It was a pretty nice afternoon for a nap, Shen Hu thought, sliding through the last few moves of his newest technique. It was a new art, so he was still perfecting the physical motions. Shen Hu found that things worked best for him when he divided them up like that. Practice each piece a thousand times, and only then fit the whole thing together.

It was too bad his concentration was shot right now. He doubted that he’d have time for that nap. Out of the corner of his eye, he spied the figure perched on the fence post of his training ground as he fell into a series of stretches, warming down from his exercise.

It was that Gu girl.

She unsettled him. Popping up to chat out of nowhere, asking for physical cultivation tips, and always just… looking at him. He felt like a deer being stalked by a wolf sometimes, or at least what he imagined that would feel like. He’d been stalked by wolves, but he’d never felt this weirdly helpless. But she wasn’t really being rude or anything, and she was the daughter of some eastern big shot, so he really wasn’t sure how to deal with it.

Shen Hu let out a deep breath as he finished stretching. Straightening up, he pressed his hands together and inclined his head, thanking the mountain spirit for the qi he’d taken in his cultivation. If he wanted to get anything done today, especially that nap, he needed to figure out what she wanted today.

The air was really chilly today, he thought. He should probably be wearing a shirt, but he’d gotten out of the habit. They didn’t let his pecs breath.

“Finished already, Sir Shen?” the girl, Gu Xiulan, asked. “You need not stop early on my account.”

“It’s fine,” he said, turning around to face her. “I was due for a cool down anyway.”

Gu Xiulan was pretty striking. The bright red and gold of her gown stood out brightly from the fall morning mist, and the air around her was clear, dried by an invisible ripple of heat. As usual, he found his gaze drawn to her face where her brown eyes danced with inner embers.

“How thoughtful,” she laughed, covering her mouth with her sleeve. “I do hope I wasn’t distracting you.”

“You were, but it’s good practice too,” Shen Hu replied evenly. It was hard to focus with someone’s eyes on his back.

She stared at him and then smiled cockily “Of course! How could you not be? My apologies then.”

“Like I said, it’s fine,” Shen Hu said, crossing his arms. “So, what did you want to ask me about? I doubt you’d sit around watching me for nothing.”

“You might be surprised,” Gu Xiulan replied haughtily, twirling a strand of hair around her finger as she glanced down at him. He blinked at her. She frowned as she looked back to his face. “I came with an invitation to an event, Sir Shen.”

He cocked his head to the side curiously, wondering just where this was going. “I’m not really one for fancy stuff,” he said warily. He’d probably just fall asleep at a play or performance a high class lady like her would enjoy. “I wouldn’t want your kindness to be wasted.”

Gu Xiulan stared at him again, a curl of smoke rising from her hair. “Well, if you are too simple to accompany me to Storm’s Crown Peak, I wonder that you can even speak and walk at the same time,” she snapped waspishly.

Shen Hu’s eyes widened. Storm’s Crown was the mountain where the Sect Head’s spirit companion held court. Disciples weren’t generally allowed there, even when the dragons were elsewhere. It was supposed to be incredibly rich in cultivation materials and lucky opportunities. “How’d you get a pass to enter the peak?”

She sniffed, tossing her hair. “I have my ways. Now, I wonder if I should even offer, if you want to see me so little.”

Shen Hu grimaced, scrubbing a hand through his sweaty hair. “I’m, ah… sorry? I guess it was thoughtless of me to assume.”

“It was,” Gu Xiulan said archly. Turning away, she began to leave the field. “I had thought you would be pleased to accompany a young lady on so dangerous a trial.”

“Hey, wait,” Shen Hu said, following after her with unusual energy. He wasn’t exactly in a great place material wise right now. His disciple stipend and family funding were falling behind his cultivation needs. “I really didn’t mean to be rude!”

“So you do wish to accompany me?” Gu Xiulan asked, not quite looking over her shoulder. “No, I suppose you are only interested in the mountain.”

Shen Hu bit his tongue to cut off the immediate affirmative response. Even he knew better than that. He looked helplessly at her back for a moment. It wasn’t like he disliked her; she just made him uncomfortable. The looks she’d give him reminded him of the way his mother would look at his father when he came home from a long lumber slaying expedition.

Which was weird. She was way out his league. They were never gonna get married, so why would she look at him like that?

“No, really, I want to come,” he said desperately, hurrying to catch up. “I bet the two of us can handle any trial. If I’m holding them down, I bet you can blast anything in the third realm to ashes.”

Compliments were good, right? Shen Hu knew she had a lot of pride in how strong she was. From what he’d seen, it wasn’t even misplaced.

Gu Xiulan hummed to herself, still not looking at him. “Maybe so. That was my original thought.”

Shen Hu nodded, smiling in relief. “Yeah! So please let me accept your invitation, okay?”

Gu Xiulan smirked. “I suppose I shall allow it.”