#liandao

〚 ❀ 〛 “Stop doting on me.” 

Xiang lightly hit his sister’s hands away from him as he fixed his own tie. The two regions had been obligated invited to attend a fanciful banquet  amongst their highest politicians, and Xiang found himself despising every moment of it. Being around what he believed the world’s most greedy humans was not exactly the way he wished to spend his Friday night. 

He looked to Lee Mei, his beautiful sister who insisted on helping him tidy up at a mirror in the back room of the Hall. He admittedly didn’t put as much... effort into his own look tonight, much to the chagrin of his superiors, but he certainly couldn’t care less in a situation such as this. 

The year was 1880. After having spent most of the Opium Wars in the Philippines, avoiding the political turmoil in his newly formed republic, he finally set out to take a look at these new Opium dens throughout Asia. Since 1860s marked the end of the war, Antonio had spent the last twenty years in a drug, booze, and sex filled haze, avoiding all his responsibilities as he ventured through the continent. It wouldn’t surprise him if his officials thought he was somewhere dead at the bottom of the Philippine Sea. 

“Catalina! My God, it’s such a coincidence to see you!” Such a loud yelling could only come from the Brazilian himself. Caio rushed to give her a tight hug, showing a careless and bright smile on his face.

☼     “Good morning, Maye!”  chirped Nenet, as bright as the sun rising over Egypt as she sat down a tray of cooked fish, fresh dates, and a cup of water. No matter Maye’s mood at this time in the morning, Nenet had already been awake for a few hours. Nenet was more than happy to do her job as an attendant and to do it well, especially for someone as kind as Maye (she had let her brush her hair once and Nenet was ecstatic about that). “Here’s your breakfast, and when you’re done that, I’ll help you get dressed and ready for today.”

Standing up straight, the skinny girl took a step back and rested her arms behind her back, pulling on one of her long blonde curls with a big smile. “Maye --- I’ve been meaning to ask... And I know I shouldn’t because my mama always told me to never comment on a person’s appearance, but... ... ... Where are you from? You’re so beautiful and you look so different. I’ve never seen a person like you before.”

Stunned, the woman only watches her friend and cohort for a second as a pair of felines swarm him, bumping their heads against his arms and legs as he sat across from her in the high-rise apartment that she referred to as her “humble abode” though it was anything but. A single manicured hand runs itself through brunette hair.

“ Sure I do – you dress them up in cute outfits and let them sleep on your paperwork in your home office. ”

“If you’ll excuse me,” she called out in a loud voice to get the other woman’s attention. “My apologies for not calling you by name. This is our first meeting after all. I am Olefumi, a shaman of this sacred temple.”

Chiara looked at the other girl for a moment, before sighing.