Chapter Text
Chapter One: White
She was resplendent in white.
She had always been at home in soft floating fabric of trained skirts and belled sleeves. This auspicious day was no different.
Her dark hair was drawn back from elegant angular features as it usually was although, in deference to the occasion today, her hair ornament had been chosen with the greatest of care.
Danyin felt her twin sister's fingers gently slide the small clarified white jade hair piece into place. Normally Danyin would prefer a larger ornamental piece, one that would fan above the crown of her head but today's hair embellishment had been chosen for practical reasons.
She dared not risk her new armored crown getting snagged as Lord Yunzhong placed it upon her head.
Fairy Danyin could fathom few things more embarrassing. She was quite certain that Lady Chidi, the late Goddess of War and Danyin’s personal hero, would never have had such an ill-omened moment occur.
“Aaaayy.” Jeili sighed at her sister, catching sight of Danyin’s expression in the mirror as she straightened from her task. The Moon Tribe merchant’s voice was a long suffering mix of scolding and whining. “Stop looking so stricken.”
“I am not stricken.” Danyin corrected, prompting the tiniest of an eye-roll from her sister.
“Forget it.” Jeili hid her giggles as she moved to collect the white and silver spidersilk cloak that was the final piece of Fairy Danyin’s new attire.
It was the happiest day of Danyin’s life but one would never have known it from the clench of Danyin’s jaw, or the determined set of her dark eyes.
Danyin rose from the dressing table, eyes sweeping around her room to land on Jeili who was openly admiring the quality of the fabric of the delicate, transparent cloak. It was not at all difficult to tell, from the wry twist of Jeili’s lips, that the merchant was mentally calculating the value of the rare and incredibly expensive spidersilk fabric that had been used to sew the garment.
Not that she would steal from her sister, elder by a whole 8 minutes and on the very cusp of being crowned the Goddess of War of Shuiyuntian. At least not this time.
The cloak was a gift from Changheng, as was the golden logo of Shuiyuntian that adorned Danyin’s left breast and the onyx band that held her hair half back.
The sounds of approaching soldiers signaled that it was time.
Moving as one the Heavenly Soldiers in their gleaming white armor gave the emergent Goddess of War their respectful greetings, hands held parallel to each other, in front of their chests, then rotating one over the other as deep bows from the very hips were performed.
Danyin chose to ignore the soft snort of amusement from behind her at this display of formality believing that Jeili would, in time, come to appreciate the laws of etiquette in Shuiyuntian.
Only 500 years had passed since Jeili had discovered her father to be a Fairy of Shuiyuntian, having been raised in Haishi and now living in the Dark Pine Forest of the Cangyan Sea.
Danyin would admit to being slightly disappointed by the absence of the former God of War among the small coterie that would escort her to the seat of Emperor Lord Yunzhong.
She and Changheng had sworn themselves life long friends.
He had been her greatest and more ardent supporter in her rise through the ranks of the Fairy Army to ascend the position he himself had quit.
Fairy Danyin struggled to explain his absence as they began to walk, Jeili taking a position just to the right of Danyin but 1 pace behind. The Soldiers automatically moved in formation behind Jeili.
It should have been their Father, Liyuan, in the place where Jeili walked. Both sisters were palpably aware that the place of honor at Danyin’s side belonged to their Father.
As the younger sister Jeili should have been at the very back of Danyin’s train, ready to assist with the floating, shimmering fabric if necessary.
Neither sister had spoken of his absence over the course of the morning.
There was nothing that could be said or done to change what was.
It was easier to let it be unremarked upon with Jeili completing the family rituals that Danyin deserved to have performed on the day of her ascension to the Goddess of War.
Many people stopped, gasped and bowed as the procession went by. Respectful murmurs of “Goddess” following in Danyin’s wake as unerringly as her sister and the Heavenly Soldiers did.
As did eyes lingering upon Jeili.
Although the Moon Tribe and Shuiyantian were now at peace thanks to the sacrifice of Dongfang Qingcang and the Goddess of Xishan it was still unusual to see someone from the Moon Tribe in the Heavenly Realm.
Jeili’s colourful attire and her tightly styled black hair was a sharp contrast to the white clothing and loose flowing locks of the Fairies of Shuiyuntian.
Fairy Danyin noticed neither as they walked, focused on her measured steps to ensure she did not trip on the billow hems of her abundant skirts. She could not help but feel a measure of hurt at Changheng’s absence as well.
She already had to do without her Father on this auspicious day.
It felt like a betrayal that her life sworn friend was absent from her side as well.
Gleaming white and bathed in sunshine, the throne room and court of Shuiyuntian Emperor Lord Yunzhong had been dressed for occasion.
Likewise the faces of the assembled Immortals were wreathed in smiles.
The crowning of a new Goddess was a rare event and one worth celebrating.
Such an inauguration had not occurred in over 30,000 years and on that occasion the moment had been laced with grief for the loss of Lady Chidi.
In the case of Danyin it was not a death that preceded her but a joyous retirement. Nor was her inferment a requirement of a prolonged war but a rank she had earned with her own skill, strength and diligence.
Danyin’s eyes roamed the tiered stands as she entered, seeking a white haired, silver attired man that she already knew was not there. Her dark eyes settled on Aunt San Sheng, then flickered away quickly.
No Changheng either, Danyin could not help but feel disappointment prick at her heart once again. She had assumed that since he had not greeted her with the soldiers at her dwelling that he would certainly be standing beside his brother for the Ceremony.
Changheng may have renounced his title to travel the mundane world as a loose immortal but he was yet Lord Dong’s younger son and considered royalty in Shuiyuntian.
His absence was glaringly conspicuous and Danyin struggled to explain it in any reasonable manner.
Jeili and the Heavenly Soldier attendants all stopped at the very edge of the arena where Lord Yunzhong received formal visitors, leaving Danyin to approach the Emperor alone.
She was so thrown by the absence of Lord Changheng that she almost forgot to bow, startling herself quickly to draw her hands up to her chest and bowing deeply over them and remaining there.
Danyin scolded herself that Lady Chidi would never have forgotten her manners.
Although the Immortal Emperor rose it was not Lord Yunzhong who spoke but Aunt San Sheng, unfurling a parchment to read in a clear voice;
“Fairy Danyin of Li Clan. Nurtured in the Noble Fairy Army. Refined of Character. Blessed in Virtues. Rewarded by Emperor Lord Yunzhong’s mercy to be promoted as Goddess of War in Shuiyuntian. To act over the three realms.”
There was sudden movement to her left as Lord Yunzhong materialized beside her in a brief cloud of spiritual power. In his hands a sculpted armor headpiece that matched Danyin’s war armor was held gently.
“By this helm be set as the Goddess of War. Receive.”
Danyin instantly kneeled at the Emperor’s command as everything began to blur together.
She felt the crown placed on her head, and Aunt San Sheng instructed all the gathered Immortals to give honor to the new Goddess of War at the conclusion of the Ceremony.
Lord Yunzhong ordered her to rise as the voices of a thousand Immortals welcomed her as the Goddess of War.
Lady Danyin turned to receive their kowtows and praise, their arms all brought up parallel to each other, level with their chests, rotating one hand over the other then deeply bowing.
Everyone but the Emperor himself bowed to her.
Aunt San Sheng, the Immortals and the Heavenly Soldiers, Jeili and a dark haired man dressed in the white attire of a wealthy mortal man alongside a white haired man in the dark attire of an Immortal Criminal.
Changheng straightened first, beaming a genuine smile as Lady Danyin’s dark eyes swept over him and Liyuan.
Her heart instantly seized up at the sight of her father, leading Danyin to make a noise of strangled delight that she would be embarrassed to have uttered later.
“Spare your formalities.” Lord Yunzhong granted in benevolent tones, excusing Lady Danyin from having to kowtow to him and wait for him to dismiss her according to protocol.
She bowed nonetheless with a quick:
“I take my leave” before crossing quickly to her Father’s side.
Liyuan was in tears by the time she reached him and Danyin was blinking away her own fiercely.
“Father!”
“Danyin!”
He was an Immortal Criminal it was true, there was a reason Aunt San Sheng had proclaimed that Danyin was nurtured in the Noble Fairy Army rather than in a Noble Family but that did not stop Danyin from embracing her beloved father without reservation.
He had released the sinner Ronghao from Karma Jail and had accepted his punishment for this traitorous act but Danyin knew Liyuan had only done it to preserve the life of her sister.
She would have gone to Haotian Tower beside him were it not for Jeili.
“Father, you look pale.” Lady Danyin couldn’t help but comment, noting her Father had leaned out and there were hollows beneath his cheekbones since she last saw him.
500 years in Haotian Tower had not done the former Fairy Lord any favors.
“It is nothing.” Liyuan insisted. He would allow nothing to diminish his daughter's joy today. “I could not be more proud of you. My daughter. Danyin.”
“Liyuan cannot stay long. I had to use every ounce of my influence in Shuiyuntian to bring him out even this long.” Changheng said, encouraging Danyin to say anything she wanted to say to her Father now, while she had the chance.
He shot a side eyed look of disapproval at his brother but Lord Yunzhong was already in the process of leaving.
Given his Brothers' own mistakes in disregarding Lady Chidi’s warnings about the Evil God Taisui Changheng felt that Liyuan should have been forgiven his mistakes by the Emperor.
Or at least had his sentence shortened and be released from Haotian Tower.
There were extenuating circumstances after all. Liyuan had never agreed with nor allied himself with sinner Ronghao. Liyuan had only ever sought to preserve his daughter Jeili’s life from Ronghao’s treacherous disciple Deiyi.
“My precious daughter. I will see you again soon.” Liyuan promised, knowing he had been allowed out only to witness Lady Danyin’s inauguration as the Goddess of War.
Two Heavenly Soldiers lingered near the quartet of Changheng, Danyin, Jeili and Liyuan.
“I will visit.” Danyin replied, catching hold of her Father’s hand in a desperate grip.
Now that she was the Goddess of War none could prevent her from doing so nor would it cast so long a shadow over her reputation that it would risk her promotion.
“We both will.” Jeili promised and Liyuan touched a brief hand to her cheek before turning kind eyes back to Danyin.
“Take care of your sister.”
“I will. Even if I have to carry her to the Goddess of Xishan on my back again.”
Liyuan gave a small chuckle that almost turned into a cough before he repressed it savagely.
It was clear by the body language of Changheng that the man was waiting to escort Liyuan back to Haotian tower and, with the nod, the white haired man knew his time in Shuiyuntian was at an end.
For now at least.