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It’s quiet in the Jingshi.
The night wraps the residence in a cocoon of serenity. It plays the tunes of hooting owls and squeaking bats. —With the moonlight for a conductor and the twinkling stars for an audience.
Tiny cries pierce through the calm atmosphere. —Insistent and miserable.
The Jingshi is no longer quiet.
“Ah baobei, what’s wrong, hm?”
Wei Wuxian sighs, —a hint of exhaustion evident in his tone. Still, he grabs the infant and rocks her in his arms as he whispers soothing words to her.
“Don’t worry, love, I’m here. Don’t cry. Baba is here.”
It takes a few minutes but the bundle in his arms eventually settles down and stops fussing. It seems that she’s just content to stare at her father so he doesn’t make a move to feed or change her.
“You little rascal, did you miss me that much?” He asks fondly.
The baby gurgles in reply and wraps one tiny fist around his finger. Wei Wuxian’s heart bursts.
His baby. His A-Zhu. He loves her so much.
He still remembers when they found her on the side of the road on one of their nighthunts. —Tiny and shivering and alone. She was barely a month old and couldn’t even open her eyes due to how weak she was.
They didn’t even have to discuss it. Just took the baby and warmed her up with a fire talisman. They immediately made their way back to the Cloud Recesses where she received extensive treatment until she could babble happily again. Wei Wuxian and his wonderful husband checked up on her everyday during her grueling recovery. —Lan Wangji with new Guqin pieces everyday and himself with a toy he’d made to entertain her.
When she was well enough to be moved from the healing pavilion. The couple immediately stepped up to take her in. They were confident the Lan nursery would take very good care of her and make sure she asks for nothing but something compelled them to raise the girl as their own.
It was their dream after all, to have a horde of children running around the Jingshi and terrorizing everyone in the Lan clan.
And while Wei Wuxian was hard at work trying to craft a talisman that will allow him to birth children of his own with his husband, —he wouldn’t deprive this tiny human of love and will treat her just as well as he would have a biological child.
And he did. He doted on his, —their daughter so much.
He named her Wei Zhu. With the character for pearl. Lan Wangji was the one who insisted she takes his name. “Because Wei Ying deserves to give his name to our children just as much as I did giving mine to Sizhui.”
Wei Wuxian loves him so much.
“Wei Ying?”
‘Speak of the devil. No, the angel. My Lan Zhan is an angel.’
“Hello er gege. Did I wake you up?” He asks.
Lan Wangji shakes his head no.
He looks beautiful. Softly illuminated by the moonlight shyly peeking through the windows. His silky hair is loose and falls like waves over his broad shoulders. He wants to touch it.
“Hey, Lan Zhan. Do you think you can hold A-Zhu for me? And sit down by the bed please.” He instructs before gently prying his finger out of his daughter’s vice-like grip. —She holds him so tightly even as she’s drowsing off. How adorable.
Lan Wangji looks at him incredulously but still takes A-Zhu from his arms. He plants a gentle kiss on both their foreheads before making his way to their bed.
Wei Wuxian grins. These small proofs of Lan Wangji’s love and trust for him will never get old.
A few minutes later, he comes back with a jade comb in one hand and a jar of oil in the other. The bed dips when he sits behind his husband who smiles one of his perfect heartwarming smiles when he catches a glimpse of his mother’s comb in the shorter man’s hand.
His mother, —the late madam Lan hadn’t left many things for her kids to remember her by but this jade comb still managed to land in Lan Wangji’s possession. It is the same comb she used to bring out whenever her sons visited her. She would brush their hair, —brush and brush and brush until her sons wobbled in her lap.
They never had the heart to tell her their hair was tangle free.
When she left this world, the twin jades of Lan took turns doing each other’s hair with their mother’s comb until they were too old and it was no longer appropriate. Still, they indulged in the familiar tradition from time to time.
With Lan Xichen in seclusion however, there was no one to use the lovely comb on Lan Wangji’s hair. Being the protective older brother he was, he still made sure the heirloom would reach Wangji’s husband along with a letter explaining its importance. —Lest young master Wei accidentally misplaces it like it is so common for him to do.
That’s how Wei Wuxian found himself in possession of a piece of his mother in law. A piece he was honored he could keep. A piece he brings out on quiet and mellow nights like these.
With one hand, he unscrews the oil jar and pours a generous amount of the contents to his other palm. The smell is nice. —Fragrant. But not overbearingly so.
He runs his oiled hands across his husband’s dark tresses. From root to ends. When his palms are dry again, he slathers more oil onto them and lovingly applies it to Lan Wangji’s hair.
When it’s sufficiently coated in oil. He moves to his scalp and massages it with the tips of his fingers. —In circular motions then in a criss crossing pattern. Lan Wangji moans from the sensation. Their daughter, thankfully doesn’t stir.
Wei Wuxian diligently works his clever hands into his husband’s scalp for a few delightful minutes before grabbing the jade comb from where he left it on the bed.
He digs the cold teeth into the older man’s hair and brings it down. —Once. Twice. Many times.
He brushes his bangs. His nape. The rest of his hair. It’s relaxing. For both of them.
Wei Wuxian gets lost in the repetitive motions. —Soothed by the sound of jade against hair and his family’s steady breaths filling the Jingshi.
Soon enough, he notices a slight wobble run through Lan Wangji.
Perfect.
He deposits the comb on a nearby table. —He’ll take care of it tomorrow. Then, he arranges his husband’s hair into a loose braid before lightly pushing him into their bed.
Lan Wangji goes down without issue. Still mindful of the tiny life in his arms through his drowsiness. His husband arranges them so that they’re both comfortable and A-Zhu isn’t squished underneath him.
He quickly climbs into bed with them after extinguishing the candles and presses himself to them. A-Zhu makes a tiny noise at that but continues to sleep peacefully. —Lan Wangji would very much like to join her.
“Goodnight, Lan Zhan.” He whispers.
“Goodnight, Wei Ying.” The other man whispers back.
“I love you.”
“Mn. I love you too.”
Lan Wangji almost hears the smile coming from his lover.
The Jingshi is quiet.
Save for the snores of three people. A family. Who love each other very much.