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Lan Wangji stops briefly in two small villages along the road before he finds a larger town where his description of Wei Wuxian finally gets the results he's looking for.
"Ah, yes, with the donkey. He was an odd one; kept saying he needed to leave, but lingered for several hours after breakfast. I honestly don't know where he was headed; he kept looking east, but I thought I saw him heading west out of town."
He thanks the innkeeper, pays for his meal, and is out the door before the man has even had time to pocket his earnings.
The road meanders a bit through these parts; there are numerous paths offshooting the main road leading to nearby villages, estates, streams, and other points of interest. Lan Wangji has to suppress the urge to closely investigate each trail, just in case Wei Wuxian had taken a liking to one of them. Instead he mostly flies over the main road, though he occasionally circles out in a wide arc, eyes scanning the horizon for the shape of a slender young man and his donkey.
It's on one such arc that the faint strains of music reaches his ear. It's a song he's been playing, been hearing in his dreams for two decades, and he doesn't hesitate to heed its call now.
He finds Lil' Apple first, staked in a field munching happily on clover and sweetgrass. The donkey raises its head at Lan Wangji's approach, but doesn't seem overly concerned by his arrival, merely swiveling a long ear in his direction before resuming its meal.
The sight of Wei Wuxian, silhouetted against the sky as he plays near the edge of a cliff, is enough to make Lan Wangji's breath catch in his throat. He knows it's silly, knows he saw him only days before, but he can't deny the relief that washes over him just for seeing Wei Wuxian and knowing he's safe.
The image of Wei Wuxian at another cliff's edge flashes through Lan Wangji's mind, the memory somehow only sharpened by time and grief. A sudden need to see his face, to touch the living warmth of him and know he's really here has Lan Wangji stepping off of his sword into the soft grass behind Wei Wuxian.
"Wei Ying."
As soon as he says it, he wishes he could take the words back, snatch them out of the silence that hangs between them as Wei Wuxian lowers his flute. It feels like it takes an eternity for Wei Wuxian to turn; he stares at Lan Wangji for a long moment, eyes wide, before a smile spreads across his lips, as bold and bright and beautiful as ever.
"I am sorry," Lan Wangji says after a moment. "I should not have interrupted."
"Nonsense," Wei Wuxian protests. "It's your song, isn't it? You can interrupt it when you want to."
Lan Wangji's instinct is to protest, to say it's their song, but he still hasn't actually found a way to tell Wei Wuxian that, so instead he simply inclines his head.
"Lan Zhan missed me so much he came to see me after just a few days," Wei Wuxian says, a grin teasing at his lips. Lan Wangji doesn't see a point in arguing the truth.
"Mn."
Wei Wuxian blinks in surprise but recovers quickly, smiling as he brushes past Lan Wangji.
"We should hurry on, then, if we want to make it to an inn by sundown."
They walk side by side for a bit in comfortable silence, then after a while Wei Wuxian hops up into Lil' Apple's saddle and plays some music to fill the time. He wanders from sad, haunting melodies to jaunty tunes. He's in the middle of something slow and soothing when the next town comes into view, a smattering of low buildings clustered along the road, silhouetted against the setting sun.
Town is probably a bit generous for what they've encountered; it is at best a small village, held together by a handful of enterprising locals and the coin of travelers passing through on the main road. As such, there is a small but serviceable tavern boasting a few tables and clean, if small, rooms upstairs.
Within the space of a few minutes, Lan Wangji has arranged a room for them, dinner, and stabling for Lil' Apple. He ensures there's a couple bottles of liquor included with the dinner tray, daring to hope it might make what he has to say go a little easier, especially if it isn't received as well as he might hope.
When Lan Wangji enters with the dinner tray, Wei Wuxian is already in the room, poking around curiously and placing a couple of protective talismans on the windows. Lan Wangji raises his eyebrows at that, and Wei Wuxian shrugs.
"People know who I am now, and there's probably still some out there with grudges," he reasons. "I figured since I'm traveling alone…" He trails off, shrugging. He looks out the window for a moment before turning back to Lan Wangji with a bright smile. "Not alone tonight, though — and you even bought me dinner! You always did like buying me things," he laughs.
Lan Wangji sets about setting the food out, placing the tea on his side and the liquor on Wei Wuxian's. Wei Wuxian sets into the food hungrily, eyes crinkling at Lan Wangji across the table.
"So did you see a gap in your schedule and decide to travel out to see me, or…" There's an unspoken question there, something fragile behind the happiness in Wei Wuxian's eyes.
"I emptied my schedule," Lan Wangji says. He pauses, then adds, "For the foreseeable future."
Wei Wuxian's eyes go wide at that, and he slowly sets his chopsticks down, heedless of the rice tumbling back into the bowl.
"But you're the clan leader."
"I was. No more."
"Zewu-Jun ended his seclusion?"
Lan Wangji inclines his head. "Mn."
"Huh." Wei Wuxian resumes eating for a moment, frowning thoughtfully as he chews. "I didn't expect him to emerge so soon," he admits. "Or, if he did, to want to take his responsibilities back. You were doing well," he adds, almost defensively. It makes Lan Wangji's lips quirk up into a small smile.
"He said as much himself," he assures Wei Wuxian. He sets his own chopsticks down; he hasn't eaten anything anyway. He can't, with the way his stomach is all twisted up. He keeps his eyes steady on Wei Wuxian as he adds, "he also said he knew I'd rather be out here with you. He was right."
"Ah," Wei Wuxian says as he looks down at the table. "What is it they used to say about you? “Hanguang-Jun appears wherever the chaos is?” " He looks up with a small smile. "Your brother knows you well. I'm glad you're free to travel, now."
"I'd like to travel with you," Lan Wangji says, in a bit of a rush.
"Where are you going?" Wei Wuxian asks. He's oddly still, his eyes fixed on the table. Lan Wangji swallows back his fear, his pride, all of it, and plunges on ahead.
"Wherever you go," he says firmly. "If you will have me. My only destination was you."
Wei Wuxian's eyes go wide.
"Oh," he breathes. "I mean, yes. Of course." He huffs out a laugh. "And here I thought Lan Zhan might be enjoying the peace and quiet away from me."
"Wei Ying, I have no peace without you," Lan Wangji admits quietly. "I had no peace for 16 years. It was enough."
"You were raising our son for those years," Wei Wuxian teases, though his expression is soft. "Children aren't meant to be peaceful."
The words our son makes something flutter in Lan Wangji's chest, something he hasn't allowed himself to look at too closely. The thought of a home filled with their children flickers through his mind, and he resists the urge to chase after it and grasp it with both hands, instead refocusing on the man in front of him.
"Wei Ying," he starts, a bit awkwardly, because he has never been good at asking for what he wants. "I would travel with you however you'll allow it."
"Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan!" Wei Wuxian protests, pouting a little. Lan Wangji wants to kiss the expression off his lips. "You say that as if I didn't just agree happily!"
"I would travel with you however you'll allow it," Lan Wangji repeats, a bit more firmly. "But if it would make you happy, I would do so as cultivation partners."
Wei Wuxian stares across at Lan Wangji for a long moment, eyes wide, before he stands, stalking across the room with such purpose that Lan Wangji briefly worries that he's leaving, so he stands as well. Wei Wuxian only goes to the window, though, before he whirls back around, fabric swirling around his legs as he points almost accusingly at Lan Wangji.
"You want to be cultivation partners?" he asks. "With me?"
"Who else?" Lan Wangji tosses back at him, his nerves getting the better of him for a moment. "Yes, you. Of course it's you. It was always you." Wei Wuxian's continued silence brings all the doubts in his mind to the forefront, so a moment later he adds, "If you don't want—"
"Of course I want," Wei Wuxian interrupts him, shocking him into silence.
"You do?"
"Yes," Wei Wuxian says firmly. "Only, I'm not sure how I feel about marrying someone who's never even bothered to kiss me,"
Lan Wangji is across the room in three long strides, crowding into Wei Wuxian's space. He has the briefest moment to register Wei Wuxian's sharp intake of breath before he's leaning in, pressing their lips together in a kiss he's been imagining for over half of his life.
His fingers itch to bury themselves in Wei Wuxian's hair, to feel the soft weight of it in his hands, but instead he gently cups his face, his thumbs brushing over sharp cheekbones. He keeps the kiss simple and sweet, then pulls back just far enough to meet Wei Wuxian's eyes.
"Good?" he asks after a beat, and Wei Wuxian's eyes crinkle in a smile.
"Good," Wei Wuxian agrees. "But we can do better."
With that, he hooks an arm around Lan Wangji's neck, dragging him in for another kiss. This one is different; open-mouthed, full of searing passion and near-desperation.
I could drown in him, Lan Wangji thinks helplessly as Wei Wuxian makes a sound of pleasure deep in his chest. I could fall into him, never come up for air, and never regret a second of it.
They do part eventually, though, each of them breathing heavily. Wei Wuxian's hair is in wild disarray from Lan Wangji's wandering fingers, and his kiss-swollen lips are curved up into a smirk.
Lan Wangji thinks he's never looked more beautiful.
"Wei Ying," he says, and he can hear the longing in his own voice. It seems ridiculous; his hands are still on Wei Wuxian, his mouth full of the taste of him, and still he wants more. "Please."
"Yes," Wei Wuxian. He laughs a little, his breath washing over Lan Wangji's face. "I'd have to be a fool to say no, even if I didn't love you. Which I do," he adds, as if it should be obvious. "You walked the narrow path with me, you raised our son, you believed me. I love you, Lan Zhan. How could I not?"
Lan Wangji is too overcome to think, too full of emotion to string words together, so instead he kisses Wei Wuxian once more.
He's never been very good at asking for what he wants, but as Wei Wuxian tugs him back toward the bed, eyes full of mischief and lips curving over the word husband in a way that makes Lan Wangji's heart stutter in his chest, he sends a silent thank-you to his brother in the lonely halls of Cloud Recesses for encouraging him to ask for this.