Li Mei slid the door to the dining room closed softly. She smiled as she turned to Jiaoshu and the others.

{The children are becoming friends, just as we hoped. Right now they are eating dinner together and speaking of plans to help each other with their studies.}

The three men sitting around the table with Jiaoshu nodded. All were of different ages, none exactly young. They were the three Elders for the Jade Tigers of Gotham City.

The oldest was a man named Kueng, a thin man with a long beard of white and a long white braid of hair at the back of his head; the rest of his head was shaved bald. His eyes glinted black from under his white bushy eyebrows, the spark of life still burning bright despite his stooped and aged look.

Po Sin was the next of the Elders. He was a sour looking, heavy man with black hair that was just beginning to grey. While the others had pleasant looking faces, Po Sin always seemed to be sucking on a lemon. The near permanent frown on his face did not make him an easy man to approach.

Finally there was Shing, the youngest of the assembled group. He had stepped into his place as the third Elder a few years back and was still trying to find his place between the other two. Shing was a thin man, like Kueng, though his hair was as black as midnight and he had strangely out of place amber eyes. Unlike the other two, Shing's hair was cut like that of an American businessman and he wore American clothing, whereas the others wore traditional Chinese robes.

{So tell us of your plans for this girl. Manchu is one thing, but this girl, Jiaoshu?} Kueng said in a soft, unhurried voice.

Jiaoshu took a sip of his tea and placed his cup back onto the table. Inclining his head to the Elders, he folded his hands in his lap as he spoke. {I chose Dee because I have been watching her in the months since she arrived in Chinatown. The girl moves like a cat and adapts to any situation very easily. With time and the proper training I think she would make a fine addition to the triad.}

{But Jiaoshu, the girl is white,} Po Sin said.

{She is white?} Kueng asked in a sedate tone.

Po Sin glared into his teacup.

{How many times must I tell you to look beyond the outside, Po Sin? While I do not know if she will work, I will keep an open mind on the subject. Keep training her as you are doing, Jiaoshu. We will check on her progress every few months as with any student. I know you will not treat her any different from the others.} Clearing his throat, Kueng stood and bowed to Jiaoshu and Li Mei. {I thank you for your hospitality this evening, but I must be going. Po Sin, Shing?}

~ ~ ~ {I do not think Po Sin likes you,} Li Mei said softly after the others had left. She cleared the tea items, while Jiaoshu sat in thought, hands folded into the wide sleeves of his robe.

{Po Sin likes no one. Let us not speak of this anymore for tonight.} Jiaoshu stood and took Li Mei's face in his hands placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. He sighed as he looked into the woman's face. Letting his hands fall to his side he shook his head and turned away. {Some days you remind me so much of my Lin Wei. How I miss her.}

The whisper of the door opening and closing caused him to sigh again. When he turned around Li Mei had gone. He knew he loved her and had loved her for years. Still he refused to allow his affections to go further than a kiss now and then. The pain of losing his family to a rival triad, the Scarlet Monkey Triad, had been almost too much for him to bear. The same triad had killed Manchu's family only two short months ago.

He suppressed a sob at the memories that washed over him as he stared at the wall of the dining room. There had been no hope at saving his wife and children from the explosion that had rocked his home. A couple of his students had managed to pull the bodies out of the home before it collapsed in on itself. He could still hear the last sounds that came from his wife's throat as he held her in his arms, her body almost unrecognizable from the torture she had endured. The children had thankfully died before the explosion; they too had been tortured mercilessly. With the help of the triad he cremated his family and scattered their ashes to the winds.

When the Jade Tigers had offered to move him to America to replace the ailing training teacher, he accepted the post. In the decade that he had lived in Gotham he often cursed himself for leaving his beloved China and all that he had known. At the same time he was relieved to be away from the constant memories of his family that haunted him. Here in Gotham he had been placed in a position of honor; that of the teacher to the foot soldiers of the Jade Tiger Triad. Of course he was not the only teacher, but he was the most accomplished of all. More than half of his students were now successful triad members or were being watched for high triad positions.

A soft knock came at the dining room door. Jiaoshu took a deep breath and straightened his back.

{Come,} he said.

The little redhead that poked through the door made him instantly forget his sadness. She looked worried as she came in carrying a tray with a fresh pot of tea and a small tincture he always took before bed. Placing the tray on the table, Dee took a step back and bowed to him before reaching to turn his teacup over and fill it.

"Leave it, little one. I will do for myself tonight, thank you."

"Yes, Jiaoshu," she said, turning to leave.

"You have worry in your eyes, Dee. Tell me what is wrong?" he said taking a seat on the cushions.

"Li Mei looked like she had been crying when she came into the kitchen to tell me to bring you your tea."

Jiaoshu paused in the pouring of his tea and set the pot back down. Blowing across the hot liquid, he took a sip, and then turned to Dee.

"Li Mei is upset with me," he said simply.

"She likes you, Sir. Is that why she's mad at you?" Dee asked.

The man couldn't help but smile and chuckle at the girl's forward manner. While she obviously respected her elders, she still had not learned when to hold her tongue. There was one thing he missed about being young like his wards, the ability to say what is on your mind without serious repercussions. He pulled the little girl into his side and hugged her.

"You see more than I thought. Perhaps it is because you creep around like a little kitten who is curious about what is going on around her. You must be careful or you will be caught in your snooping. Do not worry about things like this at your age, dear one. Now you go up and go to bed. You have a long day ahead of you," he said giving her a gentle push toward the door.

"Yes, Sir. G'night," she said turning to give the man a quick hug before she hurried out of the room.

Jiaoshu finished his tea and returned the tray to the kitchen. He had not lied to the Elders when he said that the girl adapted easily. She was comfortable here after her first two days and followed the house schedule within the first week. Now she obviously felt safe and comfortable enough here to hug him, which was a big step. If this was any indication about how life would be with her in the house, he had a feeling he was going to be learning some lessons about life that he hadn't learned before.

For now he reached into the pantry and pulled out a special bag of preserved durian fruit and headed up to Li Mei's room. Faint sobs could be heard inside. He paused, about to reconsider bringing her the treat, which she loved so much. Taking a deep breath he knocked softly on the door. Immediately the noise stopped and there was a moment of silence before the door slid open. Li Mei looked up at him, her eyes puffy from crying and her chin trembling as she tried to hold back her tears.

{I have brought you a present,} he said to her, holding up the bag of durian. {May I come in?}
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