The Twenty Virtues Book 1- The Twenty Generals

25- The Warrior

"Do you know a film genre that I absolutely love? Period dramas. There are so many excellent ones— the clothes, the political wars, the romance, the art, the elegance, the manners, and all the drama. It's like pure poetry in motion; you cry, you get frustrated, and you mix emotions in a way never seen before. High society was like a celestial palace, above the clouds where beautiful angels walked back and forth. So much purity, so much decorum. There are no words to describe that heavenly view of the people.

Wait, don't you agree with me? Poor you, you haven't had your eyes opened yet. I know, let me tell you about someone who would agree with me: Ygritte. This young lady would tell you if I am right. After all, she was born into a very noble family, a pure maiden in blood, body, soul, and mind.

She was an only child; unfortunately, her mother died in childbirth, leaving only her father, a man in his nearly sixty years of age. But she had friends, her cousins, who frequently came to spend the nights at her house. All were ladies of respect. But Ygritte, being the youngest of the trio, was the most dreamy of them all.

"My father is planning a marriage between me and Xavier. Can you imagine? Me? Marrying a duke," the girl said, sharing the news with her cousins.

"Urgh, having to marry for position is so bad, Ygritte," commented Louis, the second oldest and most rebellious. She had always made it clear that she had no intention of letting others dictate her life, something Ygritte admired but didn't feel with the same intensity. "Not to mention you're only 15; marriage shouldn't be such a big worry."

"It doesn't matter what you think, Louis," commented Jane, the oldest of the cousins at nearly twenty, being the most reserved and calm of them all, whose viewpoint was extremely conflicting with that of her younger sister. "We don't make the rules; the world we live in is like that, and fighting against the system won't change it, no matter how loudly you shout. You should just learn to live within it."

"Oh, here we go again," Ygritte said, putting a pillow over her face. There was always a debate between the two sisters. Jane would explain why it was more promising to follow what was expected of them, while Louis defended the idea of doing what she felt like. Ygritte admired and agreed with Louis, but her goals were more in line with Jane's; it was more honorable and well-regarded to be a maiden, as it would make it easier to find a prince, to have good provision, and to enjoy that little piece of paradise more.

"Jane, how can you say such things? The system will never change if we bow our heads," Ygritte said. Going against the current... people use this expression as if the fish swimming in the opposite direction are rebellious, but when you stop to think about it, that's not the case. The fish going against the current never collide with those going with it.

They live in harmony, each going in the direction their instincts say is best. There are predators at both ends, so it's not like there's a right answer. Each one lives the best life they can by following what they believe. Imagine two dogs, one domestic and the other wild; each thinks the other is foolish, one for having to fight for its life, and the other for being a slave to humans. But if both dogs like the environment they live in, does it really matter for the other dog to judge?

"Oh Louis, you'll live stressed like that."

"Exactly, I'll live." A few months passed, and Jane had received a marriage proposal and accepted it, while Louis refused to marry any of the men her parents chose. She found herself in a life of drinks, revolutions, and fun. From the outside, Ygritte saw the lives of the two, and both seemed happy. The older one lived among the heavens: pregnant, with a loving husband, lands, riches, and servants, peace and order. While the younger one lived on Earth: having fun, doing what she wanted, fighting and becoming independent. But both, whether following the current or confronting it, seemed happy. Ygritte's conclusion was: No matter which path I take, I will be happy.