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wei wuxian had to thank lan qiren for being so intolerant of his existence since it meant that he could spend most of his time in the cloud recesses learning how to airbend with the illustrious and highly intriguing lan wangji.
not that training with lan wangji was as exciting as his previous training with nie huaisang or wen qing, but it certainly beat sitting in a classroom for hours on end, listening to a monotone lecture about things he already knew. if he had to make an analogy to air, wei wuxian was more like a strong storm wind, as opposed to the gentle breeze lan wangji is and that other gusu lan sect members want to be.
after filling his daily quota of bothering jiang cheng from across the classroom and angering lan qiren to the point of kicking him out, wei wuxian walks with lan wangji to a place deep in the mountains where they usually train.
“so, what are we gonna do today, master lan? more meditation?”
“no.” lan wangji’s face remains blank as always, looking straight ahead.
“then are we finally going to airbend?!”
“no.”
wei wuxian pouts, “so then what are we doing?”
“dance.”
dance? the stiff and expressionless lan wangji is going to teach wei wuxian to dance?
of course, wei wuxian knows the gusu lan sect is well known for combining dance and traditional airbending to create the beautiful technique they’re known for, but even though lan wangji is an airbending prodigy, it’s hard to imagine someone with such a big stick up his ass like him dancing as gracefully and elegantly as he’s heard gusu lan airbenders can be. this is going to be interesting.
they soon reach their training ground. lan wangji takes off his outer robe, folding it neatly and placing it under a nearby tree. while he still has a lot of clothes on, there’s a faint sense of excitement in wei wuxian when he sees lan wangji wearing one less layer than usual.
“i didn’t know dancing was allowed in the cloud recesses.”
“only for training and enrichment.”
“huh? you can’t dance just for fun?”
“dancing is serious. take it as such.”
lan wangji stares right into wei wuxian’s eyes as he speaks, sending a shiver down wei wuxian’s spine. he shakes it off and groans loudly, “UGGHH!! the one time we get to do something fun and it’s not even fun!“
lan wangji sighs silently. he looks up and around at the trees, then sends a sharp gust of wind with a swipe of his arm, cutting leaves off of one of them. the leaves flutter to the ground, and he catches a leaf between two fingers. he looks back at wei wuxian, “first, watch.”
once lan wangji knows for sure that wei wuxian is paying attention, he tosses the leaf into the air with a small boost of air. the leaf floats up while lan wangji brings his heels together, hands palm down in front of his stomach. he takes a deep breath. the leaf starts to float back down as lan wangji begins to move.
the leaf drifts one way, so lan wangji follows by stepping out in the same direction, his foot brushing lightly across the ground. the leaf spins up from a slight breeze, so lan wangji also spins, bringing one leg up and spinning on the same foot he had previously stepped out in. his long hair and clothes move with him, creating a flourishing effect. the leaf sways back down, so lan wangji crouches down on his spinning leg, the lifted leg now straight and almost parallel to the ground. the leaf continues to move, so lan wangji follows with swift and graceful movements. when the leaf finally lands on the ground, lan wangji manages to finish the same way he started, not a hair out of place.
wei wuxian gapes at the display. “wow... lan zhan... that was really cool...” he then suddenly recalls the last conference between all the sects. before the main event, the bending tournament, had started, there was an opening performance by the twin jades of lan, a.k.a. lan wangji and his brother! “wait!! you were the one who performed at the last sect conference??”
lan wangji nods.
“oh how could i forget!! and here i thought you would be all stiff and stuffy when dancing but... what you just did was really amazing!!”
lan wangji’s eyes flash with emotion before he looks away. wei wuxian notes the dust of red on his ears. “aww, no need to be humble about it, master lan, take it in stride!!” wei wuxian laughs as lan wangji fixes him with a glare, ears turning even redder.
wei wuxian doesn’t remember the performance all too well since, at the time, he was too busy joking around with jiang cheng and nie huaisang as they sat in the audience section. in fact, most of his memory of the conference was overshadowed by the incident where he had pulled lan wangji’s forehead ribbon toward the end of the tournament (and he has half a mind to apologise again because it was just an accident and he honestly didn’t know it would be so troubling that lan wangji had to forfeit!). but of the few glimpses he did see of the performance, he remembers the twin jades being elegant and graceful in their dancing, just like lan wangji just was as he was following a mere leaf. wei wuxian thinks that, if he hadn’t been distracted, he would have been completely taken in by the performance. after all, if lan wangji only putting enough effort for a demonstration was enough to blow wei wuxian away, then that performance would probably have had him just swooning.
“you know, once i learn how to dance like they do here in gusu, i’ll know every dance in the main sects,” wei wuxian wheedles with a smirk, “maybe once we’re done with our training, i can show you how we dance in yunmeng!”
lan wangji hums noncommittally, staring blankly at wei wuxian.
“that’s not a ‘no’! so i’ll take this as you owing me a dance, master lan!”
lan wangji sighs inwardly, looking down at the ground. he throws out a gust of wind, effectively kicking up all the fallen leaves off the ground. he takes another leaf and looks back at wei wuxian, “now you try.”
wei wuxian grins, “yes, master lan!”
lan wangji’s eyebrows twitch, making wei wuxian grin even wider. lan wangji schools his face back into a blank expression and tosses the leaf into the air.
wei wuxian starts the same way lan wangji did—heels together, hands palm down in front of him. as the leaf starts moving, he does too. he tries to remember the ways in which lan wangji had moved and incorporate it in his own movements. a strong wave of his arm here, a swipe of his leg there, all within similar movements of the leaf. wei wuxian can tell a large part of his movements are just to show off to lan wangji, but he figures lan wangji will let it go since it’s only his first try. the leaf finally lands, and wei wuxian ends the same way he started, just like lan wangji.
wei wuxian exhales and looks up at lan wangji. “so, how was that?”
lan wangji blinks. “adequate. however... moves are too much like a waterbender.”
probably because i’m originally a waterbender, wei wuxian thinks, but he keeps himself from saying it out loud. it was too snarky, even for him. instead, he asks, “is that bad?”
lan wangji shakes his head minutely, “not bad... however... for the sake of airbending, it is better to... follow airbending styles. the movements of waterbenders are... heavier than that of airbenders... if you... do not break this habit now, it will... affect future training. it will become harder to... master airbending.”
wei wuxian considers lan wangji’s words seriously. it makes sense, and he has an idea of how he should do his next attempt. he smiles, “lan zhan, that was the most words i’ve ever heard you say at once.” wei wuxian holds back a laugh as he watches lan wangji’s eyebrows twitch and ears redden.
lan wangji picks out another leaf and simply instructs, “try again.”
wei wuxian nods and readies himself into the starting stance. lan wangji tosses the leaf into the air, and wei wuxian starts. the leaf moves one way, so wei wuxian steps in another direction, brushing the tip of his foot across the ground. the leaf sways another way, so wei wuxian spins on the foot he had stepped out in before, lifting one leg. he feels his ponytail and clothes follow his movements with a flourish. the leaf flips in the air, so wei wuxian crouches down, his lifted leg now straight and almost parallel to the ground. the leaf continues to move, and so does wei wuxian. it lands sooner than wei wuxian ends, his pose being the same as the one he started with. he huffs and looks up at lan wangji. “so, how was that?”
lan wangji blinks. “you did not complete the task. if you need to... imitate me, then i will allow you to do so for other exercises, and eventually, you will need to break that habit as well. however... you should know a leaf will not fall the same way as another. please follow directions next time.”
wei wuxian hums. “lan zhan, o lan zhan, airbending teacher of mine, you have yet to learn that i’m not one to follow directions, especially if those directions have loopholes—“ he smirks at the deep breath lan wangji takes “—but, for you, i will try to do the exercise properly this time. give me another leaf, master lan!”
lan wangji sighs, picking up another leaf. he tosses the leaf into the air. wei wuxian dances.
---
“come back to gusu with me.”
wei wuxian feels a flash of anger run through his mind as he hears those words. lan wangji has said them to him every time they’ve met since he came back from the burial mounds, and it makes him even more tired than he already is. he thought, after lan wangji had seen everything he’d done for the wens, lan wangji would leave it alone. but here he is, saying those same, sickening words to wei wuxian again.
“lan zhan...” wei wuxian starts, the exhaustion weighing down his words, “you saw that i can’t. they need me to help them, to lead them, to protect them. you should know better than anyone else how much the world hates them. if i leave, they’re as good as dead, and they haven’t even done anything wrong. this world is cruel enough to want this small group of elderly, women, and children dead, and i can’t—no, i won’t—let that happen. not while i’m alive.”
lan wangji is silent, staring at the ground with a slight pinch in his brow. wei wuxian looks at him; lan wangji looks as pristine as always, his clean white clothes shining in comparison to the desolate, dark atmosphere of the burial mounds. his hair is perfectly styled, his skin clear of imperfections, and if it weren’t for his furrowed eyebrows, he’d look perfect. a part of wei wuxian wants to smooth out the pinch in lan wangji’s brow, have the latter leave without the troubles wei wuxian has inadvertently let him witness. another darker part of wei wuxian thinks lan wangji deserves it—someone as perfect and righteous as him couldn’t really understand wei wuxian’s purpose, could he? if he did, he wouldn’t have asked wei wuxian to go to gusu with him. as if.
wei wuxian sighs, “i’m only here to see you off, so if that’s all you have to say—“
“wei ying,” lan wangji says sternly. he pauses, looking hesitant, but continues, “wei ying... finish your airbending training with me.”
wei wuxian raises his eyebrows. he never expected lan wangji to ever say that. wasn’t lan wangji glad that wei wuxian had left the cloud recesses earlier than expected? didn’t he hate being wei wuxian’s airbending teacher? didn’t he hate wei wuxian?
“isn’t this just another way of saying ‘come back to gusu with me’?” wei wuxian laughs bitterly.
“it does not have to be in gusu,” lan wangji states, still looking at the ground, “i can teach you here, if that is what you wish.”
wei wuxian wants to consider it, but his blackened heart tells him to refuse. “i don’t need it. i’ve mastered the other three elements, so i don’t need airbending. it’s the weakest element anyway.” as soon as he says it, he regrets it, the words leaving a foul taste on his tongue. wei wuxian was never the type to discriminate between elements because he had knows that each one has its own strengths and weaknesses—no one element was better than the other, and he knows that as the avatar. but something in him wanted to be hateful, wanted lan wangji to hate him more. he swallows the filth of his words and remains firm.
“wei ying,” lan wangji hisses, looking wei wuxian dead in the eye, “you cannot be a fully realised avatar without mastering airbending.”
“i don’t need to be a fully realised avatar! people already say i’m a disgrace, a stain, in the long line of great, peaceful avatars anyway, i might as well prove them right so they have something to keep gossiping about.”
“you are NOT—“ lan wangji face twists as his words catch in his throat. he takes deep and shaky breath, “wei ying, you are not a disgrace. you... when have you... you have never listened to what others say. why would you listen to them now?” he pauses, his eyes shifting as he looks for words to say. “you... if you master airbending, you will... be able to become more... powerful...” he sighs, his breath trembling “—if you... you can... better protect them if you master airbending... if you become a fully realised avatar... wei ying, please... finish your airbending training with me.”
wei wuxian feels his heart twinge at the sight of lan wangji, shaking, his face twisted into a frown, his eyes bloodshot. you made him like that. his mind graciously tells him, you cracked the illustrious, stoic, perfect lan wangji, second jade of lan. it’s what you always wanted, right? he shuts his eyes as his jaw and fists clench. he then takes a deep breath and releases all his tension. the tiredness settles back into his bones as his body relaxes. a deep sigh escapes him.
what lan wangji said makes sense. if wei wuxian wants to be strong enough to protect the wens, then mastering airbending would certainly help. however, he doesn’t know what lan wangji’s purpose is. is lan wangji scheming something against him? is he just going to kidnap wei wuxian as soon as he accepts and take him to gusu to be punished? will lan wangji do something to the wens out of revenge for their namesake having burned down the cloud recesses? what would lan wangji do, if wei wuxian accepted? what does he want from wei wuxian?
when wei wuxian looks into lan wangji’s eyes, he sees desperation. what could lan wangji possibly be so desperate for?
“i... will think about it,” wei wuxian finally says. it’s definitely not “yes,” but it’s not “no.”
wei wuxian’s answer is enough for lan wangji’s expression to change from desperate anger to pitiful hopefulness. lan wangji’s shoulders are still tense, but they’ve stopped shaking. wei wuxian gulps and turns away, not wanting to face whatever feelings lan wangji’s relief stirs in him.
the silence between them becomes too much, so wei wuxian breaks it, “did you have somewhere to stay, down in yiling?”
“no,” lan wangji says softly. the gentleness of his voice rings in wei wuxian’s ears.
“then... then come back up. you can stay with us for now. i’ll give you an answer within that time.”
lan wangji stares at him with an unknown emotion flooding his eyes. he blinks, the emotion disappearing behind his eyelids, then nods.
wei wuxian leads them silently back up the mound. a glow emanates from the area where the village is. although the burial mounds is always cold, there’s a warmth in the light, and it only gets stronger as he and lan wangji get closer. once they see the village, they find that red lanterns are hanging in front of each haphazard house, casting the entire area in a shade of orange.
now whose idea was this, i wonder, wei wuxian thinks with a soft smile. he turns to look at lan wangji, who had just walked up to wei wuxian’s side. the light, rather than making lan wangji look more radiant, makes him look softer. it’s hard to look away, and wei wuxian only does when lan wangji looks back.
looking up ahead, wei wuxian sees wen qing glaring at them, arms crossed. “what are you guys doing just standing there? come inside already,” she says bluntly.
“yes, ma’am!” wei wuxian shouts. wen qing rolls her eyes and scoffs, turning to go back into the main house. more light seems to be flooding from inside. wei wuxian smiles at wen qing’s reaction, but it falters as he looks at lan wangji. he nods at lan wangji, then leads him into the house.
wei wuxian is instantly greeted by cheers as everyone stands up and looks at him. “what’s all this then?” he grins.
“the lanterns are so your dumb ass doesn’t trip and fall when you go up and down the mountain,” wen qing explains, “but this was all organised because wen ning woke up, but also so you could finally eat with us. you’re always cooped up in your little cave and tinkering for hours on end, all the elders thought it was high time you sit down and just relax and have dinner with us.”
“ahh, so that’s what a-yuan meant when he said you guys were cooking something special tonight,” wei wuxian laughs.
“a-yuan ruined the surprise already? granny, you should scold him for spilling our secret!”
granny laughs at that, only pinching a-yuan’s cheek for punishment. a-yuan says a little “sorry,” though he doesn’t sound very apologetic.
wei wuxian just laughs heartily in response, his chest feeling fuller than it has in a long, long time. “it’s okay, a-yuan, rich-gege ended up staying because you said that,” he fibs, “okay, everyone! you can sit down and eat now, i have arrived!!”
everyone cheers as they sit down. wei wuxian leads lan wangji to sit in front of granny, a-yuan. wen qing comes and gives them all cups while wen ning serves them their food.
“it’s good to see you awake and back to normal, wen ning!” wei wuxian says, raising his empty cup to the man in question.
“ahh, it’s good to see you too, young master wei,” wen ning says with a small smile, his cheeks dusted a light red.
wei wuxian laughs, “oh i’ve really missed you, wen ning! oh and wen qing, why are the cups empty?”
“because i’ve prepared some of my special fruit wine!” fourth uncle exclaims, leaning over from his seat to show wei wuxian his big jug of wine.
“fourth uncle likes to drink just as much as young master wei does, so he’s perfected his wine,” wen ning explains.
“is that so? well then pour me some of that good alcohol, fourth uncle!” wei wuxian offers his cup so fourth uncle can pour wine into it. when he pulls his arm back, it brushes against lan wangji’s robes, making him jump. “ah, lan zhan, i almost forgot you were here, haha! here, do you also want some wine?”
lan wangji shakes his head.
“oh right, you gusu lan people don’t drink... i mean, you’re not in the cloud recesses, so you’re exempt from following all three thousand of those stupid rules, but i won’t force you.” wei wuxian knocks his cup of wine back, drinking it all in one shot. he exhales after he swallows, relishing in the sweetness on his tongue and the soft burn down his throat. “woo, fourth uncle! this is really is pretty perfect! not as good as gusu’s emperor’s smile, but hey! pour me another one, please!”
like that, wei wuxian continues to banter with the elders, wen qing, and wen ning, knocking back wine every other sentence. the alcohol makes him feel lighter, and the talking makes him feel happier. lan wangji remains silent, eating quietly and sipping at his water. wei wuxian doesn’t press lan wangji to talk, but he gets more comfortable sitting beside him, stops flinching whenever their arms brush against each other.
eventually, one of the aunties stands up and shouts, “you know what we need? some music and some dancing!!”
everyone cheers in agreement, and some of the uncles start gathering together with instruments (where they got them, wei wuxian doesn’t know, but he cheers them on anyway). music starts happening—wei wuxian doesn’t know if they had started playing a specific song, but he can recognise that it had the charm and twang of qishan sounds. he starts tapping his foot to the rhythm, and his hand itches toward his dizi before he sees aunties getting up and starting to dance. he whoops in surprise and excitement as more people started to join them. even granny and a-yuan had hit the dance floor, doing some semblance of a simple qishan dance.
wei wuxian gets up too, causing him to brush against lan wangji. he looks at lan wangji as he stands, his brain now trying to pull together what he’s feeling into something coherent. he gulps. he doesn’t know if it’s the alcohol talking, but there’s something in lan wangji’s golden eyes that’s piercing through him, wanting.
wanting what?
what does lan wangji want?
what is wei wuxian looking for?
wei wuxian pours himself another cup of wine (or, in this case, liquid courage) and takes the shot. he wipes his mouth with back of his hand and looks back at lan wangji, offering his other hand.
“lan zhan,” he says, his voice deep and resolute, “dance with me.”
lan wangji looks up at him with wide eyes. it takes a moment for him to answer, and in that time wei wuxian examins his features—his shaking pupils, the sharp lines of his face highlighted by the soft orange glow of the lantern lights, the redness on the tips of his ears. lan wangji looks between wei wuxian’s eyes and his hand, blinking. he then nods, standing up and taking wei wuxian’s hand. a shock of warmth runs from his fingertips up to his heart as their hands touch. a smirk finds its way onto wei wuxian’s face as he tugs lan wangji to the dancefloor.
“i know you know how to dance,” wei wuxian starts, setting lan wangji about one foot apart from him, “but do you know how they dance in qishan?”
lan wangji merely stares at wei wuxian, a challenging look in his eyes.
wei wuxian huffs out a laugh. listening to the makeshift drums being played, he takes lan wangji’s right wrist and puts his own against it. he starts walking in a circle. lan wangji follows him. wei wuxian then switches hands, and so does lan wangji. they walk in the opposite direction. wei wuxian then steps a foot out and lunges, keeping contact with lan wangji’s wrist. lan wangji follows. wei wuxian then swipes a foot across the floor. lan wangji matches him in almost the same exact time. wei wuxian straightens his legs, feet now shoulder width apart, and swipes his free hand at lan wangji’s head. lan wangji ducks quickly, and when he straightens back up he does the same to wei wuxian. wei wuxian then quickly tries to swipe his foot at lan wangji, who jumps up out of the way. lan wangji copies him once he lands on the ground.
“you’re a fast learner,” wei wuxian comments, now doing quick moves with his feet.
lan wangji hums, moving along with wei wuxian in almost perfect time.
wei wuxian and lan wangji switch wrists. they walk in a circle before wei wuxian slides his arm so that their elbows were touching. he then slides back. “it’s kinda funny, seeing someone in gusu lan robes dancing in qishan style.”
lan wangji hums again as he and wei wuxian switch wrists again.
wei wuxian spins quickly in place, only temporarily disconnecting their wrists before they met again. he hears the whine of a string instrument in the background that, in the thrill of the moment, he doesn’t immediately recognise. he really has to ask the elders where they had gotten these instruments. “think about it, lan zhan: hanguang-jun, dancing with the disgraced avatar to a style that would have been lost to time if all of the wens had been eliminated. isn’t it just hilarious?”
as lan wangji swipes at wei wuxian’s stomach, wei wuxian dodging, a flash of ... something crosses lan wangji’s eyes. they dance for a while before lan wangji finally says, “you are not a disgrace.”
lan wangji’s comment throws wei wuxian slightly off rhythm. he trips over his own feet and stumbles forward. he feels lan wangji’s hand grasp his, the other wrapping around wei wuxian’s waist. they end up in a position where lan wangji is looking down at wei wuxian, who’s being dipped over his arms.
they stay like that for a while, looking each other in the eyes and breathing heavily. wei wuxian can hear cheers in the background, but they fade away as lan wangji’s steals all of his attention. he flushes as he stares into lan wangji’s golden irises, feeling like lan wangji’s eyes were peering right into his soul. wei wuxian manages to break eye contact, instead settling on lan wangji’s plush and pink lips, parted as lan wangji breathes. wei wuxian gulps.
lan wangji pulls wei wuxian up, and due to the position of their arms, they end up almost chest to chest. wei wuxian can feel lan wangji’s breath puffing against his own from this distance. he flushes even deeper, a foreign feeling stirring in his stomach as he stares into lan wangji’s eyes. seconds pass before lan wangji spins wei wuxian out of his arms. wei wuxian catches himself, ending up facing lan wangji, who’s standing with his heels together. unexpectedly, a spark flies between them, and they bring their wrists back together, mutually deciding to dance together again.
they dance well into the night. wei wuxian makes note to commend the elders for playing the entire time he and lan wangji were dancing. but even then, the music soon starts to die, and all that was left was an erhu, playing slowly. the music it made left the atmosphere somber and almost eerie.
wei wuxian and lan wangji are only walking in a circle now, wrists touching. wei wuxian looks at the tables—most of them were empty now, as it seems that everyone had retired for the night. the only ones left were wen qing, wen ning, and the auntie playing the erhu. even among them, wen ning was already fast asleep on his sister’s shoulder, while wen qing was close to falling asleep herself. the erhu-playing auntie’s eyes were closed, and wei wuxian huffed to himself as the idea of the auntie playing the erhu in her sleep crossed his mind.
he looks back to lan wangji, who was already staring right at him. wei wuxian gulps, then stops walking. lan wangji also stops walking. they stand there, wrists connected, for only a moment before wei wuxian speaks up, “lan zhan.”
lan wangji hums.
“as auntie over there plays the erhu, care to indulge me with one last dance?”
lan wangji stares at him. his eyes glint in the light of the lanterns. “mn,” he hums, “one more dance.”
wei wuxian smiles softly. the notes of the erhu play into his ears as he takes his wrist away from lan wangji’s. he pushes hand against lan wangji’s, the other resting on lan wangji’s shoulder. lan wangji’s free hand automatically rests itself at wei wuxian’s waist. the sudden weight at his waist reminds wei wuxian of how thin he’s become. that in turn reminds him of good points in the day: meeting with lan wangji and eating a feast with him, then later having a feast with the wens. wei wuxian laughs quietly.
“sorry you had to pay earlier, by the way. i said it was my treat, yet i left you with the bill,” he says quietly to lan wangji, almost whispering. listening to the sounds of the erhu, wei wuxian starts moving, his feet following muscle memory.
lan wangji follows wei wuxian’s lead. “no need to apologise.”
“i feel bad though...” wei wuxian pouts playfully, “will you take this dance as repayment? might not be worth enough, but this is how you would slow dance in yunmeng. i’ve taught you two dancing styles already, and the second one has sentimentality, surely that’s enough?”
lan wangji says nothing in response, but wei wuxian doesn’t mind. although he’s long since sobered up (not that the alcohol affected him much anway), he knows he’s probably speaking nonsense anyway. instead, he focuses on guiding lan wangji through the dance. they sway to and fro, like the gentle waves of the water that surrounded lotus pier. wei wuxian slowly wraps his arm around lan wangji’s neck, bringing them closer together. there’s still something fluttering in his stomach as their distance lessens, but it’s unlike the fire from before. rather, it’s now like a river current, flowing steadily from his chest and out to the tips of his finger and toes and to the top of his head. for once, wei wuxian relishes in the relative quiet, the only sound being the gentle strokes of the erhu.
wei wuxian detaches himself for only a moment to spin under lan wangji’s arm. it’s then, when wei wuxian bring his arm back to lan wangji’s neck, that lan wangji says, “i owe you this.”
“hm? owe me what?” wei wuxian asks, looking up at lan wangji.
“i owe you this dance.”
wei wuxians looks deep into his memories to figure out what lan wangji could be talking about. a few shifts of his eyes and another spin, and it clicks.
“ah! you mean when we were still training together in the cloud recesses?”
lan wangji hums.
(“maybe once we’re done with our training, i can show you how we dance in yunmeng!...i’ll take this as you owing me a dance, master lan!”)
wei wuxian throws his head back as he laughs, loud but gentle. it fills the cave and the empty spaces between the erhu’s dying notes. “you actually took me seriously? ah, maybe we should have spent more time together, then you would have known i was only joking....” wei wuxian shakes his head, swaying with lan wangji more than they had before. a sigh flows out of wei wuxian, “but it doesn’t matter now, you’ve given me the dance you owed me, so i guess i should thank you.”
a second passes before lan wangji hums.
the erhu finally stops. wei wuxian looks into lan wangji’s eyes. they look less intense, the fire in his golden irises now simmered into a soft glow. wei wuxian squeezes lan wangji’s collar in the hand around his neck then lets go. reluctantly, he pulls his hand away. he looks at his other hand and raises his eyebrows—somehow their hands had gone from just palm to palm to interlocking fingers. warmth floods into wei wuxians cheeks as he pulls away a little more forcefully than he means to. lan wangji says nothing about it, though, so wei wuxian figures it was probably just his imagination.
wei wuxian looks back to the remaining people in the house. wen qing has fully fallen asleep, her head lying against her sleeping brother’s. erhu-playing auntie has also fallen asleep, though her bow is still in her hand. wei wuxian grins and goes to find blankets. unfortunately, he only manages to find one. he lays that blanket over auntie, and he uses his robe to lay over wen qing and wen ning. luckily, it was oversized enough that fit over both of them.
wei wuxian then looks back at lan wangji. he jerks his head toward the exit. lan wangji nods.
they head toward the demon-slaughtering cave together. when they arrive, wei wuxian stomps and raises his fists up, quickly bending a bed out of the earth.
“i know this isn’t gonna be what you’re used to, so sorry about that, but it’s the most i can do.” wei wuxian ends his sentence with a yawn. “if i’m sleepy, then it’s probably way past your usual bedtime. go ahead and sleep, lan zhan.”
lan wangji makes no move to lie on the makeshift earth bed. wei wuxian looks at him curiously. “do you really want me to find you something comfortable to lie on?”
lan wangji is silent. it settles uncomfortably in the air, but it’s nothing wei wuxian isn’t used to. he sighs, “ok, i guess i’ll—“
“wei ying,” lan wangji calls.
“hm? what is it?”
“...will you?”
“will i what?”
“finish your airbending training with me?”
wei wuxian blinks. the warm feelings he had just had were flushed out and replaced with exhaustion again. of course it would come back to this.
“i still haven’t made up my mind, maybe if i sleep on it i’ll have an answer.”
that seemed to end the conversation. lan wangji finally strips down to his inner robes and lies down on the makeshift bed, closing his eyes.
wei wuxian inhales slowly and sighs. he makes his way to his own bed and lies down. as sleep starts to tug on his eyelids, his mind wanders; what does lan wangji really want? what made him look so desperate when he was arguing with wei wuxian? why was lan wangji still here? what does lan wangji want?
sleep eventually overcomes wei wuxian. that night, he dreams of falling leaves, fluttering robes, and dancing.