Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction Group 2 -1 2019 | Page 52

Magic Hands
Creative Primary School, De'eb, Isabella - 9
I wake up to a soft thud, followed by what sounds like rats crawling up the side of the ship. I shake
Xiaoling’s shoulder and we frantically look around. Suddenly there are scuffles above us and muted screams.
Xiaoling and I are paralysed with fear. I wish there was someone I could call for help. Why did we stow
away on this ship anyway?
*************************************
It was only three months earlier that I found my best friend Xiaoling sobbing in the street. Her father had
beaten her yet again. In the year 1400, China was no place for a deaf and mute girl like Xiaoling. She
begged me to run away with her. This was the last straw. I grabbed her by the hand and made our way to
the docks where we found a fleet of ships being prepared to set sail. It was easy to make our way on board as
the cargo was being loaded, little did we know that we had just boarded the Ming Treasure Fleet.
We were both petrified as we made our way onto the ship. Once inside, we found a small, dark corner
behind baskets of food. We collapsed in a tired heap and fell into a deep sleep. When we woke we were
greeted with the creaking backbone of the ship as it rolled over the waves. While Xiaoling could not hear
the sounds of the ship, she did have her ‘magic hands’. Some may argue that magic is not of this world, but
magic can also be something far more real. Xiaoling could do the most amazing things, simply by using her
hands as an extension of her soul. Just then a dark, lumbering shape came towards us carrying a chopper. We
cowered behind the baskets as the chopper rose and then plunged down. I screamed only to discover that it
was just an old chef gathering food for that evenings’ meal. Chef Lau did not report us to the captain, but
instead became our friend and protector. He had daughters our age and he was grateful for our company.
As time passed the noises of the ocean blended with the noises of the ship like an orchestra. I tried my best
to share these sounds with Xiaoling, while she in return let me into her world of magic. Somehow her soul
could speak to me through her hands, and the longer we were together, the more I understood. On no
special day the ship entered an angry storm. We tossed and turned for two days and two nights before we
saw Lau again. He told us that the ship had been damaged and that we had become separated from the fleet.
We were stranded in the bay of an unchartered island but safe.
*************************************
But now, hearing those screams, our optimism has vanished. While cowering in our hiding place, we hear
Lau whisper, “Don’t make a sound, the ship is being attacked. They have captured everyone and I fear I am
next.” Just then Lau screams as he is grabbed and suddenly everything is silent.
Xiaoling and I squint outside through the cracks in the ship. We see many canoes carrying the crew, bound
and gagged to the island. With the ship deserted we climb onto the deck and bathe in the glorious sunshine.
Our freedom soon changes to guilt as we realise that our protector Lau is in extreme danger. Xiaoling’s pure
heart works through her hands and tells me we must save Lau! Before I have time to think we climb down
the side of the ship and row ashore.
We think we have not been seen but in a flash the beach is filled with fierce islanders carrying spears. I
scream as they grab me and tie my hands together. I turn to Xiaoling expecting the worst, but she is using
her hands to explain that we mean no harm. I think it is useless, but to my surprise they don’t touch her but
rather gesture for her to go with them into the forest. As we enter the village we see our captain tied to a
stake and the entire crew in a wooden cage. We are led into the chief’s hut and come face to face with a