Zhao Li pushed the door the open and Susu was there sitting in the middle of the room, meditating calmly. Zhao Li didn’t enter, she stood there, letting the silence between them stretched like an invisible wall pressing down on her chest.

  “You seem troubled today Li’er,” Susu said, smiling brightly bringing her defensive walls down.

  She opened her eyes and stared at Zhao Li, who stood in the doorway fidgeting her fingers nervously. Something was on her mind, but she didn’t know how to ask…no, she didn’t want to ask, despite her mind screaming for her ask.

  She’d heard the rumours within the village. Some of the children wanted to learn martial arts from Susu, but she was unwilling to teach them, calling herself, inept as a teacher. Yet, she promised Zhao Li that she would train her. She thought bitterly.

  She inhaled heavily and exhaled, using the breathing technique Susu had taught her.

  The rehearsed words from the forest faded away, leaving her rendering with a parched mouth. “You’re home early, no forest today?” Susu asked with a smile.

  Zhao Li shook her head, then spoke, remembering that Lady Susu preferred words over facial expressions. “No Ma’am.”

  “Are you hungry? I made some congee with wild mushrooms and rabbit meat…your favourite,” Susu said gently.

  “No Ma’am, I’m not hungry,” Zhao Li said calmly. She ground her teeth in frustration, feeling as though Lady Susu was a liar. Afterall, years have passed and her had yet to begin.

  “Can we talk?” She asked, feeling the ball in her chest curl up.

  Susu smiled and pushed herself off the ground.

  “You can always speak to me Li’er…what’s on your mind?

  Zhao Li drew a deep, steady breath then exhaled deeper. “You promised to train me,” She started. “It’s been tow years, two years of me doing the same thing over and over and over and over. Yet, no training has begun! You told me I needed a good foundation before you could train me. You told me I needed to build my strength up. I have hauled logs, steadied my breathing, and accepted the villagers’ contempt without complaint…When will my training begin?!”

  Susu’s smiled and her face seemed to glow as walked towards Zhao Li, it was as if she wasn’t moved by Zhao Li’s rising intensity. “So…you believe yourself ready, eh?”

  “YES!” Zhao Li snapped, flustered. She was tired of the word games, the pleasantries, the smiles. She was tired of how the villagers treated her with contempt and silence, but most of all, she was . She was scared that the villagers would eventually gang up on her if she made a mistake and beat her, just like her step-mother did.

  Susu smiled and strolled over to the pot. She began to stir it and that only made Zhao Li fume even more. She was being ignored, her anger. Her. Just like the villagers always did during the day. “Have a seat. We’ll talk, but there’s no need to let good food go to waste.”

  A breath of heat floundered from Zhao Li’s lips; she hated how calm Susu could be. No one in the village treated or spoke to her in the way that Zhao Li just did, but that didn’t matter to her.

  She took a seat at the dining table and Susu placed the congee, sliced mushroom and rabbit meat in front of her. Zhao Li scooped up her spoon and dipped it into the congee, she took one bite out of it and slightly sweet savory taste of it, melted in her mouth, betraying her with a growl.

  She watched as Susu’s face remained impassive, but she steeled herself. She took another bite out of the congee and the familiarity of her routine began to erode her resolve. “You’ve grown stronger. I’ve seen you how you’ve utilised your body pulling those logs. Your mentality has been tempered as well.”

  “Then why won’t you teach me?” Zhao Li asked, ignoring the food. “What more must I do?”

  Taking her seat opposite Zhao Li, Susu responded, “What exactly do you wish to learn, Li’er? To fight? Harm those that have contempt for you?”

  “I want to be strong enough to defend myself!” Zhao Li said firmly, feeling tears bubble in her eyes. She forced the tears down. She was unwilling to let herself cry in front of Susu…no. She was unwilling to cry in front of .“I’m tired of being ignored. I understand why they treat me this way, but its so lonely, I HATE being alone.” she rasped.

  “I understand Li’er. I too was alone, until I me—“

  “YOU’VE TOLD ME THAT BEFORE! I KNOW THAT CHIEF YAN FAN IS YOUR FRIEND!”

  Susu didn’t flinch, nor did she get angry. She remained cool. She took Zhao Li’s spoon and scooped up some congee and tried to feed her but Zhao Li moved her head and pouted. “You promised,” she insisted, her voice laced with urgency. “You said—”

  “I know what I said,” Susu interrupted gently but firmly. “Every day, with every log you’ve pulled and every breath you’ve taken, I have been teaching you.”

  “Teaching me what? How to be a mere labourer? How to vanish into the background?” Zhao Li snapped, “I need something more than these riddles and chores—I need…” She hesitated.

  “What is it you need, child?”

  Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

  “I need to matter…I need to feel that all this—” she gestured at her calloused hands, “—wasn’t in vain!”

  Susu’s expression softened for a moment, she slid the spoon back into the congee and caressed Zhao Li’s face, tears began to flow from her eyes, and Susu just continually caressed her, trying her best to sooth away Zhao Li’s frustration.

  “Strength without understanding is like a sword without a hilt.” Susu said.

  Zhao Li pushed her hand away and jumped out of her chair. “Stop it! You’re just babying me! I’m eight years old I will be nine soon! I’m not child anymore. STOP IT!”

  She spun around and darted through the door. She hopped off the staircase and landed on the ground and darted off the forest, leaving Susu behind.

  Zhao Li fed herself through the fence, then stared into the sky. It was late. The purple and orange hues of the day weren’t as high as they usually were. Usually, at this time, she would’ve ventured home, but today wasn’t a day for that. She was angry, frustrated and downright miserable. she thought to herself.

  She wanted to scream.

  She wanted to let her frustration out.

  …and she did.

  Zhao Li screamed from the top of her voice, letting all of her frustration out. A relief washed over; one she hadn’t felt in a long time. The frustration brewing within her was taking route, etching at her mind, her sanity.

  The way she was being treated was disgusting, and she herself, knew it, knew it like the back of her hand. she wept.

  When they first arriving within the Snow Rabbit Village. The villagers treated her kindly, they smiled, nodded, but whenever she spoke to them, they were cold…distant, a glaring contrast to the first day when she arrived.

  That coldness grew from slightly ignoring her to blatantly ignoring her existence. The smiles that were once there, dissipated into the wind like ash on a summer’s breeze. It was as if, they tolerated her and she was nothing more but a reaver amongst the living.

  She dropped to the ground and began inhaling and exhaling, calming herself. She didn’t know why, but the scream always relieved her, made her feel alive. She loved it, but still hated that she needed it because at the end of the day, she was still alone.

  she rasped wiping a tear away,

  The forest took Zhao Li into its embrace. However today, this evening, it felt different. The air was heavier whilst the shadows were deeper. The rustling of leaves carried a faint urgency, as if the trees themselves were whispering warnings.

  Zhao Li pushed herself up and ran without direction. Her feet carrying her further than she had ever ventured before. The familiar paths she treaded countless times faded behind her, replaced by the undergrowth of towering trees which branches intertwined like ancient guardians.

  The moonlight filtered through the canopy in scattered beams, casting an eerie silver glow on the forest floor.

  Zhao Li began to slow from fatigue, her heavy breaths coming in ragged bursts. Her chest heaving as she slowed into a walk. The anger that had propelled her forward began to ebb, replaced by a hollow ache. She wiped her face with the back of her hand, smearing tears across her cheeks.

  As the trees grew closer together with their twisted above the ground like serpents’ frozen mid-strike. The air was thick with the scent of damp earth with a slight twang of decaying wood.

  The occasional hoot of an owl or rustle of a small creature in the underbrush reminded her that she was not alone, even if it felt that way.

  The forest shifted around her, the path she took, dissipating behind her only to be replaced by a labyrinth of trees and shadows. She stopped her heart quickening after realising she was lost.

  she thought. Susu warned her about venturing too far. But worst of all, wolves, bears, and any animal that could carry you with its paw.

  A faint, whimpering sound caressed the air, barely audible over rustling leaves. It was soft, almost melodic, like the cry of a child. Zhao Li froze, her ears straining to pinpoint the source. She made a right turn, then whimper blossomed to the wind to her left. She turned, following the sound and a plaintive whimper followed.

  The ground beneath her feet was uneven, littered with rocks and roots threatened to trip her. But Zhao Li moved ignored it by re-balancing herself. The whimpers then grew louder, more distinct. They weren’t human, but they carried a vulnerability that resonated with her.

  She pushed through a thicket of brambles, ignoring the scratches on her arms, and emerged into a small clearing. In the centre, beneath the gnarled roots of an ancient tree, lay a small, shivering bundle of fur.

  It was a wolf pup, no larger than a loaf of bread. Its fur was a deep, inky black, save for a single streak of silver running down its back. Its eyes, wide and luminous, locked onto hers. The pup whimpered again, and Zhao Li approached slowly. She crouched a few feet away, studying the creature. It was alone, just like her. There was no sign of its mother or siblings, no indication of how it had come to be here. But it was clear that the pup was in need of help.

  “Hey there,” Zhao Li whispered, trying to imitate Susu’s soothing voice. “Where’s your family?”

  The pup tilted its head, its ears twitching at the sound of her voice. It made no move to flee, but its trembling intensified. Zhao Li hesitated, then reached out a hand. The pup sniffed the air, its nose twitching, before inching closer. Its tiny paws stumbled over the uneven ground.

  “It’s okay,” she murmured. “I won’t hurt you.”

  The pup closed the distance between them, its cold nose brushing against her fingers. Zhao Li’s breath hitched as it nuzzled into her palm, its fur soft and warm against her skin. She carefully scooped it up, cradling it against her chest. The pup’s trembling subsided, replaced by a contented sigh as it nestled into her arms.

  For the first time in years, Zhao Li felt a flicker of warmth—a sense of belonging. The pup’s presence was a balm to her frayed emotions, a reminder that she was not alone in this vast, indifferent world. She stroked its fur gently, her fingers tracing the silver streak along its back.

  Zhao Li hesitated, her hand hovering above the shivering pup. “What if its mother returns?” she whispered. The forest seemed to hold its breath, the silence pressing around her. She glanced over her shoulder, half-expecting to see the cub’s mother watching from the shadows. But there was nothing—only the stillness of the night. As the wolf pup’s luminous eyes met hers, something roiled in within Zhao Li. She didn’t know what it was, nor did she care. But all she knew was. She had an urge of protectiveness for the wolf cup.

  She couldn’t leave it behind.

  Nor will she.

  She scooped the pup into her arms, it trembled against her chest making her think she was being rough. She loosened her hug and realised that its fur was softer than she expected. The pup nuzzled into her, its cold nose brushing her skin, and Zhao Li felt a warmth spread through her, a flicker of connection she hadn’t known she was missing.

  “You’re coming with me,” she said, “I’ll take care of you.”

  The pup made no protest, its tiny body relaxing in her hold. Zhao Li stood, cradling the pup against her chest, and began the journey back to the village. The forest seemed less foreboding now, the shadows less menacing. The moonlight guided her steps, casting a silvery path through the trees.

  As she walked, she thought of Susu. The anger she had felt earlier had dulled, replaced by a quiet resolve. She didn’t know what the future held, but she knew one thing for certain. She had found a friend.

  And for now, that was enough.