#ft. jian

[svnshone]

@vitaiisms @sangetfer 

gifs from x x and x

[afterburning]

out of sight.

red gorge, the zhao estate; ft. @insouciont

it’s good to be home. jiyu never misses his bed as much as he misses the rocking of the waves beneath him, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t enjoy being at the zhao estate: the space, the perfectly manicured greenery. expensive booze from crystal glasses. jiyu’s favourite foods, when the servants hear of him dropping in.

their meal is finished now, the staff have left them alone. jiyu’s laying on the floor, one leg propped up against the low table they’d been sitting at. the rug beneath him is soft, the lights above are blurring together. he may or may not have had more to drink than he’d care to admit. but in private like this, it’s not like it matters. if his brother is losing any respect for him, then he’s a massive hypocrite - jiyu’s seen him in worse circumstances.

“i still think you should lower their taxes.” they’re talking about a small farming community in the south, hit hard by temperatures hotter than usual around this time of year. jiyu props himself up on his forearms, both to glance at jian and to take his glass and drink more. “what’s it matter anyway. and if you don’t, we’ll be marching down there within the month.”

maybe they shouldn’t be like this. maybe they should try to get along better without alcohol helping them along, and maybe jiyu should try to reach out more. but jian’s lost a lot of his goodwill over the years, and regaining it is a slow climb, more about endurance than speed. jiyu wonders whether they’ll ever cross that mountain.

he sits up. almost loses his balance while he does, but it’s no matter - nobody’s watching. clears his throat, refills his empty glass with water, downs that. maybe he should start snacking.

“have you heard from the girls?” jiyu’s been away for a while, and bad at replying to letters.