The reward for Wen's latest book was absolutely darling. It was a set of fingerpicks, plectrums for when she played the zither. They were made of tortoiseshell, unlike the animal teeth versions Wen had been using up until that point. She spent an hour or so playing her zither with these fingerpicks, while the Emperor relaxed nearby, sipping flowery water and...
What was that smell? Mylla fluttered about like a bumblebee in autumn, blinking wide, compound golden eyes. The Thriae sniffed the air and almost did a somersault in the air at the scents assailing her - and in her mind, everything was spinning gold. This day had become a bit of a haze. She scanned the prairie below, casting about for a landmark. Some sort...
The forest guardian forced me on my knees. I had been spying on him from above, in the branches he knew so well. He was a teenager with a nice set of abs. I couldn't help it if I was a peeping Tom. He was gorgeous and his every touch, no matter how rough, sent electric sparks across my skin. He had found me, caught me, and kneeled me before him. He knew I...
*****Hi dear readers, it's DM23! I know I'm extremely late and I apologize. Two jobs, college work, and writer's block have kept me from posting this chapter. But I've been impatiently waiting for this story to come to this part (more than you, believe me) because this is just a stepping stone for what I have in store for you guys. I always say that my mind...
It was a beautiful day in the forever-wild acreage that Bea had found herself camping in for the month of July. As the semester wound to a close at the university at which she taught, she'd been stressed to the point of near breakdown. Her therapist had recommended some practice called "forest bathing", which to Bea was basically a silly name for hanging aro...
Pollen Lady Kumi was weak, couldn't leave her bed for very long, and she had a sickening yellow tint in her complexion. Wen visited her often, sitting by her bed and personally feeding her medicinal soups and teas. Sometimes, Kumi had to vomit. Sometimes, she had extremely horrible cramps in her lower belly, as if severe menstrual problems were paying her a...
The plant benefited from the warm, wet spring; for twenty millennia it had bided its time. The spades of the gardeners, churned the soil and brought the pod to the surface. There were a few more years of waiting; it needed just the right amount of water. It lurked beneath the hammock, an unnoticed sprout waiting for an animal with the right body heat. A ti...
From the street outside Jiafahn's urban home, she could see the grand, almost cloud-like clusters of brown and gold leaves that had grown from the Godly Tree. It was said to be the tallest tree ever found in Junshu, but quite a few people were willing to debate that. The tree's trunk was hidden by a city-like complex of palaces, workshops, and other buildi...
Wen put her bronze badge in her blouse, the cord looped over her brooch. She put away her thin shawl and picked up a wider one, a gray one, that could protect her from any unlucky chills. Then she made sure her maids had their shawls. They were just about to head out the main entrance of the Sweet Carrot Palace when suddenly two eunuchs arrived. One of the...
Selina looked up at the dull gray skies and smelled the damp, heavy air, and knew that there would be no escape this year. She wanted to cry. It just didn't feel fair. They'd almost made it this time. She thought that the ship had signaled its approach well in advance of the spring rains, but Lilac's eccentric orbit had defeated her best attempts to predict...