"There's absolutely no way I'm eating that," Anri's lip curled in disgust at the deep-fried insect in her face.

"Don't be so shamelessly dismissive, you don't even know what it tastes like." Chen Kou held it closer. He was out of uniform today with his gold armband serving as the sole symbol of his status in the palace. A straight collar led to an overcoat which was a muted shade of yellow, not quite bright enough to be mistaken for the imperial gold colour only those of the royal family were permitted to wear. The proportion of the sleeves made Anri assume the top piece had been designed for more of an over-sized look– though it somehow managed to look normal on Chen Kou.

"I don't need to know, I'm quite satisfied with this pork bun," she opened her mouth to reveal the chewed up contents of her snack.

"Are you sure?" Chen Kou waved the skewer in her face, and she mimed gagging on the roach. "Suit yourself," he popped the critter into his mouth with a crunch. "Mm..."

Quietly, Anri savoured the last bite of her delicious soup dumpling and made a mental note to come back to this specific shop. The delicacies greatly exceeded her expectations of what had been promised.

What had been advertised to her as a lunch together had turned out to be a walking food tour of Tianan's best snacks. Chen Kou graciously brought her from booth to booth in the cluttered marketplace, where merchants were eagerly advertising their "best in the city" dishes, each hoping to make a month's worth of rent off of all the guests who flocked to the port for the festival. Luckily, the crown prince had gifted her with a set of modest robes for the festival, so they weren't attracting too many greedy eyes. Despite the simplicity, it was still one of the finest dresses she'd worn. The fabric was a light green, with lace trimming at the hems and gold branches embroidered on the sleeves. She was thankful for the light fabric in the hot summer heat, and did her best to ignore the sweat that gathered under her chest as they moved from store to store.

Anri grinned as she bit into her next snack– a delicious fish cake. The flavour burst out from within as her teeth punctured the waxy skin. Droplets of burning juice splashed her face and she flinched back indignantly. "Hey!"

"Mm–" Chen Kou, the perpetrator, grinned with his mouth wide open, desperately huffing out steam in short gasps. "Hot!"

"Here, use this. Don't choke on it though, you greedy fool." She handed him a handkerchief from her blouse pocket and a piece of candied watermelon to cool him down.

"Thanks," he grinned, "do you want to try some of the sweet buns next?"

"Sure," she said as they dashed to the next stall. This store featured a brilliant display of vibrantly coloured specialty buns. From lively rabbits to foliage, the artistic vision and skill of the baker was clearly displayed on the surface of the treats. "How do they make the leaves so green?" she wondered out loud.

"We use a special food colouring, miss," the baker eagerly explained. "It's more viscous than most, so instead of colouring the whole flour it seeps through the dough to create this leaf-like pattern you see here."

She marvelled at the technique and caught Chen Kou grinning proudly out of the corner of her eye.

"Tianan is famous for coming up with these specialized artisanal crafts." The baker motioned to the many choices available in front of her. "Would you like a custard bun? They're delightfully sweet, perfect for a sweet lady like yourself."

The request caught her off guard. "Oh, uh-"

"Let's get a candy stick instead," Chen Kou jumped in. "Her family's custard buns are one-of-a-kind, so she has high standards when it comes to those."

The shopkeeper bristled at the insinuation that his bread wasn't good enough, but softened at a wink from Chen Kou. He handed them a skewer of three candies- a fish, cat and butterfly- on a stick.

She took it gratefully from him, and thanked Chen Kou silently in her mind. His hand on the small of her back was a welcome support as well as he handed over a few coins. She did her best to forget the last time she'd had custard buns. Her mouth watered as she savoured the candy in contrast to the tears she felt prickling at the corners of her eyes at her last memory of sharing custard buns with her mother in their kitchen.

"It's hard to forget, isn't it?" Chen Kou's voice jolted her out of her trance.

She nodded silently, knowing that her voice would crack and give her away. Chen Kou had guided them to a white wooden bench on the side of the crowded main street.

"I don't have a lot of memories of my parents, but when I do, they come out of nowhere and in waves. Everyone has one or two unsuspecting things that remind them of forgotten memories hidden away," he gestured at some of the sweetshops next to them.

"What're yours?" she asked quietly.

He leaned back and draped an arm across the back of the bench, looking thoughtful. "My mother was a fan of specialty teas. We used to have teatime in the afternoon every day, and she would show me all her new mixes." His eyes crinkled fondly at the memory. "Jasmine was her favourite."

"Is that why you surround yourself with it?'

The edge of his mouth lifted up in a crooked smile. "Not many people notice that."

She snorted. "I find that hard to believe- you reek. The first time I met you, I thought you washed your clothes in jasmine scented water."

"You caught me," he put his hands up, "though the tea stains are difficult to get out of the fabric. That's why I wear dark clothes all the time."

"Here I was thinking you were going for the sullen warrior atmosphere," she laughed, biting the head off her fish candy. It was soft and chewy, and she liked the resistance.

"The ladies love it," he raised an eyebrow and leaned the weight of his head on his hand lazily.

"Gross," she rolled her eyes. "Isn't it stupid that the mere mention of custard buns almost brings me to tears? I used to love making sweets. I was way better at cooking, but I loved baking with my mom."

"From what I know about grief, it comes in waves and in the most surprising of forms," Chen Kou shrugged. "I get sad whenever I smell jasmine- I get sad a lot. You might never get over it but the memories change over time."

"How so?"

"They become reminders of the fact that someone loved you in the past," his eyes were dark but there was a smile behind them. "Not everyone gets to be loved."

"I'm really lucky to have loved and lost then," she exhaled softly.

"You must really love Ming Lee's poems to be able to recite them so quickly. Speaking of whom, I should introduce you sometime later."

"Really?" Anri brightened up, sadness momentarily forgotten.

"Of course he's only able to meet fans if his wife lets him," Chen Kou chuckled at the thought.

"I'm really looking forward to meeting them both," she crossed her arms, "she sounds like a really strong woman."

"It's a good trait to have," Chen Kou said with one brow raised at her, and she reddened. Seeing her flush, he quickly moved on. "Hey, you know what? Let's go make a wish."

"A wish?"

"It's a festival tradition at the Magnolia!" he yanked her to her feet. Laughing, Anri tossed her used candy stick away and ran after him. The summer breeze caressed her cheek, sweeping strands of her hair back to frame her face. The festival was a nice distraction from the past few weeks.

Colourful decorations spanned the city square, each merchant outdoing the next with extravagant paper ornaments proudly displayed on their store front. Villagers and tourists alike surrounded the Magnolia, who was somehow even more magnificent than she was yesterday. Her strong trunk was newly enhanced by many papers plastered on the bark, reaching up to even the most top branches. The wind chimes tinkled in response as each person moved past to stick their own wish onto the tree, covering its entirety except for the area with the carved dragon and phoenix in a perpetual embrace.

"High-quality wishes! These will last for at least a week!" A boy ran up to Anri with a fistful of multicoloured papers.

"Three days is more like it!" another merchant to their right heckled. "Mine will last for five though!"

The boy ignored him and shot her his brightest smile, holding up the wishes in his right hand. "Are you interested, lady?"

"Sure, I'd like two please," she softened at the sight of his wide grin.

Chen Kou exchanged coins with wishes from the boy, his eyes crinkling at the corners as the kid scampered off to bother his next target.

"How do we write on this?" Anri asked once the boy had left.

"You've never written with wish paper before?" Chen Kou's jaw dropped, an incredulous expression plastered on his face. "You wet your fingers and write your wish down. The paper is made from sea-sponge so it holds the water better than normal paper. Here–" he handed her his carved water flask, "it's easier if you just try."

"We didn't have inventions like this back home," she laughed. She wet her fingers with the cool water and began tracing the first character of her wish. Chen Kou grinned at her amazement when the yellow paper turned dark blue where her finger left a wet trail. She finished the rest of her wish and held it up for him to see.

Peaceful days.

"That's very anri of you," Chen Kou rolled his eyes.

"Yea," she sighed. "I just wish for peace in Kyutan, and for me to be left alone once everything is over. What're you going to wish for?"

"Is it bad luck to want this same thing?" He mused, tapping his chin with a long finger before dropping it to write his own wish. He finished writing faster than she had, and held up a singular character. Strength.

"For the king," he confessed. "And Jin, and you, and me, and everyone else."

"That's such a general thing to write," Anri scoffed, but in her heart, she secretly liked the way he'd written his wish, with lilting strokes and a careless, heavy hand.

"That's General Chen to you," Chen Kou said, grinning.

"I suppose that makes me Lady Lin," she raised an eyebrow and extended her hand. "General."

Rising to the bait, intentionally or not, Chen Kou held the tips of her fingers gently and raised her hand to his lips. Anri snatched her hand back quickly, ignoring the rising heat she swore crept over her cheeks.

They dipped their fingers into a gooey mixture in the clay pots adjacent to the tree and wiped the back of their wishes with the gum. Some of the wishes on the trunk were already peeling off, unable to resist the wind. Anri eyed the strong branches arching over their heads, "can we..."

"I got it," Chen Kou wrapped the top of their wishes around a tall branch, securing both in place. They fluttered in the breeze but remained firmly anchored.

"Thanks," she chirped, admiring the way they flitted in the wind like a pair of ribbon dancers. The sun filtered through the leaves of the Magnolia as it grew lower in the sky, leaving dappled shadows over their faces. The crowd seemed to shift up the main street, everyone heading eagerly to the next attraction.

"The festival is starting," Chen Kou grinned, "let's go."

Anri found herself sandwiched between members of a large family as they shifted towards the ceremony, but her slender size made it easy to slip out and reunite with Chen Kou. "It's a bit crowded, isn't it?" she huffed into the shoulder of a brawny soldier directing traffic.

"Follow me," Chen Kou tapped her arm and she turned to find him pushing his way gently to the right of the main street. She followed him into a cozy side-street without further questions. "It feels so good to breathe again," she groaned after pushing herself out of the crowd with a heave.

"We're out of the crowd, but are you up for a harder walk?" Chen Kou asked. He leaned against the wall, a rope wrapped around his forearm and hand.

Anri widened her eyes. "What?"

"Great," he smiled. "We're taking the scenic view."

With that, he disappeared upwards and out of view. Moments later, the same piece of rope fell back down in front of her like a bait. "Just hold on tight," he called from the rooftop.

"Okay, but just so you know, this is a lot for a first DATE–" Anri yelped as her body flew into the air. She briefly saw the mass of people still on the street from above, before she slammed onto the roof, landing on her side and splintering several lacquered planks in the process. A ceramic tile fell of the side of the roof where she had landed, splintering into fifty pieces on the ground below. "Oops," she cringed.

"Who said anything about a date?" Chen Kou mused. "I'm just showing the new girl around town."

"Well," she stood up with a huff, "the new girl would love to see more of town and less of General Chen."

"Duty calls," he shrugged. "Right this way, Lady Lin."

The scenic route was, in fact, a path through town atop of the tallest buildings in Tianan. It was roughly constructed, cutting across bakeries, restaurants, bookstores, and even stables. Joining paths included bridges made of rope, stone sculptures, planks, and Anri's personal favourite– a wooden pole. The sun lit up the lacquered tops of the buildings with a golden glow, and she marvelled at the main street below which gave her a whole new appreciation for the decorations from above. Vendors were closing up shop and people were putting up street lanterns, which illuminated the path to the palace like beautiful golden arrows.

"Come here often?" she asked. Chen Kou seemed impressed at the way she was keeping up with him in a light jog.

"Only when I'm running late to court," he chuckled. "So... often."

"Sounds to me like you're not doing too much, General."

"Definitely not enough," Chen Kou grimaced. "The work never ends, but it's not always wise to volunteer yourself for every role."

"The king loves you though, doesn't he?"

Chen Kou's face lit up slightly before falling back into its usual morose expression, the sun casting flat shadows across his face as they weaved through the city. "I know he does, but he can't protect me."

"I always thought it was your job to protect him, not the other way around."

"Fair enough," he laughed, scratching the back of his hair absentmindedly. His glass earring glittered gold in the sunset. "It would just be nice to have someone looking out for me, you know?"

"You have a Golden Talon. You're part of the Kingsteel– I'm sure you have more than enough friends."

"It's lonely at the top," Chen Kou closed his eyes dramatically and opened his arms with a flourish.

"Seriously?" she scowled.

"In all seriousness though, I wish I were as trusting as you." He glanced lazily at her. "You realize we're not all friends, right? They'd happily see me skewered on the front lines of the war if it meant they could get to my position. Heck– they'd probably do it themselves."

"Are we friends?"

"You want affirmation or something?" Chen Kou held eye contact with her, his gaze unwavering.

"You know I got your back," she blurted out. He raised a brow.

"You're good, Anri, but I wouldn't ask that of you here. Don't take the Golden Talon lightly."

She flushed, both from the rejection and from embarrassment. "I did almost beat you," she started. Her voice sounded thin and childish, even to her own ears.

"That is true," Chen Kou said with a lilt, as if debating something. "But I'm left-handed."

She recalled with a start that he had been using his other hand during their spars. "Oh," she managed weakly, "show-off."

"Don't get me wrong, you're an incredible swordsman," Chen Kou shook his hands out in front of him. "I know you're going to be one of the best in all Kyutan once you start training with us. Small fish, big pond."

"If you say so," she rolled her eyes.

He reached out and grabbed her shoulder, forcing her to turn back and face him. "I mean it, Anri. You're amazing."

A breeze drifted between them, taking away with it the foolish response on her lips, and everything around them slowed. His collar fluttered and she tightened her grip on the silk of her dress. The summer wind held a slight chill, as if reminding them that time was slipping through their fingers, and fall would be here soon along with new adventures.

"Look," he nudged her towards the scene in front of her. "We're just in time."

Paths of lanterns lit up the street, converging at the palace which was decorated in a wash of white and gold. A procession of palanquins and carriages trailed though the main gates, which were wide open. Throngs of people gathered inside the courtyard, and she could see that the crowd was thickest in the yard of the Temple of Heaven.

"Come on, they're starting!" Chen Kou leapt up, laughing as he grabbed a lantern and slid to the ground. She followed suit, smiling as she soared through the air.

They ran through the gates towards the temple, and Anri couldn't help giggling as she put one foot in front of the other, fistfuls of silk gripped in her hands. Chen Kou's eyes were bright with a child-like air, and the lights around them reflected in his eyes. Two guards ran out to stop them, only to retreat with widened eyes at the golden band around Chen Kou's wrist.

Ropes of multi-coloured ribbons and wind chimes were fastened between the Temple's columns, casting flecks of light on the nobles below who were just settling into their seats. The warm glow of the lanterns vanquished any ominous shadows and lingering darkness that she had felt yesterday.

"Over here," Chen Kou whispered low into her ear, and she followed him to their reserved seats. They were sitting in one of the elevated rows at the back, which offered both privacy and a good view. The emperor and empress commanded the people's respect at the front of the ceremony, with Jin by their right side in a brilliant coat of white and gold embroidery. The empress looked happier than she had yesterday, with one hand wrapped in the crook of her husband's elbow, her fingers tipped with thin golden talons. Anri shivered as she glanced at the sharp tips, imagining how easily they could slice and scar. The emperor himself was seated comfortably and confidently on an intricately carved bench of lacquered wood. With a pang, she realized they had probably arranged for Chen Kou to be seated here with her, so he was kept out of view of the other nobles.

"I'm sorry you have to be here with me," she apologized, noticing other members of the Kingsteel seated directly across from them.

"I'm not," Chen Kou tilted his head and flashed her a smile. "It's much safer to be here anyways."

"For you, or for them?" she nodded her head towards the royal family.

"Both. I can protect them best from a distance."

"And who's protecting you?" she fidgeted with the edge of her skirt on her lap. Now that the sun had set, the night was growing cold.

"I thought you were." Chen Kou nudged her with his shoulder. "Shh– it's starting," he murmured. Pairs of eunuchs walked out to the courtyard, each holding a torch. Together, they brought it over and down their heads in wide arch, setting alight the fire pots that were found evenly dispersed in front of the guests.

Anri recognized the thin figure that waltzed onto the center of the stage, thick hair cutting through the air like dark illustrious ribbons. Reya looked every bit the priestess that she was, pale skin somehow made even paler in the dusk. Her lips quivered as she half sang, half muttered an incantation. The scarlet fan in her left hand danced in the lantern light, and her right hand held an iron rod with metal links at the top, which rung out whenever she slammed the base into the stone. Clang. Anri found herself leaning forward with her hands on her knees, hypnotized by the way the priestess swayed and flashed her fan in front of her.

Reya howled into the dark sky, the sound echoing through the crowd, who ceased their muttering. The hair on her arms stood up and she wrapped her dress more tightly around her arms.

"It's eerie, isn't it?" Chen Kou was looking at her intently.

She nodded. "What is this?"

"As head priestess, it's her duty to commune with the spirits and allow them to speak to us. If there's any grievances we've caused, we need to fix them before winter comes," he shuddered. "A winter without their mercy is a long one indeed."

Another shout from Reya silenced any reply on her lips. Four other priestesses joined her in dance, the red trim on their dresses floating like rings around them as they twisted and twirled. Reya thrust the tip of the iron rod into the flames directly below the emperor's dais. The crowd seemed to lean in together– what they were waiting for though, Anri had no idea. Her questions were answered in the seconds that followed, and she watched with interest as the end of the rod began to spark and smoke. The smoke that billowed from the fire pot grew a dark ruby red, the vapours twisting together forming shadowed figures. Reya's face grew deathly pale, and her mouth grew crooked as she wailed her strange incantations faster and faster. She drew her head upwards and her whole body seemed to snap back. Anri gasped when she saw the priestess' face, and she felt Chen Kou stiffen next to her. Reya's hair was disheveled from the dance, but what frightened her was the way her eyelids trembled, drawn tightly shut over her eyes, a thin, glowing crescent visible.

"This isn't right," Chen Kou muttered.

"Is she okay?" Anri looked furtively around them. Everyone seemed more on edge than before. She saw a mother across from them grab her son by the hand and slink into the crowd.

"Come with me," Chen Kou ordered. She was too worried about Reya to protest his commanding her. They weaved through the lords in front of them, bowing apologetically for the disturbance. The closer they came to the dais, the smaller Anri felt. The emperor and empress paid them no heed, too engrossed in the ceremony to notice a fallen general and insignificant lady. Jin, on the other, glanced at them briefly, though his expression gave nothing away.

A clash of steel barred Anri from stepping any further. "You are forbidden from coming any closer to the ceremony," the guard said coolly. She lost sight of Chen Kou, who had disappeared into the shadows of the flames.

"The priestess needs help," she pleaded and pointed over his shoulder.

"This interruption will stop now. Come with us," the guard grabbed her wrist and twisted it back. She cried out and kneed him in the groin with all her might, ripping the front of her new dress.

"What is the meaning of this?"

Anri's heart dropped with a thud into her stomach– the emperor's call had halted all music and she felt every pair of eyes boring into her. Luckily, what happened next drew away all attention.

With a roar, the flames in the first pots erupted into the night sky, forming pillars or fire and smoke taller than even the Magnolia. The auburn smoke that had previously emanated from the iron rod in Reya's hand quivered and shifted into fumes of dark shadow, snaking through the air as if it had a mind of its own. The priestess collapsed just as Chen Kou leapt out to catch her in his arms. Anri sighed in short-lived relief, which was quickly replaced by terror.

"What's happening?" one of the guards demanded, his expression immediately changing when he saw the scene in front of him.

Reya had begun to shake, whisps of the shadows descending onto her and Chen Kou. "General Chen!" Anri yelled out. The air was hot and heavy in her throat, and she saw the emperor stand up in alarm out of the corner of her eye. Several guards rushed out to help but immediately faltered with a wave of Chen Kou's hand. "Fall back!" he choked out, one hand wrapped tightly around Reya's twitching body, the other holding his collar around his mouth and nose. She watched in horror as the tendrils of smoke paid no heed to the thin fabric, seeping in through the cotton and attacking Chen Kou's throat. The crowd in the courtyard broke into a wild frenzy, spilling towards the nearest exits.

The shadow coalesced together and twirled higher and higher in the air, until it formed the shape of open jaws. No, not just jaws– Anri felt a chill sweep through the air as she faced the head of an enormous dragon shaped from the dark smoke, as tall as the fire pillars. A woman running past her jostled her out of her stunned stupor and she managed to straighten herself up.

"Hello, old man," the dragon grinned darkly, turning its gaze to the throne. The empress had long since fled in a flurry of red silk, leaving her husband and son at the front. Neither of them betrayed any sign of fear.

"Who are you?" the emperor's face was hardened like stone. Jin stood next to him, eyes darting between his father and the shadowy mass.

"Don't you know? I visit your borders every so often." The dragon narrowed the holes it had for eyes, and tilted its head up to release a horrible laugh. Against her will, Anri's legs refused to move and she shook in place. So this is what true fear felt like.

"Someone's off their game," the dragon continued. "Getting old so soon, old man?"

"Is this what this is to you? A game?" Jin stepped forward, ignoring the warning from his father. "Our people's lives are not some trivial playthings to be toyed with."

"Our people?" The voice hissed. "And what about our people do you care about?"

"Lord Wutian, this has crossed the line," the emperor bellowed. "You best prepare yourself for war as soon as you can get that pathetic army of yours to listen to you." She clenched her fists at the sight of Chen Kou who had keeled over Reya's body. He grimaced through the smog and his eyes seem to send out a silent plea.

"I want what's mine," the dragon reeled back and growled "–and I want it NOW!"

Too late was the emperor and Jin's reaction. The head of the beast dispersed into a thick cloud of dark tendrils that immediately whipped towards the emperor and prince.

"No!" Anri cried, her limbs finally obeying her orders. She leapt up the stone railing in a single step and threw herself in front of them.

"Anri!" Chen Kou yelled out, sliding Reya to the floor. He made it about two steps to her before he was brought to his knees by the darkness, two hands wrapped around his throat.

As the shadow contacted her skin, all the hairs on her body stood up and she felt power thrum through her body like a thousand volts of electricity. She felt the sting of a whip as a tendril of smoke caressed her cheek. The force of evil worked its way into her chest, only to be repelled by something within her that vanquished it with a roar. The burst of darkness hit her square in the chest, and she flew backwards towards the dais. Clashes of steel and screeches reverberated in her mind and it was all she could to do keep from screaming.

She slammed into Jin, who caught her. "You stupid girl!" He shook her awake, but she was too weak to answer. The last thing she saw before her eyelids closed was the paralyzing fear on his face.