#i miss them… gege leave them alone….

[renereneo]

cafe date ☕️

[dorotheataylor]

Lover

Pairing- Gojo Satoru x Fem!Reader

Summary- Listen to Lover by Taylor Swift

Warnings- FLUFF FLUFF FLUFFF, established relationship, really really small adult talk, this is really cliché, no curses!au, modern!au, my poor english, reader and satoru are so in love :( (i wanna cry) Based on Lover by Taylor Swift <3

Word Count- 2.7k words (excluding lyrics)

A/N- The amount of love I have for this man is insane. Gege when I catch you Gege!! Anyways this is something I imagine everyday with this man and decided why not share this with y’all? Hope y’all like this!

"Good morning Toru," you said in a sleepy voice as you rubbed your eyes.

Satoru smiled and said, "Good morning, my love," placing the coffee mugs on the nightstand nearby and leaning down to kiss you. You kissed him back for a moment but then immediately pulled away.

He looked at you with a frown and you spoke, "you know I have a very bad breath in the morning."

His frown suddenly turned into the grin you adored so much. "And you know that I don't care," he said before leaning down once more and kissing you. And this time you didn't resist.

You snuggled up into him to cuddle. He wrapped his hands around you as he laid beside you.

We could leave the Christmas lights up ‘till January

This is our place, we make the rules

"Happy new year," you beamed before moving even closer (if possible) to him. His body was warm- the body heat you’d always miss when you woke up in bed without him engulfing you.

"Well there's still some couple of hours left," he chuckled before kissing your forehead, "but happy new year."

Although the Christmas tree was gone by now- from the holiday a week ago- multiple strings of Christmas lights remained hung up on the living room walls. Turned off, the fluorescent lights were more gloomy than cheerful due to the festivities being over.

It being the first Christmas with Satoru in the new apartment, the one you both collectively bought together just over six months ago, the holiday was a milestone for your relationship. Decorating the small apartment was fun, placing ornaments carefully on the tree with Satoru while he broke over half of them; accidentally of course.

And now the lights remained, hung up on the walls of the open living room. While you took the first sip of the coffee- the caffeine sliding down your throat and almost scorching your tongue- it was as if Satoru read your mind.

“The Christmas lights are still up, we forgot about them.” There had always been a mysterious way about him, always seeming to know what you were thinking or feeling at any given time.

You'd heard of him in your university days. The uni heartthrob, star basketball player and the guy of every girl's dreams studying with you. Your friend would go on about him every now and then until she found her 'the one' as she called it.

You had to admit that you'd grown a crush on him too but you were too scared. He was the popular guy every girl swooned over, and then there was you, just managing to get through the uni. You doubted if he even knew about your existence. So you never worked on your feelings and just continued the way you lived.

The first time you officially met and talked with him was on the annual prom night. You were sitting alone, trying to get a shot as you watched everyone, including your best friend, dance on the slow song playing in the background.

You'd come there without a date as no one had asked you. You were slightly upset but your friend cheered you up, ditching her own boyfriend to go with you. But after a few hours of having fun, she wanted to spend time with him and of course you didn't mind.

So here you were, deep in thoughts and didn't notice someone coming up to you until the person spoke.

"Hey."

You immediately knew who's voice it was. You turned your head to look at them. And there he stood, dressed up in a black tuxedo, his white hair perfectly styled and faint blush on his cheeks as he showed his smile. Your heart started to pick up its pace as your cheeks heated up. Why would they not? Satoru Gojo, the popular guy of the whole campus and your long time crush, was talking to you.

"Hey," you replied, surprised and internally relieved you didn't stutter.

"Mind if I join you?" he said gesturing over the empty seat besides you.

"Not at all." You said and handed him a drink as he took the seat.

You were surprised, that 'The Gojo Satoru' would be so sweet and awkward at the same time. Still you two talked and got to know each other. Apparently, his date ditched him when he refused for PDA, and he claimed to enjoy your company more.

Have I known you twenty seconds or twenty years?

He almost got shy when he asked you for a dance. But you still accepted nevertheless. And let's just say it was the best time of your life. Neither of you two knew how to dance and all the time you were just stepping on each other's foot or just laughing your asses off. You knew you'd just met him but it felt like you'd known him for years.

The night ended with him asking you out. You gladly accepted. And with that, started a beautiful love story one could only ask for.

“I think we should leave them up,” a quizzing look you gave him with your eyebrows prompted him to explain, “you know, ‘cause why not? We’re adults, we don’t have to listen to any rules anymore, right?”

You laughed. “I guess I see your point... but it’s already New Year’s Day, and Christmas was a week ago. If others come around, what will they say?”

"Who cares, this is our place. Meaning," he held you tighter and continued, "we make the rules here. We could live it 'til the next January."

"You're crazy, Gojo." You said playfully and he rolled his eyes.

"Well sorry to break it to you sweetheart but you're stuck with me," he said with a little smirk.

"Wouldn't have it another way." You said giggling and giving him a quick peck on lips before getting out of the bed. As you were about to leave, he held your wrist and pulled you back. You landed back on the bed as he held you tightly once again.

"Let's just stay like this for the whole day." He said as he closed his eyes.

You giggled, "’Toru, if you don't let me go then we won't be getting any breakfast today."

"I don't care." He said as he buried his face in your chest, "you're warm and I want cuddles." You laughed at his childish behaviour and cuddled back with him. You slowly ran your fingers in his hair just the way he liked. He groaned at the feeling and hugged you even tighter.

There was a comfortable and peaceful silence until he said, "by the way I already made us breakfast."

You widened your eyes when you heard him. "Really? I'm surprised the house is not on fire yet."

He sat up and rolled his eyes. "You know I'm a better cook than you."

You hit him playfully on his chest as he laughed. He got out of the bed and went into the kitchen and you went to the bathroom and quickly brushed your teeth, excited to see what he had prepared for both of you.

He came back with two plates of honey-drizzled pancakes. You were sitting on the bed by then and your mouth immediately started watering after seeing the pancakes.

"Tell me how it is." He said after putting down the plates. You took a bite before widening your eyes and looking at him proudly.

"I see you've gotten my recipe perfectly." You said wiggling your eyebrows making him chuckle.

He chuckled, his eyes shining with satisfaction. "I wanted to do something different this time. You're always the one making breakfast, so I thought I'd give it a try and show you that I can make your recipes too. Consider it my New Year's resolution. Plus I know how much you hate to get out of the bed in the morning, so breakfast is now my duty."

Your heart melted at his thoughtful gesture. He had gone out of his way to make you happy, to bring a change to their routine. It was a small act, but it spoke volumes about his love and dedication. You couldn't help but fall in love with him even more if possible.

Moved by his sincerity, you leaned in and kissed him passionately, feeling the warmth of his embrace. In that moment, your connection deepened, your love reaffirmed. Your lips gently parted, and your foreheads touched as you locked eyes, sharing an unspoken language of love and understanding.

You’re my my my my Lover.

"You don't have to do anything special to make me happy." You whispered, "as long as you're with me, I'm content."

A smile graced his lips, and he spoke softly, "I love you."

"I love you too. More than words can express." You said before attaching your lips with his once again.

-

"Cheers to the New Year!" echoed throughout the room as everyone joyously raised their glasses and took hearty sips of their drinks. The lively party was in full swing, with conversations overlapping and laughter filling the air. To your right, was a group engaged in a spirited drinking game, while in a quieter corner, a few couples were making out while Satoru and Suguru shared jokes and laughter near the balcony, relishing their drinks.

I’m highly suspicious that everyone who sees you wants you

You tried to focus on the conversation you were having with your friends but failed miserably. All you could see was the unfamiliar girl who was now flirting with Satoru. He looked like he had no clue about it. Beside him, was his friend Suguru. Unlike your boyfriend, he noticed the dirty glances you were throwing at the girl.

You see him nudge Satoru with his elbow and point your way. Your eyes met his blue ones for a moment when you instantly looked away. You didn’t want to admit that you were jealous but god you couldn’t help it.

I’ve loved you three summer now honey but I want ‘em all

He was so gorgeous with his soft white hair and cold blue eyes that any girl would fall for him. But those cold eyes only showed warmth and love when they looked at you. You were the only one Satoru loved and will continue to do so till the end of time.

You looked at him again only to see him smirk. Can’t able to bear the sight of it, you decided to take matters into your own hands.

You excused yourself from your friends and walked over to where Satoru was standing. “Darling, It’s getting late. We should head home.” You said in a saccharine voice with a forced smile. Not waiting for his reply, you pulled him by his arm. The last thing you heard before exiting the venue was some words of 'good luck' directed towards Satoru by Suguru.

When you got into the car, you immediately turned towards the windows, not in the mood to talk. Satoru got inside and smiled at your behaviour.

When you got home, you both had to run inside because it had started raining. You immediately went to the bathroom to get dressed for bed, without sparing Satoru a look. After you were done, you laid on your bed and pretended to fall asleep.

Satoru, very well knowing that you were awake, gave your shoulder a nudge. “Y/N?”

"Go away, I'm trying to sleep."

“I highly doubt that. Is it something I said?”

“No.”

“Then what is it?”

“Well, I wasn’t the one who was totally oblivious to a girl hitting on me when my girlfriend stood just a few steps away.” You scoffed as you sat up.

“You can’t be serious.” He chuckled.

“Of course, I am.”

“Baby, look at me.” He said. When you didn’t listen to him, he cupped your face and made you look at him. He looked straight into your eyes and said, “You know you’re the only one for me, right? You’re the one who I’m deeply in love with.”

When you didn't say anything, he sighed and stood up. "Come with me." He said giving you his hand.

I take this magnetic force of a man to be my Loverr

You looked at him confused but took it nevertheless. "Why are we going outside? It's raining." You said when you noticed you were being led outside the house.

Satoru knew how much you loved the rain. That’s why if he was going to do this, he’ll do this with the things you loved.

You were still trying to comprehend as to why you were in the rain but you didn’t complain. You loved rain. It helped you calm down and helped relaxing your mind.

Satoru led you in your small house garden. You had already started getting soaked from the rain as you asked, “Why are we here?”

And you’ll save all your dirtiest jokes for me

“Why? Getting wet already?” he said as you rolled your eyes and laughed. He smiled at you. He swore his heart swells every time he hears you laugh or sees you smile, especially when he is the reason behind it.

“Let’s dance.” He said and spun you around. You laughed when he pulled you towards him and tried to waltz.

“You’re still a terrible dancer.” You said jokingly.

“Well you’re the only one who gets to dance with me so I suggest you get used to it.” He said, trying his best not to mess up the steps.

“Did you learn the basics of waltzing?” you asked when you saw him doing correct steps.

“Well, I know you love to dance and I’m a terrible dancer. So I tried learning just so you can have, not excellent but at least an average dance partner.” He said, scratching his neck sheepishly.

And at every table, I’ll save you a seat Loverr

You didn’t know that you could fall for him even more. He learned to dance, just for you. He knew you loved to dance so he tried to become better at it, just for you. You knew how hectic his schedule can get but still he took some time off it to learn how to dance, just for you. You loved this man so much and you’ll never get tired of admitting this.

Can I go where you go?

“There’s still something I need to do.” He said, now sounding somewhat nervous.

You raised an eyebrow and looked at him in suspicion, “what is it?”

You didn’t want to think the worse but with the way he was behaving, you couldn’t help it. Is this it? Is he going to break things off? You didn’t know how you will survive if your thoughts came true.

Can we always be this close?

He took a deep breath before reaching for his pocket and taking out a small box. He bent down on his knees and held open the box in front of you. You widened your eyes at sight before you and gasped when you realised what was happening.

“Y/N, I never knew I could love someone as much as I love you. You’re the ride and die for me, the one who is everything to me, the one who’s laugh and smiles makes my day, the one who’s tears break my heart, the one who will always own my heart. And I can’t believe that you love an idiot like me. I want you to be the first and only love for me. I want you to be the one who lights up my day with just a smile, who makes my nights beautiful with just a touch.”

Forever and ever and Ah

“I want to be the one for you who you’ll spend forever with just like you have always dreamed of. I don’t want to spend another minute without you being by my side.”

You’re my my my my

“So Y/N L/N, will you marry me?” he finished, tears falling from his eyes. You didn’t know when you started crying but this moment was the best moment of your entire life. You practically jumped on Satoru as you hugged him.

Oh you’re my my my my

“Yes, yes a million times yes!” you said in between your tears as Satoru hugged you back. When you pulled away, he slowly slipped the ring onto your ring finger.

You immediately leaned in and kissed him, pouring all your unsaid love into this kiss. He kissed you back with the same passion as you. You felt like you fell for him all over again. The love story that started long back when you were in university, when you never thought he even knew your existence, when you never thought he’ll notice you, when you never thought he would even speak yet alone dance with you. And you definitely didn’t think that out of everyone, Gojo Satoru was ‘The One’ for you. But even after everything, you wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Happy new year, Gojo.”

“Happy new year to you too, soon-to-be Mrs Gojo.”

Darling you’re my my my my

Loverrr <3

________________________________________

ever blushed while reading your own writing? I just did lmao. Hope y’all liked this!

[vagabond-umlaut]

synchronise 1.0

On one end of the line, you've sunny days, mild breezes and not one thing to worry over. On the other end, there are only moonless nights, foul gales and one too many decisions– made and unmade– to repent for. And in the middle of this line segment, is you—

The only means by which the scales can be re-balanced. The equilibrium lost can be re-discovered. The wheels of life thrown off-kilter can be re-synchronised.

[Long story short: Time can be a funny little bitch— Good thing, you know how to be funnier than time itself!]

gojo satoru x fem!reader; canon divergence; time travel fix-it; tw: death, grief, gloomy themes [yk wtv u feel after watching gege butcher yet another chapter...]; might have inaccuracies regarding japanese funeral ceremonies [i'm so sorry in advance!]; this is the only chapter to be written from 3rd person pov

synchronise masterlist // THE masterlist

chapter one: 26/12/2018

Everyone is dead.

She wishes there was a better way to tell this, but there isn't any. So, yeah. Everyone– nearly everyone close to her is dead— and the very few who aren't... She thinks– no, she believes– they would be much better off being dead.

Survivor's guilt is no silly joke, ya know?

The door behind her opens then closes, way too soft but she hears it anyway. Much like how she feels everything nowadays. No matter how faint they've been. No matter how vague. A pair of something pointed– perhaps, heels– hit the tiled floor, before halting right behind her.

She screws her eyes shut.

"Go away, Shoko. Leave me alone."

"Oh, I'm not Ieiri-san," A cheery voice replies. Barely resisting the urge to retch at the sunny tenor, she repeats, "Go away then, not-Ieiri-san. Leave me the fuck alone."

"Wow, rude," Is the only response she gets before a weight drops into the other end of the sofa. She resolutely keeps her eyes closed, harshly digging her knuckles into them— only to open her eyes when something warm squeezes her arm.

The touch is frighteningly familiar to someone she knew, someone she knew far too well... She flinches away; a shaky exhale crawling up her wind pipe, rattling when her gaze falls on the person across—

It's a woman.

Or, she thinks she is; yet she feels she isn't. More like, they cannot be. Or maybe they can, and this is merely the form they've chosen to visit her in... Wrapping the coat tighter round herself, she sinks into the familiar texture of the sofa.

And snarls, "Why are you here?"

"Rude and direct, I like it," The lady smirks, one leg crossed over the other. She doesn't know why but something pungent, something horrid claws at the back of her eyes. "But shouldn't you ask me who I am? That's how the ice is broken, isn't it?"

Damn it.

Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn this woman to the hell and back!

She lets her nails– the frustration; perhaps, the grief too– dig deep crescents into her palm, letting their sharp edges break skin and draw blood. Blood she's all too ready to spill if she has to keep watching this smirk, or worse, if she has to bear just one more syllable—

<"Ah, my sweetness– I really missed seeing you so feral."

Anger pools in her belly, still not quelled by the fight resulting in the crumpled bodies before— yet it lulls in less than a heartbeat when two familiar arms wrap round her midsection, pulling her into the firmness of a familiar chest.

She peers up, tsking yet not really [she never really can], at the man behind. "I'm not a beast which's turned feral, idiot— Think before you speak."

He returns a knowing smile, before cold fingers claim her chin lightly, tilting her face backwards. Her eyes flutter shut, the moment she feels his cool breath teasing her lips. Caressing her lips. Always the soothing winter to her sweltering summer.

"How can I think when my mind's always on you, sweet—">

Pins and needles prick and stab her skin, wrenching her away from the memory? daydream? illusion?— She isn't too sure anymore. She doesn't care anymore. The lady keeps regarding her keenly. A stare that worsens the heat behind her eyes, that hastens the surge of bile and sobs rushing up her throat.

She asks– louder, shakier– "Why are you here? What do you want from me?"

"Nothing," The woman hums, their tone laced with humor. But it doesn't stay long, soon twisting into something knowing, something akin pity, when they say, "Loneliness is a heavy burden to shoulder, isn't it?"

It is. It very much is.

But what does this stranger know about it?  

They are not the one who lost everyone in her life. They are not the one who had to watch everyone losing their life. Their hands are not the ones bleeding from dried pools of blood. Their hands are not the ones freezing from frigid claws of death. They are not the one who has to walk past corridors once teeming with life, now filled with the silence of survivors. They are not the one whose table is covered with urns of ashes, waiting to interred in the family graves—

"I wonder if you'll be this mad if you know what I've to offer you."

"Speak then, instead of wondering," Rudely interrupted, she snaps back, inhaling then exhaling in an effort to stabilise herself, "I'm giving you two minutes— waste them, I'll exorcise you."

The woman's eyes widen for a beat, before crinkling in a hearty chuckle. "Of course, you'll know to exorcise me, not kill me. Of course! Of course!" Then sighs and shakes their head on the glare sent, fingers soon moving into a flurry of signs and symbols.

"Fine, fine," They mutter, "I'm calling the thing over; you're so freakin' impatient..."

The lady's fingers suddenly still.

The air too stills— until it is bathed in a blinding beam of light, and there it is on the table.

Right next to the vase of wilted flowers. Right next to the envelopes of condolence money. Right next to the group photograph she had taken with everyone, before everything went south, before everything went to hell—

There it is on the table: An antique pocket watch, golden and green, sitting innocuously on the wooden surface. As if it didn't just jump out of moronic myths, into her reality. As if it doesn't just hold the solution to all her problems, the only tool that can right her reality.

She stares at it for few beats longer, then frowns. "Is this the real deal?"

"You'll never know if you never try."

"Any side-effects I must know of, before I use it?"

"You'll never know–"

"– if I never try: Yes, thanks, I know," She cuts them off, stare tapering down into a narrow glare as she tears her focus away, "But I want to know if there'll be any side-effects or not. I cannot afford to lose anymore than I've already lost."

"Do you even have anything left to lose?" The woman retorts, soft and gentle yet it hurts no less than a poison-tipped arrow. They take a beat before leaning forwards to pluck the watch off the table and drop it into her lap.

"Ten chances," They state, tone final, brooking no room for disagreements or interruptions, "Ten chances is all I could manage to get for you— Use them well, girl. Don't let my efforts go down the drain— And," They add, the same instant she opens her mouth, "Please don't ask why I'm helping you. That's my only other request, please."

Maybe, it is the pleading glint in the lady's eyes. Maybe, it is the hopeful bubble in her chest.

Whatever it is, she doesn't find it too difficult to return a curt nod. And ask, totally ignoring the grateful smile shot her way, "How does this work, though? Any key or any incantation–"

"Hey, no. Nothing of the sort," They brush her question away with a giggle, "Think of the time and place you wish to travel to— and just wind the watch. It'll send you to your destination, bringing you back to the present only after one hour is over." Then adds after a short silence, "You can re-use it after three whole days have passed, though— Also, don't tell anyone about this! This must stay a secret only between us both... Okay?"

"Yeah, okay." This time, the assent is much easier to grant. There's no one left anyway, she is comfortable enough to share such stuff with...

"And how long will it be before the changes made in my past reflect on my present?"

"Not before you've reverted all those decisions which led to today," The woman answers, smile dimming to a subtle twitch of lips, "It might take you only one trip. Might take you more than that. But remember, all you've got is ten trips— try and make every second count."

Her gaze falls on the black-and-white envelopes. On the wide beams gleaming in the frame. And finally, onto the antidote to all the venom that tainted and ruined her life, lying in her lap.

She picks the watch up. And noting the quiet movements of its hands, allows a slow, reluctant, small smile form on her face.

"Don't worry, not-Ieiri-san. Make them count, I will."

next chapter

i wish i cld justify text on tumblr like i can do in my word doc or ao3... the formatting here looks hideous– 😭😭 [if anyone knows how to justify text here, can u pls teach me? 🥺🙏🙏]

header from pinterest; dividers by @benkeibear; jjk isn't mine

[are-you-gojo-satoru]

How these characters from JJK would react to you breaking up with them:

Gojo

Gege has stated that Gojo can't ever see anyone romantically or settle down with anyone

In conclusion he would not give a fuck

Utahime

She would probably be upset but she would just nod her head and bow to you in respect before leaving

There is no point in causing a scene in her eyes

She is a teacher, she has her own responsibilities to take care of, and she's constantly busy fighting curses anyway

You're an emotional liability

Shoko

Smoke cigarette

Mahito

Kills your family and friends

Sends you snapchat selfies with filters every day after the breakup.

Sends you a hand in the mail

Shows up at your door every few days, begging for you to take him back

Kenjaku

Kill you

Preserves your body for future purposes

Octopus Guy

He's confused

What does breaking up mean?

Like break you?

He'd lift you up and snap you in half I guess

Yuki

Shrugs and finds someone new.

Meimei

Shakes you down for your credit card details before you leave.

Yoshinobu Gakuganji

"Who are you"

Dementia

Plays guitar to win you back (you drool and run back to him)

Sukuna

You never dated him

He'd eat you if you were a woman

Geto

Falls into a deep depression and kills a bunch of innocent person.

Choso

He looks at you like you’re crazy.

What are you talking about?

Nanami

Goes to work

Toni’s Worm

Feels a deep sorrow in his heart.

You guys weren’t even dating— this is more like a mother cutting off her son

He lives homeless and abandoned on the streets. He shivers, missing his deceased father. He wouldn’t do this to him.

Throws up on the ground because he is feeling so much. He can’t take this alone, he needs to find someone new to tuck him into bed each night. He can’t live like this.

Proceeds to call a random highschool boy "mommy"

Toji

Squeezes his boobs together

You're not his wife

Walks away unbothered

Yaga

cries into his hands. he feels empty and hopeless without you.

it takes him a while to move on; but eventually he does.

He thinks about you from time to time but he would never think to talk to you again— not in the same way it was.

Yuji's dad

he only gives back shots to Kenjaku sorry

Ijichi

He'd probably shake in fear and then start crying

He'd ask you why and then burst out crying again

He'd go home and get drunk on his sofa and watch family guy

Master Tengen

Stare at you

Naoya

Get extremely angry and start beating you up

Jogo

acts unphased.

Goes home and listens to eminem, letting a few tears slip out of his eyes.

He’ll miss you

Uraume

kills you and then fortnite dances on your dead body because Sukuna ordered them to

Miguel

Sigh and nods his head

"I wish you well on your journey"

Good break up

Juzo Kumiya

Make you into a shoe rack for his home

Hanami

You're a human, ew.

[thebiscuiteternal]

This timeline with Baby!NMJ and older NHS is adorable. Does NHS get any time to paint or participate in his hobbies? It would be really cute if he did and Bby!NMJ tried to help.

What little time he gets to himself, he usually spends caring for the sect's falcons. Since falconry was a hobby his father also enjoyed, and they're useful for catching small game, it's generally seen as "acceptable." He would like to have a wider variety of birds, but decided as a child that he didn't want the headache of having to justify himself constantly. The falcons are good enough, and they all love him and shamelessly beg for petting and cuddles.

On very, very rare occasions (when he has a reasonable expectation of being left alone all day), he'll paint. He's not a master, but it's good enough that it would be readily apparent to a discerning eye that he could be a master with practice. He found even less time to do it when Mingjue was very bitty, but around 2ish years of age, he started having extra supplies on hand so Mingjue could make finger scribble "paintings" of his own. It's a bonding exercise for them.

(Mingjue will never be a painter-painter, but even as a teenager, he sometimes drags Huaisang off and pull out the supplies when he can tell his brother is on the verge of a stress breakdown.)

---------------

"Gege." Nie Mingjue said as he held up his paper between chubby little ink-stained hands. "Look."

Nie Huaisang looked up from his own work in progress and had to bite back a smile at the Serious Business scowl on his three-year-old brother's face. Affecting an air of gravitas to play along, he laid his brush aside and took the paper, leaning back in his chair.

"Well, now, let's see what you've got here, didi," he said as Nie Mingjue clambered over the edge of the table and into his lap. "It looks like... a sheep?"

"No!" Nie Mingjue protested with a huge grin.

"No? But it's so fluffy!"

"Issnot a sheep!"

"Alright, alright, let me think," Nie Huaisang said, tilting his head to 'examine' the scribble of ink at a new angle. He could tell already that some of Mingjue's brush swipes had clearly meant to be striping, which told him he was looking at, by his estimate, his brother's thirty-seventh tiger, but immediately getting the answer wasn't part of the game.

"Hmmmm... I see very large paws... is it a bear?"

"No! Issnot a bear!" Mingjue said, slapping his hands down on the desk.

He barely missed the painting Huaisang had been working on, leaving inky little handprints on the wood, but that was fine. It would hardly be the first time Huaisang had worked around his baby brother's enthusiastic contributions.

"Not a bear? Oh my, you've made this very hard!" Nie Huaisang said, poking Mingjue in the side and making him laugh. "I don't know if I can guess it!"

"You have to! You have to guess!"

"Well, I suppose if I have to..." He squinted at the scribble, chewing at his lower lip in intense pretend contemplation, which made Mingjue laugh more. "It's not a bunny..."

"No!"

"And it's not a deer..."

"No!" Mingjue crowed, grin so big it might split his face.

"Is it... Oh! Is it a tiger?"

"Yes! Issa tiger!" Mingjue cheered, throwing his hands up.

"It's a very clever tiger, pretending to be other creatures like that. Excellent work, didi," Nie Huaisang said, dropping a kiss on his baby brother's head. "Why don't we hang it up to dry, and then it can go live with your other tigers?"

"Okay," Mingjue said, letting Huaisang lower him to the floor so he could get up.

Just as Huaisang had finished pinning the paper to his drying rack, however, the door opened and Nie Zhen, one of the guard captains, entered. "Your presence is required in the main study," he said without so much as an honorific or a salute.

Nie Huaisang sighed inwardly, but kept his face neutral and gave Mingjue a gentle warning tap on the shoulder when it looked like his little brother was starting to puff up in anger. "I'm on my way."

Again, not so much as a nod as the captain left, and Mingjue stuck his tongue out at the door as it closed. "Ass."

"Didi. Where did you even hear that word?" Huaisang admonished, still with no actual heat, as he wrapped his brush and ink to keep them from drying out while they were gone.

Mingjue grinned up at him unrepentantly. "At the grounds," he said, obviously meaning the training areas.

Huaisang did sigh at that. "Of course you did. But don't go using that word where other people can hear it," he said offering a hand.

Mingjue took hold, still grinning, and they left the room to go find out what the vitally important thing he wasn't actually needed for was.

[randomingoftherandomness]

Fic: Deeper than The Pacific Ocean

A/N: I have been on a binge of Arctic Monkey's 'I wanna be yours' & this seemed like a right fit? For some reason? Idek anymore haha... I'm contentedly carving out my corner to explore all the AUs :)

Tags: Pacific Rim AU, Gong Shangjue x Gong Yuanzhi, Gong Shangjue & Jin Fan

--

Jin Fan strikes and Yuanzhi dodges fast enough to roll back onto his heels. The bo staff sings through the air by sheer force and lands on the mat with a loud thud, missing Yuanzhi's face by a hair's width.

The gathered spectators are transfixed by the duo moving in a rhythm that only the two of them know, but Shangjue has seen enough.

And apparently, so has Jin Fan.

"I want him as my co-pilot." The dreaded words are said loud and clear. Shangjue deliberately avoids Yuanzhi's eyes, choosing instead to look right at Jin Fan when he replies.

"No."

The room erupts with murmurs. Some in disbelief, some with discontent. Yuanzhi remains silent through it all.

"Why not? You can't be that blinded by your power trip to see that we're perfect for each other!" Jin Fan protests, slamming the butt of the staff to the ground. "Fuck your algorithms and tests, I'll only Drift with Gong Yuanzhi!"

"Jin Fan..."

"No means no, Mr Jin. Report to Comms at 0800 hours. Your assigned partner will be waiting then." Shangjue turns to leave, not needing to look back to know that Yuanzhi has picked up his boots and is moving quickly to follow.

"He can't be serious, right? Yuanzhi, hey--" He hears outside his door. Yuanzhi's muffled reply is a hum blocked by the metal and Shangjue busies himself with sorting out a stack of sorted files when the door creaks open.

"It's about respect." Yuanzhi replies and closed the door. Shangjue looks over to see him walking over to their bed, dropping the shoes on the floor and sitting down heavy enough that the mattress springs give a dying groan.

Yuanzhi covers his face with both his hands and leans forward, elbows braced on knees.

Pausing in his rifling, he sighs heavily. Shangjue reached into a drawer and pulls out a jar of ointment. Walking over to Yuanzhi, he sits down next to him.

"I won't apologise." He starts as an opening salvo.

"I know you won't," Yuanzhi says, exhaustion clinging to his every syllable as if it costs him a heavy toll to even say these words.

Shangjue gently cups Yuanzhi by the corner of his jaw, tilting his face to his. The intimacy of this gesture is a familiar one and Shangjue can tell the exact moment when Yuanzhi shudders and gives in to his touch.

He curves his body against Yuanzhi's, holding him close, willing him to understand everything he cannot quite say.

"But gege, you know you can't protect me forever, right?"

"I can try," Shangjue whispers. "You're my didi. I can and will try."

Yuanzhi shakes his head. Pulling away, he holds Shangjue at bay by a hand to his chest. "You can lie to everyone but please do me the courtesy of at least honouring my love for you with the truth," Yuanzhi states. "You don't want me Drifting with anyone because you're afraid what will come out about you and me. After all, that's all that I'm worth to you, right? A dirty little secret?"

"That's not--"

"I'll be sleeping in my own room tonight." Yuanzhi cuts him off. "I want to be alone."

Shangjue helplessly watches him leave. How does he even begin to explain that the Admiralty could hang his chances at career progression for all he cares, he just wants to protect his Yuanzhi didi.

"Yuanzhi... I--"

"I'll see you on the Bridge."

And just like that, he is left alone in his room. Shangjue takes a deep breath and exhales slowly. His good intentions have blown up in ways he never expected.

He really just wanted to protect his didi.

[hualianff]

XL would definitely have a squishmallow addiction.

His favorite is a giant fox that reminds him of San Lang 🥰

They take up so much space on the bed that HuaLian eventually get a new bed specifically for the squishmallows.

To let out pent up frustration, XL sometimes throws the squishmallows across the room or smacks them. HC walks into the room and stands there like 🧍🏻 as XL growls while attacking his squishmallows.

HC fully indulges XL in his squishmallow addiction and makes quite the picture of a tall, brooding man in the checkout lane holding a gigantic bananya squishmallow to present as one of his endless offerings to his Gege.

If HC has to leave for business for a few days, XL insists he take one of the squishmallows as a companion so he doesn’t get to lonely. HC usually chooses the ferret squishmallow.

If XL ever sees someone who feels down, he’ll offer one of his squishmallows for comfort. FX lowkey has many and MQ hastily accepts them but always returns them. QYZ loves them too

As many people do, XL sets up fictional storylines where the squishmallows have tea parties, go to war, fall in love, etc.

HC walking in on XL making the fox and ferret squishmallows kiss: 😳

XL: “now kiss” 😇

HC, in his head: “isn’t that us?” 😭

Somehow, XL convinces HC to change a few of his opponents in squishmallows instead of daruma dolls - just for funsies!

This leads to HC turning himself into a squishmallow because Gege has been neglecting him for inanimate stuffed animals.

(Read: If you can’t beat them, become one of them!)

Plus, wouldn’t it be so funny if HC turned himself into a squishmallow to surprise Gege for his bday ?

When XL sees the San-Lang-squishmallow waiting for him on their bed, he positively squeals while squeezing and poking the squishmallow and HC is completely defenseless to the attack 😭

XL: “SO CUTE I MUST SQUISH”

HC, a squishmallow: “aBORT ABORT”

Except-

HC can’t change back! He becomes stuck like that. 😭

XL, walking around the realms with San Lang’s squishmallow body, wondering where his husband is: “it’s my bday, I deserve kisses, where is he? 😡”

While looking for his boss, YY spots XL carrying around a Hua Chengzhu squishmallow: “I don’t even want to know”

XL asking everyone if they’ve seen or heard from HC. Everyone answers no, that they haven’t seen him since so and so.

XL: “Oh…anyways, look what he gifted me!” 🥰

XL proudly showing off the San Lang squishmallow, encouraging them to squeeze and pinch the extra soft plushie.

HC, on the inside, assaulted by prodding fingers: “so this is what hell is” 🫠

The day passes by and XL is just very confused and misses his husband.

XL cooking alone in Puqi Shrine, talking to San Lang squishmallow: “where did he go? you would know, right?”

XL hugs the squishmallow snug to his body, smelling the familiar scent of HC lingering. He sighs, eyes closing in comfort.

HC, a squishmallow: “GEGE IM RIGHT HERE IN YOUR ARMS BUT IDK HOW TO CHANGE BACK BUT I SWEAR I DIDNT LEAVE YOU”

XL doesn’t even have to think twice before he’s leaning down and pressing his lips to San Lang squishmallow forehead.

POOF!

HC, now a human, still in XL’s arms, eye wide in surprise. XL, not even total shock will cause him to drop his San Lang.

XL, on the inside: “he looks at me…and I look at him-“ 👁👁 ↔️ ◼️👁

HC, sweating and really embarrassed: “hehe, surprise ?”

XL puts HC down and happily hugs him, ready to finally celebrate his bday with his husband !

After that, XL reels his addiction in a little bit so HC doesn’t get too many ideas in the future… 😅😂

OOMF’S ART

[cuckoo-among-beasts]

@adversitybloomed sent: Mulan wrapped her arms around Huaisang and held him in an embrace so that he did not need to feel so alone, “I will not leave you, Gēgē.”

It had been some time since Huaisang last felt like this, since he felt this alone. Since he felt this crushing, numbing, hollow threatening to swallow him. Everyone have family or partner, except him. Jiang Wanyin has Jin Ling, Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian was once again reunited, Wangji also has his brother and uncle. And Mulan and Sizhui have each other. He is happy for them, he truly is, but seeing them bonding like that makes his heart ache. Makes the void left by his brother's death so many years ago feel like it was only yesterday.

Sitting on the floor in front of Mingjue's spirit tablet, Huaisang sniffles, cheeks already wet by tears. He has a bottle of wine by his side, but he has not yet drunk from it. "Da-ge..." he starts, his voice pitiful and broken. "I still miss you... so much... I-I... I'm so lonely. Everyone has someone, except me. It's my fault, I know that, but..." Huaisang sniffles again. "It's for the best, I just hurt people anyway..." he mumbles. "I never expected to live this long... I always thought I'd die with San-... with Guangyao..." But he hadn't.

For a moment, he sit there, curled in on himself, crying silently, until he hears footsteps. Huaisang recognises them and tries to compose himself, but fails before he feels arms wrap around him. "You should," he replies before he can stop himself. Shaking his head a slightly, he forces a smile on his lips. "I'm fine, Xiǎo táo. Go back to Sizhui, I will return in a moment." This should be a happy time for her, not sullied by Huaisang's everlasting sadness. Mulan does not deserve his brokenness. Mulan, like Sizhui, deserves nothing but the best and Huaisang knows he is not it. They should find another gege.

[hulijingemperor2]

What are the emperor bros up to✨️✨️

Team Dimple: *still hanging out with A-Yao. They were all awestruck after getting kissed by him*

Su she: *grooming A-Yao's hulijing tail*

Mo xuanyu: Yao gege, did you use a new floof oil?

Yao: yea! I'm so glad you noticed. It was introduced by my floof groomers.

Xue yang: I see that you surpass hotness now.

Su she: already did.

Xue yang: *kisses* foxy. *lifts chin* why don't you give me more candy.

Yao: yangyang. *smirks* do I look like a candy shop.

Su she: good one.

Mo xuanyu: hehe.

Xue yang: yes, you do look like one. But if you're out of candy, then I can just a get a kiss.

Yao: *shows him a piece of candy*

Xue yang: *grinning*

Yao: come get it. *feeds him*

Xue yang: mmmm. How generous

Yao: *kisses him on his cheek*

Xue yang: ah!

Su she: *blushing like crazy*

Mo xuanyu: WHERE'S MY OTHER KISS, YAO GEGE!

Yao: *kisses mxy* relax. Don't be jealous of xue yang.

Mo xuanyu: Yao gege, you're mine!

Xue yang: no he isn't!

Su she: Huangdi, may I have a kiss? Well....if...if you don't won't to....then that's fine.....I won't force you.

Yao: lean in.

Su she: *turning red* yes Huangdi.

Yao: *kisses*

Su she: *blushing* I'm going to write this in my diary.

Yao: *laughs*

Mo xuanyu: lol your what?

Xue yang: you didn't read his diary. Lol, he's a total simp.

Su she: it's a diary, xue yang. I write down important events, and how my day went.

Xue yang: and how hot Jiggy is!

Huangdi did this, Huangdi said that, Huangdi looked at me, Huangdi smiled at me, Huangdi looked nice today. Huangdi's dimples.

Su she: leave my diary alone! I'll hide it from you!

Xue yang: and I'll find it!

Mo xuanyu: tell me more!

Su she: no. That's invasion of my privacy.

Yao: I want to hear some more. It's intriguing.

Su she: you like them, Huangdi?? Ok tell him, yangyang.

Xue yang: there was this fanfic too. About him ruling the world with you. And the Lans are your servants.

Yao: ahahahhaha. What about Huan?

Su she: *blush* he was a head maid, Huangdi.

Lan lips is in charge of organizing your study, then sometimes he plays the guqin in your imperial court.

In the fanfic, you always appreciate it but it was never good enough to me, cuz you deserve the best. So to punish him, I would force him to eat five bowls of rice.

Yao: omg! Minshan you're so savage.

Xue yang: why five bowls of rice?

Su she: Lans are only allowed to eat three bowls of rice.

Yao: oh no, take it easy on him, *laughs*

Su she: it's already written, Huangdi.

Mo xuanyu: where's team D?

Xue yang: fortunately we remained Jiggy's bfs, then we became richer than everyone else.

There's also a page about Jiggy's silky hair and kisses!

Su she: hey hey hey! now are you done!

Anyways I'm planning on writing a  fanfic, if you two simps are interested.

Mo xuanyu: take all my money.

Yao: interesting!

Su she: it's called Miss the Dragon.

Lan lips is a dragon, while Huangdi is the immortal of fate as well as a fox spirit. But Dragon Huan had locked Huangdi away from the world. And when I mean world, I mean team D.

At the end we will save the lonely ~sorry Huangdi~~ immortal of fate from the Lan Dragon.

Yao: *shocked* Shanshan.

Lol, why is it called Miss the Dragon?

Su she: because no one will miss him.

Mo xuanyu: you're a writing genius.

All I do is draw Yao gege in hot poses. And NSFW when I'm horny.

Xue yang: same!

Su she: is team D ever not horny.

Xue yang: shhhhh. Don't let Jiggy know.

Yao: um...I'm right here. Team dimple.

Mo xuanyu: see how much we love you, Yao gege. *hugs* Yao gege!

Su she: *kisses A-Yao's dimple* I'm glad that he's team dimple's. And not Xichen's!

Mo xuanyu: you have a point!

Xue yang: we told Dianxia to dispose of him.

Su she: project Dispose the Lan!

Xue yang: it's good for the environment!

Yao: what??? What did you three do to him!

Trio: *kneels* Jiggy, don't hurt us. But if you do, it will be very hot.

Su she: don't listen to xue yang. We told little Dianxia to keep him occupied.

Mo xuanyu: he's safe Yao gege.

Xue yang: he's safe in his cage. Dianxia is maybe feeding him leaves or something.

Su she: do you mean veggies?

Xue yang: same thing.

I see Zixuan eating a lot of it too.

And Jiggy as well!

Mo xuanyu: they're very health conscious.

Xue yang: now why is Song'er putting Lan lips on a diet?!!

Su she: cuz he's out of shape.

Yao: you know he has an eight pack right?

Mo xuanyu: eight packs of nuts.

Yao: how do you get so savage day by day, team dimple?

Su she: whenever I look at my Lan hate board in my room. I get so fueled!

By the way, my hate board is called Twin Jades Of Can You Ever.

Then I channel some positivity by worshi-- I mean admiring my A-Yao shrine.

Xue yang: jiggy, I was born savage.

Mo xuanyu: I practiced.

And I'm also a Jin. We're born to be savage.

Yao: yes yes we are.

Zish is very savage at times too.

Once someone gave him stale tea, and he says I'm afraid that I can't drink anymore, before I get drunk. Then the guy was like, "from tea? It isn't wine."

He replied, "what's the difference in preparation?"

Well, Huangdi, tea can be quickly brewed. And wine is aged.

Then Zish said, exactly. The tea was so old, I mistook for wine.

Don't give me stale tea again.

Xue yang: yikes.

Mo xuanyu: slayyyy Xuan gege!!!!

Su she: it would be so funny if Huaisang worked for him. 

Yao: I know right.

Xue yang: and he looks so innocent. Lol.

Mo xuanyu: it's in the genes

Yao: yea.

Xue yang: no wonder Song'er is so savage.

~~~

Now speaking of Zixuan......

In the Peacock Spirit empire 📍.

Xuan Mansion 📍.

Jintang: Huangdi, did guangshan pay you?

Zixuan: hmm no. Why?

Jintang: the hulijing emperor hasn't gotten paid.

Zixuan: how dare guangshan!

Jintang: please calm down, Huangdi. Should I request more rose petal tea?

Zixuan: *sigh* no. That will be enough.

Jintang: the hulijing emperor is waiting. But if he doesn't pay, he'll sue him.

Zixuan: so smart of my Yaoyao.

How are my empire affairs?

How was I in court today?

Jintang: splendid and beautiful as always, Huangdi.

Zixuan: thank you. You know sometimes I try to avoid interaction. Do I look like a chatty and political person?

No right?

Jintang: Huangdi, in your empire, the matchmakers are on vacation, because they were fed up of people's demands.

Zixuan: oh really?

Jintang: there was this woman who wanted to break up with her fiance just  because he has a poor sense in fashion.

Zixuan: *laughing* oh my.

Jintang: there's many more, Huangdi.

Zixuan: should I present a stipend to the matchmakers?

Jintang: your will, Huangdi.

Zixuan: ok then.

Zixun: *grumbling in the corner* that stupid Wei wuxian! He feels he's better than me because his sister is the empress.

Zixuan: how dare you poison me with your negative vibes. Jintang, sanitize him.

Jintang: yes Huangdi.

Zixun: no no no no. Stop! Don't throw alcohol on me again! Huangdi!

Zixuan: stop.

Jintang: yes Huangdi.

Zixuan: why aren't you trimming my rose bushes! Or picking up rotten fruits in my orchid.

Zixun: *sigh* I just did!

But why rotten fruit?

Zixuan: because I have someone else collecting ripe ones.

Now tell me why you're grumbling.

Zixun: Wei wuxian is being an idiot again.

Zixuan: anything new. Anyways I try not to pick a fight with him, because of A-li.

Zixun: he thinks he's entitled because Yanli is the empress of peacock spirits.

Zixuan: *corrects* Yanli Huanghou. Or Li Huanghou. Ah, entitled you say. That has nothing to do with me. *opens fan*

Zixun: why?!!

Zixuan: because you're an entitled jerk as well.

Now you're an entitled gardener.

Sorry, I don't wish to join your jerk party.

Zixun: but can you just beat him up for me!!

Zixuan: *glares* I'm an emperor. Not a kick boxer!!

Zixun: *sigh* understood Huangdi. I'll get back to my garden work.

Zixuan: lovely!

Afterwards...........

Yanli: *taking off her hairpins*

Zixuan:  *hugs from behind* empress.

Yanli: *blushing* emperor. You're back.

Zixuan: mhm.

Yanli: should I get some soup for you? I just made a batch.

Zixuan: *lifts her hand* you did? Didn't you get burn or anything.

Yanli: no. I have been cooking all my life. I don't get burns.

Zixuan: ok good.

Zixuan: A-li. Jinling is with his uncle.

Yanli: I know.

Zixuan: that means we're alone. And look, our anniversary is coming up.

Yanli: *blush* so.

Zixuan: I can get to kiss you in private. With no interruptions.

Yanli: naughty emperor.

Zixuan: *reclines on their bed*   A-Li.

*opens his beautiful peacock feathers*

Yanyan.

Lili!!

*ruffles* Li Huanghou.

Yanli:...... *giggles*

Zixuan: *ruffles peacock feathers* too extravagant?

Yanli: Zixuan, what has gotten into you.

*giggling*

Zixuan: *puppy eyes*

Yanli: *walks over and hugs him* Xuanxuan, where did you learn that puppy eye thing from.

Zixuan: Yaoyao.

Yanli: heehee, well it worked. *kisses*

Zixuan: *caresses face* A-li.

How about we give Jinling a brother.

Yanli: *chokes* ZIXUAN!!

Zixuan: *startled* I was only teasing you, beloved.

Yanli: behave yourself. *blushing*

But, I would like to have more children, because I'm a hands down mom.

Zixuan: ahh, how about we have 5 more.

Yanli: hmmm. Certainly. But You'll be pregnant with them.

Zixuan: me??

Yanli: exactly.

Now, do you have anything else to say, emperor peacock?

Zixuan: that's it.

Yanli: *kisses him on his nose* good.

Both: *snuggling together*

Zixuan: *kissing her gently*  A-li. You're my everything. And I love you.

Yanli: awww, I love you too.

*fumbling lovingly, while they ramp in bed*

[zinklair]

SQX: It is quite rare for you to be free.

XL: What do you mean? I have a lot of spare time.

SQX: I mean, it is rare for you to be alone. Most of the time Crimson Rain Sought Flower follows you around.

XL: Oh that, i gave him some homeworks--

HC: Dear God, hear my prayers.. it has been an hour and i already miss my Gege. I want him to come home and cuddle with him.. Then play with his pink cherries.. lick them, bite them, and suc--

XL: Ah! *flustered*

SQX: Why is your face suddenly turning red??

XL: I-i still have some heavenly matters left to attend to.. let's hang out again next time.. *leaves quickly*

[dreamrecorder]

Two - Family in the Inn

Witnessing your first five years of life, Xiao concludes that you are a keenly perceptive child.

One

Notes: Lookie~ a part two!! If you read Playing with the Wind, then you know who Brother Wind is ;) i will add the cut thingy tomorrow ksks

At the dead of the night, whispers float here and there with words that no mortal can hear and understand. They were faint, yet there was a thrill of excitement in these words. And just like the excitement the words carry, the winds pick up in a gentle and playful breeze.

To any mortal, all they would hear will be the rush of air that rustles the leaves and branches. However, there is a certain lad who hears them all. He hears the glee in these whispers tossed back and forth among the winds. He hears the wind spirits and he listens with a strum of his lyre.

Brother Wind! A child! A child!

We see a child, Brother Wind! We see a child!

A child under our brother, Demon Wind's Golden Wing!

We hear a sibling! A sibling!

Brother Wind! Do we have a new kin?

Ah, these spirits, always excited at the prospect of a new sibling. But the lad can't blame his kin for the wind spirits are always playful and innocent by nature.

Witnessing your first five years of life, Xiao concludes that you are a keenly perceptive child. He does this conclusion during a quiet night at the balcony of their home, Wangshu Inn.

Every night was a simple routine- wherein Xiao would carry you in his arms and sing a lullaby to lull you asleep. After which he would tuck you into your waiting bed, then he would go out to protect Liyue again. But for tonight, that simple routine was broken down by cheerful whispers of the wind.

Usually, Xiao would ignore these, knowing that these spirits wanted to simply mess and play with him. And usually the result would be the said spirits pestering him even more until Xiao just gives up and vanishes without a trace.

When the breeze picked up and the first wave of whispers came, what Xiao didn't expect was you to bolt right away from his hold and chase these spirits around shouting, "Wind spirits! Wind Spirits! Gēgē, can you see them?!"

At your gleeful eyes, the gentle breeze picked up in a brief moment of rush as it whispers,

They see us! They hear us!

Do you want to play with us, Little Wind?

Brother Demon Wind, can we play with Little Wind?

Of course, seeing the joy in your eyes, Xiao can't help but allow play time with a soft smile. Yet, he does not fail to remind you of your bedtime, "An hour, alright? Then you have to go to bed."

At his words, you beamed at him. Your little legs ran and with tiny arms, you hugged his legs. Looking up you exclaimed, "Thank you, gēgē!"

Ah but before you can run back to the winds, Xiao gently tugged your arm and grabbed your attention.

"Name?"

"Yes, gēgē?"

For a brief moment, Xiao carefully thought through his words. Your spiritual awareness... was quite alarming for him. "How did you know these are wind spirits?"

You hummed a bit as your body swayed in thought. "I don't know! But they feel like I played with them a lot of times before! Like-! Um, like..."

Then you're back to humming as you look for words with your brother patiently waiting.

"Aha! Like how you would play with me with your anemo!! Can I play with them now, gēgē?"

Another smile and another yes, you were now free to play with the wind!!

Play with us! Play with us, Little Wind! Thank you brother Demon Wind!

From that, Xiao concludes that you are a perceptive child. No mortal can even sense the most simplest of spirits, yet you felt them off the bat just because how much time the two of you played with his anemo. No wonder you learned quickly of his being as an adeptus. Worrisome, maybe? For such spiritual awareness also includes unkind spirits. But, at least he knows he can trust the Thousand Winds to look after you.

~~~

You were back in Liyue Harbor again, this time with your father. Since this was your second time, you were not familiar with the harbor yet. Thus, you kept close to your father as he bought the books needed for your upcoming education.

Books never failed to claim your interest, as they are always filled with stories that makes your imagination bloom in wonder. As such, books also never fail have your interest over them wane. However, for once, your interest was stolen by a cheerful voice singing along the strums of a lyre. Looking around, you find the source of such music. You couldn't see the singer, but with curiosity, you started moving towards the lull.

Thanks to your brother's anti-social skills and your small frame, you somehow got to slip through the crowd with ease as you let out occasional excuse me's. At first, the density was intimidating, but your curiosity for the bard and his voice became your motivation.

However, despite your best efforts, you didn't get to see the performance as the crowd began applauding and then going onto separate ways. To say the least, you were saddened, but when you saw the face behind music- happiness and recognition shone in your eyes.

"Brother Wind!"

Nobody- no mortal calls him that and Venti froze but thawing in an instant as he came to realization. There's only one person- one mortal who would call him that. A mortal that his kin would share stories about in glee.

"Little Wind?"

The winds always whisper words here and there. Yet these words that float amongst the leaves fluttering in the wind are never heard nor understood by mortal ears.

All except you.

The wind always tell you stories, and one of them is Brother Wind. A bard who hails from the City of Freedom and sings day and night with his words carried by his very essence. An essence you were familiar with when playing with the spirits and with your brother.

The Little Wind and Brother Wind meets! What joy! What joy!

Let us look for brother Demon Wind to tell and enjoy!

~~~

Seeing his little sibling walk hand in hand with the stupid bard had irked Xiao. With quick and agile movements, Xiao picked you up and glared at the grinning Venti. He whispered angrily at the wind, to which only the Archon can hear. Your status as Archon be damned but I am not letting you near him/her if you still have your ridiculous drinking habits.

Oh come on, Xiao! You know I would never drink in front of a child, much more in front of your little sibling!

Xiao only glared some more but Venti only kept grinning and you are getting weirded out by their contest. Probably an adult thing, you thought.

Throughout Venti's stay in the inn, it had become an embarrassing ride for Xiao. The former would poke fun at him every now and then about how he's gone soft and Xiao is this *close* to kicking him out. But he can't becuase of how suddenly attached you became to the bard. And maybe- maybe there was this twinge in his heart.

It was something that happens occasionally. A thought of doubt resurfacing in his head whenever he's alone while battling the hidden evils of the land. With geniune honesty, Xiao feels truly blessed to have you- but there are times in the darkest pits of his head, that everything he has right now- he does not deserve.

Venti would make for a better bro-

"Hey, Name, among me, the spirits, and Xiao, who's the best playmate?" Venti asked you as you colored on your notebook.

And without even missing a second, you shouted that one word again that pulled Xiao away from the dark thoughts that were about to resurface.

"Gēgē!"

But you didn't stop.

"Gege is the best in everything! He lets me play with his anemo always! And then when we play, he always lets me choose the game first and then we take turns choosing! Not only play time! There's also story time! Gēgē has the best stories! He told me stories about the glaze lillies, the Geo Archon, and the Adepti!

And then we always eat Almond Tofu if it's story time! It's so yummy and sweet and soft! Even Achi Xiangling and mama, papa and Uncle Yanxiao love gēgē's Almond Tofu! You have to try it too Brother Wind!"

All that and you finished with a proud huff of your breath!!

And all throughout, Xiao could only look at you wide teary wide eyes with mouth agape. Seeing him, you pouted, "G-gēgē, d-did I say something wrong?"

At your question, he quickly snapped out of his stupor and hugged you tight. "You did nothing wrong." He quickly reassured as he kissed your forehead.

"Then why are you crying?"

Xiao then wiped his eyes and chuckled lightly, "This is what you call happy tears, Name."

"I didn't make you sad then?"

Again, Xiao hugged you close and he felt your tiny arms do the same, "You made me the happiest than you would ever know since the moment you were born. I- I love you so much, Name."

"I love you, too, gēgē!"

Venti and the Thousand Winds had etched this moment in their memory forever. After all, this was the first time they saw their brother Demon Wind experience and reciprocate pure, genuine love to another. And on the notebook you were coloring on, was a rough drawing of you and Xiao sharing a fresh plate of almond tofu <3.

A/N: and thats it for the second ksks!! I wonder what comes next??? To those who ship xiaoven- i'll say sorry in advance bcos in terms of background relationships- it's venti and zhongli, the old geezers ksks i just love those two together lmao

Taglist: @hanniejji @suckerforgenshinboys @arson-frog-art @anime-read-write-repeat @kryzi

if you wanna get tagged just send an ask^^

[veliseraptor]

closed fist, open hand

it’s still the 22nd where I am and happy birthday to my best boy xue yang, here is a fic from the if living can be this verse, songxue, for someone (forgetting who?? might’ve been @spockandawe​) featuring the ongoing journey of xue yang being very clueless about some things, sometimes.

it’s porn but it’s actually nice porn, so 👍

this will be on ao3 at some point in the relatively near future.

--

Song Lan was being very, very frustrating. Which, okay, not that surprising, but still annoying as fuck.

Xiao Xingchen and a-Qing were off doing something and going to be gone the whole fucking day, which meant Xue Yang was alone with Song Lan, and he was restless and itchy and it was a perfect opportunity to get Song Lan to rough him up. Really rough him up, in a fingers around his throat, bruises everywhere, feeling it tomorrow kind of way.

So he’d been doing his best all morning to get him nice and pissed off and all that he’d gotten was a long-suffering look and a sigh, or a dry is that necessary, or, once, eyes cast toward the ceiling like he was seeking help from the heavens.

It was starting to drive Xue Yang a little crazy.

Stewing, glaring at Song Lan where he was meditating in apparent peace, Xue Yang gave up. He tossed the pot he was washing as loudly as possible into the bucket of washwater and sauntered over, straddled him on his knees, put his hands on his shoulders, and said, dropping his voice a little and letting it slide, “fuck me up, gege.”

Song Lan took a quick, sharp breath and opened his eyes. Xue Yang grinned at him with all his teeth.

“Is that what you’ve been hinting at?” he asked after a pause. Xue Yang’s grin widened.

“Maybe,” he said. “Maybe I just like annoying the shit out of you, Zichen. Maybe a little of both. Going to do something about it?”

Song Lan’s eyes narrowed. Xue Yang cocked his head to the side.

“Hm,” Song Lan said, and then, “I could. But not here.”

Xue Yang straightened up. “Yeah?” he said eagerly. “That a promise?”

“Try me,” Song Lan said, his voice steady and even and the expression on his face entirely unreadable. Xue Yang’s heartbeat kicked up a notch and he leaned forward.

“I thought I already was,” he said, plastering a grin on again. Song Lan didn’t so much as blink.

“Not here,” he said again. “I’d be uncomfortable.”

A thrill went up Xue Yang’s spine. His eyes widened in delight and he planted his hands on Song Lan’s chest to push himself back, dismounting and standing up. Song Lan did the same, in stages, and then just stood there looking at him. The annoyance crept back in.

“Well?” he said. “Are you coming or–”

The motherfucker could move fast when he wanted to. And he was stupidly strong, and Xue Yang hadn’t been watching for it, and now he was over Song Lan’s shoulder like a sack of rice. He thrashed, or tried, and then Song Lan said, “if you kick me I’ll drop you and we’re done,” so he did, reluctantly, stop. There was nothing in biting range, either. At least it wasn’t that far.

“Where’re you gonna do it, huh,” he said. “Gonna shove my face into the wall and fuck me from behind, do you want me on my knees so you can fuck my face, are you gonna make it hurt, make me suffer–”

Song Lan’s stride hitched slightly, but only for a moment, and Xue Yang laughed.

“Oh,” he said. “You like that, huh? Too bad you don’t have a whip or you could mark up my back so bad it’d hurt to lie down for a week. Bet you could come up with something though if you wanted. Or there’s always–”

The air went out of his lungs with an oof when Song Lan half-dropped, half-tossed him onto the bed. Xue Yang looked up at him, pushing himself up on his elbows and grinning, his heart thudding hard at the base of his throat.

“You talk too much,” Song Lan said. Xue Yang laughed.

“You like it,” he said. “You’ve always liked it. Okay, maybe not as much as Xingchen but still.” He pushed himself further up to sitting. “Come on, Zichen,” he said. “You’re not done already, are you? I thought you were going to put me in my place.”

Song Lan’s eyes narrowed again, darkened slightly, and Xue Yang grinned again, then licked his lips with exaggerated relish.

Song Lan removed his belt. Xue Yang’s eyes snapped to it, his body heating up with eager anticipation. “Give me your hands,” Song Lan said, and Xue Yang paused but only for a moment before he held them out, wiggling his fingers.

“This feels familiar,” Xue Yang said brightly when Song Lan started binding his wrists together. Song Lan’s movements stuttered again, slightly, and he gave Xue Yang a hard look that made him falter, just a little.

“I’m just making sure you keep your hands to yourself,” Song Lan said after a moment. “And I don’t trust your self restraint.”

“That hurts, gege,” Xue Yang said. It felt a little strange, having his hands restrained like this. Not something he usually liked. Hadn’t gone well last time he’d tried it. But the little frisson up his spine wasn’t completely bad and he was here to get fucked up anyway so it didn’t matter that much. The belt didn’t even chafe like ropes would, and it wasn’t so tight he couldn’t wriggle out if he really tried.

“I’m sure it does,” Song Lan said, then hooked his fingers into the bindings and pushed Xue Yang down to his back, hard enough to push the air out of his lungs in a quiet oof. He blinked up at Song Lan as he climbed onto the bed over him, then laughed, stretching his torso, pushing up against Song Lan’s weight holding him down so he could feel the resistance of him holding him down. It felt good, the little mingled thrill of unease and hunger. Song Lan gave him a slow, considering look like he was trying to decide where to start taking him apart.

“What’re you waiting for?” Xue Yang asked. “I’m gonna start getting bored here. Lost your nerve, Song-daozhang?”

“No,” Song Lan said. Then, “remember, hands to yourself or I’ll just leave you here like this.”

Xue Yang let out an exaggerated gasp. “Song-daozhang! You wouldn’t,” he said.

“You’d deserve it,” Song Lan said ruthlessly, but he let go and Xue Yang kept his hands where they were. He was rewarded with one of Song Lan’s hands around his neck, palm pressed lightly against the ridge of his throat. His eyes half closed with a pleased sound but instead of pushing down Song Lan just drew his thumb lightly down the side of Xue Yang’s neck. And then again, and again, and when he tried to push up to chase more pressure Song Lan pulled away altogether. Xue Yang frowned at him.

“Are you going easy on me?” he said incredulously. “Come on, Song-daozhang, you know I can take it.”

“I know,” Song Lan said, and pulled his hand away. Xue Yang started to jerk up only for Song Lan to plant a hand in the center of his chest and push him firmly back down.

“Oh,” he said. “Okay, so it’s just that you can’t do it, I get it. Poor Zichen’s lost his nerve–”

“Hm,” Song Lan said, and then gave Xue Yang a very slight smile that cut off Xue Yang’s voice and sent a delightfully ominous shiver down his spine. His fingers curled but he set his jaw and gave Song Lan a bright and vicious grin.

“Prove me wrong,” he said. “Do your worst.”

Song Lan pulled back only far enough to take off Xue Yang’s belt and pull his robes open so he was just wearing pants and shirt even if Song Lan still had all his clothes. “You leaving those on?” Xue Yang asked, jerking his chin in his direction. “Gonna get them dirty? If you make me bleed on your robes I’m not washing them.”

“You’re not going to bleed,” Song Lan said calmly. Xue Yang laughed.

“Yeah,” he said. “Okay.” And because Song Lan wasn’t moving fast enough, he said, “hey, Zichen, did you ever think about doing this shit to Xiao Xingchen? Did you ever want to hurt him, put those nice strong fingers of yours around his neck and squeeze until he choked–”

Song Lan’s expression tightened, a flash of anger and something else too lighting up his eyes and Xue Yang took a quick breath, bracing himself, but then it faded away and he just cupped Xue Yang’s jaw with a gentleness that sent a shiver down his spine, his thumb brushing across Xue Yang’s lower lip. He tried to snap at his fingers, but that just meant Song Lan pulled his hand away completely which wasn’t what he wanted.

“If you want something you can just ask,” Song Lan told him. Xue Yang bared his teeth.

“Really?” he said. “You need me to give you all your ideas? Weak. You did just fine when you were splitting me open on my own fucking sword–”

Song Lan’s eyes went dark, and Xue Yang grinned at him. Then Song Lan moved, manhandling Xue Yang more onto the bed. He fought it more reflexively than anything, but also so he could feel the satisfying weight of Song Lan’s holding him in place, pinning him down. His cock was getting interested again, and finally Song Lan was close enough that he could arch his hips and rub against him. Song Lan ran his fingers into his hair but didn’t pull. He rocked down against Xue Yang and Xue Yang made a loud, pleased noise.

“That’s more like it,” he said.

“Mmm,” Song Lan said, and then murmured, “you’re doing very well,” and a funny shock shot through Xue Yang, jarring him sideways. Sweet enough to hurt, almost, and it should’ve sounded condescending, like he was mocking Xue Yang only it didn’t, not really. He opened up the last layer of clothes across Xue Yang’s chest so when he put one hand over Xue Yang’s hammering heart it was pressed against skin.

Xue Yang faked a yawn. His skin was prickling some kind of a warning. “You’re being boring,” he said. “You ever wonder if you could make me scream?”

“You’re loud enough as it is,” Song Lan said. His palms felt warm; he touched the scar under his collarbone like he hadn’t noticed it before. Xue Yang shivered, his nerves brightening.

“You should’ve seen it when it was fresh,” Xue Yang said. “Missed out, Song-daozhang.” Song Lan’s touch paused and he gave Xue Yang a quick look, not quite a frown. “There’s one on the back, too,” Xue Yang said. “Matches.”

Song Lan’s fingers lingered on the scar a moment longer, and Xue Yang flashed his teeth in a smile that felt a little uneasy, squirming restlessly. “If you want to break it open again you’re going to need more than your bare hands,” he said. “Though I’d kind of like to see you try.”

Song Lan shot him another one of those strange not-quite frowns and then shook himself.

“Why would I want to do that?” he said, apparently in genuine question, and Xue Yang had a moment of confusion before Song Lan’s hips pressed down against his, his robes enough out of the way that Xue Yang could feel his cock against his leg. He bucked like he would somehow be able to feel more of it that way.

“Are you gonna fuck me with that thing?” he asked. “Get it wet in my mouth and–” He felt the eager twitch of Song Lan’s cock and crowed gleefully. “Yeah,” he said. “Yeah, sounds good, right, you like it when I’m choking on your cock wedged in my throat–”

Song Lan put a hand over his mouth. “Be quiet,” he said, and Xue Yang was surprised enough that his voice died, and Song Lan smiled slightly. “Good,” he said, and Xue Yang had that feeling again like a kick in the chest. Xiao Xingchen could do that to him, did do that to him, but not Song Lan. He pulled his hand off Xue Yang’s mouth and said, “don’t rush me. I’m taking my time.”

A warning prickled at the back of Xue Yang’s brain, but it was a little fuzzy and he’d rather think about the slow rub of Song Lan’s body against his. Slow and sweet and before long he was squirming and gasping. Which Song Lan seemed to think was enough, that and his hands just petting Xue Yang’s face, his chest, his side. And every time Xue Yang tried to open his mouth Song Lan just covered it.

His body was starting to feel overworked, a little overloaded, and thoroughly confused. The one thing he was absolutely sure of was that he wanted more. He twisted, trying to wriggle his hips into a better position and gasping when Song Lan pressed down, the pressure exquisite even if on its own it wasn’t enough.

He bit Song Lan’s shoulder, hard. He heard Song Lan’s sharp inhale, the tensing of his body, only then he just said, “let go.”

Xue Yang bit down harder for a moment longer and then released him, giving Song Lan a bright, sharp grin that faltered when he saw the expression on Song Lan’s face. He didn’t look angry. Determined, and maybe a little amused, gaze intent.

“That’s it,” Song Lan said soothingly, the hand that wasn’t braced on the bed fanning out over his ribs. “That’s good.” Xue Yang quivered, the last of his smile dropping. An almost violent spasm rippling through his whole body, a small sound slipping out of his mouth before he could catch it. His hips bucked upwards and Song Lan’s pushed him back down, gentle but inexorable.

His head was spinning a little. “What,” he said, and then gathered himself and said, “aw, Zichen, you’re so sweet,” and reared up to bite him again, harder. Song Lan grunted and his fingers pressed into flesh - yes, better, Xue Yang thought a little wildly - but a moment later his touch softened again, eased.

Xue Yang let go of Song Lan’s shoulder, breathing hard, and stared up at Song Lan feeling profoundly off balance.

Song Lan’s hand moved up to brush his thumb over one of Xue Yang’s cheekbones, the faint scar left from Jin Guangyao’s attempt to have him killed. He felt his eyes go wide, his head tipping toward that touch.

“There,” Song Lan said. He sounded pleased. Xue Yang had no idea why. His heart was thudding very hard.

He squirmed. “Come on,” he said. “What’re you waiting for–”

“Nothing,” Song Lan said, sounding far too calm. “I’m doing exactly what I want to be doing.”

Xue Yang stared at him, confused, only then Song Lan dropped his hand from his face and palmed his cock gently through his underclothes and he just exhaled in a shuddery sigh. Arching up toward that pressure only to drop back down, panting.

“Don’t - fuck around,” he said, his voice stupidly thin. “You think you’re gonna make me beg for it, Zichen? Sorry, it’s gonna take more than that, I can barely–”

“You don’t have to beg,” Song Lan said smoothly. “I’m going to give it to you anyway.” He moved his hand in a slow circle, massaging Xue Yang’s cock and he let out an embarrassing sort of hiccup, body jumping up toward his hand which didn’t gain him any more force.

“You,” he said, short on breath. “You, you’re–”

“Why shouldn’t I?” Song Lan said. He sounded so calm, so steady. Like he wasn’t driving Xue Yang insane.

Xue Yang heaved an inhale that rushed out of his lungs a moment later. His eyes, for some reason, prickled, his hands twisting, tugging against Song Lan’s belt wound around his wrists. He felt like he was going to crawl out of his skin. He desperately wanted more.

“Motherfucker,” he said. “Fucking - is this all, is this the best you can do, I thought you said you were going to fuck me, fuck me up not–”

“You seem pretty undone to me,” Song Lan said, his voice almost smug. Xue Yang squirmed harder.

“Fuck you,” he said urgently. “Do you need me to, to - unh,” he broke off, when Song Lan put just a little more pressure on his increasingly needy cock.

“I know,” he said, almost soothingly. “But I didn’t want to hurt you.”

“Why not,” Xue Yang said, somewhere between plea and hiss. He wanted it to be the latter but it sort of came out the former anyway.

“Why should I?” Song Lan asked, like that wasn’t the stupidest question in the world, or at least that Xue Yang had heard today. He stopped moving and just stared blankly at Song Lan, who stared steadily back at him.He looked determined, unsmiling as usual, but something weird and - and soft in his eyes. Xue Yang’s heartbeat kicked up and he wanted to dig his teeth into that exposed underbelly and at the same time his instincts were screaming danger even though he didn’t have any clue why.

“Cause that’s just - how it goes.” His fingers curled into his palms. “You do want to, don’t be - Xiao Xingchen’s not here and I’m not gonna tell him or anything if you’re worried about him getting pissed at you or whatever–”

“I’m not worried about that,” Song Lan cut in. Xue Yang swallowed hard.

“Then the fuck game are you playing,” he said, his voice rough and strange, sort of uneven.

“For an unfortunately clever man you can be very stupid about some things,” Song Lan said, and slid one hand around the back of his neck and kissed him. Light and quick and not super interesting or anything but Song Lan hadn’t done that before. Oh, sure, Xue Yang had kissed him, usually to fuck with him a little but it didn’t go the other way around and not like that, for sure, not like he was - was fucking Xiao Xingchen or something–

His chest heaved with the loud, gasping breaths he could hear himself taking. His head was spinning and he felt a little like Song Lan had kicked his legs out from under him and he was having a hard time getting back up.

“What d’you want,” Xue Yang said desperately, words slurring together. Song Lan let out a little huff that wasn’t quite a laugh.

“Like I said,” he said. “You’re unfortunately clever. I expect you’ll figure it out. Eventually.”

Xue Yang started to snarl but it broke off into a moan when Song Lan shoved his thigh between Xue Yang’s legs. He ground desperately against it, unable to help himself. Arched his hips up chasing more only for Song Lan to pull away again.

“Fuck,” he said, almost despairing. “Fuck, are you gonna fuck me or not–”

“I know, I know,” Song Lan said, almost soothingly, and Xue Yang was going to kill him and at the same time sort of wanted to just let go and ride it, see where the fuck Song Lan was taking him. Finally, though, finally Song Lan moved to pull off Xue Yang’s pants. Xue Yang panted as fabric dragged over his sensitive cock, then inhaled sharply when Song Lan brushed his fingers against Xue Yang’s leg, making him jump. He wavered back and forth between a vague feeling of humiliation and exposure and sheer hunger.

Song Lan paused, sat back, and looked at him. Xue Yang groaned. “Don’t just–”

“You are,” Song Lan said, tone sort of considering, “very handsome.”

Xue Yang blinked, startled momentarily out of his haze of lust. That was clever and handsome both in a very short time and he didn’t quite know what to make of it other than that it felt good in a way he very much associated with Xiao Xingchen, warm and sweet. “Huh,” he said. Song Lan’s expression twitched a little and he leaned forward, kissing him again, a little more this time. Still light and almost shy but it had Xue Yang reeling anyway, not that he hadn’t been already.

Any chance he might’ve had at collecting his thoughts vanished when Song Lan took his cock in hand. Loose, barely touching him at all but Xue Yang still groaned and thrust into his grip. “Tighter,” he said, but Song Lan didn’t seem to hear him, or just ignored him, the fingers of his left hand slotting into the spaces between Xue Yang’s ribs.

“Relax,” Song Lan said, and Xue Yang’s breathing hitched in a mixture of terror and incredulity. “Just let me…”

His thumb rubbed against the underside of the head of Xue Yang’s cock and he let out a thoroughly pathetic whine. It felt like he was slipping again and he didn’t know what he was going to hit when he fell.

“Fuck you,” he said, though it came out thin and small. Xue Yang tried to rally, pull himself back together. “Is this - come on, I could go to sleep right now, are you gonna do something interesting or what?” his voice was goading, mean, or at least it was trying to be, but Song Lan didn’t seem impressed.

“Hm,” he said, and let go of Xue Yang’s cock again, grabbing his wrists instead and pressing them down. “You don’t seem that bored,” he said. He sounded sort of amused again and Xue Yang’s mouth opened and closed without any words like a stupid dying fish. He felt dazed. Stunned. Like Song Lan had banged his head against the floor a few times, or something.

“Hit me,” Xue Yang said.

“No,” Song Lan said.

“Please,” Xue Yang said, his voice cracking, and for the first time Song Lan’s expression fractured a little, betraying uncertainty, and Xue Yang would’ve dug his fingernails into it if he could’ve but he was too - everything was too–

“You don’t ask Xingchen,” Song Lan said, which didn’t make any sense at all. Xue Yang just stared at him, wild-eyed, because what did Xiao Xingchen have to do with this anyway, Xiao Xingchen wouldn’t do it but Song Lan would because Song Lan wanted to hurt him, always had, that was just, that was how–

He heard the crack before he registered the sting of it, his head snapping to the side. Fireworks went off behind his eyes and his mind went blank. Empty and quiet.

Fingers touched his jaw and pulled his eyes back to Song Lan’s face, who was looking at him with a strange expression. “That’s better,” he said, and it was half reassurance and half question.

“Yeah,” Xue Yang said blurrily. His face was still hot. His cock throbbed. He flexed his fingers to feel the bindings dig into his wrists which felt like it was one of the only things keeping him from just drifting off.

“I’m not your enemy,” Song Lan said. It sounded like he thought it was important, so Xue Yang nodded even if he didn’t feel like he really got why.

“Okay,” he said. And then, “do it again,” because the sting was starting to fade and he wanted it back.

“No,” Song Lan said, after a brief hesitation, and Xue Yang felt a brief flare of disappointment before it died away. He sighed, though, a little sadly. It felt like he might’ve come if Song Lan’d done it. Just from that. Probably not but it sort of felt like maybe.

“Let me...let me take care of you,” Song Lan said, and the words felt a little like small pieces of glass, cutting little stinging wounds. His head was all messed up. Coming only sort of seemed to matter.

“Fuck me,” he said, voice wobbly. “Do it dry, I don’t care–”

“No,” Song Lan said again, but then he had Xue Yang’s cock in his hand and his palm felt slick and warm even when he was as hot as he was. His hips rabbited up, trying to fuck himself with Song Lan’s hand, but his muscles all felt half-liquid, scrambled like his head.

It was okay. Song Lan did the work for him, the way he liked it, and by the time he spilled in pulses over his stomach and Song Lan’s hand he could’ve howled if his throat hadn’t locked up.

He felt limp, wrung out. Xue Yang blinked slowly, hazily.

“Xue Yang,” said Song Lan’s voice, quietly.

“Uh huh,” he managed to say in acknowledgment, though his brain was still mostly off somewhere else.

“What am I to you?”

Xue Yang tried to think about that but it was really very hard to think and he didn’t know a good answer. It felt like there was an answer he was supposed to have but he didn’t.

“Tired,” he said instead.

Song Lan sighed. “Yes,” he said, “I suppose you are.” He sounded sort of disappointed, which made Xue Yang frown a little. He tried to focus.

“You’re...Song Lan,” he said.

“Yes, Xue Yang,” Song Lan said after a pause. “That’s true.”

“You’re Xingchen’s,” Xue Yang tried again.

“I’m not,” Song Lan started to say, and then paused and amended, “I suppose you could put it that way.”

“And mine, sort of,” Xue Yang ventured, because he was feeling loose and sort of daring and he wanted to see what would happen. “Even if we’re. You know. Not friends, or whatever.”

He didn’t know what to make of the long quiet that followed. So long that he pried his eyes open to see if Song Lan was even still there. He was. He didn’t say anything, though, just got up and started untying Xue Yang. There was a little bit of a bruise-ache in his wrists but it felt good, unlike the weird shivery prickling crawling over his skin as things started to come back together.

“Don’t leave,” he objected, just in case Song Lan was thinking about it.

“All right,” Song Lan said, after looking at him for a while. “I won’t.” He sat down on the edge of the bed and Xue Yang squirmed until he could drop his head in his lap.

“D’you wanna fuck my face,” he said.

“No,” Song Lan said, and then added, “thank you,” which made Xue Yang giggle a little. He was giving Xue Yang a weird look again, but he did that a lot. Xue Yang’d gotten used to it.

“Okay,” he said, and closed his eyes without thinking about how safe he was, or wasn’t. He was asleep within heartbeats.

**

Xue Yang was fast asleep and snoring a little when Xingchen and a-Qing returned. Song Lan hadn’t moved. It wasn’t like he had that much to do, and Xue Yang’s head on his leg wasn’t uncomfortable. Xue Yang, for his part, looked very comfortable.

“I’m here, Xingchen,” he said quietly. He heard a-Qing mutter something, but Xingchen came in, looking a little quizzical. Song Lan sighed and said, “Xue Yang is sleeping. On me.”

Xingchen smiled with radiant fondness that made Song Lan’s chest hurt.

“Sleeping on you,” he said. “Well.”

“He tells me,” Song Lan said, with a little bit of despair, “that we’re ‘not friends, or whatever.’” He’d also said Song Lan was his, which he didn’t know how to take.

Xingchen’s expression flickered and fell, though he recovered quickly.

“It’s not true,” he said. Song Lan let his silence speak for him, and Xingchen said, “he fell asleep on you. And still is, now. Whether he knows it or not, that is a certain amount of trust.”

Maybe, Song Lan thought, but I would like him to know it.

“He’ll get there, Zichen,” Xingchen said soothingly.

Maybe, Song Lan thought again. But he was also thinking about the flushed red of Xue Yang’s cheek after he’d hit him, and the exhilaration of doing it, the sharp stabbing hunger, and he had to wonder if, deep down, Xue Yang was right about him after all.

[lansyuan]

do you love fics where wei wuxian and lan wangji parent the crap out of lan sizhui? do you want to read accidental baby acquisition fics until your eyes bleed? would you die as your heart slowly turns to mush from the softness of this family? bitch the fuck, me too. here are some of my personal favourite fics of wangxian ft their turnip son a-yuan. its a range of canon divergence, post canon, thirteen years of inquiry, raising a-yuan at the burial mounds au etc - there’ll be something for literally everyone. enjoy!

the kite string and the anchor rope by fleurdeliser (38k+)

When A-Yuan gets sick and Wen Qing doesn't have the supplies she needs to properly treat him, Wei Wuxian can only think of one place to go for help. 

a crying shame by thunderwear (16k+)

Lan Wangji gets emotionally blackmailed by a toddler. It somehow fixes everything.

to recollect and long for by wonderlands (22k+) *2/3 works posted at time of posting this rec list.

a 3-part series about best boy lan sizhui and his wonderful dads who love him and each other very much.

forgetting envies, remembering your loving hold by cosmicfuss (3k+)

The first time Zewu-jun plays for him he is five and the man is trying to comfort him, playing soft songs good for soothing children. It works to a degree but he wants his gege, he wants his gege to play his lullaby. Zewu-jun apologizes and tells him that his gege is hurting right now, and needs to be alone to get better.

When he plays the xiao, A-Yuan says, "you're holding it wrong!" When he turns fourteen, he learns to play guqin, and is many years ahead of his classmates in that regard. A large factor in that is how much he has practiced Inquiry. He has grown up hearing snippets from the jingshi, of Wangji attempting to reach a spirit that never answers.

When he's sixteen, he hears a familiar tune played in the forest, he and his fellow juniors battling a stone god. It's been years since he's heard it, and he wonders why this man, Mo Xuanyu, knows it so well.

Or, Lan Sizhui grows up and learns, and remembers.

five times wei wuxian tried to embarrass lan sizhui by blackelement7 (6k+)

(and one time he realized just how badly he'd played himself)

or: In which Wei Wuxian starts a fight but Lan Sizhui (with some meddling from Lan Jingyi) ends it.

inquiry by incendir (10k+)

Sizhui cannot fall asleep for a long, long time that night. He hears the ever-familiar melody again. He thinks perhaps he has memorized it by now.

storge by respira (9k+)

Lan Sizhui is a lake.

as the warren grows in number by kore_fics (3k+)

Before Sizhui could take another step he was surrounded by black and red, loud laughter in his ears and warm fingers running through his hair, messing it up. Palms squished both his cheeks together and Lan Sizhui let out a laugh.

Lan Sizhui was home.

tell some storm* by qurbat (31k+) *the moments with Sizhui are in chapter 2, however I highly recommend reading the whole fic, it’s adorable.

"We were raised as a generation of war, A-Yuan," Xian-gege said to him. "If your generation choses to be one of love - well, I don't think any of us would be opposed to that."

In the aftermath of the events at the Guanyin temple, the cultivation world scrambles to understand their current reality. A man roams the countryside with a string of white in his hair. Another sits on the highest seat of power with a ribbon of red around his forehead. The younger generation turns out to be full of romantics. Nie Huaisang is to blame for everything, always. Jiang Cheng realizes that happiness has been more that 16 years overdue.

Wei Wuxian declares that it's time that bitch pays up.

After a generation of war - much to the consternation of the elders, much to the delight of the young, much to the pleased shock of the subjects of the tale - the world welcomes a love story with open arms.

guess we're not eating leaves today by missingnarwhal (2k+)

Baby A-Yuan has cooked up a feast, but only one lucky gege will actually get to taste it!

Set in an alternate timeline where everything is okay after Wei Ying + Wens started living in the Burial Mounds.

response by aki_no_hikari (12k+)

What if Wei Wuxian hadn't been silent to Lan Wangji's Inquiry?

love, in all its small pieces by ynvel (4k+)

Ah Yuan is brought to the Cloud Recesses and exchanges the sun and its ashes for the clouds. Lan Wangji brings a boy home, calls him his son, and renews the promises he made.

Or: Lan Sizhui is adopted by Lan Wangji and learns about his new life. Lan Wangji in turn learns about hope and living again.

child surprise by ariaste (4k+)

He huffs a sigh. “Fine. Just - let’s just make it the law of surprise, shall we? That’s nice and simple, eh? Leave it up to destiny what will bring us back in balance. Let it drop something of yours into my lap, something small, and we’ll call the debt paid.”

Three debts, three repayments.

there's a lunatic in mo village by bastetcg (11k+)

There's a lunatic in Mo Village! And to Lan Sizhui's surprise, Hanguang-Jun has decided to bring the madman back to the Cloud Recesses! How embarrassing!

A mostly canon-compliant look into Lan Sizhui's thoughts and childhood.

on being a big boy by emberloey (1k+)

“My little A-Yuan,” Dad had said the next morning, kneeling down to A-Yuan’s height with a smile, “all grown up now. Soon you’ll be hunting without your poor old dads.”

“Never!” A-Yuan shook his head and latched onto Father’s leg. He smiled up at Father, who smiled back and nodded his head. “A-Yuan always needs Dad and Father!”

in all these shades of blue (i think we found you) by fleetling (5k+)

5 times Sizhui thought about his father's white robes, and 1 time Lan Wangji wore blue.

(Or: Lan Sizhui had never seen his father in anything other than white robes.)

this is when the feeling sinks in, i don't want to miss you like this (come back, be here) by mischievousmurmurs (6k+)

Just now… the butterflies’ conversation. Where did you learn that from, Ah-Yuan?

Ah-Yuan pats his chest. In here, shushu. I feel it in here. And in here, too, he adds, pointing to his head.

Sizhui has never quite been able to remember nor forget the memory of seeing people who he knows loved each other, loved him, and whom he loved in return.

or - a wangxian story, as told by their adopted son.

yours, mine, and ours by casecous (2k+)

When they have both mostly recovered, and A-Yuan is back to his smiling, playful self, Lan Wangji presents him with a forehead ribbon. A-Yuan’s little fingers bump into Lan Wangji’s thumbs as he traces the cloud motif along it.

“You are Lan now. This is very important,” Lan Wangji tells him and A-Yuan looks away from the ribbon to meet his eyes. “You must not take it off as you please. Only family may touch it.”

A series of wangxian family moments.

innocence by snowberryrose (8k+)

In which Wei WuXian gets to raise A-Yuan.

Canon divergence from episode 31.

to recollect and long for by mme_anxious (4k+)

Lan Xichen is there when his brother becomes a father. Lan Sizhui is there when his father's heart breaks, again. Wei Wuxian is there when his son gets drunk for the first time.

Or, the GusuLan forehead ribbon, in three parts.

our little one by writedeku (6k+)

A-Yuan is here. A-Yuan, who Wei Ying loved so much. A-Yuan, who was taught to laugh just like him. Wangji hugs him to his chest and curls over him, ignoring the way the wounds on his back pull and tear. “I have to take care of you,” he says. “I will not leave you.”

(Or: Lan Wangji comes back from Yiling with a child he does not know how to care for and a black hole in his chest. Somehow, he makes it work.)

gathered herbs & sweet grasses by hansbekhart (19k+)

Later, when he’s older, it’s this that A-Yuan will remember most: the stretch of silence, the two of them both dirty and shaking with fever, as he looked at Brother Rich, and Brother Rich looked back at him.

the sacred homeland by particulate (8k+)

He has many names, and some are mouthfuls of blood.

[Or; a chronology of Sizhui, in which he does not forget.]

to the act of making noise by words-writ-in-starlight (19k+)

His father in white plays the song late into the night, and when A-Yuan wakes up confused and afraid, the guqin lulls him back to sleep.

Lan Sizhui hears his father play the same song every night for his whole life, and never, ever get an answer.

when he comes home to you by kika988 (2k+)

Home is Cloud Recesses now, and that's a thing Wei Wuxian is still getting used to. He still feels like a guest here, most days, though Lan Wangji has done everything to make him feel at home. He stands out like a sore thumb amongst the serene disciples and flowing white fabric.

Cloud Recesses has been home to Lan Wangji and Sizhui for years. It is their home, where they've built their family.

The thought warms Wei Wuxian even as it sits a little ill with him. He's an intruder here, in their homes, in their lives, the same way he had been in Lotus Pier.

five times people didn’t know sizhui is lan zhan’s son and one time they did by trilliastra (3k+)

“A-Yuan.” He repeats, reaching out for the boy, growing restless when he can’t touch him. “A-Yuan.”

Oh. Lan Xichen closes his eyes as the tears start to fall. Oh, Wangji.

Carefully, Lan Xichen takes the boy and lays him next to his brother on the bed, Wangji holds him protectively against his chest and A-Yuan stops his little cries immediately.

“Wangji,” Lan Xichen tries again, running a hand through his brother’s hair softly, “who is he?”

“He’s my son.”

5 times the lan head disciple broke the rules by liji (6k+)

“I am not aware of any rule forbidding falling in love,” Hanguang-Jun said at last. There was a quiet sadness in his eye, like he was watching a scene from far away. The novelty of it gave Sizhui the courage to ask his next question.

“Have you ever been in love, Father?” he asked.

(or, five times that Sizhui broke the Lan sect's rules growing up)

the seasons change (but i love you the same) by kdkdkd (7k+)

"Hanguang-jun!"

When did you stop calling me Bàba, A-Yuan?

Lan Wangji had always promised himself that he would never become a poor father like his own had been.

Unfortunately, it feels like he has failed to keep that promise.

✨ bonus round ✨ uncle jiang cheng and nephew lan sizhui

tintinnabulum by respira (8k+)

A small bell chimes, the sound soft and pleasant like the water crashing against a pier, like low whistles in an empty cave, like a guqin playing a lullaby.

[randomingoftherandomness]

I'm dying over your shangjue/yuanzhi fic, it's so cuuuuuute. he acts so shy but all he wants is to overwhelm his poor didi haha

🌸 Didi deserves all the doting and cosseting in the world from Gege. Honestly, I’ve not been as obsessed about a pairing this year as I am about the two of them （๑✧∀✧๑）I’m just glad I’m not alone in this haha��

Thanks for this ask! Please have a little Drabble while I’m somewhat lucid from my flu meds.

—

Tucking Didi closer to his side, Shangjue carefully wraps the fur collar tighter around them. Pressed so near, he can smell the peach wine they’d just had for dinner on his lips; can almost taste it on the pretty spit sheen pink of Yuanzhi’s slightly parted mouth.

He knows he can.

Knows he can dart in and slot their mouths, lick in and devour his Didi whole. He has permission for this. Knows he never has to ask to shower Didi with his ardour, his affection. Knows that even if he doesn’t know for certain about anything else, he knows that Yuanzhi will definitely wake at their kisses, loathed as he is to miss out on moments spent exchanging lazy affection with Shangjue.

But he won’t. Not like this, not tonight at least.

Didi snuffles slightly. Sighing in his sleep, he cuddles into Shangjue’s hold. The trust and belief in the comfort he finds with Shangjue burns a warm fire in his heart that spreads to the tips of his fingers.

Some days he wishes to swallow Yuanzhi whole. Take him into his chest and keep him there so that he will always be safe and sound. Protect this man and keep him from harm.

“Gege?”

Yuanzhi adorably rubs at his eyes, but makes no move to pull away. “What time is it? Why didn’t you wake me?”

“You were sleeping so well. I find that I enjoyed watching you dream.” Shangjue answers, hand dutifully reaching up to brush the hair out of Yuanzhi’s eyes.

His Didi chuckles. “As if you don’t watch me sleep every night. What’s so special about it anyways?”

“Because I don’t want to miss a thing about you.” Shangjue decides to be honest. Leaning over, he kisses the cool skin of his brow. Sliding the palms of their hands together. “Every time you dream, I wonder if it’s me you’re seeing. I could stay awake just to hear you breathing. I just want to be with you, right here with you, just like this.”

Yuanzhi visibly flushes to the tips of his ears, brown eyes wide and glassy. Shangjue has to bite back the urge to physically bite them. Laughing a little, he shrugs, a little uncharacteristically self conscious.

“It’s a little silly, I know…”

Yuanzhi throws his arms around Shangjue. Holding on tightly, he grips on to the back of his cloak. “I’m never letting you out of my sight. Ge, I’m going to swallow you whole and never let you leave. Gods above only knows how easy some unsuspecting person will fall for your charms.”

Shangjue’s laughter at that passionate declaration is bright in the evening quiet.

[kolachess]

DMBJ Names and Honorifics Explained - Don’t trust the subs!

I’ve no idea if someone has already made such a post, but I really like explaining Chinese as it’s also good practice for me, so here we go.

If you are a non-Chinese speaker, you might have noticed inconsistencies in subs when referring to all the different characters. And / or that the names don’t seem to match up to the sound of the name. 

So here’s a little cultural and character guide to understanding DMBJ names.

Why are there so many names, nicknames, and honorifics for one person in a Chinese drama? To chalk this all up to nicknames is... grossly over-simplifying things. The thing with names / honorifics is very rooted in Chinese culture itself. Chinese culture is one heavily indexed on relations and hierarchy, so depending on your place in the ‘hierarchy’, whether it’s society or family, you will refer to each other as different things. As an example to illustrate complexity, where in English, ‘uncle’ refers to all male siblings of either of your parents, in Chinese, your father’s younger brother is addressed differently from your father’s older brother and also different from your mother’s brother. 

Chinese names and translation to English - Space? No space? Hyphens? Last name first?

So Chinese is a pictographic language. Each ‘character’ is one word, and one syllable exactly. Hence, you don’t need spaces or hyphens or anything in Chinese. Spaces and hyphens when romanized are purely for English speakers’ convenience. 

For example, in Chinese, the names would be written as wuxie, wusanxing, wangpangzi, etc. (And no such thing as capitalization either.) As a general rule of thumb, because for documentation purposes, the surname is separated out, Chinese people generally end up writing the given name all smushed together even if they are 2 words.

And yes, the surname always goes first. Other way is just... weird. Never happens.

Can you space out two words of a given name? Sure I suppose. Probably less seen.

As for hyphens with honorifics... sure? I’m not sure if smush together or hyphen is more official actually... 

What are Chinese names? How do people pick a name?

Unlike English names, Chinese people compose their names. Which means... you can have anything from names that have literary eloquence and deeper meaning，like ‘Wu Xie’, where ‘Wu’ is homonymous with ‘Without’ and ‘Xie’ means ‘Evil’, so Wu Xie’s name carries the meaning of ‘no evil’...

...to names that have little to no deep meaning and sometimes downright stupid sounding, like ‘Wang Pangzi’ which does indeed translate to Wang Fatty lol.

That’s why if you ask Chinese people to provide common Chinese names, they’ll stare at you blankly. Of course, that’s not to say there aren’t some popular names, given people sometimes name themselves after famous people and there are plenty of generic ones as well.

But this is also why, when meeting for the first time, you might hear a lot of people explaining how their name is written (i.e. with which word), because there are a looooot of homonymous words and it’s impossible to tell how write someone’s name without them ‘spelling it out’.

How do Chinese people call each other by name?

Most Chinese names (surname + given name) will form 2-3 syllables (very rarely there will be 4). 

General rule of thumb:

- Using someone’s full name is always generally acceptable (not to be confused with addressing them... that’s a whole different game).

- You never refer to someone with one syllable. Which means if their given name is only one syllable, you pretty much always say both surname + given name together (Hence why Wu Xie is always Wu Xie and never ‘Xie’). If their given name is two syllables, you might call them by given name only if you’re familiar. 

Of course, there are tons of ways to give people nicknames (more explanation below), so you might end up only using one syllable of someone’s name, but in conjunction with another prefix / suffix of sorts.

So yes, the subs say ‘Zhang’ for Zhang Qiling but that’s BS no one has ever referred to him as simply ‘Zhang’. And for that matter, no one ever refers to him as simply Qiling either, though that’s more out of habit than any rules of names. And finally, they rarely refer to him as Zhang Qiling at all... more explanation below.

Basic ‘prefix’ / ‘suffix’ / ‘honorific’ introductions relevant for DMBJ

These aren’t really prefixes and suffixes and honorifics. They’re simply words. But for sake of simplicity, let’s just treat them as that.

-ye (sounds like ‘yeah’) = ‘Grandpa’ of the generic ‘old man’ sense, but also ‘master’ or ‘lord’ to indicate status / respect. 

Example usage: Wu Sanxing (Wu Xie’s third uncle) - People like Pan Zi call him Sanye, which means ‘Third Master’. 

It can also be casually used by someone to refer to themselves in third person and indicate their ‘prowess’. Again, due to Chinese cultural relations, there’s a lot of emphasis on hierarchy, so people often humorously refer to themselves in third person with a title of more seniority (’this ancestor’ or ‘this old miss’). 

Example usage: Pangzi always referring to himself as Pangye. ‘Make way, Pangye is coming in clutch with the bombs!’.

-shu (sounds more like ‘soo’) = ‘Uncle’. This can be an uncle related, or not. 

Example usage: Wu Sanxing (Wu Xie’s third uncle). Wu Xie and his peers will generally call him Sanshu, because they’re of the same generation and need to call Sanshu with some level of respect. Of course, Sanye is also respectful, so certainly Pangzi can call him Sanye. But Pangzi calling him Wu Sanxing would be disrespectful. (Zhang Qiling on the other hand, technically can call him whatever since he’s the oldest haha).

-ayi (sounds like ‘ah-yee’) = ‘Aunt’. Similar as uncle. 

Example usage: Chen Wenjing (in Ultimate Note, Sanshu’s former girlfriend). You’ll notice Wu Xie addressed her as Wenjing-ayi. Of course, since she was a bit less familiar with them, and wasn’t always around, he and others will refer to her as simply Chen Wenjing... it’s complicated. The nuances of when it’s ok to leave off the suffix is an art form lol.

-ge (sounds like ‘guh’) = ‘older brother’. Can also be related or not. Can be used alone, or doubled up (which tends to be cuter).

Example usage: Huo Xiuxiu refers to Wu Xie as ‘Wu Xie-gege’ and Xie Yuchen as ‘Xiao Hua-gege’. Pangzi told Yun Cai (the girl he crushed on) to call him ‘Pangge’. And yes! This is the ‘ge’ in Xiaoge. More explanation below.

Xiao (sounds like ‘shall’) = ‘Small’ or ‘Little’. This is often used in creating a nickname and used first before a name.

Example usage: Wu Xie’s second uncle will refer to him as ‘Xiao Xie’. Wu Xie refers to Xie Yuchen as ‘Xiao Hua’, which translates to ‘Little Flower’ and is a nickname based off his stage name, Jie Yuhua. And yes! This is the ‘xiao’ in Xiaoge. More explanation below (because translating it as ‘little older brother’ makes no sense I know).

Lao (sounds like ‘lao’ lol) = ‘Old’. Similar usage as ‘xiao’.

Example usage: I think I remember Granny Huo perhaps referring to Wu Laogou (Wu Xie’s grandfather) as ‘Lao Wu’?  But also, yes, his actual name has that word too.

Numbers - Numbers are very commonly used in nicknames.

Er (sounds like ‘are’) = Two / Second.

San (sounds like ‘san’ lol idk) = Three / Third.

Hence why Wu Xie refers to his uncles as ‘Sanshu’ and ‘Ershu’. (And yes, their names themselves also conveniently carry the numbers...)

You’ll never say ‘one’ though. Instead, ‘da’ or big / large is used.

Names of the characters

Wow so only after all that can we begin to explain the many names... Let’s begin.

Wu Xie - Wu Xie is actually the most straightforward thank god. Most people will call him this, Zhang Qiling included.

AKA Tianzhen or even Xiao Tianzhen - This is nickname provided Pangzi gave him meaning ‘naive’ or ‘innocent’, and what Pangzi calls him most if not all the time. There’s a phrase in Chinese too called ‘tianzhenwuxie’ to mean innocent, carefree, and pure. The ‘wu’ there is a different but homonymous word with Wu Xie’s ‘Wu’, but the meaning and reference is clear (Chinese has looooots of homonyms and puns). This is also why that phrase ‘My lifetime, in exchange for you a decade of innocence and purity.’ from Zhang Qiling to Wu Xie is so heart-wrenching, because those last four Chinese words are ‘tianzhenwuxie’, a poetic play on his two names. 😭 

AKA Xiao Xie - Called by his second uncle, Wu Erbai

AKA Da Zhizi - Called by his third uncle, meaning ‘big nephew’. ‘Da’ here just means the oldest really. Wu Xie is Wu Sanxing’s oldest (but also only) nephew. And ‘nephew’ here too specifically refers to the son of your brother.

AKA Xiao Sanye - Called by Pan Zi, Bai Haotian (from Lost Tomb Reboot). Sanye here is in reference to how he dogs his third uncle’s footsteps all the time. And he’s the younger version so... there.

AKA Laoban or Wu-laoban - Called by Wang Meng, business partners because laoban means ‘boss’.

Zhang Qiling - Whew OK honestly, I don’t think of him as ‘Zhang Qiling’ much at all, because very rarely do any of the other characters refer to him as Zhang Qiling. Most of the time it’s...

AKA Xiaoge - This is what Wu Xie and Pangzi refer to him a lot as. Xiaoge literally translates to ‘little big brother’, but that meaning is weird in English. So don’t think of it that way. Xiaoge is just a generic term for a young guy. Like... ‘lad’? Lol. But he’s all mysterious and stuff so the generic term just stuck. This is also why in Tomb of the Sea, someone referred to Li Cu as ‘xiaoge’, because he was indeed a xiaoge. But in Wu Xie’s heart, there’s only one Xiaoge. ❤️

AKA Menyouping - The name of this ship! Pingxie! This is what Wu Xie referred to him mostly as in his first POV novel. It means ‘stuffy oil bottle’ and communicates the sentiment of ‘poker face’ or just someone with no expressions.

Note on Zhang Qiling: This name is actually a title rather than a name. Qiling is the title given to the Zhang patriarch responsible for handling the spirits of their ancestors... eh it’s complicated and warrants its own post if you want to know more.

Note on ‘Kylin’: I know this is what the official translations had it, but like... wtf. What, no. Like, idk what happened here, but this is a terrible mistranslation. ‘Kylin’ or ‘Qilin’ is the name of the mystical beast of which Zhang Qiling has a tattoo of, but it is two entirely different words from the ‘Qiling’. Don’t let the similarity in English spelling fool you. Completely different words. Some translator thought Kylin might market better probably. But... no. It’s just wrong. I have to do a double-take when I see people writing ‘Kylin’. Come on translators, have more faith in your English speaking audience. Fans can adapt! Don’t butcher the name for sake of marketability!

Wang Pangzi - Yes, ‘Fatty’ is the accurate translation haha. Most people refer to him as Pangzi, including Wu Xie and Zhang Qiling.

AKA Pangye - Referred to by Pangzi himself, but also sometimes people who are trying to suck up to Pangzi.

AKA Pangge - Referred to by his love interests.

Wu Sanxing - Wu Xie’s third uncle. See, I don’t even know what to call him by default because I’m not sure what the subs tend to say. 

AKA Sanshu - Wu Xie and his friends will call him this.

AKA Sanye - Pan Zi and other people in the industry will call him this.

Hei Yanjing - Again, I’ve no idea which name to use as his primary. Translates literally to ‘sunglasses’. Not technically ‘black sunglasses because that’s redundant’. See, even the spacing between his name here is unnecessary because this isn’t his official name, only a nickname. I don’t think we have his real name. But this version is generally called by most others I think?

AKA Hei Xiazi - This means ‘black blind person’, and is what Xiaoge refers to him as... and some others.

AKA Heiye - Just a more respectful reference. Called by Xie Yuchen.

Xie Yuchen - Called by Xiaoge and others less familiar.

Jie Yuhua - His stage name.

Xiao Hua - Called by Wu Xie, as it’s a nickname built off of his stage name.

Huaye - Called by Hei Yanjing and Pangzi, but more so out of humorous flattery than anything. 

.

.

Whew that was a lot. Just be glad this isn’t MDZS where people had courtesy names on top of all these names... I think I’ll stop there, but feel free to shoot me any questions about other characters!