The Young Warrioress
I open my notebook to a fresh page and click my pen as the other students filter in.
Mei
Are you serious, Hana?
Hana
Yeah, can you believe it? Anyways, I said-
Hana
Hey, is that the new girl?
I turn to flash my classmates a smile.
Hana
Mei, I thought people from London were supposed to be fashionable.
Mei
Sure, but what do expect from someone who only made it here on charity.
The two girls snicker, and i feel myself start to flush.
Mei
Aw, look at that notebook, so old school!
Hana
Seriously? You're taking notes by hand? Who even does that anymore?
Mei
People who can't even afford a cheap laptop, I guess.
They laugh, and I have to look away, face burning.
Thankfully, it's at this point that they decide they've had enough, and move past me for a seat.
Ruth
(Well...that was unpleasant.)
I shake my head in an attempt to regain my focus.
Ruth
(It doesn't matter. No matter how many times someone makes fun of me for not having money...)
Ruth
(I'm not here because of charity. I earned my place.)
Ruth
(I might not be like the other students at this prestigious school.)
Ruth
(But as long as I keep studying and doing well nothing matters.)
The chatter in the room dies down as the professor makes his entrance.
History Professor
Good morning, everyone!
History Professor
Let's get straight into it. Please turn to page 105 in your textbooks.
I open my textbook and flip through the pages.
Ruth
(95...100...108... it's not there!)
I discover a number of pages have been torn out of my second hand book.
Ruth
(Ugh, it was supposed to be 'as good as new'...)
History Professor
Since this class is about local history, I want to tell you a story about something very famous that happened here.
History Professor
If any of you grew up in this area, you probably already know about the massacre that occurred about 500 years ago.
History Professor
Now, as you might expect , there are many local legends inspired by that event.
History Professor
But the most famous, by far is the Legend of the Young Warrioress.
The professor turns to the board, pulling up an image of an old painting.
It depicts a beautiful young woman in the midst of a ferocious battle with a twisted, shadowy creature.
History Professor
Legend has it that the evils that befell were the work of a Lilin-demon named Euryale.
History Professor
The story says that one of the villagers fought and killed the Lilin-demon.
History Professor
But she was mortally injured in battle, and died a few days later of her wounds.
History Professor
In keeping with the tradition of the time, the villagers enshrined her remains.
History Professor
And so the young warrior became a local deity.
History Professor
Now, as you might imagine, this story is tremendously exciting to local historians.
History Professor
It's also tremendously contentious.
History Professor
More than few of us have devoted their entire careers to either debunking or verifying the legend.
History Professor
Was the Young Warrioress a real person ? And if so , who was she?
History Professor
Of course, we already know that the Lilin-demon could not possibly have been real!
The class riples with polite laughter.
History Professor
I like to start my class with this story because questions like these are at the heart of what it means to study local history.
History Professor
I hope that, in taking this course, you'll each find your compelling story- your own 'Young Warrioress' so to speak.
History Professor
Now, let's back up a little. Earlier, İ mentioned a massacre that set the scene for this legend.
History Professor
We know for a fact that this massacre came to pass, so we're going to start there.
History Professor
What were some of the social, political and economic underpinnings of this event?
The professor keeps talking, but I feel my attention drift, as I stare at the painting of the Young Warrioress .
Eventually, the slide changes, shaking me out of my reverie.
İ pick up my pen and force myself to tune in to the lecture again.
Ruth
(What a story, though...)
Everytime my attention wanderers, it goes straight to the painting, like a compass pointing north.
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