Yellow Flower Cat sat on the windowsill, pinning a small yellow fish beneath its paw.
The fish skin had been fried crisp and golden, its scorched fragrance filling the air. Its last wisp of Life Force had long since been refined away, leaving only those ghastly pale fish eyes staring blankly at the grayish-white sky, with an eerie glimmer occasionally flashing within them.
But Yellow Flower Cat's attention was not on the dried fish.
It narrowed its eyes, watching the black-robed wizards hurrying past Sanyou Bookstore's window. From time to time, its gaze passed over layer after layer of high walls and fell upon other corners of the town.
Mr. Wu lay in a rocking chair, holding an old thread-bound book without a cover in his arms. His round black-rimmed glasses had slipped to the tip of his nose, yet that did not stop him from continuing his nap.
Beside the rocking chair.
The fire in the little tea stove had burned all night. A thick layer of white ash filled the firebox, with only a few dark-red coals flickering weakly within it, breathing out what little warmth they had left.
Whooo!
The little red-clay teapot raised its voice twice, signaling that the tea in its belly had boiled again.
Its cries woke the bookstore owner from his dreams, but the tabby cat on the windowsill remained unmoved—well, not entirely. After hearing the teapot's shriek, Yellow Flower Cat did twitch its ears twice, curling the soft fur inside them to block out the noise. Mr. Wu adjusted his slipping glasses, yawned, and stretched.
"What time is it?"
He stroked the little red-clay teapot, feeling the warmth of its body. The teapot purred contentedly in his hand, gurgling like a cat sunning itself on an afternoon.
Yellow Flower Cat flicked its