#and he asks sizhui to sing it again; and sizhui does of course

[kaen-ace-of-diamonds]

3 for wangxian

send me a ship and a number and I will write a kiss

3. …goodbye

His father, they say, loved like a starving wolf guarding a scrap of meat, fangs buried deep in the desire of his heart and eyes burning with hatred for anyone who dared try and take it away.

All his life Lan Wangji has endeavored not to be his father’s son. After everything, part of him recoils at the idea even as the rest of him understands it, even embraces it. It’s a surprising and unsettling feeling, roiling deep in the pit of his stomach and hitting him at the most unexpected moments. The most innocuous ones, more often than not.

“Lan Zhan!” Wei Ying’s voice is still music, bright and lilting and lovely, as he bounces into the room. Before him, he had not known the beauty of his own name. “Lan Zhan…! We’re about ready to go!”

Wei Ying does not, technically, teach classes of juniors in the Cloud Recesses. Uncle will, by his estimation, take two or three more years before he allows the Yiling Laozu to take such an official, prominent position before the rest of the cultivation world. But it causes slightly less of a stir to allow him to lead the older juniors in their first serious night hunts.

Less impressionable, Uncle calls them. Lan Wangji isn’t sure who he’s kidding: the juniors are all either fascinated by Wei Ying, if they don’t know him, or adore him, if they do: just ask Lan Jingyi, their most ardent defender. Or, of course, Sizhui: while to anyone else he will speak in his usual polite, diplomatic terms about the once-outlaw now comfortably settling within the walls of Cloud Recesses, Lan Wangji can tell exactly how closely he hangs on every word of the father he had lost for so much of his life. He cannot begrudge his son that, certainly. Nor any of the others: his heart says that Wei Ying is unparalleled but his head reminds him that all of his young clanmates deserve the chance to reach the same brilliance.

Wei Ying’s eyes shine the way they always have, back when they were his own, back when Lan Wangji had not understood the way that look made his blood sing.

“Eh, Lan Zhan…” Wei Ying crouches down next to him. His brush freezes over the letter he had been writing: with his brother still in seclusion, he has twice the tedious duties to take care of. “You won’t miss me too much, will you?”

Everything in him roars and clamors not to leave Wei Ying, to stay by his side and cling to him tight, so he will never again slip through his fingers and fall from the world, from Lan Wangji’s hand and his life. But never his heart. Never, never.

Wei Ying blinks, as he's answered only by an intense stare, and opens his mouth to say something more. But before he can, Lan Wangji’s hand flashes out, fast as a striking snake, to grab around the back of his neck and yank him into a kiss.

A noise of surprise escapes Wei Ying, which quickly dissolves into soft, muffled laughter as he deepens the kiss, clutching the front of Lan Wangji's robes.

Lan Wangji only holds tighter, willing every last sensation to be imprinted indelibly on his mind: the tickle of his hair falling in front of his eyes, the scent of his skin, the way Wei Ying’s forehead presses against his own. He bites at Wei Ying's lower lip, a small voice at the back of his head warning him not to get carried away. He must hold himself back to avoid accidentally drawing blood.

A wolf. Fine, then, if they say so. Let the rest of the world babble however they please, so long as he gets to keep him. Devour him and keep him forever, out of the reach of anyone who still wants to rip him away. He will dig his heels in, bite, tear, do anything he has to, if only for the chance to kiss Wei Ying like this just once more.

Still, when Wei Ying gently tugs his head back, he reluctantly retracts his arm. It's worth it, though, to see the grin on Wei Ying's face properly.

"You know, you could have just said yes," Wei Ying teases. "Don’t worry, we’ll be back soon!”

“I’m certain the juniors will tell me all about it when you return,” he says. The young ones have always been so very excited to see him, for reasons he doesn’t quite understand, but appreciates all the same. “Be well.”

“Of course!”

Wei Ying gets to his feet and goes, lifting his hand in a half-wave as he sweeps out the door. Lan Wangji’s eyes don’t leave his back until he’s gone, and even then it takes him a moment to look away from the space he has left. At least now, instead of just the notes of the qin vanishing unanswered into the night air, he has the solace of knowing that he will return.

Turning back to the scroll at his desk, he sees that in his fervor, he dropped the wet brush directly onto the letter he’d been composing. A quite irreparable blemish: he’ll have to start over. Fine, then. He’s well acquainted with fresh beginnings by now.

As he puts his brush to new paper, it occurs to Lan Wangji that he never spoke a word to his father in his life, much less wrote any letter. He isn’t sure whether he regrets that or not, or if he really would do anything different were Qingheng-jun still around now. But sometimes he imagines what it might be like to tell him that he had not been the only one.

[antebunny]

Hello I’m sorry if it’s to late to ask about the parent trap AU (I’m not sure how long ago it was a thing), but I have to ask, does Suzhui resent LWJ for what happened? Not saying I’m blaming LWJ, I’m just curious about it.

(parent trap AU)

Wei Sizhui's been lying for most of his life.

Not intentionally, at first. When Papa asked him if he remembered his father, he said no, because he didn't, not really. But he's thought about it over the years, and the more he thinks about it the more a distant collection of sensations forms in his brain, all labeled father. They're emotions, mostly. Warm hands. Safety. Low, soft singing at night when he couldn't sleep. Father loved him; that's the most dangerous memory Wei Sizhui has kept all these years. He's sure of it. Father loved him, and Father kept him safe.

He keeps this memory a secret, of course. Even before he was old enough to comprehend just how much Papa had given up to keep Sizhui safe, he knew it was dangerous to talk about Before. But on quiet nights when it's just him on a mattress, him on a train, him and Papa on a boat crossing the Indian Ocean, he dares to dream. Of returning to that place that screams safety. The singing, the warmth, the man who meant safety to Wei Sizhui. The man who was supposed to love him and keep him safe.

Even the dream is a betrayal so fierce Sizhui cannot breathe. So he does not speak of it to Papa. He doesn't suggest contacting Father, to see if anything's changed, to see if he is alright. Sizhui knows enough about what happened that he could never forgive Father. He knows Papa was accused of crimes that he hadn't committed. He knows that Father turned his back on Papa–not because Wei Wuxian would ever say so, but because he gets misty-eyed whenever Sizhui brings up his other dad. Somehow Papa ended up on the run. Somehow Sizhui ended up with him, meaning either Wei Wuxian thought Father wouldn't be able to protect him or that he'd be unwilling to. Neither speaks favorably of Father.

But the fact that Sizhui doesn't know is a thorn that he's never been able to pull out. He could ask Papa, but asking, when even after all this time the memory clearly still hurts him, seems unbearably rude to Sizhui. He's tried to content himself to waiting until Papa is ready to talk about it or simply never knowing.

Then along came Lan Jingyi. Ready and eager to share stories about his amazing stick-in-the-mud uncle. Hounding Wei Sizhui incessantly with plans to get them back together. Refusing to let him ignore it all and pretend he'd never even learned his father's name. Proposing plan after plan, always so stalwartly believing in Lan Wangji's goodness. Lan Wangji is good. Such a simple statement to Lan Jingyi that Wei Sizhui simply couldn't wrap his head around. How could the man who'd married then betrayed Wei Wuxian be good? How could he care so much for Lan Jingyi, a distant nephew, like his own son, when he didn't care for the son he'd actually had? Already Wei Sizhui knows that some of the memories Lan Jingyi has told him of Lan Wangji will be stored in his brain as false memories. Finally, at long last, is his father, so close yet so far. Is it so much to ask to have a real memory of him to take back with him? Can't Wei Sizhui meet him again, even if Lan Wangji doesn't know who he is, at least once?

Wei Sizhui makes a decision.

"Jingyi," he whispers, knowing that of the three other boys he's the most likely to still be awake. "Are you still doing the plan?"

A silence. Then: "You mean the plan you said was stupid and terrible and would never work? That plan?"

Wei Sizhui rolls his eyes at the darkened cabin ceiling. "Yes, that one."

More silence. He hears shifting blankets; Jingyi, propping himself up on his bottom bunk so he can peer at Sizhui on his top bunk.

"Why?" Lan Jingyi asks suspiciously. "Are you warming up to it? D'you think it's an amazing plan now? Is Operation: Parent Trap a go?"

Already Wei Sizhui is regretting his decision. "I don't want them to meet," he says. "I know my dad doesn't want to see him. But I do."

A longer silence. For one horrible moment, Sizhui thinks he's going to ask why.

"Okay," Jingyi says eventually.

Gratefully, Sizhui closes his eyes. He knows he's asking a lot of Jingyi. In this scenario, the only one taking the fall is Jingyi, who's not getting what he wanted–a reunion–while still getting kicked out of summer camp.

"You still have to teach me how to hack," Jingyi adds.

Sizhui opens his eyes just to roll them again. "For the last time, I don't know how to hack, Jingyi."

"But your dad does," Jingyi whines. "Surely he taught you something."

"He's taught me everything important," Sizhui says, mildly offended on his dad's behalf.

"Doesn't that include hacking?" Jingyi cries.

"Go the fuck to sleep," Jin Rulan groans into his pillow, woken up by all of their talking.

"Sizhui's agreed to my plan!" Jingyi says instead, delightedly sharing this news with the first person who'll listen.

"Who, and I cannot stress this enough, cares," Jin Rulan says. A pause: "Wait, the hacking plan? Can he teach me to hack too?"

"For the love of–" Sizhui closes his eyes and prays for patience. "What if I do the plan? We can just blame it on Jingyi."

"So you do know how to hack!" Jingyi shouts. "You just don't want to share your secrets!"

Ouyang Zizhen mumbles something unintelligible.

"I'm fine with that, by the way," Jingyi says, very much not fine with it. "I mean, I'm getting the credit. So long as you do something cool."

"If I say I will, will you stop shouting?" Sizhui begs.

"Yes," Lan Jingyi says immediately.

"No," Jin Rulan says at the same time. "You woke me up."

"Wouldn't you want to be woken up for this very important discussion?" Jingyi sniffs. "I would."

Wei Sizhui rolls over in bed and acknowledges to himself that he's not getting any sleep tonight.

[tangledinmdzs]

Juniors falling for a peasant girl? (Like she’s known, throughout all the clans, for her beauty and her singing voice, which people hear when she’s fetching something).

i’m very music oriented so i’m deeply inspired by this reaction; thank you for sharing~

here’s to your request!

∞ ₒ ˚ ° 𐐒𐐚 ° ˚ ₒ ∞ ∞ ₒ ˚ ° 𐐒𐐚 ° ˚ ₒ ∞

Lan Sizhui

he’d walked off the main road the moment that he had heard it

the sound, soft and lilting in the air, had first sounded like a bird’s whistle to his ears

but as his feet made its way deeper into the pathless forests, and his hands pushed aside the tall grassy bends, Sizhui realized that it was in fact a voice

Sizhui had never realized that a voice could sound as gentle and melodic as yours

it was sweetness to his ears

and when he saw you...

well...

it didn’t take Sizhui longer than 2 seconds to be smitten

he had followed your voice and found you squatted by the bend of a small secluded lake

you look to be in the middle of washing something, or playing with something (???)

the gentle flowing water, trickles in perfect harmony with your voice and Sizhui has a hard time believing that you were even human

he wants to get closer to you, but he accidentally steps on a branch loudly

the sound makes you jolt up in surprise, your singing interrupted as you stand up, clutching something to your chest

Sizhui stares, quickly from where he’s partially hidden in the under groves and bushes 

he doesn’t particularly know why he’s hiding, but he just was

he watches you stand still, looking around to see if anyone was there for a few long moments, before looking down at your closed hands

then you open them

Sizhui’s eyes widen

in your hands is a little bird, looking up to you with the brightest eyes

it chirps up to you, tilting its head this way and that in the warmth of your palm

you smile down at the creature, as small giggle escapes you

Sizhui’s heart stutters in his chest

“i’m glad you’re better now little one, now go find your momma,” you bid the bird 

it chirps up in response, almost like a thank you before flying off as you set it up into the air

Sizhui watches you as your eyes follow the bird’s flight to home

and feels as if his heart has taken flight in much the same way

Lan Jingyi

Jingyi had followed his best friend to this particular night hunt, as he usually would 

and as the procedures would have it, Sizhui and himself must look for a person that has information on the creature that’s been causing havoc in the town

the villagers point between one another all day and it is only in the afternoon after, that the two Lan disciples meet you

one of the older woman of the village had told them that you would have the most information about what kind of demon it was, considering that the part of the forest that was infested was a place you often went to to collect herbs

neither of the Lans like the sound of anyone being in potential danger, and so they hurry to find you

even though your village is small, it is surrounded by a lot of trees, so Sizhui and Jingyi end up splitting off to cover more ground

Jingyi doesn’t think that you even exist with how much time Sizhui and him had spent looking for you

but on the fourth day, when the high noon sun is beating down on his shoulders, Jingyi finds you

he finds you at the most obvious place, the village’s main well

and he feels incredibly stupid

Jingyi fixes his disheveled robes as he walks up to you pulling up the bucket from the well, thinking of all the questions that he needs to ask to know about the demon and other details

but all those words disappear as he gets within distance to you

you are singing as you work, a nice happy song that is somehow gentle despite its empowering lyrics

your voice echoes here and then whenever you bend down into the well and up as you pull the water bucket up

and when Jingyi is able to catch your face, the way the few strands of your hair fall and frame your face, 

Jingyi suddenly feels stupid

you finish filling up your final basket as your song ends and look up to see a cultivator in whiteish blue robes, staring at you

you widen your eyes, breaking out into a smile as you dab at your sweat with your hands

“hello, are you looking for someone?” 

“you, all of my life probably,” Jingyi mumbles out and you tilt your head at him in confusion

“i’m sorry, what did you say?” 

shit��

Jin Ling

despite this being one of the hundreds of night hunts that he has been on, Jin Ling is still anxious

his sect had planned to embark on the night hunt for the demon the following night

and of course, sleep had to be difficult to come now

Jin Ling’s mind runs rapid with the details of the operation, wondering exactly how things would play out, what he would do if things didn’t go according to plan

he had always worried too much

and this energetic mind of his would always deplete his energy; so he would never have enough when he would actually need it

Jin Ling knows this about himself well

but he can’t help it

he can’t sleep

Jin Ling lies in bed as the moon shines a white glow onto his bedside, contemplating whether or not he should go downstairs in his inn and ask for a drink to lull him to sleep

he almost does, his shoes had been put on, when he hears the voice

it’s gentle, but close in a way that Jin Ling’s never felt before 

Jin Ling follows the melody to his open window, pushing the shutters wider to look

there was no one on the streets, 

the shops all looked close

everything looked as desolate and empty as this tiny village was supposed to look

so where was this voice coming from?

Jin Ling wonders if his sleep deprived brain is just making up hallucinations at this point

but the song continues and it is nice, so Jin Ling takes a seat by the window listening anyways

he leans his head on his arm, looking up to the moon

was the moon singing to me, Jin Ling wonders letting his eyes close to their own accord

the voice follows him, even into dreamland

and as you sing from next door, you never realize that you would have reached someone’s heart 

Ouyang Zizhen

fate would have it to bring him to this town, this village, Zizhen thinks as he’s sat around the fire with the rest of his sect’s disciples

this tiny village on the outskirts of his sect, had been plagued by a night demon for many many weeks now

as the sect leader, of course it was his responsibly to protect his people

the night hunt was about as danger as most night hunts he’s ever been on

but all went well with his trusted friends and fellow cultivators

and in celebration of the relinquishing of the demon spirit, the village’s people had set up a small feast in deep gratitude to the night hunt efforts

and you had been chosen as the night’s entertainment

Zizhen quickly learns, from the elders that whisper and talk near his high table, that you were gentle and graceful like a summer breeze with a personality that’s bright like the season to match

you were known for many things in this small village, but you were most known for your voice, 

a voice that touched the heart of every listener

and when you come to stand by the bright glow of the small fire pit, Zizhen finds that all their words and whispers, were true

you sing with so much genuine emotion that Zizhen can’t help but feel his heart swoop and soar with each lyric that you sing

though you are only accompanied by the crackling of the fire beside you, the small crowd of cultivators and villagers listen in hushed anticipation, following the story of the song that you present

it is a sad piece despite today’s festive celebration, but it moves his heart in ways that Zizhen is grateful to have experienced

when you are finished, the rest of his disciples hoot and holler loudly, some friends even asking for you to sing again

but Zizhen stays quiet, his eyes never straying far from you

you bow deeply, and when you look up you meet his eyes

you blink in surprise, not meaning to be rude, not thinking that you would ever be able to look eye to eye with an esteemed cultivator such as himself

Zizhen gives you a smile and you hear his voice the clearest amongst all the other chatter and applause that surrounds you both

“your voice is truly magical,” 

your cheeks warm as bright red as the fire you are standing next to

and ZIzhen thinks it is a beautiful look on you 

[lanzhanlanzhan]

Wei Wuxian - On Loving Lan Wangji

(Or 'I was supposed to be writing fanfiction but my character notes got ahead of me and now I have another meta')

One of the most charming things about CQL!Wei Wuxian is this: up to the end, I don't think he has realized that he is in love with Lan Wangji.

I mean, we know. The world around them knows. Heck, I think even Lan Wangji knows, because bless this boy, I think he resolved his own 'I am in love with Wei Wuxian' arc even before the show's half-way point.

Wei Wuxian, though? I don't think so. Funny enough, in CQL-verse, there were already hints of something promising between Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji even before Wei Wuxian's death, unlike in the novel where Wei Wuxian was completely in the dark and only developed feelings for Lan Wangji in his second life. CQL-verse though gave them that foundation of them being two people who were drawn to one another from the start, who became friends and even established a bond so close they can consider themselves as soulmates. Again, all these before Wei Wuxian even died.

I would like to once again send my heartfelt gratitude to Xiao Zhan for all those interviews that gave us a glimpse of his headspace as Wei Wuxian. In a few of these interviews, Xiao Zhan mentioned how part of Wei Wuxian's next life involved having to resolve things in the last one, and this actually included his learning to trust Lan Wangji again. 

In his old life, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji had to struggle with a beautiful relationship on the verge of collapse, brought by Wei Wuxian's seeming refusal to let go of his ghost cultivation path, and Lan Wangji's conviction that Wei Wuxian had to return to sword cultivation because any other path would harm him. The tragedy of it all was that they were both in the right—Wei Wuxian required an alternative path to fight for what he believed was right despite having lost his golden core, and Lan Wangji (who did not yet know about Wei Wuxian's core) was also correct in that ghost cultivation was affecting Wei Wuxian's psyche. All these came to a head at Nightless City, with Wei Wuxian, heartbroken over having lost the people he fought so hard for, went against the whole cultivation world. In that state, he also saw that Lan Wangji was still against him, tried to stop him, even though Lan Wangji himself was still conflicted though his heart was still with Wei Wuxian in the end. 

Now, this time it would be Wei Wuxian's character song that makes things interesting. His character song seems to be set while he was in that space between his two lives, looking back at a life that strayed so far away from where his good intentions would have wanted it to go. He recounts his life, but interestingly and heartbreakingly, when we reach the chorus, although the words are actually never the same, the lines are nonetheless about the same single thing:

Chorus 1:

I have tried to take a jar of liquor with a smile

And once fought with the most beautiful person in Gusu

Chorus 2 (here, the lines dedicated to the subject are even longer):

I was once stunned by someone

And teased the cloud patterns with my fingertips

The sudden vibrations of a zither

I wonder why I am remembering these deep in my dream

Chorus 3:

I also once had someone in the mortal world

To love and to long for

The chorus always starts talking about Lan Wangji—and yet, it doesn't really sound like Wei Wuxian fully realizes how much this person means to him. He looks at it from a distance, perhaps because it was a life that was already over and he was regretful about how things had ended. The feelings are bittersweet—and just wow, those lines where Wei Wuxian calls Lan Wangji as "the most beautiful person in Gusu" are just too powerful for my poor, weak heart. Note though that with Wei Wuxian, this could mean either he did think of Lan Wangji as the most beautiful person in Gusu, or he just took it for granted that Lan Wangji was known as the most beautiful person in Gusu. Or it could be a bit of both, with not a lot of overthinking because... ah, Wei Ying, Wei Ying.

Fast forward now to after Wei Wuxian's resurrection. We know he and Lan Wangji were not in a good place because Wei Wuxian hid from him at first. He got anxious when he heard the juniors talking about Hanguang-jun, and actually discouraged them from calling him over. This was the man he once called his soulmate! How bad of a fall-out had theirs been for things to change so drastically. It definitely took some time for Wei Wuxian to feel comfortable around Lan Wangji again. 

Two things, I think, softened Wei Wuxian. First, Lan Wangji's drunken confession in CQL-verse was that he regretted the events leading to Wei Wuxian's death. It made Wei Wuxian realize why Lan Wangji was looking for him in the first place, all this time. He sought to comfort Lan Wangji and explained that he was not to blame. We can see Wei Wuxian was moved by how gently he took care of Lan Wangji that night, drunk as he was. 

Second was Lan Xichen telling Wei Wuxian about the events after his death, what punishments Lan Wangji endured and how he retained his faith and conviction about Wei Wuxian even after all of that. Even the story about their mother was telling; it was a glimpse of how strongly and stubbornly Lan Wangji loves someone, and how deeply that love goes, even if he does not say anything in words. Lan Xichen reminded Wei Wuxian of how adamant and persistent Lan Wangji had been about saving Wei Wuxian in his past life. Wei Wuxian said that it was unnecessary for Lan Wangji to have done these things, to suffer through his loyalty to Wei Wuxian especially when Wei Wuxian was already dead. But somehow it must have proven something to him, too, and gave him a sense of security with Lan Wangji.

After these things, love (or at the very least, trust and attachment) just seemed to develop naturally from there. Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji are good together especially as "partners-in-crime", so to speak. They are a very effective team, and while this goes to show how naturally compatible they are, the adventures they go through just also strengthen the bond between them. What finally cemented their relationship in this second life, resolving any other doubts Wei Wuxian might have had with Lan Wangji, was that face-off at Lanling, where Lan Wangji had the opportunity to deny Wei Wuxian again in order to retain his respected status in the cultivation world. Lan Wangji refused, announced that he knew it was Wei Wuxian from the start, and told Wei Wuxian that it wasn't so bad, walking in this path of his. 

They were noticeably inseparable from there. What makes my heart sing about this is that this time, Wei Wuxian is more actively sticking to Lan Wangji. He needs no one else other than Lan Wangji, has complete faith in him. Back in Yi City, we saw how confident he was that Lan Wangji would win against Xue Yang, he was not even worried when he took the kids to safety. Then at the Burial Mounds, when he drew the spirit attraction enchantment on himself to drive away the corpses, he refused any other help, saying Lan Wangji was enough to protect him. 

There were many other instances. In Lotus Pier, he was constantly with Lan Wangji, and even presented him to his family. He accepted insults about himself from Jiang Cheng, but not even his guilt towards Jiang Cheng would allow him to let his brother insult Lan Wangji. Even his asking Lan Wangji to take him away from Lotus Pier after the confrontation with Jiang Cheng was telling, because Wei Wuxian used to be self-sufficient and was uncomfortable asking for help. But he was doing so freely with Lan Wangji. 

Even before entering the Guanyin Temple, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji had a conversation about Wen Ning—another staple in Wei Wuxian's life—needing to find a life for himself. Interestingly, the thought that Lan Wangji (who was about as attached to him as Wen Ning was) similarly needed a life free from him did not even occur to Wei Wuxian. He would let Wen Ning go, but Lan Wangji stays.

Then, at the Guanyin Temple, when he found out that everyone seemed to know about his losing his golden core, Wei Wuxian checked with Lan Wangji first, asking, "So do you also know?" By this point, Lan Wangji had become a far first in his mind, far from everyone else. Wei Wuxian looks to him first, and before facing anything else that remained against him, he has to check first that things between him and Lan Wangji were okay.

This is also why the last episode is so heartbreaking. After the events at the temple, Wei Wuxian whisks Lan Wangji away and makes a run for it. Escaping did seem to be his intention, too, because when Wen Ning and Lan Sizhui—the most harmless, loyal people to them both—caught up to them, Wei Wuxian looked disappointed that they were caught.

Of course, he then learned that Lan Sizhui was none other than their beloved A-Yuan, and that was a heart-warming reunion all around. Eventually though, Lan Sizhui and Wen Ning said their goodbyes, and Wei Wuxian turned to Lan Wangji, wondering where they would go. He never thought to even ask Lan Wangji where he would go, never thought it would be anywhere Wei Wuxian wouldn't be, because already he learned to be secure that Lan Wangji would never leave his side. In a way, he took it for granted that Lan Wangji would no longer leave him, but to be fair to Wei Wuxian, after everything that had happened and given his own feelings towards Lan Wangji, it was an easy assumption and mistake to make, to have that sense of security towards someone to whom one's heart was so drawn to.  

Somehow though, I do think their parting might have done Wei Wuxian some good. Again, Wei Wuxian is a dense motherf*cker not the type who digs deeply at his own mind and feelings (heck, the boy falls asleep during meditation, and never forget the 'Do you like Mianmian?' incident), doesn't label things and just rides those feelings out openly and freely. Time apart from Lan Wangji could have given him more space to assess what he was feeling for the guy, what it meant to miss him, how badly he was missing him, and so on. And we know he missed him badly, because who in their right mind would play their theme song atop a mountain, looking like they were about to cry? How afraid he was to look behind him and find that maybe Lan Wangji wasn't really there, that it was all in his head… oh, Wei Ying. 

So, yes. We did not get the "I love you's" (nor "that night, I really wanted to sleep with you!" lmao) in the drama, but this also makes sense because Wei Wuxian probably also did not even know, or did not know what to call it, or whatever the heck they were. But spending those days (perhaps even months or years) away from Lan Wangji were clearly difficult for him, enough for us to know that their reunion would bring Wei Wuxian such relief, he likely would never let Lan Wangji go again. And maybe, just maybe, when they meet again, that's when it all comes to Wei Wuxian, the feelings he isn't able to keep anymore, and he would just burst out, "I miss you! I love you!"

[midnightluck]

Masquerade! What does Lan Sizhui dress as? Does he dance with anyone? OR MAYBE some cute wangxian family fluff + Sizhui's first masquerade ??

Lan Xichen looks out at the party and smiles. It’s little and painful, but this was a good idea. It’s good to start small, and there’s something almost healing about seeing the joy in the crowd.

“You did well with this,” he tells his brother, who is wearing his formal daily wear. The only concession he’s made to the idea of a masquerade is the pair of rabbit ears perched on his head. They’re made of paper and they twitch adorably; Xichen senses a certain troublemaker’s hand in this. He rather suspects his brother’s only contribution to his own costume was the inability to say “no.”

“Hm,” Wangji says.

“Yes, I know it wasn’t your idea, but you planned it. And you did well.” He gestures out at the people and the swirl of colors that are, for once, not representative of standing or sect. Everyone came as they aren’t, and there’s a lot of common ground being found. “Isn’t this more fun than a discussion conference?”

Wanji tilts the top of his head fractionally to the left and his right rabbit ear twitches twice. It’s adorable and Xichen feels his smile grow. It doesn’t even hurt this time.

“Lan Zhan!” a familiar voice calls over the chaos and he turns in enough time to focus on two shapes cutting through the crowd. “Oh! And Lan Xichen! Hello!”

Xichen bows marginally, more of a deep nod–family to family. “Wuxian,” he greets. “And Sizhui. Good evening.”

Then he blinks and looks back and forth between Sizhui and Wanji. His heart speeds up and his smile grows and he has to raise a hand and pretend to cough. “Ah, A-Yuan, that’s...”

Sizhui is dressed in robes that exactly match Hanguang-jun’s. Xichen’s eyes catch on the left hem and he knows that these are, in fact, Wangji’s robes Sizhui is wearing. He’s also managed to straighten his hair and is wearing a mask across the top half of his face that includes the same paper bunny ears. “That’s adorable,” he says, and barely manages to stop himself from asking if Sizhui is dressed like a bunny or like his dad.

“Isn’t he cute!” Wuxian says, twirling on the spot to tug at Sizhui’s arm. “He’s like a mini-Hanguang-jun! So handsome, like his daddy!”

“Yes,” Xichen agrees. “And you?”

Wuxian’s shoulders sink and he leans forward to affect a truly evocative sulk. “You can’t tell?”

With the amount of makeup Wuxian is wearing, Xichen is identifying him more by his robes, honestly. They’re his nicest daily robes, outer black, inner red, and his hair seems to bounce differently in his high ponytail but Xichen can not honestly connect that to any kind of costume.

“I’m a vengeful spirit!” Wuxian announces, bouncing on his toes. He reaches for the place on his belt where he keeps Chenquing and seems surprised when his hand hits fabric. Then he grins anyway and says, “I was summoned back from death to haunt everyone! Woooooo~! Aren’t I fearsome? Hey, hey, Lan Zhan, you think I’m fearsome, don’t you?”

He skips forward to tug on Wangji’s sleeve and grins from up close. Wangji’s hands settle on Wuxian’s waist, and then Wangji frowns.

His head turns between Wuxian and Sizhui then back again, and then he closes his eyes for a half-second longer than a blink. “Mm,” he says, sounding less than pleased.

Wuxian turns and Wangji lets him go, dropping his hands to his sides. Xichen frowns, but then Wuxian punches the air and says, “Thirty seconds! I win!”

“That’s cheating!” Sizhui protests, only it isn’t his voice. It’s different, deeper and older and rounder on the accents.

“Is not,” Wuxian says, a little bit sing-song and a whole lot mischievous. “The rule was not to make it obvious, and I didn’t! Uncle didn’t notice!”

The not-Sizhui takes off his mask and sighs. “It was cheating and you know it!”

“I didn’t notice what?” Xichen wonders, then blinks at the uncle, puts that together with the way Wangji let go and the makeup and the mask and the hair, of course, and he looks at the boy in white and rabbit ears and says, carefully, “...Wuxian?”

“I am very convincing at being you!” Not-Wuxian says, and that–it must be Sizhui. It must, mustn’t it? “Right, uncle?”

“I–” Xichen says, staring at him, a little faint. “Yes.”

“So I win!”

Wuxian-as-Sizhui sighs, a production involving his whole body, and says, “Fine, you win. Get gone, you little brat. You’ve got one week before we come after you.”

Sizhui-as-Wuxian jumps and punches the air in a move that is very much not out of place on Wei Wuxian. “Thanks, dad! Have fun!” And he’s gone a half-second later, yelling, “Jingyi! Jin Ling!”

Wuxian-as-Sizhui smiles wryly and steps up to stand next to them. “How could you tell?” he asks his husband.

Xichen cuts his eyes away so he doesn’t have to see whatever his brother does to explain what Xichen’s already figured out–there’s no way Lan Wangji’s hands don’t know what Wei Wuxian’s hips feel like.

“Ah, Lan Zhan,” Wuxian sighs, swaying into him. Xichen looks back to see that their white robes blend and their ears are almost touching. “You’re so sweet!”

Then Wangji does the unthinkable–he leans away from Wuxian. Wuxian stares at him in shock. “What,” he says, and steps forward. 

Wangji steps back.

“What!” Wuxian repeats, more shrilly, and Xichen clears his throat and moves to intercept before they start drawing attention. 

“Ah, Wuxian,” he says. “Perhaps–well, maybe...perhaps you should–” he gestures at Wuxian’s everything, “perhaps...change?”

Wuxian’s eyes laser-focus onto Xichen. “It was just a joke,” he says blankly. “Just for fun. Is he mad, does he hate me, what do I–”

“Ah,” Xichen says, and even knowing it’s Wuxian it still triggers his Uncle instinct. He puts his hands on Wuxian’s shoulders to keep him place. “Maybe change? And come back to kiss your husband when you don’t look…ah. Quite so much like your child?”

Wuxian’s eyes go from empty to horrified in a second flat. He looks at Xichen, then at Wangji, who’s looking pointedly away, and then back down at his own robes. “Oh,” he says. “I don’t think I thought this through.”

And, for the first time since his world crumbled, Lan Huan finds himself laughing.

[wangxiangiftexchange]

Lunar New Year Gift for dreamaholicsanonymous!

For @dreamaholicsanonymous <33

*****

all roads, they lead me here

Lan Zhan waited sixteen years for Wei Ying, he can wait for a couple more.

Or at least, that is what he told himself when Wei Ying had packed his things to explore the world.

Life passes by agonizingly slow without Wei Ying at his side. Lan Zhan thought his pining for him was most arduous during those sixteen years, searching and waiting for even a single glimmer of hope that Wei Ying was not gone. But now that he finally had him back—now that Lan Zhan has had the opportunity to bask in his presence once more, it felt even more harrowing not to have Wei Ying at his side. Knowing that he was out there, that he was alive and still Lan Zhan would miss him.

Lan Zhan waited sixteen years for Wei Ying, he can wait for a couple more.

He repeats it like a mantra, one that would keep him from running away from his responsibilities to go and find Wei Ying.

He throws himself into the responsibilities of a sect leader and of a chief cultivator. He takes time to teach the juniors, visit his brother in seclusion, and even goes to tea with Sect Leader Nie. (Even if those moments mostly consist of Nie Huaisang subtly sharing gossip and information with him while Lan Zhan sits and says nothing else.) He does everything he can and reminds himself that love is not about binding someone to him. His father did that with his mother—chained her to him, no matter how much he claimed it was for her own good—and it only ended in pain. Lan Zhan finally had Wei Ying back and he was taking no chance of letting it end that way.

The only indulgence he allowed himself was through correspondence. As it turns out, Lan Sizhui and Wei Ying crossed paths at one point in their travels. And after receiving a collaborative letter from them, Lan Zhan began exchanging letters with Wei Ying. Every missive like a balm to the ache of longing he feels.

Wei Ying writes of his adventures, of the friends he meets—both new and old. His last letter was written in Lanling, having been convinced by SectLeader Jin Ling to come and try his attempt at recreating his mother’s famous Lotus Pork Rib Soup. Wei Ying swears that it tasted similar and that he was amazed at how Jin Ling managed to make it without ever having tasted Jiang Yanli’s cooking.

Someday, he had written. If I find myself at the Cloud Recesses again, I’ll make some for you. It won’t be as good as shijie’s or Jin Ling’s, but it might be close enough.

The missive had only come three days ago, but the paper is already worn. Lan Zhan keeps it on his person at all times, fishing it out of his sleeve to read when he is growing tired or in need of something to lighten his mood. He would trace those very words carefully—longingly, his eyes glazing over with what could be.

In retrospect, what it could have been right now, if only he had not kept his mouth shut. If only Lan Zhan had told him—told him why those sixteen years were agonizing, why A-Yuan’s courtesy name is Sizhui, why he kept asking him to come back to Gusu with him—even just the name of the song. If he had told Wei Ying, perhaps there was a chance he would have stayed. Or even if he did not stay, perhaps he would drop by the Cloud Recesses regularly in between his travels, the way he did at Lotus Pier and Koi Tower.

Lan Zhan at least knew that Wei Ying liked having him at his side. That much was clear when he was faced with a crestfallen Wei Ying asking him if he was going to follow him on to the next adventure and he had to say no, of all things.

Someday, Lan Zhan thinks, betraying his responsibility-bound mantra for a mere second. For just one moment, he thinks, someday.

There is a whisper of a flute amongst the breeze.

Lan Wangji halts in his footsteps, startling the juniors behind him. The wind continues to blow, but there is only silence. Lan Wangji stays put, certain he could not have heard wrong. The sound of a flute is not common in the Lan sect, since most of its members prefer using zithers, but that melody was one of a kind.

“Hanguang-jun?” He does not pay mind to Jingyi, too busy straining his ears for the familiar notes. He hears another whisper before he turns a sharp look on them and they all fall silent. Only more silence follows and Lan Wangji nearly resolves that it was all wishful thinking when the light trill breezes through once more. And this time, it’s clear he’s not the only one who heard it.

“Huh, that sounds like a flute.”

“A flute?”

“That must be Wei-qianbei!”

“How are you so sure it’s him?”

“Come on, no one around here has played a flute since Zewu-jun went into seclusion. Besides, that’s clearly the sound of a dizi.”

“And who do we know that plays a dizi?”

“Only Wei-qianbei, of course!”

Lan Wangji ignores the collective sound of the juniors connecting the dots and wastes no time. He thinks they might not even hear or process that he has left them but he really could not care less. Right now, all he cares about is mounting his sword and following the sound of the dizi. Right now, all he has in his head is Wei Ying.

He follows it all the way to the same mountain they saw each other at last, his heart pounding faster even at just the sight of that red ribbon in Wei Ying’s hair.

Lan Zhan does not run the moment his feet touch the ground. He does not even dare to walk further than where he has landed, just staring at Wei Ying’s figure from a little over two meters away with his heart practically singing his name. Wei Ying is still playing on his flute, unaware that Lan Zhan stood just a little away from him and Lan Zhan wonders how to catch his attention.

There are so many things he wishes to say, so many things he should have said from the start and should not have to wait any longer. They all rush through his head—you’re back, i’ve been waiting for you, i wish we never had to part, i’m so glad you’re here with me, i love you—but nothing seemed right. Lan Zhan had never been good with so many words anyways, so he just says what his heart tells him to:

“Wei Ying.”

The music stops immediately. Wei Wuxian is still for a moment, not even putting his flute down. He turns with a look of disbelief. Lan Zhan’s heart stills with anxiety, wondering if Wei Ying had even meant to come here, and immediately begins planning a mean of escape. But then Wei Ying smiles, he gives Lan Zhan one of the brightest smiles he has ever seen and only takes one moment before running to wind his arms around Lan Zhan’s neck.

“Lan Zhan,” he says, tone just as soft and fond as Lan Zhan’s had been. “I’m back.”

Wei Ying spends a week at the Cloud Recesses.

His first order of business was to recreate the Lotus Pork Rib Soup, as he had promised in his letters. Lan Zhan, having never tasted neither Jiang Yanli’s or SectLeader Jin Ling’s version, really had no way of knowing whether or not it was in any way close to the original. He did, however, like it. It seems Wei Ying took care not to add too much spice in this one, even taking care to use substitutes for the pork.

(“I had to ask Jin Ling for help,” Wei Ying says, a hand coming up to rub at the back of his neck sheepishly. “It took us over a dozen tries, and we did our best to find a substitute for the pork that wouldn’t alter the taste so much—ah, it probably doesn’t taste so good—”

“Wei Ying,” Lan Zhan’s voice cuts through, gentle and fond. “It tastes wonderful.”

Wei Ying had beamed and did not stop even as Lan Zhan finished the bowl right in front of him.)

Second order of business, apparently, had been to let the whole of the Cloud Recesses know he had returned. The moment they had stepped out of the Jingshi—one might say it was selfish, but Lan Zhan had wanted to spend the first moments of Wei Ying’s return alone with him. Which meant taking him straight to the Jingshi, where no one would bother them—Wei Ying had caught sight of Lan Jingyi and immediately began flapping his arms and calling out loudly to get the junior’s attention. Jingyi, of course, does not hesitate to flail back just as eagerly and greet him. (He does pause to compose himself a little in front of Lan Zhan, though.)

This caught the attention of any other junior that had passed and, inevitably, they all flock to Wei Ying. Lan Zhan is glad that he foresaw such events and went ahead with taking Wei Ying to the Jingshi first.

Wei Ying greets them all with enthusiasm, his smile bright with something that Lan Zhan just could not place. He pays attention to all their requests for stories of his adventures and for all their requests of cultivating tips, but his eyes always take a moment to lock with Lan Zhan’s. They’re warm and twinkling with a sense of joy that Lan Zhan had truly missed in the last year.

Even when Lan Qiren had passed by on one of their walks to the bunnies, he had stopped to ask how Wei Ying had been. He was curt and still had to hold himself back from yelling whenever Wei Ying made a remark he deemed inappropriate, but it was the most civil he had ever been when in his presence. It left Wei Ying dealing with whiplash and Lan Zhan with a very woozy Wei Ying.

(“Is your uncle feeling well?” Wei Ying had whispered, eyes wide as he watched Lan Qiren walk away. “I’m pretty sure I just heard him say welcome back. Welcome back. He said it like he didn’t want to throw me out on sight!”

“I suppose even uncle has missed you causing a ruckus here.” Lan Zhan muses, ignoring the subsequent squawks of indignation and disbelief from Wei Ying.)

Wei Ying had even hesitantly asked if they could take a moment to check on Lan Xichen in seclusion. Lan Zhan had agreed, he was off to go and see his brother anyway. And the moment Lan Xichen opened the door to Wei Ying’s small smile, he faced him with a wide one, immediately granting them entrance. Lan Xichen still smiled, albeit far less often, after the death of his sworn brother. But Lan Zhan has not seen his brother smile so much in one visit until Wei Ying had brought out every story he had from Jin Ling of the way he felt loved by his uncle Jin Guangyao.

Lan Zhan had said as much to Wei Ying after they had finally left to go get dinner and leave Lan Xichen to rest. Wei Ying only smiles softly and says, “Sometimes, you just need to be reminded that you weren’t the only one who cared about that person.”

And the final order of business was to reacquaint himself with the Cloud Recesses. Wei Ying lamented that while he had the chance to explore the Cloud Recesses a bit last year, they got pretty busy with the Yin Tiger Seal business and did not really get to see much more than he would have liked. And so Lan Zhan had taken him to every nook and cranny of the Cloud Recesses that he could.

Their last stop of the day—Wei Ying’s final day in the Cloud Recesses—is Caiyi Town.

“Caiyi Town is not part of the Cloud Recesses.”

“Ah, but Lan Zhan I haven’t gone to Caiyi town with you in over a decade! And you promised to show this feeble—”

“Wei Ying is not feeble.”

“—this feeble cultivator around! You’re not going back on a promise, are you, Hanguang-jun?”

Something about the way Wei Ying says his title really just will not allow Lan Zhan to say no to him.

“I remember,” Wei Ying says as they make their return to the Cloud Recesses. It was dark now, the moon gleaming brightly and surrounded by a sea of stars. They are far from Caiyi town now, but the lights still reach their path. They are now walking up to the gates of the Cloud Recesses. “This was the same path I took that night we first met.”

Lan Zhan does not say that it is the only path, instead he chooses to bask in the air of nostalgia Wei Ying was creating and hums.

“Up until that night, I had never crossed swords with anyone  that felt like such a challenge.” Wei Ying laughs.

Lan Zhan chances a look at him. Wei Ying is eyeing the scenery, his eye bright with mirth, enhanced by the light of the night sky above. Lan Zhan feels warm inside just watching a smile bloom on his zhiji’s face.

“It’s funny,” Wei Ying continues. “Back then, I remember saying how rigid the Cloud Recesses was and how if I had the choice, I’d leave and never come back. And yet somehow I always find my way back to here, no matter what path I take.”

Despite himself, Lan Zhan feels his heart sink just a little. The Cloud Recesses was not a place Wei Ying would call home. He had always known that, but it still stings a little to hear from Wei Ying himself.

“Well, I guess it’s true, what they say. No matter how much you change, no matter what path you take, it will always lead you home.”

Lan Zhan halts his footsteps. Wei Ying continues a few paces ahead of him, but pauses when he realizes that Lan Zhan is no longer in step with him. The gates to the Cloud Recesses are already just a few feet ahead, Lan Zhan knows this, but his head feels light and suddenly he cannot comprehend distance.

“Lan Zhan?”

What does Wei Ying mean by that? What change? And did he just say home? Is...is Lan Zhan hearing this right?

“Lan Zhan!”

This time, Wei Ying’s voice is close enough that it shakes Lan Zhan out of his stupor. Wei Ying has a hand on his shoulder, the other in his hair, threading through the strands gently. It is not something he has done before, but Lan Zhan does not mind. In fact, he would rather he continue if not for the turmoil in his head. He stares blankly into Wei Ying’s worried eyes.

“What do you mean by that?”

Wei Ying’s eyebrows only knit closer together.

“What?”

“What did you mean...about change and...and home?”

“Ah, well…” Wei Ying suddenly turns sheepish. He takes a step back and Lan Zhan immediately misses his presence in his space. Wei Ying turns away from him, just for a second, to glance at the gates of the Cloud Recesses with an odd smile.

“I’ve had a lot of time to think over the past year, Lan Zhan.” He begins. “I’ve been to many places, met new people. I did some odd jobs here and there, went on various night hunts. So much has happened in a year that you would think I’d have learned so much, that my thoughts would be running wild with what to do next.”

Wei Ying turns back to him and there is a gleam in his eye. Something both familiar and unfamiliar to Lan Zhan.

“Except, my thoughts were only ever of you.”

[boxoftheskyking]

Something Good, Part Six

There are so many babies you guys. I miss baby snuggles

In which children don’t sleep

Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five

---

Liquor doesn’t technically bring him peace—he supposes Yanli and Wen Qing were always right about that. But it certainly doesn’t upset him, and the buzz is helping him focus on the little doses of pleasantness in this tiny closet room. A storm outside always helps remind him of warmth inside, and while there is a leak in the corner that drips against the floor, the mattress is dry, the blankets are scratchy but warm, and there’s a calm yellow glow visible in the cracks in the floor, rise and fall of tipsy conversation from the late night crowd downstairs.

He doesn’t think he’ll sleep tonight, but he’s letting his mind wander when a huge crack of thunder jostles him out of his daydream. The rain intensifies, the drip in the corner shifting from a two-step to a hurried run of triplets. He almost misses the tiny knock on his door.

“W-Wei-qianbei?” a hesitant voice floats in from the hall. Wei Wuxian tucks away his empty bottles and sits up, wiping over his face and schooling it into a sober and attentive expression.

He cracks open the door to find little Lan Sizhui, ghostly in his white sleeping robes and chewing on the edge of his sleeve. He looks uncertain, eyes flitting from the open door to back down the hallway. He looks almost about to leave when lightning splits the air around them, followed by a mighty crash, and he closes his eyes and dives into Wei Wuxian’s arms.

“Oh, A-Yuan,” Wei Wuxian murmurs, laughing lightly into the facefull of bed-hair. “It’s okay. It’s just a storm.”

Sizhui mutters something inaudible into his neck but refuses to let go when Wei Wuxian tries to shift him away. He hauls the child up into his lap and settles back on the mattress, leaning against the wall and away from the insistent drip of the rain.

“What’s the matter, little one?”

Sizhui wipes at his red face with his sleeve, and Wei Wuxian leans in closer to hear.

“There’s so much water,” Sizhui cries. “What if the ghouls come back in the water?”

“They won’t. They can’t live in the rain, only in big bodies of water that stay in one place, like a lake. You see this drip in the corner here? Give me your hand.”

He gently pulls Sizhui over to the leaky corner, holding his hand into the path of the water. Sizhui flinches away, but Wei Wuxian insists, tucking his fingers into the stream

“You feel this? All the little drops? Even big rain is made of tiny drops that are far too small for a ghoul to live in.”

Sizhui’s brow furrows and he pulls his hand back and forth, in and out of the water. “What— what if you’re wrong?” he asks, looking up at Wei Wuxian with big round eyes.

“A-Yuan, I promise you are safe here. I will always protect you, and so will Hanguang Jun and Zewu Jun.”

“But what if—” Sizhui trails off, chewing on his lip and resting his forehead on Wei Wuxian’s collarbone. “What if something gets you? Or Baba?”

That answers that, Wei Wuxian things, stamping down on the curiosity. If Lan Wangji is your father, then who… But he’s not going to ask a four-year-old to recite his lineage.

“Even if the water ghouls came here, they’re no match for us!”

“But you… “ Sizhui looks down at his hands. “Hanguang Jun had to save you.”

Isn’t it just like children—so sweet, so kind, so accurate with the knives they don’t even know they’re holding.

“And he’s here. And if he needs help, there’s a whole class of seniors right downstairs. And if they need help, Wen Ning is here, and all your friends. And we’ll all take care of each other. Yes?”

Sizhui nods and leans in for another hug. Wei Wuxian is just settling in for a long term cuddle when another crack of thunder makes Sizhui bury his face in Wei Wuxian’s middle. Wei Wuxian is rubbing circles into his back when he hears another knock on the door.

“Come in,” he sing-songs, and Ouyang Zizhen pokes his head in. “Scared of the storm?” Wei Wuxian asks.

“Of course not!” Zizhen’s eyes dart around the room before finding Sizhui’s huddled form. “I was— I was checking on A-Yuan. I thought he might be scared.”

Wei Wuxian grins and claps him on the shoulder. “Of course you did. Tell me, how many other disciples are up worried about A-Yuan?”

Zizhen chews on his lip. “Everyone?”

Wei Wuxian grins wider and tugs on Zizhen’s ear. “Well, we’d better go reassure them all.”

He bundles Sizhui into his arms and nods at Zizhen to lead the way. 

I may be useless in battle, he thinks, the sting of it fading with each step they take. But this I can do.

As expected, all the juniors are awake, some still lying top-to-toe and others bundled into blanket piles on the floor. When the door opens, nine little faces turn to him like a cluster of round, startled moons.

“Ah, disciples!” he says cheerily. “Your poor Wei-qianbei has a leak in his room. Will you allow this humble servant to join you in this nice dry room for the night?”

“Yay!” Lan Feifei shouts, popping up from the end of the farthest bed and immediately toppling over onto Lan Ting. Wei Wuxian wonders if spending so much time with the bunnies is teaching them more than he and Lan Wangji combined.

The children make room for him in the middle of the room, huddling in close around him on all sides.

“What, no one is tired? After that long walk down the mountain?”

Wen Ning wrinkles his nose, looking around at the younger kids like he’s responsible for their wakefulness. Thunder shakes the walls and the little ones cover their ears.

“It’s pretty loud, huh?” Wei Wuxian asks.

“It’s loud like the big wave was,” Lan Ting pipes up, worried little eyes shining in the lamplight like polished river stones.

“Ah, yes, that was scary, wasn’t it?”

Nods all around. The best thing about children, he thinks to himself, reaching out to work a tangle out of Su Meiling’s hair, is that they aren’t yet ashamed to be afraid. He smiles a little sadly to himself, thinking about Jiang Cheng. Remember when he used to come to his big brother, say he was scared?

“Do you know what I like to do when I’m scared?”

Lan Yixian gasps from over his shoulder. “Wei-qianbei, you get scared too?” She’s seven, she maybe hasn’t ever heard that from an adult before. Knowing the Lans, their stoic nobility, he wouldn’t be surprised.

“Yes, Xian-Xian, I get scared just like you. And I’ll tell you a secret.” He lowers his voice, relishing in their held breath, leaning in. “Hanguang Jun gets scared, too.”

“No he doesn’t!” Su Ming declares.

“Sure he does. Ask him sometime.”

The gasp of horror that whooshes around the room threatens to put out the lamps. Wei Wuxian laughs in delight.

“Scarier than the storm, huh?”

“What do you do when you are scared, Wei-qianbei?” Lan Ting asks.

“I’ll tell you. Sometimes I feel scared, and when I feel scared it’s usually because I don’t feel very strong or powerful. After all, I am not a mighty cultivator like all of you!” It hurts slightly less to say it to children. The more he says it, the easier it goes down, like building up a tolerance to straight strong liquor.

“So what I like to do is think about all the things that keep me safe. Here, I’ll show you.” He sets Sizhui down beside him and holds his hands flat up on his knees, just like Uncle Jiang taught him when he was small and still had screaming nightmares. “Let’s see, to begin, I am glad for my strong legs that help me run and my strong arms that help me carry lazy disciples.” He raises one hand on an inhale and pushes his palm outward on the exhale. Focus on your breath, Uncle Jiang says in his head, kind and patient and dead. 

“I am glad for my strong lungs which help me yell for help when I need it.” He lifts and pushes his other hand, and a few of the children start to mimic him. “Good job, breathe nice and slow. I am glad for my talismans, which help keep me safe.”

“Will you teach us talismans?” Lan Bin asks, perking up like a rabbit smelling sweet grass. 

“If you are very good and very quiet. Here, Wen Ning, you try one.”

Wen Ning looks around, embarrassed, but seeing most of the children’s eyes closed he says, “I am glad for my jiejie who taught me medicine to help when I am sick.” The room breathes together.

“Yao Hualing?” Wei Wuxian prompts.

“I am— I don’t know. I am glad for my Mama who taught me how to punch really hard.”

“Very good. Zizhen?”

“I am glad for Wei-qianbei who takes care of us and feeds us.”

“Ah, sweet boy. Jingyi?”

“I am glad for being small so I can hide from a monster.”

A crack of thunder, but only a few jump.

“Very good everyone. Now we can all say at the same time, nice and quiet. You can say whatever you like, no one is listening.”

Wei Wuxian looks around at all of them, eyes closed and breath stirring loose locks of hair. He listens to the breathy chorus of gratitude: “My gege who protects…” “Hanguang Jun who…” “... because I am good at…” “...who taught me to…” “Wei-qianbei who cares for me…”

He is suddenly glad their eyes are closed, because his throat goes tight and tears start pricking the corners of his eyes. He raises his right hand on the proper inhale and wipes at his cheeks quickly. 

When he looks up again, the door is cracked and Lan Wangji is staring at him from the darkness of the hallway. His hair is down from its customary ornament, falling softly along his cheeks, his neck. Wei Wuxian sniffs and tries to school his expression into something professional without stopping the gentle inhale exhale. Lan Wangji is staring through to the back of his skull, it feels like, unblinking, before he looks around at the room of murmuring, meditating children. His lips part as if to say something—disciples should be sleeping! You are not to teach them anything! Meditation is practiced in silence!—when Lan Sizhui’s little voice carries over the room.

“I am glad for my Baba who loves me and teaches me to be strong and for my Wei-qianbei who loves me and teaches me to be clever.”

Lan Wangji’s mouth stays slightly open but his eyes snap to his son, watching his calm breath, his tiny wrists sticking out of his sleeves on every exhaled push. When he looks back to Wei Wuxian there is something broken open in his expression and Wei Wuxian almost wants to close his eyes against the shine of it. Almost.

He’s not sure what his face is doing, but something about it must be right because Lan Wangji holds his gaze for a long, long moment before nodding once and sliding the door closed. Wei Wuxian buries his face in his hands for a minute, shaking for reasons he couldn’t quite explain.

“Wei-qianbei?” Lan Ting says, louder than the rest. “I’m out of things to be glad for.”

“Me too!” comes another voice from somewhere.

“Very well. Good job everyone, I think we beat the storm. Now your humble Wei-qianbei is very sleepy, and it’s going to be morning soon. And then we need to climb all the way back up the mountain together. Let’s all try to sleep, can we?”

With a gentle rustles of cloth and a couple of sleepy hums, Wei Wuxian is surrounded by a circle of black-and-white mounds. He feels like he’s sitting on the top of Gusu Mountain, a few dark rocks peeking through the snow. But, like in a dream of winter, it’s warm, quiet, the only wind to be felt is as soft as breath.

Part Seven

[coffee-and-cookies-mochi]

the patriarch and the (light) bearer

[ almost 2k+ words ; fluff ; story-telling, dramatic wwx style ]

[Or, the only way to defeat the yao in this…strange night-hunt was to answer its questions in a poetic form]

-

Wei WuXian merely glances at the juniors—Lan SiZhui, Lan JingYi, and Jin Ling—trying to exorcise the aggressive yao, not even lifting a finger or dropping hints. Beside him, Lan WangJi gazes at him curiously, trying to figure out what exactly is going on in his husband’s mind.

 After all, in night-hunts like this, Wei WuXian has the upper hand considering his demonic cultivation abilities and his position in the spirit world. He must have an idea on what to do to wrap up this case as soon as possible—then share it to the juniors later.

 But Wei WuXian is quiet, just looking, not saying a thing.

 “Wei Ying,” Lan WangJi murmurs, but it is enough for Wei WuXian to blink and glance at him. His silver eyes sparkle under the moonlight, specks of tease and warmth and affection on his orbs.

 (And sometimes, even if his husband is in a different body, Lan WangJi drowns in such gaze, reminded of that night he caught Wei Ying sneaking in alcohol, lips curved up in an impish smile as he offers him wine.)

 “Not gonna help the kids yet, nope,” Wei WuXian chuckles, playfully tapping Lan WangJi’s nose with a finger. “I’m not yet done figuring something out.”

 Lan WangJi’s eyebrows knit in confusion. “What are you trying to know?”

 Wei WuXian only smiles, telling clearly that he will not tell Lan WangJi—yet. And Lan WangJi respects this; he has come to learn that there are days Wei WuXian doesn’t share things until he is so sure of what he will say, or if he is not sure and he will need Lan WangJi’s input.

 So Lan WangJi remains quiet, although curiosity starts to flare inside his chest. He wants to know—he wants to know what Wei WuXian knows, he wants to see what is on Wei WuXian’s mind.

 (Lan WangJi, for all his self-restraint and discipline, is greedy, greedy, avaricious when it comes to Wei WuXian.

 But for all his selfishness, Lan WangJi does not restrain Wei WuXian—to which, in turn, makes Wei WuXian stay with him.)

 “Okay, that’s enough,” Wei WuXian calls out after a long moment, hopping down the branch of a tree. “You’re going to lose spiritual energy at this point.”

 “But Senior Wei—!” Lan JingYi starts to protest, but one look from Wei WuXian silences him.

 “I got it already, I’ve figured this one out—and I’ve come to the conclusion that I should be the one doing it anyway,” Wei WuXian says, and Lan WangJi hears the note of mischief hidden underneath the sternness of his voice.

 “It’s our night-hunt!” Jin Ling lashes out. “And you’re supposed to just supervise!”

 “Aih, what manners! Really, you’re so much like your purple uncle,” Wei WuXian shakes his head, a look of mock displeasure in his face.

 “You—!”

 “Yes, me,” Wei WuXian laughs. “But you’ve heard me. And anyway—haven’t I told you that while there are things you can do, there are also those that you can’t for the time being? Haven’t I, SiZhui-er?”

 To which Lan SiZhui, albeit confused, replies, “Yes, Senior Wei.”

 “You’ve heard him!” Wei WuXian grins. “And so, at this point, I will have to deal with this. You kids, on the other hand, will stay with HanGuang-Jun and watch as I do it. All right?”

 The juniors look at Lan WangJi, as if asking—pleading at—him not to let their obnoxious Senior Wei have his way.

 But Lan WangJi simply says, “Listen to him,” for he knows that whatever Wei WuXian does or says, it is for a good reason. He knows beyond doubt that Wei WuXian always considers things in a very detailed manner, then decides on his own justly.

 Although sullen, the junior disciples walk over to Lan WangJi. Only Lan SiZhui asks, with curiosity, “HanGuang-Jun, do you have any idea what Senior Wei will do?”

 (Secretly, Lan WangJi is proud for having such a son who, despite his confusion, has the mind to inquire and learn.)

 Lan WangJi shakes his head, then his gaze turns back to Wei WuXian. Wei WuXian casually strolls where the yao is encaged, his stance relaxed.

 “Why, hello there,” Wei WuXian greets. “Do forgive my children, they have no manners in dealing with the kind of you sometimes.”

 “Who are your children?” Lan JingYi hisses, but Lan WangJi sees how the said children preen on Wei WuXian’s words.

 “You should’ve stopped them earlier,” the yao snarls quietly, yet it makes no move to attack Wei WuXian, “and you must’ve stepped in instead.”

 “But I have to know first what you want,” Wei WuXian chuckles. “But now I do, and now I have stepped in. Aren’t you pleased?”

 The yao is silent, not answering.

 “Well then, let’s finish this, shall we?” Wei WuXian’s posture shifts slightly—still relaxed, Lan WangJi knows, but in a way that is somewhat somber and serious. “What would you want to ask?”

 “Ask?” The yao blinks, and Lan WangJi is sure it’s not the only one blinking in surprise.

 “Yes, ask!” Wei WuXian beams. “You seem to want to ask something before my children suddenly attacked—sorry about that. But go on, ask—and I shall endeavor to answer.”

 Now there is also a subtle change in how Wei WuXian speaks—a tone unfamiliar to Lan WangJi’s ears.

 “Does a demon love?” the yao blurts out, its eyes on Wei WuXian.

 …That’s the question Lan WangJi least expects.

 “Oh, it does!” Wei WuXian replies immediately. “It loves chaos and uproar; it craves blood and death. A demon loves them like how one would speak of its beloved—lusts for them like a crazed beast.”

 As perplexed as he is, Lan WangJi listens on (and quietly, quietly, melts on Wei WuXian’s smooth cadence of his speech, of how his voice flows like gentle water on a stream).

 “Not that love,” the yao refutes. “Of course the demon loves the beauty of dissonance—but—” it hesitates for a while before it continues. “Does a demon love another? Or…a human?”

 Wei WuXian pauses, closing his eyes, as if considering for an answer. Meanwhile, the junior disciples look at each other in utter bemusement, talking quietly to each other

 “Can a demon love?!” Lan WangJi hears Lan JingYi sputter, and Lan SiZhui has to throw his fellow junior a warning look.

 “Just what kind of a stupid question is that?” Jin Ling mutters acidly.

 But Wei WuXian does not hear them, too focused on his own thoughts. After a while, he answers.

 “Yes.”

 A collective gasp echoes throughout the empty clearing.

 “Which demon, which demon?” The yao excitedly asks. “And who does the demon love?”

 Wei WuXian opens his eyes, and slightly turns to look at Lan WangJi with a half-lidded gaze. His ravishing lips curl up slightly, then turns back to the yao.

 For once, Lan WangJi is at a loss of what his husband is trying to convey.

 “The world does not know what kind of a demon he is,” Wei WuXian starts, again with that cadence, “but the world calls the demon Patriarch.”

 “What?!!” Lan JingYi and Jin Ling exclaim with wide eyes. Lan WangJi, on the other hand, listens intently.

 “The world says the Patriarch loves chaos—he seeks them, drinks in them, but if he is too bored, he starts chaos himself,” Wei WuXian goes on. “His chaos is his own form of a dance, with the undead stepping along to the tunes of death played on a single flute.

 “For some it is a saving grace; for others a nightmare. Regardless, they agree it is ghastly; still, they do not agree it is worth watching.

 “Yet they do not know that what the Patriarch loves is not the dissonance his flute brings, but the momentary quiet that comes after. The Patriarch laments that the quiet is fleeting; that his flute, despite the clarity of his notes, bring the opposite of what he seeks.

 “And the quiet—pity the Patriarch! It always evades him, even in the corners of his mind. In his sleep he hears voices that are not his own; in his waking hours he still is not alone!

 “The world says the Patriarch loves his own kind—nightmarish and ghastly—but no, the world does not know that the Patriarch respects his kind, yet does not, does not love them.”

 The audience is enthralled; even the children listen more attentively.

 “Enter the Patriarch’s opposite—and he is not a demon, far from it! No demon carries light and purity; demons only carry darkness and filth! And the Patriarch’s opposite—the world does not know what he is, but they call him…Bearer.”

 (There’s an unexplainable leap in Lan WangJi’s chest when Wei WuXian utters that.)

 “He is blinding, the world sings, like the sun high up in the sky. The Bearer is like that of a deity, walking with mortals, yet his countenance is of frost and coldest winters. He is quiet, so they say; barely the world hears a sentence flow from his snowy lips.”

 (Lan WangJi barely misses the smirk in Wei WuXian’s lips.)

 “The world hopes, even implores, that the Bearer will eventually stop the Patriarch’s madness. After all, the Bearer knows the Patriarch for years and years back, has fought with him side by side in wars.

 “But the Patriarch, for all his stubbornness, does not let the Bearer get him. He refuses every time the Bearer asks, he ignores every time the Bearer tries.

 “Yet strangely, the Patriarch seeks his presence. He lets the Bearer in despite the arguments that will follow, he converses with the Bearer like friends meeting once more! He does not hinder the Bearer’s presence within his own cold cave—for the Patriarch feels the Bearer’s warmth underneath the freezing façade.”

 “Aww,” Lan JingYi utters, and Jin Ling elbows him.

 “And so, despite the fact that the Patriarch forgot the world, he lets the Bearer see what he truly loves. Not the chaos, not the wars, not the ghosts that follow him all around.

 “The Patriarch loves a sister who took him in; the Patriarch loves a brother underneath snarky comments and sneers. The Patriarch loves a second family who he saved from the peonies’ thorns; the Patriarch loves a child, like how a father dotes on his own son.

 “As if trying to tell the Bearer—look, I am not the demon the world fears me to be! I may be a demon, but see—you see! I only seek for a solace no one offers me!”

 There is a heavy silence that follows, and the audience cannot bring themselves to speak. It is a long moment before the yao braves to ask, in a small voice, “Did the…Patriarch obtain his peace?”

 A sad, bittersweet smile graces Wei WuXian’s lips. “He had not,” he finally replies. “Until the very end, peace does not find him—it evades him still, like a teasing, frivolous maiden playing with a boy’s heartstrings. But is what the Patriarch has expected a long time ago, after he emerged from his own Hell and tried to live with the world.

 “His own home—Hell—has not truly given him solace, thus he sought for it in the world. Yet the world is selfish and unkind, it seems.

 “Two words, two very simple words—that the world associates with the Patriarch when they burned him with scorn.”

 “The Bearer could have saved him!” the yao exclaims, indignant.

 There is a tentative pause before Wei WuXian replies. “Oh, the Bearer has saved the Patriarch—”

 “Did the Patriarch live, then?” the yao asks excitedly.

 “No. The Patriarch burned back in Hell.”

 “What?! But you said—”

 “That the Bearer saved him? Yes, he did. The Bearer saved the Patriarch’s son from the peonies’ thorns and lotuses’ poison; the child is the reason why the Patriarch still sees light despite the darkness. To say simply, the child has become the Patriarch’s life, tethering him to the living.”

 (There are tears in the children’s eyes this time, and a suspicious sniffling. Lan WangJi, on the other hand, tries so hard not to break down.)

 “But,” a sudden laugh escapes Wei WuXian’s lips. “Strangely—or not so strangely—even in flames, the Patriarch realizes he has found his peace a long time ago; he has found his solace that he once thought of is an illusion.”

 “…Where?”

 Wei WuXian’s silver eyes are on Lan WangJi’s startled gold orbs as he says, slowly, “The Patriarch has found his peace with the Bearer’s presence, which explains why he let the Bearer see what the world refuses to see. The Patriarch has found his solace with the Bearer’s light—and oh, how the light silences the voices in his head! Even after days that the Bearer left him, the voices do not return—until they do, of course.

 “And before the Patriarch closes his eyes and returns to the flames, he realizes that there is one more that he loves.”

 (The audience hold their breaths, their hearts thudding.)

 In a softer voice Wei WuXian says, closing his eyes, “He loved the Bearer, as ridiculous as it sounds.”

 “The demon loved…the Bearer?” the yao chokes.

 “He did, he did—oh, he did.”

 (Lan WangJi’s heart seems to have stopped beating.)

 “The Patriarch loved the Bearer when the former asked the latter to leave him alone; the Patriarch loved the Bearer when he made him see who he loves. The Patriarch loved the Bearer, blindingly so, which was one of the main reasons why he decided to let himself burn.”

 (There is heartbreak in Lan WangJi’s soul as he hears this—why didn’t Wei WuXian tell him this? He could have saved him, he could have given him more, much more—)

 “Did the Bearer know?”

 “He has not known—and it is better if he had not known back then. The Patriarch thinks that a love of a demon is dangerous elixir, enough to cast off the light the Bearer brings.”

 (Wei Ying! Lan WangJi protests. It is not poison, it is not, it is not—)

 “Did the Bearer…love the Patriarch?”

 (He did, so much, Lan WangJi wants to say. The Bearer was all too ready to sacrifice everything for the Patriarch to burn brightly still—)

 “Will the Patriarch know, as he burns in Hell?

 “But the knowledge that he loved the Bearer was enough—even though he knows that his final knowledge will be as fleeting as their meetings, the Patriarch knows that the truth he loved the Bearer was enough.”

 “But they met again, right?!” It is Lan JingYi who reacts this time. “The Patriarch and the Bearer met again, didn’t they!?”

 There is laughter in Wei WuXian’s eyes as he replies, “Yes, they do.” He meets Lan WangJi’s eyes again, a tender smile on his lips. “They do.”

 “Did the Patriarch tell the Bearer he loved him?

 “…Yes.”

 “Did the Bearer…love him?”

 “Quite surprisingly, the Bearer loved him before the Patriarch realized his own feelings.”

 “And did the Patriarch know?”

 Wei WuXian’s smile widens. “Yes.”

 “Are they together now?”

 “Yes.”

 “Are they happy?”

 “Yes. Very much so.”

 “And how do you know?”

 Wei WuXian’s laughs—it reminds Lan WangJi of wind chimes tinkling in the spring breeze, warming up his heart and reminding him of the joy he basks in now.

 “The Patriarch told you his story himself—and yet you choose to doubt?”

 It is a moment before the yao understands, his eyes moving from Wei WuXian to Lan WangJi then back to Wei WuXian. “Oh.”

 “But the Patriarch not a demon!” the yao protests. “It does not count—it does not count!”

 (To which Lan WangJi wholeheartedly agrees.)

 “Oh, he is,” Wei WuXian laughingly remarks. “Or so the world says. Anyway, if he is not a demon, then how come he speaks to you like one of his own?”

 The yao frowns, unable (or not wanting) to answer.

 Wei WuXian laughs once more before he says, “I have answered your question now, and so you must heed to my request.”

 “What is it?”

 Wei WuXian’s gaze morphs to that of someone familiar, of a figure nearly omnipotent and powerful. With a gentle smile yet a stern voice, the Patriarch utters, “Rest, and do not disturb us further.”

[thewickling]

@trensu This is originally your idea why would I complain if you continue. I was honestly going to pile on more sad (writing how Wei Wuxian came in care for A-Yuan and the breakdown of Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian's relationship. Oh an maybe Yunmeng siblings reuniting and separating again). Instead I wrote this? I wouldn't call it happy, it's a continuation of your scene so somewhere between hopeful and angsty.

Lan Wangji heart thrums. The blood racing through his veins sends him nearly dizzy. He can’t faint. If he closes his eyes, what if he opens them and this moment is a dream.

Wei Wuxian’s scent coats his nose, making his soul sing. His moon is well and alive. He can touch Wei Wuxian. He does what he wishes he did thirteen years ago.

“Lan Zhan?!” he shouts, pounding Lan Wangji’s shoulder. His fist tapped light, not at all forceful. His protests tinges with surprise. 

If he were in his right mind, Lan Wangji would stop. His human skin feels too slow. He can’t move fast enough but he makes do. He marches.

“Father?” Lan Sizhui’s voice chases them, uncertain.

He wants to speak but all those words he howled to the moon stick in his throat. All he can do is move. His every cell urging to bring his moon somewhere safe.

“Wait, father?” Wei Wuxian gasps. He hangs like a noodle as if he hasn’t a care in the world. Werewolves are strong but of course the amazing Jade of Lan would have heaven defying power. He isn’t escaping unless he stabs Lan Wangji but why would he ever do that?

The more pressing matter is when did Lan Wangji marry? Why didn’t he hear about it? Even as hidden away as he was, news like that spreads like wildfire.

At least he understands why he finds A-zhui so pleasant now. His mannerisms mirror his father, combined with his much sweeter face, his entire demeanor is comforting and considerate. He is exactly the other child parents compare their children to.

“Mister, do you know my father?” he asks. He trails behind. Concern mars his expression. He’s only ever seen his father this franic once — the day he was found. 

“Moon carried your scent to me.”

The childhood tale he loved bubbles up in his memory. It overlaps with the whispers from his Xi-bo about the fated mate his father lost and how the moon provided him a fated son in its place.

Wei Wuxian hums, “We’re the closest. Don’t you see it yourself?”

He winks. 

“Why didn’t you invite me to your wedding?” he says, slapping Lan Wangji’s shoulder like how a drunk man slams his hand on a table to demand more booze.

Lan Sizhui picks up pace. A part of him wonders if his father truly ever associated with someone so frivolous before. A part of him questions if he should stop his father. Granduncle has always been strict about who enters their lands. Yet he can’t bear to.

“I’m not married.” Lan Wangji’s tone lands somewhere between pained and outraged. He forces the ridiculous phrase from his mouth. He thinks, I searched for you everyday since you left. How could I marry? 

Wei Wuxian’s jaw drops. For perhaps the third time in his life, he is rendered speechless. Bewildered, he wonders, What kind of woman would dare to run off on a perfect gentlemen like the Jade of Lan, Lan Zhan?

Lan Sizhui watches his father scurrying home, moving at a pace he can barely keep up with, at a pace that certainly breaks the thousands of regulations their pack has. He is astonished. His father has only broken the rules once — that was to bring him home.

His faith shines. For his father to react like this, he can't be blamed for looking the other way. Even if granduncle punishes him, he’ll always be on his father’s side.

Except if he was asked if that was his reasoning, he wouldn’t be able to answer with certainty that it wasn’t simply because he liked Wei Wuxian. And if you asked him why he liked this man, he wouldn’t be able to explain it. He just felt like someone he should like.

He breaks into a jog. The boundary of their land is just ahead. If he’s too slow, his father’s jade pendant won’t cover him. 

“Oh, wow. How did I never realized this was here?” Wei Wuxian asks, whistling. “Lan Zhan, you kept a lot from me.”

Lan Wanji freezes. Those words touch an unpleasant memory, shocking his senses back to him. Lowering Wei Wuxian, he confesses, “I am a werewolf.”

“I can see that.” Wei Wuxian smiles.

This should feel familiar, he thinks, but it doesn’t. It isn’t that the light doesn’t reach Wei Wuxian’s eyes because it does or that the tone isn’t right. He can’t place the difference.

“Lan Zhan?” He waves his hand in front of Lan Wangji’s face.

He whispers, “Wei Ying.”

“That’s me,” he says, helplessly. Tilting his head, a spike of concern worms it way through Wei Wuxian. Lan Wangji has never behaved like this before. 

“You are alive.”

“I am.”

The dam remains strong in Lan Wangji’s throat. A thousand lamentations, wishes, and prayers mingle on the tip of his tongue. A thread that encases him is the desire, the need, to keep Wei Wuxian on their lands.

Ice rises in his heart. Millions of warnings his uncle gave ring in his ears. The scandal of his father’s actions still scars their pack.

“Stay here, please.” He doesn’t know what he’ll do if Wei Wuxian refuses.

“I’m not going to run into any—” Wei Wuxian mimes claws and fangs, but the acidic undertone of fear sullies his scent.

He still won’t love me. The recollection slams into him, but barely takes ground against the relief pulsing through his veins. He promises himself, Wei Ying is alive. That is enough for me. 

“No. You won’t.” It’s too close to the border and their pack knows better than to take that risk.

Clapping, he says, “Then, I’ll impose on Lan Zhan for the night. We have a lot to catch up on. Like you have a son? What blind dame left you?”

“No one.” Lan Sizhui interrupts. Standing a distance from them, he rocks as if he isn’t sure if he has the right to intrude. “Mister, I’m adopted.”

It feels important to clear this up. Something nagging him that if he doesn’t something bad will happen. Call it a gut feeling.

“Oh! Of course, Lan Zhan is a good Samaritan.” He nods. Grinning to himself, he gestures for Lan Wangji to lead the way.

Lan Wangji places it. The smile comes from a different place. It isn’t as easy and doesn’t linger as long. More than anything he wants to know why that’s changed. He has a night and hopefully more. He can’t impose his feelings on Wei Wuxian but perhaps he can convince him to socialize for a few days or a week. 

[rosethornewrites]

Tuesday’s T and G fics

Again, all The Untamed/MDZS.

I’m 5ish pages away from my goal of clearing most of the fics under 3k words from my AO3 to-read list. (It’s 60 pages long lol.) Then I start on the 5k and under.

Finished:

Rated T:

Everything Is Solved With Soup (And Poison), by Love_Psycho

Waking up from a nightmare – that may or may not just be a nightmare – Jiang Yanli decides she needs to stop that nightmare from becoming reality.

Any moment now, by Anonymous

A heavily pregnant Wei Wuxian takes a moment to breathe and look forward to the life ahead of him.

& again tomorrow, by bleuett

“Lan Zhan!” Wei Ying exclaims. He pretends to be annoyed but he bursts into laughter. “Gege, you’re too much. What would I do without you? My life would be so boring.”

Lan Wangji’s breath hitches, but he doesn’t cry.

Or: 114 days in space.

zooming out of the scene, then rapidly zooming back in, by kkochiya (loveta)

"Haven’t you noticed?" Nie-xiong snickered, fluttering his fan in front of his face. "Second Childe Lan always smiles when he says your name."

or:

Wei Ying sneaks some of his precious Emperor's Smile into Cloud Recesses. It goes a little differently than expected.

slipping secrets, skipping stones, by LaivineNinuiel

There’s a chubbiness to A-Zhan’s cheeks, especially when his head is turned down the way it is, and his bottom lip is pushed out in a pout that never fails to make Lan Huan laugh. His little brother manages to keep his expression even, no matter if he’s frowning or pouting, often not even responding to the measured praises the Lan elders give him for being such a well-behaved child. It’s only Lan Huan who seems to see the subtleties of his blankness, and who already understands that the young child’s guardedness isn’t necessarily something to be praised. A-Zhan is quiet, but he’s too quiet, as if he’s told himself to keep all his feelings a secret, only to be whispered about. And he only whispers it in A-Huan’s ear.

About a Farm shop, Toy Castles, and Bunny Pictures, by KrisisUnmanaged

Lan Zhan’s bunnies’ castle broke. He is, against all odds, very thankful for this.

Wei Ying spends a lot of time contemplating whether or not he might be hallucinating.

What else is there to say?

Rated G:

Hold On Tight (Never Let Go), by Purplepulu (2 chapters)

4 times Wei Wuxian asked Lan Wangji to let him go and the 1 time he doesn't.

Let The Spice Flow, by hinotoriii

With Lan Wangji facing a cold, Wei Wuxian fixes him a meal. One with enough flavour that he hopes his husband can taste.

Close Captioned Enabled, by makebelieveanything & nerdzeword

Lan Wangji is not good at talking, luckily, he doesn’t have to because Wei Wuxian will do it for him.

OR

Jiang Cheng thinks his brother is a menace with a big mouth, and he's only half wrong.

stained with red, by mnousay

Lan Wangji’s life was a series of black and white pictures, monotone and dull.

Until he met the man painted a vibrant, alluring red.

Spice, by 1PB2PB3PB4

"Sugar and spice and all things nice. That's what little girls are made of."

Jiang Yanli is a Yunmeng girl, spice burns.

Character study of JYL and some of her relationships while trying to meet expectations.

Affection, by eponinemylove

Lan Wangji is amazed by how easily Wei Wuxian shows affection. Luckily, Wei Wuxian doesn't seem to mind that Lan Wangji is a little bit more reserved, especially when it comes to PDA.

I Will Remember, by Grace_Logan

Wei Wuxian has a moment of clarity through the resentment filled haze over his mind during the sunshot campaign and begs Lan Zhan to help him once the Sunshot campaign is over.

Watching The Sunrise, by Preludian_Staves

Sometimes he likes to get early even before his husband and watch the sunrise break through the mists that have settled around the Cloud Recesses during the night.

Jasmine Tea, by Speechless_since_1998

Yanli was the first to recognize that demonic cultivation had changed her younger brother. It would be hypocritical, however, not to see how the war had changed the people around her.

A-Cheng looked more like their mother. They had always had similar characters, but it had gotten worse. He was shooting for anything, the weight of the reconstruction of the sect all on his shoulders. And she felt guilty, because she was weak, useless, and all she could do as the world destroyed her family was cook.

But sometimes even the little things could help.

Wangji, by youjezebel

In the end, he picks the guqin. It is the exact opposite of who Lan Wangji is; it is loud, and it is passionate. The thrum of the strings demand attention and evoke raw feeling. It is everything he has ever wanted to be.

And so he named it Wangji.

trees sing with the river, by twigofwillow

When Jiang Yanli was eight years old, she was sent on a visit to her grandmother in Meishan.

Let us be there for you, by Jade_Pearl

Sizhui was always there for them, no matter what; now they have a chance to return the favor. It's got to be perfect; can they pull it off?

Cleansing, by tabulaxrasa

Sizhui didn’t remember Wei Wuxian. He would not have used resentful energy on purpose.

WangXian 4ever, by Aki_no_hikari

At the end of their latest concert, as Wei Wuxian is saying their goodbyes, Lan Wangji interrupts him for the first time ever.

“How long do you want to keep doing this?”

“As long as I can, of course!”

“How about forever?”

Wangxian Week Day 1: Modern AU

Radish, Rabbits, Rinse, Repeat, by scifigeek14

Lan Wangji was not planning to save a child from falling into a washing machine and get a date when he set out to do his laundry, but these things happen.

Short little Wangxian Meet-Cute at a Laundromat, feat A-Yuan being the cutest.

Unfinished:

Rated T:

love's a hand-me-down brew, by tricksterity

After being convinced by his brother that his current life as an office drone for the Lan family business is making him unhappy, Lan Wangji moves across the globe to follow his dream of opening his own café.

Lan Wangji is happy, and Jingshi is running well - even if it has to be closed on Tuesdays so that Lan Wangji can get some sleep outside of his seventy-hour work week. But as usual, Xichen is right, and Lan Wangji needs to let go of his careful control and let a second staff member into his café, and into his life.

Enter Wei Wuxian: everything that Lan Wangji is looking for in an employee wrapped in the personality of his worst nightmare. But maybe, just maybe, this will work out. If Lan Wangji can stop himself from strangling Wei Wuxian to death. Or bending him over the counter and licking coldbrew espresso off his neck.

To Dream the Impossible, by LadyHallen

Lan Hui is Lan Zhan's cousin.

She is the kind of curious that would stop at nothing until she achieved results.

Unfortunately, she and Wei Wuxian get along very well.

let's call the whole thing off, by jotarems

Recently returned from being burnt at the stake after being tried as a witch, Wei Wuxian wakes to the past and does everything in his power to not repeat it.

Chenqing: "setting forth one's thoughts and explaining one's actions", by LyzDrake

After an assassin is nearly successful, Wei Wuxian grows concerned that should it be needed, there will be no one who knows the truth. She decides to entrust it to someone honorable, and the last person she ever thought possible.

An Inch of Grass, and All The Sunshine of Spring, by ChilianXianzi

"Did you…Did you know our A-Ying?"

Cangse Sanren's eyes are wide and full of hope, and Lan Wangji is suddenly struck by the realization that he is the only one in the world now who would still speak of Wei Ying with fondness. Who knows him enough outside of the wild and hurtful rumors scattered across the land. Just him, in all of his own failings and his poor grasp of words.

But Lan Wangji had failed Wei Ying once, and if he could not speak for Wei Ying when the whole world had bayed for his blood, then he owes it to Wei Ying to speak of him kindly now, to let his meagre words tumble out of lips unused still to speech after years of silence. He doesn't expect there to be so much words inside him, doesn't expect that his words would carry him until the sky darkens around them. Doesn't expect the embrace enveloping him after he is done - Warm and firm and safe.

Making Different Choices (For A More Hopeful Future), by Preludian_Staves

Through a bout of unexpected time traveling, they decide to usurp Fate's plans and do their best to make different choices to create more hopeful future.

Dawn, by Jengabears

The canon divergence which might have happened, if Wen Qing came with Wei Wuxian to ask the Jins where Wen Ning was being held, rather than waiting outside.

fade into view, by Zoodan21

Jin Ling is pretty sure that his friend’s dad is the same guy that his uncle used to have a crush on in the ’90s, it’s just a matter of figuring out how to get them to actually talk to each other.

Journey, by ninho_emy

This is the story what could have been if Lan Zhan returned to the Bourial Mounds before the Siege, took Wei Ying and A-Yuan and travelled together as rogue cultivators as a family of three.

Rated G:

the sum of us, by baobeijuns (canyoudamianot)

A series of ficlets about reincarnation across time and universes, where soulmates only remember their past lives when their eyes meet.

First up: fashionista!wwx/model!lwj at Paris Fashion Week.

[kyohiba]

snow white + prince cursing. jiang cheng and wen ning fix it post canon au

WEN NING TAKING A BLOW TO THE CHEST FOR JIN LING N JC TAKING AN ARROWN TO THE HEART FOR WEN NING LMAO

ssyifpfff🌙 i dig it, havent thot much of it tho

May 16 ssyifpfff🌙 but the idea of wen ning trailing behing sizhui and jc trailing behing jin ling n thm meeting while they keep their respective babies safe os *kisses filgers* DOLCE

May 16 i feel like a whole 4th eye of mine opened to that... but my mind probably wont be able to focus much. i hate how i can only hyperfixate in one or two ships at time

ISNT IT SO DOLCE? FORTÍSSIMO!

yeeting patriarch jiang cheng's hostility decreasing as they kept meeting...

yeeting patriarch perhaps wn and jc could get my ass more than jc with huaisang !?

but nothing will ever get ur ass more thn jc/happiness will it

jiang cheng n huaisang is v Aesthethic bc huaisang is a pretty pretty hoe

ssyifpfff🌙 bUT W WEN NING THERES A LOT OF ANGST

May 16 jc + happiness is all that matters

but... the sweet angst road of wn and jc...

yeeting patriarch IT CAN AND IT WILL LEAD TO HAPPINESS !?

and yea the Appeal of jc ano nhs is that huaisang is Very Pretty plus his scheming charm. but we arent given much canon background to work on this. not that it matters, lord knows we built the content when we really want to make anything

but The Flavor, of the canon background content for jc and wn Is There And It's Stronf

yeeting patriarch nevermind what i said im already ass deep into it. i love both jc and wn way too much, the appeal got me immediately

ssyifpfff🌙 ALSO BC WUXIAN DITCHED BOTH OF THEM FOR THT WANGJI D LMAO

May 16 ssyifpfff🌙 them bonding over how dumb wuxian would act "he would float in the water n pretend he drowned" "yea he told a-yuan he needed to be buried in order to grow big n tall like a raddish" they look at each other n want to laugh but jc doenst know if hes comfortable enough for tht n wn doenst know if hes allowed to

May 16 yeeting patriarch REPRESSED DUMB BABIES LAUGH TO UR HEARTS CONTENTS TOGETHER :(((((

but oh god, the way jiang cheng is,

their road would be So Long

yeeting patriarch another slow burn, uh...

and then so much confusion and conflicted angsty feelings along the way when everything is better because jc was almost forgetting that..........wen ning is dead :) hes a corpse. what future awaits them. this is terrifying

yeeting patriarch ...why cant i have anything nice and just soft. i need to throw angst in or i die?

ssyifpfff🌙 its awful its a terrible idea to ship tht what r u doin

May 16 ssyifpfff🌙 but wen ning being a pure boy, dogs would love him, dogs would gather around him bc he has a Good Aura, n jianc cheng just observes from afar thinkin How can he be so approachable whn hes a fierce corpse

May 16 ssyifpfff🌙 like it would have to start w jc thinkin wen ning is less thn a human u understand

May 16 yeeting patriarch

ssyifpfff🌙 SAJGDASDF

May 16 IM CRYING imagine one day jiang cheng finds wen ning, on the floor, on top of him there are like four different dogs all swaying their tails all that hyper bullshit dogs do.

the incident repeats quite a few times

yeeting patriarch jc notices dogs are drawn to wen ning?

ssyifpfff🌙 he notices MAYBE?? hes not a dangerous zombie after all???

May 16 he lets it slip and asks how wuxian reacted to it

as wwx is terrified of dogs

and wen ning is like. where we... spent most of our time... there were no dogs

(awkward silence timel

ah. ruined it again.

okay 2 take

when they're on those night hunts, wen ning + sizhui & jiang cheng + jin ling

fairy starts being Too Friendly towards wen ning

both jiang cheng and jin ling were initially taken aback by it

yeeting patriarch but as the time goes on... it Softens their heart

ssyifpfff🌙 iT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE BC FAIRY IS A SPIRITUAL DOG N IT WOULDNT NVR BE FRIENDLY TO AN EVIL GHOUL SO IT RLY MAKES THM SEE THT WEN NING ISNT A BAD GUY

May 16 ssyifpfff🌙 also take 2 on tht dog thing, wen ning is like "ah wei wuxian made me chase any dogs away, i quite like dogs but i had to" to remind jc of the puppies he had to give away bc of wwx lmao :)

May 16 yeeting patriarch THEY START REALIZING WEN NING IS THE PUREST ANGEL... and opening up, in their tsun ways, with him

yeeting patriarch i like how the canon wen ning art is him with a ginger cat, but for the sake of jiangning we made him a dog person

i honestly picture him being the snow white os mdzs, just all animals gathering around him

bird perching on his shoulders, deer eating from his hands. jiang cheng confused af

hes Prince Not Charming

ssyifpfff🌙 Prince Cursing, if u will

May 16 yeeting patriarch WEN NING SNOW WHITE OF MDZS AND HIS PRINCE CURSING JIANG CHENG IM YELLINGGFFKDJSKSK

yeeting patriarch jiang cheng going thru the trees and shit then he finds wen ning all surrounded by all animals cutely around him, the birds singing, some squirrels on the top of his head, a butterfly kissing his nose and suddenly the scene seem to have 💖Sparkles 💖 around. jiang cheng is like *rubs his eye and looks again* What

ssyifpfff🌙 "hey you... you have some animals on you" n wen ning was just super still he only focuses on jc "Oh yes. they do this sometimes. its ok i enjoy it"

May 16 ssyifpfff🌙 "everytime i wake up theres a few little ones on me, they must think im a rock or something" jiang cheng, internally, seein all the animals: CLEARLY THEY ENJOY IT TOO???

May 16 yeeting patriarch JIANG CHENG MACHINE BROKE

ssyifpfff🌙 MEAN JIANG CHENG.EXE STOPPED WORKING

May 16 PRECISELY HENSKLDGSKLS

i would like the idea of, somewhere farther into the future,

some cultivator bitch being mean to wen ning and by instinct jiang cheng ends up standing for wen 5

wen ning*

but then hes a sect leader and...

yknow how it wouldnt work

yeeting patriarch BUT A NYARI CAN DREAM!?

THEY CAN AT LEAST BE ... LIKE.... PHILTATOS

ssyifpfff🌙 MOST BELOVED

May 17 jiang cheng has responsibilities but thEY CAN BE LIKE YOU KNOW.... CASUAL

ssyifpfff🌙 they dont gotta marry. not every couple can be wangxian

May 17 PHILTATOSSSSSSSS

tbh im all in for casual couples too

yeeting patriarch not everyone needs or can have Marriage

hmmmmmm the more jc starts seeing The Light in wn, when they're at the middle of the road,

yeeting patriarch more tangled his emotions get?

he was supposed to LOATHE wen ning but then he sees what happened wasnt wen nings fault. hes angry, who to blame then? wuxian! but it also isnt entirely wwx's fault he lost the control, the dark cultivation is a dangerous path after all... and wwx had a lot on his shoulders... and most of all: it was the only path he could follow without his golden core :) the very golden core that now resides inside jc. who should he blame? who should he hate?? Himself???

yeeting patriarch goddammit can i stop with the suffering

me: snow white au hehe you, chaotic bastard: what if jiang cheng hated himself lmao

i hate specifically tht iT MAKES SENSE

ssyifpfff🌙 HE SPENT. OVER A DECADE BLAMING WEN NING N WUXIAN N TO REALIZE HE WAS WRONG, HE WASTED ALL THOSE YEARS. WHOS HE GONNA TURN THT HATE TOWARD??? HIMSELF OFC!!!!! OF COURSE!!!!!!1

May 17 HOLD UP THAT I GRAB BOTH OF US TO JUMP INTO THE HELL HOLE BUT I CAN ALSO SAVE US

listen up,

one day all those feelings that keep growing and bottling up inside jc overflow and he explodes in yelling and tears and etc

wen ning, whom was with him, witness all that

yeeting patriarch and tries to soothe his state of mind

yeeting patriarch telling him that it's no one's fault. none of them couldve known what would happen. all sides had their good intentions here and there, but unfortunately fates can twist it in a way they never expected

BUT THEN jc returns with an "then why do u look like u blame yourself as well?" BECAUSE WEN NING DOES

yeeting patriarch sorry apparently the half brain cell i have working, only does suffering hours

"THEN WHY DO U BLAME URSELF"

nyari u sAID U COULD SAVE US

ssyifpfff🌙 wen ning is like "..............." jiang cheng: i know it wasnt anyones fault but then what am i supposed to feel? who am i supposed to hate??"

May 17 yeeting patriarch IM LAUGHINGS O MUCH IM NOT BRSTJINENSKS

wen ning is like No one. there isnt any1 to blame anymore

ssyifpfff🌙 im franctically tryin to make it bETTER NYARI LEND ME A HAND DAM IT

May 17

MY THROAT HURTS IM TOO BROKE LIKE (MANIC LAUGHTER)

yeeting patriarch okay lemme get myself back together and try to offer some fix it

yeeting patriarch me: *shaking, weakly offering a tiny ass pink hello kitty band aid* This Will Fix Everything (the hell hole im offering the band aid for is like 17cm)

yeeting patriarch wen ning goes confident mode again and says that he cant help it as much jc and wwx, all of them will feel guilty no matter what anyone says. they tried their best but it backfired and they will need, they have to, learn how to live in terms with it. not forgetting, but still forgiving themselves and each other

wen ning obv has the wisdom of some1 who has died, seen death, been death, and come back to life

he has an appreciation for the little things no others would have

if any1 could emotionally guide jc it wOULD BE HIM1!

ssyifpfff🌙 "i have regrets too, but theres no choice for any of us but to live w them n learn"

May 17 ssyifpfff🌙 ALSO

May 17 ssyifpfff🌙 i think wen nings sensibility woULD BE SO GOOD FOR JC, hes always tense he needs a break of him just being so still tht birds can perch on his shoulders

May 17

WEN NINGGGGGGGGG

yeeting patriarch he'll literally become jc's heaven sent angel... his solace and calm

like, after that breakdown and the things wen ning said

yeeting patriarch jiang cheng actually does feel... Lighter

wen ning boutta be jiang chengs therapist

ssyifpfff🌙 its what he needs

May 17 but as jiang cheng starts dealing better with his internal demons

he starts seeing more too that wen ning isnt only light

wen ning carries his pain too, inevitably

and jc starts to help wn as well

yeeting patriarch each other's company start being the healing they needed?

woke

ssyifpfff🌙 jiang cheng teached wn confidence and wen ning teaches jiang cheng stillness and softness

May 17 i teared up here

after The Wen Ning Effect, and jiang cheng softening. people of his sect start to be... less afraid of him? AND BETTER, the respect level only grows!

jiang cheng realizing there is strength in softness too

that to be tender doesnt mean to be weak

of course his actions arent Oh, Super Obvious as he is a tsun

yeeting patriarch but u can feel The Difference on his aura

YOU HAVE TO BE SOFT TO BE STRONG JIANG CHENG

ASKJDAJSDGF

ssyifpfff🌙 I KNOW THAT WHEN LOVE IS LOST..............

May 17 yeeting patriarch I LOVE HOW IN SYNC WE ARE MY MIND ALSO WENT SOFT TO BE STRONF .MP3

ssyifpfff🌙 WE'VE KNOWN IT ALL ALONG THE TRUTH IS............ YOU HAVE TO BE S

May 17 yeeting patriarch ME, ON THE FLOOR, SOBBING, SINGING ALONF,

ssyifpfff🌙 EXTREME MOOD RN

May 17 yeeting patriarch we did done it again and again... i cannot believe it

honestly if the ppl in his sect see tht jc has the ghost general over for tea they'd be like Wow sect leader cheng rly is amazing

ssyifpfff🌙 hes so fearless

May 17 im tearing up again

HMMMMMMMMM his relationship with wen ning also being a bridge for some fixing for his relationship with wuxian...........

takes so much time and it's slow

but

after he took it all in, and especially wen nings words that he shouldn't forget to forgive, and has to live with it

he starts Understanding the events. that is was inevitable. and that the anger would not help nor be good for any of them

yeeting patriarch that for the ones around them (like jin ling) they need to... overcome it

*sobbing* wen ning even helping him to overcome his inferiority complex !?

yeeting patriarch making jc see that this and this sides of him are greater and make up for this and this other ones. that he, too, was of vital importance on here and there

tht the ppl around him look up to him, tht they dont compare him to wuxian, tht the strenght he has shown isnt just coming from his golden core but from his choices as well

from his leadership

also jiang cheng realizing yanli wouldnt want him to hate

ssyifpfff🌙 the worst part abt yanlis death is tht we dont ever hear her last words

May 17 ssyifpfff🌙 she doesnt get to finish sayin thm, we dont know what she was gonna say to wuxian n i firmly believe tht if she has finished n she had said she didint blame him, thn jiang cheng wouldnt have been as hung up on hate as he was

May 17 yeeting patriarch

yeeting patriarch tbh yanli... she just Understood more. faster than the two dense dumbasses

SHE WAS SO BRIGHT

AND MATURE

ssyifpfff🌙 I MISS HER EVERYDAY

May 17 and it's like. Obvious she wouldnt want them to be that way. she would want them to understand the terms of the situation and overcome it TOGETHER

IM SO SAD SHE DESERVED BETTER :(((

but after jiang cheng learns how to deals with his demons,

and most important of all: Grows (emotionally)

he starts seeing things a bit more like his sister would

yeeting patriarch WWYLD (What Would YanLi Do)

yeeting patriarch hmm now what's left is his daddy issues

WWYLD!!!!!

sadasdfsf the fuck jiang dad

ssyifpfff🌙 can u believ wen ning is jiang chengs love+fear era

May 17 hmmmmmmmm let's say that as he watches himself raise jin ling he starts to understand his dad couldn't be easy on him. and that he Had To be softer on wwx's for his situations

i cant go deeper on this one because his dad messed up

yeeting patriarch but let's say that was really the case,

ssyifpfff🌙 yes theres no excuse for his dad, he had a soft spot for wwx n his favoritism showed

May 17 ssyifpfff🌙 its more like, its important for jc to Know it doesnt matter, he grew up to be a good leader n tht proved his dad wrong

May 17 IT'S HARD TO FIND A SITUATION OUT OF HIS DAD REASONS he messed up

BUT!!! YES!!!!!!!

learn to let go of those feelings towards his dad

yeeting patriarch and the day it finally fully clicked inside him that he became an amazing sect leader, he proved it

it's also important that he could realize having wwx golden core inside him means as if wwx really kept his promise

he stayed by his side

yeeting patriarch a very important piece of wwx will always be with him

[antebunny]

Parent Trap AU 5

It’s a Parent Trap AU, plus on-the-run hacker!wwx and celebrity!lwj. Full series here.

-

At first, Lan Wangji finds writing songs to be extremely challenging.

He’s all but quit his job, and his son is gone. He’s alone in the house he once shared with his family, while his brother tries to keep quiet about pitying him and supporting him, and his uncle demands to know why he has no interest in searching for his son. He’s the one that files the kidnapping report, in the end. Not that it does much; they’re already searching for Wei Ying, since he escaped from prison.

All Lan Wangji really does, during this time, is cry by his piano, and sing.

The melodies come naturally to him. He’s been writing melodies for years, and these songs are no different. He has a thousand things to say, so some are angry, so fast he thinks he might tear his fingers on the guitar strings, some are soft with only piano accompaniment. All too soon he has dozens of recordings of phrases that can be put together into full-length songs. The only one he doesn’t record is the one he wrote for guqin, years ago.

But the lyrics, the lyrics he struggles with for ages. Not Lan Wangji finds himself at a loss for what to say. He doesn’t speak much, it’s true, but when he does he always finds precisely what he wants to say. Rather, Lan Wangji finds he has too much to say.

One Friday afternoon, he sits down on his couch and plays the same ten-minute ballad on his guitar, trying again and again to find a way to shorten it without feeling like he’s ripping a part of his already shattered heart out of his chest. While suppressing the urge to write more verses. He knows he can’t leave them all in; it’s too repetitive. He wants these songs to be good, though he doesn’t really plan on marketing them. A large part of him thinks it’ll always be like this. Just him and his instruments, alone in the living room, mourning over a love long lost, making himself cry over his own lyrics.

Still, Lan Wangji is a perfectionist at heart. He has to do something about the ten-minute ballad. It’s longer than two songs put together.

What if I made them two separate songs?

The thought comes to Lan Wangji suddenly, and he sets down his guitar to pick up the notebook containing the lyrics. This could work. He becomes convinced of this the longer he looks at the lyrics. He’ll never run out of things to say about Wei Ying, but if he separated each of those things into one song–that could work.

He chooses a different melody, edits the lyrics to fit it, picks out a theme, an aspect of Wei Ying to sing about, and suddenly he has a whole discography, and not a single published song.

Lan Wangji goes to his brother.

“Are you sure about this?” Lan Xichen asks, his brows pulled together in a small, worried dip.

“Mn.”

They stare at each other without speaking, because Lan Xichen knows that every concern he might think of, Lan Wangji has already over thought.

“Even if he hears them?”

Lan Wangji will never be famous enough that Wei Ying, wherever in the world he might be, will hear his songs. But if he does, then all the better. “Mn.”

Lan Xichen sighs. “I just don’t want to see you hurt anymore.”

Lan Wangji doesn’t think that’s possible. “Hm.”

Lan Xichen sighs again. “Okay,” he says. “If that’s what you want. I’m sure A-Yao knows someone. I’ll ask.”

It’s a while before he finds someone who’ll actually produce his music, but he’s happy with the person he ends up with. Luo Qingyang emails him back almost immediately after she listens to his demo.

I need you down here yesterday, she says. This is getting produced right now.

His first song, When We Were Young, is released as a single less than a year after the scandal that took Wei Ying from his life, under the stage name “Hanguang-jun.” He’s not sure it fits, but he wants to.

And suddenly, it looks like Lan Wangji might actually be that famous.

Of course, it’s still years in the future, so Lan Wangji carries on like he’s not. His second single, At First Glance, does even better than When We Were Young, and his manager starts bothering him about a music video. Apparently it’s expected of him, but Lan Wangji rejects all of the ideas that the directors Luo Qingyang finds for him come up with. They end up renting a house for a week and filming there, then going to a studio with lights and a piano. Lan Wangji dresses up for that and plays his heart out, and that’s it, that’s the music video.

His third single, Under Moonlight, is somehow more popular than his previous two combined. He has fans now, or maybe it’s just that he’s only now realizing it. He’s not quite sure what to do with that. The video this time takes place on the very bridge the song talks about. He doesn’t do much, since he rejected the idea of hiring actors to play the “counterpart,” so he’s confused as to why it continues gaining views on YouTube. Apparently he looks young. He’s not sure if this is insulting or not, but the internet would probably be shocked to learn he has a five-year-old son.

Lan Sizhui is too young to listen to music by himself, so Lan Wangji hopes that somewhere, there’s a radio playing one of the new hit songs by Hanguang-jun, and a father-son duo walking past.

Luo Qingyang bullies him into exactly one interview before his first album is released. On it, he accidentally confirms that all the songs on the album are about one person, and panics after that, not wishing to reveal anything about Wei Ying or even Lan Wangji’s own name on camera.

Apparently the mystery helps? Lan Wangji understands fame less and less the closer he comes to it. He thought if he just wrote good songs, enough people would listen to him that Wei Ying would hear it. Wei Ying is spotted in Thailand, and Lan Wangji ends up naming his first album Oceans Apart.

It sells, and it sells, and still, Wei Ying and their son are nowhere to be found.

-

Wei Wuxian is lying on a roof the night of his wedding anniversary.

Purple, white, and red fireworks explode in the black sky above him. There’s some celebration going on in the city, and Wei Wuxian takes advantage of it to pretend it’s in celebration of his anniversary.

Not that there’s much to celebrate. He doesn’t think it’s typical to celebrate the anniversary of a marriage which no longer exists, but their marriage didn’t end in the typical way either.

And he still loves Lan Zhan. Loves him so much that the sight of rabbits brings him to tears. So much that he feels like a traitor whenever someone so much as smiles in his direction, so much that he can’t imagine himself flirting with someone. So much that he cries on the roof when the fireworks light up the sky.

“Papa?”

Wei Wuxian looks to the right, and there’s Wei Sizhui, who is sometimes the only thing keeping Wei Wuxian going on his darkest nights. He’s nestled up with Wei Wuxian’s arm around him, small face peering earnestly at him from the dark. “What?”

“Why are you crying?”

Wei Wuxian raises one hand instinctively to rub the tears away. He’d forgotten about that. He’s thrown himself fully into caring for his son, making sure that he has clothes and good food to eat, which is hard when they never stay in a place for long and Wei Wuxian is paranoid of anyone who stares at them too long. Sometimes he wonders if he’s really doing any good, keeping Wei Sizhui away from his other father and uncles and aunts, from a happy childhood with friends and a school. And every time, he blinks back to the moment he woke up in the prison having narrowly avoided being murdered, and knows that Wei Sizhui is still safer with him than he’d be if he was still there, within the Jins reach.

“Nothing,” Wei Wuxian says. “It’s nothing.”

Wei Sizhui frowns. “But Papa is sad,” he declares.

Wei Wuxian presses the back of his hand over his eyes. Fireworks crack so loudly it muffles his shaky inhale. Tears stream down his cheeks and around his ears. Red lights flash across his eyelids.

-

White lights flash through the stage, focusing on the solitary grand piano, and Lan Wangji, in his white suit, seated on the piano bench. A hush falls across the massive crowd. He adjusts his microphone slightly, and places his fingers gently atop the keys. The cameras zoom in on him.

And Lan Wangji sings.

-

“I’m just remembering,” Wei Wuxian whispers. “Someone I used to know.”

“Is it Dad?” Wei Sizhui asks timidly.

Wei Wuxian inhales shakily again, then wraps his arm back around his son. “Yeah,” he admits. “It’s your other father.”

He hasn’t looked back since he ran away. Countless times, he’s thought about Googling the Jiangs in an internet cafe, just to check on how they’re doing. They have social media profiles, so he could. He could. But even the slightest hint of connection could ruin what Wei Wuxian has managed to salvage. The Jiangs would fight for him. Would drag their names in the mud for him, and he can’t let them do that to themselves, so he cuts all ties and doesn’t look back.

Wei Wuxian hasn’t dared to search Lan Wangji since he ran away.

-

“Hello,” Lan Wangji sings, and the crowd cheers.“It’s me. I was wondering if after all these years you’d like to meet, to go over everything. They say that time’s supposed to heal you, but I ain’t done much healing.”

Before he knows it, there’s tears streaming down his face. They drip onto his nice white suit, but the music doesn’t pause.

-

Hello from the other side

“Will we ever see him again?” Wei Sizhui asks plaintively.

I must have called a thousand times

Wei Wuxian tries to shake his head, his shoulders pressed against the dusty brick roof. “I don’t know, baby,” he says.

To tell you I’m sorry for everything that I’ve done

“But why not?” Wei Sizhui pushes. It’s far from the first time he’s asked, but each day it gets harder and harder to answer.

Hello from the outside

“Because he’s very, very far away,” Wei Wuxian replies this time, and tries not to think of Lan Zhan as he last saw him, sleeping peacefully in their bed the night Wei Wuxian broke in and took Wei Sizhui with him. “Oceans away.”

At least I can say that I tried

Eventually, the fireworks stop, and Wei Sizhui falls asleep, head resting in the crook of Wei Wuxian’s arm. Wei Wuxian raises one hand to the midnight sky, pretends he can reach through the vast expanse to wherever his family is. “Happy anniversary, Lan Zhan,” he whispers. “I miss you.”

To tell you I’m sorry for breaking your heart

Eventually, the song ends, and the cheers deafen the stadium. The lights go out long after Lan Wangji has gotten up from his seat and stepped away from the microphone. The tears on his face are invisible until the cameras focus in on him walking.

“Happy anniversary, Wei Ying,” he whispers, before he picks up the microphone to thank the crowd. “I love you.”

[tangledinmdzs]

take my breath away - junior quartet hcs

junior quartet reacting to you writing a song for/about them (shorts)

♬♩♪♩　Lan Sizhui　♩♪♩♬ 

my son would cry

like, he really would

and it’s something that he’d deeply appreciate

because he never thought that he would ever mean enough to someone to be made the muse of a song

let alone to be gifted a song too

(and also, because you stole his idea, he was in the middle of writing an classical piece inspired by you, damn it)

but your soft ballad style song, and gentle hands on the piano

touched his heart

painted all the years that you guys have shared

all the emotions that you guys have had

and all the love that you guys still fight for everyday, on the journey that was your song

well, 

“our song,” you’d correct and he’d huff out a small laugh at you, fighting his teariness

you’d coo at him, warm hands from the music you’ve played coming up to brush away his tears

“i didn’t mean to make you cry” you tell him but he just shakes his head, holding your hand close

“happy tears, you’re the equivalent of happiness to me,” he tells you in a splutter of emotions and just being him

you let out your own emotional laugh

for all your poetry

no one’s words could make your heart swoon like Sizhui’s

♬♩♪♩  Lan Jingyi  ♩♪♩♬

“okay, don’t laugh”

i mean, when you had bought out the guitar he wasn’t thinking of laughing anyways

and the ambiance of tonight is so soft and sentimental

he doesn’t even have time to prepare his heart for all the feels you hit him with

your soft singing

paired with all the inside jokes and loving declarations 

rhythmically sang to witty catchy lyrics

he would squeeze the life out of you and make you sing it for him again

and again

and again

and (”one more time!”) again

if you could sing forever he would ask you to

because your song,

your voice

y o u 

he could never tire from

♬♩♪♩　Jin Ling　♩♪♩♬ 

would be super duper shocked

like he had met you at an open mic

but is still

super shocked

it’s something to play an instrument

it’s something else to sing

and then it’s also another thing to create and mess all of that together

he’d just get overwhelmed by your sheer talent

and then have to re-listen to the song again so he can get emotionally overwhelmed by all the cheesy things you’ve sang about him

would hug you really close when you’re done 

“everything you said about me, about us... i feel the same way, tenfold. and i’m always grateful for you in my life”

Jin Ling has very few romantic spurts like this

but when he does

you know it comes from the heart

♬♩♪♩　Ouyang Zizhen　♩♪♩♬ 

this sneaky boy would be recording you while you sang

and of course the point of him was to listen to you sing to him

not be your next music video director

and you don’t like people filming you singing anyways

so you kind of whine and pout

and then he promises to put his phone away

and he does

but he leaves the voice memos on

so he can catch your sweet voice, save it to re-visit at a later time

and once you’re done with the ukulele, he’d hoot and holler in applause loud enough to fill an entire arena

even though it’s just you two in your bedroom

at like midnight

while the rest of your house is asleep

you quickly shush him

and he laughs but listens

and in the wooziness of late night confessions, he’ll pull you to his side and press a soft kiss against your temple

“i don’t have the words, or the talent to make lyrics like you have. so all i can say is i love you. always”

you turn to look at him, smiling at his bluntness in between all your flowery and long winded affirmations

“it’s always love, when it comes to you” you both repeat the lyric of your chorus and you giggle as he pulls you deeper in his hug

his phone, discarded on the floor, records every affirmation of love

[lanzhanlanzhan]

@faescapist I actually really love this prompt! I love it enough that I ended up writing this as second story just after churning the first one out, so thank you very much for sending it. 😊

Okay though, but this is probably more flirtatious/ominous than cute/playful I'm sorry but I

Lan Wangji has a secret. 

"Ready for me, Lan Zhan?" 

Wei Ying stands in one of the sparring fields, the greenery and mist-blue mountains of Gusu as his backdrop. White robes billow in the morning winds, contrasting with his dark hair done in its customary messy ponytail. On his face is a grin, lopsided and handsome, and it never fails to make something jump inside Lan Wangji. 

He does not verbalize a response—he seldom has to, with Wei Ying. Wei Ying just seems to know, and judging by the way the curve of his smile twitches even higher, indeed it seems nothing has escaped his notice. 

Wei Ying lunges first. No surprise there; this is his test after all. Lan Wangji deflects the first blow, their swords clashing a few times before they find themselves on their first bind. 

Wei Ying's core is new yet. Of course, he has worked his way to it, cultivating a golden core with his new body the same way every other cultivation disciple has had to do it. It is only even recently that Wei Ying claimed he has cultivated enough to handle a sword fight, and so it is no surprise that he wavers first, a tell-tale tremble under the weight of Lan Wangji's sword. 

Nevertheless, Lan Wangji has his own struggle. He can feel Bichen singing in his hands, touching Suibian where there has long been draught. He was not the only one missing someone in all those long years. 

"Ah ah ah, Lan Zhan," taunts Wei Ying. Strands of black hair fall over his expressive eyes, which now even seem to twinkle as they look up at Lan Wangji. "Don't get distracted. We've only just started." 

Wei Ying escapes him. He finds his footing, although not immediately, seemingly still needing some time to get used to Lan Wangji's spiritual energy when it is in the offense.

"This could be harder, I can tell," Wei Ying says across the field, "if Hanguang-jun is not busy ogling his opponent."

"I was not ogling," Lan Wangji immediately denies, but the tips of his ears feel hot anyway. 

Wei Ying laughs, rich and carefree, and it rings with the wind like its music was made to be played along with it. He is quick on his feet, preparing for another round, and it is no hardship for Lan Wangji to follow him with his eyes. 

Something about Wei Ying: he will not lose to Lan Wangji without a fight. He wants to win, and even now that is no different. He would accept loss but only in a fair fight, one where he made Lan Wangji work for it and maybe doubt, once or twice, if his was going to be a sure win. There is no such thing between them, not really. There could be perhaps a few years or so ago, when Wei Ying was newly returned and his core yet unformed, but Wei Ying with a golden core has always been Lan Wangji's equal. Nevermind that Wei Ying's core now is new; he is the sort of genius, after all, who can close a gap no matter how far ahead the handicap. 

The first time they sparred, Lan Wangji was surprised to encounter someone with skills and cultivation as high as his. None of his peers in Cloud Recesses, nor even in the nearby sects with whom they associated, had thus far come close to reaching Lan Wangji. And yet there Wei Ying was, a talkative, rule-breaking boy from Yunmeng Jiang, but one who could deflect Lan Wangji's strikes with one hand, jars of Emperor's Smile in the other.

He took Lan Wangji's breath away. 

"You are doing it again, Hanguang-jun!" 

Lan Wangji catches himself just in time to deflect an oncoming talisman. The charm breaks against Bichen, turning into golden butterflies that fly up into the blue sky. 

"Swords only," he admonishes. 

"Eh? Says who?" counters Wei Ying. "I don't think we set those rules, Lan Zhan." 

Lan Wangji huffs his disapproval, but lets it go. The other had a point, after all. 

"And speaking of things which I am correct about," declares Wei Ying, apparently not yet done, "Hanguang-jun, you really ought to focus. What will your junior fans say? You're lucky they are not here watching this." 

Lan Wangji goes for him this time, his swordpoint leading the charge. But Wei Ying just seems delighted by this, peals of his laughter bursting in the air around them. The winds, usually Lan Wangji's allies, even seem to side with him, cradling him in their grasp, taking his voice and bringing it clear and sure to Lan Wangji's greedy ears. 

"Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan!" cries Wei Ying, saying his name in a sing-song sort of way. "Is this how one defeats the esteemed Hanguang-jun? Just throw him a pretty face? See, this is why I considered just asking Sizhui."

That got Wei Ying a series of blows, Suibian visibly struggling beneath the onslaught.

"What pretty face?" asks Lan Wangji, because he can't help it. "There is only one." 

"Hm?" Wei Ying goes on taunting him, even as his breath grows strained and he has to pause between words so he can pant in between. "Oh, Lan Zhan. Only me, you say? Hanguang-jun is such a sweet-talker." 

He knows what to say, knows the expressions he has to make. He throws Lan Wangji with looks filled with promise, or at least looks that feel like they do. Whether or not he will put out is always an open question, because Wei Wuxian is anything but predictable, and it seems as though few things delight him more than teasing Lan Wangji. 

Lan Wangji loves that about him. But then, Lan Wangji loves everything about him.

Wei Ying turns serious in the next moment, seeming to summon up the spiritual energy necessary to attack Lan Wangji with a particularly complicated sequence that actually gets him to pull up more spiritual energy than he planned for this entire encounter. He pulls up more, and then even more, because Wei Ying is relentless and quick, and he makes it difficult enough for Lan Wangji to clear his mind and indeed focus, lest he find himself on the wrong end of his partner's sword. 

Wei Ying grows tired first, and he escapes Lan Wangji again and floats back to the far edge of the field. He catches his breath there, but his eyes does not stray from Lan Wangji—as though he has to watch him, as though he will not risk the very small, truthfully nonexistent possibility that Lan Wangji would attack him when he is not ready. 

Lan Wangji loves him like this—when he is serious, focused, wanting to win. True, he loves Wei Ying when his eyes are laughing and his voice light and bright, perhaps even fell in love with him because of those things, but times like this bring their own charm. Something deeper, darker, intimate in a way because Lan Wangji knows few people know Wei Ying this way, simmer there beneath the surface. Lan Wangji finds himself hungry for it, wanting more, and a part of him wonders if that is why he is so keen on Wei Ying growing stronger and cultivating back his golden core. Lan Wangji would love him regardless, core or no core, but there is something about Wei Ying when he has power on him that charges the nerves under Lan Wangji's skin. 

All things eventually reach their end, and despite several more attempts, Wei Ying's energy drains from him soon enough. In the end, the battle ends with Suibian on the ground, Bichen just centimeters from Wei Ying's throat. 

Wei Ying heaves a great sigh and falls on his knees to the ground. 

"Wei Ying did well," Lan Wangji tells him as he sheathes Bichen. "That took longer than I expected." 

"Yeah?" Wei Ying says in between pants, looking up at Lan Wangji. "Doing well is not the point though, is it?" 

"It is for now," says Lan Wangji. "It is impossible for you to win this first fight." 

To Lan Wangji, this is only pointing out the truth. It is impossible with a core so new, but Wei Ying shakes his head at these words all the same. 

"Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan. I may be of Gusu now, but never forget I am from Yunmeng Jiang. We strive for the impossible." 

It has been years, but when Wei Ying grins like that, it is still as attractive as the first time Lan Wangji saw it.

"Still, do not be careless," says Lan Wangji, keeping his voice even despite the effect of that look. "The impossible is impossible for a reason."  

"You," Wei Ying goes on to say, waving a finger up at Lan Wangji. "You're lucky you're pretty." 

Lan Wangji does not understand what that has to do with anything, but then his and Wei Ying's logic have always been somewhat different in that regard. He does not have much time to think about it though, because Wei Ying is then crooking that same finger at him, an even look on his face as he gestures for Lan Wangji to come closer. 

Lan Wangji has barely settled on one knee before Wei Ying pulls him roughly by the front of his robes. The kiss, when it comes, is unexpected but not unwelcome, and Lan Wangji's mouth at least catches up faster than his brain does. But he fails to stifle his reaction when a tongue slips past his lips, groaning through it as his fingers grab at Wei Ying's shoulders, both in surprise as well as to steady himself from the shock. 

Oh, but Wei Ying knows how to kiss him. He sucks and nibbles at Lan Wangji's lips, licks into his mouth in a way that has Lan Wangji clutching him tighter, fingers clawing up until they are buried in Wei Ying's hair. 

He even knows to prolong the kiss the right amount, and then pull back at just the right time to leave Lan Wangji aching for more. 

"You know I hate to lose," Wei Ying tells him after that kiss. "You're lucky I find you sexy when you win." 

Lan Wangji's ears are red, he knows. "Shameless." 

Wei Ying laughs then, breaking character or whatever it is he is going for that nonetheless worked so well on Lan Wangji. 

He lets himself be pulled up, lets Lan Wangji dust off the dirt on his knees, smiling and comfortable with being groomed and taken care of by the other. 

"Thanks for today, Lan Zhan," he says, eyes back to their bright and playful self. 

They pick up Suibian, and then walk together back towards the jingshi. Wei Ying fills the time with his usual chatter, telling Lan Wangji stories that never seem to run out, and which Lan Wangji wishes never do. 

He thinks, too, that they will continue doing this and someday, Wei Ying will win against him. Wei Ying now, after all, is only but a dragon yet asleep, a tiger that is still a cub, but soon he will find himself again, for there is no doubt he can work his way back to where he used to be. Lan Wangji can tell that when he does, Wei Ying will be insufferable, will probably gloat, and he will tower over Lan Wangji until Lan Wangji is on his knees. 

And Lan Wangji waits in anticipation for that day to come. 

(Also on AO3: A Dragon Lies in Wait)