She laughed. “Does it sound so terrible? I do not mind my life. Titles, crowns, and palaces come with a price of their own,” she added darkly.

Her words resonated with me. Once I had dreamed Liwei and I might be so free, and now … we never would.

Shortly after, she left with Tao upon her cloud. Alone with Liwei, emotions flooded me—relief that he was safe, punctured by despair.

“Are you glad you found your sister?” A clumsy attempt to delay the inevitable.

“Yes. To learn I have a sibling is a precious thing.” He studied my face. “You seem sad, Xingyin. Aren’t you happy about the elixir?”

“I wish it had not come at the price of her happiness.” It was one part of the truth.

“As do I. But she would not want your guilt,” he said gently. “Reach for the joy you have, revel in it. For it is scarce enough in the world.”

If only I could.

“How are your mother and Ping’er?” he asked.

Grief surged, crowding my throat and eyes. “Ping’er is … dead.”

He grasped my hands. “What happened?”

“Wugang led the Celestial attack on the moon. He killed her.” I breathed deeply, fighting for calm.

“I am sorry, Xingyin.” He bent his head to graze mine. “She was like family to you. I will miss her too.”

“She was family.”

Shadows crept between us—slithering, dark, and opaque. Yet again, his father’s command had torn my family apart.

“Where is your mother? Is she safe?” Liwei asked.

I nodded numbly. “She is in the Southern Sea. We took Ping’er’s body to her family there.”

“She would have wanted that.” He hesitated, before saying, “Thank you. You saved me again.”

“Did you not say we should not thank each other?” I smiled, my first real one in a long time.

He thought for a moment. “Perhaps I was wrong. Thanking you brings me joy too.”

His hands slid up my arms, drawing me close. I should have pulled away, but I was weak after the turmoil of the past days. Leaning against him, my head settled into the curve of his neck. The feel of him, so familiar yet thrilling, almost undid my resolve. Blood rushed to my head, my skin tingling with the awareness of him. How I wanted to press myself against the warmth of his skin as we fell upon the soft folds of the cloud. My heart quickened, my arms tightening around him, before I forced them to loosen.

It would be nothing more than a final farewell, delaying the inevitable hurt. I pulled away, hating myself for the confusion that flashed across his face. His body tensed as his hands fell to his sides. Surely he wondered at the change in my behavior, so different from how I had been on the moon.