“I found him in the woods,” she agrees. “He’s sleeping here for now.”

Hisheng nods. He looks a bit conflicted, but by the time he nods his emotions have settled. It’s reassuring, seeing him like that. He hasn’t changed.

Well. He has, more than a little.

Hisheng is impressively sized. Impressive muscles, impressive height, impressive overall physique, a rather large amount of it on display between a low-cut set of robes that he holds casually open. That’s one of the things that defines him, actually: casual. He exudes easy confidence, comfort in his own skin, strength in knowing exactly who he is and standing firm in that. His head is shaved, his face clean-shaven to match, and a set of spiraling tattoos like the roots of a tree decorate his rich, tanned skin, and bright green eyes look out from a face equipped with a strong jawline and surprisingly soft nose.

But that little tick, where he takes that half second, analyzes what’s in front of him and makes a conclusion, and then holds himself to it… that’s the same.

She kneels down as Li Shu comes closer and plucks the kid off her back, lifting him up. He’s in his early teens, so not too big yet, but it’s still kind of funny watching her hold him like a little kid, no matter how easy cultivation strength makes it. She gives Raika a look, like she’s asking if she’ll be fine- the Mask nods back. They’ll be alright.

She takes the rug with the corpse in it and walks downhill towards their visitor.

Qen Hou stays right where he’s standing, arms lightly crossed. He’s shorter than Hisheng, but most people are shorter than Hisheng; he’s almost 6’5, and that’s without cultivating a technique focused on his body. Qen Hou stays right on him anyways, not close enough to demand a fight or to properly intimidate, but keeping his presence felt and keeping said presence between Hisheng and the cabin. She gives him a nod, and he nods back.

“I’m alright, Qen Hou. He’s just here to talk, right?”

Hisheng nods, bashful as ever. “Just here to check in, that’s all.”

Qen Hou just gives another nod, a softer one this time.

Hisheng smiles at Raika as Qen Hou gives them a bit more space, though he doesn’t go too far. “He’s a lot more confident compared to when we first met. It’s good to see.”

“Yeah, well, he’s been getting dick on the regular. Tends to affect one’s confidence.”

Hisheng chuckles, rubbing the back of his head. “I… fair enough. I can’t disagree. Um… I don’t know what your relationships are, but hopefully you also…”

Raika laughs softly, the Mask shaking their head. “Nah. Their thing is theirs. Don’t get me wrong, Hao Nera’s great and Li Shu… had a crush on her for a good while. Maybe still a bit, she’s genuinely great. But their stuff is still building, you know? Not my place to butt in.”

“Oh. Yeah, I… well, I wasn’t sure. I’m… that’s a pretty mature view of it.”

“Don’t sound so surprised,” she laughs. “Come on. I’m gonna check in on the pond.”

“Sorry, sorry! Just… still catching up on all the changes. It’s weird to see. Still not used to having look up to talk with you, nevermind not having you angry all the time.”

“Was I really? Angry all the time?”

He sighs, walking alongside her as they go downhill. The sun is, by this point, well and truly beginning to set, hitting the edges of twilight, and the stars and moons provide most of the illumination. It makes for a picturesque view, the last few hints of red and gold on the horizon fading to pale white and the slightest hint of purple from above. Hisheng walks alongside her, and she can actually smell the way his Qi moves with him. He keeps cycling it, always active, and the scent of vibrant, rich earth, full of crawling and growing things that enrich it further. His Qi smells of a sort of loop, feeding into itself, enriching the soil and that which grows, vast and safe, deep beneath it.

“I mean… you were. Yeah. Even before you got that nickname, before you started taking the rougher missions. Always training, always punching something. If you wanted something, you went for it, which I really admired, but sometimes it felt like what you wanted to go for was just a whim, you know? What you wanted, not what you needed. It’s… I don’t know, it’s just good to see you thinking things through a bit.”

She laughs. “Yeah… been working on that. Made some impulsive decisions that backfired. Now I’m… well. I’m absolutely still doing crazy shit, I’m just trying to make it so it’s a real choice, not just…”

“Acting stupid because you’re mad?”

She gives him a look, and he laughs. “Sorry, sorry. But…”

“No. You’re right. It’s important to understand who I was, the parts of it good and bad. Though hearing an ex lover go down the list isn’t exactly what I’d call fun.”

He laughs again, and it remains that same rich baritone chuckle she always loved to listen to. She liked it best cuddled up on his chest, when she could hear it rumble, hear how it stretched his ribs and how his scars flexed and moved with it.

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She shakes her head, clearing her thoughts. They’re coming up on the pond now.

“I know it’s strange, still, between us. I… I’m still sorry about everything. I’m happy you took me up on my offer, though.”

She shrugs, the movement a bit more languid than if it were entirely honest. “You were very convincing. And… it was a kind offer.”

“I’m only sad I can’t give more, honestly. It’s… it means a lot to be able to help you, after what happened. I know I didn’t know, but still, I’m glad I had something to offer, no matter how small.”

She laughs, a bit more honestly this time. “I wouldn’t call finding an entire plot of land small, Hisheng. If we hadn’t found this place, the next best option was to go to the fourth ring to hide, and that’s not exactly something we’re ready for.”

“...Ready for, eh? So you do intend to go out there someday.”

“Yeah. Yeah, I do. I… well. Not just yet. I’ve got a lot of refining and work to do here, and… I still need some time.”

Hisheng smiles, and it’s bright. “I’m… well. You don’t know how nice it is to hear that from you. I couldn’t be happier, seeing you like this. Well… maybe I could. Your new arm is a bit terrifying. But seeing you with good people around you, not alone all the time… even taking care of a kid now, it would seem. A lot of big changes. I couldn’t have imagined this for you when we knew each other.

“I’m only sorry at how much you ended up hurting to get here.”

She sighs, but nods. “I… I don’t like the idea that pain defines us. Everything defines us, not just pain. But I got a shitload of it, and I’ve done my best with it. And… I like what I’ve done. Who I’m becoming.”

“I do too.”

They make it to the edge of the pond, and Raika sighs as she sits herself down, letting the lactic acid from her run sit and fizzle out rather than Changing it away. “How about you? I… I feel like last time we talked I wasn’t in the best headspace. Been a few months, and I guess I wanted to check on you too.”

Hisheng smiles, though it seems a bit… reserved. He sits down next to her, a lot more gracefully than Raika did, ending up in a perfect yet somehow comfortable looking lotus position.

“I’ve been alright. There was some upheaval at the sect when we found out you were alive. I wanted to sprint over straight away, but my master held me back. Elder Mo is… I’ve never seen him get as livid as when he heard about what happened, but I owe him a lot of my self control. There was talk of trying to censor the Silver Song family for lying on their records, but I don’t know if anything’s come of it. But Elder Mo actually ended up calling an Imperial healer for me, told me I was on the verge of forming heart demons. I was a mess when I found out that you’d been… that you went through that alone.

“But it’s… strange. I don’t know if you’ve ever had someone manipulate your meridians and mind like that, I don’t know how your current state works, but it was… uncomfortable. Like feeling yourself be peeled open like a glove to be worn, lint picked out from your corners. If given the choice, I wouldn’t do it again. When they were done I didn’t feel at peace, I felt… emptied. Static. Like the things that had so haunted me were just missing, not resolved. It helped, and maybe I was such a mess it was warranted, but I can’t help but wonder at what went with those potential demons, or who I could have been had I resolved them. It was a crutch, and one that I didn’t enjoy.”

She smiles, nice and wide, and he gives her a confused look.

“What?”

“Nothing! Just… you’ve grown too. I used to think you were always passive, always willing to step back so another could eat first or to obey our masters. Hearing you say that you miss the adversity, that you might have liked to be able to fight and choose for yourself, is a pleasant surprise.”

He smiles at that, though he does fall to his habit of rubbing the back of his bald head in mild embarrassment. “Thank you for saying so. I’m happy to pleasantly surprise you.”

“You found me a place to hide, somewhere to be safe and grow myself and my friends. So much of you has been pleasantly surprising, considering what it must have cost to find and keep this place hidden.”

“It was worth it. I owed you at least that much, and- um. Raika? Is your rug bleeding?”

She looks down and notices that yes, actually, the rug has gotten a dark splotch that is starting to leak out onto the grass.

“Ah! Yeah, killed a guy earlier. Figured I’d feed him to the pond.”

Hisheng says nothing, and she looks over to find him staring at her.

“I assumed it was something you hunted! And what does “feeding him to the pond” mean?”

“Oh! Watch!”

She rolls the corpse, rug bundle and all, right into the pond. Immediately, the pond comes awake.

There is a roiling of the water, like eels, but there is no life present. Impossible currents and shifting patterns of water roll over the rug, unwrapping it like a bundle of sweets from a cloth. Many of the strange currents and tendrils actually pick up or become partially formed from dirt, algae, and even small fish, as if they’re all integrated into one cohesive whole, all parts of the same impossible entity.

Illuminated in the light of the moons, the body of the cultivator, the remains of his defensive artifact, and all but one of his rings (the only one that’s a spatial treasure, which Raika took back in the clearing where they fought) are literally unmade. They aren’t torn apart; rather, it seems like they dissolve, become like drifting particles or liquify as they are pulled into the water and its grasping tendrils, and then down into the deeper parts of the pond.

“When we left Cragend, a friend of mine gifted me a tiny piece of the Heart under the city. I hid it in the ground, considering our experience with it. The bamboo started blooming on the perimeter a few days later. We got worried at first, but Li Shu and Hao Nera found out that it was keeping out most of the animals and nearly all the bugs. Came by to check on the pond, and, well… there you go.”

Hisheng looks at where the body was, now entirely vanished and remade into crystal-clear waters again.

“Who was he?” he asks softly.

“A cultivator from a nearby village. I go to buy supplies there sometimes, sell little trinkets I make. He decided to bully the weak, more than once. Threatened me, and knew enough that someone might put the pieces together if he told anyone about me. So… I gave him a few chances to just leave, and he decided it would be the better choice to keep making demands and threats. It wasn’t.”

Hisheng nods, saddened, but not angry like she expected. “I’ll say a prayer for his soul, and hope that his death was swift.”

“It was.”

Hisheng gives a sad, quiet little laugh at that.

“You’ve given me a lot to think about, Raika. If… if it’s ok, I’d like to come back. Maybe next month, to ensure I’m not followed. It would be nice to talk again.”

She smiles, every part of her feeling a bit lighter at hearing those words.

“Yeah. I’d like that.”

They sit and talk a while longer, and eventually, she watches him go, wandering out into the dark. She watches his broad shoulders until they vanish past the bamboo, and listens for his steps a little ways out after.

Then she sighs, long and slow, and looks at the pond.

“I’m pretty sure you don’t know what words mean, but I have to admit it to somebody. He’s so hot.”