White Tiger (38 page)

‘That is entirely not good enough,’ she said. ‘We must at least find you a nice bracelet.’ Her eyes unfocused.

‘Don’t you dare!’ I shouted, but it was too late. There was a tap on the door and she flitted to open it. John came in, obviously uncomfortable about
invading Girl Space. But when he saw me he stopped dead. I rose to show him the dress.

‘Exquisite. I love the colour.’

‘Do you have anything suitable?’ Jade said.

‘Not here. I have some on the Peak, but the main collection is on the Mountain. Go and fetch it for me; you can move much faster than Gold in True Form. Carry it, don’t try to bring it directly. Some of the pieces are extremely fragile and could be damaged by the transition.’

‘My Lord,’ she said, and bowed. She went out.

He gestured for me to follow him to the window. ‘Come and watch. She doesn’t often travel like this, and it will be a thing to see.’

I moved to stand beside him.

‘That dress is superb,’ he said quietly without looking at me. He was very careful not to touch me.

We looked over the lawn at the front of the house. Jade rushed out the front door, then stopped and lowered her head.

She changed into a dragon.

She was about two metres long, glittering with green scales. She had gold claws, and gold fins on her tail and behind her legs. She raised her head, her green eyes flashed, and she launched herself into the air. She didn’t have wings; she flew like a swimming snake, whipping through the air. She accelerated higher until she disappeared.

‘That was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen,’ I said.

‘I agree,’ John said, but he was watching me. ‘She will be about half an hour, Emma. Come down to the garden and have some tea with me while we wait for her. Then you can choose something suitable.’

Half an hour later Jade plummeted from the sky in dragon form, a small rosewood casket held in her front
claws. She landed lightly on the grass and bowed to us. Then she changed back into a woman. She placed the casket on the table between John and me, then sat next to me and poured herself some tea.

I leaned to speak softly to her. ‘Where do the clothes go, Jade?’

‘I conjure them as I change,’ she whispered. ‘I make them as I need them.’

‘Your dragon form is beautiful.’

‘Thank you. But I am a very small dragon. Wait until you see Qing Long.’ She gestured towards the casket. ‘Now, let’s see what sort of collection the Dark Lord has. This should be interesting.’

‘Not very much, I’m afraid,’ he said. ‘I’ve never been one for collecting gold. I bought some for Michelle—’

I cut him off. ‘Please don’t ask me to wear anything that belonged to her, John.’ Jade smiled.

‘Very well, then, let’s see what we have,’ he said, and opened the box.

He pulled out a few very nice pieces. All of them had an interesting history or story behind them. Most had been gifts from friends or rewards for service from the Jade Emperor. John obviously didn’t place much value on them in monetary terms.

‘This is a piece of gold jade in the shape of Mercy,’ he said.

I held it. It was Ms Kwan in her Celestial form, sitting cross-legged and holding the urn that contained the bottomless font of Mercy. It was about ten centimetres long and the jade was a striking shade of amber.

‘I thought jade was green.’

‘I am,’ Jade quipped, ‘but the stone can be any colour. Some of the finest jade isn’t green at all.’

‘Here’s a chain for it,’ John said. He threaded the pendant onto the elaborately carved chain. ‘Is this too heavy?’

‘No, I can handle it,’ I said. I popped it over my head. It sat on the black silk and glowed against the chrysanthemums. ‘Perfect.’

He pulled out six gold bracelets and held them out to me. ‘Pick a few.’

I took one with triangular links, without touching him. ‘I like this.’

‘Dragon scales design,’ Jade said. She opened the soft gold hook and put the bracelet around my wrist for me. ‘Fitting.’

John opened a smaller box and held it out. ‘Earrings.’

‘It’s good your ears are pierced,’ Jade said. ‘You can choose something nice.’

I pulled a pair of black jade earrings out of the box. ‘I like these.’ They were flat jade disks with a square hole in the centre, like traditional coins. A large diamond filled each hole. But the jade itself was unusual: it was jet black. I passed them to Jade. ‘They’ll go well with the general colour scheme.’

‘These diamonds are very fine,’ Jade said, turning the earrings over in her fingers. ‘But the jade is spectacular. Black jade is extremely rare, and these are exceptional pieces. But I am not sure that Lady Emma should wear black jade, my Lord. It has many unpleasant connotations. I hate to think that she might share the same fate as its namesake.’

‘I have sworn. It will be,’ John said, and Jade nodded, satisfied.

‘What?’ I said. ‘What unpleasant connotations?’

‘I think it is better that you do not know for now,’ Jade said, ‘but we must arrange a tutor for you. You will require a Classical education, my Lady.’

‘I forbid it,’ John said.

Jade glanced sharply at him. ‘My Lord?’

He didn’t say anything else, so she returned to the earrings. ‘The shape is not entirely suitable, but if it is your wish then there will be no dispute. Where did these come from, my Lord?’

‘Hell.’

Jade gasped and dropped the earrings.

I picked them up and opened my mouth to ask.

‘It is a long story. I might tell you about it later.’ He pulled a small black silk purse out of the bottom of the box. ‘I forgot I had this. Gold would be very upset if he knew.’

‘Gold?’ Jade said.

Mr Chen nodded. He opened the purse and tipped a ring into his hand: a small square piece of green jade set onto a simple gold band. Three gold studs on either side of the stone were the only decoration. The jade was so old that most of the polish had worn away and the stone didn’t shine at all.

‘This is very plain,’ Jade said. ‘Quite unsuitable really. The stone is very good, but it is badly in need of a polish.’

He passed it to her and she turned it over in her hands. ‘Very, very old.’

‘Study the stone,’ Mr Chen said.

Jade touched the stone with her finger and concentrated. She snapped back and her eyes widened. ‘My Lord!’

‘Don’t drop it,’ he said. ‘I don’t think the stone would like it.’

She returned the ring to him, her face full of awe.

He took a deep breath, then let it out. He shook out his shoulders. ‘Give me your hand, Emma.’

I held my hand out.

‘No, left hand.’

‘Oh.’ I held my left hand out for him. His own hand hovered over it, holding the ring, without touching me.

He gazed into my eyes. ‘Will you marry me when I return, Emma Donahoe?’

I returned his gaze. ‘Yes I will, Xuan Wu.’

He quickly took my hand and slipped the jade ring onto my ring finger. ‘Thank you.’ He pulled his hands away and grinned. ‘It would be ironic if I killed you by asking you to marry me.’

‘You’re a complete moron sometimes, John,’ I said. ‘You should have just given it to me.’

‘I wanted to do it myself,’ he huffed. ‘Traditional. Oh.’ He smiled slightly. ‘A diamond is traditional in the West. Do you want one?’

‘I don’t need anything,’ I said, leaning across the table to gaze intently at him. ‘Your promise is more than enough for me. You didn’t even need to ask me out loud; you know we don’t need words.’

Jade sobbed loudly, leapt to her feet and ran into the house, tears streaming down her face. We watched her indulgently.

‘Now that you wear my ring, all will accept you as my equal,’ he said. ‘Jade will ensure that everyone in the Heavens is aware of our pact by nightfall. She is absolutely the worst gossip on the Celestial Plane.’

I studied the ring on my finger. ‘What’s so special about it, John?’

‘This ring was made for the Yellow Emperor himself; his Empress wore it. It is as old as history; it is a Building Block of the World. It is sentient, and its size and shape are dependent on its use. It has been sleeping for nearly five hundred years, but it may wake for you if you wear it constantly. The setting is at least two thousand years old. Don’t lose it.’ He raised his hand. ‘Don’t worry; if it wakes you won’t be able to lose it. It will find you.’

‘What about training?’

‘Remove it for physical training; it will not mind.’

‘How about I wear it on a chain around my neck for training?’

‘I think you are smarter than me, Emma.’ ‘Maybe it’s just that you’re cold-blooded—your brain is slower.’

He laughed quietly at that. ‘What about energy work?’

‘Leave it on for energy work. If it doesn’t like the sensation, it will wake and tell you.’

I studied the ring. ‘It can talk? Does it have a name?’

‘It has not spoken in more than five hundred years,’ he said. ‘It once said that it was above such banalities as names; it was much too important to need one.’

‘So I have an engagement ring with attitude.’

‘Yep. You’re a matched set.’

I raised my hand to shove him and changed my mind. He grinned.

Before we returned the rest of the jewellery to the casket, I selected a light plain gold chain, in eighteen carats. It had a traditional spring clasp rather than the bendable hook for pure gold that would break with too much use. I popped it over my head to hold the ring when I was training.

John closed the casket and placed his hand on top of it. ‘Keep it all. You might as well.’

I put my hand on the casket next to his. ‘I’ll keep this for Simone until you come back.’

‘Keep it as my Lady until I come back, and when I return, I will fill it full for you.’

‘No need,’ I said. ‘Having you back would be all that I would need in the world.’

‘Enough.’ He pulled his hand away. ‘You’ll make me rush inside like Jade.’

I raised both hands in surrender. We sat silently together and shared the tea.

I
swung my sword at Leo’s head and he blocked me. We moved closer, our swords locked at the hilts, and he grinned. He threw his arms out into a massive push and flung me almost to the other side of the room. I landed smack on my behind and we both laughed.

John had come in without us noticing. ‘Come on, Emma, you can do better than that.’ He closed the door behind him and leaned against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest, watching us. ‘That was absolutely pathetic. Stop trying to match Leo’s strength, you know he is much stronger than you. Match him with skill.’

Leo lowered his sword, came to me and put one hand out to help me up.

When I was on my feet I readied myself again. ‘Can you look after Simone while we’re at the ceremony tonight?’ I asked him. ‘I don’t think she should go along.’

Leo lowered his sword. ‘Why not? They’ll all take True Form. She loves it when they do that.’

‘She’d really enjoy it, Emma,’ John said.

‘John, they’ll be discussing your oath. They’ll be talking about you going and about you coming back.
Do you want to have to explain that to her right in the middle of the ceremony?’

John and Leo shared a look. ‘She’s not completely aware that you’ll be leaving her, my Lord,’ Leo said.

‘You’re probably right, Emma,’ John said. ‘Leo?’

‘I’ll mind her. She’ll be fine here.’

‘We’ll have to tell her eventually, Emma.’

I sighed. ‘I know.’

‘But you should be the one to choose the time. I trust you.’

‘Good idea, my Lord.’ Leo readied himself. ‘Try again.’

I raised my sword and threw myself at him. Leo flattened me before I was even close.

‘Pathetic,’ John said, and went out.

Leo grinned at the door. ‘He is so damn impressed with you.’

I pulled myself to my feet. ‘How about we give him something to be impressed about?’

Jade nodded when she was finished preparing me for the ceremony. I rose and checked myself in the changing room’s mirror. I did look like a princess. It didn’t feel like me at all.

‘He’s waiting outside, my Lady,’ Jade said. ‘I’ll be along shortly, just let me fix my make-up.’

John was leaning against the wall outside the changing room. He pulled himself upright when he saw me and his eyes shone. He wore a black silk robe, trimmed with gold on the toggles and loops, the ends of the full-length sleeves and the edge of the mandarin collar.

‘I’ve never seen you in this one before; it’s always been plain black,’ I said. ‘I like the gold edgings.’

‘You like it? Mr Li made it to match your dress.’

‘It’s wonderful, but your hair’s already coming out. Turn around and let me braid it for you; it might stay put longer.’

He obligingly turned. I raised my hands to take out the tie and stopped. ‘Can I do this?’

‘Yes, but only my hair. Nowhere else.’ He grinned over his shoulder. ‘Especially while you look like that.’

‘I’ll take that as a compliment.’

I pulled his hair from its tie, carefully smoothed it and braided it for him. I raised it to my face; it really did smell of the sea. I lingered, enjoying the silken feeling.

‘You’d better stop now, Emma. That feels…’ He hesitated. ‘A little
too
good.’

I tied the end of the braid and moved my hands away. ‘Done.’

He turned and smiled down at me. ‘Now you turn around, let me see.’

I did a quick twirl and he watched with admiration. He moved closer to see the detail of the work Jade had put into my hair and froze.

‘
Jade
!’

Jade came out of the changing room in a plain black cheongsam. She saw his face and stopped dead.

John roared with fury and pointed. ‘What is Lady Emma wearing in her hair?’

‘Just some lovely old pieces that I lent her…’ Jade’s eyes widened. She collapsed onto the floor and fell over her knees. ‘My Lord, forgive me, I will remove them immediately…’ She gasped a huge sob. ‘This affront was not intended. I cannot believe I have insulted you like this. Please permit me to hang myself when the ceremony is completed.’ She moaned softly, shaking her head through the tears. ‘Apologies, apologies.’

‘John—’

He raised his hand to stop me. ‘Please, Emma.’

His voice changed as he spoke to Jade; it was as cold as ice. I had never seen him so angry. ‘I do not give you permission. You will remove these items and give them
to me, together with any others you hold in your possession, directly after the ceremony. They must be cared for properly. You have obviously had these items in your possession for a long time…’ He took a deep breath. ‘…
while in my service,
without thinking of the ramifications. I will consider appropriate punishment for you later. Sometimes I wonder where your brain is, Jade.’

He turned to me and spoke more warmly, ignoring Jade quivering at his feet. ‘You couldn’t have known, Emma. You’ll probably be as upset as I am when you find out what they are. Go inside with Jade and have her put something else in your hair. Hurry, most of the dignitaries are already here.’

Jade rose, brushed down her cheongsam and led me back into the changing room without looking at me. As soon as we were inside she closed the door, raced to the table and grabbed some tissues to wipe her face. Her make-up was ruined; she concentrated and it all disappeared.

She sat me in front of the mirror and quickly plucked the ornaments from my hair. I lifted one from the table; it was stiff and transparent, with bands through it of darker and lighter shades of brown. The end was gilded with twenty-four carat gold and had small bells hanging off to make a musical sound as I moved my head.

I realised what it was. I shot to my feet in horror and flung the comb onto the desk. ‘Oh dear Lord, that’s
tortoiseshell
!’ A wave of nausea hit me and I bent to take deep breaths. ‘Jade, that could have been
him
! Left on a beach to die, chopped into pieces and used to make
this
! He wouldn’t have been able to defend himself in True Form if he was in front of humans.’

Jade grabbed some more tissues and wailed into them. ‘I
know
! I deserve to die.’

I sat down again. ‘Put something else in, quickly. Why the hell do you have these?’

‘Like I said, my grandmother gave them to me. I’ve had them for a long time. Most hair combs and ornaments are made of tortoiseshell—it’s the best for combs, it never breaks your hair.’ She gasped and stared at me in the mirror. ‘I have snakeskin shoes in my apartment in Happy Valley. Please don’t tell him. I’ll remove them immediately.’

‘My God, Jade, you’re a dragon, you’re a serpent yourself! How could you have snakeskin shoes?’

‘I just thought of them as nice clothes.’ Her voice dropped to a whisper. ‘Please don’t tell him, my Lady.’

‘Don’t worry, I won’t, but you are in
serious trouble
.’

‘I know,’ she moaned. ‘I hope the punishment is something fitting. I deserve to suffer most mightily for this offence.’

‘I’ll think of something,’ I growled softly.

‘Thank you, my Lady,’ she whispered. ‘There. These are only sterling silver, and do not match the dress, but they are better than nothing. You’d better run.’

John tapped on the door. ‘Sorry, Emma, you have to come, it’s starting.’

‘I’m coming.’

John led me to the entrance of the ballroom and stopped. He smiled down at me. ‘You will be fine, Emma.’

I took a deep breath. ‘I can do this.’

We walked into the room together.

A long black carpet stretched before us, through the middle of the ballroom to the throne at the end. All the dignitaries knelt in orderly ranks on both sides of the carpet, facing the throne, silent.

The throne was raised on a dais above the floor and was an old-fashioned Chinese Imperial style, made of
jet-black ebony. The back was elaborately carved, but not with the usual dragons; instead it was an elaborate pattern of twining snakes and fierce-looking dragonheaded turtles.

John and I walked side by side along the aisle to the throne. It was eerie to pass through that silent space with so many people kneeling on either side of us. I desperately wished I could hold his hand.

Jade and Gold followed behind us; both had changed their clothes. Jade’s cheongsam was plain black; Gold’s long robe was also black, without any decoration.

When we reached the throne John gestured for me to sit first, his eyes glowing with amusement. I sat, and he sat next to me. ‘You’re doing fine,’ he whispered.

Jade and Gold both knelt in front of the throne, then took their places as Retainers standing behind us. Jade still sniffled occasionally and her eyes were red. She hadn’t bothered to replace the make-up and she looked pale and drawn.

‘Am I on the right side?’ I said under my breath.

‘Doesn’t matter at all,’ he replied in the same low tones. ‘This will dissolve into anarchy the minute all the oaths are sworn anyway.’

Everybody in the hall chanted the Imperial greeting ‘Ten thousand years’ without looking up. ‘Wan sui, wan sui, wan wan sui.’

The rustling of their robes echoed through the ballroom as they rose and silently moved to the sides of the hall.

Many round twelve-seater tables appeared, together with elegantly dressed waiters. Everybody sat and the drinks were served.

‘We don’t get anything to eat or drink until this whole insufferable charade is over,’ John said. He smiled sideways at me. ‘But it’s worth it to see the look on your face.’

‘You really are enjoying this far too much,’ I growled.

‘Oh, the fun is just beginning,’ John said, and rose. Everybody in the hall stood also. There was complete silence.

‘I have chosen Emma Donahoe to be Guardian and Regent after I have lost this form,’ John said. ‘You will serve her as you serve me. Her orders are to be obeyed as mine. And I swear…’ He took a deep breath and the silence became even thicker. ‘I swear that when I return, I will find Emma, and Raise her, and marry her, and take her to live on my Mountain. This I swear as Xuan Tian Shang Di.’ His voice became fierce. ‘She is my chosen, my promised, my Lady. Is there any dispute?’

Nobody made a sound.

‘Good. Swear allegiance to my Lady,’ John said, and sat.

‘Way to go, Ah Wu!’ Bai Hu shouted from one of the front tables, and everybody dissolved into loud applause. I even heard a couple of cheers: there appeared to be some Westerners towards the back. The guests relaxed, talking and laughing.

‘Close your mouth, Emma,’ John said without looking at me.

‘How come they’re all so thrilled?’ I said. ‘They should be horrified. I’m just a nanny.’

‘Word gets around fast,’ John said. ‘Jade’s told everybody all about you. She told her grandchildren, just like she said she would.’

‘I didn’t know she was married and had children and grandchildren,’ I said. ‘But I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised.’

‘Dragons don’t usually marry,’ he said with amusement. ‘They are too fickle. We reptiles are a degenerate bunch. Often the Jade Emperor is at his wits’ end at our behaviour.’

‘He’s not the only one,’ I growled softly.

He made a soft sound of amusement. ‘They’re all quite impressed, particularly that you stayed with Leo and Simone when the demons attacked the Peak apartment. They agree with Bai Hu. You really are exceptional.’

‘I don’t want them to kneel to me.’ I sighed with exasperation. ‘They’re gods, John, and I’m just an ordinary human, nothing special at all. It will kill them if they have to bow down to me.’

Bai Hu rose and came to the base of the dais. He fell to one knee and saluted us. ‘I swear allegiance to you, Lady Emma, as Regent in the absence of Lord Xuan and the minority of Princess Simone. I vow to obey you for as long as you live.’

He rose and raised his arms. ‘Look, my Lady, it didn’t kill me at all.’

Tiger hearing. I should have known.

He became more serious. ‘You’re the best one for the job, Lady Emma. Lord Xuan has chosen well. I look forward to the wedding. You will make a fine Empress of the North.’

He changed to an enormous white tiger, at least three metres long. He bowed to me in True Form, then changed back to human form.

John and I nodded back.

Bai Hu grinned, winked and returned to his table.

Qing Long rose. He wore his old-fashioned robe of turquoise silk embossed with silver scales. His long turquoise hair floated behind him as he moved.

He fell to one knee at the base of the throne without saying a word.

‘Words are not necessary from one such as he,’ John said as we both nodded back.

Qing Long took True Form and I jumped.

‘Steady, Emma,’ John said.

I gathered myself and let him know I was okay with a very slight nod.

Jade was about two metres long in dragon form. Qing Long nearly filled the hall. He was close to twenty metres long, all glittering silver and blue. His scales shifted from pure turquoise to shining silver as he moved. He raised his head and the scales rattled like steel knives. His head was the size of a pony; it nearly brushed the high ceiling. He lowered his head to see us and his eyes came to the same level as ours on the dais, still an astonishing shade of blue. His fearsome teeth were only about two metres from my head.

He bowed gracefully as a dragon as we both nodded back.

He changed back to human form and stood for a while without moving. Then he fell to one knee again, saluted us, and spoke loudly and clearly. ‘My Lady Emma. I am your servant.’

John and I nodded to him again. He backed away, then returned to the table he shared with the other two Winds.

‘He does you great honour, my Lady, and I am very pleased,’ John said.

‘I’m just scared to death,’ I whispered. ‘But you were right. Truly exquisite.’

Zhu Que rose from the table and came to the bottom of the dais. She fell to one knee and saluted. ‘I vow to serve you, my Lady.’

She rose, and took True Form. She was a huge phoenix, at least three metres tall. Her feathers were mostly red, with a rainbow of iridescent colours shimmering through them. Her tail spread behind her, similar to a peacock’s, but red shot through with shining colours.