Chapter Text
Living in this new manor had taken a little getting used to, but with He Xuan by his side, nothing felt like much of a challenge. Even after months of living with him, Qingxuan was delighted each morning when he was able to wake beside He Xuan, and every night when he’d sleep, fall on the other’s arm, it felt like heaven. Plus, as the nights had been getting colder, Qingxuan found He Xuan holding him closer every night– what wasn’t there to love?
Sure, sometimes he’d call our for Geng Yi by accident, but that was only once a few months, and He Xuan never seemed to mind. Qingxuan did, though, he minded alot. It ate away at him, he knew He Xuan and he knew their past– a little mistake like that was no doubt hurtful to a man who’d take it with a smile, seeing it as some form of a divine reminder. Even if He Xuan was okay with it, Qingxuan hated it. More than the simple accidental name-calling calling though, Qingxuan hated his dreams.
He hated when his mind would flutter away to distant memories when he followed Ming Yi around without a clue to the resentment bubbling within the other, and Qingxuan hated when his mind slipped back into that cozy cave he once shared with Lianghuang. He felt so guilty each time his subconscious longed for those acts He Xuan had put on. The real man was here. Why, when he had him here, could Qingxuan’s mind not stop wandering? Was he too greedy? Was this just something he would always live with? An inability to move on had always plagued Qingxuan, but this final nail in the coffin seemed unnecessary.
Even still, Qingxuan would shake all self-resentment and worry each morning when he would look upon He Xuan’s sleeping face basking in the morning sun’s gentle rays. That was one rule Qingxuan had instated when he’d come back; when they slept, it would always be together, and He Xuan would always sleep on the side further from the window so Qingxuan could have a pretty view to wake to. He always woke first anyways.
Upon waking up this morning, Qingxuan decided to stay in bed and watch his lover a little longer. It was quite cold out, and with winter in full swing, getting out from underneath the warm blankets–slipping out from He Xuan’s embrace–sounded simply too miserable. He wrapped a lock of He Xuan’s hair around his finger and spun it gently. of course, Qingxuan found He Xuan handsome in any form, but seeing the other with long hair again filled Qingxuan with so much joy. Seeing that the other had pride in his life, in himself, Qingxuan smiled each day, and it grew a little longer. Additionally, he liked finding hair pieces to adorn He Xuan with, but that was beside the point.
It wasn’t long that Qingxuan lay in soft silence before He Xuan awoke, and while he was sad to see the pretty sleeping face go away, Qingxuan got over that quickly when He Xuan leaned forward and kissed Qingxuan. His lips were slightly cold, but that sensation melted moments after they connected with Qingxuan’s own. And, as Qingxuan felt He Xuan’s arms pull him in close from behind, the notion of ‘cold’ became a distant memory.
Leaning his head back, but not relenting his embrace, He Xuan gave Qingxuan a smile, “Good morning.” His voice was deep and a little gravely as it was each morning, but Qingxuan definitely did not mind.
Nestling his head into the crook of He Xuan’s elbow, Qingxuan answered, “It certainly is.” Since when had he become such a sap for domestic life? Oh, yeah. Since the second, he ran back into He Xuan’s arms. “What will you be up to today?” Qingxuan asked as he felt one of He Xuan’s hands gently caressing the back of his head.
“Mmm, not much,” He Xuan answered slowly. Qingxuan loved that their life could be like this. Simple daily plans, no rush to go anywhere, or consider anything they did the last of that anything. “Xue Cong and Le Duo got back from their trip yesterday, right? And Xiao Ming, the day before that too,” He Xuan, having had taken such good care of his friends while Qingxuan was away, only made this ghost seem hotter to the former god. “So, if they are back and able to run the manor for the day, we can finally have some time together, hmm?”
The relatively roundabout way of asking for a date brought layers of joy to Qingxuan's face, “Mhm, I like that idea,” He said, opening his eyes once more and looking to He Xuan, who was smiling down at him. “But, what should we do today? It’s frigid outside, and the snow is just about up to my knees.” He quite liked the idea of just sitting in front of a fire with He Xuan all day.
“Well, we can always go out into the snow. Did you ever play in it as a kid?” He Xuan asked; he no doubt knew this would be a topic where Shi Wudu got brought up, but he didn’t mind that anymore. He found himself flinching less at that name with each mention, what little brainspace he devoted to the former water tyrant these days was mostly the cute memories Qingxuan relayed to him. Stories like their tea times under the plum blossoms, or of extravagant gifts Shi Wudu would so nonchalantly give to Qingxuan that sometimes even Qingxuan didn’t realise their worth. He Xuan remembered the man as a good brother to the one he loved, since it was the only memory of that man that carried any value anymore.
“No, we never did. I was usually holed up inside by the fire when it got cold, and he was usually too busy during the winters to worry about playing with me. Sometimes once we’d gotten to heaven he’d take me for walks in the snow. He would always take his fan and with one flick form the snow into firm bricks beneath our feet so that none would sneak into my shoes– that is to say we never played in it, why? Did you used to?”
“Yeah, my mom used to make snowmen with me and have me name them after important scholars as a fun way to test how many I could name,” He Xuan answered back. He paused for a minute before asking, “Would you like to go on a walk through the snow later?”
“Maybe, or maybe we should try these snowmen guys out?” Qingxuan answered with a smile, “How have I never tried something so seemingly fun before!?”
* * *
When the two did get outside, after a hearty breakfast from Xue Cong and donning the proper layers, the icy breeze nipping at their noses gave He Xuan such a pretty pink flush in the face.
“So, how do we start one of these guys?” Qingxuan asked He Xuan as he leaned on the other’s shoulder. They had found a nice spot of unblemished snowfall not too far from the manor, yet still far enough where they had plenty of peace and quiet. They were beneath the twiggy branches of a plum tree; there were quite a few around the island. He Xuan had quite taken a liking to them after Qingxuan’s story, and Qingxuan didn’t mind the reminder of his brother. The two were still a long way from the end of winter, yet He Xuan was eager for the trees to bloom once more; he waited to sit beneath them with Qingxuan once more.
“You’ll have to make their biggest section first, we’ll need three balls in total, decreasing in size as they go,” He Xuan said as he knelt and grabbed a fist full of snow, forming it into a small, fist-sized ball. “Here, start with this and roll it in the snow till it gets bigger,” He Xuan said, handing the ball to Qingxuan before preparing another one for himself.
The snowball was cold in Qingxuan’s hands. He foolishly hadn’t brought gloves like He Xuan had and was adamant to refuse the other man’s constant offers to share. Dropping the ball to the floor, Qingxuan pulled out his fan and gently waved it side to side, blowing the ball around the field with the breeze. He was careful not to roll in one direction for too long lest the ball become uneven. “He Xiong! Look, isn’t that cute?” Qingxuan said, pointing to the ball as it rolled around, writing out 玄.
He Xuan smiled softly and nodded before looking towards the ball he had taken responsibility for rolling. Qingxuan’s eyes followed He Xuan’s gaze. A little snow creature, barely anything more than a lump of limbs, was rolling the ball around with impressive jumps and leaps as it did so, clearly writing out something in the snow, but its scope was too big for Qingxuan to see on the ground. Flicking his fan out again, Qingxuan fanned himself gently and rose into the air, held up by a small snowy tornado. He watched as the little creature finished rolling his ball, a ball considerably larger than Qingxuan’s, and gave a curt nod to He Xuan before slumping back into the snow from whence it came. Qingxuan then turned his eyes to the writing in the snow and saw a message considerably longer than the single shared character Qingxuan had made.
我永远是你的朋友
Qingxuan’s jaw dropped as he looked down towards He Xuan, who was subtly smirking. Lowering himself back to the ground, Qingxuan walked over to his ‘life long friend’. Wrapping his arms around the other, Qingxuan stood on his tip toes and placed a quick kiss on the other’s lips. “You’re more than my best friend now, He Xuan, you’re much more than that.”
“I know,” He Xuan smiled before lifting the other to his level and kissing him once more. Even with just a few words and a sentence in the snow, Qingxuan felt more loved than anyone on the planet. He loved his He Xuan, and loved everything about him.
When He Xuan placed Qingxuan’s feet back onto the snow, Qingxuan looked over his shoulder to the two balls and with a flick of his fan lifted his on top of He Xuan’s. “Well, we need one more than, right?”
He Xuan nodded and quickly formed another snow creature, who rolled a third ball, which Qingxuan then placed atop it.
“Now what? The guy looks so cute already!” Qingxuan said, leaning into He Xuan as they gazed upon their so far plain creation.
“Now we will give him a face and arms, and anything else you’d like, really,” He Xuan said. He then pulled a long carrot from his pocket, and a handful of coal too. The little snow creature quickly came over and grabbed the items and looked expectantly toward Qingxuan, who, with a chuckle, sent a breeze to lift the guy into the air over to the quickly forming snowman. He carefully guided the creature around as he placed two eyes, a mouth and a smile upon the top ball and then a few lumps around the second ball’s lower half like a belt.
“Take it to the top,” He Xuan said to Qingxuan. After doing so, Qingxuan watched the little creature form itself into an imperial crown upon the snowman’s head. “Now all he needs are arms,” He Xuan said, raising a palm as two small daggers rose out of the snow, daggers which he quickly sent towards a nearby plum tree, snapping off small branches. He Xuan gestured for Qingxuan to follow him, and the two walked over and picked up a branch each. Qingxuan again followed He Xuan over to their snowman, and they each placed a branch on the opposing sides of their creation.
“Now, we’re done,” He Xuan said, taking a step back.
However, as Qingxuan stepped beside him, he piped up, “Not quite.” Qingxuan pulled off his teal coat and sent the fur-lined garment to wrap over the shoulders of the snowman. “Now it’s all complete,”
He Xuan smiled, wrapping an arm around Qingxuan and pulling him in close as the two gazed fondly upon their creation. “Should we go back in now?” He asked after a short while, “Or did you want to go for a walk about?”
“No, inside is good,” Qingxuan said quickly, huddling closer to He Xuan, “hold me tighter, I’m freezing.”
He Xuan took his cloak off and placed it around Qingxuan’s shoulders.
“That doesn’t get you out of holding me close,” Qingxuan said as they began walking.
Wrapping his arm around Qingxuan, He Xuan’s face grew a soft smile while he pulled the other in close, “I know.”
When they had almost reached the manor once more, Qingxuan looked back at their creation standing guard over the empty field. “Let’s make him a friend tomorrow,”
“Of course,” He Xuan answered.
“I love you,” Qingxuan said as he turned his eyes forward.
“I love you too,” He Xuan looking down towards Qingxuan. The blush on his face from the cold looked adorable.
“I love you more,” Qingxuan said, leaning up and kissing He Xuan quickly before leaning down and smiling up at the man he was lucky enough to love.
He Xuan pulled Qingxuan back up and kissed him deeply, arms wrapped tightly around Qingxuan’s back. For a moment, Qingxuan forgot they were in the blistering cold, he forgot just about everything except for the man in front of him. When He Xuan set Qingxuan back down, he spoke calmly, words that would send Qingxuan’s heart into a frenzy. “You can try to, but I’ll always win.”
Qingxuan’s pale skin flushed pinker than the plum blossom as he looked towards the manor and leaned his head on He Xuan’s shoulder, “You like to lift me up, huh?”
There were a few moments of silence as they walked before He Xuan answered him, “It’s more that I set you back down,”
As they entered the manor and stamped the snow off their feet, Qingxuan looked around. He looked about this place he once abhored above all else, and realised that this was now the happiest place for him in all three realms. This was his home, his home for all seasons; it was his home because it had He Xuan in it.