Feng Jiao Xue woke to the scent of smoke and dew, soft earth beneath her and the weight of sleep still clinging to her limbs.
Her eyes opened slowly, lids heavy. The world was quiet, so quiet....
Feng Jiao Xue immediately sat up. 'Too quiet.' To the point that it didnt feel right. And she immediately smelled it. The metallic scent lingering in the air. Blood. It was too noticeable, too strong, as if the scent was actually covering them.
The fire had burned low sometime during the night. Only faint orange embers pulsed weakly in the shallow stone pit, the warmth barely brushing her skin. A thin layer of mist curled along the forest floor, winding lazily between roots and rocks.
And just beside her, sitting cross-legged with his tail curled close like a blanket, was Mo Tianze.
His white ears twitched once, catching a subtle shift in the air he'd noticed her stirring.
She turned her head fully to look at him.
