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Chapter Text

The rain thundered as she hurried across the path to where the sound seemed to be emerging. Her robes were gradually getting soaked by the wind, which drove the rain upon her as she scuttled to where a group of disciples where standing, shivering either from the cold or the sound from within the room.

She took a second to catch her breath and straightened her shoulders. “ What happened?” she asked, studying the door which separated them from their Leader before turning her eyes onto the senior most member there- Jiang Feng.

He scowled, looking sideways, “Senior Wei.” He muttered

She grimaced, of course, the only person who would be able to upset Sect Leader Jiang to this extent had to be him

Another crash echoed throughout the room, making them all jump and wince at the sound of something else getting destroyed, bearing the brunt of their leader’s anger.

“Call Head Disciple Bao back, I’ll deal with this” glancing at Jiang Feng once more before rolling her shoulders, mentally preparing herself to go on inside. “I already sent him a message when Senior Wei got here but this storm is going to delay them” he said, bowing slightly in apology. She frowned.

Oh great

Head Disciple Bao could hold his own against the Sect Leader for the longest time among any of them but had unfortunately gone for a night hunt the previous day. He was due to come back tomorrow, but this situation needed control right now.

“Alright knock on the door if anything else is needed” she said patting her waist where she could feel for her trusty weapon. She had only started getting used to it after getting accepted into Lotus Pier, when the Head Disciple had remarked that she would be well suited to a whip rather than a sword. At first she thought ill of the older man, thinking he thought of her as weak, unable to lift a sword but then trying out the whip was like a child discovering his legs for the first time and realizing that he was able to walk- an incredible new sensation

The Head Disciple had nodded his approval and she continued training to the extent where she had scars in her palms- a testament of her blood and sweat poured into her hours of training

Seen therefore as the only person who would be able to withstand and defend against Zidian’s attacks she was chosen for this task as the Spiders themselves had gone for a small delegation in the Unclean Realm, not to represent their sect, but rather to protect his heart- Jin Rulan.

She squeezed the handle of Duye, her very own spiritual weapon- a whip. She had specially fitted with small spikes at the very tip in order to get a better hold of the enemy's flesh, tearing it apart was easy. Paralyzing venom squeezed onto the spiky ends made it even more deadly, however it was only used during night hunts and battles; making it relatively poison free for now. She nodded to the group, who turned pale, looking at her as if she was going to her death sentence, and felt a tinge of amusement

Lightning lit up the sky once more as she slid the door open sideways, the wind spraying her hair with rain water once again making it stick to her face

Mei Lin, Disciple of the Jiang Clan, stepped into the room and slid the door shut, exhaling before looking up at the man shrouded in purple lighting and sparks hissing from his own spiritual weapon

She threw a privacy talisman quickly on the door; there was no need to worry the others standing out, before bowing, “Sect Leader Jiang, Head Disciple Bao is on a night hunt and will return shortly. I am here to keep you company for the while.” she murmured

“I am no child for you to look after nor a friend of yours for you to give me your company. Especially a woman” he sneered and Zidian lashed against the wall next to her head, smelling faintly of smoke “Leave. Now”

She raised an eyebrow, disappointed in him, “I do not see you as a child nor am I offering up my body for your use, Sect Leader. As a disciple of this Sect, I’m obliged to protect my home and my leader” she said, side eyeing the broken furniture before turning to look at him once again.

His eyes widened slightly at first as she spoke, before seeing the furniture and turning to glare at her. “Head Disciple Bao would engage me in a spar to help me get rid of excess energy and I do not see how you can help me, being in a inferior position than his.”

Wow he could be infuriating but his words, however crass, were true. She wrinkled her nose, now able to smell a slight stench of alcohol as she stepped inside further

“Perhaps Sect Leader you should speak less in a spar and engage your opponent more” she kicked stray piece of wood aside, taking Duye out and running one hand down its length

“Well then if you insist” he grinned with all teeth, without a speck of humor which could be likened to one of a feral animal

He retracted Zidain and held her coil stepping forward where a small stretch of light finally fell over the Sect Leader, highlighting his silhouette and the sharp lines of his face with a wrinkle in between his eyebrows hair half down from his usual tight updo

He almost looked like a demon, she thought, readying her own whip. Beautiful to behold with his hair flowing almost behind him but her instincts screaming danger as he edged closer.

She would’ve missed it if she blinked.

She threw Duye out to meet ZIdain ,which seemed to have a mind of its own, twisting out of the way. She expected this, she had trained with the very best of course, and changed the trajectory of Duye with a flick of her wrist

Neutralizing Zidain had to be her first priority, she thought furiously, seeing the blackened marks left on the table top destroyed on the side as she avoided another lashing.

Seeing the Sect Leader fight with Zidian was mesmerizing. Being on the end of the fight however felt like the death penalty. She mused trying to look over any signs of weakness in the way it was handled, finding none. If she wielded Duye like an extension of her limb, the Sect Leader wielded Zidain as easy as breathing in air.

He was born for this, she thought in admiration, noticing the way the weapon too had ceded the will of it’s master

Time passed as they both engaged brutually and she could feel sweat pooling down her face. Too late, she noticed the purple spiral headed towards her and felt it before anything else. A stinging sensation along with a cut through her skin over her hand in a neat line, causing her to hiss in pain but still resisted the urge to drop her weapon.

He rolled his eyes and retracted Zidian, “Enough of this nonsense, Leave at once” he ordered, turning his back onto her and kicking out at a broken table, making her wince

His shoulders were still tense, Still too much energy. She grimaced and wiped her hand once on her robes before withdrawing her weapon again. “No” she snarled “A spar is not over till one yields to the other”

“Foolish woman. You really want to do this again?” he growled, once again engaging Zidian as she began to approach closer.

A flurry of attacks took place again but she knew she had to put an end to this fight quickly else she get defeated again in terms of both strength and stamina

And there! Sect Leader Jiang had just stumbled when she came closer, trying to get ahold of his balance. Wow he must have really drank a lot if his spiritual energy could not burn off the excess alcohol. Its something he would have never have done if he was sober but now was her chance. Thunder clashed loudly as she stepped closer and immediately struck her foot out when she saw the slight stumble again.

It was a dirty move, to be fair and shouldn’t have been used in a normal spar but at that moment she was way beyond the point of caring and took greatest pleasure at the surprised look that flashed across his face as he went down

Wasting not a single moment, she pinned the Sect Leader down watching the confusion turn to anger and then to resignation. She first thought Zidian would throw her off her feet but surprisingly, Sect Leader retracted it once again and threw a hand over his face, shielding his eyes.

“I yield” he murmured, staying down on the floor

Mei Lin studied him carefully, taking note of his deep breathing and slumped shoulders and for one second she felt pity for the man she had trapped underneath her

Her brain conjured up a memory of a boy, sitting in a corner with hunched shoulders and pulling up his knees to his chest and hiding his face with his hands to prevent anyone from crying. Her grip loosened before fully extracting her hands and sitting cross legged next to her leader lying supine, trying to ignore his rattling breaths.

She turned her back giving a few minutes for the man to regain his composure. He sat up not long after sitting cross legged next to her, tilted face resting on his hand as he blankly observed the disarray in the room.

She turned to look at him, now seeing a man broken, with red rimmed eyes, dull with no sign of life and something in her heart wrenched imagining A-Han sitting in a similar position

“I’m going to try something, Consider it as a payment for Zidian” she muttered, sliding behind him. A hint of amusement flickered in his eyes as he retorted, “You mean for a spar you started?”

“Your logic sounds like that of a three year old” she snapped before gently wrestling the headpiece dangling in his hair and pulling the ribbon free from its loose knot.

“But still true.” He stilled when he felt cool fingers prod his head “What are you doing?” he asked warily

“Making sure of the dignity of my Sect Leader in the case of any unexpected visitor”she said carding her fingers through his hair and working out all the knots. He scowled but didn’t protest half drunk and half tired with the entire day’s events. He closed his eyes and leaned on his hand again as he felt the fingers gently massage his scalp, earning a soft sigh from him

The finger paused before resuming to massage throughout his scalp. She had no intention of coddling a grown man, her Leader as well, but no one in the world with a heart, could walk away at the moment if they had gotten a glimpse of his face.

While it may have been highly unheard of and practically scandalous in any other Sect, Sect Leader Jiang was the model of many hair styles courtesy of Jin Ling. There had been a time when the Sect Leader had been trying to braid his nephew’s hair and failed in his numerous attempts. Swallowing his pride, he had asked an older woman, a civilian, who had been absolutely delighted to teach him as well as try certain styles out on him as her only reward. Her grand daughters had also chimed in with tooth gapped smiles and the sticky fingers resulting in a resigned sigh but cooperative until eventually the Sect Leader’s hair became free game for all children, especially his Jin Ling, who had loved nothing more than wrapping his toddler fists around the hair and yanking it during his training rounds, much to the delight of the spectators

Still, she was an unmarried woman and it felt a little too intimate than she was comfortable with and strived on as it kept raining softly in the background. The storm must be coming to an end she thought, tying a loose plait with the same purple ribbon, a style appropriate for sleep before getting up

Surprised he had been so compromising she leaned sideways and her thoughts were confirmed when she noticed him deep asleep using his own hand as a pillow. She stretched out her hand hesitated before giving in and patting his head, painfully reminiscent of A-Han. He wouldn’t know, he was passed out anyways

She quietly cleared the room of its broken pieces in case the man decided to go walking on a half drunken stupor. Hopefully he would remain sedated till morning she grinned at the thought of his headache the next day and turned, taking one last look at her Sect Leader before stepping out of the room into the night with its gentle showers once more to reassure the huddled group of her fellow disciples each face showing wide relief.

Chapter Text

“A-Lin”

She stopped weaving Duye at once, turning her attention to the familiar voice. “Head Disciple” she bowed her head before straightening up, wiping the sweat away from her forehead, “May I help you” she asked, feeling a bit awkward at the silence after the greeting

He looked at her for a few more seconds before speaking, “You did well”

She looked at the man, eyes widened as she took in his words, knowing what he meant them for

Words of praise were hard to come by, especially from the Head Disciple. His words were few, but every disciple had fallen over themselves to hear a good word. The only one even harder to get a positive word out of was of course their dearest Sect Leader- who reserved every bit of it for his nephew hidden carefully among his scolding

“I- Thank you” she muttered, cheeks flushing at the thought of her being as excited for his praise like a child receiving candy. “I only did what anyone would have”

“No.” he said simply, studying her, “You subdued him faster than I ever did” he admitted grudgingly

“He was drunk”

“Still” he grumbled

She hid a small smile as she glanced away

“He summoned you” he said simply before walking away, both of them knowing very well who ‘he’ was

What. Why- the hair

Her cheeks flushed as she realized the sheer audacity of her actions last night, hurrying to meet the Sect Leader. She had stroked his hair like he was a pup, before braiding his hair

It was common between lovers, family and friends. But they were none of that

But his hair had been so soft.

She nearly slapped herself, scowling as she hurried to the Sect Leader’s study, waiting outside as she announced her presence, “Mei Lin. Disciple of the Jiang Clan”

A short silence before- “Come”

She exhaled quietly at the sturdy voice before straightening up and sliding the door open, bowing her head, “Sect Leader” she greeted as she kneeled before him, daring to look up at him

A pair of dull purple eyes stared back, intensely studying her, as they ran over her appearance quickly, “tough practice?” he asked dryly

She raised a brow in confusion, staring back at him before her eyes widened slightly, remembering how she had run over from training to meet the Leader, without attempting to fix herself

“I apologize for my unruly appearance. I-” he held a hand up, a slight scowl on his face, “Don’t. I admire hard workers” he muttered, lightly massaging his temples

Oh that must be the hangover

The corner of her lips tilted just a bit as she took his word and appearance in, before she hurried to maintain her poker expression, which was caught by the Leader, his scowl deepening a bit more

He does look like a puppy I suppose, one who yaps but still guards

He cleared his throat and narrowed his eyes, “Your weapon” he said simply

She understood immediately and held it out for his inspection, “Duye” she offered, ”The spikes have poison”

He raised a brow

“I’m immune”

He kept staring

“I have the antidote in case of..accidents”

A flash of something passed through his eyes before he nodded and looked at her again, “Join the Violet Spiders for training from tomorrow” he said, not posing it as a question or an order

A shock of excitement flood through her

“I will” she muttered, bowing her head in gratitude

He looked at her bowed head before clearing his throat again at which she looked up, surprised to see his fingers twitch uncertainly

“Your hand” he said firmly, not maintaining eye contact

Oh

She slowly unwrapped the bandages and held her palm out for inspection, an angry red scar now present, courtesy of Zidian

The both of them now studied her palm intensely, as in some sort of confusing future present in a palm reading, not knowing what to say, a bit of an awkward atmosphere forming

“I like it” she said decisively, not wanting to hear a word of guilt or worse yet an apology, “It shows Zidian’s true nature. Perhaps I’m one of the few who’s still alive after facing it”

He scowled outright at that, finally looking at her again, “I can whip you with it, if you’d like” he retorted, a common empty threat heard almost daily by every single person who came across him. She didn’t bother replying as she drew her hand back, wrapping the bandages around it again, grateful he hadn’t made it a big deal

Her reflexes shot into action, catching something from the air, turning the small pot around in her hand in confusion. “Use it” he muttered, massaging his head slightly again, trying to appear as though he was busy thinking hard instead of nursing a hangover

A shot of fondness spread through her body as she pocketed the ointment safely, looking at him.

His hair isn’t in the braid anymore.. disappointing

He raised a brow at her stare, almost like he could read her thoughts and tilted his head to the door

She bowed her head, before preparing to walk away

“Next time” his voice called out dryly, “Make sure of your dignity in case visitors come around” he repeated her words back, “I’m afraid I’m not in a position to braid your hair in my study” a tinge of amusement present in his voice as he noticed her stiffening back and the growing horror slowly take over her face

She nearly tripped over as she fled from there