KEEPING ME A SECRET

Bell had been coming to stay at Haku as a guest student. He pretty much invited himself and declared Haku would teach him. Haku did not feel their healing styles matched, "Many young healers seem to think a powerful healer would make the best teacher, but usually, the better teacher would be the one who has a similar healing ability."

But one did not turn away the Tyger King, so Haku humbly accepted him as a guest student. He had only taught Bell some general basics taught to all healer wolves to correct Bell's foundation and lent Bell some books.

"His majesty is very powerful, so he had been bypassing standard foundational steps purely by sheer power." Haku said, "But it would increase the efficiency of his cast if he learned them."

I would think Bell was efficiently terrifying as it was though. But the Tyger King quietly studying healing foundations sounded safer for the world than one rampaging around.

Haku planned to introduce Bell to another healer teacher once he was clearer about the nature of Bell's healing abilities. Bell's healing was rather compounded in style and abilities, so identifying his healing branch wasn't straightforward.

Haku even had a whole theory for why Bell's healing style was so "compounded". Perhaps because there were very few healer wolves in the plains, and Bell did not have the privilege of a Master to show him the way to cultivate his unique abilities.

Perhaps Bell's healing type was too generic. He seemed well-rounded when Haku went through the basics with him. Maybe it wasn't that Bell's healing power was too specialized to find a master, but all healers in the plains did not have the luxury of a Master Teacher's guidance and had to resort to self-study from various healing books and healers from different healing branches and paths.

I nodded. Haku's theory was entirely plausible. It's not like I had given all that much thought to the life of a healing wolf before this.

My basic understanding was that healing wolves were white. This made them a bright and valuable target to hunters in the plains. If they were not hunted for their fur or healing abilities, their pack often relied heavily on them. They were like rare treasures and they didn't have the same freedom as normal wolves because of that.

Mum said it was lucky her family's healing abilities were considered weak and too specialized to be of any "real use", so they were left largely alone and did not get absorbed (read forced) into any of the packs living around them.

The Lorent's Medical University was the only college that had a specialized course for healers. It was combined with their medical course. So most of our doctors, nurses, medical lab technicians, pharmacists, healers, and alchemists graduated here. It didn't have anything for healing "feelings" though.

Mrs Beta said Mum's healing abilities were more emotional than physical. But I liked Mum's power. It was very calming, and she can help almost everyone feel better. The only limit was that she had to help carry the feelings of the person she touched.

Like I said, healer wolves never had the same freedom as normal wolves. They were born shackled to their abilities. Abilities that often cost them something but they were bound by allegiance to pay for the sake of their packs or alphas. It was more of a curse. Some of the most melodramatic Lycan quotes were by or about healer wolves.

"White wolves hide the darkest hearts."

"To be able to heal, first you must learn to kill."

"There is a shadow behind every light."

"The price of one life is often the death of another."

"Even the moon has a dark side."

I think you get the idea. I was quite into these emo things when I was in middle school. When other girls were apparently reading pink manga, I was reading Lycan tales where the hero sets out to find love/acceptance/power/redemption/truth but ends up finding himself at the end of the story.

And every time the hero finds himself, I would find a piece of me too. The me who wanted adventure. The me who wanted to change the world. The me who wanted to protect everyone.

"I don't know if it's a good thing for you to read so many of these books." Mum had worried.

"Why? But it teaches me about my roots." I said.

"Most Lycan tales are half-truths." Mum tried to explain, "You can't take everything you read literally."

I shrugged, "Mum, I know that. I'm not a pup anymore."

(Although, looking back, I definitely was still a puppy. And I was lying. I really did believe that somewhere out there, there was an amazing world hidden in the clouds. And I secretly wished it would come to me.)

Mrs Beta felt she had to add, "Reality is often woven into the fabric of fantasy so the truth will stand out more."

"I know better to believe in castles in the skies or Tygers." I said in my sensible voice.

"One does not need to know to believe." Dad had zenned, but I didn't understand him at all back then. I didn't know about his dream to retire in the Colored Mountains.

"Alright." Mum didn't look convinced, and then she sighed, "Oh, Sam. It's not that I don't want you to dream, I guess I just don't want you to feel disappointed about real life."

I guess the real world didn't have an Alpha Blades who could whip into action and defeat all the rogues. The real world didn't have healers who could resurrect the hero and give him a second chance. The real world didn't have all the magical twists and turns. The real world didn't promise happily ever afters.

In the real world, you had to go to school. Adults had bills to pay. We all had chores to do, and all kinds of annoying real-life stuff on a daily basis, like morning breath and dirt that got stuck between your nails. And you did practical things like keep your money in the bank, and not under your floorboards in shiny gold coins and jewels. You can't pay in gold coins at McDonald's.

"We can learn a lot from these stories, but I want you to always see the good in the reality we live in now." Mum told me, "Remember how blessed you are here."

In other words, "Please don't try to run away to the Colored Mountains."

I think Mum always had a fear that I would one day disappear into the woods and never come back... More from the rogues or warlock traps, but the only way to the Colored Mountains was through the Warlock Lands.

"If the mountains are so big, why can't we see them from here?" I would ask.

Beta Lucas would say, "Just because you don't see them, doesn't mean they aren't there, Sam."

"But just because they're there, doesn't mean you should go, Sam." Mum would worry immediately, and suddenly ALL the adults, even Beta Lucas would be warning/lecturing me about the dangers of the Colored Mountains, the warlock lands before that, and who knew what else. In fact, I shouldn't even go into the woods on my own. Or even my backyard.

And just to make sure I wouldn't disregard their warnings, Beta Lucas would tell me his own lycan tale. Someone had gotten stolen from her own backyard once. It happened in Morning Light. The warrior tried to stop the rogues but was hurt in the fight. He couldn't run ever again and his heart was so broken he couldn't smile either. Come to think of it, wasn't that Mr Greene and River's Mum?

Anyway, the adults didn't have to worry. I had already read enough of these Lycan stories to understand.

"I know." I would tell them, "I was born in the plains for a reason, and I belong here with all of you."

I mean all the heroes would eventually learn they were exactly where they were for a reason, and those they belonged with were those they had been running all along, or something to that effect. Maybe that's because I loved the stories with such heroes best. My favorite heroes had always been the ones with the strongest punch and sharpest wit.

This was seldom the healer. Healers were the self-sacrificial, usually serious, side characters who possibly suffered unrequited love and died in place of the hero. They were tragic characters even in storybooks... the exceptions being Shiro, the first wolf (who gained the human form) and Haruno... wait... the naked guy behind the tree was THAT HARUNO? Oh man! I want to meet Haruno. Wait no... Suddenly I remembered how Shiro, the first wolf turned out to be a metrosexual guy in a skinny tie and slim-fit suit.

Was that what Mum meant by being disappointed by reality? I wanted to meet Haruno from the lycan tales, not the naked guy behind the tree - which was just a painting I know. I should not judge a wolf by the painting he appeared in. Maybe it was better that I never met Haruno. Already, most of my favorite lycan tale heroes had fallen from grace at our first meeting.

Shiro, the First Wolf. Hajime, the Master Alchemist. Ignatius the Lighting God. Let's not forget the Great Teacher, who was so great, he was never referred to by name.

But now you and I know him as River's overprotective dad.

Maybe it would be best that I never meet Haruno, the Healing Palm.

Legend has it that Haruno was a hero who was angered by how the rich and powerful wolves had healers at their disposal, while

Wait... The palm tree and glowing water upstairs. That wasn't water! It was elixer! Omo. Who bottled elixer in plastic drinking bottles?

"The life of a healer is not much different from that of the goddess'angel." Haku told me with a tight smile, "We live for the goddess' will and we die for the goddess' will."

Speak for yourself! I wasn't going to die.

"Then until the goddess wills it, wouldn't I be immortal?"

I don't know why I said that. (Can we just blame Boo?) Maybe I was just a teensy bit annoyed that everyone seemed to be counting down to my early grave. Maybe Wolfgang's style of saying something that wasn't inferior was rubbing off on me. Maybe it was the magic in the air. Maybe it was just Boo. Yeah, let's just blame it on Boo.

When no one looked like they knew how to respond to that, I quickly laughed it off, "I'm just kidding. Please, go on."

So Haku continued about how Bell had been surprisingly undemanding. He had not complained about the modest room they allocated to him. In fact, he had done everything expected of a disciple. He took residence in the disciple's wing, he brought a greeting gift to Haku - it was quite a valuable book too - a Lycan hand-painted original of the herbs and plants in the plains. Haku sounded genuinely excited about this gift, so I didn't tell him he could probably find loads of information about local wildlife diversity on the internet. Did they have internet in the Colored Mountains?

Normally, a disciple would also be given chores around the teacher's home, but Haku said he could not bring it on himself to assign menial work to His Majesty. Disciples usually did not eat at the Master's family table either, they had a separate communal kitchen and dining room. But because Haku's disciples were all outbound across the various Colored Mountains right now, he had invited his majesty to partake in his meals at the family table.

However, Bell had not once joined them for meals. He spent almost all his time locked up in his room. Haku frowned, "Or so we had assumed. It could be he uses his portal from his room too."

Yeah. That sounded more plausible.

It was a good thing too. Haku had not expected His Highness, Prince Jin's visit this morning. It seemed that Prince Jin was passing through Orange Mountain and decided to stay for a few days. Haku was worried. So far, the Tygers had been keeping the blue rose and the new tyger king underwraps from the Higher Princes.

Yes, because Colored Mountain politics had to be complicated like that.

But simply put, the Higher Princes had once been kings, but were now retired. Like Haruno. And apparently Jin too.

Anyway, it would be best if none of the Higher Princes find out. Especially not Jin. Haku, and indeed all the tygers were of the opinion that Jin would definitely try to take the Blue Rose into his home, even if he had to kidnap her. Jin was power-hungry and ambitious. It was very unlikely that he would let the chance to control the mountains again escape his hand.

"He might suspect something has happened." Haku admitted, "His Highness had been quite exacting in his demands for the renovation of his lair. Most of us had to pull many strings to set it all up for him."

"No one set up my lair for me when I was king." Gareth said.

"This king is far more fearsome than you ever were, my friend." Haku smiled, "We are all suffering. And although every effort was made to keep up with appearances, I'm sure we have already raised a number of brows among the court."

"It's mostly because we're working together." Gareth pointed out, "Before his majesty, we had always been doing our own thing."

"It's nothing to do with his majesty." Haku insisted, "We were simply distributing the work as efficiently as possible."

And that required teamwork. Who'd have thunk?

"But also necessity has forced our cooperation, it really is the Blue Alpha who brought us together." Haku said then, "Thanks to that, we were able to satisfy his majesty's demands."

You know, if it were such a chore, why not just stop having a Tyger King? Then you'd all be able to go on in your own merry ways.

But since His Highness was Bell, I didn't suggest it.

I'm sure these old cunning tygers were well able to take care of themselves.

"It looks like everyone wants to take good care of the Blue Rose." Haku smiled ruefully.

Eh, what? Wait, what had any of this got to do with me?