Chapter Text
Sun Wukong held up his fists preparing for another attack from his enemy. Inside the Water Curtain Cave he was at battle with a humanoid demon whose skin looked like black smoke. Twenty years had passed since he had been gone and a King of Havoc or at least what Wukong thought was one sat inside his cave. The whole area was surrounded by monkeys that Wukong had no doubt the Demon of Havoc had captured.
Whatever happened didn’t matter though. Wukong’s only focus was defeating the demon who was quick to dodge and quicker to attack. Any hit Wukong tried to land the demon avoided or was barely scratched by as if it could tell how he would attack. Even stranger was how he seemed to almost blend in with the shadows. “Why don’t you simply give up?” the demon asked, giving Wukong a grin before dodging another of his attacks.
“Because I am their king and these are my people. My friends. Not some pets or servants!” Wukong jumped and went to hit the demon’s neck but it dodged almost as soon as he tried before appearing behind Wukong and flinging him into one of the caves walls. Wukong snarled at the demon who simply laughed. Above though was the sound of a crack. Wukong looked around confused until he saw three brave and blonde monkeys who he knew as triplet sisters. Yezi who had a green flower behind her ear, Meigui who had a black flower with pink streaks behind her ear, and Shui who had an emerald green flower behind her ear.
They were loosening a large rock that was over the demon’s head while other monkeys were trying to separate Wukong and the demon only to be teleported elsewhere by dark purple portals that seemed to send them to other sides of the cave. The demon noticed the sound as well but didn’t take any notice of it. “I only smell trouble coming off of you. I know you can bring nothing good. But tell me what happens if I defeat you?” the demon spoke.
It was almost as if what Wukong said was completely ignored and he was egging Wukong on and treating him like a threat to his own people. Like he wanted to get Wukong mad so he would make a mistake. Wukong glared at the demon. If feeding the demon's ego could get him to make a mistake then that was what Wukong would do. “What are your plans for after you defeat me? How are you going to rule my people?” Wukong asked, making with his arms a sign for defeat and the future before acting like he was crowning the demon from afar.
Erratic and odd arm movements had always been a way for the monkeys to be able to understand at least somewhat what Wukong said if he was talking to an enemy and it had become a habit at this point. The demon seemed to have to ponder over the thought for some time. At least ten minutes had passed before he finally had an answer and during that time the demon simply whacked aside his clones.
“Live here forever and eat fruit to my heart's content.” Wukong threw himself at the demon to try and get it more centered under the stone. He gasped though when suddenly grabbed by an arm from the demon that was pure black with a slight purple tint to it. As soon as the stone fell the demon held his arm under it. “Goodbye Monkey.” The stone fell on the black arm that disappeared in a cloud of smoke and Wukong was crushed under the rock.
The demon let out a loud bellowing laugh and gripped his stomach with how hard he laughed. There was a crack though above him. The demon looked up and there was Wukong with three monkeys loosening a three foot rock that hit the demon directly in the face. The monkeys seemed distressed when the demon was hit in the face and watched with fear as he suddenly swayed.
What happened next to the demon was confusing. He disappeared in a puff of smoke and something fell along with the large cape he had been wearing. Wukong watched as it hit the floor before and the three monkeys who were with him hurried over to a lump under the cape. Wukong hurried after the monkeys and grabbed them before they could touch the cape. He looked at the monkeys and gave a warning chirp.
“Stay Back.” Shui and Yezi listened but Meigui still seemed unsure. The monkeys didn’t move though and Wukong looked at the cape hesitantly before pulling a part cape away and jumping back ready to attack. Instead he was met with a black furred monkey demon with dark tan skin and six ears. He wore a ru that was yellow and black with a gold collar and matching cuffs while the skirt he wore over it was a brown and gold skirt tied with a red ribbon.
It came together fully with maroon pants and black boots. Wukong almost debated shaking the monkey but Meigui ran over to the black monkey and shook his shoulder as if desperate to wake him up. “Brother hurt! Brother hurt!” she chirped desperately. Wukong looked at her confused but jolted back when the monkey suddenly moved. He sat up with a groan and placed a hand on his head before looking around confused.
Wukong was the first thing he spotted and he immediately tried to dash into the shadows. Wukong was quicker though and grabbed him before pinning the monkey against a wall by his neck. “You’re not leaving that quickly. I may be young but I am not an idiot. Who are you?” Wukong growled angrily, his teeth bared. The monkey looked as if he was debating on saying anything but when Wukong’s grip tightened he patted Wukong’s arm three times to show he gave up.
Wukong released the monkey but didn’t take his eyes off of him. “My name is Liu’er Míhou also known as the Six-Eared Macaque. Two hundred and sixty years ago I was born from a stone that was placed within the water inside the stream in this cave.” Wukong gave the monkey an unconvinced look and pointed to the stream. “Show me.” Wukong dropped the Six-Eared Macaque to the ground and watched him go over to the stream.
The monkey seemed to be confused as to why he couldn’t find the stone and the three monkeys that helped to loosen the rock joined him but soon enough he presented it to Wukong. Wukong could remember how his own stone looked when he was first formed and the one the Six-Eared Macaque showed Wukong was in no way similar besides that it was a monkey. Wukong placed a hand on the monkey's shoulder.
“You proved that you came from that rock bud but tell me now what you had planned for the monkeys.” The Six-Eared Macaque showed Wukong one of the portals he had seen earlier and a grey monkey with a red shawl came through. Wukong knew the monkey as Ma. She was like the eldest of the monkeys and was called Ma as a sign of respect. Ma gave Wukong a smile before jumping on his shoulder and patting Wukong’s cheek twice with her finger.
A sign she used on monkeys to drop something. Wukong looked at the monkey hesitantly before dropping him. Ma hopped off of Wukong's shoulder before walking over to the Six-Eared Macaque and knocking on his forehead twice with her fist. “I told you that he wasn’t a danger, Mihou. Listening to me would have helped you avoid the headache you have now” she chirped. Macaque gave a disappointed sigh.
“I know Ma. I heard danger though. What if it wasn’t the ‘Monkey King’ as you have called him? He hasn’t even realized I was chirping instead of speaking human.” It was odd but now that Wukong took time to think about it Macaque was chirping and not speaking any human language. Wukong was now sure that he had been chirping since they had begun speaking. All he could give was a sorry look to the monkey. “How about we start over, bud? What’s your name?”
The Six-Eared Macaque looked at Wukong hesitantly. “My name is Liu’er Mihou also known as the Six-Eared Macaque. You can call me Macaque or Mihou.” Wukong gave a nod and held out his hand to Macaque.
“It’s nice to meet you bud. My name is Sun Wukong. I was born from a stone on this mountain two hundred and seventy years ago and I am the Monkey king.”
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Macaque let out a tired groan as he woke up in his apartment and stood up from the short couch he was sleeping on. The two bedroom apartment was dingy, small, and was a bit broken down but it still worked. Macaque just had to pay the owner once every month the amount he requested in cash and everything was fine. His human disguise worked well too. He was known as a twenty-five year old woman by the name Gushi Chao-xing.
If she was a woman in real life, especially a demon or heavenly worker Macaque was sure that her beauty could have been fought over. She was a short woman with dark brown skin, green eyes, and beautiful wavy black hair with a mole under her left eye with a love for purple and black and a job at the shadow theater. The disguise had been mainly made to make sure Wukong, Mk, and their friends couldn't track down where he lived.
The last thing he wanted was to see them at his doorstep one day for some reason or another. A quick swish of his shadows and Macaque saw Gushi Chao-xing looking back at him. The shadows had changed to have a red tint to them instead of their purple one but Macaque guessed maybe it was because he was becoming stronger at using them even if when he used his shadows they had caused him a twinge of pain now.
As Macaque looked at Chao-xing she definitely looked as tired as Macaque felt. Makeup and coffee could make quick of that problem though and soon enough the exhaustion seemed to be gone. With a red and black bag grabbed and his door locked Macaque started his way down the stairs ready to get to the shadow theater. “Chao-xing, hi!” Macaque looked over and sure enough the apartment owner's son Liang Lin was waving at him.
The man was a tall and lanky twenty-three year old with dark tan skin, green eyes, and wavy medium length brown hair that was tied up in a bun. He was also the only person that Macaque had actually revealed his true self after the man had tried to ask Chao-xing out a year prior and the two had managed to stay friends afterwards. “I know those payments are due.” Lin gave a chuckle.
“That’s not why I’m here. I was interested in hearing about the shadow play you’ll be performing tonight.” Macaque gave a hum thinking for a few seconds. “I planned to tell The Legend of the White Snake. After the story of the weaver girl and the cowhead I thought I should at least tell a somewhat happier love story.” Macaque gave Lin a grin. “Are you going to be coming to watch the shadow play?”
Lin gave a shrug. “I did plan on coming by and watching. My girlfriend Cherri was going to come by and I just wanted her to meet my best friend.” Lin replied ruffling Macaque’s hair. “Do you mind hanging out after your show and she can meet you?” Macaque gave a chuckle. “Sure. I’ll see you after the show then.” Lin headed somewhere inside the building and Macaque started his walk to the shadow theater.
It was good for Chao-xing to have a life outside being known as a woman working at the shadow theater. It wasn't bad but it couldn’t be terribly good as well. The last thing he wanted was to get close to a bunch of Lin’s friends or anyone else and have a lot of explaining to do. Cherri would have to be the last person Chao-xing would get close to if they even got close.
Then there was also the life of his second disguise Haoyu Meihua. Macaque entered the back way of the shadow theater before he became the disguise he had used most over the years. Meihua was a short man with light brown skin, blue eyes, slick medium length black hair that he wore in a low messy bun, and a beard. Macaque wished he could have made the man seem taller but when it came to disguises if the height was relatively the same as Macaque’s it was so much easier to hold.
Truly a slight thing made a huge difference. If Macaque fell asleep in a tall disguise then the next morning he would wake up as himself but disguises the same height and with similar appearances were so much easier to hold. He had found out they could last at least a week before he needed to rest from using them. Meihua was known as Chao-xing’s cousin and the two worked hard to start the upbringing of the shadow theater.
The whole story besides the people was true. Ten years of hard work and Macaque had managed to get the shadow theater up and running successfully. He was also the disguise that MK and possibly the rest of his friends knew about. It was time for Meihua now though to get to work setting up for the shadow play. Macaque didn’t need to do anything but it was best for it to seem like something was getting set up in case a random person came through.
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The day had been peaceful and Macaque hadn’t seen anyone until MK came by to drop off some noodles. Ever since he and Wukong had made the slightest sliver of peace MK had taken to chilling with Macaque and seeing him as a “hero”. MK, Mei, Red Son, and Wukong sat in the crowd to watch the show and Macaque was almost certain Wukong hadn’t come of his own choosing. It was nice seeing them there though
Wukong was on MK's left, MK sat next to Red Son holding his hand and Mei was to Red Son's left. Red Son whispered about something loudly while MK laughed and Mei wiggled her eyebrows. It sounded like the conversation had something to do with Princess Iron Fan and Demon Bull king.
Macaque let out a quiet chuckle to himself. He did only have a few minutes before the shadow play was to begin and Macaque was ready to get it started. After all there was a multitude of people who were excited to hear the Legend of the White Snake. The lights dimmed and the curtain was given a glow and two snake puppets suddenly appeared and in a dramatic puff of smoke Macaque appeared in front of the anxious crowd.
He was glad that the shadows had their usual purple glow to them again and within a few seconds with a dramatic puff of smoke Macaque appeared in his mysterious looking robes. “There were once two snake sisters named White Snake and Black Snake. The sisters lived on Mountain E-Mei and had magical abilities. One day they both decided to take human forms.”
The shadows of the snake sisters suddenly changed to two women who had high buns and appeared to be wearing robes. White Snake changed into a very beautiful girl, named Bai Su-Zheng also known as Lady White while her sister Black Snake changed into a lovely maiden named Xiao Qing. When White Snake was mentioned the left shadow waved and when Black Snake was mentioned the right shadow waved.
Some children in the crowd waved back to the sisters and it brought a smile to Macaque’s face. “The two sisters, now in human form, traveled a way and came across the West Lake of Hang Zhou.” The shadows change to show the sisters looking over the edge of a bridge and out across the water where some finish jumped a slight bit out of the water before diving back in and cherry blossoms drifted off their trees.
“Over the Duan-Qiao bridge they stood on a young man named Xu Xian walked across and Lady White fell in love instantly.” A lanky shadow puppet appeared and Lady White cupped her hands as she looked at the man in awe. “Now Xiao Qing planned to find a way to help her sister and-” A sudden pain pierced through Macaque and he gripped at the left side of his chest and the shadows seemed to change from their usual purple to purple with a tint of dark orange and the light behind the shadows blinked.
The shadows returned to normal though within a few seconds and as Macaque continued the story no one seemed to notice besides Wukong who had a slightly concerned look. Macaque continued the story and finished soon enough with little issue. As soon as everyone left he almost immediately started to collapse. MK rushed forward but Lin got to Macaque first and helped him manage to stay upright.
“You ok Meihua? I noticed something seemed wrong when you were doing your show.” MK, Wukong, and the rest of their friends seemed confused. “Yeah I’m good Lin. Just had some problems tonight is all.” Lin gave an understanding smile. “Ok let me just help you get to a seat first.” It was while he was helping Macaque over to a place where he could sit that he noticed MK and the others.
“Are these some of your friends Meihua?” Macaque gave a nod. “Yeah they are. They offered to help clean up after the shadow play so they're ok. I’ll see you later Lin.” Lin waved bye to Macaque and headed over to a girl who seemed to have pale skin, black eyes, and white hair that faded to red at the tips. He whispered in her ear before and the two then started to head out. As soon as they were both gone Macaque let go of his disguise and looked tiredly at MK and the others.
"Ooooh is that your boyfriend?" Mei asked with a cheeky smile on her face. It only earned her an unamused look from Macaque. "He's just a good friend." Macaque gave a sigh before standing up and stretching. “I’m seriously fine, just didn’t feel like Lin and Cherri should stay around.” It was obvious the others hadn't gotten a sense that he wanted them to leave as well. “You guys can go now too. Kinda need you out before I can close up.”
MK gave Macaque a disappointed look. “Your shadows totally changed color. That’s at least something weird” Mei said, her arms crossed. MK nodded in agreement. “Mei is right. They changed to a weird color. It looked like those powers that Xiangliu had.” Red Son looked at Macaque with a confused expression. "I have no clue who the noodle boy is talking about. But if you were by chance injured we need to know.”
Macaque grinned and shook his head before looking at MK. “Listen kid, there's nothing wrong and I’m not injured” Macaque replied, turning to look at Red Son. “Anyways you guys should get headed out and enjoy your night. I need to lock up this place anyways.” Begrudgingly MK, Mei, and Red Son left while Wukong seemed perfectly fine with doing so. After they had left it only took ten minutes to lock up the theater and Macaque disappeared through one of his portals that had returned to its oddly red tint.
It almost seemed to spit him out onto his own couch and Macaque let out a gasp of pain when he landed and his side felt like it had gotten stabbed by something. The red shadows definitely had a kick to them that hurt far more than his usual ones.