Ping blinked. The woman was dressed from head to toe in shades of pink and purple - like a bride - and even in the dim light of camp torches, he could tell her hair wasn’t nearly as dark as anybody else’s. But her strange appearance only made things more confusing. He wasn’t going to hurt her, and she did seem like a harmless person, but how was Ping supposed to know that? First, he needed more answers. Resisting the urge to lower his sword (heavy as it was), Ping looked warily at Charlotte la Bouff. ”How do I know you’re a friend? I’ve never even heard of New Orleans. And that doesn’t explain - why are you here?”
She stared at the tip of his sword before looking up at him. “I promise you, sugar, that I am a friend.” She put both hands up, dropping her bags. “New Orleans is in America, honey. You have heard of America, right?” She knew some people didn’t know about America, depending on where they live and how they grew up. “I’m here because my father, Big Daddy, gave me a nice little trip. He was suppose to come with me, but somethin’ came up. I don’t know where I’m suppose to go exactly, so I just started walking.”
Hesitating for a moment, Ping finally lowered his sword, and bit his lip to suppress a sigh. When had he come to this - scared of shadows, distrusting other women? While the young recruit had never been too far from home until the Huns invaded, he knew all too well what it was like to be a girl lost on the road. At night. Vulnerable. Robbers, and for that matter Huns, were less likely to attack a tough-looking man with a sword. And besides, Charlotte la Bouff didn’t look like a Hun spy. Everybody knew the Huns were sullen and dark - and vicious. If this pale woman in pink wanted to kill him, wouldn’t she have done it already?
“I haven’t heard of America either, so I guess I can see how you’d be lost when you came here,” he reasoned, shifting pigeon-toed from one foot to the other. "You should be more careful, though! We’re at war.“ A pause. "I can try to give you directions, but I only really know Sichuan well because I grew up in this province. Where are you headed for, anyway?”