· · ─ ·☾☽· ─ · ·

THE RED SUN cast its discolored rays upon the open windows as the breeze blew back the sheer curtains of the circular chamber. Walls of frosted quartz appear to block out some of the light, bathing the room in an illusory haze. 

Halfway across the room, the in-ground bathtub was filled a little to the brim with warm, almost steaming hot water. A handmaiden clad in blue silks with rolled-up sleeves walked into the chambers to  bring in the lady’s day wear.

The chambers had a balcony, blocked by a door made of clear quartz, which provided a pleasant view of the clouds and the forest of trees below.  A young girl of no older than six, stood beside the railings, her growing locks of raven hair flowing in the breeze.  Small  hands gripped the quartz railing as crimson eyes admired the forest canopy below, spotting a merlin flying towards the sky. Her robe of pale brown satin with a diaphanous overlay is weightless against her tanned skin, the discolored sunlight failing to hide the sheen of the satin.

“Lady Raya?”

The little girl's smile faltered as she looked away from the forest. Another day of lessons made her gaze at her four-poster bed, wishing that the ivory curtains would shield her from the prying eyes of her many tutors.

“Good morning, Miss Ilaya.”, she greeted politely, her soft voice like the breeze on a cool night. She opened one of the quartz doors and entered her chambers. She then went over to the foot of her bed and traced her fingers on her new clothes, which the aforementioned handmaiden had placed.

“And to you, young master. Aren't they beautiful?” Ilaya praised.

“They are beautiful.”, Raya paused “but what's the occasion?”

Ilaya chuckled. “Just want you to try something new. It's a shame not to use something gifted to you, is it?”

Raya quickly undressed, her nightwear falling weightlessly on the floor like cascading waterfalls, and got into the tub. She didn't answer for a while, wanting to enjoy the heat of the water.

“Why would someone gift me a new dress? It's just another windy day.”

Ilaya strode over to help wash Raya's hair; “Have you forgotten little lady? Today is your hatching day.”

Raya only shrugged her shoulders; “Oh? I didn't know. Everyone looks at me differently every time hatching day arrives.”

Her small hand emerged from the water and grabbed her favourite mint soap. “I always get the prettiest gowns and robes for my hatching day, but I've never really used them.”, she pointed out. “What’s the point, if they're just going to collect dust in my wardrobe?”

“Oh, you will be using them more often starting today.”, replied Ilaya, before she pressed some water out of the girl's hair.

“What do you mean?”

“Because at age six, you shall start your education.”

Raya immediately curled up on herself, causing Ilaya to let go of her hair. “Does that mean wearing different dresses every day?”

“Somewhat.”

“But why? Every grown I own has way too many strings. I don't like that.”

“It comes with being a priestess, little one.”

Raya looked up at her handmaiden; “What if I don't want to be a priestess?”

Before Ilaya could answer, the two heard a soft knock on the door. Raya frowned as her handmaiden left to accommodate whoever it was that interrupted their conversation.

Another maid brought in several accessories; all made of the highest quality bronze and encrusted with shimmering crystals. Ilaya quickly but politely sent her away and closed the door.

“At least you get to pick out your hair ornaments.”

Raya smiled and got out of the tub, then quickly put on her bathrobe. She walked briskly over to the box of trinkets and pointed at a simple wreath of bronze laurels. It was the only hairpiece that didn't have crystal embellishments.

“Later Raya, after you put on your dress.”

Several more maids entered the room, each seemingly having a specific task to do regarding the little one's grooming. Raya looked at herself in the mirror as one or two of them helped her put on the new robe. Raya quickly found out how some people needed to wear quite the layered piece — it was only four layers but for a six-year-old, it was a lot.

“D-do I really have to??”, she asked with a forlorn face.

“Yes m’lady, no matter how heavy it feels.”, replied a random handmaiden. Raya's expression became rather pouty once the maids actually helped her put on the layers. Because she was so young, she didn't usually need the supporting garments like a corset, but with a layered piece, it was a must. Next was the under clothes,  the types used in colder regions (Raya wanted to protest, but the maids insisted she wear it). Third was the white portion of the robe; a silk piece with long, hanging, diaphanous sleeves that reached her wrist.

The actual robe was also made of expensive silk, dyed blood-red with garnets embroidered on the shoulders, which went around the back to form the pattern of a sea serpent. It too, had long, hanging sleeves and wrapped around her, forming a V-shaped neckline.  The robe did have embroidery on them; leaves and jasmines that were barely visible unless exposed to very bright light.  Another maid tied the strings secure while a third (or fourth, Raya had lost count) added a thick belt that Raya thought she'd only see in paintings from the Xianzhou.

Then, it clicked — they were making her wear a Xianzhou-style gown!

She didn't have long enough to dwell on the rather curious choice of attire, because Ilaya was styling her hair. The lady had been at her service since she was two, and she liked her calm demeanor.

She was afraid of what hairstyle she had to wear to accommodate the look and theme of the gown. She had seen some of the paintings that, while wonderful to look at, she wasn't sure if the hairstyles would fit her.  She disliked the double buns on the sides of her head with the ornaments that she didn't know what to do with. Braids were fine, as long as she didn't have to wear two at a time.  Oh and she didn't want to get started on the single, oversized hair buns on some of the paintings: Yaoshi help her if that's the style Ilaya planned!

Ilaya herself was smiling when she noticed that Raya's eyes were closed tightly. With a gentle grace, she pulled back two, fairly large portions of the child's hair and twisted each separately, tying them at the ends. She gathered the knots and rope-braided them all the way, securing it with a black band. Finally, she picked out a bronze hair stick with the symbol of a garnet-encrusted dragon eating the moon (represented by a circular moonstone) and inserted it in the space between the knots where the rope braid started.  She also added pearl studs to Raya's ears after the other maids applied child-friendly moisturizer on the girl's face as skincare.

Raya opened her eyes and smiled slightly, her fears disappearing in an instant. Taking the laurel circlet, she happily placed the article on her head, watching it glimmer in the mirror. She slowly stood up, not used to the layers of her gown, and put on a pair of cotton slippers.

“So, what's the occasion?”, she finally asked, feeling the smoothness of her silken skirt.

“The judges would like to introduce you to a friend.” Ilaya paused “someone from the Xianzhou Yaoqing.”

· · ─ ·☾☽· ─ · ·

Raya had quickly fled to the indoor garden after that revelation.

If there was one place in Hinilawod Fort that Raya loved to escape to, it was the small indoor garden right below her chambers, right beside the bridge that would lead to her tower. Almost no one came to the gardens except to care for the plants. It was a garden specifically for the ones with pleasant scents, so it was understandable why Raya loved to calm herself there.

Looking at the plants all around her reminded her of a myriad of tales told by the elders of the fort. Closing her eyes, she recalled every detail that she could; she liked myths and if it would help her escape for much longer, so be it.

Long, long ago, when the world was young, there was once a giant void within the cluster of redstars — the kind that resembled the flames of earthly volcanos. The void was a ball of water colored inky black by the remains of fallen stars.  A dragon whose name is now forgotten, encircled this void, their eyes looking heavenward at the lights.

They were terribly lonely, like a cave dweller whose only purpose was to keep a rare black pearl to themself. They listened to everything — how the other planets had various intriguing sounds; some of music, some of war noise and others of chirping birds and swimming fishes.

They wanted their ball of void to have it too.

They searched and searched the redstars for a sign of life: perhaps another pearl waiting to hatch. They devoured any nearby stares, hoping to at least give light to their treasured ball of water, but alas the stars were meant to burn in the clouds, not be drowned.

Desperate, the lonely dragon let out a mournful roar.  They had hoped that somewhere in the vast universe, someone would hear their plea. They wanted more dragons like themself to live within the waters. They'd care for the hatchlings until the hatchlings were ready to touch the sky.

If the redstars refused to light the void, then the dragons shall find their own lights in the sky.

The dragon, tired of looking heavenward, fell into an eons-long slumber, all but a spec of hope , lost to the void they guarded.

May it be through prayer or the works of the Propagation, the dragon shed its many spikes of scales and dream-pesrls rained on the watery void, filling it with drsgon-kin, each having a trait to call its own.

They would venture far and wide, beyond the redstars, spreading the word about their Night-Father, a gentle soul who craved life and companionship.

A hand took Raya off her myth-driven musings, the child sighing in disappointment.

“I knew I'd find you here.”

The girl looked up; blue robes, an intimidating face, silvery hwur that shone like the moon — it was Asnawi.

The oldest of the Konsul appeared to have aged even further in the past six years; between rebuilding Sierra Bagwis and keeping the newly formed fragile peace between the Xianzhou Alliance and Tanglaw — all above the noses of the monarchy down at the capital, it had been almost unspeakably difficult. His hand on the young hatchling tightened, and Raya felt the sternness in his stare.

“The guests are waiting, Raya. You can't stay cooped up in this garden forever.”

Dejected and a little annoyed, Raya followed the old judge out of the garden, across the crystal bridge, down several flights of stairs (thank Yaoshi she was wearing flats!)  into the main tower, across several labyrinthine corridors until they finally reached the side door in between the windows. Raya had to rub her knees a little from how much they hurt, while poor Asnawi had to keep his balance by supporting himself using one of the stone pillars.

A guard opened the door for the two nobles, and they walked after a few moments of rest. Raya tried to appear confident and poised, just like she had been told to since she learned to take her steps on the ground.

There were indeed a few guests from the Xianzhou Alliance inside, but Raya wasn't sure if they were actually Xianzhou natives or members of the rather infamous IPC.  The child took a good look at whom she perceived as the tallest of the group; a tall foxian woman with fair skin and white, teal-tipped hair tied in a high ponytail. Her eyes were teal with a white ring around her pupils, and prominent red eyeliner painted at the lower corners of her eyes. She had two teal orbs with a golden tassel hanging on the right side of her face, right beneath her hair, and a golden, small ornament on her forehead. As a foxian, Feixiao had two large fox ears and she wore two golden earrings on her left ear.

Her outfit consisted of a white trench coat, dark teal sleeveless turtleneck, and black shorts with a dark teal half-skirt. She wore calf-high dark heeled boots, a dark thigh garter on her left thigh, and a belt wrapped around her left leg right above the knee. The trench coat had black-and-white waves at the bottom, with its tips bending to dark gray. The lower half of the coat was cyan fading to dark teal and had a golden scale pattern on the inside. Her turtleneck had two open diamond-shaped windows at each side, each window lined in gold, the top smaller windows being at her ribcage and the bottom ones being above her hips. At the collar of her turtleneck was a circular-shaped blue ornament with a small red tassel tied into a bow. The half-skirt was decorated with light, dark, and normal teal-colored waves as well as golden lining.

Rsya could think the woman very pretty (by Yaoshi, she wished she had that hair), but the guest looked a little out of place inside a room filled with people wearing robes — even her associates wore more layers than the stranger did.

“Who are you?”

Asnawi let out a false cough, gestured for Raya to climb the stairs to the narra throne, and watched the guests. Raya followed instructions and sat beside judge Minea; the sixth of the Konsul Bundok always sat on the throne most adjacent to the door labelled “Preparation Room”

“To answer your question, little dragon, I am Feixiao, general of the Xianzhou Yaoqing. Consider me a… forgotten friend.”

Judge Deshna looked ready to protest, but she knew deep down that it was probably the only plausible way for Feixiao to introduce herself to Asnara’s reincarnation

Raya didn't reply right away. She was looking around the room for something, or rather, someone. She focused more on the Xianzhou Yaoqing’s other representatives, noticing their colourful robes and yes, more layers. A young boy, barely visible because he was almost completely hidden behind someone's red overcoat, caught her attention.

She and the unnamed boy were the only children in the room.

“…Zhongfeng, come forward.”

The young boy walked to the front of the guests, right beside the formidable looking general. From Raya's view, he looked smaller than he actually was. He had short curls that swayed gently in the breeze, fair skin, a pointed face, teal eyes with silver swirls and a nervous smile on his face. Raya stood from her seat and approached him (she could feel Judge Menandro's stare as she descended the staircase).

“This is Hiraya Habagat, our supposed sixth judge. Since she's still so young, she hasn't earned the title yet.”, Judge Deshna introduced. Raya quietly bowed; not too low as to not appear improper in front of everyone.

“… you can call me ‘Raya’”, she mumbled.

Zhongfeng looked up at General Feixiao, seeking approval despite his silence. Feixiao nodded though she couldn't hide the nervousness in her eyes.

“I’m Zhongfeng, a Vidyadhara. Um… people say I'm supposed to marry you someday.”

A few of those present gasped.

Raya's eyes flared and she turned her body halfway to face the five other judges. Ulan silently gestured to Asnawi for damage control — the elders didn't take kindly to Raya losing her temper (the last incident involved quite the screaming from the northernmost tower of the fort)

“I thought I was going to make new friends?” Raya asked cautiously. She took a mental note not to take Ilaya’s words at face value.

“Oh, you two can start as friends.”, Judge Asnawi explained. “Didn’t Ilaya inform you?”

“Only the friends part.” Raya confirmed, crossing her arms “but why should I marry him when I grow big and strong? Can't I be ‘just friends‘ with him forever?”

“That isn't a possibility, little one.”, Judge Minea negated. “We once promised the General Feixiao that you'll marry this young Vidyadhara here, after that terrible war which —”

“Minea, not now!” Menandro hissed.

Raya ceased glaring at the other judges, then she composed herself. Feixiao placed an arm around Zhongfeng, and whispered something to his ear.

Only to thrn find Raya extending a hand to the young Xianzhou dragon.

“Let’s be friends; I can show you the fort’s best gardens.”

· · ─ ·☾☽· ─ · ·

Raya did not say which specific garden she would take Zhongfeng too — the castle had plenty of gardens anyway. As the little dragons walked amongst topiaries of tropical plants and day-blooming flowers, Zhongfeng spotted a peach-like fruit hanging from a tree in the middle of the garden, and sprinted off to take it.

“Hey, I recognize this fruit from old stories; the people of the Xianzhou were said to have drank from this long long ago.”

“And look what it got them.”, Raya replied and took the fruit away, placing it at a nearby basket. 

“Why do you have these fruits then?”

Raya pondered over what to say next. Zhongfeng was just someone she just met and she had to be careful which story to tell.

“Have you ever thought of how life and death are always together? If Yaoshi could spread life, then… THEY could do the opposite, right?”

“Nice try, Raya. And yes, the Plagues Author brings death by spreading too much life. As for the fruit…?”

“They help the departed sleep better, at least that's what I was told.”

“Sleep better? Don't you have the Ten-Lords Commission for that?”

“If you Vidyadhara have the High Elders and the Preceptors, then us Bakunawas have the Konsul Bundok. The Konsul also doubles as a Ten-Lords Commission for the not-dragons of Tanglaw.”

“Why is that? Every species has their own customs about the dead.”

“Hmmm… there's only one Ten-Lords Commission in every Xianzhou ship. Tanglaw has only one Konsul too. In the end, we all bleed red in the roots of the Primal Silvertree.”

Zhongfeng remained quiet as he, for the first time, noticed that the sky wasn't blue.

“Hey Raya, why is Tanglaw the ‘Red Planet ‘? Not many worlds have skies that aren't blue.”

“There are stories about how this planet came to be.”

“Like?”

“Tanglaw was originally a planet made of water. When the world was young, there was only one dragon whose name was already forgotten. They lived alone, forever guarding the void that would become our home.”

“They had sharp ears — sharp enough to hear what was going on outside their post. Aeons and humans, the calls of nature, war — they wanted it too. No one knows why they had to guard a watery void when everyone else seemingly lived colorful lives, but loneliness made them want those things too.”

“Eventually, the dragon did have more children by shedding the scales of their spiked tail, producing beautiful pearls that became dragons just like them, and then more dragons came after, some staying underwater and others venturing beyond the redstars.”

“And then?” Zhongfeng smiled, leaning forward.

“And then the travelling dragons returned to find their own home in a sad state; every planet they visited had a light source, but they didn't! The original dragon who was their ”father “ had passed away, and in their place led seven elder dragons, the strongest of their children.”

“The seven dragons would each take turns getting a light source for their planet. Each brought back a moon from other worlds — never the sun, for the sun was too bright for them.  Each moon lit the planet for a time, but moons were never meant to be underwater. Six times, the dragons lost a moon, until finally, the seventh dragon returned after a long fight with a formidable leviathan.”

“Instead of placing the moon underwater, the dragon requested their kin to build a fortress made of coral that would reach up to the sky. Through magic or divine intervention, the fortress was built after millions of eons, and the planet finally gained a moon of their own — a stolen one, but still a moon.”

“Under the light of the moon, the dragons developed their own civilization filled with rituals that almost everyone would consider odd today. For example, they used to dance around the moon in the coral fort, appearing to chase each other through the skies during the love season, or  clean each other’s tails as a sign of trust.”

Zhongfeng blinked and grinned childishly: "Can I clean your tail when we're both big and strong?”

Rate blinked and sat there, speechless: “S-sure… “

“Anyway.”, she composed herself, noticing a random servant place treats on their shared table, and taking away the basket with the lone fruit.

“Something disrupted the peaceful civilization, in the form of shooting stars.”

Zhongfeng paled, remembering a few things.

“They rained down on the waters of the planet, believing that the dragons underneath were abominations who deserved only death.  Several had indeed passed away, their corpses turning into hard stone.”

“That’s terrible!”

“Yup, but then, Haliya, one of the seven “Great Sovereigns” at the time,  rose up to the sky and faced the Rainbow Archer head on! Unfortunately, she died too, her body broke into many , many pieces, forming the mountain ranges that is now the Sierra Bagwis.”

“Well that explains why the mountains look spiky.”

He then noticed the treats on the table; rice cakes, fruit puddings, ground coconut, berries and a pitcher of fruit juice and two, empty crystal goblets.

“Someone’s hungry. Let's eat first, I promise I'll tell you more stories after.”

Zhongfeng smiled and somehow fed Raya all of the raspberries.

· · ─ ·☾☽· ─ · ·

While Raya and Zhongfeng ran off to hide amongst the plants, Feixiao turned her gaze on the five judges, who had decided to finally get off their high chairs and face her across their barred Moon Door.

“I didn't expect your charge to be so blunt.”, Menandro remarked.

“And you, to lie to Naran.”, Feixiao clapped back. “She may be young, but she deserves to know her future.”

“I told her handmaiden to leave out key details, or else she'd flee to somewhere only Yaoshi knows where.”, Deshna explained. “The little one is quite elusive when it comes to strangers.”

“She did flee somewhere, and that is why I took so long to arrive.”, Asnawi explained.

The silver-haired general blinked. She remembered that fateful day, crystal clear.

There were eight of them sitting across from each other at the long table. She sat on the chair directly facing Asnawi, while she could see the four other judges from the corners of her eyes. The breeze blew back the curtains, giving some of the judges a good view of what had been the result of the war.

“So General, we would like an explanation; how is it that a daughter of Yaoshi bears the mark of Lan? From what we can guess, you hatched her after Asnara’s demise.” Deshna asked, her olive eyes narrowing.

“I thought this was a negotiation, not an interrogation?”

“It is both, General.” Menandro added: “A little clarity from you may help us manage this debacle with the sick tree.”

Feixiao closed her eyes, racking her brain for anything that could satisfy the judges’ curiosity. To her dismay, nothing from her jumbled thoughts surfaced.

“…I don't know how it happened. All I remember is holding Naran and praying that she'd live.”

The judges glanced at each other and nodded; “So you say, General. Perhaps the Aeons were kinder just this once.”

Feixiao never dreamed of a day that a species following the guidance of Yaoshi would say such bold things. Most denizens were content to believe that their deity was benevolent and nothing more.

They were not blind, it seemed, which was a good sign. If she could find a way to use their clearer sights in other aspects of this upcoming talk, then the problem would be solved halfway — it was better than nothing.

“The Alliance has noted your … abundance of resources, for lack of a better word.  Even the IPC has taken notice, but it is strange how you haven't reached out to them.”

“Everyone gives in too easily to the whims of one man.", replied Asnawi. “Oswaldo Schneider is a monster who doesn't understand anything except destroying worlds for the sake of Credits., and we don't want him nor his lapdogs anywhere near our shores.”

“So, what do you propose then?”

Ulan smiled, taking out his whiteboard from a secret compartment. Feixiao blinked and read the elegant script, understanding nothing.

“Oh, right.” spoke the other female judge. “Ulan says here that we shall open trading ports to a few Xianzhou ships, namely the Yaoqing, the Luofu and the Fanghu, for trade.  We can export our jewellery and silks to the three ships and you can give us military aid in times of distress.”

It was a bold request, if Feixiao would think about it.  There was indeed a certain charm to the jewels on the judges’ persons, especially Deshna, who was wearing a number of hair ornaments and rings.

“Only those three?” Feixiao pressed; “I'm surprised you didn't include the Zhuming, given how they're the ship of the artisans.  They can create jewelry as splendid as yours.”

Deshna smirked, removing a ring from her index finger. “Oh, but your accessories don't heal wounds, do they?”

Feixiao looked like she would rather sink to the deepest ocean than accept healing jewelry, but a second thought came to her, prompting her to keep her instincts in check.

“I can coordinate with the other generals and in the Fanghu’s case, the High Elder, about this agreement. I will however add that although the jewelry can indeed enter the Yaoqing’s market, it must be heavily regulated for… obvious reasons.”

She didn't forget her histories, for the love of Lan, no!  The Xianzhou natives had once been devotees of Yaoshi, until the countless Amber Eras and wars showed them how foolish and shortsighted they had been. Yaoshi was a healer and a tormentor, and they saw it clearer than ever.

“I understand. One cannot blame you for leaving that Aeon to THEIR branches.”,

A funny joke, be it not for the circumstances. Feixiao looked around, hoping to find something else to gain from the defeated nation.

“Trade isn't enough, Judge Asnawi. How about you take into consideration the thing that started this mess?”

The fateful wedding, the judges recalled. It had been a grand affair, meant to unite the lines of Crown Princess Khasaera Daluyong and Prince Diego Matanglawin, a  minor nobleman who commanded lands at the border of Sierra Bagwis and the Dumagat region.  The five judges were still puzzled about how a whole pack of Borisan was able to infiltrate the high up castle without detection, something which they had tried to pry from Mok Tok (he refused to answer).

“You want one of us to marry someone from the Xianzhou Alliance?”, Menandro asked, rather softly. Everyone's eyes turned to Deshna, who was undoubtedly looking exquisite.

“Yes.”, Feixiao replied with her arms crossed. “Consider this both a new alliance and a bit of a payment for the incident during the Red Wedding. Besides, we just discovered a little too late, that Tanglaw is home to a certain blessed bloodline of dragons.”

Deshna stood abruptly, ignoring the delicate glimmers and sparks of her crystal ornamentations on her hair and neck; “I will not be some snivelling Vidyadharis broodmare. And what's the point? Long have their seeds turned to seawater — they cannot procreate anyway!”

Feixiao let out a soft ‘ah’, and her eyes lit up with realization.

“I cannot believe you gave her ideas right under Yaoshi's nose!” Asnawi grumbled.

“I did not!” Deshna protested, sitting back down.

“Yes you did!”, three of the judges accused, all except for Ulan, who remained voiceless throughout the meeting, except for signing and gesturing.

“In light of the Vidyadharis lack of representation capabilities, then I shall look elsewhere, more long-term.” Feixiao decided, seemingly spurred by the short argument between the draconic leadership before her. Asnawi looked the most desperate and he internally pleaded that the general of the Yaoqing would not go there — not when the wounds of war were too fresh.

“Raya it is.”

The Konsul were clearly too stunned to act. Feixiao smirked and quickly drew up a contact. “In the absence of a suitable nobleman from Tanglaw to give a Xianzhou Vidyadhara some much-needed heirs, a  match between two freshly reincarnated dragons will suffice.”

*You want Raya to marry one of your own!?*, Ulan gestured, standing up and pointing an accusing finger at Feixiao.

“Why not?  It's more secure, and both nations can benefit from an international match in the long run.”

*She’s a hatchling! You should know better, as the person responsible for getting her reincarnated in the first place.*

Feixiao blinked. Ulan didn't have to go that low, but in situations like these…

“She won't be marrying at this stage, for the love of Lan no! Instead, we will wait until she's fully attained her dragonhood for the wedding to be planned. She can still have her childhood, albeit filled with the duties of her predecessors.”

It was a good plan, only they wished it didn't have to come to this. The thought of losing their Crimson Dragon forever was daunting, even If the newest one was sleeping somewhere in the palace.

“We accept.” Asnawi finally spoke up, resigned. “At least raise this intended of hers to be a good person, one who respects everyone regardless of which Aron they follow. This pact of ours shall seal the alliance we were supposed to have all those months ago.”

The rest of the judges nodded and affixed their signatures on the piece of paper where the treaty lay inscribed.

Five signatures for the hand of a dragoness touched by the Hunt.

The side doors opened, revealing both Raya and Zhongfeng, giggling like they have known each other for many years.  Feixiao stared after her as she and the young Vidyadhara passed by, the young judge-to-be pointing at a portrait on the wall.

“I’ve never seen those leaves before. Do people actually wear them?”

“Yes.”, Zhongfeng replied: “the philosopher kings used to, but they're gone now.”

“Maybe one still lives? I'd really like to meet one. Are they famous?”

“Famously intelligent.”

The children disappeared into the closing doors, leaving the adults in the room, perplexed.

“At least they're starting as friends."

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