rattlerofthestars:

“Well, I can’t show you in the day time. We’ll have to wait until the stars are out.” He cast a clever grin at Ping and winked. “Duh. But hey! I could definitely show you where a lot of planets are. Not too hard to spot from here, actually. Your planet is pretty well centered with a lot of neighboring planets so it’s-…”

Jim felt like a record that was being forced to rewind backwards. 

"Whhhhhhat I meant by that is, your country? It’s pretty, uh.” He gestured with his hands as if he were trying to grasp an idea that was sorta on the edge of his mind. “Uhm, it’s like, centered? And not a lot of buildings out here so the sky is much more clear.” The self proclaimed guest of the captain gave the soldier a thumbs up. “So you’re good! Uh- so star gazing? Tonight?”

If he even remained here till nightfall, that was. He had no idea how the captain of this army might react to a foreigner just walking in like he was meant to be there. He’d probably get thrown out- or worse. Thankfully he had a game plan. All he had to do was ask for transport back to a city with mechanic shops and he would be good to go! No reason for alarm, right?

He was so dead.

Hua Zhou used to show his daughter the stars.  She had been a little girl, too young to be taught the names of the constellations and bright guiding stars that dotted the heavens - and of course as a teenager, Mulan had not studied astronomy, the pursuit of a scholar like Jim.  But the nights that her baba would sit on her bed and take her hand and point at the window still lingered pleasantly in her memory.  When her yéye died, Zhou explained that his baba had become one of the stars and Mulan had fallen asleep trying to count them so she could see for herself.  

But that was years ago.  Ping blinked, a boyish army recruit again, and contemplated the scholar next to him.  It was all too easy to forget where and who he was supposed to be when Jim was stammering like a nervous suitor.  It was an innocent comparison to make, but it brought a flush to Ping’s cheeks.  After all, Jim had no idea - of course not!  But Ping wasn’t even sure what to make of half the things he was saying, and he had to smother the giggle that rose to his lips behind one hand.  As they continued their trek downhill, the ground sloped more gradually and you could see where it began to flatten out.  It was also becoming possible to recognize men at camp as they milled around: skinny Ling, Chi Fu, and the soldier they called Scholar because he had brought his paintbrushes to camp.

“Stargazing,” Ping echoed thoughtfully, as if he hadn’t been remembering his father a minute ago.  He gave Jim a small smile.  "Yes.  I’d like that.  But I don’t know how long training will last - it might go long after your meeting.“  Unless it was the other way around.