Sen allowed himself to bask the flood of words that came at him from both Ai and Zhi as their voices filled the galehouse. It almost felt like the girls were competing to see who could tell him the most stories. It started out innocently enough, with Ai recounting battles from her never-ending war with the yucky bugs. Zhi talked about her mother and the things she was learning about sewing. Sen suspected that the sewing knowledge the girl was gleaning was basic in the extreme, but he supposed that everyone needed to start somewhere. It had been the same for him when he first began his cultivation journey what felt so very long ago. The innocence of their talk was soon displaced when the ongoing fears started to bubble up past their happiness and excitement.

“I couldn’t ride my big bird,” said Ai with a glum expression.

“You couldn’t?”

Ai shook her head and said, “It was because of the bad people.”

He’d known that was the reason, but he felt it was important to let her tell things in the way that made sense to her. He also knew that this wasn’t just her telling a story. She was telling him about what had frightened her.

“I see,” said Sen.

“We can’t go outside the walls because of them,” added Zhi. “I wanted to look for flowers. Mama said I couldn’t. She said it was—”

Zhi got a look of concentration on her face. Sen waited patiently for her to find the right word.

“Dangerous,” said Zhi a little slower than she said most other things.

Sen felt a pang of loss. The girls had both grown a lot since he’d last been there. They were mispronouncing and sounding out fewer words. they had both grown taller, even if they still seemed tiny and fragile as eggshells to him. He had missed things. These were small things, but he had missed them all the same. It ate at him because he knew that he would miss far more important things in the months and years to come. He did his best to push those concerns to the back of his mind and keep his attention on the now. Ai and Zhi deserved his undivided attention. When both of the girls fell silent with expressions of worry, Sen finally spoke up.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that,” he said.

“Will you make the bad people go away?” asked Ai, her eyes wide.

“I will,” said Sen. “I already have. They won’t attack the town anymore. And I will take them away when it’s time for me to leave again.”

Ai looked deeply unhappy with those words, but he’d told himself he wouldn’t lie to her about things. Better for her to understand he wasn’t home to stay, but merely to visit. Still, his words did seem to cheer the girls up. The threat, which had no doubt seemed nebulous and omnipresent to them, was being dealt with by someone they trusted.

“Does that mean I can go look for flowers?” asked an excited Zhi.

“Well, it is wintertime little bird,” explained Sen. “There won’t be many flowers for you to find.”

Her expression fell, and Sen decided that maybe he could do something about that lack of flowers for her.

“Does that mean I can ride my Big Bird again?” asked Ai.

Sen had to think hard about that. No doubt Auntie Caihong had forbidden the girl from riding the bird because of the possibility of core cultivator attacking the sky monster. Even the weakest of attacks could kill Ai. If she was to fall, nothing could save her. Sen didn’t believe that the Fenghuang who had befriended Ai would intentionally let her fall, but life was not always kind or fair. If Dancing Cloud for was forced to defend herself, she might not have the option to save Ai. He thought that the danger was probably contained, but he wasn’t comfortable giving her permission to take to the skies again without at least speaking with Auntie Caihong.

“Not right now,” Sen finally told her. “Let me make sure that things are safe, and then we can talk about it with Auntie Caihong.”

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Ai made a glum face but nodded. She’d probably been begging for a chance to fly again since the siege began and been told in no uncertain terms that she couldn’t. While she would have no doubt been overjoyed to get a yes from him, he doubted that she was surprised that he hadn’t given it.

“Don’t be too sad,” said Sen, gently poking her belly and eliciting a giggle. “I am going to make us some delicious things to eat.”

That began a flood of requests that ranged from the simple to the outlandish. He smiled and promised them nothing specific. If they’d had their way, he’d have made them nothing but sweets. He did intend to feed them some food that would stick with them for the rest of the day. He remembered just how hungry he used to get during the winter months when he was living on the street. It was like his body was burning every last mouthful just to keep him warm. Sen reflected on that for a few moments in the context of his vastly expanded knowledge of how bodies worked. He realized that it might not have been that far from the actual truth.

Sen was tempted, if only for a moment, to invite Long Jia Wei inside. The man could no doubt provide him with a lot of useful information about the state of sect. He would also have his own opinions about how the situation could have been resolved. Sen was a little surprised that he hadn’t been dispatched to murder the leader of the bandits. It probably wouldn’t have ended the siege, but it would have forced the attacking cultivators and mortals to decide on a new leader. That new leader would also have been forced to make choices about how to proceed. If nothing else, the confusion would have given the town some breathing room.

Yet, that hadn’t happened. Sen was curious to know why, but he felt that he owed it to Sua Xing Xing to hear her account of events first. As the leader of the sect and town, she would have had access to all of the information. He knew that possessing more information might not change the way someone decided, but it absolutely could change their thinking. If she knew things that Long Jia Wei didn’t, what seemed like poor decision-making could turn out to be the right choice. As he considered all of those things, his hands moved almost automatically. Rice was put on to cook, while meat and vegetables were sliced or chopped as necessary. After a time, he set those ingredients aside and began mixing up a light dough.

He wished that Falling Leaf would return to the galehouse, but that was just because he wanted to see her. He’d missed her as much as he’d missed Ai if for different reasons. She wouldn’t have experienced the visible changes the girls had, but she had always been a steady presence he could lean on when his mind was troubled. That was something that he’d been sorely lacking in the capital. Others had tried to fill that role for him, but no one else enjoyed the kind of trust he had in her and her advice. Plus, he knew exactly where she was. She was observing the cultivators and mortal bandits from the wall. He wasn’t sure exactly what she might do if they started to do something she didn’t like, but he doubted it would be pleasant. It was only then that it occurred to him to wonder if she knew he didn’t want any of them killed.

He debated sending someone to her about it, but changed his mind. If she knew, the messenger would be an irritation. If she didn’t, he honestly didn’t know if it would change anything she did. Better to leave the matter alone, especially since he didn’t believe any of the would-be usurpers would do anything stupid today. Later, under the cover of darkness, things might be different. In the cold light of day, though, there was just too many unfriendly eyes on them.

“Can I help?” asked Ai.

She had dragged over a small stool that Sen didn’t recognize. It was high enough that she could, with a bit of effort, reach up onto the counter.

“Me too!” exclaimed Zhi, looking around for something she could stand on.

Smiling, Sen gestured and a stone platform with small steps rose from the floor. Zhi scrambled up and looked at the dough that Sen had started to shape with excited eyes.

“Of course, you can help,” he said, content to indulge the girls.

He took a moment to explain what kind of pastry he was making, and then slowly showed them how to shape the dough and spread the filling. He did his best not to chuckle as the girls attacked the task with boundless enthusiasm but not much skill. The pastries would be silly, lopsided things, but he thought that maybe this was even better than having him make the pastries. He left the girls to their work while he transferred the rice to the table. He placed a pan over the fire and added a bit of oil before browning the meat. He added the vegetables next and waited until they started to soften before restoring the meat to the pan. A few more key ingredients later and a thin sauce covered the concoction.

He dished out healthy servings for the girls. It took a little coaxing to drag them away from the pastry project, but they were soon bent over their bowls and eating like they hadn’t seen food in weeks. He’d just placed the first batch of pastries into the oven he was heating with carefully controlled qi-flames when the door opened. Falling Leaf came in and eyed him critically, as though searching for evidence of injuries. Finding none, she sniffed the air.

“That smells good. Did you make enough for me?”

Smiling at his oldest friend, Sen gestured at the table.

“Of course, I did. I’m not insane, you know.”

Falling Leaf took a seat before turning her green eyes on him again. She seemed lost in thought for a moment before she finally shared her conclusion.

“Debatable.”