Inquiry (complete)

[Kwok Yulin]

Yulin crossed camps briskly, staring at distaste at the dry and barren floor. There wasn't even a patch of grass in the entire area, the weather year-round was much too unforgiving for it, and the only greenery she had seen had either been very persistent weeds, or sturdy trees that were too firm to bend to the climate's will.

It wasn't the season for snow yet, but the days were certainly cold enough for it. She could see her breath clouding when she spoke, and was more reluctant to shouting orders these days - every time she opened her mouth it just felt like the air was seeping in, stealing whatever warmth it could find. It was even difficult to sleep at night, tossing in a dark, lonely tent.

She reached her destination shortly. It wasn't difficult to find because Shen's tent was always within a certain radius of his general, like the Lieutenant General himself. She stopped at the entrance, and said as a means of asking permission, "Shen-shen, unless you're naked, I'm coming in."

[Shen Rui]

Shen had finally got the chance to take a rest within his tent. Everything he had thought about had been miscalculated and now he wasn't entirely sure what to do with their current position. He was sitting on the floor of the tent with his back rested against the center-pole. His left ankle was tucked under his right leg and in-front of him were scattered pieces of scrolls. Some dealt with literature pertaining to the 'wisdom' of the world, while others rendered over the art of war.

Leaning over the scroll on the furthest to the left, he went onto the line about rebellions and how they were started. Though when he heard a familiar voice he stopped and lifted his head to stare at the entrance of the tent. Shen rolled his eyes in annoyance before moving the scrolls into a pile. "Come in," immediately Yulin could pick up the annoyance rooted in his voice. To him, Yulin was one of the brighter Generals - though sometimes her enthusiasm irked him.

[Kwok Yulin]

"Organized aren't we?" Yulin said as her eyes immediately fell on the pile of papers, her brand of greetings never being the most standard. "What are you studying for?"

She remained standing just before the door, knowing fully well that she as not as welcome here as other generals, so to speak, especially after hearing the tone of the boy's voice. While waiting for a reply, her eyes wandered around the room, picking up little nuances and collecting tidbits of information. She spotted the half-word '-bellion' on one of the nearer scrolls, the first part of the phrase covered by the paper rolling on itself, but it was not so difficult to guess what it was.

Shen himself was not exactly in great condition either. He kept his face as bland and unimpressed as always, but there seemed to be an invisible weight on his back, crushing him towards the floor. Like Kamlong, she noted with a frown.

[Shen Rui]

Once the papers were secured within his grasp, he removed his ankle from under his leg to slowly lift himself into a stand. Idly, the papers were rested in his left hand and his gaze adjusted to Yulin's face. "I am looking.. for an answer," he responded to the question, though ignoring the part about organization - any strategist would have to be organized. Usually Yulin didn't need to correspond with him unless something was wrong. "Did something happen?" Shen asked Yulin quietly, his gaze drifting from the girl's eyes. He was thinking back on the time when they were younger, Yulin had always been competitive.

Anything to avoid complication.

[Kwok Yulin]

The response she was given was vague, but probably, it was meant to be. She pursed her lips together from pressing the subject on. She could be nosy and stubborn, but there was a time and place for that. Right now, she wasn't here to just bother the boy, and if her guesses were correct, her business and the 'problem' for which Shen needed an 'answer' were related. "I think I'm the one who should be asking you about that," she returned in fashion, resting one hand on her shoulder and using the other to cradle its respective elbow.

"Did something happen?" she repeated.

[Shen Rui]

Shen could already feel the anxiety because of the girl's question. The real purpose he was reading scrolls was to get his mind off of the pronounced war, the captive Prince and Kamlong himself. Thinking about what to tell Yulin, he stood there for a moment - as though frozen and not entirely there. He shook his head in a negative response, saying 'no' to the question until he spoke the opposite. "Everything's wrong," Shen said finally in confession, gaze finally lifting.

"We're at war - the Japanese Prince is here, not to mention Kamlong has been acting differently," his voice was steady, though cracking. But he didn't want to scare Yulin either, so he did his usual thing and gave the other a smile. "But there is no reason to doubt General Sze," he said to Yulin, the very thing he repeated to himself constantly.

[Kwok Yulin]

Yulin didn't respond immediately, taking a few minutes to just stand and absorb the information, her face remaining static the entire time. "Don't," she said finally, tone soft and gentle, as she looked off to the side, eyes falling from the wall to the ground. She didn't want to see the expression on Shen's face, whatever it was, because if his words were any indication, he was probably this close to being ripped open and raw by things none of them really understood yet. "Don't say that like you're trying to convince yourself. I'd never doubt him. And if I never would, would you?"

Would you, Shen, who has pledged your life and everything else you have in you? Would you?

"So we are at war," she said slowly, taking her time in letting the news roll over her. The sensation it caused was frigid and uncomfortable, like a slick and black mass sliding down her throat to settle at the bottom of her stomach. They had been generals for years, but this was their first real war. Minor conflicts and skirmishes only paled in comparison. What would it be like, to wake up in the morning and wonder, "Will I be alive to wake up the next morning?"

"That kid, he was the Prince? Ah, what cute royalty they have."

[Shen Rui]

Yulin's expression frightened him for a moment, and he weighted on the word 'don't' for so long. Until the question commenced into a more painful one. She wasn't facing him and he no longer wanted to face her, so he whirled around to slowly lift the papers up and near to his chest, the paper slightly crunching due to the pressure he applied. "I never would," he replied, finally setting the papers down on the near by table. I just doubt myself, he thought.

Finally, he turned back around to face his so called 'guest'. Yes, they were at war and there was nothing to prevent it from coming to a halt. He had there personally to hear both sides and ideas - Sze's stubborn exterior still confused him to this very moment. "He was," Shen chimed, almost like 'was' had been the keyword. And it was true, from what he heard the power already went to some other figure.

[Kwok Yulin]

"Is it because of him, then?" she continued, now almost regretting the day she laid eyes on the foreigner. Perhaps, that wasn't the right question. "No," she corrected, climbing up the responsibility ladder, "is it because of us then?"

[Shen Rui]

"To everyone else it is because of us, especially Japan. Whoever is controlling the military over there has reported the Prince was dead because we killed him," he told Yulin while placing his arms behind his back. "He.. was never properly sent to the Emperor, meaning because of it we're at fault. I am - no, there is a way to resolve it but we can't because of new orders." He recalled back, the very orders Sze and the Prince fought over.

[Kwok Yulin]

"This is ridiculous!" she exclaimed, flaring for a moment despite her efforts to stay calm. "We are fighting over a great big misunderstanding." She drew back, expression dark. But isn't that the way it always is? If we could understand each other all the time, what conflict would survive? "Ah," she ultimately added, cradling her head in the cup of her palm as callous but unfortunately fitting words spilled out of her mouth. "I see. That is...unfortunate then."

"Then, we fight," she sighed, sliding eyes back towards the owner of the tent. "Is this what's been bothering you two?"

[Shen Rui]

"Perhaps," Shen replied, surprised Yulin showed even the slightest bit of fury. Usually she was so calm, but then again, so was Sze .. obviously the new orders conflicted everything. He assumed that he wouldn't get another like this with the other, so he took a shot at it. "Yulin," he spoke up, "thank you."

[Kwok Yulin]

Yulin smiled at that, masking her slight surprise by walking over to the younger man and flicking his forehead quickly. "Eh, what're you thanking me for? I didn't do anything, Shen-shen. Thank me when you invite me to you and Boya's wedding, eh?" she teased, flashing a grin.

Then, she spun on her heel, facing him with her back now. "Just keep in mind, this might be hard on everybody, but it's a waste of energy to mope about it now. We'll make it out alright," she said, throwing a confident glance over her shoulder, and it was almost more than just simple reassurance. She really did believe their army could make it through thick and thin. They had not come so far to be beaten down now. "Have more faith in us!"

[Shen Rui]

When his forehead was flicked he took a step back and moved his right hand to rest over the targeted area. And suddenly he gave the other one of those timid glares, shaking his head in disapproval towards the action. "I was going to thank you on the account of being there, but I take it back," Shen said bitterly, although anyone could tell he was joking. And the wedding? "Not happening," he mumbled.

Waving his hand away from his forehead he gave Yulin a determined stare. "Of course we will.."

[Kwok Yulin]

"That's much better!" Yulin chirped, waving one finger in front of the Lieutenant General's face while the other hand rested comfortably on her hip. "Heaven knows you frown enough already, and I don't know how you can manage to look even more gloomy than usual, but it was a little unsettling for a moment! And, everybody knows that I'm the best general anyway, so if Boya doesn't get his act together fast enough, I'll handle it - no sweat."

As if to prove this, she flexed one arm entirely too proudly, admiring the limb entirely on her own.

"Now what you have to do is keep your spirits up. Because otherwise Boya will see you and drive himself into a rut." She sighed dramatically, throwing both hands into the air, palms facing upwards. "Really, you way you two think are way too alike, I'm surprised he hasn't figured out that you've got a monster of a cru-..." She stopped herself short, and the timing was too perfect for the slip to have been accidental. "Oh, not my place to say, is it," she chuckled.