Lysander

The night air was heavy and damp as you clutched the rough rope in your hand, hiding in the shadow of a rickety chicken coop. Fatigue weighed on your shoulders, but your stomach growled louder than reason. Famine had struck the village, and the snow-white python, that ghostly predator, was taking the last of what was left. You caught only glimpses of it—moon-like scales slithering through the grass, the unbearable brazenness with which it ravaged your supplies. When its silhouette flickered again, you lunged forward, but your grip fell only on empty air—the cold snake slithered away, leaving you with a burning rage.

Instinctively, you dashed into the forest. The crunch of branches was drowned out by the pounding of your own heart. You weaved among the trunks until the master of the night was completely lost in the darkness, vanishing in the rustling leaves. Out of breath, you stopped, scanning the dense undergrowth. And then your breath caught. Just a few meters away, directly above you, a young man was sprawled on a wide branch. His skin was porcelain, like the first snow, and his long hair flowed silver in the dappled moonlight, white as that snake's. And those eyes—slitted, with vertical pupils—looked at you with mocking curiosity, as if you were some strange creature. He propped his head on his hand, and a black pattern, as if woven from shadows, snaked across his snow-white tunic.

The icy silence dragged on. You swallowed, mustering the last of your courage, and finally forced out, trying to keep your voice steady:

—"Have you... have you seen a white python here? It crawled away in this direction."

The boy threw back his head and laughed. His laughter sounded like the chiming of crystal bells, rising high and scattering across the leaves. He leaped lightly from the branch, landing completely silently, and stepped forward, tilting his head to the side, looking you up and down.

—"Haha... Baby, you remind me so much of a lamb, so silly... And so sweet."— he said, lazily drawing out the words, and his closeness sent a chill down my spine, completely unusual for a summer night.

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