A Face in the Crowd

The face melted back into the crowd and disappeared. Suzhen tried frantically to trace it, scanning the streets anxiously. She was sure she had seen it.

"Susu. What are you looking at?" Xuxian said, amused.

She forced a smile. "Nothing. I just thought I saw a familiar face."

"That's nothing surprising. With such a big festival coming up, and the town so lively, we're likely not the only people from the village who came to see."

She nodded absently. "True. Let's go, Xuxian." She pulled him forward quickly before he could turn to look in that direction, glancing backwards uneasily.

The sight had spoiled the day for her, like a black cloud hanging over her head. She thought the terrapin spirit had learnt his lesson and gone his way, since it had been so long since their last encounter. After all, wasn't it obvious enough that he could not beat her? If he had any common sense he wouldn't persist--unless, of course, he had realized that Xuxian was her weakness…

As long as Xuxian was around she could not reveal herself by using his powers. And the terrapin spirit was smart enough to see that, even if he dare not hurt her, he could do a much better job threatening Xuxian.

For a moment she felt a ghostly memory of the panic that had seized her when she first realized Xuxian had not come up from the water.

Suzhen quickened her pace, and wound her arm through Xuxian's without saying anything.

She thought she saw him, vanishing in the cloud of smoke from the firecrackers a crowd of children were playing with, and she pulled Xuxian away hastily, even though normally she loved to stay and watch. As they continued, she barely heard what Xuxian chattered about, she was so engrossed searching the faces around them. Sometimes she almost wondered if she had just imagined things--

There. She saw him again, clearly. For a moment, before the crowd closed around him. This time, without a doubt, she saw the terrapin spirit, the same rounded shoulders and shuffling walk, though his legs were less bowed than they had been before, so that it was more like a slight limp. His shoulders seemed less hunched, and he held his head straighter, rather than the stooped posture she had seen him last in. Could it be--

Suzhen brushed the thought from her mind and drew Xuxian closer to herself. "Come on, Xuxian. We're so far behind, let's catch up." Her voice was light and betrayed nothing of her growing anxiety.

They caught up with Yuanzheng, Qingqing, and Xiaohu, who were engrossed in watching a street performer balancing a fantastic assortment of items on his head--a bench, a pitcher, a wooden bucket, and a spear. The crowd gaped and clapped, and several people tossed coins into his chipped bowl.

Suzhen let go of Xuxian's arm and went swiftly through the crowd to Qingqing's side. Qingqing brushed her off impatiently as she caught hold of her arm. "Sister, let me finish watching this first. You don't get to see this everyday!"

"Qingqing. This is an emergency. I need your help right now." Suzhen hissed in her ear. She pulled Qingqing aside, keeping a watchful eye on Xuxian meanwhile.

Qingqing turned quickly to her, suddenly alert. There was something in Bai's voice which immediately told her something was wrong.

"What happened?" she whispered warily.

Suzhen spoke rapidly in a low voice. "A terrapin spirit attacked me out of the blue several months ago. His spirit energy levels are low, and I could have easily killed him, but he seems to claim that I've wronged him somehow in the past, and that he wants revenge. But I have no memory of him. At any rate, he escaped me that time, but I did not expect he would try to drown Xuxian out of spite--he had been following me, it seems, for a while. He almost succeeded too." She stopped to draw a deep breath. "I have not seen him since and thought he was gone for good. But I just saw him in the crowd. He is following us."

Her eyes fixed urgently on Qingqing. "Qingqing. You must help me. I cannot do anything with Xuxian around."

Qingqing leaned closer. "What does he look like?" she asked quietly.

"Average height, slightly stooped shoulders, and a shuffling walk. Wide round eyes. He was wearing a brown tunic and black boots." Suzhen's gaze passed unseeingly over the street performer who had just added a ladder to his balancing act, searching the goggling faces in the crowd tensely.

Her fingers tightened on Qingqing's arm, and she started slightly. "There. At the back. To the left of the man with the little boy on his shoulders."

Qingqing knitted her brows as she looked intently into the crowd. She set her lips grimly. "Don't worry, Sister. You can count on me for this. It's been a while since I last used my powers; it's about time I had some practice." She folded back her sleeves purposefully. "Tell Yuanzheng I went off to look at something if he asks. I'll join you all once I finish with him." she whispered.

Suzhen's hand restrained her as she turned to go. "Wait."

She drew near to Qingqing and murmured in her ear, "Keep an eye on him first. See what he's planning before you strike."

She hesitated, then continued. "And find out why he keeps saying I wronged him. There must be a reason, why he would be so reckless when he clearly isn't my match."

"He's just stupid and presumptuous," Qingqing said contemptuously. "Creatures like him think so much of themselves once they finally achieve their human form. The insolence of him. He needs to be taught a lesson, and believe me, Sister, I won't let you down."

Her gaze wandered to Yuanzheng. "Just help me keep them distracted while I deal with them. I'll settle him before you know it, never fear."

She gave Suzhen's hand a reassuring pat and pulled her hood over her head, weaving unnoticed through the crowd. Suzhen watched her go tensely, her fingers absently pleating a fold of her gown in quick nervous movements.