Red Panda Goddess

A Teacher’s Promise

I pass the college and start looking at the houses about 50 to 75 meters ahead to account for slowing down. “All these houses are so beautiful, must be nice to be rich.” I was thinking out loud since nobody could hear me. I keep going and finally I see it. It had about 100 meters on both sides to itself, it was about 60 meters from the road and you could definitely tell where his property started and ended. His grass, foliage, flowers, trees, the whole landscape itself was better than everyone else’s. It’s like nature decided to be all around better around his house. The people to the left had dead patches all throughout their yard and it was a mess compared to his, and the one on the right looked like an unkempt field. His driveway was a stone menagerie, every stone looked hand picked and hand laid. I rode up to the house and under his parking awning and got off. I pulled my helmet off and earbuds out and stuck the iPod in my pocket, “I’m gonna need this if I’m gonna be doing work for this guy.” I took the heater tote off the backseat and slung it over my shoulder and started walking towards the front door. His house was just beautiful, a two story traditional Chinese looking house with the wooden and paper doors and everything. It looked like he plucked the land and house out of China and just set it here and left it. I walk up to the front door and knock on the wooden frame. I could hear him walking and speaking from the next room.

“You’re early.” He says in an annoyed tone. “What happened?” He slides the door open and ushers me inside.

“I...well, I ran into some trouble again and had to improvise. Then I went to the Panda Tree and got us some food, and now I’m here. Do I need to leave and come back?” I was actually really nervous for some reason and I couldn’t figure out why.

“No need, come in and sit with me...first, shoes...” he pointed to my shoes while stopping me in my tracks. “And your hat, and your bag.” Each item he pointed to a specific area in that front room to hang things or sit them. So I slipped my shoes off and slipped into some slippers that didn’t fit, I took my hat off unwillingly and tried to finger comb my hair which was almost mid back length at the time. Then I took my bag off and got my newly obtained and much adored chop sticks out, and hung the back under my hat. I followed him into a dining area and he gestured for me to open the heater tote and get the food out. “Which one is yours?” He looked at all of the food seeing all of his favorites, “I only see my normal order here...”

“Well, according to Quizong we share the same taste...” I said grabbing my chop stick box out my pocket and sitting it nicely on the table and smiling. He laughs a little bit and sits down across from me. Then he reaches under the table and grabs his own chopsticks and I realize he has the same ones as I do. “Hey, those look similar to mine!” He looks at my box and gestures for me to slide it to him and I do so respectfully. He opens it and smiles.

“Haha, Yukixichio Feihan. Greatest pair of hands to make a fine chopstick no?” I shook my head agreeing with him. “I remember before coming here I told her if she ever made a match to my favorite pair she would soon find a suitable husband...” he looks up at me with a cheeky grin, “she’s available you know, and a very good cook I might add.” I kind of chuckle and brush it off then he slides the box back to me but firmly holds the box with his hand, and I can’t even budge it. His strength is not comparable to his looks.

“It’s funny you say that Mr. Cheng, Mr. Feihan said the same thing to me. But I do love the look and feel of these chopsticks. And the box is beautiful too. Any man worth his salt would be lucky to have such a beautiful talented woman.” I look up at him and he smiles at me and let’s the box go.

“Well spoken. Now, what do they call you? Vemo?” He starts to eat and only talks when his mouth is clear. I open the box and grab the sticks out carefully and place them in my left hand. He looks at me as if I just disrespected an entire millennia of tradition. “What are you doing?!” He scares me with his tone.

“Umm, what?! I don’t know! What did I do?!” I’m frantically looking around for something wrong and he grabs my left wrist and it goes dead in an instant. My entire arm is limp and I can’t move it. He grabs the sticks out of my hand and holds it to my right hand. “I’m left handed though, I can’t get the sticks to work correctly in my right hand, I’m sorry...” I say nervously while not taking them from him. He let’s go and grabs my box and puts the sticks back in and sticks them under the table and grabs a pair of old ones out and hands them to me.

“Use these, when I see you can master the use of them...with either hand, then you can have the black dragons back.” His eyes are stern and piercing.

“Black dragons?”

“When Yukixichio makes a special pair of black sticks they are not just some toy to eat with. They are hand made from wood that will never age, they are sacred, they are to be treated as such. She calls them the black dragons for a reason, when you learn the meaning and respect for such things, and master the technique...in both hands, then you can have them back.” His words cut deeper than any knife I’ve ever been cut with. It felt as if my soul was torn to shreds by just listening. I’ve lost my appetite.

“I think I’ll just leave the food to...”

“Nonsense! Eat!” He slams the table and pushes a plate to me. “I want to see you master it now!” I position the sticks in my hand and try to get a grip and he slaps my hands and hands me another pair, this process repeats for 20 pairs of sticks until finally I get it right and am able to grab a piece of chicken and some noodles without dropping them or losing grip. “Now, was that so hard? Please, enjoy the rest of your cold meal.” Harsh! It was like I was being punished without knowing the crime. I finish eating my fill and start to put up everything when he stops me. “You aren’t finished...” he pushes me back down and gestures me to keep eating.

“But...I’m full, it would be a waste to keep eating, I’ll save the rest and give it to my brother.” He looks at me with calm eyes.

“Good, continue.” I finish wrapping everything up and stick it all in the heater tote and zip it up. “Now, follow me.” I get up off the cushion and follow him through his house. While walking around I’m taking in the wonders inside his house which are amazing, pictures and paintings of China and wars and beauties and so much art. Statues and carvings and weapons and armor all over. My mind is hardly enough to comprehend it all, all the while he is talking away explaining everything my eyes can touch. He suddenly stops, “now tell me back everything you just heard...”

“Wait, what?” I’m dumbfounded.

“Repeat to me, what I just told you.” He looks calm as ever. And I haven’t the slightest clue. I was just star struck at all of the amazing things. “You can’t can you?” I shook my head no, “let’s start back from the beginning...” we walk all the way back to the front door and start all over again. “Now don’t try to remember what I said, rather just let your body and mind flow as if it were a river guided by the rocks that block its path, the rocks do not stop the river. It goes around does it not?” I follow behind him looking around again and I relax everything to a point where I almost fall over...then it hit me, I could hear everything he said even though I wasn’t listening. As it came to me I just said everything as it was said to me, word for word, motion by motion. Again I was dumbfounded by how I was able to recollect something that I don’t remember. “Your body and mind will remember things for you, normally it takes anywhere for months to years for muscle memory to be a thing. Like riding a bicycle, but for you it’s a natural gift. You are good at just about anything you put your mind to right? For example the music you play, it’s not something you learned over night, but not something that took years of dedication to master correct?” He is hitting the nail on the head. “You can pick up an instrument and start playing with it like a child’s toy, and eventually you will be able to play many songs on it am I correct?” I shake my head yes. And at this point I’ve become uncomfortable and very nervous. “You are a very talented young man, very skilled, and naturally lucky I would presume. So here’s what I want from you. I have watched you here and there, not following you, but you were following me and didn’t know it.” He starts naming dates, times, and places where I have been and done things. Like snowboarding at a ski resort a few counties over, playing music at parks and some concerts here and there, and all kinds of things that eventually led up to him seeing me try to practice martial arts, and then using them in other situations. “The government detective let me watch the video he has been scamming you with, I was witness to one event at the grocery store, but the rest are similar. Someone tries to harm an innocent, you are in the wrong place at the wrong time, they do something that makes you angry, and you lose your cool and they wind up bleeding. It’s nothing to be proud or ashamed of. But you need control...and lots of it.” He comes to the back door and opens it with a blinding light from the western sun. “Everyday at 5pm you will come here, respect me, respect my house, respect my rules, and I will help you become a better man. Disrespect me and I will punish you, disrespect my house and I will punish you, disrespect my rules and I will punish you, become a worse man than you are now and I will throw you out. But you are bound to me now and you will do as I say, not because you owe me, but because I see something great in your heart dying to be released. I know this to be true not only because of me, but because of everyone who knows you, they see a dying man living the lie life of a wanted man.” He begins my training? I’m more confused than ever now, and I only have half an idea of what he’s saying. Over the course of 6 months he trains me vigorously without any remorse during training. But before and after training he treats me more like a grandson. Everyday I approach his home, knock on the door, ask permission to enter and remove my disrespectful clothing. We drink tea and have a small snack, then we go outside and he pushes me like a stubborn mule into submission, we take a small break for water and air, then it’s back to being stressed until the breaking point and pushed an inch further than I can go, and once the string snaps he lets me rest. Then we go back inside and sit in a steam room exchanging stories and having laughs. Then we retire to the dining room, eat a whole meal and he teaches me calligraphy and mandarin. Afterwards he scolds me for being left handed. After the six month mark I arrive at his house at 6pm and knock on the door.

“Mr. Cheng?” I knock again after no reply. “Umm...Mr. Cheng?” Still no answer, and the door is locked. I look down and notice there is a letter written in mandarin from him. It reads, “Vemo, I heard you and your brother had a big fight, and I’m sorry. I have gone to the Panda Tree and will be back at 8pm. Go into the back yard and train until I get back. Cheng.” It was unusual for him to do this, since it has been everyday since that first day for six months. I walk into the back yard and there are some clothes laid out on a table, I walk over and give them a look. There are three sets of clothes, the first is a white shirt with a yin yang on the left chest and long sleeved with black pants and black shoes with white wraps. The second is a black shirt with a white tiger on the back and the word “southpaw” in mandarin on the left chest it’s sleeveless and the black pants have some white and grey flames in the right leg. The third is a blue shirt with the right sleeve missing, the left sleeve has a dragon spiraling down to the wrist where the mouth opens, the pants have the ankles cut off and there are pandas around the cut lines, there’s also a pair of gloves that fit perfectly and both have the words “left” on them but there’s a right and left glove. There are also white wrappings to go with the gloves. There’s a note behind the clothes that reads, “These are a gift from me to you, after training so much, and learning from you that not all students can be taught the same thing. I have come to decide that you were not meant to be forced into learning a certain style, because I’ve watched you during your freestyle time that you use techniques that I haven’t taught you, but are very skilled techniques. So with your size and unorthodox style, mixed with the speed you’ve gained and what I’ve taught you...I want you to invent your own style and make it your own so that nobody can ever copy it, nor could they predict it. I hope to see it when I return. Cheng and Akaihime.” Wait, Who is Akaihime? Oh there’s a separate part to the letter...”PS, As your shifu I vow an oath to you that no matter your troubles or triumphs, I will be there to see you through them, and as your friend I promise that I will always be here if you need me. Cheng.” Ah come on old man, going to make me cry by being sentimental after I already narrated you in to be a grandfather figure to me? I put the letter down and back into the rolled case I found it and picked up the middle clothes and put them on, I took the shoes from the left side and put them on, and the wraps and gloves.

“Wow, they all fit perfectly, the shoes are tight and have a nice grip but still able to move freely, the gloves are tighter with the wraps but they keep my wrists safe, and the clothes are like a second skin almost, the under lining is amazing and the outer lining moves freely and doesn’t constrict.” I can hear the big bonsai next to the back door rustling and I look back and see a raccoon. “Hmm, hey little guy, you hungry?” Even though it’s dark I can see the striped tail and white markings on a black body. But as I get closer it looks less and less like a raccoon. “Hmm, what are you little fella? Odd coloring for a raccoon and you don’t fit the shape...” it runs off just as soon as I get close enough to touch it. “Dang, it looked really cute though. Oh well better get to practice.” I walk out to the training area and start to practice but I can feel more eyes on me than usual. Soon after I hear the back door open and see Mr. Cheng walking towards me, but he’s dressed differently. He’s wearing the same clothes I am...

“Are you ready Vemo? Let’s go!”