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Drabble: in the aftermath
Category: Stories
„Hou Shàoyé! (Young Master Hou)… Hou Shàoyé!… Hou Xin!“, it needed several attempts to beak his focus and gain his attention that much the young warrior was submerged in his training. - Still, even the final blow by the bamboo fighting pole was a clean hit right to the center of the training dummy´s chest.
Breathing hard, heavily leaning onto the pole Hou Xin eventually turned towards the familiar voice coming from the edge of the training area where the doors were located.
“Wen Ning”, he nodded before brushing back one unruly, sweaty strand of hair which had managed to escape the tight, formal knot.
“Zhi Ruo Zǔmǔ (Grandmother Zhi Rou) wants to see you. Did you forget she called you in today, Hou Shàoyé?”. Wu ying, a young boy of about 14 years was the official helper and apprentice of the ancient Healer who was simply called Zǔmǔ by basically everyone of the Court and Guard. A title given in all due respect and honor. - Everybody knew her, everybody acknowledged her authority, even the Emperor, … they better did. She was around like since forever, at least Hou Xin wasn´t aware of anyone of the Court who did not know the tiny, old, slightly hunched woman. She never seemed to change, never to age. - Forgetting an appointment with her though was considered as problematic as forgetting an appointment with the ruler himself… if not even worse.
Wu Ying´s whole demeanor proved him being caught between the surely strong order to find and collect the patient amiss and the formally demanded etiquette in terms of dealing with members of the Court. His discomfort resounding audibly in the slightly nervous tone of his voice and showed by him awkwardly stepping from one foot to the other.
“Dāngrán bùshì (Of course not)”, Hou Xing gave back, a slightly concerned scowl tugging at his brows underneath the black blindfold, “But I recall it to be somewhat after breakfast, late morning?”
“Shì de, shì de! ( Yes, yes!) - It is almost noon though, Shàoyé (Master)!”
“Shì ma?! (Is it?!)”, in an instance it was all Hou Xin´s part to feel utterly uncomfortable…
*
“There you are, finally! Did you think you´d avoid this, Hou Zi ( SonHou)?!” the familiar, strangely gentle but also sharp voice slightly bristle with age greeted him when Hou Xin stepped into the healer´s rooms behind Wu Ying. Immediately the typical and indeed utterly soothing and pleasant herbal smell engulfed him when he bowed his head in the demanded gesture of respect while quickly and firmly denying the accusation, “Dāngrán bùshì, Zumu (Of course not, Grandmother)”
The order to sit down on the narrow cot was followed without even the slightest attempt of resistance, it would have been futile anyway. And indeed unpleasant experience served Hou Xin as pieces of good advice that it was never a bright idea to strain the patience of the elder healer beyond a certain point.
Yet another reproach followed almost instantly when warm, soft hands gripped his own. All the while his bamboo-pole had felt strangely sticky and now that he was forced to settle and become quiet Hou Xin noticed himself even before the scolding words were spoken: the source of this stickiness and now also an increasingly sore sensation was to be found in some serious bloody blisters adoring his hands caused by hours and hours of intense training.
“Boy, your terrible, mulish stubbornness certainly will be the death of me one day… why must you insist on ruining all my precious efforts to get you back on your feet?!.... - How long has he been training!?” - the question clearly not addressed towards the wayward patient.
“Since before dawn”, hence came the answer by Wu Ying, causing Hou Xing´s expression to change from surprise to scowling and eventually settled on defensive guilt underneath the blindfold.
“You have me watched?!”
“Of course – someone needs to keep an eye on you… - and obviously more than just an eye… more like tie you to a chair, my dear! - It has been how long… two weeks since this incident… maybe you want to slow down a bit until you are fully healed.”
Hou Xin was well aware that this was more than just a suggestion, and a tiny voice in the back of his head told him to back down right here… yet…
“Two weeks already… also, it´s my eyes nothing more… - I need to make sure to keep on top of it… to be able to prove…”
“Prove what? That you are the most hardheaded, self-destructive fool among the Guard´s ranks?! As for anything else there is absolutely nothing to prove from your side. - No-one around doubts your capability… except of you, of course… - and now lay back and let me see your eyes.”
During their brief to and fro his hands had been taking care of, now wrapped in a thin layer of fabric to keep an ointment in place which would speed up the healing.
This time no back-talk was shared instead the audibly timid request how things looked like. - And as always the answer was that the wounds were healing beautifully “… lucky you, thanks to my outstanding skills you´ll be as handsome as ever, Hou Zi.”
And also as always this very statement was dismissed by him as soothing pep-talk; dismissed silently just inside his own head of course as any audibly uttered doubts in this matter only served to earn him an unceremonious slap. After all what happened Hou Xin´s didn´t dare to hope that his eyes ever would look “beautifully”… or even normal again, he´d never be able to get prove of it anyway… and the reassuring, soothing words of people around him were accounted as exactly that: good-willed, reassuring, soothing words to stop him from feeling uneasy, yet not really the whole truth.
But then why even care – these were issues so superficial that they should be entirely unimportant to him, not even worth a thought. There were other, more pressing matters at hand, like to show that he was worth the given rank, that he was still able to maintain his status as one of the best warriors of the Guard, that he was still capable to be his own master, lead his own independent life while protecting that of numerous others´.
A pointy finger poking his ribs startled him out of his brooding.
“Stop scowling… - What kind of dark thoughts might be able to cut such deep lines into that pretty face of yours, Hou Zi?! - By all means, you are skinny. You really should eat more and take better care of yourself…. But I am starting to repeat myself on that!”, the old Healer sighed theatrically yet unable to hide a genuine hint of concern.
“Méiyǒu! (nothing!)”, Hou Xin dismissed the inquiry and waited in silence for Grandmother Healer to work her magic by rinsing his wounded eyes and eventually applying some of her ointments. - … Yet while he was lying there, forced to finally remain still, enclosed by the familiar and endlessly soothing, herbal scent which was as much part of these rooms as the old, tiny lady herself, his strained mind managed to slow down, his tense muscles relaxed and, without him actually really noticing, deep, healing slumber took over control.
Far gone in the lands of sleep left Hou Xin unaware of a pair of light feet and another much clumsier one tiptoeing out of the room, or the whispered order towards Wu Ying to stay around, keep an eye on him and make sure for the sake of not running street-boy errands for the rest of his life that no-one under no circumstances would wake the recovering General.
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