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AW THANK YOU HOMIE! you know what actually, fun fact! so I've started working at a tea shop lately, right, and it's a pretty nice situation except for the way that I'm still fumbling a bit as I learn the teas - I can prepare them, but describing them is harder! but then again, I remember that you've done some tea reviews, so sometimes I can bounce off your language, and it really helps to get the messages across :D
I feel like WangXian 42 is necessary and inevitable. Could I request that?
42: Distracting kisses from someone that are meant to stop the other person from finishing their work, and give them kisses instead.
Thanks for the ask! I had a ton of fun with this! :D And thanks @phoenixrisesoncemore for the brainstorming help. Hope you like it! (unbeta-ed. we die like WWX)
CWs: Food, kissing, shamelessness? Mostly food.
Wei Wuxian was bored. Lan Zhan was busy in the kitchens and all Wei Wuxian wanted to do was to interrupt and kiss him until he had to stop whatever he was doing. Usually, Wei Wuxian would not hesitate but Lan Zhan had given him a very stern look and told him he wasn’t allowed to interrupt before disappearing into the building.
If only Lan Zhan were sorting through documents in the Library Pavilion! Wei Wuxian would stride to Lan Zhan’s station and drape himself over Lan Zhan’s lap. He would grab Lan Zhan’s hand and force him to put down the pesky brush. He would then kiss the hand, kiss along Lan Zhan’s arm, and use that as an excuse to pull Lan Zhan into kissing him. The best way to get Lan Zhan’s full attention would be to kiss him and kissing Lan Zhan is Wei Wuxian’s speciality.
If only Lan Zhan were lecturing juniors! It would also be easy! He’s always allowed to help with the juniors. He would enter the lecture hall, throw some questions out, help guide the juniors through their coursework, and then pull Lan Zhan into a long involved kiss until the juniors retreated. Wei Wuxian had full confidence that his pedagogical methodology increased student retention of course material by engaging them in discourse. So what if their class ended early that day? Extra fresh air and leisure can only be good for their mental health.
If only Lan Zhan were performing his chief cultivator duties! That was Wei Wuxian’s favorite activity to interrupt. The look on Sect Leader Yao’s face whenever Wei Wuxian walked into the grand hall never failed to make Wei Wuxian feel smug. Usually by the time Wei Wuxian chose to interrupt, Lan Zhan would be developing a headache. Wei Wuxian’s shameless public display of affection never failed to dismiss the gathered sect leaders. So what if he was shameless? Lan Zhan likes him shameless.
But here he was, waiting for Lan Zhan to be done. What on earth could his husband be doing? Wei Wuxian paced outside for a while, trying to think of an excuse to go in. He heard chopping noises but didn’t smell anything interesting. After half a shichen, he got bored, decided to respect his husband, and left in a huff. If Lan Zhan didn’t want him to see, maybe he should go find something else to do.
Wei Wuxian wandered to the Library Pavilion, gathered some books, and returned to Jingshi. Setting up an area for work, he quickly found himself immersed in his task. He wanted to cross reference fifteen volumes on yao and guai and the theories on benevolent versions of such creatures. He also wondered if a yao could become a guai if its spirit were imbued into something no longer alive. He was startled to find very few passages on benevolent spirits and almost nothing on phase shifts or transitions between types of demonic creatures. It’s a pity that no one ever wondered about such things. Would it be something he could experiment on? Could a benevolent yao or guai be able to tell him? How does one even seek out such a creature? And how does one seek out a creature like that without seeming hostile?
Lost in thought, Wei Wuxian didn’t hear the door open or Lan Wangji walk in carrying a tray of food. It wasn’t until Lan Wangji wrapped his arms around Wei Wuxian that Wei Wuxian noticed his husband’s presence.
“Ah! Lan Zhan! You startled me!” Wei Wuxian yelped as he shrugged his shoulders to try to get Lan Wangji to let go. He wanted to continue down his train of thought and take more notes.
“Wei Ying is hard at work, I see. What are you working on?” Lan Wangji sat down next to Wei Wuxian and started reading.
“You were busy and I was bored so I’m trying to do some research into yao and guai. I’m only eight tenths the way through these volumes. There’s so little here of interest. It’s so frustrating. Why is your family full of conservative fuddy duddies? Actually, I don’t think these were written by Lans. Why is the cultivation world lacking in innovators?” Wei Ying half mumbled as he continued to splatter a page with his messy brushstrokes.
“Wei Ying, it’s dinnertime. Are you not hungry?”
“I’m busy! Let me finish!” Wei Wuxian was surprised at his residual ire from earlier.
Lan Wangji grabbed Wei Wuxian’s writing hand and pulled it so Wei Wuxian ended up facing him. “Do you not want to give your husband a kiss?”
“You didn’t want to give me a kiss earlier. Forbidding me from entering the kitchen. Are you upset that you don’t get attention now that you want it? What about when I wanted it?”
“Mn. What if I was trying to surprise you? The Mo Manor incident happened exactly three years ago,” Lan Wangji leaned in and kissed Wei Wuxian.
Wei Wuxian pushed Lan Wangji away. “What? How do you remember? I don’t even know that date! You’re not making that up, are you?”
“Lying is forbidden in Cloud Recesses. It’s an important date for me, for us,” Lan Wangji wrestled the brush from Wei Wuxian, and set it aside. He then kissed Wei Wuxian again, using his tongue to force Wei Wuxian’s mouth open.
Wei Wuxian felt a slight tingle and a semi-familiar fragrance on Lan Wangji’s breath. His eyes opened wide, all ire forgotten. “You taste like chili oil!”
“New recipe I learned when we went to Sichuan last month. I got it from the innkeeper since you liked it so much.” Lan Wangji’s eyes sparkled as he motioned towards the tray.
Wei Wuxian flung his arms around Lan Wangji’s neck and kissed his husband again. He greedily stuck his tongue in Lan Wangji’s mouth, trying to get another taste of the chili oil. “I can’t believe you did that for me! Is that what you’ve been doing all day? Making me chili oil?”
“Mn. There was a lot of toasting and chopping. I have gained newfound admiration for chili oil makers. I found the addition of black sesame made the end product extremely fragrant. I may even eat it on occasion. Also, I made you sichuan peppercorn oil since you seemed to have enjoyed that too.”
Wei Wuxian’s eyes widened. “What’s for dinner then?”
Lan Wangji stood up, pulled Wei Wuxian up into another kiss, and guided him to the tray. “Fish fragrance eggplant 鱼香茄子, meicai steamed upside down pork belly 梅菜扣肉, chili fried chicken 辣子鸡, mapo tofu 麻婆豆腐, sichuan style chilled long beans 凉拌豇豆. Jingyi helped me with some of the preparation since he seems to have adopted your appreciation for spices.”
“Ha! I knew he would fall in love with my rice porridge!” Wei Wuxian said as Lan Wangji sat him down. He looked at his husband and then at the food, a slight frown on his face.
“What’s wrong, Wei Ying?”
“You put a lot of work into today for me. I don’t have anything to give you back.”
“You know we don’t keep score,” Lan Wangji said, putting his hands on Wei Wuxian’s shoulders and squeezing Wei Wuxian’s shoulders gently.
Wei Wuxian nodded and pulled out an empty talisman. He scribbled a temperature maintenance spell, and threw it onto the tray of food. “We don’t keep score, but there’s no reason I can’t thank my Lan-er-gege for his efforts before we eat. That talisman should keep the food the right temperature until we’re done.”
He turned around, pulled himself up by Lan Wangji’s arms, and dragged them to bed, kissing Lan Wangji each step of the way.
End notes: all the dishes are actual Sichuan dishes. 凉拌豇豆 doesn’t specify sichuan in the name, but it is when I make it! So i call it that when I cook it. i’m also very tempted to write about them on a night hunting adventure in sichuan... we’ll see if i do that as a ficlet a different time. hehehe. wei wuxian would love sichun. omg. anyway, if you’ve gotten this far, i commend you. let me know what you thought! and if you want to send me a prompt for a mdzs ficlet, feel free! :)
Wei Wuxian is a comet that’s come flying in for the second time, disrupting once more the careful gravity of everything in his life, and he has spent the last three months suppressing the overwhelming urge to reach out and catch him.
“Kiss Me” Prompt by @phoenixrisesoncemore
This is a beautiful 1920s au for Wangxian. I don’t know what I expected when I started reading a modern au based on this prompt but it wasn’t this. It’s lovely and does characterisation so well.
The Elf Lord who brought Dior the Silmaril; what was going through his head?
@phoenixrisesoncemore wanted to know what about the Green-Elves of Ossiriand and their place in Beren&Lúthien, their relationship with the Silmaril and the perspective of the Elf Lord who brought the Silamril to Dior
It’s done :’D
The Passage in question:
“There came a night of autumn, and when it grew late, one came and smote upon the doors of Menegroth, demanding admittance to the King. He was a lord of the Green-Elves hastening from Ossiriand, and the door-wards brought him to where Dior sat alone in his chamber; and there in silence he gave to the King a coffer, and took his leave.” The Silmarillion, Of the Ruin of Doriath.
Relationship with the Sons of Fëanor
“But the victory of the Elves was Dear-bought. For those of Ossiriand were light-armed, and no match for the Orcs, who were shod with iron and iron-shielded and bore great spears with broad blades; and Denethor was cut off and surrounded upon the hill of Amon Ereb. There he fell and all his nearest kin about him, before the host of Thingol could come to his aid. Bitterly though his fall was avenged, when Thingol came upon the rear of the Orcs and slew them in heaps, his people lamented him ever after and took no king again. After the battle some returned to Ossiriand, and their tidings filled the remnant of their people with great fear, so that thereafter they came never forth in open war, but kept to themselves by wariness and secrecy; and they were called Laiquendi, the Green-elves, because of their raiment of the color of leaves. But many went North and entered the guarded realm of Thingol and were merged with his people.1”
“...And the Orcs took the fortress upon the west slopes of Mount Rerir, and ravaged all of Thargelion, the land of Caranthir; and they defiled Lake Helevorn. Thence they passed over Gelion with fire and terror and came into East Beleriand. Maglor joined Maedhros upon Himring; but Caranthir fled and joined the remnant of his people to the scattered folk of the hunters, Amrod and Amras, and they retreated and passed Ramdal in the south. Upon Amon Ereb they maintained a watch and some strength of war, and they had the aid of the Green-Elves; and the Orcs came not into Ossiriand, nor to Taur-im-Duinath and the wilds of the south.2”
“...and the sons of Fëanor wandered before the wind. Their arms were scattered, and their league broken; and they took to a wild life and woodland life beneath the feet of Ered Lindon, mingling with the Green-Elves of Ossiriand…3”
“The Nelyar [Teleri] were most reluctant to leave their lakeside homes; but they were very cohesive, and very conscious of the separate unity of their Clan (as they continued to be), so that when it became clear that their chieftains Elwe and Olwe were resolved to depart and would have a large following, many of those among them who had at first joined the Avari went over to the Eldar rather than be separated from their kin. The Ñoldor indeed asserted that most of the ‘Teleri’ were at heart Avari, and that only the Eglain*** really regretted being left in Beleriand.” After writing about the Tatyar (Noldor who remained in Middle-Earth) and their bitterness towards the Noldor, Christopher Tolkien writes, “This ill-feeling descended in part from the bitterness of the Debate before the March of the Eldar began, and was no doubt later increased by the mechanisms of Morgoth; but it also throws some light upon the temperment of the Ñoldor in general, and Fëanor in particular, Indeed the Teleri on their side asserted that most of the Ñoldor in Aman itself were in heart Avari, and returned to Middle-Earth when they discovered their mistake; they needed room to quarrel in.11**”
Amon Ereb is where the Green-Elves buried their king and lamented him ever after. During Dagor Bragollach, Ambarussa and Caranthir flee to Amon Ereb, where they "maintained a watch and some strength of war." There are two ways this can be; first, we can ignore the line "had the aid of the Green-Elves" since the Quenta Silmarillion was written in-universe and has been revised in-universe, so you can say that that's not an accurate retelling. You could instead say that since there is a War going on, the Feanorians just built there and the Green-Elves feared the retaliation of Murderers. Following that, even if this were not the case and most of the Green-Elves were understanding after the fact, there is bound to be some dissent or some begrudging feelings from others for building a fortress on their beloved kings grave. The second option is to accept the line and say that the Green-Elves allowed them to build there. This would imply that they have a phenomenally good relationship with the Sons of Fëanor (or at least 4, 6 & 7) to allow them to build on Denethor's grave. Personally, I do not think the first option is liable since the Green-Elves attended the Feast of Reuniting, and Thingol, a known Noldor-Hater, only sent two Elves in his stead. The Sons of Feänor also mingled with the Green-Elves after the Fifth Battle, which if canon is to be believed and that "a stranger might pass through their land from end to end and see none of them4," If the Green-Elves didn't want to mingle, they wouldn't have. The next mention of the Sons of Feänor's location (in the published Silmarillion) is after the Elf Lord brought the Silmaril to Doriath; at this time, they were "gathered again from their wandering." So while it's not *explicit* that both the Sons of Fëanor and the Silmaril were within the borders of Ossiriand at the same time, it is implied. It also seems as though there is some bitterness between the Teleri and Noldor. Though the Lindi* are a subsection of the Teleri, they are (along with the Avari), often an afterthought in writings, so I am unsure if the second quote could apply to the Green-Elves or if C. Tolkien was specifically referring to the Tatyar. Regardless though, it seems to me that the Noldor and Teleri have something in common--they're both Avari at heart and love Middle-Earth. Though the Second Kinslaying takes place after the events asked about, I’m going to touch on it briefly as well. Specifically, how “...[the Teleri] were very cohesive, and very conscious of the separate unity of their Clan (as they continued to be), so that when it became clear that their chieftains Elwe and Olwe were resolved to depart and would have a large following, many of those among them who had at first joined the Avari went over to the Eldar rather than be separated from their kin.” Teleri don’t like to be separate from their families and don’t do so lightly; this, to me, implies a high emphasis on family compared to the other clans. The Sons of Feänor, who they gave safe harbor to and allowed to build on their kings grave, really spit in Green-Elves of Ossiriand’s face when they killed their close kin in Doriath.
Relationship with the Sindar
“But the victory of the Elves was Dear-bought. For those of Ossiriand were light-armed, and no match for the Orcs, who were shod with iron and iron-shielded and bore great spears with broad blades; and Denethor was cut off and surrounded upon the hill of Amon Ereb. There he fell and all his nearest kin about him, before the host of Thingol could come to his aid. Bitterly though his fall was avenged, when Thingol came upon the rear of the Orcs and slew them in heaps, his people lamented him ever after and took no king again. After the battle some returned to Ossiriand, and their tidings filled the remnant of their people with great fear, so that thereafter they came never forth in open war, but kept to themselves by wariness and secrecy; and they were called Laiquendi, the Green-elves, because of their raiment of the color of leaves. But many went North and entered the guarded realm of Thingol and were merged with his people.1”
“...Of those Nandor who took refuge in Doriath after the fall of Denethor is it said; ‘In the event they did not mingle happily with the Teleri of Doriath, and so dwelt mostly in the small land Eglamar, Arthórien under their own chief. Some of them were “darkhearted,” though this did not necessarily appear, except under strain or provocation.’ ‘The chief of the “Guest-elves,” as they were called, was given a permanent place in Thingol’s council…7”
I’m going to paraphrase this next bit by a lot, since it’s a couple pages worth of material11…
Celben: the Sindarin equivalent of Kalaquendi; all Elves other than the Avari and includes the Sindar. It is also equivalent to Eldar (Q.) and Elloi (T.)
Morben: Originally only referred to the Avari, but as other Children became known, it came to mean “Anyone dwelling outside Beleriand, or entering their realm from the outside.” “The first people of this kind to be met were the Nandor...when the Nandor were recognized as kinsfolk of Lindarin origin and speech, they were received into the class of Celbin.” However, later in Note 9 which discusses Eöl and Maeglin, “Some of the Nandor, who were allowed to be Celbin, were not any better,” is written and the Note goes on to discuss Saeros.
“Now word went swiftly among the Elves of Ossiriand that a great host of dwarves bearing gear of war had down out of the mountains and passed over Gelion at the Ford of Stones. These tidings came soon to Beren and Lúthien; and in that time also a messenger came to them out of Doriath telling of what had befallen there. Then Beren arose and left Tol Galen, and summoning to him Dior his son they went north the river Ascar; and with them went many of the Green-Elves of Ossiriand...In that battle by Sarn Athrad Beren fought his last fight, and himself slew the Lord of Nogrod, and wrested from him the Necklace of the Dwarves; but he dying laid his curse upon all the treasure. Then Beren gazed in wonder on the selfsame jewel Fëanor that he has cut from Morgoths iron crown, now shining set amid gold and gems by the cunning of the dwarves; and he washed it clean of blood in the waters of the river. And when all was finished the treasure of Doriath was drowned in the river Ascar, and from that time the river was named anew, Rathlóriel, the Golden Bed…5”
The Green-Elves and the Sindar are both a part of the Olwë’s Host that split off in Middle-Earth, albeit at different times. The Green-Elves had the “Friendship of Thingol,6” and “were welcomed by Thingol as kin long lost that return, and they dwelt in Ossiriand, the Land of Seven Rivers.1” Tolkien also writes that his fall was “bitterly avenged,” so Thingol probably held Denethor himself in high regard. Some Green-Elves even merged with his people in Doriath. However, there is more to this story. “In the event,” is not an often encountered phrase, but “In the event that” is, so myself and others were confused at this wording. As it turns out, the phrase means that after discussing what could’ve been, you’re now discussing what actually happened. “In the end,” “as it happened,” and “as it turned out,” are synonymous with “in the event.8” So this means that the majority of the Green-Elves who migrated to Thingol’s kingdom were unhappy within his kingdom, and though they had a permanent seat on his council, they were also called “Guest-Elves,” which likely alienated them more. I also want to discuss the classes of Calben and Morben; At first, it does seem to follow the published Silmarillion--that all of the Green-Elves were welcomed as kin and subsequently entered into the class of Celben. I don’t think that is the case anymore; I think instead, the ones who merged with Doriath were “allowed” to become Celben and those who returned to Ossiriand remained Morben. It could be, of course, that Green-Elves of Ossiriand are the only ones of the Lindi to hold the title of Celben--the rest of the Lindi throughout Middle-Earth are Morben. Moving on though, the Guest-Elves probably seldom left Doriath and weren’t in much contact with their kin in Ossiriand, so it’s difficult for me to say how this impacted Ossiriand Green-Elves and Sindar’s relationship; it seems that there was a very dichotomous relationship between the two. But! Either way, the Green-Elves in and out of Doriath are kin and while that may have caused some tension--Teleri don’t like to be separated from their family and don’t do so lightly--they are still *kin* and would not take too kindly to their families being slaughtered over a jewel. I think that the Sack of Doriath would be enough “strain or provocation” to bring about their “dark hearted-ness.”
Curses, Dooms and Prophecies in the Legendarium
“Now word went swiftly among the Elves of Ossiriand that a great host of dwarves bearing gear of war had down out of the mountains and passed over Gelion at the Ford of Stones. These tidings came soon to Beren and Lúthien; and in that time also a messenger came to them out of Doriath telling of what had befallen there. Then Beren arose and left Tol Galen, and summoning to him Dior his son they went north the river Ascar; and with them went many of the Green-Elves of Ossiriand...In that battle by Sarn Athrad Beren fought his last fight, and himself slew the Lord of Nogrod, and wrested from him the Necklace of the Dwarves; but he dying laid his curse upon all the treasure. Then Beren gazed in wonder on the selfsame jewel Fëanor that he has cut from Morgoths iron crown, now shining set amid gold and gems by the cunning of the dwarves; and he washed it clean of blood in the waters of the river. And when all was finished the treasure of Doriath was drowned in the river Ascar, and from that time the river was named anew, Rathlóriel, the Golden Bed…5”
I will not write out every curse, doom or prophecy. I am only going to list them. The point of me listing all of these out is to show just how much power these types of things have in the Tolkien Legendarium and even if they are a self-fulfilling prophecy, they tend to come true in some way.
The Doom of Mandos
Mîm cursing Nargothronds treasure and the Nauglamir(in some variations)
The Dead Men of Dunharrow
The Curse of Morgoth; "the shadow of my thought shall lie upon them wherever they go." And the events after Húrins release
Eöl’s curse “...Here you may yet die the same death as I.”
Beleg to Túrin; “If I stayed beside you, love would lead me, not wisdom.”
Melian to Túrin; “There is malice in this sword. The dark heart of the smith still dwells in it. It will not love the hand it serves; neither will it abide with you long.”
Glaurung to Túrin; “...but thou carest not for that Glad may thy father be to learn that he hath such a son; as learn he shall”
Melian to Thingol; “For you have either doomed your daughter, or yourself. And now is Doriath drawn within the fate of a mightier realm.”
Huans Fate
The Lord of Nargothrond cursing the treasures of Doriath and the Nauglamir
There is more, but I think you get the point.
I want to touch on how the River Ascar flows into the River Gelion and "...after Sirion Ulmo loved Gelion above all the waters of the western world.4" In addition to this, the Green-Elves of Ossiriand rely on their rivers, not only for the nourishment water provides but also "lived in the protection of their rivers.7" I also want to point out that Ascar is the most upstream river of Ossiriand. "Why does this matter," you ask, "What does this have to do with curses?" Well…. The meaning of Ascar is "rushing or imperious (moving forcefully or rapidly).10" In addition to the river's name signifying its nature, it's also written that "...[the rivers] fell steeply and very swift from the Mountains of Ered Lindon.9" So there is no way that cursed gold is staying put. If the Green-Elves were upset at having cursed gold in their river, that they rely on for protection, imagine how upset they'd be if there was cursed gold in the Galion, that borders all of their land.
Personally, I think that if it were any other Elf-Lord, we would have had a different story. The Silmarillion has a tragic thing going on where, if a tragedy is prevented, another one would take its place. Here, if it was any other Elf who was in possession of the Silmaril, the Second Kinslaying may have been prevented, but the Silmaril wouldn’t go to Valinor.
The Sindar and Green-Elves seem to have a dichotomous relationship, where the Sindar seem to accept them as kin, but also refer to them as outsiders. The Noldor (specifically the Sons of Fëanor) and the Green-Elves seem to have a better relationship, but there is some old bitterness between the Noldor and Teleri and any good relationship would’ve been destroyed following the Second Kinslaying. But to answer your question, what was going through that Elf Lords head? I think it was something along the lines of "Ah! Cursed Jewelry that has poisoned our river and has been the cause of many deaths, better get this out of here before the Sons of Fëanor or my fellow Green-Elves who like them more than Doriath find me!"
*I don’t like the term Nandor and I refuse to use it unless I have to. It’s derived from the primitive elvish word “ndandō” which means, “one who goes back on his word or decision.” “Primitive elvish” is used by Paul Strack to describe the internal (fictional) evolution of elvish. “Lindi” is what the Green-Elves called themselves.
**I am aware that the quote continues to contrast this with the relations between Sindar, Green-Elves and other Avari elves, but this talks about the second age so I chose to not include it.
***”The Forsaken.” The Sindar named themselves this, but it only refers to Sindar who wanted to go to Aman but arrived late or looked for Elwë for too long. Círdan is their Lord and they are the most friendly towards the Noldor.
Note: Who knew superscript doesn’t work on tumblr? I’m not surprised, but sorry for numbers interrupting the reading
phoenixrisesoncemore replied to your post: currently eating sad frozen falafels that taste...
Have you ever made homemade falafel? I made them once and they were amazing. Kinda time consuming though, and it helps to have a food processor. Not that I’ve ever had Amsterdam Falafels, so maybe they pale compared to that.
I once had a housemate who made really good homemade falafels! they were def delicious, but not delicious enough to be worth the amount of effort, unless i was making them for special guests or smth lolsob
18, 22, 31, 37, or 42 for prompt. Your choice because I am indecisive! 😊
I FINALLY GOT TO THIS!!!
Established Wangxian, ~700 words, General Audience Rating, set shortly after they got married and Wei Wuxian just started teaching at cloud recesses. I used 22 and 37 but hopefully in unexpected ways? IDK. My initial instinct was angst angst angst with 37 but i couldn’t get it to work in my brain. But then! today! it clicked. ^_^; hope you find it amusing! thank you for playing! sorry it took so long!
~~~~
“Hey, Lan Zhan, that went pretty well, didn’t it?” Wei Wuxian asked as he plopped down onto a stool, resting his left elbow on a raised knee and holding a jar of liquor in his right hand.
The first proper night hunt with Lan Zhan and the Juniors had gone smoothly. The monster was vanquished. No one got more than minor scratches. Everyone contributed. By the time everything was cleaned up, night had fallen and they were too far from Cloud Recesses to fly home by curfew.
Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji had picked an inn in the nearby town and marched the Juniors inside. They ordered dinner as a group (lots of bland tofu and bok choy dishes and a few spicy chicken dishes) and turned in for the night.
“Mn. I concur,” Lan Wangji said as he sat down across from Wei Wuxian, knees folded neatly beneath him. Lan Wangji unwrapped a fifteen year old shu puer tea cake from his qiankun pouch and began preparing tea to settle himself for the night.
“All the Juniors are so well mannered and observant. Well, all of them except Jingyi. He’s… well, he’s quite the character. He’s smart but just not the model student. I don’t know what to do with him,” Wei Wuxian said as he poured liquor into his mouth. He looked over at Lan Wangji.
Lan Wangji’s eyebrow raised two hair widths.
“Do you not agree?” Wei Wuxian asked.
“I do. He is. I am surprised Wei Ying thinks so.”
“Oh? What do you mean by that, Lan Er-gege?” Wei Wuxian was intrigued. “Jingyi is loud. He’s not very good at listening. He jumps to conclusions that are more intuitive than logical. He’s not wrong, necessarily, but not really right either. Look at Sizhui. He’s polite and fairly quiet. He listens and then draws sensible conclusions.”
Lan Wangji poured some boiled water into his teapot and teacup, allowing them to warm. The corner of his lip tugged back a little.
“You’re laughing at me! Lan Zhan! What’s so funny? You owe me an explanation!”
“I don’t owe you an explanation,” Lan Wangji responded as he poured hot water from his teapot and added the pieces of puer. Wei Ying riled up was rather endearing.
"Wait? What? Why?" Wei Wuxan placed both feet on the ground and leaned himself over Lan Wangji’s tea. The liquor jar landed loudly on the table.
Lan Wangji added water, rinsed the tea, then added more water for brewing. He held back a grin. "You wouldn't like my answer."
“Lie to me then. We’re not in Cloud Recesses. Lying isn’t forbidden,” Wei Wuxian responded, eyes twinkling. He was certain he would be able to tell what Lan Wangji meant if Lan Wangji just gave an answer, any answer.
Lan Wangji looked at his husband as he allowed his tea to brew. "Fine. You dislike him because you see nothing of yourself in him."
“Of course I don’t see myself in him, Lan Zhan!” Wei Wuxian agreed. He then paused. Lan Zhan was supposed to be lying. What did he mean by that? “Wait, are you saying you think Jingyi is a lot like me? But how?!”
“People are often easily bothered by others with similar habits,” Lan Wangji said calmly as he poured his tea into his cup and took a careful sip. Good tea. Smooth, earthy, calming. Exactly what he needed before sleeping.
“Similar habits? Really?” Wei Wuxian thought out loud as he picked up his jar of liquor again.
“Mn. Loud. Forward. Honest. Brave. Brash. Jingyi may be slightly more polite.”
“Wow, Lan Zhan. Tell me how you really feel,” Wei Wuxian huffed.
“I love Wei Ying. I used to find you abrasive but I like how you are now. Jingyi has similar personality traits. Neither of you hesitate to protect people you love. Neither of you hesitate to speak out for others.”
Wei Wuxian thought about the odd Lan Junior. Maybe Lan Zhan was right. Maybe Jingyi was more similar to himself than he thought. He weighed the liquor jar in his hand. Determining it was empty enough, Wei Wuxian poured the rest of the liquor into his mouth. He’ll have to observe Jingyi more closely next night hunt.
For MDZS asks: General 3, Ships 2&6, Characters 1, Story 1&3.
Manhua, donghua, novel, live-action, or audio drama?
cql all the way. it came into my life first so it’s my favorite. i love them all, tbh. mdzs Q is exceptionally adorable too. i haven’t finished the others except the novel which i read too fast so don’t know the details too well. oops.
Describe a ship in five words.
that which sucked me in
If you could date any character from MDZS, who would you pick?
Oooh. uh... character... hm... can i just be happy with them dating each other? otherwise, if i were 16, i’d say ljy. hahahaha. i had an ex who didn’t talk much and made me feel like he didn’t like me. it wasn’t good. so even though i identify with wwx, lwj is not someone i’d date even if i’ve dated someone like lwj before. orz
You can bring one character back to life, but you must pick someone else to die in their place. Would you do it? How would this affect the story?
uh... xxc. xxc gets to live... he and song lan get to kill xue yang. everyone is happy over there. i guess a-qing is still dead... but maybe not if xxc didn’t die? sure. i’ll save her too as a consequence... and uh... kill sect leader ouyang during second burial mounds siege. oyzz can be traumatized so join jl and lsz on having no parents. it would really make him feel like one of the guys. and since a-qing lived, sect leader yao can die too. because he deserves it and everyone rejoices.
