Not all smiling faces are breathing.
Yun doesn't know why they do not breathe or why they don't have beating hearts, but they are everywhere.
I usually walk past them in the palace.
Some are crying, some are wet with water, some don't even have heads to smile at me. They were all people, but they don't breathe, nor do they have beating hearts.
I smiled at the woman whose eyes were crying red tears. She was clinging to a young man, crying over a sleeping person with a cloth on her face.
She doesn't seem to be breathing. Must be because they've put a cloth on her nose.
"N-No! No... Karylle why? Why... you were hik your were still fine last heuk last time!" The man was crying as he hugged the sleeping person, not even careful of waking her up.
I pursed my lips and covered my ears, then shook my head. He had been crying for a while now; in fact, he also woke up Yun because of his shouts.
I looked back at the woman hugging him on his neck that he kept ignoring while he cried for the other. She was not smiling at me, and was simply crying, red tears were flowing down her cheeks.
Her piss is red too. They are flowing from her legs down to the floor continuously.
Why piss on the floor? I tried to cover my eyes with both my hands, but Father firmly held my left hand, only allowing me to cover one eye.
I immediately tried to cover both with just my right hand before I heard a loud sigh beside me.
"Oh, dear... I hope you wouldn't mind. He just lost his wife." The old man who was checking Yun's wrist spoke.
I still kept my hand on my eyes as I shut them tightly. Yun can't look at the girl who was peeing.
I felt Father let go of my arm as the old man let go of my wrist. Then, Father's calloused hands went down on my legs, and he spoke.
"We understand. How is he? Are his legs alright?"
Another calloused hand who are much colder touched my legs, making me flinch as I tried to peek if the woman was done peeing; however, she still hadn't finished.
Is she not shy? Yun is shy for her. I closed my hands tighter and looked away as I took a glance at the old man who had been healing my legs.
Father brought me here last night. After I cried over my legs, I cried over the white soft balls from the sky as well, because Father quickly had me return to the carriage and travel again.
After a long while, we reached a village and found an old man who owns a clinic. The soldiers and the people of the village were saying that he is a physician, like those old people in the palace who like taking care of Yun.
Same as those who always call Yun a miracle.
Father woke him up in the middle of the night, making me stop crying. The man opened his door to us and then kindly let us in, and had Yun show my legs.
He even gave us food. Although it was only Yun who ate, it was bitter.
"Ahh.. I already told you again and again. His legs will be just fine. After a few days, the bleeding will stop, and the wound will get better... however you mustn't let him walk for now. At least a month or so. As to not risk having permanent damage to his body." The old man waved his hands and even smacked father's shoulder, making me look at him.
Father's breathing, which had been changing every minute, had started to slow down normally, then he breathed out lots of air.
"Alright, alright...as long as he's fine. Thank you." Father murmured and then caressed my legs, making me look at him.
Father's eyes were so dark, and it looks like they'll be buried under his skin. His eyes must be shy, for them to almost hide themselves. Not only his eyes, but his cheeks look so sad and pale, with his hair uncombed.
I gave him a small smile. Then, I raised my hands to try to comb his hair before I leaned in and kissed his forehead.
Pat.Pat.Pat.
Yun patted Father and rubbed my face on his. His heart beating faster as he hugged me back, the crying man in front was still wailing loudly with the indecent girl still peeing red.
I tightened my hug on Father's face. Don't look. Don't look.
"Karylle! Karylle! What am I going to do..."
I opened one eye and looked at the man who was still crying and simply puckered my lips. He is being hugged by a peeing woman, and yet he's still busy crying over a sleeping person.
I shook my head. It's fine, Yun peed on the bed once too. It's just that... she peed on the floor.
Footsteps echoed from outside, and soon two young men carrying a big piece of flat wood entered. They were both wearing white and stopped by the crying man.
I gently climb on Father's body to look more, but he immediately made me sit down.
"Your legs... do not be reckless." Father's weak voice echoed, but I simply leaned on my side to try and take a peek.
Father, watching me, also looked over before sighing. His big hands quickly covered my eyes as he pushed me really, really weakly on the bed.
I heard him stand up and pull the blanket that the old man gave to Yun last night, and then cover my body with it.
"Stop looking over there. You're being rude." Father whispered, his cold hands still in my eyes as I listened carefully.
The two men lifted something, the sound of the bed moving as if the weight was lifted echoed, followed by louder cries of the man.
What did they take? I tried to open my eyes again as soon as I felt Father's hands getting less heavy, but he immediately pushed me down.
"Pardon me, but is there any other room? I don't think it is healthy for the child to witness... such unfortunate events." Father's voice echoed as I touched his hand and tried to pull it away.
"This is the only room for patients... You know how small the clinic is. In fact, this village is not that big to begin with, since we're on the outskirts of Tzuwe."
Many footsteps echoed away; two pairs of feet were heavier than the last pair; however, the breathing and the heartbeat of the last one were way heavier than the other two.
I grabbed Father's fingers and pulled them one by one, but they also snapped back on my face one at a time as soon as I tried to grab another.
Remembering how I managed to make Father listen last night... I immediately opened my mouth and bit his fingers.
" Ow—" Father's hands left Yun's face, making me quickly sit up and try to look at the crying man.
But no one was there, only the old man and Father, who was looking at me.
" Ahaha, children... At his age, they do like to bite, haha." The old man muttered before his eyes made a screeching sound, taking a glance at Father's bandaged nose.
His hand landed on my head, messing up Yun's hair, which made me immediately slap his hands away.
Don't touch Yun's hair.
The old man paused for a while before laughing again, "How ferocious~ What a fierce child, huh? This old man just healed your legs, and you're already being rude."
Father's heart paused on beating before he trembingly pulled the old man's hand away, whispering, "Do not touch him recklessly."
I ignored both of them and started looking around. Where are they? They left? But Yun only heard three pairs of footsteps... so one must've stayed—
Plop. Plop. Plop.
Red liquid fell on the bed, one by one. It dropped on Yun's fingers, and then felt them dripping on my head. I stayed silent for a while as Father took his trembling hands and caressed them himself, his breathing heavy as he licked his lips.
His sweat was making the same sounds of plop plop plop like the red liquid from above.
"He... Uh, just do not touch him-- he might... bite." Father's big gulp echoed as another laugh from the old man followed.
"Oh, do not worry. I treat children all the time, and yours is the most well-behaved! However..."
"You..."
"You... You...."
Drop by drop. The red liquid fell on my eyes and on my lips, but Father and the old man kept on talking as if they did not care.
" You... You..."
"He hasn't talked since last night...pardon me for asking, but is he—" The old man's voice still echoed as I slowly looked up.
The crying woman was there on the ceiling, her face so close to Yun. Her tears fell straight to me.
The air was cold around us, and her mouth kept on muttering yu yu yu.
Yun. It's Yun. Not Yu.
Her nose touched Yun's forehead, " You... You.... You...."
"H-He's not mute— Actually... actually, he had an accident before and suddenly lost his voice. If you might know?"
The voices were loud, overlapping with each other, but I simply pursed my lips tightly as they slowly quivered.
Tears fell from my eyes as the woman touched my forehead, and red liquid showered over me. Her body was bent from her waist, her pale face was almost kissing Yun as I tried to touch her.
Her hair fell on me, prickling my eyes with the red liquid.
Y-Yun's... Yun's being showered by pee.
....
"KALISTO! COME BACK HERE YOU FOOL!"
A man shouted, then threw a stone at a child who was running away carrying bread. The child immediately fell on the ground as the stone hit his head.
I kept quiet as I sat on the chair with two soldiers on both sides. I am in front of the clinic, watching how these people throw stones at one another.
It's been two days since Yun has been showered by the woman's pee.
I cried to Father so much, but he didn't even bathe Yun. I looked at my red-stained clothes and sighed. The pee had already dried down, but Father and the old man still refused to bathe Yun.
"His wounds are fresh; let's not bathe him for at least three days."
"As for his voice, sadly, I cannot cure it... But if you visit the Military Camp of Tzuwe. I heard that they have a healer there. Why don't you try? Looking at your clothes and carriages, I am pretty certain that you are nobles. They might listen to your request."
All they did was talk these days, not even caring about Yun.
I quickly pursed my lips as I felt like crying again, before I forced my eyes to look at the child who had fallen on the ground instead.
The soldiers beside me are moving their hands into tight fists. Even their healthy eyes are almost bulging out as they look at the child.
The child started crying as he hugged the bread and tried to run again, but the old man already caught him by the hair, making him scream.
I immediately covered my ears and then tugged the soldier on my right.
Yun wants to go back.
The soldier was not smart enough to understand Yun begging to be bitten, as he quickly took a step forward. His sword and armor clacked, making everyone in the village look at him.
"Must be a noble family, right? How extravagant! They even have soldiers as escorts..."
"Tsk, what even are they doing in our village? Look... they're even interfering with how we discipline unruly children!"
I tilted my head, listening to their whispers. Yun is noble... Yun is Prince, and yes, Yun's soldiers are nosy. I shook my head as I sighed, Yun can't be mad if they are telling the truth.
Children need discipline. Father told me every time.
I looked at my dumb soldier and tried to stop him from ruining the poor child's lessons, and then tried to move my legs.
Oh, right. Yun was disciplined too, so I can't walk yet. I sighed and then patted my legs as I stayed in my chair, unable to stop my nosy soldier.
So hard not having legs... Mother should stop having people's legs cut off.
I must tell Mother when I go back, I thought as I nodded to myself.
"Sir, pardon. My Young Master will pay for the bread; please let the child go this once." The soldier muttered gently, then looked at me while I was still nodding.
Both the old man and the child look at me, both eyes are bulging out, but one was smiling and one pouting. I tilted my head and then looked at the soldier on my right, making him smile and kneel to me.
"Yes, Your Highness?" He asked.
Let's return. Yun wants to sleep. I raised both my hands, asking him to carry me, which he followed. His hands were extra careful, more careful than Mother's, as he avoided putting too much weight on my legs.
I smiled at him and then patted his cheeks before I kissed him, making his heart stop a bit.
"Fine! But just so you know, that child had always stolen food from my stall! This is not the first time. Ptoo! If you people keep on pardoning him, how will he learn what's right and wrong!?"
I heard the old man shout before grabbing a bag from my soldier, who just sighed and pulled the child by the collar of his dirty clothes.
"Hear that? Don't steal again. Here, take these coins if you're short on money." The soldier gave the child a bag, too, making me blink.
I looked down at my empty hands and then raised them to the soldier carrying me. He looked at me with a frown, but I simply opened and closed my hands.
Where is Yun's bag? Why they have it but not Yun?
The soldier, smart enough not to be bitten, immediately chuckled and pulled out a small bag from his hip, then put it in my hands, making me smile widely.
" Here, Your Highness. These are coins... You can use it to buy things." He even explained, making me nod my head and rub his neck.
Buy... Buy? What's buy?
" Thank you, Sir! Thank you! I will not forget this!" The child started crying as he bowed and kneeled so many times to my soldier.
I simply stared at the heavy bag in my hand and then opened it with my small hands. Inside, many circular gold things are kept. I tilted my head and then scratched my cheeks.
These are shiny... flat stones?
I patted the soldier who was carrying me on the chest, wanting to ask if he wanted more of these flat stones because Yun had many of them.
Yun doesn't even like them, either. He then nodded and quickly walked to the child and the other soldier before speaking.
"This is our Young Master Yun... He wants to be your friend."
Yun didn't say that.
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