Five Years Later
The sound of wind whistling past her ears was the first thing Zhen registered. Then came the slapping of oversized, emerald-green leaves against her face.
Giggle.
Thump.
She hit the forest floor, rolling once, twice, and then stylishly coming up on her feet.
Behind her, the village erupted.
"ZHEN!"
Bai Yue's voice cut through the morning air like a blade, sharp enough to make birds flee from three territories over. "ZHEN, YOU GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW!"
Zhen did not get back there. Zhen was already running, her white hair streaming behind her, her purple eyes, her mother's eyes, bright with mischief.
The village was waking up around her. Cooking fires being lit. Voices rising in the familiar chaos of morning. She ducked under a clothesline, leaped over a basket of tubers, and veered left toward Mo Xiao's hut.
His door was open.
It was always open.
"MO XIAO!" she shrieked, launching herself through the doorway.
