Thick, fat snowflakes drifted lazily from the sky, piling atop the ever-growing mounds of snow that already covered the land. Buried deep in the snow, steam poured from Pia as her overheated body and fire yi buffer counteracted the bone-chilling cold.

Curling her lips, Pia formed an O with her mouth, watching as her breath formed circles that drifted off into the air. On either side of her, Lei, to her left, and Chasu, to her right, panted heavily in the snow.

Pia felt like a silkworm, burrowed in her white cocoon of snow, and she wiggled further down, until the snow towered over her on both sides. Her legs, still quivering, and her shins, still aching with bruises, seemed to sigh with relief at the coolness. Pia released her buffer, and the coldness quickly seized her in its grip.

Overhead, a hawk soared, dipping through the swirling snow as it flew across the sky. Reaching up to the sky Pia pointed her finger at the bird, as if she stretched far enough, she could just touch that level of freedom.

“Don’t they get cold?” she wondered aloud.

Just recently Yijun had walked Pia through the dissection of a Snowbird that had died in the snow. Their hollow legs and delicate, thin bones didn’t seem capable of withstanding the snow. It amazed her how resilient birds were when they were so fragile inside.

“They get hungry too,” said Lei, and though Pia couldn’t see him, she knew he too was watching the hawk.

Remembering the first day she met him, and the brown and red hawk he’d been hunting, Pia wondered if the one overhead was his too.

“Is that yours?” she asked.

“No, Windswept doesn’t like hunting in the cold.”

“Windswept?” asked Pia with a smile. It was a surprisingly good name. Hearing “Lord of the Sky Realm” or “God of Wings” from Lei wouldn’t have surprised her.

Before Lei could say anything further, Chasu, defensively spat, “What’s wrong with Windswept?”

Rolling her eyes, Pia thought about ignoring the girl. For the last week since they’d been training together, Chasu had continued to be borderline hostile towards Pia. Since that first day, Chasu hadn’t tried any dirty tricks—not even the days when Yijun had them spar one on one. Yet, her tongue still dripped with fiery attacks at every opportunity. Though Pia noted that they were never around Haojie and Yijun—only when Pia and Lei were around.

Surprisingly Lei spoke up, irritated, before Pia had a chance to comment.

“I didn’t ask you to defend me,” he said hotly, clearly speaking to Chasu.

Pia sighed in her snow cocoon as the two began to bicker.

“I wasn’t defending you! I was…” Chasu trailed off as she realized she could only say ‘trying to pick a fight.’

“You should keep your mouth shut! You girls are so annoying,” snapped Lei, voice dripping with complaint.

Pia frowned. What had she done!? All she’d done was talk about the stupid bird!

“Don’t lump me in with her!” Pia said, as her irritation flamed alive at his tone.

“You wish you could be in the same category as me!” Chasu hissed to her.

Hands tightening into fists, Pia breathed out trying to calm herself. It didn’t work. Anytime Pia spoke, Chasu had to make a snarky remark. The relieving feeling of the snow dissipated, and Pia sat up as the irritation beneath her skin prickled hotly. The top of her head barely peeked out from her hole in the snow, so Pia rose to her feet.

Spinning in her little cocoon, Pia’s ire had her voice coming out harsh and angry, “You both are so aggravating!” Her gaze swept from left to right look from Lei to Chasu.

Both, fair skinned and pretty, had pink cheeks and the snowflakes landing on their skin made them look like dolls in the snow, despite the exhausting training they’d all suffered through. That extra bit of unfairness, Pia herself was always a mess—braided hair looking unkempt and wild, face splotched with red, dirt or blood smeared across her face—tipped her over the edge. For days the two had been driving her mad.

Thinking of the hot-cold attitude of Lei and the petty, volatile snark from Chasu, Pia unloaded on them.

Pointing at Chasu, Pia snapped, “Your constant tongue lashings are so childish. I don’t even know you! Why are you always trying to pick a fight with me?”

Turning to Lei, she continued, voice harsh and angry, “And you! Your spoiled, entitled elite attitude isn’t charming. Maybe you’re a Lord somewhere, but in the training field we’re equals. In case you weren’t aware, I beat you in a fight two out of three times.”

Breathing heavily, she clamped her hands down on her hips and alternated glaring between the two. They gaped at her, mouths closed but eyes wide. Lei at least had the decency to look slightly shame faced, but Chasu’s chin jutted forward, eyes narrowed in challenge. For days Pia had maintained her silence. No matter what Chasu or Lei did or said, she’d let it slide.

Finally, her anger had reached its boiling point. Seeing that defiant glint in Chasu’s eyes, Pia threw her hands up in frustration and stormed away. Getting into a verbal fight with Chasu wouldn’t improve her mood. It didn’t help her anger that ‘storming’ was more of ‘wading’ through the deep banks of snow. Or that embarrassment quickly settled in from her lost temper, which only made her angrier. Why should she be embarrassed when they were acting like children?

By the time Pia pushed her way out of the snow and onto a cleared path, she was fuming.

Yijun had released them from training early, after a particularly grueling staff training session. Pia had been gratified to see that Lei and Chasu as exhausted as she’d been from the training, leaning on their staffs and sweating profusely.

Eyes on the accumulating snow, Yijun had looked them over, then said, “Trainings over for the day. Take a break, then finish the day with studying.” He’d given a nod to Pia and left the three to collapse exhaustedly in the snow. The relief had been blissful.

Now, Pia’s anger was like a boiling pot over a fire, hissing and spitting inside her. Lei’s spoiled attitude and Chasu’s unfriendly hostility felt like being back in Dwelling—the odd man out, the outcast, the inferior one. For no reason the two had made it clear that there was a divide between them. Dwelling had been the same. It reminded her of the villagers’ condescension, their snide remarks to her face, or worse, behind her back, and the one that truly enraged her, the long looks down their noses they’d give her.

All for what? Because she’d had the misfortune of being born during a war that stole her parents from her?

Pia turned right at the main road and stomped down the path at a brisk walk. Her thoughts churned as she thought about the two students. That feeling of being back in Dwelling got under her skin. She knew it might be childish to think that she’d been free of it—but the isolation Ruwe had kept her in had been a break from the opinions of others. Now that she was getting a taste of it again, Pia hated it.

The anger fueled her feet and in half the time it would normally take, Pia reached the stable. She had to use fire and wind yi to move some of the snow away, but then she was sliding inside. The instant her nose smelled that warm, earthy scent of horse, hay, and manure, the tension bled from her body.

It was an immediate comfort that quelled the inferno within. Letting out a small whistle, Pia got a throaty nicker in return. A brown head popped out from a stall, warm brown eyes searching for her.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

She quickly went to Tudou, throwing her arms around his neck, burying her face in his thick brown coat. That smell of horse was a salve to her heart. He patiently kept his head there, letting her hug him for a long while. Memories of riding across the grasslands, that freedom of pure open land filled her with longing. Those long gallops, where she felt one with Tudou, hearts connected, running towards the horizon with nothing on their mind but the joy of freedom.

At the time, she’d been sore and exhausted, feeling like every day might be death from training. Now, Pia wished she’d savored every minute of it. In this cold, snowed-in manor, her freedom felt long gone.

Rubbing her hands across his broad head, scratching his eyes, which Tudou loved and made his head bob, Pia looked down the aisle to the stable door. Yijun had released them fairly early, and the light was still bright enough to see by.

An idea came to her. Giving Tudou one last pat on the neck, Pia turned and trotted to the end of the aisle. The room at the end held all the items used for horses, from tack to brushes, to blankets and food. Slipping inside Pia went to the wall and grabbed the winter bridle, a leather piece that held no metal. On her way out, she saw a basket of winter apples and snagged three.

On her way back to Tudou, Pia stopped to greet Wine and Ransa, giving them both an apple and long head rubs. While Tudou was everything to Pia, she had a fondness for Haojie and Yijun’s mounts, who had bravely, diligently forged through plains, plateaus, and deep piles of snow.

Making her way back to Tudou, Pia slipped the bridle over his head. She repositioned his forelock and mane so that they weren’t caught under the leather. Smoothing the mane down, Pia tossed the looped rains over his neck.

Holding him by the reins, she slid open the metal latch to his door, and whispered, “Let’s go have some fun.”

Tudou’s ears pricked forward, and he followed her eagerly. Yijun and Haojie had allowed her to ride in the snow a handful of times, but her training always came first. Since the snow and cold had grown steadily worse, by the time her training ended, the light of day had long faded.

Now, Pia was going to take advantage of the break.

She led him to the main stable door but had to pause and once more clear snow from the front to allow him out. He patiently waited, leg cocked, until she tugged his reins to lead him out. Closing the door behind them, Pia walked Tudou to a spot where the snow was a bit on the lower side.

Standing at his shoulder, facing his tail, Pia gathered her reins and a bit of his mane in her left hand, and leapt up, landing gently across that broad back. His ears flickered back toward her, questioningly.

Her snow-covered legs brushed his warm side, and he took an eager step forward. A smile broke across her face as her heart soared. If asked, Pia didn’t know how she might answer what being on a horse felt like. It was as if her heart swelled with excitement, a heady, gleeful sensation that made her whole-body tingle.

She nudged him forward, keeping him on the main path, where the snow was less difficult to manage. Tudou’s feet were quick and smooth, and when she didn’t hold him back, he broke into a big, bouncy trot. As his powerful body surged through the snow, the remnants of her anger drifted away, like snowflakes in the breeze.

Pia gave Tudou his head once she reached the flat, open meadow of the training ground. The snow was deep, well up to Tudou’s belly, but it was even, grass footing below. Squeezing her calf around his sides, Pia asked him to run.

It seemed he’d been waiting for her cue. He burst into a gallop with big leaping, heaving strides that almost unseated her from his bare back. Unable to hold it in, Pia laughed with delight as she grabbed his mane with both hands to stay astride. Her legs trailed through the snow, and the spray of snow Tudou’s shoulders launched back, raining across her face.

The wind tore at her hair, burned her cheeks, pierced through her training robes and coat, but still Pia grinned and laughed, enjoying the freedom of the open, white sea before them. Tudou quickly grew wet from snow and sweat, and long rivulets ran down the sides of his neck. After a third circle around the meadow at a full run, Pia tightened her core, leaning back to ask him to slow.

Nostrils flared and sides heaving, Tudou eased back to a canter, then a trot, and finally to a smooth walk. She patted his neck warmly.

“Was that fun? I’ve missed you,” she said to him, grinning as his ears flicked back and forth at her voice.

Dropping the reins on his neck, Pia lay back, crossing her arms behind her head as Tudou continued ambling around. The sky overhead was dreary grey, with little flecks of light blue peeking through. Snowflakes landed on her face, but Pia closed her eyes, enjoying the soothing rocking of Tudou’s gait. At least for that moment, the two were free and wild on open land once more.

After letting him walk to cool down, Pia rode him back to the stable and gave him a thorough grooming. It took her some time to pick the snowballs from his feet, but she made sure each foot was thoroughly picked free before covering him in two thick blankets and giving him the apple. His whiskery chin scraped her palm, and shortly after bits of apple and juice were drooled across her hand. Wiping it on her robes with a laugh, Pia gave him one last kiss on the nose, and then left mood fully improved.

The sun slid into the embrace of night, leaving only the faintest greying-gold lines shimmering in the sky, and Pia returned to Cangzhi Manor just in time to appreciate them from the porch of Lunar Haven. Resting her hip against the wooden railing, Pia watched as the lines grew fainter and fainter, until only wisps of light lingered like incense smoke in the air.

“Miss, the bath is ready,” came from behind her. Turning her head, Pia saw Noni, hands folded politely before her, head low.

In the weeks that Pia had been at Cangzhi, Noni’s attitude had not changed much. Since reading the etiquette books, she’d started to get an idea of why that might be so. Despite Ruwe wanting her to stay away from politics, the books she was getting educated on seemed to be painting her way towards understanding them. Class and societal hierarchy were one aspect, but there was also a sort of ‘political’ movement in the workings between those in authority and those who worked for an authority.

Pia was not an authority figure in the hierarchy, but by being Ruwe’s apprentice, as well as his guest, she was an authority figure to the servants. The power play aspect, Pia did not understand. It made no sense to her, so she had started to observe the servants when she could. The servants who personally attended Ruwe’s wing of Cangzhi adopted an air of authority over the other servants. Noni had been from Ruwe’s wing, and being sent to Lunar Haven to work for Pia, had been seen as a ‘demotion’ by the other servants.

Or, at least, that was her conclusion after observing them all together. She’d snuck into the rafters of the kitchen one evening, after Noni had left to take her meal with the other servants. From above, Pia saw that Noni was ostracized from both the regular household servants and Ruwe’s servants. Sighing, Pia had watched Noni, and a few of the girls who helped her in Lunar Haven, sitting alone at a table and eating in silence.

What a mess.

Realizing she’d never replied to Noni, Pia muttered, “Thanks” and swept past her into Lunar Haven. It wasn’t that Pia wanted to be rude to the servant girl, but it was so hard to be nice to someone who wouldn’t budge an inch.

Stripping out of her clothing, Pia quickly eased herself into the tub, hissing as the heat burned her skin. Untying her hair and untangling the wild tresses, Pia thought there was one thing she’d give Mow. Being able to bathe in hot water daily? That might’ve been worth all the emotional distress he’d put her through.

Noni entered, carrying a fresh basket of herbs and soap cakes. Pia gave her a small smile, which went ignored, and took the soap from her hands.

In Dwelling, Pia had had to rely on public bathing houses, which often ran cool, on a good day, or ice-cold baths in the streams on Divine Ascent. No wonder the rich were so haughty—imagine being able to bathe daily and do none of the work carrying the water.

After the first week, Pia had memorized the runes carved into the bathtub. They were fire, wind, and earth yi runes spaced out evenly near the top of the tub. Once water was poured into the tub, the runes activated, heating the water rapidly until it boiled. Rather than maintaining the heat, the runes only activated once, until refilled. Truly a brilliant concept in action.

A splash shifted her attention back to Noni, who was adding handfuls of fresh petals and herbs into the water. Yijun had switched her to herbal soaks meant to increase her spiritual and physical recovery. In her eyes, no matter what the herbs and petals did, they could continue. They smelled incredible.

Pia rested her arms over the top of the tub, shifting her legs out straight. Noni’s eyes fell on Pia’s arms, her lips tightening into a frown. Seeing it, Pia asked, “What’s the matter?”

Immediately Noni’s eyes dropped, and she took a step away. Pia looked at her arms, seeing nothing out of the ordinary.

“The bruises...Are they treating you poorly?” asked Noni, voice so quiet and hesitant that Pia’s ears had to strain to hear.

Blinking, Pia looked at her arms again. Bruises were so common to Pia that it’d never occurred to her that they might look like abuse.

A tendril of warmth curled through her chest.

“Oh Noni, it almost sounds like you care about me,” said Pia, teasingly.

Flushing, the girl took another step away from the tub, hands fiddling on the handle of the basket.

“Sorry for overstepping, Miss,” she said, voice almost a mumble.

Relenting, Pia sighed, scooting her arms back into the tub. She hated when Noni acted meek and fearful. At first Pia had thought it just an act—remembering the defiant stare Noni had given her—but now she thought the girl feared being sent to Pia had been a punishment, and if she didn’t obey, she’d be sold.

“No, these are just accidents I got during training. A lot of them are because I’m still very weak. Haojie says I have chicken wings for arms,” holding her hands up at eye level, Pia looked at the wrinkling skin on her fingers. “They’re always shaking and trembling, he said I might as well fry them up to make them useful.” To emphasize, Pia clucked once, chuckling.

A quickly stifled laugh came from Noni and Pia’s mouth curled upward. Fewl and Conch were her soul friends, but a part of her had always longed for a female friend. Hearing Noni hide her small laugh set loose a spark of hope in Pia—perhaps a friendship could blossom there.