He stepped just a little closer. “So you admit the serpent was right.”
“About what?”
“That you shine,” he said simply.
She stared at him—hurt shoulder, exhausted eyes, still-warm smile—and her chest tightened in a way she definitely did not want to examine.
“I still hate snakes,” she muttered.
“I know.”
“But I appreciate the omen part.”
He dipped his head. “Then the spirits are satisfied.”
She huffed. “I’m not.”
“Oh?” His brow lifted. “What would satisfy you?”
“An omen that doesn’t slither.”
He laughed—quiet, low, beautiful—and she let the bamboo swallow the sound as they walked deeper into the valley.
The bamboo thinned as the path curved downhill, green fading gradually into deeper hues of cedar and cypress. Mist rolled low across the roots, glowing faintly in the last scraps of sunlight. For a while, they walked in silence—Poppy still recovering from the serpent encounter, Mingxi still fighting the exhaustion tightening visibly around his eyes.
Eventually Poppy exhaled, brushing hair from her cheek.
“How long until nightfall?” she asked. “When… when will we stop?”
Mingxi glanced up at the dimming sky and then ahead into the narrowing valley.
“Soon. We’ll make camp before the cliffs.”
She nodded, though her shoulders slumped with the tired relief she tried to hide. The forest deepened to a dusky blue as they continued on, shadows stretching long and soft across the ground.
Poppy tripped once on a root; Mingxi steadied her with a hand at her elbow, his touch warm despite the chill settling in.
“You’re tired,” he murmured.
She scowled. “So are you.”
A faint smile touched his mouth. “We agree on something.”
They walked a little farther until the trail opened onto a rocky shelf overlooking a narrow stream. The light was nearly gone—sky bruised violet, stars just beginning to pierce through.
Mingxi swept the area with a quick, assessing gaze. “Here.”
Poppy looked around. “This is… what? A campsite?”
“Yes.”
“It’s just rocks and dirt.”
“That is what campsites are.”
She made a face and ignored his reaction.
The air grew colder quickly. Their breaths fogged faintly as they moved farther into the clearing. Mingxi stepped toward a fallen branch, testing its dryness with practiced efficiency.
