A Gatekeeper & The Celestial Sovereign

A scene he had never expected to see came into view as he was swept through the door.

A woman with gorgeous silky black hair and clear eyes that sparkled like diamonds was tiptoeing around a room.

She nimbly jumped behind a large black leather sofa, her eyes darting left and right as she searched for something. When she couldn't find it, she slowly walked around a large glass coffee table, her hands on her hips, and a playful expression on her face.

With her cherry lips she grinned mischievously and yelled, "Hmmm I wonder where Xiao'er is hiding hmmm. I really can't find you. What should I do, you're too good at hiding? Where are you Lu?"

From behind a large white curtain barely disguised giggles could be heard. The curtain shook slightly, and a small figure could be seen hiding behind it.

Just as the small figure tried to quieten their laughter, the gorgeous woman jumped towards the curtain and snatched him into her arms. Immediately all kinds of shrieking and laughter filled the room.

"I found Zhang Lu!!!" the woman yelled in victory as she spun the little boy in her arms. He squealed with uncontrollable laughter.

"My little Lu is so good at hiding that mummy thought she lost you for a second there, but yay mummy found you."

Zhang Lu stared at her with his large warm eyes. "Mummy again, again!!!" he chanted.

"Oh, so my Xiao'er wants to play again," she laughed. "Then we shal-"

"What are we playing exactly?" interrupted a deep voice from the other end of the room.

The moment she heard it, Zhang Zi's face became impossibly brighter, her eyes sparkling madly as she ran to the tall handsome man holding a briefcase and wearing an expensive suit.

Zhang Hou laughed as he took Zhang Lu from her and hugged him. "Have you been a good boy today, not giving your mother any trouble I hope?"

"He's been brilliant as always Hou," Zhang Zi smiled.

"Is that so." Zhang Hou grinned back at her as he placed Lu gently on to the ground and embraced Zhang Zi.

"And how has my wife's day been?"

Zhang Zi blushed pink, "It's been fine," she mumbled into his chest.

Little Lu grabbed onto Zhang Hou's trouser leg and tugged it. "Let's play. Daddy, let's play."

Zhang Hou scooped up Zhang Lu and spun him around, "Alright, alright!" and more laughter and happiness filled the room.

Mao Lu couldn't bear to watch the scene playing out in front of him, he felt tears threatening to spill from his eyes.

He had been so young back then, it was such a distant memory, but now that the scene was right before his eyes, he could remember this day clearly. This was before his Father got so busy with the company that he barely had time to come home. This was before they got really strict about his education and obviously it was before everything went to shit.

"We used to be so happy!" Mao Lu muttered to himself.

Of all the things he thought he would see; he had definitely not expected this.

"I thought you were going to show me time, how is this time exactly?" he asked. But there was no response from Gates.

“Where is Gates?” Mao Lu looked around but there was no doorway anymore, he was now just standing in the living room of his old house like a ghost as he watched his parents chase a younger him.

Laughter and happiness all over the place.

"In what way is this time exactly? Are you telling me time exists in my memories" he wondered, "Or is it saying that time is when you're happiest?"

As he thought this the scene changed...

_________

It was a hot sweltering summer, the sound of insects buzzing amongst the heat and the casual chatter of students sitting in the fields could be heard.

"THWHACK, WHACK, WHACK" was the dull thudding sound of arrows continuously hitting a wooden target.

On a wooden platform with a bunch of other archers in traditional uniform, stood a teenage Zhang Lu. His silky black hair was slightly long and tied in a bun behind him. He had a firm grip on his bow and perfect posture as he strung another arrow, pulling his arm back with professional form. As he let go of the bowstring it hummed slightly as the arrow embedded itself in the centre of the target.

The other archers on the platform clapped.

"Do you see Zhang Lu" the instructor pointed towards him, "His form is perfect and textbook, you should all be following his example."

"Yes teacher!" the other boys on the wooden platform chanted.

When the teacher turned his back, all the boys glanced between each other and gave Zhang Lu dirty looks.

On the grass nearby some female students were eating their lunch.

"Isn't Zhang Lu just dreamy!" one of the girls exclaimed loudly, her voice carrying to the wooden platform. Making some of the boys frown.

The group of girls burst into laughter and squeals, "Oh my god Ou Mai, what if he heard you?!!!"

"I don't care, let him hear me!" Ou Mai proclaimed brazenly.

"Hey don't say that," One of the girls near her nudged her and pointed to a very pretty girl sitting beside them, "Don't you know Zhang Lu and Lee Heri have been betrothed to each other, their parents arranged it when they were young, you can't say that in front of his future wife."

Mai paled, "Sorry Heri, I was just complimenting him."

Lee Heri was reading a book and didn't even bother looking at Ou Mai. "It doesn't matter. It's not like I'm interested in Lu, and I'm sure the marriage agreement will be called off soon anyway."

"What really? How comes, what's happening?" Many of the girls asked at once, leaning forward with curiosity.

Heri put her book down, "His family went bankrupt, didn't you hear about it? He can't even afford this schools tuition any longer. The board are only letting him stay due to his outstanding grades, he's basically on scholarship. Someone like that is trash. He's far below me now Ou Mai, so if you want that trash you are very much welcome."

She said this rather loudly, her voice was carried to the wooden platform. Causing the other male archers around Zhang Lu to smirk a little. Lu's expression turned ugly and his next arrow missed entirely and hit the tree next to the target.

He clenched his fists, but he didn't shout or complain he just reloaded again, calmed his breathing, and began to shoot.

Mao Lu remembered this scene.

It was a week after his family went bankrupt. A lot had happened in that first week. Rumours spread across the school, Zhao Detong and Fei Bing Bing’s parents had forbidden them from seeing him.

He had suddenly become entirely isolated.

Mao Lu watched as his younger self continued shooting arrow after arrow, pretending that he wasn't aware of what was being said around him.

Lu stared at the bow nostalgically. He had gotten many awards in archery in his youth, he'd started out young and everyone believed he’d become a professional.

However, when things had gotten financially hard for his family, he started working part time to make ends meet and he couldn't make it for competitions. When he'd been trying to impress a potential sponsor, due to his lack of sleep and all the stress he'd been going through due to the bankruptcy, his hands began to shake uncontrollably. He couldn't shoot at all, and he ended up losing his only chance of joining a team and going pro. Also paying for equipment and classes weren't cheap.

In the end he just couldn't do it anymore and gave up archery.

He regretted it.

Now Lu wanted to hold that bow in his hand, he knew he would be rusty, but he still wished he was on that wooden block, and he wished he was shooting.

"Is Time made up of my regrets? Or is it my desire? Or, perhaps are you trying to tell me that my time revolves around my views and memories?" Mao Lu muttered.

The only thing these two scenes had in common was that they both revolved around him.

As he muttered this the scene in front of him changed again.

_________

On the corner of a quiet street the road was rather dark, only lit by one lamp, it was evening.

In this rather empty street heartfelt sobbing could be heard.

"I was a bad friend to you Lu. I'm so sorry I avoided you. I don't like any of this," Zhao Detong cried.

"I tried talking to my Dad, but he just told me to ignore you. And... I couldn't look you in the eye...the way my parents betrayed your family. I'm so sorry Lu...I'm so sorry!" Large tears slid down the handsome and young Zhao Detong's face as he held Zhang Lu's shoulders.

"I'm sorry Lu!"

Lu leaned in and hugged Detong, wrapping his arms around his waist.

"I thought you had abandoned me like everyone else, because I’m trash now."

"What! Of course not. Do you think I was best friends with you just because of the money? We've known each other forever Lu, you're more than family to me. You trash? you'd never be trash to me."

Tears began to slide down Zhang Lu's face, "Good. I'm relieved." he squeezed Detong tighter in his arms, he didn't want to let go.

"I should never have left you behind when you were at your worst Lu."

"It doesn't matter, I forgive you." Lu muttered.

"You shouldn't forgive me so easily, you should at least get mad," Zhao Detong stepped back, "Come on, punch me! Kick me! Get it out of your system!"

"Why should I? It's not like you did anything wrong. The mistakes of your parents aren't your mistakes, why should I hate you for something you didn't do? All is forgiven okay."

"Just like that."

"Just like that."

A bright smile came over Detong's face and he put his arm over Lu's shoulder, "We're men though, we should really punch this out."

"No, we shouldn't," Lu laughed.

Mao Lu remembered this scene.

He had been so happy that Zhao Detong hadn't abandoned him despite the pressures of his family.

At that very moment he really wanted to confess to him, "I love you" but the words had never been able to come out.

Watching this moment, he was glad he hadn’t said it, if he had, maybe he really would have lost his best friend that day.

Mao Lu knew now, unlike the foolish him of the past, that he never would have had a chance romantically with Zhao Detong.

"What are you trying to tell me? Is it that Time keeps going on like this, and I'm helpless to stop it, only able to observe these past events? Or is it that time is only reflected through my experiences?"

As he asked this yet again the scene changed.

_________

It was raining and Zhang Lu was crying as he sat next to a tombstone in a graveyard.

"Mum! Mum! Mum!" he yelled "What am I going to do? Mum!"

Mao Lu remembered this scene.

His father had been sent to prison and he had been left to arrange the funeral all by himself.

His Mother had been an orphan, and his paternal grandparents had died only a few years prior. With the loan sharks and debt collectors lurking around no one wanted to associate with him. He was entirely alone.

Somehow, despite the hardship, and with the help of the government, he was able to give his mother a proper burial ceremony.

Barely anyone showed up.

Some of her close friends gave their condolences, but they quickly left.

Zhao Detong and Fei Bing Bing also came to give him support, but their parents forced them to leave within minutes.

In the end he had sat there in the rain crying at her grave all alone

His mother had been his only strength and with her gone he felt lost.

He cried for hours, he confessed to her grave everything he'd kept in his heart. Afterwards he was sick in bed for two weeks.

Unable to forgive his Father, and in an attempt to avoid the Loan Sharks, he then changed his surname to his mother's maiden name, Mao. Becoming Mao Lu.

As Mao Lu watched this memory unfold before his eyes, he slowly realised the one consistent thing around all of them.

All these events were things that had shaped him as a person, they were small points in the journey of his life. All of these events had led to the current him, whether they were happy, angry, or sad.

An ancient croaky voice echoed. "Time is relative to you. Your time will never be the same as someone elses. Your past is yours alone. Understand that you own your time as much as it owns you."

"I own my time."

It was such a simple phrase yet the moment it rang through his head he felt a dramatic change occur within him.

He was suddenly able to see dancing rays of light that were swimming around him. The moment he saw them he felt them staring back at him, he heard them hum as if they were talking with him.

He then heard Gates whisper, "You have now awakened, and can now see essence of time.”