August 27, 2022

Short Story written for the Forbidden Hearts Contest (hosted by mythandlegend) and the Rewind The Classics 2022 Contest 

Update: this entry won HONORABLE MENTION in the Rewind The Classics 2022 contest! :D

A retelling inspired by a Chinese folktale, 'The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl': What if the immortal weaver girl fell in love with a mortal weaver girl instead?

#rewindtheclassics22

Word count: 2429

---

The sky cracked open.

Zhi-Ni smiled as she fastened the golden pouch to her pants. With a leap, she dove through the fissure, mere seconds before it sealed back to its original azure patch. She glided down to the familiar cherry blossom tree and perched on the top branch, dislodging a few petals from the impact. By now, she could get here even with her eyes closed.

Her smile widened when she peeked through the window.

"Ying-Tai!" she called.

The petite girl was working at the weaving loom, brows furrowed in concentration. A red ribbon wrapped around her ponytail while her pink robe rippled against her legs. She looked as beautiful as ever. At the sound of Zhi-Ni's voice, she jolted before breaking into a smile.

"Zhi-Ni!" Ying-Tai rushed over to the window. "You're here early today."

Zhi-Ni grabbed her outstretched hands and climbed into the room.

"I couldn't wait to see you, that's why," Zhi-Ni cooed as she cupped her lover's face in her palms.

Ying-Tai giggled. "I miss you too."

Zhi-Ni gave the soft cheeks a squeeze before leaning forward for a kiss—a kiss as sweet as the longevity peaches in heaven, a kiss as passionate as their yearning for each other. Zhi-Ni visited Ying-Tai like this every day as Ying-Tai weaved and worked, but that was not enough for her. Not when she pined for Ying-Tai every night, not when she craved to be with her every second of the day, not when she dreamed to get out of this stuffy room and explore the world—both on earth and in heaven—with her.

When they parted, Zhi-Ni wrapped her arms around the still-giggling girl and settled on a chair.

"So, what are you making today?" she asked, glancing at the large chunk of knitted wool on the weaving loom.

Ying-Tai adjusted her body as she balanced on Zhi-Ni's lap. "A blanket for my grandmother," she explained, leaning her head on Zhi-Ni's shoulder. "Winter is coming, and her health is not as good as before. I don't want her to catch a cold."

"A blanket? That is one huge blanket then."

"Yes, I'd like to be able to wrap her up like a dumpling." Ying-Tai chuckled. "So, what are you up to? Breaking more laws in heaven?"

Zhi-Ni grinned. She untied the golden pouch from her pants and held it up. "The biggest crime, actually."

"What did you steal this time?" Ying-Tai's voice was exasperated but her eyes betrayed her excitement. Zhi-Ni knew how much this adorable goody-two-shoes secretly loved her rebellious adventures.

"Guess."

"Hm..." Ying-Tai tilted her head. "Jewelry?"

"What?" Zhi-Ni scoffed. "Why would I steal those? Do I look like I wear them?" Then, she leaned back and gave the girl on her lap a once-over. "Actually, you will look good in some of Mother's jewelry. You know what? Remind me to steal some of her necklaces for you next time." She brushed her fingers across Ying-Tai's neckline, drawing a few more giggles from the girl.

"Come on, no more stealing, please."

"But what fun is there in life if I don't?"

"Zhi-Ni..."

"No pouting. Do you want to find out what I stole or not?"

Ying-Tai's exaggerated sulk disappeared in an instant. "Yes!"

Zhi-Ni could not help but laugh at the response. She peeled the pouch open to let Ying-Tai take a peek.

"A... pill?" the petite girl frowned.

"Yeah. Have you heard about the tale of Chang'e?"

"The goddess of the moon?"

"Yep. She used to be a mortal like you before becoming immortal." Zhi-Ni shook the golden pouch, her grin spreading to her ears. "It took me many months of investigating and snooping around the Great Halls, but I finally found the pill that made her immortal."

"Oh. And... this is the pill?"

"Yes! And when you take this pill, you can become immortal and come up to heaven with me! Isn't that awesome, Ying-Tai? You can be with me forever!" Unable to contain her excitement, Zhi-Ni tightened her grip on Ying-Tai's waist and pulled her in for a kiss.

Ying-Tai averted her head and darted away from Zhi-Ni's lips.

"Ying-Tai?" Zhi-Ni frowned. That was not the reaction she had expected. She had been jumping for joy when she first found out about this pill, and she had sprinted after managing to get her hands on it.

With a gentle pinch, she nudged Ying-Tai's face back around. There were tears in her eyes. Why would there be tears?

"What's wrong, Ying-Tai? Did I... do something wrong?" Had Zhi-Ni read the situation between them wrong? She had been sure Ying-Tai wanted to be with her too.

"I do want to be with you, Zhi-Ni," Ying-Tai whispered as if reading her mind. "I just... I don't know if I can leave my family behind."

"You won't be leaving them behind. You can come down and see them occasionally, like what I'm doing now with you!"

"It's not the same." Ying-Tai shook her head. "My whole life is here, Zhi-Ni. My grandmother..." She stared at her weaving loom, at the quilt she was making. "I don't know if I can leave her."

This time, it was Zhi-Ni's turn to feel her eyes turn hot with tears. "But don't you... want to be with me?"

"I do, Zhi-Ni, I really do," —Ying-Tai's voice trembled as it grew.— "but you're forcing me to choose between you and my family, and I just... I love you, but I also love my family. I can't choose, Zhi-Ni... I don't want to choose."

The room faded into a blur. No matter how much Zhi-Ni blinked, she couldn't get rid of the tears flooding into her eyes. Her throat tightened but she managed a soft mutter, "I... I think I have to go."

"Zhi-Ni... I'm sorry..."

Zhi-Ni gently moved Ying-Tai away from her lap and stood up.

"Zhi-Ni, don't be like this," Ying-Tai pleaded, but Zhi-Ni refused to look at her. "Stay with me for a bit, please?"

But Zhi-Ni was already at the window. Her head was spinning and her vision was still blurred. She had been in a state of ecstasy a moment ago, but now...

Now she wanted to burrow into a hole and stay there. Forever.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Ying-Tai," Zhi-Ni said. This was her usual farewell, but for the first time, she said it willingly.

Without turning around, she leaped out of the window.

The sky cracked open once again, and she flew back through the fissure, back to where she came from.

---

Zhi-Ni leaned her head against the bark as she stared blankly above the trees. The golden pouch had fallen out in her travels, but she did not care. What was the point of retrieving the key to immortality, when Ying-Tai did not want it?

What was the point of anything, when Ying-Tai did not want to be with her?

Her older sister's disapproving face popped in front of her. "What are you doing here, Zhi-Ni? Are you slacking off with your job again?"

Zhi-Ni was too beaten to roll her eyes. "The sky is fine, Yue-jie. There's nothing to fix." And there was no such thing as slacking off when the job was already so boring.

"You sure?" Yue-Ni lifted a brow. "I thought I saw a crack a while ago."

"That was an easy fix."

"I see. Our Weaver of the Sky has excellent skills."

Zhi-Ni groaned at the usage of her title. "Shut up and leave me alone, Heaven's Librarian."

Instead, Yue-Ni—much to Zhi-Ni's frustration—sat down next to her. She groaned again. Her heart was a hurricane of emotions, and she would rather be left alone. Especially by a stuffy bookworm like Yue-Ni.

"I know you go to the mortal world every day, Zhi-mei."

Zhi-Ni sat up and faced her sister, mouth agape. "What? How..." She gulped. "Are you... Are you going to report me to Father?"

"Why would I do that?"

"I- I don't know." Zhi-Ni squirmed on her butt. "I... guess it's because..."

"That I tend to the libraries and thus am a stickler for rules?" Yue-Ni chuckled as she shook her head incredulously. "I read a lot, Zhi-mei, and books teach you way more than just the rules. They teach you how to break them too." Giving Zhi-Ni a wink, she added, "You know, the trick to steal something is to make sure the owner doesn't even know it's gone until it's way too late. You're not very good at that; I always need to cover up for you."

Cover up? Had Yue-Ni been doing that this whole time? Zhi-Ni pulled her knees to her chest. "So I'm guessing... you know about the immortality pill I stole?"

"Yeah. Not a smart move, Zhi-mei. Turning a human immortal without Father's knowledge is one of the biggest crimes in heaven. You know that."

"It doesn't matter anymore. No one's becoming immortal."

"Oh?"

Zhi-Ni's stomach churned. She tugged on her knees harder. "Yeah. She... doesn't want it," she whispered. "She wants to stay mortal. To be with her family. I mean, I understand that. I have a family too. Like you, for example, I guess... I just don't understand why she would turn down becoming immortal—and being with me—for all that."

There was a short pause before Yue-Ni let out a sigh. "Humans and immortals have very different priorities, Zhi-mei. You have to understand that. Mortal's lives are so short that concepts such as family and friends matter a lot to them. It's all they have and all they live for. They would do a lot for them, believe me. A lot."

"But who wouldn't want immortality? It's a gift!"

"Is it though?"

Zhi-Ni blinked. Yue-Ni's question was like a slap to her face. Immortality had to be a gift, right? After all, everyone here acted that way, acted as if mortals were pitiful, as if being mortal was a downgrade.

"Think about it," Yue-Ni continued, "would you rather be with her, or live on forever?"

"I- I don't know..." But as Zhi-Ni trailed off, the answer hit her right then and there. What was life if she could not be with Ying-Tai? "No, I'd rather be with her."

Yue-Ni smiled knowingly. "See? Immortality is not as sought after as you think."

"But can I become a mortal?" Zhi-Ni asked.

"It will be difficult, of course, but doable. I had a friend who did it a few centuries ago. Well, he's dead now, but he died only after living a long life with his lover. Long in terms of mortal years, at least."

Zhi-Ni bit her lips as she considered. "Did he... ever regret it?"

"I asked him that every day. And his answer is always the same." Their eyes locked as Yue-Ni's smile grew. "Never. And that was his answer even on his deathbed."

Zhi-Ni stared down into the sky, the patch of space she was in charge of mending. Her dreary job, her sisters, the heavens—these were all she knew, but it had been so monotonous. The happiest she had ever been was when she finally leaped through a small crack in the sky and entered the human world. The mortal realm was so fun and exciting. And it had been even better after she had met Ying-Tai.

And there was nothing more she wanted than to be this happy forever.

"Tell me, Yue-jie. How do I become a mortal?"

---

Climbing up the cherry blossom tree was much harder in a mortal body. How did humans survive without being able to fly? And what was that unnecessary back pain?

The route to Ying-Tai's window was familiar, but every step of the way gave Zhi-Ni a slew of scratches and bruises. Finally, she managed to jump onto the windowsill. Looking in, she saw that the room was empty.

"Ying-Tai?"

The weaver loom was tucked away as if it was no longer to be used. That was weird—Ying-Tai always wanted to weave. She would never keep it away like that.

"Ying-Tai?"

Zhi-Ni stepped into the room and paced around. Where was Ying-Tai? She had never needed to look beyond this little room. Nudging the door open, she ventured out into the hallway.

The house was silent. She peeked into the room next to Ying-Tai's. It was a small altar. An old woman was sitting in front of a shrine and lighting a joss stick. On the table was a golden pouch. The golden pouch.

Had it been here the whole time?

"Excuse me, ma'am, hello..."

The old woman turned around, startled. "Oh, hello, young lady." She was wearing a simple robe, with a long blanket sprawled over her legs. Zhi-Ni frowned. The blanket had a very familiar pattern.

"Um... Do you know where Ying-Tai is?"

Shock passed over the old woman's face for a moment. "Oh." She relaxed, giving Zhi-Ni a wry smile. "Are you the girl our Ying-Tai is in love with?"

"Uh, I... I think so?"

"She went to find you." The old woman gestured at the golden pouch. "She was crying for a long time over a dilemma. And I encouraged her to follow her heart and do something for herself for once."

Dread crept up Zhi-Ni's heart. "Did she... take the pill?"

The old woman—she must be Ying-Tai's grandmother—nodded. "She left for the heavens. I do not know when I can see her again. I have heard that mortals who become immortal are not able to visit the human realm at all. It's why Chang'e was forcibly separated from her husband, and why her tale was one of tragedy."

"No..." Zhi-Ni's knees buckled and she slumped on the floor. No, no, no, no. Ying-Tai didn't need to find her! She was here now! She was here! Ying-Tai didn't need to become immortal, to leave her family...

"My child," Ying-Tai's grandmother asked gently, "did you give up your immortality?"

Zhi-Ni could not speak, but she forced her head into a tilt.

The old woman closed her eyes and shook her head. "Ah, my child, you are too late. If only you returned earlier, if only then."

No, no, no, no!

Tears rained down on Zhi-Ni's trembling hands, burning her skin at every trickle. This couldn't be happening. This shouldn't be happening. She was supposed to live her life out with Ying-Tai.

She felt a pair of hands embracing her.

"Let's help you get back up there, dear child," the grandmother said. "For now, come join us for dinner. We'd love to have you. We have lost a beloved family member, and we dearly welcome a new one. Come down to the dining room whenever you are ready."

When the old woman left, Zhi-Ni wiped away her tears and looked up at the window. The sky was cracked open.

Would Ying-Tai take over as the Weaver of the Sky? She was so good at weaving, it would be a perfect job for her. Could she come down through the cracks to visit, or was what grandmother said true?

She waited and waited, as her eyes never left the fissure. She waited and waited, even as the sky fixed itself, even as the sun began to set.

She waited, and waited, and waited.

But nobody came.

---

Author's Note:

Zhi-Ni: 织妮 a name that means weaver girl. It is a name adapted from the popular Chinese folktale, the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl.

Ying-Tai: 英臺 It is a name adapted from the popular Chinese folktale, Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, also known as Butterfly Lovers, or the Chinese Romeo and Juliet.

Yue-Ni: 阅妮 a name that means a girl who reads.

mei: 妹 younger sister.

jie: 姐 older sister.