Leiyu opened his eyes slowly.  He was back in the mountain passage, huddled next to Bakhat.  The light of dawn filtered through the clouds.  Dewdrops beaded on his hair and blanket.  The air had a crispness that reminded him of the first bite of an apple.  He stood up and stretched the tightness out of his limbs.  Another day was beginning.  Would they make it out of the mountain before night fell again?

Chen Yun lifted the flap of the cargo wagon covering and blinked bleary eyed.  Leiyu folded up the blanket and walked over to return it.

Chen Yun took the cold silk bundle and stared at Leiyu’s damp hair.  Although it was tempting, he held his tongue from casting any judgments.  “Did you sleep okay out there?” he asked instead.

“I did,” Leiyu replied.  “Thank you for the blanket.”

“You’re welcome.  Do you want any food?  I mean, besides whatever you’re storing in those infinite sleeves of yours?  It’s so cold I want to cook something for breakfast.”

Leiyu’s eyebrows perked up.  “Sure, anything’s good.  Thank you.”

“Do you have any fire-making talismans by any chance?  The sticks around here are too damp to start a flame.”

Leiyu reached into his sleeve and produced another strip of paper with swirling calligraphy.  “I don’t have too many of these, so use them sparingly.  When we make it to the West, I’ll buy more paper.”

Chen Yun went into the wagon and retrieved a small cooking pot, a ladle, two cloth pouches, and a water flask fashioned from a cut bamboo pole.  Leiyu laid the fire talisman on the ground and waved his hand over it.  He stared intensely at the brush strokes and focused his qi.  The symbols glowed and erupted in flame.

“The flame should last for about the same time it takes for an incense stick to burn down,” Leiyu said.

“That should be sufficient,” Chen Yun replied.  He placed the cooking pot over the fiery talisman and poured water into it from the bamboo container.  After a few minutes, it began to bubble.  Chen Yun untied one of the pouches and poured a small amount of millet into the boiling water.  He then untied the other pouch and fished out a fistful of dried goji berries.  He took the wooden spoon and stirred the lumpy mass.  Liang Fusheng and Wang Yihui emerged from their wagons and joined them.

“Hot breakfast,” Liang Fusheng remarked.  “That’s a welcome sight after all these days of stale flatbread.”

“Here, you stir.  I need to get the bowls.” Chen Yun said.  Liang Fusheng made a face but took the ladle.  Chen Yun disappeared into the wagon and reemerged with four worn ceramic bowls.

“Ah, even in the middle of nowhere we can get a taste of home,” Wang Yihui said.  “Haven’t had millet soup for months.”

“Forgive me in advance for my unworthy cooking skills and lack of ingredients,” Chen Yun said with a half grin as he ladled the soup into the bowls.  “This would taste better with some chicken and ginger.”  He passed the bowls to the others, who sat close to the fire talisman.

“All’s well,” Liang Fusheng said as he sipped from the bowl as if he were drinking tea.  “Where’d you get the goji berries?”

“The markets before we left home,” Chen Yun replied.  “I bargained with the vendor and threw in some silk scarves to bring the price down.  I was going to save them for a celebratory meal after we successfully made our delivery, but seeing as how we’re stuck on this misty haunted mountain with no certainty that we’ll make it through, might as well enjoy some of them now.”  He turned his attention toward Leiyu, who had already downed his bowl of soup and was wiping his mouth with his fingerless glove.  “How was it?”

“It was good, thank you,” Leiyu replied.  “I appreciate food of any kind.”

Chen Yun raised an eyebrow as a stray thought passed through his mind but let it pass.  “Would you like more?”

“I won’t take any more than my fair share,” Leiyu said.

“But you’re guarding our caravan,” Chen Yun said.  “You need to be fed.”  He held out his hand.  Leiyu smiled modestly and gave him the bowl.  The other merchants also deposited their empty bowls in front of the cooking pot.  Chen Yun split up the remaining soup amongst the four of them, but gave Leiyu an extra ladleful.  This did not go unnoticed by the others.  Liang Fusheng looked particularly annoyed.

“So, what’s your take on our traveling situation, wind mage?” Liang Fusheng asked.  Leiyu raised an eyebrow at the sobriquet.  “Sorry, do you prefer to be called Thunderstorm?  Or Ghost Whisperer?”

“Fusheng, don’t be rude,” Chen Yun admonished.  “He might strike you down with his magic.”

“I jest, I jest,” Liang Fusheng said.  “You know we’re grateful for everything you do.”

“You don’t have to give me extra soup,” Leiyu told Chen Yun.  “I don’t want to cause any hard feelings with the others.”

Chen Yun sighed.  “I just thought you might need it after spending all night in the freezing cold.”  He emphasized the last words so that Fusheng could hear.

“He slept outside?  By choice?” Wang Yihui asked.  “But why?  He’s not afraid of the ghosts?”

“I think he’s more interested in avoiding us,” Liang Fusheng remarked.  “It’s not like we’ve actually heard the ghosts ourselves.  We’re just taking him at his word that they’re there.  For all we know, he could be the one calling them.  You never know with these mages.”

Leiyu furrowed his brow and then walked away.  He headed towards Bakhat and took some oats out of his sleeve.  The horse nuzzled Leiyu’s palm and partook of its breakfast.  He kept his ears open for the merchants’ conversation.

“What’s wrong with you?” Chen Yun whispered loudly to Liang Fusheng.  “He saved our lives, you know.  If you’re mad that I gave him more food, then you can have the rest of my goji berries.  We’re almost at our destination and we’ve all been through a lot.”

“Ah, keep your precious berries,” Liang Fusheng replied gruffly.  “Those silk scarves you traded away better not have been part of the delivery.”

“They weren’t.  They were just some rejects that the scarf vendor was going to discard anyway because the embroidery was crooked.”

“All right then.”

“Also, what’s with your attitude this morning?  Leiyu’s been helpful to us this whole time.”

“Yeah, and I’ve already said I appreciate it.  Fine, I talk too much, and I’m an ungrateful jerk.  Sorry.  But I also don’t get why you’re trying so hard to be friends with him.  He clearly has no interest in socializing.  Also, you can’t trust anyone completely.  You should know that, being in this line of work.”

“I guess I should watch out for you as well.”

Leiyu returned from feeding Bakhat.  Although he heard everything they said, his expression remained neutral.  “We can resume our journey whenever you’re all ready.”