With a SWISH, vines shot out and bound Xiao tightly from head to toe. He was wrapped up like a mummy, a thin tendril even gagging his mouth so he couldn't make a sound.
Then, the vines gave a sudden, hard pull, dragging him from the spot. They slammed the door open and threw him outside with a BANG.
Xiao slammed hard onto the ground and lay there for a long moment before his head cleared.
He lay there gazing up at the overcast sky, his mind a complete mess. His thoughts were a tangled knot, impossible to unravel.
He looked up at the wisp of cloud floating lazily in the sky. His brow furrowed, his voice a mixture of disbelief and irritation. "Nao Nao, did she just...
Did she really just tell me to get lost?"
The wisp of cloud remained suspended in mid-air, perfectly still, as if it hadn't heard him at all.
But just then, the edge of the cloud quivered slightly, like the corner of a mouth twitching to hold back a laugh.
