Mingxi sat at the edge of the clearing, cloak draped loosely over his lap, shirt discarded beside him. Morning sunlight traced the hard lines of his shoulders, catching on the angry claw marks raked across his skin.
Poppy knelt beside him, her breath steadying as she opened the small travel satchel Minghua had insisted she take. The herbs inside were neatly bundled, a tiny jar of salve nestled between them with a faint silver fox painted on the lid.
Poppy smiled faintly, knowing Minghua had packed this. Poppy dipped two fingers into the salve and hesitated.
“May I?”
Mingxi looked at her—not with Foxborn aloofness or Councilor reserve, but with something softer. Something vulnerable.
“Yes,” he said quietly.
She shifted closer, and Mingxi exhaled a breath like he was preparing for a battle he wasn’t sure he wanted to win. Poppy touched his shoulder. He sucked in a sharp breath, but he didn’t seem in pain; instead, she sensed he was shocked by the fingertips on his bare skin. She paused, unsure.
“Too much?” she whispered.
“No,” he said, voice low. “Just… unexpected.”
She nodded and began spreading the salve gently along the unbroken edges of the wounds. Mingxi tensed and then forced himself to relax.
Her movements were careful, slow, almost reverent.
“You’ve fought creatures like this before?” she asked softly.
“Many,” he murmured. “But not while guarding someone who…” He stopped.
“Someone who what?”
He didn’t answer right away.
Her hand brushed lower along the muscle of his arm.
“Your breathing changed,” she said quietly, eyes focused on the wound. “It still hurts.”
“Some,” he admitted.
“You don’t have to endure in silence, you know.”
He huffed a soft laugh. “A Foxborn with pride? Impossible.”
Poppy smiled despite herself. She reached for more salve, her thigh brushing his knee as she shifted. His breath hitched, and Poppy couldn’t help but lean in closer. When her fingers touched the center of the wound, he hissed softly.
“Sorry,” she whispered.
“You’re fine,” he breathed. “It’s just…”
“What?”
“You’re gentle.”
She could feel the heat rise to her cheeks. “I’m trying not to hurt you.”
“You’re succeeding.”
Her hands slowed even more.
“You take care of everyone else,” she murmured. “Even me. You should let someone take care of you.”
Mingxi turned his head slightly, and she felt the intensity of his stare when he said, “And you want to be that someone?”
