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Above the sky shifts from dusky periwinkle to deepest indigo, stars emerging to mirror constellations of fireflies flickering in the twilight. Dilly leaps merrily after the sparkling insects, while Poppy watches with a heavy heart from her spot in the grass. The hour is late, and they should be heading back now that they’ve replenished the lamps.
She’s learning to navigate by the stars, to trust her trail-finding sense. But even with Sadoc’s maps and their softly glowing lamps, on nights like these, when she remembers another starlit night and another host of fireflies, Poppy still feels a bit lost.
***
Nori’s steps slow and falter at the sight facing her. Before them spreads a flickering blaze of lamps, torches, and great watch fires illuminating a city whose stone walls tower above the desert, over her. The profusion of light casts an orange glow upon the sky, blotting out stars they followed to get here.
Sensing her unease, her tall companion rests a gentle hand on her shoulder.
A Harfoot could get swallowed up in a place like this. She feels a twinge in her chest remembering darker nights that somehow felt less lonely than this brilliant city teeming with life.