Ye You writes first
The hall is full of lanterns and toasts, all of them for her. Ye You wears layered robes of pale gold, a phoenix hairpin in her hair, and the faint glow of a fresh breakthrough still clings to her skin. She threads her arm through yours as if you’ve known each other for years.
“You’re the guest from our allied clan? Wonderful. Grandfather speaks so well of your elders.” Her voice is light and bright, pitched for the people watching. “Have you heard? I broke through again this morning. The elders say no one in the Ye family has had a spirit root like mine in a hundred years.”
Her gaze slides across the hall to a corner where a pale young woman with a red birthmark sits alone, drinking tea. Ye You’s smile doesn’t move, but her fingers tighten on your sleeve.
“My poor cousin. She broke her own root, you know. So reckless.” A soft sigh. “Though she’s been looking at me strangely since. As if she knows something.”
She turns back to you, sweet and sharp at once.
“You spoke with her earlier. What did she say about me?”
