#cuifen

The day was already ruined early in the morning — a nightmare roused him from sleep, drenching him in cold sweat. Even after hours of work, the heaviness inside did not go away, as if he was tangled in a strong, sticky black web of dreams and memories he could not break out of. Tonight would probably not be any better…

As he walked down the street past several houses, short of reaching a small square, he heard music. The sonorous flute poured out toward him, luring him to come and listen, to lose himself in it. But this time it had no effect on Ratha. If there were musicians on the square, most of the galaxies were likely gathered there. Everyone enjoyed their break from the workday like this: listening to music, dancing, treating each other to delicious food, sometimes even indulging in a glass of wine. He had nothing against it; on the contrary, he sometimes liked to sit with Fengge and enjoy some nice music. But not today. He wasn't in the mood and if he didn't hurry, the leaves he'd collected would be suitable only for red tea.

Ratha sighed and looked back. The road across the square was quicker to his house, but if he showed up there, there was a good chance he would run into Okhtar - no doubt drunk, clinging to him and refusing to let go. He would have to walk back, go around the houses and enter the yard through the back gate.

He took a step and then suddenly froze. The flute was replaced by a voice. A gentle, floral voice that Ratha could not recognize.

“Above the heather, in the first morning glow

Birds are going, where may they be tomorrow.”

How could he not recognize someone's voice? It made no sense. He knew everyone on this thay and the only ones who can travel. Who could it be, singing like this?

His feet turned him around and pulled toward the square.

“I follow the murmurs, the vibrations of the quiet moor.

Ancient songs come up through the mists.”

Now there were two voices, and he recognized Cuifen, but she was not the lead in this duet. He stepped out from behind the last house in front of the square and froze. There were certain privileges to being one of the tallest galaxies — he could see above the crowd. And when the one he was looking at was the tallest of all...

It was Eloth. It was she who sang with Cuifen.

“Come and fly away with us.

Let the wind carry you far away from this place!

Come and fly as high as you can.

Let's chase the sky in dance!”

When the flute in Naru's hands sang again, replacing the words, Eloth began to spin in a light dance. Even from this distance, Ratha could see that she had a bright smile on her face — her pink eyes sparkling with joy. A long braid followed her, while her skirt and wide sleeves responded to every movement with waves of shimmering folds.

Ratha could not take his eyes off Eloth, and she sang again.

“Mist like silk brushes so cold against my skin.

Further and further, where do I find what my longing's aiming for.”

Her voice, the sight of her — it all turned something inside him upside down, and for the first time in a long, long time, he felt a strange lightness in his soul. All the heavy thoughts and feelings were shattered, giving way to a soft warmth. It poured from the heart all over his body, melting the black webs, and with each passing second, not only his soul but also his body became freer. He wanted to dance with Eloth, too, even though he had hardly ever danced before.

Ratha did not understand what was happening to him and could not do anything about it. Although he didn't really want to.

“I close my eyes and sprout a feather dress.

I already feel the wind and make my wings wide.”

She waved her arms, and the wide sleeves followed, as if for a moment they had become real wings. For that same moment, he thought she really was going to take off.

“Come and fly away with us.

Let the wind carry you far away from this place!

Come and fly as high as you can.

Let's chase the sky in dance!”

Wen, who had been standing close to the musicians with Nethil, tore his gaze away from them and immediately came across Ratha. He raised his eyebrows, smiling in surprise, and patted his friend's hand.

"Ne-Ne, look at this!" he called with excitement.

Nethil turned around and, as soon as she saw Ratha, let out a long "Ohhh" and broke into a smile.

"Wow, would you look at that!" she said slyly, "Look at that pink tanzhou oh his face. And his eyes are practically sparkling and looking only at Eloth.”

“I think he's got pink in them, too," Wen snorted.

"You and I have witnessed a decisive moment. It seems that our Ratha has fallen in love.”

“As he finally should.”

Ratha didn't even notice they were looking at him and smiling with satisfaction. His attention was focused on Eloth, who was spinning with Cuifen and Naru. Finally they stopped and started singing again.

“The sky in you, how can I know it, how can I see it.

We dance in flight, as the stars plot their course.

Come and fly away with us.

Let the wind carry you far away from this place!

Come and fly as high as you can.

Let's chase the sky in dance!”

Eloth was a song, and the song was Eloth. Her voice was a gentle breeze pouring towards Ratha, carrying the sweet scent of flowers, breathing strength into his exhausted body. His heart was already beating to the beat of the music, to the beat of her every movement. As soon as she stopped singing, she would start twirling again in a simple but sincere dance. Being the largest galaxy, Eloth was mesmerizing in her lightness. It seemed that the number of stars in her did not weigh her down at all, and Ratha could not remember ever feeling the same way. Light and free.

The music slowly stopped, and so did Eloth. She breathed deeply and smiled broadly, trying to focus her gaze. When she did, the first person she looked at, ironically, was Ratha. They looked into each other's eyes for a brief moment, but during that time, everything inside Ratha had managed to turn upside down several times in a row. Eloth's smile seemed to grow wider... and why was that?

"You sing so well!" Cuifen gasped, hugging Eloth by the waist. "I’m so glad I talked you into trying.”

“It's a bit of a surprise that everyone liked it so much," Eloth said shyly.

"And how much Ratha liked it, oh my," Nethil said quietly.

"I wonder if he's going to stay or go home," Wen said thoughtfully, watching Ratha trying to come back to reality and figure out what to do with himself.

"Judging by the basket, he has tea leaves in it," Nethil answered, "and he loves tea almost more than anything else. Let's put it this way: if he chooses tea, there’s little hope, and if he stays, it's only a matter of time before he and Eloth get together.”

“Why are you so sure that Eloth will fall in love too?" Wen arched one eyebrow slightly.

"Didn't you see the way she looked at Ratha? I'm telling you, she feels something towards him too.”

Wen huffed in response, but couldn't help but agree.

Meanwhile, Cuifen persuaded Eloth to sing at least one more of the songs they had been practicing together. The musicians began to prepare to play again, and Ratha finally moved, attracting the attention of Nethil and Wen. At first it seemed that he was about to leave, but then he reached a high fence, took the basket off his shoulders, and lowered it to the ground. After stretching his neck, he turned to the musicians and Eloth. He had decided to stay after all.