Work Text:
In Luofu, there is a place all residents would subconsciously avoid. It is a beautiful place, with a pavilion seemingly made exclusively for fairies to rest, its design exquisite, overlooking a large lake. During the flowering season, lotuses, its delicate petals almost transparent, would bloom across the lake, filling the lake with an ambiguous scent. Although it is mostly abandoned, there would be many who are interested in testing their courage, or young couples interested in finding a secret place to flirt. All of them would return scared out of their wits, swearing to never go again. These people would always remember the same thing— no matter the time and the person, there would always be a figure in white, their body blurred by the drifting fog over the still lake. He would never turn his head when called, and he would never speak when spoken to. The scent of white lotus seemed to permeate the area, its scent delicate and fragile even in non flowering seasons, dispersing whenever someone walks over, making it impossible for them to discern the origin.
Today is the same. A black haired Alpha enters the place, empty handed save for the sword in his hands. He is dressed in a black Tang suit, a red tassel swaying from his waist. Instead of dispersing, however, the white lotus scent welcomed him gently, embracing him in a teasing manner. Ignoring the blatantly flirtatious pheromones, the man walks towards the pavilion step by step, his lips pressed into a straight line. When he arrives, the man only leans against one of the pillars, a hand resting on his hip as he watches the view in front of him.
The white haired man is here again, but this time, he seemed to have abandoned his guqin by the pavilion, having wandered out to the viewing platform to observe the lotuses instead. He seems to be extremely fond of these flowing and loose clothes, and today, it is no different. The man is dressed in luxurious white and gold robes, the clothes loose around his shoulders, carelessly exposing his neck, which is considered one of the most important body parts in this world. When he leans forward to look closer at the blooming lotuses, he inadvertently exposes the mating bite on his glands, the marks fresh, as if he had only been newly marked. His actions are akin to a young and idle noble, with all the riches and time in the world. He holds an exquisitely crafted opium pipe in one hand, the other caressing the jade pendant on his waist. He glances at the beautiful flowers scattered across the lake, observing their delicate petals, before he lazily lifts his eyes to meet the blue skies.
The black-haired man frowns when he shows no signs of noticing him, and he sets down the sword quietly, walking towards the other man. He places a hand on the other’s waist, breathing in the gentle scent familiarly. The sweet scent from the opium pipe is tempting, so he takes it from him, lifting it to his lips for a smoke. When he pulls away from the pipe, he sighs. White smoke escapes from his lips, and his fingers pressed down unconsciously on his lover’s waist.
“Jing Yuan.”
The white-haired Alpha doesn’t lift his head when his name is called. Ren doesn’t seem to mind that; and his scent spreads out, gently encircling Jing Yuan with the scent of spider lilies. The ghost of a smile touches Jing Yuan’s lips, and he finally looks up towards Ren. One of his eyes is a brilliant shade of gold, but the other is a bloody red. Ren kisses his eyelids, and a giggle escapes the other man’s lips. He places a gentle, gloved hand against Ren’s chest. “You’re early today,” he says with a smile, but the black-haired man only nodded silently.
“The Commision allowed me to take a half-day leave.” He pulls Jing Yuan back to the pavilion gently, his hand on the other’s wrist having little to no strength— only moving when Jing Yuan decides to walk willingly. “Where is Dan Feng?” Ren pauses, not before he leans down to take a teasing bite over Jing Yuan’s glands. “He’s… out for a business trip.” “He seems to be really busy these days.” Jing Yuan takes a seat in front of his guqin, running a finger over the strings lightly. He moves a finger, and a note rings out, tuned to perfection, but still lacking without someone to guide it. Ren only stayed silent.
He takes another long sip from the pipe, and smiles at Ren. The sight of him like this felt like hundreds of thin needles being pushed into his heart. Ren cups Jing Yuan’s face, before he presses a kiss on those plush lips of his. He looks at the loose hair, the pale, scarred skin exposed by the loose robes. He looks at the mole under Jing Yuan’s eye, and his finger caresses it lightly. It is so unfair. Jing Yuan is meant to be the sun of their lives, burning bright, meant to live on longer than any of them— meant to carry on their legacy. He isn’t meant to be confined in this place, no matter how gorgeous it is. He is meant to fly— to soar in the vast blue skies, to sail to unknown places; because that is the Jing Yuan he knows and loves.
Why must it be his lover… Why must Jing Yuan be the one who is immortalized here?
Although Ren had been the one who wanted to hide him here, to coddle and accompany him— to keep him alive — he was also the one who couldn’t bear to not set Jing Yuan free. As if sensing his turbulent emotions, Jing Yuan lifted his head, the music on his fingers coming to a stop. “What is it?” Ren clenches his fists slightly. “Do you want to go see the world?”
Jing Yuan pretends to think for a moment, before he smiles slowly. “No.” Ren turns to stare at him. “Why? Isn’t that your dream for years?” Jing Yuan beckons him over, and when Ren obliges by his call, Jing Yuan only scoops the inky black hair into his hand. “There’s no need to give me false hope.” Ren falters, his red eyes meeting Jing Yuan’s own mismatched eyes in panic. Jing Yuan only smiles back calmly. “If I were to take a step out of this place, I’m afraid that even if you want to protect me, I will be dragged away by the Ten Lords Commission.”
Ren doesn’t reply to him, but it does not seem like the other Alpha cared. “How many years has it been?” Jing Yuan sighs. “Your white hair has all turned to black, A-Ren. Don’t you think I wouldn’t know you are the same as me? How could a short-lived species go against the laws of heaven unless they are struck by this immortality?” He lifts his head. “I may be cursed, but I have not gone senile yet.” He pauses, and an unhinged smile spreads on his face. “Or are you actually dead, just a mere hallucination the mara designed to torture me?” He pulls his hand away, setting his palm down heavily, and the guqin made a sharp sound, as if it was in as much pain as its owner. Ren stares at him for another moment, before he sighs. As if accommodating Jing Yuan’s previous touches, he lowered his head further, baring his neck, eyes closed slightly.
The white haired Alpha seems delighted at it, his fingers brushing against his glands, and Ren takes in a shuddering breath, suppressing the need to flinch away. “Jing Yuan,” he murmurs again, and Jing Yuan sighs. “I don’t think you are working in the Commission anymore, A-Ren... Tell me the truth. Where are you at during those days you claimed to be away forging weapons?” “...Baiheng passed away.” “I can see that much.” Jing Yuan withdrew his hands, turning his head to watch the lotuses. “Foxians cannot live that long. What about him ?” “He is no longer the one we know… He is exiled.” Ren grits his teeth, his heart aching from the constant need for revenge. That Vidyadhara… how dare he force them into this predicament, before running away to reincarnate? The thought of it makes his head hurt with a renewed force.
“Then you?”
Jing Yuan’s eyelashes have always been long, framing his beautiful eyes oh-so-perfectly. When he stares at Ren, the Alpha cannot think about anything else but him. Is this the side effect of being mates with this beautiful man? He isn’t sure, but one thing he knows is that the gold of Jing Yuan’s eyes are like a deep, bottomless abyss, leaving him helpless to his whims, leaving him useless without him, leaving him unable to extricate himself from the other forever. Ren hesitates, before he says, helpless to Jing Yuan’s eyes—
“I’m exiled too.” His voice breaks at the end. “I can’t ever craft weapons anymore.” He feels Jing Yuan’s eyes traveling to his bandaged arms, and feels him touch the rough cloth. It feels like he had carved out his own heart, speaking these truths to him. To admit that his old friends are either dead, or lost. To admit that the one thing he had ever loved making is now forever impossible. To lay down his armor in front of his mate, whom he knows more than anyone that he would never judge him for it.
Ren takes a deep breath, his hand shaking. “I only have you left.” You can’t leave me. “I’ll give my life to see you alive.” And free.
Jing Yuan’s heterochromatic eyes are closed the next time Ren gathers the strength to look at him, but it does nothing to hide the pained curve to his lips. Jing Yuan’s scent is untainted and calm, and even when he is cursed with undying mara, its bitter scent doesn’t wrap around his scent like it does Ren. It spreads and covers miles upon miles of the large lake, yet it curls up familiarly against Ren’s own scent as if it is a cat, seeking comfort from him.
He turns away, and almost as if possessed, Ren scoops his long hair out of the way, the bone white hair like moonlight in his hands. He fumbles for the knotted red string he had been spending his days struggling with, his hands no longer the same as before, and whispers, “Do you mind if I tie your hair for you?” Jing Yuan’s eyes open, but he stares into the great beyond, as if he can see something beyond the horizon. When met with no resistance, Ren patiently but clumsily pulls his hair into a high ponytail, and for a moment, the image of his back to him felt like a sight from thousands of years ago. Ren’s hands were shaking when he pulled away, too immersed in the past, but Jing Yuan’s voice pulled him back like a frayed rope holding onto a drifting boat.
“ A-Ren .”
“....What is it?”
“I will come with you.”
A hand grasped his wrist, and Ren looked up to golden sunlight, marred by red but still remaining its purity. The sun smiles, and using a long-forgotten name, he says—
“Take me away,
████.
”