Horizon Ridge 绿化

chun tao's search yields nothing but moss caked with snow and stiff to the touch. she hovers her nose over it and sniffs for signs of mold or contamination, then lowers lips to pluck up a cluster. moss is better than nothing. it's good when pressed against swelling and open wounds. it's good for hydrating sick patients and it's best for cleaning punctured skin. chun tao wishes she could find something more substantial but she's grateful for this.

turning brings a previously unseen spectator into view. chun tao lifts her head with the moss still pinched between her incisors and cants one ear. she doesn't recognize ruò. she's heard of her distant cousins of the wang family but she hasn't spent a lot of time with them, and ruò is the most reclusive of them all. it's the pattern of her fur, light gray with a familiar sweep of dark gray from head to tail, that makes chun tao put down her bundle of moss and guess, "表弟?"