The Mulan of Balhai Temple

[Taiylor Wallace]

By the next morning, a mist had settled over Hanzhou, and Fang Li would awake the the unfamiliar room once more. Khan was in a corner, sitting perfectly still, in a deep, rapt meditation. His posture was perfect, his eyes closed, and his breathing almost undetectable. He'd regained his sash, now clean of Fang Li's blood, and it draped across his shoulder. It was a moment before Fang Li would begin to hear that he was humming a song to himself, but it was so quiet that she couldn't discern much of it. On a table near him lay all the materials he required for caring for Fang Li, ready at any moment.

[kishiseta]

Fang Li's eyes adjusted to the light and took a deep breath. She didn't feel the pain as much, but it was still there. A humming broke though the silence, soothing, yet invigorating at the same time. She turned her head and saw Master Khan clean, and sitting peacefully beside a table with the medicines and the things that he used to patch her up. A smile crossed her lips looking at the peaceful man. Truly, he was not a menace, no matter what Miss Mei thought. He was definitely a monk in all aspects, if not in appearance.

"Good morning," she greeted him. "Thank you for taking care of me. I owe you a lot." She was still in her thin robe so she didn't move. She touched the stitch on her side and noticed the professionalism of the stitch, making it obvious who mended her. "I hope you didn't lose sleep over keeping watch over me. Miss Mei did a lot of work on me, didn't she? I must thank her as well for taking me in and caring for me. And," she took a deep breath. "Apologize for being a bother. I will make it up to her...oh! And you have a demonstration today, don't you? You can leave now. I'm certain I can take care of myself from hereon."

[Taiylor Wallace]

"Miss Mei's been taking care of everyone else. I alone have been looking after you with her permission." Khan rose with a smile. "Don't worry about a thing. I'm not attending the demonstration. At least, not til you can attend too." He came to her and laid his sash over her to keep her warm. It was rather large, and covered her much better than the robe. "You are very brave. Sometimes foolish, but brave. People so often think women are flighty and fearful, but not you... you're braver than most of the men in this village, and you bring respect and honor to your family name for it." He knelt by her, hands resting on the edge of her bed. "As soon as you're well, I'll arrange another demonstration so you can see it, and then I'll take you to Bei Falls and show you something special."

[kishiseta]

Fang Li sat up and bowed to him grateful. "Thank you for taking care of me. I..." she trailed of as he draped his sash over him, making her warmer. When he said that she could not attend the demonstration, her heart sank. She had been looking forward to it--to experience something new in her life other than the domesticity they had been pushing onto her.

She smiled at his assessment of her. He was not the first to call her foolish. There were her parents, her friends, the village elder and many older women. But it was the first time she felt as if the word was praise and it warmed her heart. She looked at him, eyes wide at the prospect of having another demonstration. "You can do that? But, won't everyone get tired. I mean, I can't be selfish. I mean to have another one just for me..." she shook her head. "I want to see it, I really do, but...maybe I can see it now? I won't be doing much. I promise. I won't stress myself. I won't even cheer so loud. I-I'll behave like a proper lady. And I know you're tired too. You could sit by me and...and...maybe I can watch your own demonstration sometime. When you're in better shape to do it. Not that I'm saying you're not strong but--" Fang li stopped herself realizing that she was ranting. She shook her head and picked another topic. "I would love to see Bei Falls. I've never been there before."

[Taiylor Wallace]

"I'll arrange another demonstration," he said again with a chuckle. "Don't you worry about it." He settled comfortably there beside her on the floor. "So, Miss Chan... Tell me about yourself, and I'll do the same in return. It might help pass the time." He looked up at her with yet another of his handsome smiles, genuinely interested.

[kishiseta]

Fang Li looked at him sitting on the floor. She scooted sideways a bit and called to him. "Wouldn't it be more comfortable if you sat on the bed? the floor seems a little hard and uncomfortable."

His interest in her life made her smile, but then again, there really was not much to say. "Well, I live an ordinary life. So ordinary, it's boring." She grinned. "Like everyone else, I was raised to know the basics of being a woman. Cooking, cleaning, sewing, cloth-making, herb-growing, medicine, looking out after men...you know, all those things. And well, I just...well, it's not exactly boring, but dad took me to one of his outings when mom was sick so that we won't be a bother and I just got really excited about all that. From then on, I became the wild child and I never really practiced any of the homemaking stuff. Mom blamed dad for how I grew up and well...dad lost all of the offers he made to arrange for my marriage. They're afraid I wouldn't be able to take care of my husband. And I can't blame them. I mean, yeah, I know how to do all that, but I'm not as good as Lei Ba or Shuang. And they're really happily married right now. So, now, I'm really just trying to be a good medicine woman. I'm sure if I do this right, dad won't have to worry about my future. I'll be able to take care of myself even without a husband." She smiled at Khan. "Other than that, well, there's really nothing else. Boring life, huh? How about you? Tell me more about Mongolia and about your tribe...you call them tribe right? Sorry, I don't know much except for the story Lei Ba told me when her dad was ambushed in a Mongolian raid while transporting spices. It's a good thing she hasn't seen you yet. She would have made a ruckus about you."

[Taiylor Wallace]

"She has seen me... she threatened to kill me," he laughed like it was nothing. "It's alright, though, she was just protective of you."
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He sat back, thinking of where to start, "Well, us Mongolians live in clans, huge extended families, and we're nomads. We move constantly and fight whoever we come across if we feel like it... I come from the Clan of Ulanur, my father was the clan head. I'm the youngest of five sons, all of my older brothers left the clan when they were younger, all together, to form their own war clan. I began fighting from an early age, having been training since I could walk, and my greatest talents came out with a blade or a bow in my hands. I fought for years, never thinking of anything other than battle. My father tried to get me to marry several times, but I'd either find no interest in the girl, or run off fighting to avoid getting married. I didn't want to have to worry about somebody getting hurt because I couldn't protect them, like what happened with my little sister when I was fourteen, so I didn't let myself get involved with anyone."
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He then sighed, "But the day I struck down a mother and her two children in a rage... I gave all that up... I ran from my clan and nearly died in the southern steppes until Master Zhou Fu found me and practically adopted me as his own son. I came here to the temple, and it took me years before I could forgive myself and find peace. Once I did, I mastered the elements with Master Fu's guidance. Most of the townsfolk still don't like the look of me, though. I know Miss Mei doesn't like me, especially when I'm around Baiyu. You're the first Chinese woman who hasn't either cowered in fear or hated me right off the bat."

[kishiseta]

"Well, from my experience with monks, they're all kind," Fang Li shrugged. "Besides, I've never met a real Mongolian before. It's like what my father said when we're hunting. All hogs are wild by nature, but when you take them in to care for them, they change. Just because a hog and a pig are the same, it doesn't mean that they will act the same. Like, you know, hogs will ram and kill humans, but when they're domesticated as pigs, they're pretty neat pets."She laughed at herself. "I guess I really didn't understand what my dad said until I met you. But it's not like I'm calling you a pig or anything...that was a bad comparison, wasn't it." She winced in realization.

If there was one thing she needed to learn, it was to control her mouth. She got into enough trouble with it and many people thought her too honest for her own good, and that lost her some friends. At least she knew she had the right friends if they could withstand her mouth. And, she realized, Master Khan seemed to be taking it in stride as well. Monks truly were amazing. And Master Khan was not only amazing inside, he also looked amazing. The scars he bore didn't make him ugly, rather, they made him look more like a proud warrior. A man who controls his own destiny no matter what. And his face...she blushed as she caught herself staring at him, looking down at the his sash and picked on it.

[Taiylor Wallace]

"You father is a wise man." He nodded. "Though you know, in some ways, I'm not a proper monk. I've done the training and all, but because I didn't become a monk the traditional way, the other monks don't always bind me to their rules... I often feel like an outsider. No matter how I strive to reach peace and physical and mental perfection, no matter how well I speak your language, and no matter what I do, I'll never be Chinese. I'll always be the Mongolian Mulan monk that everyone's over-wary of, that everyone's afraid will revert back to the way he once was and repeat his most foul deed..." Fang Li was beginning to see the side of Khan that still felt the deep guilt and shame and pain, and she was getting a glimpse of how everyone's lack of trust and acceptance was hurting him. "Sometimes..." He muttered, "I just wish I could apologize to that woman again... I tried to save her, and I told her over and over how horrible I felt, and... she forgave me before she died... But it still doesn't feel like I should be forgiven..."
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He shook his head then, "But enough of all that."

[kishiseta]

Fang Li wanted to reach out to him as he told of his pains and insecurities. It wasn't fair. Just because he was different, doesn't mean he couldn't change. The least she could do was help him change others' perception of him: starting with Miss Mei and Lei Ba. It was not going to be easy, but she knew that only a few things in the world were, and none of them appealed to her. She almost touched his shoulder when he decided to change topics and the mood and she retracted her hand. Her mind suddenly raced about what to ask and what to talk about, until she suddenly remembered something. "You promised me you'd tell me all about Mongolia. Is it really a land where the horses are most free? Or is it a deserted landscape? There are so many stories, I don't know what to believe!"

Fang Li didn't know how much time had passed but she knew her wound would have to be redressed again soon. "Do you think I will be able to go out and help Miss Mei tomorrow? I really don't want to waste any opportunities."