “Why are we in the woods?” “Your present is here.” Himeko smiled at the look on her face. “Huh?” The path steepened as we headed for the top of a small hill. “We’re almost there.” At the summit, there was a gigantic maple tree. “Look up, Hua.” “Is that... a house?” There was indeed a small wooden house with a balcony tucked between the branches of the ancient tree. I came up with the idea when I heard that dragons like high places. “Why don’t you climb up and take a look?” I suggested. Without missing a beat, she bolted up the ladder. “Whooo!” We could hear her jubilant yells at the top as we started climbing. “Is this really all mine?” “Yes. I’ll give you a tour.” Himeko proudly announced. “There’s a bed for when you want to take a nap, a whole shelf for snacks, a swing.” Everything that Himeko showed Fuhua was met with praise and applause. After Fuhua had her fill of exploring the house, the three of us sat on the edge of the balcony watching the view of the castle and city. “Did you guys build this?” “We had a lot of help from the carpenters, but we did a lot of it.” I answered. “Thanks, onii-chan, onee-chan. This is the best birthday gift ever.” “You’re welcome, Hua.” Himeko replied. “Have you cheered up?” I asked her. “Yeah!” “Let’s head home then. You can come here anytime. Just make sure to take a guard with you.” In high spirits, we returned to the palace, but the news that we received there instantly crushed it. The oni had broken through the border and were headed towards the capital.

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I wiped the sweat from my brow as I observed the opponent in front of me. Himeko’s stance was almost perfect, leaving no gaps for me to capitalize on. If there were no gaps, I would have to make one myself. I dashed forward and pretended to go for a vertical slash before swinging my bamboo sword from the side. Her sword only twitched slightly at the feint, and parried my strike cleanly before stabbing towards my chest. I stepped back just in time to avoid it. “Go, onee-chan!” Hua yelled from the side lines “Why are you only cheering for Himeko?” “Because you always win and it’s getting boring.” I turned my focus back onto the fight. We were closely matched in strength, but after sparring with her many times, I realized that her speed and technique were superior. However, she had never beaten me once. I decided that I would confront her about it today. I rushed towards her, leading with a flurry of strikes that were all fended off until our swords were locked together, our wrists almost touching. The next move would end the spar. I tensed my muscles and stepped to the side, aiming a blow at her shoulder while she did the same. Her sword moved faster, but stopped right before it hit me. This time, I also stopped my sword. “Himeko, why are you holding back?” Her face fell as she realized she had been caught. “Onii-sama, you’re the crown prince and my older brother. You should be the strongest in the country.” “Why? I don’t care about any of that. I can improve quicker if I’m fighting against someone better than me, and the enemy is getting closer every single day. Stop holding back. Come at me with all you have.” “Yes, onii-sama.” We restarted the spar, but this time Himeko attacked first, her strikes fast as lightning. I put completely on the defensive. A small pause in her assault gave me the opportunity to counter attack, but it turned out to be a bait. She side-stepped my desperate swing and struck me cleanly in the side, knocking me onto my butt. “Sorry, onii-sama, are you okay?!” “Himeko, you’re amazing.” It was clearly not the reaction she was expecting, as she blushed while helping me up. “Thank you.” The instructor, an old war veteran, walked over. “You’re already very talented, prince Issho, but I haven’t seen anyone at your age with your sister’s skill in the sword since your father. Himeko’s face steadily grew redder and redder. She was definitely weak to praise. “That was so cool!” Hua ran up to us. The instructor scolded her for her previous noisiness. “You can watch, princess, but don’t distract the students.” “Sorry.” On the other hand, Hua was weak to being chastised and was easily discouraged. The instructor’s harshness may have also contributed to her quitting a few months ago. I decided that I would take her to the tree house tomorrow to cheer her up.

Hua didn’t show up to watch us the following day. After finishing our training, I went around the palace looking for her, but no one had seen her all day. By dinnertime, she was still nowhere to be found, and I was starting to get worried. Fu Hua never missed a meal. “Himeko, you search the castle, I’ll check the tree house.” “Yes, onii-sama.” Taking a few attendants with me, I set out in the direction of the hill.