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Chapter Text

Wei Wuxian loves getting his fortune told. 

It’s not like he’s actively seeking out what his future will be— he knows if he hears something he doesn’t like, he’ll simply change it. It’s more because he loves seeing fortune tellers get flustered when they try to divine the future of the man that sits in front of them. 

His favourite type of fortune telling is palmistry. He can tell when someone is a genuine palm reader because they’ll look at his palm and see a life that’s already ended. They’ll twist his hand under the light of the lamp, frowning until they finally send him off with a refund, furiously muttering under their breath about a re-education. 

Wei Wuxian’s second favourite type is the one that exists simply to fleece locals. He’s not quite sure what he likes more— the flourish, the glimmer in the eyes, the way they confidently deliver fortunes even as he divulges information that is clearly and blatantly wrong. That’s what he’s dragged Lan Wangji in to do today.

It’s a bright and sunny out, and they’re sitting at a small stall that’s been propped up beside a fish-seller in Caiyi. It has thin red curtains as an entry way in lieu of a door and smells strongly of sandalwood and lavender. Wei Wuxian saw a few people clamouring around the stall, which only has a giant golden fish painted onto its sign, and decided to give it a go. Lan Wangji followed, as he does, and now they sit in front of an elderly lady as she shakes a canister of thin bamboo sticks.

“Fortuitous,” she says as she presses an ear to the canister, and Wei Wuxian tries to look like he’s buying it and that she’s doing it correctly. Lan Wangji for his part sits beside him, face as placid as ever, finger curling around Wei Wuxian’s under the table.

The fortune teller shakes the canister one more time, and a short bamboo stick falls out. It’s sharp and dipped in red, and has one number sloppily scrawled over another, as if the first one was in error. The lady picks it up and hums a mysterious note. The tip of the stick bursts into a small flame before dying out, and she smiles. 

“Good fortune awaits you,” she says in a raspy voice, quite different than the one they heard her chatting with the fishmonger in before they approached. “Quite sooner than you think, young master.”

“Good fortune?” Wei Wuxian says eagerly, and the woman nods. “Tell me more, auntie. I need to know.”

She remains silent and gives him a pointed look. Her eyes briefly flicker to Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian doesn’t even have to turn to him before Lan Wangji pushes a small coin towards the woman. 

“It will come today,” the fortune teller says sagely, and Wei Wuxian blinks. “In fact, it will come in a few moments. You just have to look.”

She tips her chin and Wei Wuxian follows her direction, looking over his shoulder through the translucent curtains of her stall. He almost falls out of his chair. 

“Eh?” Wei Wuxian whips around and waves a hand in the direction of the entrance. “You call that good fortune?”

“Wei Ying,” Lan Wangji admonishes but the fortune teller gives a genial smile. In the background, Wei Wuxian can hear the faint noise of Jiang Cheng trying and failing to bargain with the fishmonger.   

“That’s not any sort of good fortune,” Wei Wuxian says, and reaches forward to pluck the bamboo stick out of her hand. “Why are there fours scribbled all over this? Isn’t that a bad thing?”

“Are you doubting me?” There’s more ice to the woman’s voice now, and she narrows her eyes. 

“That man showing up here is not a sign of good luck,” Wei Wuxian brandishes the stick and can feel Lan Wangji’s strong desire to roll his eyes. “Try again, auntie.”

“I will not,” the reply is prim. “I said what I said, young man.”

“What kind of fortune teller are you?” Wei Wuxian hisses, familiar panic churning in the pit of his stomach. He always feels like he needs a few days to prepare for the emotional whirlwind of meeting his brother again. “If you could truly tell fortunes you would know I’m now in for a series of beatings. Good luck? For who?”

The woman’s eyes narrow further, and Wei Wuxian almost misses the way the canister starts to rattle on the table.

“I am never wrong,” the lady replies, rasp completely gone. “I make sure of it.”

“We’ll take our leave Madam,” Lan Wangji says politely, his soft touch under the table turning into a warning grip around Wei Wuxian’s hand. Wei Wuxian nods and gets up with his husband, ready to leave when he sees the woman’s finger twitch. 

It happens fast— the woman feints towards Wei Wuxian but directs the blast towards Lan Wangji, who throws a talisman out. The spell burns through it and gets him in the chest anyways, and Wei Wuxian’s eyes widen. 

He launches towards the woman without a second thought, crashing across the table with no finesse. She ducks easily, belying her age and Wei Wuxian follows. He almost gets her when— 

There’s a soft sound from behind him, inhuman in nature. It comes from where Lan Wangji is, and Wei Wuxian turns his head over his shoulder to see where it comes from. 

The blood drains from his face. All rational instinct flies out the window and— Lan Wangji isn’t even there for Wei Wuxian to jump into his arms. 

Because that’s Lan Wangji. 

Wei Wuxian opens his mouth and screams. 

There’s a loud poof that resonates through the marketplace, large grey smoke billowing out from beside the fishmonger’s stall. Immediately, the man in purple who had been arguing with the fishmonger darts towards the commotion. 

And runs headfirst into Wei Wuxian, knocking their heads together. Wei Wuxian groans and presses the heel of his palm against the bridge of his nose. 

“Wei Wuxian!” Jiang Chen exclaims, rubbing his head and glaring at him. “You-”

“Jiang Chen!” Wei Wuxian whips around to stare at the stall. Or where the stall was. All that’s left is smoke and…

People are standing around and staring, while Jiang Cheng brushes off dust from his clothes. Wei Wuxian pays attention to none of it, staring at the pile of immaculate white and blue robes sitting where Lan Wangji once was.

Is.

“Lan Zhan?” Wei Wuxian whispers, and the dog standing on top of the pile of clothes perks an ear. Jiang Cheng freezes beside him, and the dog takes one step forward. There’s a familiar white ribbon hanging around its neck, and it looks none too impressed.

“Wei Wuxian,” Jiang Cheng says again, but Wei Wuxian is too busy with his duelling instincts to run away from a dog but run towards his husband. “Wei Ying, what’s going on?”

“I uh,” Wei Wuxian thinks he’s going to faint. The dog - Lan Wangji - gives one sharp, commanding bark, and he does.

Wei Wuxian is spoiled. He knows this. He’s used to waking up to Lan Wangji’s serene, beautiful face every morning telling him he’s slept in yet again. Wei Wuxian’s never been more aware of this as he is in this moment, as he wakes up to Jiang Cheng’s scowling face and a smack to the side of his head.

It’s followed by the lick of a long tongue against Wei Wuxian’s temple that’s decidedly not Jiang Cheng. Thankfully. 

Wei Wuxian startles and sits up and Jiang Cheng shifts out of the way. 

“What happened?” Wei Wuxian blinks and Jiang Cheng shoots him an unimpressed look. Something shifts behind Wei Wuxian and hops off the bed, and Wei Wuxian’s eyes widen. So he wasn’t dreaming. 

Lan Wangji stares back at him, eyes as piercing gold as ever. Of all the things his husband had to turn into, Wei Wuxian thinks he must have angered a new god for Lan Wangji to turn into a giant grey wolf-dog. 

“That’s what I should be asking you,” Jiang Cheng raises an eyebrow. “Your Hanguang-Jun does not seem to be his usual self.”

“He was cursed,” Wei Wuxian says, eyeing Lan Wangji nervously. They’re lucky his love for Lan Wangji is so strong that even deeply seated cynophobia cannot uproot it. “We were seeing a fortune teller and she got upset and cursed me.”

“You angered a fortune teller?” Jiang Cheng asked and Wei Wuxian nods furiously.

“She told me that I would stumble across good fortune,” Wei Wuxian explains. “I saw you out the window shortly and called her a hack.”

Jiang Cheng makes an angry, indignant noise but Wei Wuxian waves him off and continues. “Next thing you know, Lan Zhan’s turned into a dog and now I don’t know what to do .”

Wei Wuxian expects Jiang Cheng to box him around the ears, call him an idiot or maybe laugh at his misfortune. Instead, Jiang Cheng’s eyebrows twitch violently for a few seconds like he’s trying to suppress all his emotions.

“Hmm,” Jiang Cheng replies instead. Wei Wuxian braces for a reprimand, but the room lapses into a silence. 

Absent-mindedly, Jiang Cheng reaches out and drums his fingers against Lan Wangji’s forehead, before lightly scratching it. Slowly, Lan Wangji turns his head to look up at Jiang Cheng. Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian both freeze; Jiang Cheng immediately whips his hand away while Wei Wuxian makes a choking sound.

Slowly and as angrily regal ever, Lan Wangji gets up and slowly walks towards the door of the room. He sits down on his haunches, facing the two of them with a “ Well? ” expression. Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian exchange a look, unsure, and Lan Wangji heaves a sigh that sounds oddly long-suffering, coming from a dog.

Wei Wuxian furiously prays that this is all a fever dream. 

The trek back to the Cloud Recesses is one filled with pain. 

Wei Wuxian has managed to keep a handle on himself, for the sake of his husband. Lan Wangji walks in front of them, ears flitting around to catch  the different sounds. His senses must be heightened, but he still moves with as much propriety as he does when he is human.

“I’m in for a big punishment,” Wei Wuxian says to no one in particular. “Lan Qiren will probably hang me by my toes.”

Lan Wangji looks over his shoulder up at Wei Wuxian, but Wei Wuxian can’t read such a stern face coming from such a terrifying creature. 

“Each step you take towards the Cloud Recesses is penance,” Jiang Cheng says gravely, in the way many sect leaders do when they attempt to act like they have an understanding of whatever situation is at hand.

“A thousand curses have befallen me Jiang Cheng,” Wei Wuxian snorts. “Each step you took towards Gusu was one.”

Jiang Cheng punches Wei Wuxian’s arm in retaliation, while Wei Wuxian tries to reach and pinch his ear. Jiang Cheng slaps his hand out of the way, and Wei Wuxian’s about to see if he can clock him in the jaw when a sharp bark interrupts them.

Wei Wuxian makes a strangled sound but the one who he normally hides behind when he sees a dog is now a dog , and it’s sending a lot of conflicting signals throughout his brain. 

“At least he makes a handsome dog,” Jiang Cheng finally says. The words sound stilted, like he’s trying to force himself to sound comforting. 

“He makes a more handsome man,” Wei Wuxian says mournfully. “How am I going to explain this to anyone in the Cloud Recesses? I’ll really be thrown out for good. You’ll have to take me back to Yunmeng.”

“You wish,” Jiang Cheng snipes but there’s not a lot of heat in it. “I suppose we should find the sorceress.”

After Wei Wuxian had passed out, Jiang Cheng had let him lie on the street for a bit while he investigated the stall. There had been no trace whatsoever that a fortune teller had been there— even the fishmonger had looked confused when the three of them stopped by later, and had said there had never been a stall there in the first place.

There was no curse mark on Lan Wangji either. Jiang Cheng had done a thorough inspection, Wei Wuxian attempting to help as much as he could while Lan Wangji stood stoically.

So they set off for the Cloud Recesses instead, to figure out what to do. Lan Wangji’s ribbon is tucked neatly into one of Wei Wuxian’s pockets. He briefly entertained the idea of using it as a lead for Lan Wangji but Jiang Cheng boxed him around the ears and threatened to strangle Wei Wuxian with it. Even Lan Wangji had given an unimpressed look though he seemed to know that as a dog, there wasn’t much he could do.

“Maybe I’ll just tell them Lan Zhan has gone away for a while,” Wei Wuxian says, and Jiang Cheng raises an eyebrow. “And that he… that this is your dog.”

“My dog?” Jiang Cheng says incredulously. “Only a face as thick as yours could tell a lie so thin.”

“They won’t question it if it’s you,” Wei Wuxian huffs and Jiang Cheng shakes his head.

“They’d ask why you didn’t tell me to leave it at home,” Jiang Cheng points out.

“That would be poor manners,” Wei Wuxian says, and Jiang Cheng jabs him in the ribs with his elbow. “Ow! What?”

“You think that Lan Qiren will buy that you magically got over your fear of dogs?” Jiang Cheng asks and Wei Wuxian crosses his arms over his chest. “Enough that you’d let me bring one around you?”

“Are you forgetting who I am?” Wei Wuxian says haughtily, but the flat look Jiang Cheng gives him tells Wei Wuxian that he very much has not.

“No. This is a petty lie,” Jiang Cheng says firmly. “And I am a sect leader.”

“And the sky is blue,” Wei Wuxian responds, mimicking Jiang Cheng’s tone. “None of these facts are helpful right now.”

Jiang Cheng sighs out of his nose loudly, before crossing his hands behind his back as they make their way up the steps to the gates of the Cloud Recesses. 

“I will...help you look,” Jiang Cheng says finally, all bite from the previous conversation gone. It sends a creeping feeling through Wei Wuxian— he hasn’t seen Jiang Cheng act so nice in a while. “Since your cultivation partner is..is…”

“A dog?” Wei Wuxian supplies helpfully. At least Lan Wangji makes a good-looking dog. Wei Wuxian’s sure he would take offense if he had been turned into one of the small little cotton-ball-like puppies drawn Jin Ling likes to draw when no one’s looking.

“But you better at least tell his brother,” Jiang Cheng says finally, and Wei Wuxian gulps. Easier said than done.

Wei Wuxian will decidedly not tell Lan Xichen. He decides upon this as soon as he sees Lan Xichen at the gates. In turn, the other man gives them a lightly surprised look as they approach.

“Zewu-jun,” Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng say in unison, saluting as Lan Wangji sits back on his haunches. Lan Xichen nods towards them, and casts a look down at Lan Wangji.

“Young Master Wei?” Lan Xichen asks nicely enough. “I see you’ve gotten over your fear.”

Everything about his tone is always pleasant. Wei Wuxian is sure that if Lan Xichen finds out what has happened, he will personally take the discipline whip to Wei Wuxian, provided he can beat Lan Qiren to it.

“Only temporarily,” Wei Wuxian lies through his teeth. “I, uh… Jiang Cheng had already come so far to see me. He’s incredibly tired and I felt bad turning him and his dog away. Especially given how excited he was to see me.”

“Sect Leader Jiang or the dog?” Lan Xichen asks and Jiang Cheng twitches from beside Wei Wuxian. 

“With your permission, I would like to let them stay overnight,” Wei Wuxian soldiers on, and Lan Xichen gives him a bemused look. Wei Wuxian’s not the type to ask until the task is accomplished, and it’s implicit that Jiang Cheng is always a welcome visitor, no matter how much the second Lan and Wei Wuxian might clash with him.

“You do not need to ask,” Lan Xichen replies kindly. He stoops down to meet Lan Wangji’s eyes. He scratches Lan Wangji between the eyes, and Wei Wuxian sees his tail twitch.  “And what’s your friend’s name?”

Both Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng exchange furious looks. Wei Wuxian mouths something to Jiang Cheng and Jiang Cheng makes a rude gesture in return, but gives a placid face when Lan Xichen looks up at him.

“...Lovely,” Jiang Cheng replies and Wei Wuxian internally groans. 

“Ah,” Lan Xichen smiles genially at Jiang Cheng, the underlying “ of course you would give the dog the name of a courtesan” quite evident. He straightens up and Wei Wuxian sighs in relief. If Lan Xichen stared too long at Lan Wangji, they would be discovered immediately.“Would you like some extra bedding for Lovely?”

“That’s okay,” Jiang Cheng replies tightly. 

“Well I believe it’s time to show them to the guest quarters,” Wei Wuxian announces, waving his hands around. He wants them to get going before the chances of them running into Lan Qiren increases. 

Lan Xichen starts to offer tea, but Wei Wuxian herds them away before he can, saying something about all of them being tired. Lan Xichen gives a bemused look but says nothing as they enter the sect. 

Wei Wuxian deposits Jiang Cheng in the guest quarters, Lan Wangji in tow. Thankfully most of the disciples are still wrapping up classes, so not many people see the way Wei Wuxian frantically whispers to the dog trotting beside them.

“Do you think he understands you?” Jiang Cheng asks as they enter the quarters and slide the door shut behind them. Before Wei Wuxian can answer, Lan Wangji rears back on his legs and stands up, pressing his large paws against Jiang Cheng’s shoulders.

He doesn’t quite come up to Jiang Cheng’s eyes but given the fact that he’s approaching it and he’s got a face that’s more wolf than dog, it’s intimidating nonetheless. Jiang Cheng twitches for a moment, and Wei Wuxian swears he sees a purple spark near his hand, but Jiang Cheng clenches his fist.

“Make him stop,” Jiang Cheng says in an uncharacteristically steady voice. By now, he would have been cursing both Lan Wangji, Wei Wuxian, and Wei Wuxian’s ancestors for good measure.

“I can’t,” Wei Wuxian replies, not bothering to hide the amusement in his voice. “I’m scared of dogs.”

“You—!” Jiang Cheng closes his eyes, inhales sharply through his nose. Wei Wuxian waits in anticipation, but the insults never come. Instead, it looks like Jiang Cheng thinks for a moment before he decides not to burst out into anger.

It’s odd behaviour, but Wei Wuxian isn’t going to reject any help when it comes to fixing his husband.

Yet even with the skill and talent and combined knowledge of Sandu Shengshou and the Yiling Patriarch, Lan Wangji still remains a dog. They try talisman after spell after incantation, all to no avail.

They even sneak a few books from the library on transfiguration, but nothing in any of them work. There’s a small mark on Lan Wangji’s belly, one that looks like a small flower that’s presumably the stamp of the person who cursed him. But they cannot find it in any books, nor do they find any good antidotes. 

As far as the two of them can tell, it really is one of those spells where the caster needs to be present. They try to do as much of this research without arousing suspicion as possible because if they get caught, Wei Wuxian is sure that nothing would be able to save them.

After the last talisman that they try, one that causes Lan Wangji sneeze a few times and Wei Wuxian’s fingertips to go green, Wei Wuxian flops face down onto the floor of the guest quarters.

Lan Wangji comes over to sit on his back and while he’s extremely heavy for a dog, the most Wei Wuxian does is groan in pain. He feels the comforting patpat of Lan Wangji’s tail against his back legs but it doesn’t do much to alleviate his mood.

“It would be better if this was a qi deviation,” Jiang Cheng toes Wei Wuxian’s side. “At least we could explain it away by your presence.”

“So cruel!” Wei Wuxian moans dramatically, feels another light kick to the ribs. Lan Wangji lets out a little growl from where he’s still sitting on top, and Jiang Cheng makes a disdainful noise. “I thought you were here to help me.”

“I guess I am,” Jiang Cheng says thoughtfully, while Wei Wuxian mutters a, “So kind.”

Lan Wangji hops off and trots away, while Jiang Cheng flips Wei Wuxian over with his boot.

“Lan Qiren will murder me,” Wei Wuxian continues to complain up to nothing in particular. “Then he will use my corpse to murder you.”

“As if he’d use your techniques,” Jiang Cheng scoffs. 

The boot this time pokes him in his cheek, and Wei Wuxian shoves it away. He knows he’s being overdramatic. No matter what the consequences, if they aren’t able to find a solution soon they are going to need to consult Lan Xichen and eventually Lan Qiren. 

He only hopes that it doesn’t resort to that.

Outside on the walls of the cloud Recesses, Wen Ning tries not to laugh too loud.

“No laughter allowed in the Cloud Recesses,” Wei Wuxian grumps. Lan Wangji sits beside him, looking equally displeased. Wei Wuxian sorely misses the human version of that expression. “No enjoyment whatsoever.”

Since Wen Ning started assisting the juniors on night hunts, he’s become a lot less fearful. Most of the time Wei Wuxian is happy for him; right now, he misses the Wen Ning who would immediately bound towards the direction of the sorceress with minimal ancillary comments. It’s not fair that even with his limited expression, Wen Ning still looks like he’s laughing at Wei Wuxian.

He had initially been shocked at seeing Wei Wuxian with a dog trailing beside him and not running away, screaming. Thankfully, given the late hour of the night and that both Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji had been extremely careful sneaking around on the grounds, no clan member has spotted them yet. 

Specifically, no clan member who would be intimately familiar that Wei Wuxian’s cynophobia has been long standing over many years and cannot be cured by his friend’s dog getting attached to him. 

It’s a miracle Lan Xichen believes them, or at least gives the appearance of believing them. 

Wei Wuxian had tried to get Lan Wangji to stay in the guest quarters with Jiang Cheng while he visited Wen Ning, but Lan Wangji absolutely refused. He is good getting across any sort of displeasure without using words when he’s human, and it’s really not so different with him as a dog. 

“Sorry, Young Master Wei,” Wen Ning gives a small bow and does a poor job of hiding the way his shoulders shake. “How did you say she looked like again?”

“Old,” Wei Wuxian replies. “She has three dots tattooed on her chin and her robes are a deep blue. Both her small fingers’ nails are long and black, and the rest are short and yellow. Oh, and.”

He pulls out the drawing of Lan Wangji’s curse mark that he made. Wen Ning looks at it and nods, tucking it into his robes.

“You know, Young Master…” Wen Ning starts with a thoughtful look in his eye that Wei Wuxian wants to avoid at all costs. 

“No I don’t want to know,” Wei Wuxian waves him off. “Just do what I say and don’t tell anyone.”

At exactly five in the morning, Wei Wuxian is woken up by a sharp bark in his ear.

He flails and sits up, heart racing as he reaches out for something, anything to ward off the thing that made the sound. A giant paw rests on his hand, and Wei Wuxian looks at the dog sitting in front of him.

And remembers.

So it had not all just been a bad dream.

With a groan, he flops back down onto the sheets. Having stayed up for most of the night (and also not having ever adjusted his sleeping habits whatsoever), Wei Wuxian’s body is exhausted. Lan Wangji makes another sound, and Wei Wuxian throws an arm over his eyes.

“No excessive noise in the Cloud Recesses,” Wei Wuxian complains, and feels a wet nose nudge him. He peeks out from under his arm, and Lan Wangji has rested his head on the bed, peering intently at Wei Wuxian.

Last night, Wei Wuxian had offered the bed to Lan Wangji and had made up his mind to sleep on the floor. Lan Wangji had instead opted to climb on top of one of the small tables and stare out of the window, probably to contemplate how his life led here. There’s a slight dusting of dog hair on the bedsheets, suggesting where Lan Wangji had finally ended up resting.

“What am I going to do if you’re stuck like this?” Wei Wuxian sighs, and leans over.

He’s never touched a dog before in his life, not unless he was fighting it for food, so it takes every fibre in his being to reach out and pat Lan Wangji’s fuzzy head. He supposes it’s different when the dog in question is his husband. Wei Wuxian thinks for now, the part of him that is absolutely terrified of dogs will need to be locked in a cage and kept in the dark so that he can make it through this.

He has been through worse.

Wei Wuxian scratches Lan Wangji between the eyes, like he’s seen Jin Ling do to Fairy before. Lan Wangji continues to stare at him with his deep golden eyes.

“I suppose I’ll have to turn into a dog,” Wei Wuxian says thoughtfully, and Lan Wangji perks his ears forward. “But you’ll still have to protect me against other dogs. Don’t think I’ve gotten over my phobia yet.”

Lan Wangji turns his head till Wei Wuxian’s hand slides off, and he licks the palm. Wei Wuxian cups his nose and pinches. Lan Wangji looks incredibly unimpressed but allows it, and Wei Wuxian sighs yet again.

There’s a sharp rap on the door of the jingshi, and Wei Wuxian frowns. It’s too early an hour, even for Jiang Cheng, but he guesses the other must have come across some important discovery. He slides on his outer robe and yawns before he makes his way towards the door.

“Did you find—” Wei Wuxian starts, but immediately stops as he slides the door open to Lan Xichen standing on the other side. In the background, Jiang Cheng is running towards the jingshi, hands flailing. “Ah, brother Lan.”

He salutes, and feels fur brush against his legs. He nudges his foot and pushes Lan Wangji out of the way before Lan Xichen can see.

“Young Master Wei,” Lan Xichen nods in return. “Good morning. Has Wangji returned yet?”

“Uh…” Wei Wuxian trails off, and tries not to react to the frantic expression Jiang Cheng gives him. “No?”

Lan Xichen frowns. “I thought my brother would have returned.”

“He...uh,” Wei Wuxian quickly realizes that he forgot to make up an excuse for why Lan Wangji isn’t with them. It’s not his fault— Lan Xichen hadn’t asked. “He went to Yunmeng.”

Lan Xichen raises an eyebrow. Wei Wuxian prays that he doesn’t question it further. 

“I didn’t expect the two of you to be apart for so long,” Lan Xichen says finally, but there’s no suspicion in his voice. There’s only concern, and for a brief moment, a bit of worry. “Is everything okay?”

“Ah, you know,” Wei Wuxian waves his hand uselessly, perhaps in hopes that he’ll be able to gather an excuse out of thin air. “Sometimes he...wants to stay back wherever we finish business to make sure there’s truly no trouble left.”

It’s incredibly weak. Wei Wuxian knows it. Lan Xichen, Lan Wangji’s confidant, very much knows it. Jiang Cheng, who has the emotional depth of a teacup sometimes, knows it. Lan Xichen gets a very particularly look on his face, one where it looks like he’s trying to collect all his tact before he speaks, but something catches his attention.

“So you really have gotten over your fear of dogs,” Lan Xichen says, voice tinged with amusement. For some reason, it stokes a little bit of fear in Wei Wuxian.

He looks behind him, and sure enough, Lan Wangji is sitting directly behind him. Wei Wuxian’s body probably hides most of him, but at the angle Lan Xichen is standing, he’s sure he can see the tip of Lan Wangji’s tail.

“He came here this morning,” Wei Wuxian lies through his teeth. “That’s why I’m awake so early. I think Jiang Cheng lost him. Very irresponsible, I think you should go scold him.”

He says the last part loud enough for Jiang Cheng to pick up the hint. Thankfully he does, and cups his hands around his mouth 

“Lovely!” Jiang Cheng calls, the pain of this situation evident on his face and in his voice. “Come here!”

Wei Wuxian slides the door open further, and steps to the side. He looks over his shoulder to Lan Wangji, who looks…

...Murderous. Wei Wuxian guesses that being called Lovely will do that. He gives a forced smile to Lan Wangji, trying to tell him go, go before your brother finds out without using words.

Finally, Lan Wangji gets up to his feet. Slowly, like he wants to convey his displeasure with each step he takes, he walks past Wei Wuxian and Lan Xichen towards Jiang Cheng. All three men watch as Lan Wangji circles Jiang Cheng two times before standing by his side.

“Young Master Wei,” Lan Xichen says slowly. “Forgive me, but I had the silliest thought.”

“What?” Wei Wuxian swallows.

“That dog… does it not remind you a lot of Wangji?” Lan Xichen says, and Wei Wuxian’s heart leaps into his throat. It knocks into his brain, removing some of his intelligence. 

“That is indeed a silly thought,” Wei Wuxian manages to keep a cool face as he replied. “Lan Zhan is definitely friendlier.”

Lan Xichen purses his lips at this, and in the distance, Jiang Cheng crosses his arms over his chest. Wei Wuxian doesn’t like the look of either of them, and lets them know as much, and that he’ll be going to bed now, thank you very much. 

Lan Xichen finally cracks, and Wei Wuxian closes the doors to the sound of melodic laughter.

Chapter Text

Wei Wuxian can’t actually go to sleep, but he waits out the quiet morning busyness of the clan members moving around for their duties and the students going to class.He’s glad he doesn’t have to teach anything for the next few weeks, because he doesn’t think he’d be able to concentrate with the current state Lan Wangji is in.

Though, he could then use the young minds to think up of a solution for him. Students always seem to think more unconventionally, even if their thought isn’t always intelligent.

He and Jiang Cheng try the library pavilion again. And by that, Wei Wuxian tries for the first hour and gets restless with worry and Jiang Cheng kicks him out for talking too much. Animals are not allowed in the pavilion, so Wei Wuxian doesn’t even have any entertainment. 

Eventually, unable to do anything himself, Wei Wuxian finds shade under a secluded tree in the courtyard. Lan Wangji follows him and curls up at the base of the tree, allowing Wei Wuxian to pillow his head against his body. He is soft and large and furry, and makes a comfortable pillow. Even like this, Lan Wangji smells of faint sandalwood.

Wei Wuxian closes his eyes and tries to think if he’s ever come across anything like this in his years cultivating. He’s seen a lot of strange things, has transmigrated into a lot of strange objects, but he doesn’t think he’s actually ever seen someone get turned into something that wasn’t a pile of limbs.

He tries to remember the branches of his research, of his techniques, to see if there was anything in there that could maybe lend a clue as to how to fix Lan Wangji. His mind then drifts towards thinking about a life where Lan Wangji stays a dog.

Wei Wuxian wonders how painful it would be to turn into a dog himself. It seemed to happen in an instant for Lan Wangji, so if that was what he would have to resort to, he hopes it’ll be quick too. And he also wonders where exactly they’ll stay if Wei Wuxian has to join Lan Wangji in becoming a dog.

Out in the wild or in the streets, Wei Wuxian would have to face other dogs and wolves regularly, and he doesn’t think becoming one would stop him from being terrified of them. Gusu would be out of the question; Lan Qiren would probably banish Wei Wuxian on principal, and Lan Wangji would refuse to stay back. 

Maybe they could live with Jiang Cheng— no, Jiang Cheng would have too much satisfaction ordering them around. Though, Jiang Cheng has recently been awfully nice to both him and Lan Wangji lately. Even this morning in the library, Jiang Cheng’s face had not been in a deep frown for a good minute or two. 

Wei Wuxian also thinks about why he showed up in Caiyi, right around the time that they were there.  It’s mildly unsettling.

There’s some small commotion that snaps him out of it, and Wei Wuxian raises his head to see a familiar trio.

“Hey you!” he calls out. “Hey! Young Master Jin!” 

Jin Ling’s face falls at the sound, and Wei Wuxian beams. Lan Sizhui gives a sunny wave, while Lan Jingyi is the first to turn towards where Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji are laying.

“I am a sect leader,” Jin Ling hisses as the three of them approach. He sounds so much like Jiang Cheng and his father for a moment, that Wei Wuxian feels something warm in his heart bloom. “Don’t you ‘hey you’ me.”

Wei Wuxian raises to his feet, and the three of them salute him. Even Jin Ling, though he does it with a sour face. They all seem to notice the dog curled up at the root of the tree, but to their credit, Lan Jingyi is the only one whose face physically reacts to it. Lan Sizhui pokes him in the side, and he looks like he has to swallow down all sorts of words.

“Lan Sizhui, Lan Jingyi. Honourable Sect Leader Jin Rulan,” Wei Wuxian deeply bows in return, and Jin Ling rolls his eyes. “I have a question for you.”

“Make it quick,” Jin Ling says. “We have places to be.”

They probably don’t, not immediately, but Wei Wuxian makes a show of nodding along anyways. He’s nothing if he cannot be an annoying uncle every now and then. 

“Why is your jiujiu being so nice to me?” Wei Wuxian asks as sweetly as he can.“He’s currently visiting, by the way.”

Jin Ling squints at him, but he doesn’t seem surprised to hear that his uncle is visiting. He doesn’t reply, so Wei Wuxian elaborates. “At any given time, ten expressions make it across your uncle’s face but then he surprises me by responding like a normal person.”

Instead of curiosity, Jin Ling’s face falls into exasperation. This takes Wei Wuxian by surprise— he had expected some sort of exclamation in regards to Jiang Cheng being here, as well as a question about the dog he has suddenly gained courage to hang out with. Instead, Jin Ling looks like he’s in the midst of revisiting a memory he would much rather not. 

“He…” Jin Ling trails off for a moment, and Lan Sizhui and Lan Jangyi both have carefully neutral faces. “Uncle met a fortune teller a few weeks back.”

Wei Wuxian blinks. 

“He met a fortune teller?” He asks, surprised, and Jin Ling nods. Before the next part, Jin Ling looks around the courtyard to make sure no one is looking. 

“I won’t tell him,” Wei Wuxian says as encouragingly as he can. Jin Ling sighs loudly out of his nose.

“There was a fortune teller that had passed through,” Jin Ling looks like a tooth is being extracted with every word he says. “Uncle was resistant, but she ended up telling him his fortune anyways.”

“He was told to walk further down the path of amending ties with his brother. She said that if he didn’t at least try to do it, he would go bald by the end of this year.” 

The next part has Jin Ling closing his eyes. Lan Sizhui still has a straight face, while Lan Jingyi keeps flicking his eyes between Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji. Wei Wuxian squints at him, and wonders if they’ve run into Wen Ning.

“He didn’t believe her but a week ago, he combed out a giant clump of hair and panicked,” Jin Ling continues. “Started running around and yelling all sorts of things, and pulled another unusually large clump out. The fortune teller had long left by then though, and he was not able to find her.”

There is silence for a moment. Below him, Lan Wangji sighs and the corners of each of the three boys’ mouths twitch.

“Your uncle and I really will repress all our emotions until his head of hair is at risk,” Wei Wuxian says incredulously. He reaches forward and before Jin Ling can swat him away, he pinches his ear. “Let this be a lesson to you. The men of Yunmeng are unchangeable.”

“What lesson am I learning?” Jin Ling says flatly, shoving Wei Wuxian’s hand away, and Wei Wuxian cheerfully continues to prod him. 

“Why would he do this? What good would saving his hair do?” Wei Wuxian taps his chin, pretending to be in thought. “He’s already blacklisted as a suitor within the cultivational world. Why does it matter if he’s bald or not?”

“Shut up!” Jin Ling says hotly, crossing his arms over his chest. “He’ll find a good partner!”

“That’s why he’s here,” Wei Wuxian completely ignores Jin Ling and starts scratching his jaw. “Ah, but he didn’t know that a sorceress would be bothering me too! He must genuinely have wanted to come amend ties.”

“You—!” Jin Ling sputters. “He’s smart, he probably knew where she would head next.”

“Your faith is inspiring,” Wei Wuxian smiles brightly at Jin Ling, and pats his shoulder. “I am proud of you.”

Jin Ling looks like he’s about to go red, but he’s saved by his friends.

“Senior Wei,” Lan Sizhui interjects diplomatically. “What do you mean the sorceress is bothering you too?”

Wei Wuxian’s smile stiffens, but it doesn’t drop. He lets go of Jin Ling and steps back, putting his hands on his hips while he assesses the face of the three juniors in front of him. 

Lan Sizhui is imperceptible, just like his father, while Lan Jingyi looks like he’s fighting through a silencing spell. Jin Ling looks too annoyed to pay attention, so Wei Wuxian takes this as a cue.

“I wouldn’t want you getting late,” Wei Wuxian replies, and clicks his tongue at Lan Wangji. He doesn’t bother looking at him, knowing that whatever he sees will probably terrify him to no end. “After all, you did say you have places to be!”

With that, he turns on his heel and leaves them, ignoring any sort of sputtering Jin Ling does.

They don’t make any sort of break through till the next day. And really, it’s not much on their part as much as it is on Wen Ning’s.

The previous day had been spent visiting Caiyi and the surrounding villages to see if anyone had seen the fortune teller. Many don’t remember her being there in the first place, and Wei Wuxian had tried not to look too disheartened. He set up small wards around each place that they visited, ones that would alert him to specific types of magic if they were to enter, but so far, none have activated.

The entire ordeal has been difficult— first, hiding the fact that Lan Wangji is a dog and second, hiding Lan Wangji in general because a lot more people in the sect are dog lovers than is let on, and everyone wants to see the one dog Wei Wuxian is not terrified of. 

Jiang Cheng’s frightening reputation comes in handy this time, because a simple glare will send people scattering. The only people who haven’t gotten yelled at are a group of small children who seem to be determined to sneak as much rice to Lan Wangji while Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian aren’t supposedly looking, rice that Lan Wangji dutifully eats.

Now—

It’s early in the morning, and Jiang Cheng, Lan Wangji, and Wei Wuxian are standing in the river that flows near the Cloud Recesses. Wei Wuxian had tried to get Lan Wangji into the tub in the jingshi, but he had absolutely refused. Wei Wuxian couldn’t particularly ask him why, so when Lan Wangji woke him up the next morning, he begrudgingly told him he would take him down to the river. 

By the time they had left, Jiang Cheng had been waiting outside of his quarters like he had been contemplating something. He caught sight of the two of them and advised Wei Wuxian he would be coming with them. Wei Wuxian assumed it was part of him wanting to repair things so he said nothing outright, just teased Jiang Cheng about who would be able to catch more fish bare-handed.

Wei Wuxian had also assumed that Jiang Cheng would have wanted to talk to him. That he would grit out emotional words while staring at the water, before telling Wei Wuxian to forget he said anything and start muttering about how being bald may not be that bad after all.

Instead, Jiang Cheng asks Wei Wuxian if he can still skip rocks.

“Still?” Wei Wuxian asks, putting his hands on his hips. They’re currently standing in the river, shoes off to the side, and Lan Wangji is wading through the water, lapping here and there. “I always could! Quite well too, let me remind you.”

“How would I remember?” Jiang Cheng asks with a shrug. “You were never as good as me.”

“Hey—!” Wei Wuxian makes an indignant noise, one that barely hides the glimmering happiness in his voice. 

Lan Wangji continues to soak in the cool flow of the river, while Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian skip rocks across the water. Jiang Cheng tells him a story about how a junior guest disciple at the Lotus Pier was convinced for a good week that he was being haunted by a ghost that could not be vanquished. It ended up being a few carefully placed mirrors throughout the guest quarters courtesy of some of the more rowdy disciples, and even Jiang Cheng has a faint smile on his face as he recounts the story.

Both of them have grown objectively terrible at the game, but Wei Wuxian blames it on the way Lan Wangji’s eyes follow the skipping rocks right before they plunge through the water. He doesn’t know if he’s got any cultivational powers as a dog, but Wei Wuxian would not put it beside him. 

After spending two full days with Lan Wangji as a dog, Wei Wuxian has kind of gotten used to not being completely terrified of dogs. When they change him back, he knows that’ll immediately change.

Wei Wuxian almost brings up the fact that Jin Ling has told him why Jiang Cheng’s actually here. But he wants to enjoy the other’s company for just a little longer, so instead, he asks Jiang Cheng how it feels like being so clearly inferior when it comes to skipping rocks. Jiang Cheng tries to shove him into the river after that, and it brings a hazy tint of nostalgia to the morning. 

Wen Ning shows up near the tail end of their morning, when the trio have decided to head back to do some more work. He drops in front of them on their path back and to his credit, Jiang Cheng’s ring crackles purple only for a few moments. 

“I found her,” Wen Ning says, and all three of them perk up. “But she moves fast. I was unable to catch her.”

“What are you sounding so cheerful for?” Wei Wuxian prods, wilting a little. “Are you sure it was her?”

“I heard her mention where she was before,” Wen Ning supplies, falling into step with the trip. “And that she was in Caiyi. I saw the tattoos, and she was laughing mostly to herself about turning a cultivator into a dog.”

Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng both frown, knowing it won’t do anyone any good if word spreads to outsiders that the formidable Hanguang-Jun is now a dog. 

“Oh! But I did manage to get this,” Wen Ning starts to dig through his pocket, and brings out a wrapped piece of cloth. He shakes the canvas loose, revealing a chicken bone, a lock of hair, and a broken human nail. “All hers. She got into a squabble with the owner of the food stall she was sitting at. It turned physical before she vanished so it left some gifts behind.”

Jiang Cheng looks with disgust at the goods, while Wei Wuxian’s mood brightens. 

“Good job!” Wei Wuxian claps his hands together. “We will divine where she is from here and go there next.”

There’s a general hum of agreement and they tread back to the Cloud Recesses, talking about nothing in particular. Wei Wuxian’s mind is working at twice its speed, running through any kind of techniques he has to accurately divine a sorceress’ location as well as what talisman would best prevent her from vanishing again. 

Lan Wangji walks beside him and occasionally, Wei Wuxian brushes his fingers against the fur. It brings another thought to his mind, and he turns to Wen Ning. 

“Wen Ning,” Wei Wuxian starts. “Tell me this.”

“Yes, Young Master?”

“I saw Jin Ling and he did not make a fit over Lan Wangji or me having a dog when he clearly left Fairy at home,” Wei Wuxian states. “Could you tell me why this could be?”

Wen Ning remains expressionless. To be fair, it’s not a hard thing for him to do. 

“It could be because he has respect for you, Young Master Wei,” Wen Ning replies evenly, but his voice balances just a little bit to this side of nervousness. Wei Wuxian snorts, and turns to his brother. 

“Jiang Cheng, you need to promise me one thing.”

“What?” Jiang Cheng narrows his eyes in Wei Wuxian’s direction. 

“If all hope is lost and she threatens to turn me into a dog, please let her,” Wei Wuxian says earnestly, and Jiang Cheng exclaims, “What?! Why?”

“So that if we don’t succeed, I can spend the rest of my days the same as Hanguang-Jun,” Wei Wuxian runs his hand through Lan Wangji’s fur again. “It really would be difficult to operate as cultivation partners if we are both different species…”

“Shut up,” Jiang Cheng says firmly, with a well placed elbow to Wei Wuxian’s side. Wei Wuxian makes a hurt noise, and Jiang Cheng does it again. “We’re going to catch her. We’ve faced much worse.”

“What do you think Lan Zhan? Do you think you and I will have to live the rest of our days out as dogs? I’m serious Jiang Cheng, let her curse me if it comes down to it. It’ll take a lot of the guesswork from it.”

Wei Wuxian looks down at Lan Wangji who looks a little put out. Wei Wuxian’s words must trouble him because he sticks up his tail and trots ahead of them. Jiang Cheng pokes Wei Wuxian again.

“Now you’ve made him mad,” he points out, and Wei Wuxian scoffs. 

“Lan Wangji could never truly be mad at me,” Wei Wuxian says as the gate looms in the distance. The sect member tasked with guarding the entrance stands straighter than normal, but Wei Wuxian misses it, busy getting chided by Jiang Cheng. 

“You got your Hanguang-Jun turned into a dog,” Jiang Cheng says flatly. “I feel like it’s reasonable to expect him to get at least a little angry about it.”

Wei Wuxian is about to reply, but a throat clears behind them. 

Immediately, his stomach drops. Both he and Jiang Cheng freeze in their steps. Up ahead, Lan Wangji turns to face them, and his tail straightens up into a full line. Wen Ning looks over his shoulder, and makes a startled noise. 

“Protect me,” Wei Wuxian whispers, while Jiang Cheng hisses back a “ Never !”. He closes his eyes and counts to three, sending a thousand prayers in each direction that it’s just one of the junior disciples.  

please don’t be Lan Qiren, please don’t be Lan Qiren, please don’t be Lan Qiren

Taking a deep inhale, Wei Wuxian opens his eyes and turns on his heel, attempting to put on the bravest face he can. 

please don’t be Lan Qiren

“Gentlemen,” Lan Xichen sounds calm, like how the air is before a storm. Or maybe that’s Wei Wuxian’s sudden fear speaking. “It sounds like you have a little problem.”

In his life, Wei Wuxian has seen a countless amount of uncomfortable situations. However, none in recent memory may surpass the current one.

(Blessedly, no one’s yet to tell Lan Qiren.)

They’re currently sitting in one of the smaller classrooms, doors completely locked off. Wei Wuxian is sitting on one of the front rows with Jiang Cheng, and would feel nostalgic if he wasn’t so tense. Lan Xichen is sitting straight-backed and cross legged across the teacher’s table from Lan Wangji, who also sits as straight-backed as he possibly can.

They stare at each other for an uncomfortably long time. Wei Wuxian wonders if they’re communicating this way— it must be a brotherly thing. He looks to Jiang Cheng, who’s sitting and staring ahead. He nudges him and slowly, Jiang Cheng turns his head to look at him.

Wei Wuxian tries to communicate with his eyes that if Jiang Cheng has a way to crack the Earth open and get it to swallow them both whole, now would be the time to use it. However, Jiang Cheng looks a little empty behind the eyes, like his spirit has gone to traverse somewhere where there’s a lot less suffering. Wei Wuxian tries squinting at Jiang Cheng and Jiang Cheng only shakes his head slightly and looks back. It must only work on blood brothers then. 

Wen Ning, for his part, sits in the back of the room like a haunting spectre. Wei Wuxian guesses that kind of is what he is, just a lot less terrifying. Wei Wuxian had tried to get Wen Ning to sit with them up at the front, but Wen Ning is already mortified at the fact that he’s been included in the first place.

“At least he can hear and understand us,” Lan Xichen says finally. “You say he’s been like this since the day before?”

Wei Wuxian nods furiously, while Lan Xichen hums thoughtfully. Wei Wuxian had rushed out the story, and hadn’t bothered to gloss over who is responsible for getting Lan Wangji turned into a dog. He wouldn’t be able to hide it anyways. He’s only happy that Lan Xichen looks more amused than angry at the situation, on the outside anyways.

“If he stays too long a dog he may lose whatever human sensibilities he has,” Lan Xichen says. “As it is, when we turn him back, he might retain some animalistic tendencies.“

Wei Wuxian doesn’t want to think about what kind of animal tendencies Lan Wangji would retain. Not like it matters— Lan Wangji would train it out thoroughly.

“My apologies once again,” Wei Wuxian says, trying to sound as remorseful as possible. And he truly is; his big mouth got his husband turned into the creature he fears the most. Wei Wuxian thinks once again of the potential life he might have to live as a dog alongside Lan Wangji if they can’t turn him back. 

“If I am able to be bold for a moment,” Lan Xichen starts, and pauses.

“Be as bold as you would like,” Wei Wuxian encourages, and Lan Xichen nods.

“When you said he had stayed back at a town without you, I thought you two were having marital troubles,” Lan Xichen says, and Wei Wuxian’s head snaps up with the mere thought of it. Lan Wangji’s hackles visibly rise as well, and Lan Xichen raises a hand and smiles.

“I should have known better,” Lan Xichen says easily, and Wei Wuxian’s shoulders relax fractionally. Then he remembers that he got a sect leader’s brother turned into a dog, and his shoulders stiffen again. 

Though, he wouldn’t be too broken up if this happened to anyone else. As they lapse into silence again, Wei Wuxian imagines accidentally getting Jiang Cheng turned into a dog. That would be the true end of him for sure.

“Hey,” Wei Wuxian feels something poke his ribs, and sees Jiang Cheng trying to quietly catch his attention. 

He’s not quite sure why Jiang Cheng chose to sit here with him instead of in the seat of honour at the front, but Wei Wuxian would also not want to be in close proximity to the Lan brothers’ staring contest.

“Hm?”

“Marital issues?” Jiang Cheng says out of the corner of his mouth, and Wei Wuxian raises an eyebrow.

“What?”

“You call him your husband,” Jiang Cheng stares ahead resolutely, speaking in barely a whisper. “Yet I do not remember him pouring tea for me.”

Wei Wuxian is incredibly confused for a moment, wondering where this is coming from. He’s about to tell Jiang Cheng that it doesn’t matter, that they consummate regularly enough to make up for any lack of ceremony.

“Is now the time?” Wei Wuxian says incredulously, and it’s so hard not to raise his voice. Jiang Cheng sniffs, and Wei Wuxian’s eyebrows almost touch his hairline. “Really?”

“I was not given tea either,” Lan Xichen says solemnly from the front, causing both of them to startle. “They chose not to complete many of the ceremonies. It weighs heavily on our uncle’s mind.”

Lan Wangji raises a paw and places it on the dark wood of the desk. He bows his head in apology, and Wei Wuxian blinks. This cannot be real. 

Then he remembers Jin Ling’s words again— this must be another way Jiang Cheng is looking to strengthen their ties again, as it were. And he almost laughs out loud. Wei Wuxian opts instead to pat Jiang Cheng on the back.

“If we manage to solve this,” Wei Wuxian raises three fingers, pinching his pinky and his thumb together. “I promise you that I will make that the first thing Lan Zhan and I do.”

Lan Xichen’s smile brightens, while the corner of Jiang Cheng’s mouth turn up. 

The divination goes fairly well. Wei Wuxian attempts it, while Jiang Cheng makes a lot of noise about the way Lan Wangji stares at him from across the room. Lan Wangji’s gaze taken a more predatory turn lately, one where his eyes are sharp enough to pierce armour, and he’s been honing it specifically on Jiang Cheng when he is around.

Wei Wuxian figures Lan Wangji’s realized he can get away with a little more impropriety as a dog than he would a human, and is milking it for what it’s worth. He doesn’t tell Jiang Cheng though, and just plays innocent, which riles up his brother more.

Lan Xichen wants to actively help as well, which Wei Wuxian takes as a small blessing. It has been some time since he’s come out of seclusion, but he hasn’t attended to something like this for a long time. 

They determine the general area of where the sorceress will be in three days, and decide to go there in advance. It’s five of them in total— Lan Xichen, Jiang Cheng, Wen Ning, Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian supposes if the sorceress escapes at that point, then maybe they all deserve to be cursed. 

They try to take Little Apple, but Little Apple is extremely weary of Lan Wangji as a dog. No matter how much Wei Wuxian tries to persuade him, Little Apple absolutely refuses to move in the same direction as Lan Wangji.

“Do you think he picked up on my phobia of dogs?” Wei Wuxian muses, giving a firm pat to the donkey’s rear. The donkey looks back with a put-upon expression, like it’s made its final stance and won’t budge.

In the end, Lan Xichen goes ahead with Lan Wangji, while Wei Wuxian goes with Jiang Cheng, Wen Ning, and Little Apple. The juniors are curious as to where they are going, but Jiang Cheng tells them curtly to mind their own business. 

They meet up with Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji at a tavern a day and a half’s ride out. Lan Xichen had managed to haul both himself and Lan Wangji on Shuoyue, despite Wei Wuxian wanting to see Lan Wangji attempt to ride Bichen. 

Jiang Cheng could have also followed on Sandu, but he opted to travel with Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian assumes it was for the same purpose he’s not run back to Yunmeng yet, and they spend most of their time arguing about the best way to hunt and cook various animals. 

The topic also shift to Jin Ling for a while, until Wei Wuxian tells Jiang Cheng that he better concentrate ons finding his own cultivation partner before bothering his nephew. Wei Wuxian also tells Wen Ning not so quietly that this would buy Jin Ling an ample amount of time, and Jiang Cheng shoves him off Little Apple.

And the traitor of a donkey allows Jiang Cheng to ride him all the way to the mid-sized town the sorceress would be choosing as her temporary home. Wei Wuxian follows behind, grumbingly incessantly until Wen Ning offers to carry him on his back for the rest of the way.

It’s close to nightfall by the time they meet the Lan brothers at the tavern. Wen Ning hangs back outside with Little Apple, who’s grown a little more irritated again.

Lan Wangji is sitting when they enter, eyes closed and tail thumping slightly while Lan Xichen hums and scratches him behind his ears. It would be a painfully adorable tableau to stumble across, if that wasn’t Wei Wuxian’s husband curled alongside the table.

“I haven’t seen any sign of her,” Lan Xichen greets them, and Wei Wuxian shrugs.

“According to the divination, she should be arriving mid-morning tomorrow,” he says, taking a seat. “If she gets as far as setting up a stall, it will be in between two competing carpet merchants.”

They’ve painted on enough cloaking wards on their inner robes to prevent anyone else from divining that they’re there, though Wei Wuxian wonders if they will be strong enough.

Jiang Cheng remains nice to Wei Wuxian throughout the evening, though there’s some manic energy quite evidently thrumming under him, waiting to be let out. Wei Wuxian has no doubt that when they capture the sorceress, Jiang Cheng is going to let out a week’s worth of suppressed annoyance on Wei Wuxian. 

Wei Wuxian will welcome it, because the niceness Jiang Cheng is showing is incredibly incongruent with his personality. Wei Wuxian is pretty sure that Jiang Cheng didn’t treat him like this when he actually liked him. 

At one point during dinner Jiang Cheng passes him a dish with an honest to goodness smile, like he’s their hostess, and it disturbs Wei Wuxian.

Deeply.

“Please threaten to break my legs or something,” Wei Wuxian mutters under his breath, and Jiang Cheng’s expression freezes. “You being nice is unsettling to me.”

Lan Xichen chuckles behind his sleeve, while Jiang Cheng looks like he’s warring with himself to figure out how to reply. Lan Wangji shoves his head onto Wei Wuxian’s lap, and Wei Wuxian scratches his big forehead absent-mindedly.

“Nothing will make me feel better than being able to thrash you with my bare hands,” Jiang Cheng says delicately, and picks up the dish. He tilts it, and drops some of the spicy red chicken onto Wei Wuxian’s rice. “However, let us deal with the sorceress first.”

Wei Wuxian grins and raises three fingers, while Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes. It’s the closest Jiang Cheng will come to admitting that he too is under a spell, but Wei Wuxian isn’t going to tell him he knows. Not yet, anyways. 

They retire to their rooms for the night, and Wei Wuxian doesn’t bother offering up the bed to Lan Wangji while taking the floor. Lan Wangi curls around Wei Wuxian like a warm and comfortable pillow, and Wei Wuxian relaxes enough into the fur.

“I’m serious about leaving this human form for an animal one if this doesn’t work,” Wei Wuxian says, more to the ceiling than to Lan Wangji. “I want to be wherever you are, Lan Zhan.”

As an answer, he gets a soft lick to the side of his face. He sighs and turns into Lan Wangji more, falling asleep to the sound of his heartbeat. 

Wei Wuxian dreams of swirling red and gold decorations adorning the Cloud Recesses as for the first time in its history, Gusu celebrates the marriage of two dogs. 

Mid–morning comes and goes. The space between the two competing carpet merchants remains empty. 

“You said she’d be here!” Jiang Cheng says, face going a little red. “Wei Wuxian!”

Correction. A little purple. Lan Wangji is currently sniffing around the stall, while Lan Xichen speaks with one of the merchants and asks if they’ve seen anything. 

“How I was I supposed to know?” Wei Wuxian says indignantly, on reflex. Jiang Cheng smacks the back of his head. Wei Wuxian exclaims in fake pain, loud enough that Jiang Cheng immediately retracts his hand. He looks a little sheepish, but he continues to insult. 

“You divined it, idiot!” Jiang Cheng says with a lot less heat. He twitches, like he’s got an itch he’s very much not allowed to scratch, and Wei Wuxian wonders what would happen if he let his own amusement show. 

“That is true,” he says instead, rubbing the back of his head. “Ah, even with our cloaking spells, she must have figured out somehow.”

Jiang Cheng curses up a storm and for posterity, Wei Wuxian joins him. It is rather frustrating, especially when both Lan Xichen and Lan Wangji come back empty handed. Lan Xichen offers to divine this time, but Wei Wuxian insists that he can do it properly. 

“Because it did us a fat load of good last time,” Jiang Cheng mutters. They’re back in Lan Xichen’s room in the tavern, two large bowls set on the table. They’ve searched all over town as discreetly as possible, but the sorceress is nowhere to be found. 

Ever diplomatic, Lan Xichen has suggested that the best course of action would be for both of them to divine with their remaining materials. 

“She must be very powerful,” Wei Wuxian muses. “Do you think she is a minor god, maybe?”

“Minor god?” Jiang Cheng snaps. “What god would waste time running around and harassing humans?”

“How else would I improperly divine her location?” Wei Wuxian retorts, gleefully ignoring Jiang Cheng’s “stupidity”. Instead, he says, “It’s fine, it’s fine, we will find her. Don’t worry that pretty little head of yours, or else all your hair will fall off.”

To his credit, Jiang Cheng does not unleash his hands on Wei Wuxian while Lan Wangji barks at them and Lan Xichen and Wen Ning watch like they are dinner entertainment. It’s a shame, because Jiang Cheng looks like a tightly wound spring and Wei Wuxian thinks it would have been an excellent way for him to release some of his tension. Instead, Jiang Cheng sits and silently steams so hard Wei Wuxian thinks he sees literal smoke. 

They end up divining two different locations, each in an opposite direction. Both Lan Xichen and Wei Wuxian stare into each other’s bowls, confused. 

“I’m inclined to believe Zewu-Jun’s divination more,” Jiang Cheng states and Wei Wuxian nods along. 

“Same here,” he says but Lan Xichen frowns. 

“We used the same method,” he murmurs, reaching down to stir the darkened water again. “It should have similar results.”

They look silently at the bowls, and Wei Wuxian has to admit that even this impressed him. Being able to project two different locations so well that even a powerful cultivator cannot divine it is a true sign of strength. Wei Wuxian wonders too, what she is doing. 

They try again, only to get the same result. Lan Xichen’s brows furrowed deeper, and Wei Wuxian nudges him.  He tips his head towards his own bowl, and Lan Xichen leans in. 

“Looks like we’re going to have to go to both places,” Wei Wuxian says, and Lan Xichen presses his lips in a firm line. Finally, he nods. 

In the end, they decide to split ways. The Lan brothers and Jiang Cheng will go where Lan Xichen has divined the sorceress to be, while Wei Wuxian will take Wen Ning to his location. There was a bit of confusion as to who exactly should take Lan Wangji, but Wei Wuxian insists that Lan Xichen takes him. 

“Your location is probably correct,” Wei Wuxian says. “It’d be more prudent to take him. And anyways, Little Apple refuses to be around him. If I end up in trouble, I have Wen Ning with me.”

They see them off from the front of the tavern, and Wei Wuxian is momentarily transfixed by the way Lan Wangji sniffs at the ground. He remembers Lan Xichen talking about animal tendencies sticking longer than they should, and shudders. If Lan Wangji decides to continue sniffing around as intently as a human, they might have to both go into seclusion, just to save face. 

“Well,” Wei Wuxian puts his hands on his hips, watching as the three retreat into the setting evening sun. “Now that all the fuddy-duddies are gone, why don’t we go back in for some proper wine?”

“Young Master,” Wen Ning replies. “Shouldn’t we leave as well? Our location is quite a bit further from theirs.”

“I am tired,” Wei Wuxian fakes a yawn, stretching his arms above himself in an exaggerated manner. “And we have had a long day. We will leave first thing tomorrow.”

Wen Ning frowns, but nods along, trusting Wei Wuxian’s decision. Wei Wuxian casts one more glance over his shoulder— the other three men are completely gone now, and he swings an arm around Wen Ning’s shoulders.

“Plus,” he adds. “Between me and Lan Xichen, it’s undoubted that he would divine better. By the time we wake up tomorrow, it might be that we may be needed where they are!”

“I believe in your capabilities, Master Wei,” Wen Ning says faithfully and Wei Wuxian laughs, shaking him gently. 

“Good,” he says, as he starts to drag them back into the tavern. “As you should.”

Before they leave in the morning, Wei Wuxian suggests they take a stroll down a smaller market, as he had seen a small ceramic rabbit that reminds him a lot of his husband. Wen Ning for his part looks like he wants to say something about the lack of urgency, a look that automatically vanished as they turn down a narrow alley with grimier and more compact stalls. 

It’s a fairly crowded area but Wei Wuxian carefully takes his time, examining each stall. There are a lot more oddities in this strip of merchants, and he’s almost taken in by a couple of the more grotesque masks. There are still a few drawings of the Yiling Patriarch floating around, and Wei Wuxian notices with some glee that they are a lot less ugly than they were a couple of years ago. 

He finds what he’s looking for finally, in the form of an empty stall tucked in between two merchants hawking adult goods. It’s rather distracting, and if Wen Ning was fully alive he’d no doubt be pink under his straw hat. But Wei Wuxian focuses, and hops over the rotting wood of the counter. 

There’s a small opening against the back wall, and Wei Wuxian pushes open the lavender curtains. It leads into a small room, where a familiar old woman is frantically stuffing all her belongings back into her bag. 

“Ah, Auntie,” Wei Wuxian says cheerfully, startling the living daylights from the woman. “When are you planning to open? I would like to get my fortune told.”

She whips around, but Wei Wuxian is quick. Before she can pull another disappearing act, he shoots out a talisman that lands square on her forehead. She struggles and tries to peel it off, but it’s to no avail. 

“I would like my husband back,” Wei Wuxian crosses his hands behind his back and watches her try to take off the talisman. “Whatever lesson you have wanted to teach, it has been learned.”

It’s not going to be simple. Wei Wuxian doesn’t expect it to be. What he also doesn’t expect is the sheer amount of strength the old lady has when she launches towards him, body slamming him against the frail wall of the stall. The wood splinters behind him and he crashes into the counter. 

The lady rushes him again, and uses him as a springboard. One heavy foot is planted on his chest and she propels herself upward, jumping into the crowd of shoppers. 

“Help!” She yells, and starts to tear down the street, unusually fast for her age. “The Yiling Patriarch is after me!”

And oh, this does not bode well. Wei Wuxian hops back onto his feet, and sees a dozen eyes staring back at him. He can already hear the fresh roll of rumours that are going to start getting spread around about him, how he’s gone back to his old ways. He sees one of the shopkeepers flitting their eyes between him and the drawing of the Yiling Patriarch they are trying to sell, but Wen Ning grabs him by the collar. 

Suddenly, Wei Wuxian is flying as Wen Ning jumps high enough with his superhuman strength and lands them on a roof. They see a flurry of familiar deep blue robes and take off. 

The two chase her till the edge of town, hopping across roofs as she tries fruitlessly to break the talisman on her forehead. Wei Wuxian tucks that away to be proud of later— for now, he and Wen Ning work hard to make sure she doesn’t disappear. 

They finally manage to catch her on the outskirts of the city, on a large field beside a farm. In an undignified move, Wei Wuxian gets Wen Ning to launch him like a spear towards the sorceress as they close in on her. 

His friend’s aim is true, and Wei Wuxian gets barreled straight into her. It’s quite similar to hitting a brick wall, and they go crashing into the grass, groaning in pain. 

“Just turn my husband back!” Wei Wuxian grits out, as a hard throbbing blooms behind his skull. “And lift your curse off my brother! It’s disturbing to see him be so nice to me.”

“Both you and your brother insulted me,” the sorceress spits back, shoving Wei Wuxian off. Before he can say anything, she jumps onto her feet and stomps on the ground three times. 

It rumbles, and suddenly, the earth beneath them is shifting. Wei Wuxian scrambles backwards as the ground starts to erupt, raising the woman up on a dirt platform. It stops when it’s four feet high, and she glares down from him. 

Her eyes are glowing blue, and her features wrinkle into something even older. The sorceress’ robes billow around her and when she speaks again, it sounds like three voices layered in one. 

“I will not undo what has been done,” the woman says, and Wei Wuxian squints up at her. 

“Ah, so you are a minor god!” He exclaims, and she frowns down on him. “So much unnecessary showmanship.”

“What?” 

“We were discussing what you were,” Wei Wuxian explains, slowly getting back into his feet. “I thought you were a minor god. The others didn’t believe me of course, said this whole situation was too petty for a god.”

“What does this have to do with anything?” The sorceress-god demands. “As I said, I’m not—”

“Which would explain why you’re reading fortunes,” Wei Wuxian ponders, and points a finger in her direction. “The more people believe in your powers the stronger you get, isn’t that right? And what better way to garner faith than to tell fortunes? But what are you working towards? What kind of power are you looking for?”

“What— I’m not here for a conversation, boy,” the sorceress-god practically growls, and Wei Wuxian grins up at her. 

“People tend to be kinder once you learn their motives and empathize with them. I am just trying to do the same with you,” he says cheerfully, and she rolls her eyes with a “ good gods ” as he chirps. “Alright fine, I’ll shut up.”

The sorceress-god opens her mouth, but there’s the sharp sound of air swooshing before she gets knocked off her platform with a screech and a flurry of white and grey fur. 

Lan Wangji and the sorceress-god hit the ground with a loud thud. He’s holding her by the throat, and she struggles, drawing pinpricks of blood as Lan Wangji keeps his grip non-lethal. 

Wei Wuxian sighs in relief on the inside— when Lan Xichen had looked into his divination bowl, they had seen that the sorceress had sensed that Lan Xichen and Wei Wuxian had been trying to divine her location, just like she had sensed Wei Wuxian’s initial divination.

Because Lan Xichen had tried again and Wei Wuxian’s next divination was secondary by a few moments, the sorceress had gotten confused and had sent the wrong information only to Lan Xichen. Wei Wuxian had only pretended to get a secondary location again to not arouse suspicion, just incase she suspected she was being divined again.

“You didn’t strike me as a posturing type,” Wei Wuxian walks over, and the sorceress-god glares up at him. “I had to monologue for you. If someone starts to talk too much, you should just strike them down next time, Auntie.”

“I was about to,” she grumbles, and tries to rise up again.

Three talismans shoot out and pin her arms as Lan Xichen and Jiang Cheng land on either side of Wei Wuxian. Wen Ning approaches from behind as well, rolling his shoulders back into place. Lan Wangji lets go of her throat and she struggles again, completely pinned by their spells.

“Lift the curse off of my brother,” Lan Xichen asks politely, in the way one may place a food order. The only difference is the underlying threat to it. “I will make sure you see a fair and just trial.”

The sorceress-god swears, and Wei Wuxian flicks his finger. She winces as his first talisman glows, and swats at it. 

“And lift the curse off of Sect Leader Jiang as well,” Wei Wuxian says. “If he goes bald, who knows how many will die from fear at the mere sight. His hair makes him look softer and more approachable. Don’t look at me this way Jiang Cheng, I knew you were cursed from the beginning.”

Jiang Cheng sputters, but grabs at the bun he’s got tied at the top of his head. Wei Wuxian grins at him, before turning back to the sorceress-god.

“Auntie, your crimes so far has not been that large,” Wei Wuxian says sweetly. “Just petty. Please lift the curse before the two sect leaders I’m with decide to consider them more carefully.”

The old woman’s eyes widen for a brief moment, and Wei Wuxian continues to give her a sunny look. There’s a clear moment where she’s thinking this through and weighing her options, probably to see if her powers could stack up against such powerful cultivators that have trapped her already. She ends up choosing wisely.

“Fine,” she grumbles. “Fine, I’ll lift the stupid curse.”

“For what it’s worth,” Wei Wuxian says earnestly. “I do apologize if I offended you initially. I suppose my brother coming to visit me is good luck after all.”

The sorceress mutters one last insult under her breath that Wei Wuxian pretends not to hear, and closes her eyes. She mutters a few words, and there’s a large puff of dark purple smoke that erupts. It surrounds her, Lan Wangji, and Jiang Cheng. It’s heavy and smells like smouldering wood and chrysanthemums.

Lan Xichen reaches for his sword and Wei Wuxian his flute as the smoke grows thicker, burning their eyes. Wei Wuxian lifts his sleeve up to block himself from inhaling the worst of it, and keeps himself ready to fortify the talisman if needed.

Jiang Cheng coughs and swears as the smoke dissipates, swatting around his hand to get rid of it. He looks perplexed for a moment, before reaching through his own hair. He pulls back his hand with no strands on it, and looks incredibly relieved.

Wei Wuxian’s gaze immediately jumps to where his husband was standing, and his heart almost leaps out of his chest.

“Lan Zhan!” Wei Wuxian exclaims, launching himself towards his husband. Lan Wangji looks at him blankly for a moment, before collapsing forward. Wei Wuxian manages to catch him in his arms, elated to see his husband in human form again.

And then he realizes something.

Wei Wuxian’s eyes widen, and he gently lies Lan Wangji down on the ground. He looks around frantically, and realizes his oversight. Seeing the way Lan Xichen closes his eyes and Jiang Cheng looks away, going red while the sorceress-god whistles, Wei Wuxian flings himself over his husband’s body on instinct.

Lan Wangji has his eyes closed like he’s unconscious, but his chest rises and falls underneath Wei Wuxian. He’s alive and he’s human and he’s so, so incredibly naked. Even the forehead ribbon, which they had fashioned into a collar for him when he was a dog, lays beside him. 

“Lan Zhan,” Wei Wuxian says, looking down at Lan Wangji. He wants to kiss him so badly, wants to press his lips all over his handsome, human face. “Lan Zhan, wake up.”

If he does so, Jiang Cheng will undoubtedly beg the sorceress to turn Lan Wangji back into a dog, so Wei Wuxian exercises some self restraint.

“Lan Zhan,” Wei Wuxian reaches over and flicks Lan Wangji’s chin.

“Mmn,” Lan Wangji stirs, and Wei Wuxian props himself up on his husband’s broad chest. 

“Hanguang-Jun?” Wei Wuxian pokes him gently in the cheek, and golden eyes stare blankly up at him. “How are you feeling?”

“Wei Ying,” Lan Wangji’s voice is hoarse, and he licks his lips like he’s not quite used to forming the words. Wei Wuxian assumes a week of only being able to bark would do that to him. “I am...human.”

“Very much so,” Wei Wuxian says, and feels Lan Wangji shift underneath him. “Ah ah ah, not so fast. We uh, may have had a little bit of an oversight.”

“Oversight?” Lan Wangji blinks, and settles a hand on Wei Wuxian’s hip. He’s warm underneath him, probably still running hot from the transformation. It feels so, so good to have his husband be human again.

So good that for a moment, Wei Wuxian forgets where he is. He looks between them and sees Lan Wangji’s dark hair fanning out underneath him, his broad pale chest covered in a thin sheen of sweat, his—

“We forgot to bring your clothes, Wangji,” Lan Xichen says from above them, and Lan Wangji stiffens. Wen Ning has hauled the sorceress-god to her feet, while Lan XiChen and Jiang Cheng have approached the two. “Our apologies.”

“You can borrow mine,” Wei Wuxian says. “Might be a little short but— ah, it’s something. We really did not think this through. But— no apologies between you and I, right?”

Lan Wangji’s gaze is indecipherable, even to Wei Wuxian. For a moment he panics, thinking the spell has taken Lan Wangji’s ability to emote.

There’s a toe to his ribs, and Wei Wuxian glares up at Jiang Cheng. “What? Are you trying to push me off? Have mercy, Hanguang-Jun is not even decent yet.”

“Shut up,” Jiang Cheng snaps, and Lan Xichen gives a weary sigh. “I’m just reminding you of your promise. Now that you’re human, you must pour us tea.”

 “You—” Wei Wuxian rolls his eyes, but feels a squeeze on his hip. Lan Wangji’s face is carefully blank, a clear indicator to Wei Wuxian to let go. Wei Wuxian huffs but on the inside, is overly elated that his husband is no longer a dog.

“Fine, we’ll do your tea ceremony. Let’s get him some clothes first.”

It’s never a great difficulty to just simply sit and enjoy his husband’s presence. Wei Wuxian is very much in love and Lan Wangji is beautiful, handsome, ethereal, and all the descriptors in between. 

Wei Wuxian has been leaning against the table for the better part of an hour as Lan Wangji fully reacquaints himself with being human again. He has even surprised himself with how relatively quiet he’s been able to stay as Lan Wangji strums over silk strings. It’s entrancing to watch his deft fingers as they work, the concentration in his face as he strums soft, open sounds on his guqin. 

After a flurry of getting Lan Wangji wrapped up in clothes and made decent, they had headed back to the Cloud Recesses. Wei Wuxian had to lend his outer robes for part of the venture and though they were short on Lan Wangji, he had to admit that his husband had looked rather striking in the black and red. 

Jiang Cheng had caught him staring and started thwacking him around the head, despite Wei Wuxian’s protests that he was allowed to look at his husband whenever and however he wanted to. Thankfully, Lan Xichen had some foresight and went ahead to retrieve Lan Wangji’s proper clothes. They changed him before they re-entered the Cloud Recesses, and no one else was the wiser.

Wen Ning had slung the sorceress-god over his shoulder, and had small talk with her as she grumbled on and on about terrible cultivators the whole way there. Lan Wangji had occasionally put a silencing spell on her, and remained quiet the entire way back.

Lan Wangji, for whatever reason, had decided he would want to make a report on the whole ordeal, despite Wei Wuxian’s insistence that he rest and relax. Wei Wuxian had told him there need to be no record of the venture, lest Lan Qiren find it, but Lan Xichen had pointed out that their uncle was in a rather good mood lately, so it would be no issue. 

It may or may not have something to do with a small chat the eldest Lan brother had with Lan Qiren, one that had him muttering something about banquets and decorations and finally having his  nephew made honest. 

Wei Wuxian managed to get a small victory by getting him to bathe and wash off all the dirt and grime from lying in the dirt naked, but Lan Wangji had been insistent in his own silent way of going to the library pavilion afterwards.Wei Wuxian had tried to join him, but it had been Lan Xichen that had stopped him from trailing behind. 

“I believe your brother wants to have dinner with you,” Lan Xichen had said, a polite way of telling Wei Wuxian that he had wanted a private conversation with Lan Wangi. 

Dinner had not been a quiet affair— Wei Wuxian had fallen into his old habit of bugging Jiang Cheng, while Jiang Cheng replied to everything with an angry exclamation point as well. Jin Ling and Lan Sizhui had joined them at Wei Wuxian’s request.

It had ended with Jiang Cheng muttering out an invite to the Lotus Pier for Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian reminded him that his head of hair was no longer at risk, though his blacklisted status was still unsalvageable. Jiang Cheng had very colourfully threatened him with Zidian, before finally saying without looking him in the eyes that Wei Wuxian has no choice as he still needs to complete a proper marriage ceremony. 

Overall, Wei Wuxian felt a warmth in his heart at seeing his brother sit across from him and go pink with embarrassment. He imagines briefly a flurry of reds and golds adorning both the Lotus Pier and the Cloud Recesses, and it plants a seed in his head that he’ll tend to later. 

After writing a few preliminary pages and speaking with his brother, Lan Wangji had decided to fold in for the night and retreat quietly to the jingshi to practice his guqin. Wei Wuxian followed obediently when he heard, and felt a little bit of delight when Lan Wangji let him. 

So here they are now.

Wei Wuxian wonders if Lan Wangji is mad at him for any of this. Lan Wangji has already given him a negative “ mn” when asked, but hasn’t said much else throughout the day. Lan Xichen says that he’s probably getting used to being able to speak again. For once, he has decided to not run his loud mouth and try to bug his husband during practice.

Lan Wangji’s voice cuts into Wei Wuxian’s thoughts, “You won’t stop staring at me.”

There’s something implacable in Lan Wangji’s tone, one that’s familiar yet not. It’s the first words he’s said in a while, and Wei Wuxian luxuriates in the sound of hearing his voice again.

“Can I not enjoy my husband’s beauty?” Wei Wuxian says, resting his chin on his hand. “It has been a while since I’ve seen it in a human form.”

Elegant hands still over the guqin for a moment. Suddenly, Wei Wuxian is acutely aware of how long it has been since the two of them have been alone like this. But Wei Wuxian still hasn’t been able to gauge where Lan Wangji is with his mood. A week with Lan Wangji as a dog, and Wei Wuxian has already gotten rusty in reading his husband’s minute expressions. 

Lan Wangji lifts his head just enough to give Wei Wuxian a searing gaze, one that is heavy and unmistakable. His eyes glimmer in the low light. 

So the tone is not that implacable.

“There are many other ways to do so,” Lan Wangji says, plucking a single low note that reverberates through Wei Wuxian’s spine. “I can show you after I finish.” 

And Lan Wangji is not that mad. Wei Wuxian grins and leans forward, and Lan Wangji resumes his practice in earnest. This time, there’s a lot more intent in the way his fingers play the strings

Wei Wuxian’s mind is about to drift but a particularly lush cord brings attention back to Lan Wangji’s hands.

“Ah…” Wei Wuxian can’t help but sigh at the lush notes, and he hears Lan Wangji repeat the phrase again. “Lan Zhan, I thought you were angry with me.”

Lan Wangji simply replies with another twang, this time higher. Wei Wuxian smiles dopily, looking at his husband through half-hooded eyes.

“Wei Ying,” Lan Wangji asks after a little while, and Wei Wuxian answers with a small hum. “Would you really have turned yourself into a dog for me?”

“I would turn myself into a toad for you if need be, Hanguang-Jun,” Wei Wuxian replies honestly, and relishes in the way the corners of Lan Wangji’s mouth turns up ever so slightly. “Though I have to say, I do prefer the human form the most. Especially yours.”

Lan Wangji’s earlobes dust pink but he continues to play a soothing song on the guqin. Wei Wuxian closes his eyes and lets the song take him away to no place particular, somewhere with moonlight and water where he can float around in with Lan Wangji. 

Eventually, the day catches up with Wei Wuxian. He tries to hold back a yawn but miserably fails. It hurts his pride a little because this is the first time he’s felt sleepy before Lan Wangji. But he’s exhausted and the music is soothing, so he decides to retire for the night. 

“Lan Zhan, don’t tell anyone I’m going to bed before you,” Wei Wuxian yawns again, covers his mouth. “I don’t think my pride could take it.”

“Mn,” comes the reply, and Wei Wuxian stretches before he gets up. In slow, lazy strides, he makes his way to the dias, untying the sash around his robes. His sleeping clothes still lay on their bed, and Wei Wuxian supposes he’s going to have to go back to keeping somewhat of a tidy appearance now that Lan Wangji is human again. 

He’s in the middle of undoing his top, when Wei Wuxian feels a heavy gaze on him. He turns, just as Lan Wangji calls out his name. 

“You didn’t speak much tonight,”Lan Wangji says. “You’ve never been this quiet for so long.”

“Oh,” Wei Wuxian blinks. He supposes he has. He was too wrapped up in the fact that he and Lan Wangji would not have to live the rest of their lives out as dogs.  Lan Wangji has stopped playing the guqin and his hands rest on his lap, like he is contemplating wrapping up his night. 

“I was observing I was just seeing if you retained any sort of animal characteristics,” Wei Wuxian replies. “Lan Xichen had said that you might, with the time you spent as a dog. But I can see that you are as honourable and beautiful and human as ever.”

Wei Wuxian only wishes he were closer to get a better look at Lan Wangji’s ears. Undoubtedly, they must have darkened with Wei Wuxian’s words. 

“I did,” Lan Wangji says finally. Wei Wuxian raises an eyebrow when no explanation follows. 

“Did what?”

“Retain some animal tendencies,” Lan Wangji doesn’t quite look at him, and Wei Wuxian’s eyes brighten. 

“Hm? Like what?” Wei Wuxian prods. Lan Wangji stares down at the desk in front of him. “Please elaborate. Is your sense of smell still heightened? Do you still have the urge to bark?”

There’s silence for a moment, and then Lan Wangji reaches up to slowly and deliberately untie the ribbon on his forehead. He folds it and sets it down neatly besides his guqin, and Wei Wuxian’s eyebrows raise. The hair pin comes out next, and when Lan Wangji takes off his hair piece and lets his hair fall in long, dark curtains, the exhaustion Wei Wuxian was feeling is rapidly forgotten. In its place, a kind of dark glee starts to bubble as Lan Wangji stands up.

When Lan Wangji starts to walk towards him, it’s slow and calculating. It’s not the purposeful stride he normally has, whether it’s walking through the courtyard or walking towards their bed. It’s more predatory, and his eyes sharpen in the low light of the jingshi. It’s more animal and hungry.

The energy around him is so formidable, that Wei Wuxian has to swallow to prevent himself from just flinging across the room and into Lan Wangji’s arms. Normally, he would have no hesitation in doing so, but he wants to also enjoy the view of Lan Wangji advancing on him with focus like he’s hunting him.

“Ah Hanguang-Jun,” Wei Wuxian has a teasing lilt to his voice and takes a step back, letting his calves hit the bed behind them. “Did the spell not get broken? Are you still a beast?”

The thin sash tying Lan Wangji’s outer clothes comes off next, but he doesn’t drop it. Wei Wuxian is about to make another teasing comment but Lan Wangji folds it in half lengthwise, and wraps it around his hands. He tugs, stretching the material between them, and any sort of smart words die on Wei Wuxian’s tongue.

Lan Wangji reaches Wei Wuxian, crowds in on him. Wei Wuxian reaches out to hook his arms around Lan Wangji’s waist, more to steady himself as his knees rapidly go weak. He supposes this too is part of getting Lan Wangji getting used to being human again, a part that Wei Wuxian is more than happy to help out with as much as needed.

“Let me show you,” Lan Wangji says, voice low and guttural, and swallows up the rest of Wei Wuxian’s thoughts with a swooping, encompassing kiss.