Xiang watched as a villager opened the door to one of the houses. "This is what we have available," the villager said. "As you can see, it's still in good condition. There was a family staying here...but unfortunately they won't be needing it anymore."
She knew what that meant. "Oh...is this really okay?"
"If you ask me, it's not enough," the villager said. "You saved us all from oppression and, quite possibly, brutal deaths. If you plan on staying a while, please accept it."
Xiang entered and looked around. From the way things appeared, you'd never know the village had been terrorized for a week by bandits. The beds were clean. There wasn't even a sign of a struggle. This was too good. "One of the other families could use this."
"We all got together and decided you should have it," the villager said.
Well, she couldn't refuse now. She turned and bowed. "I humbly accept. Thank you."
The villager smiled. "Okay, I'll leave to you get settled. You've had a long night, don't be in a rush to help us out."
It really had been a long night. Hiking to the village, fighting bandits, footing it back to the camp, then marching all the way back to the village with her belongings in tow. Maybe she would kick up her heels for the night. She started to thank the villager, but they had already left.
She closed the door, slipped out of her boots, then collapsed on the bed. Then, she pulled a carrot out of her food bag and stared at the ceiling as she ate, contemplating the day's events. She whipped out her journal to log everything before she forgot.
Suddenly, there was a knock on her door. "Come in." The door opened and in came the boy who lead her to the village. "Oh. What brings you here at this time of night?"
"I just wanted to thank you," he said. "I didn't think anyone could beat all those guys, but you did it. You saved our village." He was fidgety, as if he was hiding something.
"Whatever it is, you don't have to be afraid," she said in a comforting tone. "Just say it."
"I'm sorry," he said. "It's just that you're so pretty, and strong, and...pretty. Would you marry me when I grow up?"
She laughed a little. It was too cute. "I'm not going to be around that long. But I'm sure that you when grow up, you'll find a woman as pretty and strong as me. I have no doubt she will marry you, so make sure you grow up to be nice and strong yourself."
"Okay," he said. "I'll make sure to grow up nice and strong so I can marry you." With that, he left.
Almost immediately, there was another knock on the door. "Come in."
It was the first woman she rescued. She'd cleaned herself up, but the bruises from the beating she received still showed. There was a package in her hand. "If it weren't for you, I'd be...I don't want to think about it. Anyway, I wanted to thank you formally." She held out the package. "It's fish. The bandits forced me to catch some earlier, but I hid a few from them. I was going to have them for myself, but I want you to have them instead."
It was almost embarrassing. "You caught it, so you should eat it."
"But I owe you my life. It's the least I can do. Oh...maybe you'd like a fresher catch. I'll head out right now."
"I'll tell you what," Xiang said. "We can go out fishing together tomorrow. We can enjoy each other's company as we stare out at...wherever your fishing spot is."
"Okay," she said, looking at the ground sadly. Then, she perked up and said, "Your feet must be tired after all that running around. Maybe you'd like a foot massage."
"My feet are fine," Xiang said. "Just make sure you're ready to fish tomorrow and you'll have paid me back in full."
After she left, Xiang went back to eat her carrot and writing in her journal. Once she finished her carrot, she pulled out an apple and ate that.
Then, someone else wrapped on her door. "Come in."
It was the man who lead the mob. "How is everything?"
"Just fine. Everyone is so friendly and inviting."
He nodded. "Good. Our previous village elder was killed back the bandits, so I've been made the new elder. If you need anything, don't be afraid to look me up." With that, he left.
"What an interesting village." She wondered what it was like before it had been raided. She intended to find out, because she would help restore it with her own two hands.
No comments:
Post a Comment