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xiaomei sat silently on the archery range of the palace. jaemin had left with the king, for a reason unknown to xiaomei.
she sat on the dirt ground, not giving a single thought about how dirty her pants would become. with a bow and arrow right beside her, she stared at the target that stood meters away from her.
"mama! what's that?" the young girl asked her mother.
her mother stood in front of her, tall and slim. in her hands was a bow and around her wait was a bag of arrows.
"these, my dear mei, is a bow and arrows. they're used to aim at targets from a further distance." her mother pat her head lightly. four year old xiaomei stared at the bow in her mother's hand.
"mama, teach me please!" xiaomei's mother, meihui, chuckled at the girls request. "i'll teach you when you're older, but for now, you're too young."
xiaomei stared at the target, lost in the memories of her childhood. she let out a bitter chuckle at the somewhat sweet memory.
"you still never taught me, mama.." xiaomei stood from the ground, gripping onto the bow. she pulled an arrow out of the pouch that hung around her waist.
she stared straight ahead at the bullseye - a good 15 to 25 meters away, possibly more. one arm raised, another arm pulled back and an eye closed tight. a deep inhale and a light exhale, she focused on steadying her breath.
without any movement, she continued to stare at the round target. then, in her mind, the target formed into the shape of a face - her mother's face. xiaomei's breath hitched at the image created in her head.
"m-mama..?"
xiaomei's small voice echoed throughout her head. the image of her mother lying still on the ground. the image of a pool of blood from her mother's stomach.
"don't close your eyes mama.."
xiaomei closed her eyes shut, trying to block out the image - but it only became more vivid. she shot her eyes wide open.
"mama wake up! wake up mama!"
xiaomei pulled her finger back, aiming for the bullseye.
"mama!"
letting her finger go, the arrow flew through the air - hitting anywhere but the bullseye. xiaomei's hands harshly grabbed another arrow, placing it in position on the bow.
"mama you have to wake up!!"
xiaomei narrowed her eyes at the target. "shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up!" xiaomei yelled to herself.
"mama where are you?"
pulling her arm back, she released the arrow. just like before, she missed the target. xiaomei dropped her arms to either side of her body, dropping the bow onto the ground. she stared at the that circular targets that now had her mother's face painted onto them.
