Chapter Text
Three months had gone by since the last of the Cloud Recesses had been spruced up and restored. The Wen disciples had long since taken their leave and gone to focus on getting used to their new order, and the Lan sect had been left with a new sense of hope and splendor; weak at first, but growing stronger each day, aided greatly by the return of Lan Xichen.
Despite the peaceful atmosphere that had settled in, Wei Wuxian still paid regular visits. No matter how much trouble he may have caused in the past, nobody was about to bar a hero from entry! And besides the fact that he'd tirelessly helped rebuild the Recesses, often refusing to take breaks and working well into the morning, there was the fact Lan Wangji liked him.
He liked him a great deal, actually.
So much so, that a few elders were starting to whisper with concern. Shockingly enough, Lan Qiren was always the first to quiet their complaints. They had slain a beast together, for crying out loud. Of course they'd have grown closer after that.
In all, Wei Wuxian was an esteemed guest whenever he stopped by, greeted personally by Lan Wangji, who, despite his mouth seldom curling into a smile, always regarded him with warmth in his eyes.
Today, they were sitting by the stream, with Wei Wuxian dipping his feet in and Lan Wangji sitting prim and proper at a small table they'd carried over. Wei Wuxian had suggested doing this at the new and improved Library Pavilion, but for some reason Lan Wangji had averted his gaze, the very tips of his earlobes glowing a bright red.
Working on his writing out in the open was inspiring in its own way, and it made Lan Wangji feel more connected to the unlikely trio who had met under the hot Qishan sun to do some writing of their own.
The book club's twenty fifth meeting was on the horizon, and he was invited to attend. As it would be his first time going, he had no desire to show up empty handed, so his plan for the day was to work on something to share.
"It isn't that serious, so you don't have to squeeze your brain until your head hurts, alright?" Wei Wuxian cast a glance over his shoulder as he kicked his legs idly in the water. "Otherwise I'll need to loosen that ribbon of yours."
"It's important," Lan Wangji replied passively. He dipped his brush in ink and let it glide along the parchment.
"Wow, not even a flinch," Wei Wuxian teased, as if he hadn't been making ribbon jokes since they'd left the cave.
His heartbeat still quickened whenever he remembered the way Lan Wangji had tied it around his injured hand.
The faintest breeze picked up, and Lan Wangji was quick to pin his parchment down with a smooth stone. He had finally begun to work on something he liked, and he didn't want to risk it drifting away.
"But really, nobody's expecting you to write a masterpiece," Wei Wuxian continued. "Don't be intimidated by Mianmian's abilities."
"It has nothing to do with intimidation," Lan Wangji humoured him briefly before repeating, "it's important."
Wei Wuxian pulled his legs out of the stream and stood up, fiddling with his belt before walking over to Lan Wangji. "If it's so important, can I take a look?"
"No," Lan Wangji continued to write, but he almost imperceptibly held his arm up in a way that would block his words.
Wei Wuxian chuckled and sat down beside him, holding a hand over his eyes to let Lan Wangji know he wouldn't break his trust. He was met with the smallest exhale- he knew Lan Wangji found it amusing.
"Do you want any topic suggestions?" He slowly lowered his hand and let it rest in the cool grass. "For inspiration?"
"I have some," Lan Wangji answered softly. "Thank you."
"Oh, right, right. Lan Zhan is a creative genius," Wei Wuxian tilted his head back to watch the clouds roll by, a wide smile on his face. "After all, in that cave…"
Lan Wangji's writing slowed to a halt. He felt the tiniest twinge of anxiety in his chest, and yet, out of the corner of his eye, he could see that Wei Wuxian looked happy.
"When we were drifting off, you hummed me a song," Wei Wuxian mused as he hugged his legs to his chest.
"You asked me to," Lan Wangji nodded softly.
They'd both been exhausted after killing the Xuanwu of Slaughter. Even after Lan Wangji had made his feelings abundantly clear, Wei Wuxian had been, for once, a bit awkward in his reciprocation. He may have overexerted himself fighting the beast, leading to him needing to sit down almost immediately after its death. Lan Wangji had been quick to join him, and had hummed a tune to help them both drift to sleep while they waited for rescue.
"And you made it up, right?" Wei Wuxian asked. It hadn't been a song he'd ever heard before, so he'd asked about it at the time.
"I did," Lan Wangji carefully picked his brush back up. There was no sense in feeling anxious about these things. He should be well past that point by now.
"If you could make up a song that still sticks with me to this day, you'll definitely be able to write something that impresses everyone," Wei Wuxian reassured him.
Lan Wangji didn't bother explaining that impressing people wasn't his intention, but rather that he wanted to commemorate the occasion and show that it mattered to him, but instead humoured Wei Wuxian. "Even Sect Leader Wen?"
"Ugh, I still can't get used to calling him that!" Wei Wuxian shook his head. It wasn't out of disrespect, but Wen Chao was still Wen Chao! "At least, not in a serious context… But absolutely. He's the most impressionable person I've ever met."
Lan Wangji nodded in understanding and resumed his writing. There truly was nothing to be anxious about, but all the same, he wanted this to be special- for more than just one reason. Little by little, he crafted his work, and little by little, Wei Wuxian shuffled closer to him, his eyes once again covered, until his head was resting against Lan Wangji's shoulder. He hummed that familiar tune, which made butterflies flutter in Lan Wangji's stomach, but even despite this he found himself humming along, with a small smile that burned brighter than the sun slowly setting above them.
"He'll be here, right?"
Luo Qingyang finished setting the table for their usual rendezvous, this time held at the Western tea gardens of the Wen sect, a small, secluded area only accessible by hanging bridge, said to once have been the thinking place of Wen Mao himself.
She stared at her friend in quiet amusement, watching as he nervously drummed his fingers against the table. It was hard to picture Wen Chao as Sect Leader still, even with how he'd changed his look and how she'd seen him take control of situations firsthand. He was still just Wen Chao to her.
"You know," she spoke up with a chuckle, "we asked ourselves the same thing about you, once. Feels like so long ago now."
"It's been more than a year," Wen Chao nodded in momentary contemplation, though he quickly resumed being anxious. "But of course I showed up! I had something to lose!"
"And to gain," Luo Qingyang held her hand up to her mouth to laugh a little more, at which point Wen Chao held his arms out to express she was proving his point. "Lan Wangji would never cancel without warning. And see, Wei Wuxian isn't here yet either, and when has he ever missed a meeting? They've probably encountered an obstacle or something. Maybe they're lost."
"Lost?" Wen Chao frowned in confusion. "Can't they just fly around if they're lost?"
"It's a big sect," Luo Qingyang shrugged her shoulders and turned her teacup a few times. "It wouldn't be the first time Wei Wuxian doesn't know where to go."
"They're probably kissing somewhere," Wen Chao mumbled while crossing his arms.
Luo Qingyang's cheeks turned pink. It took her a moment to get her bearings enough to say "don't be silly."
Silence fell between them briefly, only broken by their soft giggling up until Wen Chao asked a cheeky question.
"Wanna bet?"
"Sorry we're late!" Wei Wuxian announced his arrival as he rushed across the hanging bridge, dragging along a trotting, yet still surprisingly dignified Lan Wangji. "I got lost!"
"See?" Luo Qingyang smirked at Wen Chao, who turned his nose up.
"Bet they were kissing too. Hey!" He sat up a little straighter. "Don't break the bridge!"
Wei Wuxian laughed and safely made it across, happily guiding Lan Wangji over to the tea table, where he finally let go of his hand. Smiling at his friends, he took a step sideways so Lan Wangji could take center stage.
He held his arms out before himself and bowed solemnly, keeping his head lowered for what seemed like a small eternity before speaking up in a soft voice that somehow remained perfectly clear over the distant rushing of the waterfall behind them.
"Thank you for the invitation. I am honored to be here."
Luo Qingyang and Wen Chao exchanged a somewhat flustered glance as they bowed in greeting, while Wei Wuxian gave a jovial chuckle and carefully placed his hand on Lan Wangji's back.
"Come on, Lan Zhan, you're scaring them with how serious you're being," he teased.
Lan Wangji took a polite seat across from Wen Chao and Luo Qingyang. Though his expression betrayed nothing, inside his heart was pounding. To be sitting here with Wei Ying's friends, to be part of something he'd been quietly longing for… He was as excited as a person could be, and certainly nervous, though none of the others could tell.
That was a good thing.
Though Wei Wuxian had told him over and over that these gatherings were casual and fun, he hadn't expected the level of comfort and familiarity shared between the three. He knew their respective personalities well enough, but to see them joke around and talk about life as if they'd known each other for years was almost surreal. Luo Qingyang shoved Wen Chao lightly whenever he made a bad joke, which he, at this point, seemed to do exclusively to get a reaction out of her, and Lan Wangji had to remind himself that outside this small space, people might actually care that someone of her social status was elbowing a prominent sect leader. As well respected as Luo Qingyang was now, she was still regarded by many as a servant's child.
The fact they didn't care was so natural. The fact they finished each other's sentences was natural, the fact that they had inside jokes was natural, the fact that Wei Wuxian happily doodled them all as donkeys sitting at the table because of an off handed comment was natural, and Lan Wangji hardly knew what to do with himself. He barely touched his tea, always reaching for his cup yet never bringing it up to his lips, too immersed in their interactions to break his focus away.
He wondered how he would've felt had he witnessed these interactions back then. It was probably for the best he was only seeing them now, when the dust had settled.
"Ah, Lan Zhan, do you think it's a good time to share what you brought?" Wei Wuxian leaned into him, finally breaking the spell he was under.
"You brought something?" Wen Chao perked up.
"We're all ears," Luo Qingyang encouraged, also sitting up more attentively.
It wasn't the first time someone had brought something of their own to their meetings, but for the most part, their guests listened to them, or simply shared their thoughts on whatever they'd read, as was expected of any good book club.
Lan Wangji looked between the smiling faces aimed back at him, and knew there was no turning back now. Calmly reaching into his lapel, he produced his neatly bound parchments, standing up to be able to properly read them.
If they were to be read aloud, he wanted to be the one to do it.
"Multiple pages," Luo Qingyang observed eagerly. What could a man such as Lan Wangji have written?
"Poetry," Wei Wuxian whispered with a grin.
Lan Wangji took a slow, deep breath, and began to read.
Droplets echo through an empty cave,
In each ripple I hear your name.
In the rising sun I see your smile,
And early birdsong reflects your laughter.
Every raindrop, a tear I would dry from your cheeks.
Every obscured moon, a night I would hold you close.
Lan Wangji didn't dare look up from his page. Though his hands didn't tremble, he felt like he might hesitate if he studied the faces of those looking back at him.
Especially Wei Wuxian. He may just freeze up then.
Fires glow upon a mountaintop,
In every ember I see your eyes.
In the rushing stream I hear you speak,
And the breeze through my hair mimics your touch.
Every song I play, the essence of your spirit.
Every path I walk, one that leads me to you.
Without having to seek you, I find you
Everywhere I turn.
The poem went on for several more pages, and even once it ended with the line you have no need for envy, as the world envies you, the trio were left inching towards Lan Wangji to see if he had anything left to say.
His ears turned a deep shade of red once he finally lowered his pages. Luo Qingyang seemed absolutely taken with his work, sporting a dreamy smile as she sighed softly, and Wen Chao's eyes were wider than before, his hands gripping the edge of the table.
"It's things like these that make me believe in true love," he admitted. His whole face was completely flushed.
Wei Wuxian silently reached for Lan Wangji's hand, and when he finally had the courage to look over at him, he could see that he was smiling gently, warmly, earnestly. A smile reserved only for him.
Lan Wangji allowed himself a tiny exhale of relief as he subtly squeezed Wei Wuxian's hand in his own.
"Well, there's no way I'm topping that," Luo Qingyang announced with a clap of her hands. "So…"
The group dissolved into gentle laughter as more tea was served, and the afternoon blossomed into evening without any of them realizing any time had passed at all.
"Well, my darling, talented, beautiful Lan Zhan," Wei Wuxian playfully addressed Lan Wangji as they made their way home, "how does it feel to have finally attended a book club meeting?"
Lan Wangji could hardly disguise his smile as he walked beside him, his poem once again safely tucked away in his lapel. "It feels good. It was less serious than I anticipated."
"I told you! We're just friends who hang out," Wei Wuxian reiterated. "They're really informal gatherings…"
"I see that now," Lan Wangji lightly bowed his head. "But it still holds great importance."
Wei Wuxian watched him for a moment in awe. Was it important to Lan Wangji because it was important to him? Or did it go even deeper than that? "On that note, your poem…"
"It could be better," Lan Wangji spoke softly.
Wei Wuxian nearly flew away from shock. "Better!? Lan Zhan-"
"It could be," Lan Wangji smiled to himself, "but it's a start."
Wei Wuxian kept quiet then, reaching over for Lan Wangji's hand again with a dopey grin plastered on his face. To think such a remarkable poem still didn't come close to how Lan Wangji felt about him! He wasn't sure how to begin to show his gratitude…
Lan Wangji wasn't thinking of gratitude or repayment, though. He was simply happy he'd gotten the sentiment out at all. And now he could say he'd been to a book club meeting! Though he didn't want to encroach too much on things that were decidedly personal to Wei Wuxian, he was glad to know he'd be welcomed any time with open arms.
They'd been so warm and supportive of his work, and any complicated feelings between them had been left in the past, so although the group was small, he felt like he was part of something big.