The snow was coming down more thickly outside the teahouse, in little flurries that was just beginning to stick on every surface. It was darker on the streets now, too, because in the snow the little violet night lights were collecting on vines and under eaves and on wires, rather than floating down the streets.

"Helly told me that Aetherians don't have gender," Liya said.

"They don't," Yoshi answered, pouring some rather thick-looking tea into her cup from a pale blue teapot with a smile for a spout. They were seated across from each other at a small table by one of the windows, resting against cushions richly embroidered with gold and pink and green eyes and reed screens that isolated their table from the rest of the teahouse. The table itself was less elaborate, dressed with simple reed placemats; the cups were red clay, wrapped in leather.

Liya paused, about to drop a small bright pink disc into her tea from the box on the table. "But," she said cautiously, "But 'girl' is a gender."

Yoshi had rolled her sleeves up partway and now sat looking at her tea, resting her cheek in her hand. "I'm only Aetherian by citizenship," she said, shrugging. "But I'm not a spirit, not like native Aetherians are. Most of them wouldn't consider me 'Aetherian,'" she added, and then paused. Steam rose from her teacup, and she peered down into it.

"I thought that meant I couldn't call myself yllur," she went on, after a moment. "I felt like I was, but...I thought I must be mistaken. Or crazy. I didn't know humans had anything like yllur." She smiled mostly to herself then, and murmured, "Well, I'm half human. So maybe I'm not crazy or wrong after all."

"If you're a girl, then you're a girl," Liya said plainly, gesturing at her with her own teacup. "I don't see how yer species makes a differnce. An'," she added indignantly, casting a glance out of the window, "Who'd know better what you are than you, anyway?"

The statue of Cuppra and Suuhl was visible from the window, rising over the rooftops some ways off. Cuppra was facing away from them, Suuhl almost towards them. Snow was visible even from the teahouse, collecting on the statue's shoulders and heads and wings, pale against the white statue's weird glow.

As Liya looked, the statue of Suuhl shook its massive head, flinging snow off into the air. She sat bolt upright, startled.