"Wake up. We are going to be late," Yuan said as he shook Dimu. "Kenji said to be at the zoo at half past day break."

"Wha?..." his sister muttered.

"We are going to be late for our first day of work, Yin."

"What?!" she shot up from her bed, and began grabbing her shoes and the arduous task of smoothing out her tousled hair.

"We have about an hour before we have to be to work. Do you want to stop somewhere for some tea and breakfast?" her brother offered.

His sister nodded as she fought to keep her hair from sticking up, but unlike the front, which reached below her chin, the back of her hair was kept short, so it naturally wanted to stand up. Yuan watched Dimu's ritual of cleaning up and wondered if some of the darkness of her skin was from dirt or from the years of working outside that had given both of them a warm glow darker than the other people in their village.

"After work, do you want to resume training?"

Dimu paused, not quite sure how to react. The twins had not trained since their father's death. He was their mentor; could they train without him or would they have to employ the help of another master? More importantly; was Dimu ready to move on and accept that her father was never coming back? She had coped months without her father to wake her up in the morning, without his gentle touch as he guided her stance and movements to teach her how to shatter a boulder or simply shape a brick to help build a new house for new villagers. Was she truly ready continue life without him?

"Ask me again after work."

Her brother nodded, not arguing with her decision. When Dimu deemed herself decent enough to go out into public, they left quickly to find a place to eat breakfast. It was difficult to find any restaurants or tea shops open so early, and the twins worried they would not have time to eat before work. Yuan, keeping a level head as opposed to his frustrated sister, found a gentleman walking purposefully down one of the streets with a satisfied smile on his face.

"Excuse me?" Yuan shouted to get the man's attention.

The man stopped and stared at the twins. Dimu took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and listened. The man's heartbeat was increasing. Did he think they were going to rob him? She glanced at her brother and shared a brief moment with him that told her he sensed the same thing. What was wrong with the people in this city?

"We mean you no harm. Do you know some where around here where we can get breakfast and a good cup of tea?"

The man reluctantly gave them direction to the "best tea shop around". It was hidden amidst the other building around it, but the sweet mixed aroma of the teas was unmistakable to Dimu and her brother. She even caught the scent of green tea. Yuan was a white tea drinker, while she preferred green tea. Dimu never understood how her brother could like white tea. Who drinks immature tea leaves?

They entered the small tea shop and seated themselves at a window table. The shop was mildly populated, which told the twins that the tea had to be good if it was half full before the sun had completely risen. Dimu glanced around. While the people were obviously enjoying their tea, she caught some looking over their shoulders, as if to make sure no one was eaves dropping on their conversation.

"What is wrong with the people in this city? They act as if they are constantly being watched; they trust no one."

"I know. I'm not sure why they act like this. Everyone is frightened to speak candidly. Something is not right with these people, with this city."

An elderly man with a gray beard, an elephantine build, and kind gold eyes came to their table.

"Good morning. I am Mushi. What can I get you?"

"What kind of teas do you serve here?" Yuan inquired.

"I think a better question would be, what teas don't we serve here?" the big man laughed at him own jest.

He smiled and replied, "I'll have a cup of white tea then. Do you serve breakfast here too?"

"Yes we do. We have a fruits, sweet breads, fried pancakes, tea eggs, and rice porridge."

"Hmm, I'm not sure. Dimu, why don't you order? I need a moment to think."

"I'll just have a hot cup of green tea and two plums if you have them."

"Dimu," Yuan said before Mushi could reply, "you have to eat more than that for breakfast, especially before work."

"You are not my father, Yuan," she said darkly at her brother, in a tone he had never heard before. He was taken back by what her words, and even more so by her attitude. Mushi glanced between the siblings and seemed to understand what was going on.

"Why don't I come back when you are both ready," he offered jovially.

"No," Dimu snapped. "We are ready to order now. Qing Yuan, order your breakfast."