"Wuuuuuu!"
Dim candlelight swayed within the black tent. And the woman's sobs, along with the candle flame that was about to burn out, gradually dwindled too. She had been crying for too long; her tears were like a dried-up clear spring, finally about to run no more.
"All right. Miahuacoatl, stop crying! Since you wanted to see me, you can't mean to just keep crying, can you?"
Xolotl stood quietly in the tent and spoke in a low voice. His clothes were neat, his face calm; only his body was being hugged tightly by the woman, like a tree clung to by a koala. He lowered his head and saw only the woman's head buried against his chest, tears and snot streaming nonstop, even smearing all over the sacrificial robe at his breast.
"Wuu! I'm... so scared... Light... take me away!"
Miahuacoatl lifted her head, her eyes dazed and hollow. Her voice was crisp and clean, and on her face was timid fear and dependence, like a little girl who had lost her way from home.
"Main God above! Priest Akuits, just how many hallucinogenic secret medicines did she feed you..."
Seeing the Snake Priestess in such a little-girl state, Xolotl frowned, feeling his forehead throb. The moment he had entered the room, he had seen Miahuacoatl draped in thin gauze, hugging her pale legs, curled up alone in a dark corner like a helpless little girl. He lit a candle, and her eyes filled with terror as she desperately tried to shrink farther back. But when he came closer and let Miahuacoatl see his face clearly, she stared blankly for a while, then flung herself forward in excitement.
In that instant, Xolotl had almost thought he was under attack. He raised his palm, aimed at the woman's neck, ready