Soul bonds

The blooms of the 'Gift of the Blue Mountains'

The wind chimes sang as the chilly autumn winds teased them. The sweet clinking and the gurgling of the waters filled the air.

The Lan brother's wondered why they had not visited their mother's garden before – it was so serene and peaceful.

"I still remember the time when we all used to stay here... Everything changed when she moved in with us! She brought sunshine into our lives..." QingHeng Jun sighed. "Remember how she use to crawl into our bed?"

Happy memories of a little girl's childhood flooded their minds. She was a rogue, a vagabond; no one could ground her or do anything about it. When she had finally accepted to stay at the Cloud Recesses, it was not possible to tie her down to her room. She often sneaked her way into the room of Mother Lan when the Sect leader was away or the Lan brothers who were still staying in their parents' house or some other places which they knew nothing about.

The first time she appeared, the two brothers were shocked. Yet, none of them had to heart to push her away. She had just crawled in between them and clung to their arms and slept.

The next morning, QingHeng Jun went to Mother Lan to tell her that the little rogue had sneaked into their room. She had gently explained to them that the little girl was special and that they should by all means protect and cherish her.

As they got used to her presence, the sleepovers were more fun and they were more open with their affections to the little one.

Lan QiRen chuckled.

"It was not always fun for me, Ge. There are so many times that I wanted to choke her to death with a pillow. She used to cuddle up with you but her feet would be on my face... Do you know how many times she had kicked me in the face and out of bed?"

QingHeng Jun's laughter filled the place.

"How can I forget? And you would pinch her so hard that she would start to cry and then mother would come and take her away..."

"You were not the one getting kicked in the face while sleeping Ge! And she would never wear her socks. I even had her smelly feet in my mouth one day!"

That was the one time that Lan QiRen pushed her away. She had slept on the floor outside the room and she had stopped coming to sleep over at the Lan boys place. After a few weeks, they missed their cuddle ball, as they fondly called her.

However, Lan QiRen did not want to take the risk of being kicked in the face or having smelly feet on his mouth. So he tried to find a way to resolve the matter. He had a brilliant idea after visiting the Cloud Recesses nursery.

After a long apology and lots of pampering, CangSe SanRen agreed that she would come. They were curious about her other 'sleep over' places but she never said anything about it.

When she came over, Lan QiRen asked her to sit on the bed. He already had a warm water bucket and a towel. First thing he did was to get her to soak her feet. She would run around everywhere without her socks and shoes and the feet were in a pitiable state. After wiping it clean, he asked her to lay on a light wrap folded in a triangle. Then, he wrapped her, like babies are wrapped in the nursery, leaving only her head out.

Lan QiRen expected her to struggle; instead, she thought it was a new game and happily played along.

Smugly, she exclaimed, "I am a roll now!"

"Yes little one, you are a cuddle roll now!"

Lan QiRen had smiled like a proud father and had cuddled her warmly.