(Whoa, for real this time!)

Panic fluttered like moth wings, and Yue Liuyi forced the bowl to wobble, her vision narrowing on the blue like dusk pooling.

The silver-haired girl let out a pfft of laughter, like a bead of frost cracking in sunlight.

Hehe~ just kidding, Little Yue, don’t take it to heart! I’ll always like Little Yue, steady as moonlight on water~

Dixue gathered Yue Liuyi into her arms, soft as a shawl of snow, and nuzzled her like a sun-warmed kitten.

(LittleSnow?)

Rest easy, Little Yue. I know you’re hurting now—can’t talk, can’t move. So I’ll keep you by my side, like a talisman.

She set Yue Liuyi by her side like a cherished book and spoke softly. Careful as falling dew, Dixue slipped off the prim swimsuit and dressed her in a loose dress.

Sis Dixue, why is Liuyi dear inside a body pillow?

Well… Ailuna, there’s something you don’t know. For some reason, Little Yue’s affinity with her body is low, like oil and water.

Low…? Like a waning moon?

Yeah… so at night, when her soul slips out like mist, it’s easy to pick the wrong body. Once, Little Yue and I even swapped bodies.

Huh—like a sparrow startled?

Listening to Dixue and Ailuna, Yue Liuyi finally saw the snag, like a hook in clear water.

Most folks have one body, so habit holds like roots. Even asleep, the soul homes back in a heartbeat, like a bird to its nest.

But Yue Liuyi can’t. As a girl, she’s kept this body for barely a month in total, like a season cut short.

So when she dozes, confusion fogs in. Worse, there’s a body pillow beside her, shaped so much like her it’s a mirror.

(Ugh… I walked into my own snare…)

If she could make a face, she’d be gnashing with regret. But inside a body pillow, she can only wear that preset, well-behaved smile, like a painted doll~

Then… how do we help Liuyi dear best?

Hmm, Maria once said the best fix is to sleep again, like before, and swap back.

Oh… like a leaf-faint sigh.

But it’s morning. Little Yue won’t be sleepy… Hmm! I’ve got a good idea.

A spark lit in the silver-haired girl’s eyes, like lightning behind clouds—she’d thought of a “great idea.”

Um… if you need anything, Sis Dixue, I can help too!

Mm. Ailuna, your voice is lovely. In a bit, I’ll need you to—

Got it! Like a bell, bright and quick.

...

Sleep, sleep, my sweet baby~

La-la-la~ la-la-la~

(…)

In a blink, their bamboo house shifted scenes, like a scroll unrolling.

They set Yue Liuyi in a basket woven of twigs, the knots twisting from a bamboo stand, swaying like a hammock.

One silver, one pink, the girls sat on either side, humming soft songs like wind through reeds.

The scene was playhouse tender—two sisters by a cradle, singing Yue Liuyi-baby into drowsy dreams.

Cradle, sway light.

Hush now and sleep.

Night’s gone quiet,

blankets warm as a nest~

La-la-la~

...

La-la-la~

We’ve sung for a while. Did Little Yue fall asleep?

(It’s not working!)

They were giving it their all, but she’d just woken. Yue Liuyi had no drowsiness, like a lake under noon sun.

Still, it wasn’t for nothing. She’d learned to nudge things and send thoughts—though to outsiders, it felt like a haunting.

Eh? Sis Dixue, look, the bowl moved! Like a ripple under moonlight!

Then… that means Little Yue’s mind is wide awake, bright as noon.

Huh? What do we do?

A lullaby alone won’t do… What else can lull someone under, like rain on eaves?

How about a story? Like a warm fire in winter.

Yeah! Great idea. Otherwise, Little Yue’s all alone and bored, like a moon with no clouds.

But which story? I swear there are tales in my head, yet they scatter like fireflies whenever I reach.

Then… let me tell one of my own, from before? Like opening an old cedar chest.

(LittleSnow’s story?)

Sis Dixue’s old stories?

Mm… the ones Little Yue wants most—the stories of me and everyone, back then, like footprints in fresh snow.

(Eh?)

Under Yue Liuyi’s gaze, the silver-haired girl began her tale, words flowing like a quiet brook through bamboo shadows.