"Hua'er, are you ready for a bath?" Her mother turned to look at Li Hua with eyes that held both tenderness and affection.
Li Hua hesitated, her gaze darting between her parents' faces.
Fuck, what to do? She thought to herself. I'm not a 4 year old girl, I'm actually a 32 year old women.
Based on the memories of this body, this child would usually take baths with her mother or younger brothers. Something Li Hua had never had to do or experience before.
Her mind raced through escape scenarios with the same intensity she once used to plan assassinations. Jump out the window? Too suspicious for a four-year-old and given that this isn't modern day China, windows don't exist. Fake a sudden illness? Her mother's healing abilities would definitely see through that. Pretend to fall asleep? The drool would have to be convincing.
The former assassin who had infiltrated heavily guarded compounds and run a multi-billion dollar corporation was now being defeated by the prospect of bath time. Oh, how the mighty had fallen.
Her mother's expectant gaze bore into her like a particularly persistent target who refused to die, and Li Hua felt a bead of sweat roll down her temple. After exhausting her mental repository of evasion tactics—none of which seemed appropriate for a toddler unless said toddler was secretly a ninja—Li Hua finally, reluctantly, admitted defeat.
"Bath," she mumbled, with all the enthusiasm of a cat facing a tsunami.
"Ok, come. Let's take a bath." Her mother walked over and reached for her hand with a gentleness that made Li Hua's chest tighten.
The warmth of her mother's palm against hers sent an unexpected jolt through her body. How long had it been since she'd experienced such simple, unconditional affection? In her previous life, touch had meant only one thing: death. Her hands were instruments of ending, not holding. Yet here she was, being led to a bath like precious cargo, her mother's fingers interlaced with hers as if they'd never let go. The cognitive dissonance made her head spin.
Moment's later, after much awkwardness, the mother and daughter were both immersed in a warm bath.
A bronze mirror hung on the far wall, its polished surface catching the warm light of the oil lamps. As steam rose from the bath in lazy spirals, Li Hua caught her first glimpse of her reflection since awakening in this new world.
Her breath caught in her throat. The face staring back at her was both familiar and impossible—delicate features she knew as intimately as the grip of her blade, now rendered in miniature. The same high cheekbones, the same almond shaped eyes, even the same small scar near her left eyebrow where Master Chen's practice sword had once caught her during training. It was her face from her previous life, preserved perfectly in the features of this child, as if an artist had captured her essence and painted it onto a smaller canvas.
She reached up with trembling fingers to touch her cheek, watching as her reflection did the same. The gesture, performed by a child's hand, made the reality of her situation strike home with stunning clarity. She was herself, yet not herself—the deadly assassin and CEO now housed in the body of an innocent girl.
A soft splash drew her attention as her mother moved closer, gentle hands working soap through Li Hua's long dark hair. The familiar scent of jasmine filled the steamy air, and for a moment, Li Hua felt her carefully maintained composure waver. In her previous life, such tender moments had been rare treasures, buried beneath years of rigid training and corporate warfare. Now, as small fingers curled into tight fists beneath the water's surface, she struggled to reconcile the deadly skills that lived in her mind with the vulnerable child whose reflection gazed back at her.
"Hua'er, Māmā would like to tell you a story. Would you like to hear it?" Her mother 's voice was as soothing as the warm bathwater, a gentle melody that seemed to wash away the worries.
Li Hua nodded slowly; her curiosity piqued.
"Once upon a time, there was a beautiful and kind fairy. She lived amongst the clouds high above the mortal realm, watching over the world below with eyes that held wonder and curiosity. Like you, my little one, she carried great power within her—a gift that set her apart from others. One day she met a Dragon, a strong and handsome Dragon, and they fell in love at first sight. But the heavens forbid such unions between immortals, for they feared the power that might arise from their love. Yet the fairy and her Dragon defied the celestial laws, choosing to descend to the mortal realm together rather than live apart. Their sacrifice was great, but their love was greater still, and from their union came children blessed with both fairy grace and dragon might." Her mother's fingers paused in Li Hua's hair, and through the steam, their eyes met in the bathroom mirror. There was something meaningful in that gaze, something that made Li Hua's heart flutter like a trapped butterfly.
Realization dawned on her, the story wasn't just a tale—it was her story, their story. She watched her mother's delicate fingers resume their gentle combing, each stroke seeming to carry the weight of generations.
"Hua'er, do you think this is the end of the story?" Her mother asked softly, her fingers still weaving through Li Hua's damp hair. The question hung in the steam-filled air, weighted with meaning that stretched far beyond a simple bedtime tale.
"No." Li Hua answered truthfully, her child's voice carrying the weight of her old soul's understanding. "But when the story ends, it will be a happy one." The words emerged with a certainty that surprised even her—a promise made not just to her mother, but to herself and this new family she had been given.
Her mother's hands stilled in her hair, and through the mirror's reflection, Li Hua caught the flash of something profound crossing her mother's face. Surprise bloomed there first, like the first ray of dawn breaking through storm clouds, followed by a deeper emotion that made her eyes glisten. Those eyes—usually as calm as a summer lake—now welled with tears, each drop holding fragments of hope and fear and fierce maternal love.
With the grace that seemed to infuse her every movement, her mother bent down and pressed a kiss to Li Hua's temple, her touch as light as a fairy's wing yet somehow heavy with unspoken promises.
"I think so too, my sweet child," her mother whispered, her arms wrapping around Li Hua like protective wings. In that embrace, Li Hua felt the strength that lay beneath her mother's gentle exterior—the power of a being who had defied the heavens themselves for love and would do so again to protect her children.
But wait, doesn't that mean that Father is the Dragon? She thought.
"Little Firefly, can you see the inner core of others?" Li Hua called out in her head.
"Master, unfortunately my powers are too weak at the moment. However, it wouldn't surprise me if your father possessed a dragon core," Little Firefly responded.
"But that would mean...all four Dragons are in the same family, right? Doesn't this mean that danger is surely upon us?" Li Hua asked cautiously.
Little Firefly's presence in her mind shifted, like ripples disturbing still water. "The ancient texts speak of both blessing and curse when dragon essences converge," he whispered, his voice heavy with ancient wisdom. "To have such power concentrated in a single bloodline is as rare as the celestial dragons themselves dancing across the heavens. It could be your family's greatest shield... or become a beacon to those who would tear the world apart for even a fraction of such power."
The words settled heavily in Li Hua's chest, mixing with the warmth of her mother's embrace and the growing weight of understanding.