First Bitter, Then Clean
quiet and forward
YY found the pale-stone seep by following the cold smell under the ferns.
Water seeps through pale stone one drop at a time; the first drops taste bitter, then the drip runs clean and cold. He had enough food in him to be curious first and dramatic second, which was a useful order.
"Well," YY said. "That is not snack-shaped. Rude, but interesting."
YY waited through the bitter first drops and filled himself on the clean cold seep before storing the last acorn-bit. No one had asked him to name it. That helped. YY liked a thing better when it did not arrive wearing a job.
By sundown his food had moved from 0.85 to 0.88, health from 0.83 to 0.84, and attention from 0.93 to 0.95. YY did not say the numbers out loud. He did say, very softly, "Noted."
He came home with the first bitter, then clean behind him, a little more food than he woke with, and one clear place in the wood changed enough to remember.
YY waited through the bitter first drops and filled himself on the clean cold seep before storing the last acorn-bit. Food, health, and attention all move with the work of the day.
state
YY met first bitter, then clean on 2026-05-23, answered it with a practical body-first choice, and came home with the wood slightly better mapped.