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The Cloud Recesses was quiet and peaceful - especially since Wei Wuxian and Hanguang-Jun were out on an errand, and there was little chance of interruption. It felt a little strange to Suzhui by now - familiar, but still not quite right. He had gotten too accustomed to Wei Wuxian keeping things lively.
The routine of the Cloud Recesses was something he knew in his bones; it was easy to fall back into, even after the revelations and excitement that had followed in the past year. Once they had finished their respects, and burying what they could, Wen Ning had lead him home, and had promised to visit and see him again soon. Suzhui would have loved if his uncle could have stayed, but he knew the others of the Lan clan would be outright against, or demand an explanation, and though he was resettling into his memories, he was not ready to tell quite everyone yet. He had to have time to process himself, and re-center who he was.
All the more reason for him to return to his meditations and to growing his cultivation; the better he could work to protect others, like Hanguang-Jun and Wei Wuxian did. Both were so skilled and so powerful in their own ways, they always made it feel like there was nothing to fear. Or was that just him, remembering deep in his subconscious how the two had been like fathers to him so long ago?
Suzhui shook his head and sighed. He was getting distracted again. Was it always this hard to concentrate before? He closed his eyes, settled in the quiet hall, and focused as he did when he was little. The sound of the breeze. The rustle of leaves. The chill crisp of the mountain air. All calm, familiar things, that guided him back on his path to meditation.
However, it wasn't more than an incense time before he was shifting again. The position wasn't quite comfortable; did it feel odd to be so still again? He huffed in frustration as he tried to make sure he was properly settled. He'd done this for as long as he could remember, why was it harder now? Was he too used to being on the road? Did Hanguang-Jun always have these same issues when he returned from his Night Hunts? He would have to ask him when they returned. But he had also been able to enter his exercises easily with Wen Ning around. Was it just the comfort of knowing there was a senior there to protect him?
Distracted again. Suzhui was about to change tactics, ready to get to his feet and try some martial exercises to still his mind when suddenly there was a rustling and stomping footsteps at the door. He opened his eyes as Lan Jingyi suddenly spilled into the room, his robes still in a bit of disarray.
"Suzhui! Sorry I'm late, I know I was supposed to meditate with you - but there was someone coming through the mountain pass with some goods and I had to stop to see if they had anything good to eat! I got spoiled being on missions and getting local food, the Lan Clan food takes a while to dull your palate to again!" He flopped down unceremoniously next to Suzhui - even though Jingyi could be composed as any proper member of their clan, at home and with Suzhui, he knew he was safe to relax a bit. Still, once settled he started arranging his robes and settling into a more proper position. "Started without me? Well, no matter - I'm going to catch up to your skill level soon, you'll see! I'll be even better by the time we go on our next Night Hunt!"
Jingyi settled and closed his eyes, but his breathing was uneven still from his hurried running - Suzhui hadn't even bothered to get a word in, but smiled and closed his eyes as he returned, more easily this time, to his meditations.
Ah… Perhaps he was just not as used to being alone anymore. As he released the thought, and the worry, he slipped back in to the familiar peace.