A single strand of hair was all it took.
Granted it was a single strand of hair belonging to a powerful immortal being but as it lay in the palm of a humble woman, it seemed so insignificant yet it was everything but.
Hua had wanted to be a mother for a long time. It was all too simple of a task since she lived in the Women’s kingdom and had access to a river which could induce pregnancy with a single sip.
She had been planning to visit this river for a long time but her duties as a seamstress had kept her occupied beyond belief.
It was only on the day when she was mending a fellow woman’s clothes did she spotted a long hair that evidently didn’t belong to anyone in the kingdom.
It glistened and occasionally jolted, possessing a gold-like colour that Hua had never seen another woman possess.
She had wrapped the golden strand of hair in some delicate fabric and put it into her pocket for safekeeping, eager to inspect it once all her work had been done.
After work, a friend had suggested Hua head to the Mother-Child River while it was peaceful and most were at home watching the full moon.
Hua believed she had spent more time staring at the lake than she had ever looked at anything. Even the most beautiful jewel.
Finally mustering up the nerve, she scooped up a cup full of water, watching as the full moon reflected on the rippling liquid.
She wanted this. She had wanted this for so long, why was she hesitating now? Other women had told her how anxious they felt before drinking the water so Hua at least had the comfort of knowing how she felt was normal but it wasn’t enough to bring the cup further to her lips.
At least not yet.
She placed the cup beside her feet, noticing that the small fabric she had put into her pocket had slipped out onto the grass.
For a moment, Hua had forgotten what she had placed in the napkin, only to be sharply reminded once she saw that familiar gold strand of hair.
Pinching the edge of it, she tried to inspect where or who it had come from.
The strand slipped from her fingers and landed into the cup, turning the transparent water into a rich golden liquid.
Hua lifted the cup to her face, astonished by the sudden change to the water. She swished the contents around, dipping a finger inside and watching the glowing liquid roll off her finger back into the cup.
It was a sign. She believed it wholeheartedly. The world wanted her to be a mother and not just any mother, her child would be unique, just as the strand of hair that aided in her conception.
Lips to bronze, she drank the entire cup of liquid in three steady gulps, a round bump forming underneath her clothes within an instant.
Hua didn’t know if it was just her imagination or whether the drink was affecting her perception of events but the moon seemed to shine brighter. As if it knew something she didn’t.
•---------••---------••---------••---------••--
The day of her daughter’s birth, Hua remembers being exhausted, sweaty and most of all, stunned, as were the women who oversaw the birth.
Her daughter was born with strokes of milky white hair that rested on top of her head like virgin snow.
Rounded ears that were slightly bigger in size than the average baby, curved and attentive.
What had really caught the eyes of everyone in the room was the long brown tail protruding from the baby. To the untrained eye, it would be hard to determine what animal had such a tail but unfortunately, everyone was well educated when it came to animals. It was undoubtedly a monkey tail.
Despite these abnormal traits, the baby couldn’t have looked more human, Hua’s features making themselves present.
Whilst Hua recovered from birth, women from all over the Women’s kingdom came to observe the child. Predictions were made. Theories were crafted. Offerings were made.
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They believed this baby was a blessing from the gods and goddesses of China.
Referencing the high moon at the night of her conception and her white hair similar to the surface of such, the baby was named Mingyue, translated to “bright moon”.
Hua was at first, honoured to receive the gifts and praise, fully believing that her daughter had truly been blessed even if she had orchestrated her destiny.
But it didn’t take long for issues to arise.
As a young child, Mingyue’s strength far surpassed the strength of children of her age. It wasn’t uncommon for Mingyue to injure others while playing and when provoked, her emotions were twice as impactful than of a normal human.
Her anger could cause earthquakes, her sadness would cause floods, her jealously would lead to precious items shattering.
It didn’t take long for people to turn on Hua and her child.
No longer was Mingyue a blessing, she was a curse. Unable to handle the harsh scrutiny of the kingdom, and perhaps more importantly, unable to teach her daughter how to control her special abilities, Hua banished herself to the edge of kingdom where nobody lived to raise Mingyue in peace.
What was once a playful young girl became a stern and disciplined teenager.
•---------••---------••---------••---------••--
Once a month, Mingyue would travel outside of the Women’s Kingdom to find seeds and collect fruit so that Hua could continue to grow food and have a variety of options when it came to meals.
These trips were always uneventful and Mingyue was required to wear a cloak to hide her tail in case others were to see her since it was her most alarming attribute but nobody ever did.
However, this time, Mingyue had met someone and that someone was male. This was significant since Mingyue had never seen or met anyone of the male gender before.
His hair was charcoal black, slightly messy but there was a small black bun at the back which did a rather insignificant job of maintaining the tranquility of his hair some the rest of his hair was free and apparent.
A red and yellow seal was plastered over his forehead when Mingyue climbed up into a tree to observe him further, the Chinese characters on the seal read “Silence.”
Underneath the shade of the tree, Mingyue felt a strange throbbing in her chest. She didn’t know what this feeling was but her brain registered it as panic even if if didn’t feel quite as severe as that.
He had a small woven basket with him and it was filled with some peaches. He then approached the tree she was hiding in and shook it so more peaches would fall.
Mingyue was strong enough to keep her grip whilst in the tree but the branch couldn’t handle the strength she was grabbing it with and this plummeted her down right by the male’s feet.
She rose from the ground, eagerly rubbing the red bump on her forehead to soothe it.
The male watched her curiously but didn’t speak. He was clearly surprised by her sudden entrance and wanted to ask if she was alright though he knew better.
Mingyue was quick to recover, circling the male like a shark would to prey. He seemed much different to any woman she knew. He was taller, had a stronger build and sharper features.
“What’s your name male?” Mingyue questioned rather bluntly. She had little experience interacting with others so this form of speech was all she had when it came to dealing with strangers.
The male blinked at being referred to as his gender but shook his head and pointed to the seal as if it wasn’t incredibly obvious. He couldn’t talk with it on and that was for the best.
In response to that simple shake of the head, Mingyue ripped the seal off his lips in a strong pull.
“OW! ARE YOU CRAZY? You can’t-“
The male gasped, covering his mouth. A look of strong panic entered his gaze.
“I spoke… no, no, no… I’m not supposed to… what have you done…?”
Mingyue was about to question his words but before she could, the ground underneath her feet shook with rapture.
“I’m cursed… every time I speak, something bad happens…” He offered an explanation as the ground split apart, the trees around them withered and sharp blasts of wind shoot up from the split ground almost blowing them away.
Mingyue was standing her ground a lot better than he was, her strength granting her the upper hand in this undesirable situation.
“I’m Bao… by the way…”
He whimpered out as lightning came to join the decaying scene. With one swift movement, Mingyue smacked the seal back onto his lips.
“Please keep quiet… I’ll handle this, since it was my fault.”
Bao had never quite seen someone take the blame for their own actions so seamlessly, it somewhat awed him but he was also severely in doubt that fragile looking being such as herself could handle the natural disaster her caused.
Stripping away her cloak, Mingyue revealed her tail. Cracking her knuckles, she revealed her resolve. Running towards the crack, she revealed her bravery, all in a matter of seconds.
She used to strong gust of air to propel herself into the high trees, gripping onto bark and eagerly searching for anything she could use to block the hole.
There was a large boulder on a cliff top nearby but it would definitely be a task to get it to the crack to plug it shut.
She jumped back for to meet Bao, giving him her back to jump onto. Bao, on the other hand was a little perplexed by this dynamic.
Wasn’t it usually the man who saved the woman? Who protected her in dangerous situations?
Mingyue, coming from a village of all women, had no such perception. Everyone was a woman and they helped each other without hesitation. She viewed Bao as she would any other woman.
He hesitantly climbed onto her back as she proceeded to leap from tree to tree with little trouble, possessing the same agility that a monkey would have.
Bao couldn’t help but stare at her tail then back at her. Mingyue had some clearly human traits but there was something different about her as whole.
Mingyue stopped once they had reached the cliff, she lowered him to floor, recommending he stay put as she handled the situation.
She pushed into the boulder, something that likely weighed more than an entire village of people and pushed into it until it slid off the cliff top.
Such strength was impossible for a human. Leaping on top of the boulder, she rolled it to the direction she wanted it to go in by running on top of it, something that would have required an immense amount of strength as well.
Jumping off the rock, she allowed it to plug the crack seamlessly before catapulting herself into the sky and landing on her feet directly onto the boulder so it would lock into the ground.
Bao could only watch with his jaw in his hands. All these feats accomplished by someone who was smaller than him. When he turned around, she had thrown him over her shoulder and brought him back down to the ground.
Bao was quick to get Mingyue’s attention, waving his arms around.
“Huh? I won’t remove the seal again.” She replied sharply, assuming that’s what he wanted.
Grabbing a stick, Bao started to draw something, or someone.
Someone with a tail and and fur growing in his face, rounded ears and fancy clothes. This someone had a large staff and a threatening aura yet undeniably an air of mischievousness.
It was a rather beautiful drawing for someone created in the mud with a stick but Mingyue didn’t understand the significance.
Bao wrote the name “Sun Wukong” beside the drawing before pointing the stick into her face.
While there were several god-like primates in their world, Bao was certain than Mingyue had something to do with Wukong. Their direct species aligned perfectly. The resemblance was visible in her features and it would certainly explain her powers.
Still, it had very little basis. Bao didn’t know her life but he was well versed in the gods and goddesses of China. When you couldn’t talk, you could certainly read.
To emphasise that it was only a theory that he believed she should seek out.
Bao grabbed the stick once more, drawing a circle around his drawing and Mingyue.
And the final touch, he draw a line connecting Mingyue to the drawing.
The meaning was pretty clear. She needed to ask her mother about Sun Wukong.