A few days had passed after the first time Tsung Yue had experienced herself in the air. She's slowly but surely learning to grasp the idea of flight, which is a splendid update for them, especially Hairong. Considering the lack of skill when it comes to hunting, the aspect of flying was surprisingly more delightful than Hairong had expected from Tsung Yue. She's floating in midair for a few moments, and with Hairong's help, she's keeping her breath steady while being in the sky. These small but steady steps made Hairong proud of Tsung Yue, and herself, for being such a good teacher, of course. All that hardwork has definitely tired them out, and when the *fox coated evening* comes, they'd need to find a place to rest their eyes and relax. As I mentioned earlier in all the previous chapters, even Tsung Yue and Hairong's *circadian rhythm* is different. In other words, when Tsung Yue is sleeping, Hairong goes out hunting at night. This also means that when Hairong spends more time sleeping in the morning, Tsung Yue is already up and awake. Due to that, they cannot find the right time for both of them to hunt together in case of security and experience. Even though this is not much of a problem for our spiritual dragons here, since their circadian rhythms are flexible, especially for Hairong. So, Hairong will need to learn how to sleep like people do this time.
Another problem to note is that, despite the fact that it's almost common sense for people to sleep with a blanket, having fur means Tsung Yue doesn't actually need any blankets to keep herself warm. Then, why does this chapter's title involve blankets? Surely the blanket's use is for different purposes.
After the appearance of the first stars glistening in the sky, the two went to the place they first met. Using some of the excess silks hidden from Hairong's reach, Tsung Yue had made herself a comfortable area to lay down on. As discussed, Hairong will have to adapt to Tsung Yue's sleeping patterns in order for better performance tomorrow morning, Hairong lies near Tsung Yue, covering herself with her wings, the atmosphere in the cave comfortingly quiet as the two lull themselves into deep slumber.
***
Oh, what a sunny day, filled with flowers and grasses swaying in the wind, a silhouette of a woman dancing in the field. Her hair is braided, her face covered, and her moves are as gentle as a stream. During this, she holds 2 cups swaying and spinning them around while she moves. She keeps on for a while, then she stops her dance. And unbelievably so, she pours water from one cup to another. How baffling when the cup was moving so much to even consider anything flowing in it. Then, she looks behind her, the sun blocking her face. When she opens her mouth to speak, Tsung Yue suddenly jolts awake from pain.
It was a dream. Who she dreamed of is a mystery she can't seem to find, but that didn't matter much to her at the moment. Looking at the lingering pain in her back, there was a huge bite mark greeting her back. Looking frantically for the source of her disturbance in her slumber, who did she find? You guessed it! Hairong.
When Tsung Yue's gaze falls upon Hairong, she meets an innocent face smiling back at her. As if she didn't even bite her in the first place. That little nice lady.
-"Who just bit me?!"
-"I did."
-"Why?? Did you try to eat me or something!?"
-"Of course not. My teeth were itchy, that's all."
-"That's it?"
-"Yes."
Hearing this unhesitant, audacious reply, Tsung Yue's clouded mind could only produce a sarcastic answer.
-"Couldn't you...I don't know, giggle chew on a rock or something!? Why my back of all places?"
-"It was the closest thing I saw, alright? Besides, I didn't bite that hard. You don't see any blood."
As if that'll justify her actions. Tsung Yue's back was still in pain.
-"That's not the point. The point is that you bit me!"
-"Then what will I do?"
-"I should think of something…"
The reason why Tsung Yue said that she needed to think of something is that this happened more than once, but the bite wasn't that hard for her to wake her up from her sleep.
After some time of thinking, she had a fabric of an idea. It may not work, but it was better than nothing. Collecting all the silks from the cave, Tsung Yue wraps herself with it, keeping her back concealed from Hairong's teeth. It may not be that effective, but due to many layers, Tsung Yue could barely feel anything, and Hairong could quench her itch with the fabric too. Tsung Yue could only pray that Hairong would not bite her tail when she was sleeping.
After Tsung Yue gets comfortable, Hairong lays down on her silk-wrapped body too, nuzzling against the soft fabric as she falls asleep once more.
If only dreams continue…
***
Word explanation
Fox coated evening: the time of dusk when the sky resembles the coat of a red fox. Not too dark for stars to shine, but not too bright for the sun to be visible.
Circadian rhythm: A period of time a person or an animal sleeps during the 24 hour cycle.