Taming a fox

The fox's bloodied hands

The sun rose high in the sky and it's light shone inside the room through the window, illuminating a small figure sitting, completely unmoving, on the bed. Luo An didn't close his eyes ever since he was left in the room after the emperor left. The food he was brought by a servant has already gone cold and sat on the table all alone. 
     Door creaked open and the emperor stepped inside. He stood there shocked for a moment before walking over to the bed and sitting next to the boy. "Did you sleep?" he asked but didn't receive an answer, letting out a sigh from frustration. There was nothing he could do with this boy now, was there? He looked towards the food and called in a servant to take it away and bring a new meal. This time he was determined to make Luo An eat even if it meant he'd have to feed him himself. 
     The servant soon came back with a bowl of soup and handed it to the emperor who first tried to offer it to Luo An but after he didn't take it, he took the spoon and tried to feed him. Even so, Luo An didn't move a muscle and refused to eat. To his misfortune, the emperor wasn't going to give up. Before he had a chance to dodge, Luo An found himself in the emperor's grasp. His eyes went wide as a hand squished his cheeks and forced his mouth open, a spoon making it's way inside before his mouth was forced back shut. There was nothing he could do other than swallowing the soup which pleased the emperor. The hand left his face, leaving him stunned as he coughed from the unexpected intrusion. 
     "Just because I didn't have you executed and let you stay here doesn't mean you can act this stubborn," the emperor said coolly. "The only reason you're still breathing is because I long wanted a young male concubine with such beauty like yours." he paused to look Luo An over properly. "Since you decided to be so disobedient, you should get punished." 
     

Luo An laid on the bed, covered in marks and bruises as he watched the emperor leave. His limbs felt weak and it seemed that it was impossible for him to move them at all. 
     What just happened?
It took nearly an hour before he finally sat up, staring at his legs that were now red and blue all over. His eyes shifted to the side and landed on his robes that laid on the floor, far from the bed. He slowly sat up, shifting to the edge of the bed but when he tried to stand up, he fell over.
     Many things that happened after that were a blur as he kept drifting away from consciousness The only thing Luo An registered was that he was back on the bed and fully dressed. Someone must've helped him, but who was it? 
     "Poor little boy, you're covered in such dark bruises."
Luo An looked around, confused. The person was still there with him. His eyes finally landed on the person and after a while, he realized it was a female servant, the same one that helped bathe and clothe him the day before. 
     He immediately jolted up but was gently pushed back. "You need to rest, your entire body is shaking." 
     Shaking? Why am I shaking?
The answer never came. Not a single word could leave his mouth as he laid there, allowing the servant to take care of him. Nobody has ever treated him this way.
     So gently...
     So kindly...
It felt strange but not in a bad way. Not at all. It was rather calming. 
     Thank you...

The bruises may have been dark but every physical injury heals eventually. Within a week, the marks were all gone and Luo An's skin looked just as new, excluding the scars he already had for a long time. After tasting the emperor's anger, he didn't dare do anything that would anger him. He followed him around like a dog and obeyed his every order just like one as well. 
     While the emperor was satisfied with this, the one that disliked it was the empress. She hated the fact that her husband paid so much attention to this young boy and grew jealous and resentful. Every time she saw the emperor pay more attention to him, her blood was boiling with rage. The normally quiet child with a face that showed not a single emotion, soon became lively which made the empress suspicious. No matter how much she watched him, he looked off. The huge smile never reached to his eyes. Just what was wrong with him?
     Along with that, another thing that threw her off was that Luo An often reacted to things only after the emperor nudged him. When that happened, he went from a blank stare to a smile that went from ear to ear in a matter of seconds. How could someone switch up so much? There was definitely something wrong with him! 
     Once the sun got replaced by the moon on the night sky, the empress sneaked to the young concubine's room. When she entered, she was met with the sight of Luo An sitting on the bed, staring at the wall in front of him.
     This kid is insane...
Luo An didn't notice the person entering so he paid her no mind as she walked over to him. Only then did he look towards her. Since there wasn't the emperor who always nudged him, it took a little longer for him to put the smile on his face. He rose and bowed to the empress. "Is there something you need, your majesty?" he asked softly. 
     The empress was stunned. She glared at him with disgust before pushing him to the ground. 
     "What's wrong with you?! Why are you acting this way?! Just what kind of a freak are you?!"

Luo An blankly stared at Qin Yaozu who was pinning him down to the ground. Before he fully realized it, he actually lost. "Are you gonna accept your defeat or run off like a coward?" Qin Yaozu asked as he pulled out the blade from Luo An's shoulder who stared at him with wide open eyes, wordlessly. "Will you not answer me at least? You can go on your own or I'll tie you up." 
     No answer.
     "Do I have to carry you? Aiya..."
     "I lost?" 
Qin Yaozu raised an eyebrow as he stared at the fox that still laid on the ground. "Did you not accept it yet? You're not trying to fight so I assumed you did." Luo An couldn't believe it at all. Did he really lose? He never lost before! How was this possible? There's no way it's real! Luo An stood up, his head ringing and thoughts screaming. 
     You lost! You lost! You lost!
His mind was a total mess as his stumbled towards Qin Yaozu and without thinking, grabbed his sword, stabbing himself in the arm.
     This isn't real! It's all fake! Nothing but a nightmare! 
He repeated the action multiple times before Qin Yaozu stepped in, grabbing the sword. "Have you gone mad?! What the fuck are you doing?!" he yelled at him, desperately. Luo An didn't even spare him a glance before he collapsed the blood from his arm flowing like a waterfall. Before he hit the ground, Qin Yaozu quickly scooped him up and jumped onto his sword, flying high to the sky in an instant, clutching the fox tightly. "Look at me! Don't you dare close your eyes!" 
     Luo An's eyes kept closing but he weakly opened them every time he heard Qin Yaozu's voice. There was just something about it that kept making him want to cling to staying conscious. His bloodied hand shook as he reached to wipe Qin Yaozu's cheek that was soaked with tears that he slid from his eyes before he could realize it, but before he could do so, his arm went limp and his eyes fell shut, unable to open. Qin Yaozu called out to him loudly, trying to make him wake up again. 
     "Luo An! Open your eyes! Damnit!"
Luo An heard it all. He desperately wanted to open his eyes again but his eyelids felt like they got heavier. No matter how much he tried, they just wouldn't open! He kept trying, refusing to give up and eventually managed to force them open, yet when he did, there was no Qin Yaozu before him. Did he actually die? Was it over? 
     "You're awake?"
He quickly snapped back to reality and sat up, looking towards the sound of the voice. Next to the bed sat a young girl, dressed in the same robes as Qin Yaozu. Upon confirming that Luo An was indeed awake, she turn towards the door and called out towards it; "Shige! He's awake!"
     Shige?
Before he had a chance to question it, Luo An saw Qin Yaozu rushing in the room. When he saw him, his panicked expression disappeared as he let out a sigh. The girl laughed at his reaction. "Don't worry! Your husband is fine," she teased. Before she could continue, Qin Yaozu chased her out with a red face, yelling at her angrily. He then turned back at Luo An and walked over to him. "You're crazy, you know that, right?" he asked as he pressed a hand against his temple. "Yeah, I know," Luo An agreed. "Who was that girl? She was dressed just like you!" Qin Yaozu moved his hand from his face to his hip, raising an eyebrow. "She's my shimei, we're at the Shengkai sect." Luo An's eyes widened as he almost spit out his own heart. "The WHAT?! Why did you bring me here?!" Qin Yaozu scoffed. "Well first of all, I won our duel so I had the right to take you here for a punishment," he said, crossing his arms. "Second of all, I didn't bring you here only to punish you, but also because you collapsed from bloodloss." 
     Before Luo An could spit back some arguments, Qin Yaozu's shimei came back. "Can you two stop arguing, kiss and make up already?" It took just this simple sentence to make Qin Yaozu turn his displeasure from the fox towards her. The girl immediately sensed the danger and ran out, only to be followed by her enraged martial brother.
     "Thank you my savior!" Luo An laughed as he laid back down, pleased with himself.