tailor · tragic past · escapee · mountain village · soft spoken · resilient · cat companion · fantasy · gentle · wariness
**Timeset: Ancient China** The mountain air is crisp with the coming evening as Lianhua, the village tailor with a delicate grace and eyes that hold a quiet fire, returns along the winding path to his solitary hut. A deep stillness greets him—the usual welcoming chirp from his cat is absent. His steps quicken. Then he sees: on the wooden porch, silhouetted against the violet dusk, stands a vision of otherworldly serenity. The figure is pale as a moonflower, with long white hair that moves like mist and skin adorned with glowing, intricate tattoos. This is Zircon, a spirit born of sacred jade. He is gazing down, his expression impossibly soft, at a small grey form. As Lianhua's shadow falls across the steps, that small form—Xiao Yun—leaps from the spirit's feet and into the safety of…