Work Text:
minister of the dawn
L an-raised: well-poised, once praised. Now
A utumn’s misting cooling days grow
N earer. Smaller. The mornings grow older.
X ichen? - he asks you, again, and you answer. Then far
I n the jingshi, wind-snatched, that laughter
C alls to your brother; you smile, say: no matter. It is good
H e is better. (You sit still in your fetters.) And if
E ver the past, like a stone cast, keeps score: you know, now, the light in your name was
N ot yours. You only borrowed it for a while.