"Tiger Sister?"
Ayu called out. When A-Hu did not respond, she gently touched her sleeve.
A-Hu came back to herself and curled her hand a little more tightly around the small porcelain bottle. She glanced down at it, then tucked it into her robe.
"What else did little brother Miaole say?"
Ayu thought for a moment. "Just that I should give it to you myself and ask you to take it to Six-Eared Macaque. Nothing else."
A-Hu nodded, then turned to leave.
Ayu hurried after her. "Tiger Sister, where are you going? Didn't the Great Sage tell you to wait here until they came back?"
"I'm going back to the mortal realm first."
A-Hu stopped at the doorway and looked back at her. "If they return, please let them know. Sorry for the trouble."
The smile on Ayu's face faded a little. She looked at A-Hu, wanting to ask something, but when the words reached her lips, all she said was, "All right. I'll remember."
A-Hu nodded to her, then turned to leave.
As though suddenly remembering something, Ayu hurried another few steps after her.
"Tiger Sister! Do you know how to get back to the mortal realm? You can't wander around here. If someone catches you, you'll be punished."
A-Hu jolted and stopped.
She turned back to look at Ayu.
Thinking she did not believe her, Ayu hurriedly said, "It's true! Every place in Heaven has its own rules. If you head straight down from here, you're bound to take the wrong way."
"But earlier, no one..."
"You came up with the Great Sage and the others earlier, so of course no one stopped you. If you go alone, you'll definitely get into trouble."
A-Hu glanced back the way they had come. In the direction of the South Heaven