A Gypsy's Lie

A South Chinese crept up on the small thieves' camp. He looked to be about eighteen, with green eyes spotted with dusty golden flecks. His black stripes stood out boldly against his faded orange fur. Tied Around his head was a black strip of cloth, the symbol for "Courage" showing up in white. Bai Jian silently swallowed as he looked down upon the hideout of the fugitives. There were so many of them, he didn't know if his plan could work. Despite the odds, it had too. It was the only way to prevent his people from being robbed time and time again. Somewhere in the village laid the key to finally getting rid of the dreaded gypsies once and for all. The Rom Bora's daughter, Lianghu. She was the one weakness of the thieves' king.

"On my signal," he whispered to Da, his trustworthy friend. Da nodded as Bai Jian pulled the cloak around him and stood. Entrance to the gypsy camp was easy enough, it was getting close enough to Lianghu that would be the hard part. He sauntered past the guards, the cloak's hood shielding his identity. The sound of guitars being plucked and tambourines keeping time drifted up through the air. They apparently like to dance, he thought as dresses and skirts whirled by him. A few of the men had even begun to dance with the beautiful girls. Their anklets and arm decorations clanked together as couples, or singles, spun around the main fire. Musicians smiled and continued making their art.

One figure stood out to the young leader. She was slightly smaller than the rest, intricate black and red jewelry decorating her black and orange arms. The tigress wore a black flared qipao with the bottom blazing out to red. A golden dragon swirled its way up the skirt of the dress, twisting and turning with the dancer. Her bright blue eyes seemed to smile as moved in sync with the others. Bai Jian couldn't help but gawk for a moment at the beautiful sight he saw before him. All too soon, the memory of his mission came back into mind. Find Lianghu and get out.

"Excuse me," He asked an older tiger, "Where is Lianghu?"

The wrinkled feline snorted, "What are you, blind or something? She's over there with the others as usual." He jabbed a finger at the female tiger Bai Jian noticed earlier.

Bai Jian thanked the elder and walked around the fire. Lianghu's eyes seemed to dance with the flames, laugh lines creasing around the edges. The song ended, and the musicians started up a more eerie, haunting tune. Whispers whirled around him.

"It's Lianghu's song!" rasped one.

"Lianghu!" Someone cried, "Tell us your story!"

"Yeah, tell us!" a little kid yelled.

Lianhu smiled and stepped forward, "Alright"

Bai Jian leaned against a tree to watch, he had time to kill anyways. This should be interesting, the young leader silently thought. The tigress took off the red sash around her waist, twirling it around a couple times in the air. She started to step in beat with the music.

Now listen to a tale filled with wonder

Stories of long ago

You may feel the need to flee

But before you can I'll have you on your knees

Somewhere deep in the woods where no one knows

Lived a dragon by the name of Bao-Zhi

Two coal black buttons for his eyes and a horn for a nose

On his scales were written tales of myth and mystery

A couple children giggled, one singing, "He dashes through the night, in his eyes is such a fright

For if you encounter Bao-Zhi, you're in for quite a sight."

Lianghu laughed and made her way over to Bai Jian, "Tell me good sir, have you seen the monster of mystery?" She laced her red sash around him, pulling the tiger closer to the fire. Bai Jian started to struggle, but then he realized that this was probably part of the dance. She smiled as he followed her until they reached the edge of the fire. The music picked up to an even faster pace.

You see I'm just poor soul trying to run away

I never did any wrong

But I guess there is one thing I have to say

There's nothing worth more than killing Bao-Zhi!

Now some have come to take me away

To put me in a terrible dungeon

Poor poor Lianghu,

She'll run until she finds refuge

You better watch out

Because the next one she'll kill is you!

Bai Jian watch as Lianghu circled around him, still singing and dancing. The song ended, and with great reluctance the people dispersed to their cart like homes and wagons. Lianghu had paused to tie her sash back around her waist, tucking an unseen object into the red cloth. He knew that this was his chance. The tiger caught hold of her sash and pulled her to him.

"Hey! Watch it-"

"One wrong move, and you're dead," rasped the young leader as he pushed the dull end of a knife against her delicate back.

Lianghu silently swallowed and nodded, showing that she understood. Bai Jian shoved her forward, but the gypsy rolled her eyes, stopping on his foot. It took all the patience he could muster to not retaliate, somehow he restrained himself and kept walking. They neared the exit of the camp, and he saw two men standing guard. Bai Jian put his mouth near Lianghu's ear so only she could hear his voice.

"Tell the guards we're going for a walk."

"I'll do no such thing!" She snapped back.

"If you value your father's life, I suggest you do as I say."

Lianghu rolled her eyes, "I don't-"

"You there!" A voice cut her off, "What are you doing out this late at night?" A male snow leopard stood in their way, but his face softened when he saw the small figure before him. "Lianghu!" He looked at Bai Jian then back at her, "Who is this guy?"

The young tiger struggled to keep her voice steady, "H-he's a friend of mine, we're just going out for a walk."

The guard looked at her curiously, then he examined Bai Jian, "…I've never seen you around before."

Bai Jian spoke, "I'm a friend from one of the northern villages."

"Your accent gives you away."

The blade against Lianghu's back was applied more pressure, signaling her to say something. She stuttered for a moment, "I-I know him from when we were kids."

"…..I see. Watch out for scouts, Bai Jian's still looking for us."

She nodded, "I will. Thank you."

The tiger and his hostage quickly walked pass the guard and onto the path leading up to the village. It was obvious that the gypsy girl was not enjoying being shoved around by a stranger. Bai Jian, on the other hand, was amused at his enemy weakly struggling against him. Her small wrists would pound him when no one was in sight, but if a goat vender or a pig farmer happened to come along, Lianghu would walk alongside her captor, pretending to dote over him. Finally, it was past sundown, signaling for all the villagers to stay inside their houses. Before Bai Jian knew it, Lianghu had pinned him against a wall, knife to his neck.

"Wooah," He raised up his hands, "Let's not be irrational here."

Her usually bright blue eyes were harboring storms, "Who are you? And how did you find our hideout?"

"I'm Bai Jian, and I just followed the loud music. Honestly, you'd think your people would be quiet. Plus we also had reports on several gypsy raids."

The knife against his neck pressed harder, "We are NOT gypsies! We're just villagers like you!"

The tiger smirked, "You travel village to village, plundering wherever you go."

Lianghu bit her lip, Bai Jian did have a point. "…what do you want from me?"

The male tiger studied her for a moment, "I want to kidnap you, but you won't kill me."

She raised an eyebrow, "What makes you so sure of that?"

He shrugged, "You just said so yourself. You're a villager, just like me, remember? We don't kill people just for the fun of it."

His words made the female tiger falter, giving Bai Jian the chance to once again gain possession of the blade. He quickly put Lianghu in the place where he was once held captive. She glared at him as the young leader pinned the beautiful girl against the stone.

"Let me go!" Lianghu cried, struggling against him. The scent of jasmine rose up to the male tiger's nostrils, reminding him of his mother. She had been killed by gypsies, and Bai Jian would never forgive the heartless thieves for it.

He smirked, "You see, I would let you go, but I appear to have a problem. A band of "villagers" have been raiding the citizens of this humble valley, and I intend to put an end to it."

"And how exactly are you going to do that?"

"It's simple. Your father will agree to move beyond our borders in exchange for his daughter. If, however, he refuses, I'll make an example of what will happen to other gypsies by mercilessly killing his own daughter."

Her sapphire blue eyes widened in horror, "You wouldn't dare."

He emitted a chuckle, "Oh wouldn't I? Madam, I'm the leader of the Tiger Clan, I am not known for being soft hearted."

The female tiger closed her eyes, taking a shaky breath. Bai Jian grabbed her wrist and quickly tugged her along the dirt path. Lianghu tried to match his strides, but to no avail. The small tiger eventually ended up taking two steps for just one of his. Twigs and thorns snagged at her dress, streaking her golden fur with dirt and grime. Several rips appeared in the fabric of her clothing as they made their way to the village, but Bai Jian didn't slow down. He was on a mission, and the mighty tiger wasn't about to let a pretty face reveal his soft side.

"Hey, long legs, could you maybe slow down a bit?" She pleaded, a branch slapping her in the face.

He smirked, stifling a chuckle as he looked over the tigress. Her face had several red streaks from thorns and branches scratching her face. The once beautiful qipao was now adorned with several tears and splattered with mud. Occasionally, a small leaf or twig clung to her soft fur. Her red sash was now limply wrapped around her side, the end dragging on the forest floor.

"Just because I am your prisoner does not mean that I am not a lady!" She cried.

Bai Jian brushed off a streak of dirt from her cheek, "I know, but it does mean that I will treat you like a soldier. And right now, you are terrible at marching."

A small foot came slamming down onto his larger one in response. "OW!" He shrieked, clutching his throbbing toe. "What happened to Ms. Manners?"

Lianghu held her head high, not wanting to look him in the eyes, "A lady, when provoked, has the permission for self-defense."

"So I'm provoking you?"

"WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE YOU OAF?"

Bai Jian laughed, flashing his pearly white teeth at her, "You're funny. Now keep moving." With that, he shoved her further down the trail, causing her to trip into a puddle of murky water. Lianghu glared at him she picked herself off the ground and continued to trot along beside him. He was tempted to break into a jog just to see how she protested, but that would also mean giving her an opportunity to run away. A tree branch blocked his way, so reached out a hand to brush it aside. Once he passed, the branch came swinging back to Lianghu, giving her a mouthful of leaves and bark. She clenched her tiny fists, restraining herself from attacking him in sake of her father.