Captain Hai-Yong Pavlen, one of three commanders under General Keiichi T'Rumour, a master of combat with halberds, staves, and axes, sat sullenly in a chair with his hands bound tightly behind his back. Russ and Lucien tried pathetically to clean the long, but fairly shallow, wound on the redheaded man's chest. Whenever either man grew too near to the imperial officer he made a large fuss, struggling wildly and cursing at his would-be physicians. Eventually the abuse became too much for Lucien who threw the damp cloth in his hand at the prisoner, hitting him squarely on the head. "If you don't want us fixing you up, you conceited imperial pig, then who will you tolerate?! We can't just let you sit there and bleed!"

Hai-Yong sniffed and tried to tilt his head so the cloth would fall off his head and stop dripping water onto his nose, "How 'bout her?" he mumbled, glancing towards Falina. Falina looked at their prisoner uneasily, "I guess I could..."

Russ shook his head; "It's probably some sort of bad attempt to trick us by getting everyone off guard. I don't know Falina..."

Hai-Yong grinned suavely, "You know I'm helpless like this. I can't get out of here with all of you sitting around like that and I'm ruining my favorite shirt with these slashes and all this blood. Come on, Mr. Soldier, show me a little sympathy as a fellow citizen of the Aronian nation."

Jirobane threw back his head and laughed, "My Lord Captain--you're speaking with leaders of the rebellion against the Kingdom of Aronia! That's not a very good way to gain our sympathy!"

The man with the reddish-brown hair had no verbal response to Jirobane's observation and only sighed, shaking his head in the swordsman's general direction. A sudden movement caught his eye and the prisoner was distracted from his display towards Jirobane. Falina had come to stand next to him and was looking at Hai-Yong with a faraway look in her eyes. "Hey...Missy...? You still all there? Hello--?" Receiving no response he whistled softly, and Falina blinked a few times before shaking her head and returning to the real world.

"I-I'm sorry...I was staring, wasn't I...umm...I'll clean that up for you." Falina took the cloth off of Hai-Yong's head and dipped it in the bowl of water Russ had left sitting nearby. Although they did not take their eyes off of Falina and Hai-Yong for a second, Russ and Lucien allowed Falina to wipe some of the blood off of Hai-Yong's injury and bandage him up. The prisoner was very cooperative with his new caregiver and smiled slightly throughout the whole incident. Russ was very sure that this was a man who was used to getting his way...and he had just gotten it again.

Murasaki Fuji no Shita ni Kuni

"The Country Under the Purple Wisteria"

Chapter 17- This is Harmony

When Han Li first saw Kiisan up and about again he was somewhat uncertain of whether of not his condition had sufficiently improved, but after he saw Kiisan running all over the government building to escape the attention of Mai Mai he concluded that the young priest had recovered beautifully. That day Kiisan had confronted Turan Magno with Han Li at his side, accusing him of sending an assassin to murder him. It was a charge the turan could not deny and he vowed to hand over control of the revolution to the younger man. The turan would remain leader of the state and its army for the time being, but Kiisan refused to be a pawn in his plot any longer.

Now the wind mage sat under a drooping laburnum tree watching the golden blossoms float away on the breeze. Kiisan would be here anytime now and he had some important topics to address.

"Han Li! Am I late?" questioned the blue-robed teenager.

"No...You're not late. I am only very early. This laburnum is still flowering...it's a little late, don't you think?"

"I...I don't know...I don't really know very much about flowers. You should ask Falina about that," responded Kiisan, a note of confusion in his soft voice.

"If you put enough effort into solving the problems that surround you, you will overcome these adversities. That's the laburnum. It's sometimes described as a fountain of gold."

Kiisan sat down beside his friend and brushed some laburnum blossoms off of his robes. Han Li looked like an ancient monarch with the yellow flowers sitting lightly atop his ebony hair and deep brown cloak. The older man was usually rather fastidious about the state of his hair, but he appeared unconcerned with the blossoms that now were his crown.

"Kiisan...what will you do if the people rise with you and overthrow the current regime? Would you aspire to rule this vast land?"

The wind whistled around the corners of the building they sat behind. The thin branches of the tree above swayed and whispered to each other in a language incomprehensible to the two men sitting below. Kiisan could feel the trembling of the earth under his feet as the imperial troops outside the walls reassembled for the next attack on the fortress city. The world was moving just as it was standing still.

"I don't think I could rule anything...let alone a nation of this size. I just want to see the day when the emperor isn't crushing the common people under his boot. I only want to make things better for people like you and Falina, and everyone..."

Han Li stood up on the stone bench and looked down on his companion, "You are an idealist. You do realize that many men and women before you have fought and died with the same beliefs clutched tight to their hearts and accomplished nothing?"

Kiisan took his hat off of his head and put his arms around it, "I know. Are you trying to tell me that I can't do it? That I should just give up now?"

"No. That is exactly what I am trying not to tell you, Kiisan."

The priest ran his fingers along the soft fabric in his hands and peered up at Han Li, "You're not making sense to me."

"I am trying to tell you that I think you have a chance. I think you just need a little more faith in yourself. That Circle Rune shining on your hand is proof that you are not just an ordinary young man destined never to do anything in your life. ...Kiisan, you are going to have to lead this army and then you will have to lead the nation that you create with your own two hands."

Kiisan shivered with anxiety. He had tried, for the most part, not to think of the revolution as a whole leading to an end, but to take it as it came. With some many more years and so much more experience, Han Li could easily absorb the entire situation.

"Let me promise you one thing, Maiba*... I will fight this war by your side and I will give you all the aid I can offer as long as you keep that idealism shining in your eyes."

The younger man gazed at his friend with admiration and thanks. Han Li had made it his business to look out for him and advise him. He had appeared out of nowhere to become one of Kiisan's closest and most trusted companions. Sometimes his fervor was a little disconcerting, and his moods were hard to read, but Kiisan wondered if he could have come so far without the guidance of the mysterious man. "Thank you Han Li. Thank you for believing in me. ...I'll try not to let you down..."

Having finished making his point the dark-haired man sat down beside his friend once again. He brushed a few loose strands off hair out of his face and placed his left hand on Kiisan's shoulder. "There's just one thing I'd like to know, Kiisan. What is the ideal on which you are going to form this country?"

Kiisan had not expected the question and was not completely sure if he had even thought of such a thing at all, but remembering the things he had seen so far on during his travels one word came to mind, "Harmony."

The older man's eyes grew narrow with thought. He stretched and got up, heading towards the doorway leading back inside the government building. "So...Kiisan...what exactly do you need to accomplish this 'harmony' of yours?"

"Three things...there are three things necessary to harmony. Respect for others. An end to greed and fighting. And thankfulness for everything around you. Harmony is a kind of peace..."

Han Li opened the door slowly and slunk into the shadows of the hall, "That is exactly what I hoped you would say..."

*"Maiba"- an old word of unknown origin, "my son"--a term of endearment for a young man