I make my way home from spending the afternoon with Allison and her children, it was a nice feeling like I was part of a family, even if it was for a short while. I sigh as I weave through the mass of beggars and refugees lining the dirt road leading back to the home I share with the cryomancer, I look around for a moment or two, searching for the young mother who was here earlier. It doesn’t take me long to spot her, her child crying in her arms, I make my way over to the pair and crouch down, offering my hand, “come with me. I can give the two of you a place to stay for a few days and at the very least give you some good food.”
She looks up at me, her face streaked with fresh tears, “I-I couldn’t repay you, I have nothing,” she says softly, her voice breaking as she tries to comfort her child.
“It doesn’t matter, you and your child need more than the streets provide, and while I can’t help you long term I can at least do something while my master is away,” I smile at her, pulling her to her feet, mindful of the child. The girl starts crying, whispering her thanks over and over as I lead them back to my modest dwelling, it’s not the fabulous manor house I had just come from visiting, but my little one-bedroom, stone house seemed like a palace to me after spending my youth in a cage. “Here, sit. I’ll fix you something,” I point to the small table and chairs just off the kitchen.
“I don’t know how to thank you,” she rocks her now slumbering child, “her father was killed in a raid on Earthrealm before Shang Tsung started sending his elite warriors to do the job.” She explains looking down at the child, the exhaustion evident in her face, “we were left with nothing, nowhere to stay, no money to feed her, absolutely nothing.”
I sigh as exhale to light the fire under the wok, I pour some oil into the large cast-iron wok and let it heat up as I grab some aromatics from the fridge and mince them finely before tossing them into the wok, “I know all about the raids, the master of this house is Sub-Zero, he’s currently away tracking down more of Earth’s champions. Every time he leaves I always fear he will befall the same fate,” I throw some meat and a good amount of mixed vegetables into the wok, stirring them with ease and precision.
I try and ignore the gasp from the girl, “S-Sub-Zero?” she asks, “I-I shouldn’t be here, what if he comes back?” She asks in a worried voice, hugging her small child closer.
“If he comes back early, I will deal with him. I’ve been by his side for 400 years, he will indulge my desire to help a mother and a child, I promise no harm will come to either of you,” I scoop a large serving of rice out of the rice cooker leftover from the morning. I add a simple mixture of broth and soy sauce to the quick stir fry before thickening it slightly with cornstarch before I scrap everything on top of the bowl of rice, not always the conventional way to serve a dish like this, Bi-Han would surely reprimand me, but it’s the ideal way to feed a starving girl who will no doubt shovel the food into her mouth. “Careful, it’s still hot. If you need more don’t hesitate to finish off the rice in the rice cooker,” I set the dish in front of her with a spoon and sit down at the table. “I’ll be happy to hold her while you eat,” I smile and hold my arms out.
The girl’s stomach growls loudly as she hesitantly hands her daughter over, “I-I’m sorry if she’s fussy, she’s not used to strangers.” She gives me an apologetic look, “thank you, for the meal,” she adds as she grabs the spoon and digs in, letting out a deeply satisfied groan as she takes her first bite. “I can’t remember the last time I had real food, let alone a proper meal, really I can’t thank you enough.”
I coo and rock the baby happily watching her mother eat, “really it’s no trouble, Sub-Zero and I have more than enough and look, woman to woman, I have a soft spot for children, so I really couldn’t leave the two of you out there with nothing.” I try not to give the girl too much information, and not ramble and tell her how much I wished to be a mother myself. “I’m guessing you don’t have any formula for her do you?” I ask rocking the child gently, humming softly.
She thickly swallows her bite, “n-no, I have nothing for her, for a while I was able to nurse her, but my body is becoming so malnourished I haven’t been able to produce enough milk for her.” She looks down at the bowl of food and ashamed before continuing to shovel the food into her mouth. “This is really good by the way, what are you? A professional cook or something?”
I laugh softly, “no, more like a professional housewife, without the ring,” I give her a small smile, “I am very fond of cooking though. Sub-Zero has a pretty healthy appetite, so I had to get good at cooking pretty quickly. We continue to chat and make small talk as the girl finishes her meal, I lay the child down in my bed while her mother goes to take a shower, when she’s finished I give her some of my clothes to wear. They’re a bit small on her due to my short, petite stature, but they’ll do, “here,” I start handing her some gold coins, “there’s a market down the street and around the corner, get what you need for your daughter and whatever essentials you need too, I’ll watch her. What’s her name?”
“Iza’ana,” she replies softly as she thanks me for the coins and kisses her daughter’s forehead, “be good little one,” she whispers and heads out the door.
Hours pass and the girl doesn’t return, eventually, I take Iza’ana with me and head to the marketplace to get what she needs, I ask everyone I see at the market if they’ve seen the girl, they all say no. I worry my bottom lip between my fangs as I purchase formula, diapers, clothes, bathing goods, anything and everything the girl could need, “he’s going to kill me,” I mutter to myself dragging the bags and child home with me.
The home is cold when I get back, “shit,” I whisper under my breath as I open the door and let myself in.
Bi-Han looks up at me wearily, I can tell he’s exhausted but not too banged up from the look of it, he just sits there, icing his cheek, “what is that Zhīhuá?”
I set the bags down and hold the girl on one hip as I pinch the bridge of my nose with the other hand and exhale loudly, “please don’t be mad aì rén, I brought her and her mother home a few hours ago and fed them, the mother left to get supplies for the girl but she never came back. Can I keep her, please aì rén? You know how desperately I’ve wanted a child, and this one basically just fell in my lap.” I beg and plead, giving Bi-Han the best puppy dog eyes I can as I feel the tears of desperate need watering in my eyes.
He sighs loudly with frustration, “well if she’s been abandoned I guess there’s nothing else we can do. I don’t like this Zhīhuá, you know how I feel about children.”
“I-I know Bi-Han, but I promise you won’t have to do anything for her, I’ll take full responsibility for her and take care of her and keep her out of your way as much as I can,” I rattle off frantically, my breathing is shallow and fast as I’m so close to getting what I always wanted.
Bi-Han grabs the child from me and sits her in his lap, “you don’t have to, she’s ours now, whether I want her or not. I’m not going to make you get rid of her, and I refuse to be like my father,” he makes a small rabbit out of ice in his hand to entertain the girl. “What’s her name?”
I don’t even hesitate when I answer, “Xiǎohán, that’s her name now, Xiǎohán,” I can’t help but cry tears of grateful joy as I see Bi-Han playing with our daughter.
“Hm, Xiǎohán huh? Trying to curry my favor by naming her after me huh?” His blue eyes twinkle with mischief as he pulls me close to kiss away the tears, “it’s working.”
(the photo is from google from a children's clothing website, it's not some random child lol)
