Chapter Text
[PROLOGUE]
It began a few years ago, in the bustling city of Beijing, a brown rabbit adorned in a purple scarf sat in his apartment, sitting on his bed sulking over a past lover who’d recently broken up with him.
Tuye stared up at the ceiling not knowing what to do, his eyes simply just darting to parts of the ceiling. He looked down at his phone and sighed, a pained expression forming as he looked at the photos of him and his ex-lover, deleting them swiftly as he passed them by in his gallery.
“Stupid... stupid...”
He spoke, verbally beating himself up, tearing up in the process of deleting everything off his phone, afterwards just slumping back in his bed, his phone still in hand, wiping off tears with his other arm.
“Why can’t I just... Have something nice...”
He felt dejected, disappointed and hurt. Past partners only saw him for his status as Lord Rabbit, and if not for that, his money. Tuye wanted a life partner he could spend his time with in a mutual appreciation, seeing him for himself and not what others did.
He deeply sighed, looking up at his ceiling and thought to himself for a bit, deciding to get up and leave the house for a bit.
“...I need a drink.”
Tuye stowed his phone into his scarf pocket, opening the door as he waited for a ride outside to head to a bar he frequents, one that usually serves auspicious beasts like him.
Around more than half an hour passed as he stood outside, getting a bit frustrated seeing there would be no transport that passed by the street at this hour. He then just decides to walk there, knowing the route anyways.
This action would single handedly change his life, whether he knew it or not.
Tuye walked down the street slowly, putting on some earbuds and some music to try and distract himself from the dreadful thoughts and the awful feelings he’ll soon drown out with carrot juice and alcohol.
Despite his attempts to distract himself, his mind still finds itself wandering to more dreading and despairing topics. It’s weighed on his mind for a long while now, especially more so in this modern age, knowing the people no longer needed him to aid in spreading medicine to cure various plagues and such.
He walked until he reached a bus stop not too far from his complex, sighing as he stopped his music and put a hand to his head, the sigh resounding as one of despair.
“...at this point, I don’t think life is worth livi...?”
The bus stop lights flickered, catching his attention for just a moment, but a moment was all he needed for soon, his heart began to flutter witnessing the image plastered onto the bus stop.
“What is...?”
He felt his face heat up, his heart flutter and his stomach fill with butterflies seeing the image of the auspicious beast, the one known as Sibuxiang, the poster being a travel ad for the mountains featuring his likeness.
“Why is...?”
His breath hitched a bit as he held his chest, his mind now changing and turning to go home, his rabbit legs taking him as fast as he could back to his building with these... complicated, but... oddly great feeling.
“Why is my heart fluttering this much?!”
Tuye rushed back into his apartment, back to the door as he closed it and slid down, sitting down now as he held his chest still, wondering about these feelings.
“Sibuxiang...”
He muttered to himself, pulling his phone out of his pocket and beginning to look up his name, results of the same deerman he saw popping up, he stood up and situated himself on his desk chair, turning his laptop on to do further research.
For once, he had a sleepless night, not out of heartbreak or despair, but newfound love, his heart fluttering rather than breaking into pieces, drowned in alcohol and carrot juice, taking in more information on the deer who stole his heart, the auspicious beast Sibuxiang, the man who changed this rabbit’s life for the coming years.
After a long while of searching, social media scrolls, and asking some old friends, he finally had an address.
“Ah ha! Finally! Oof, heaven knows how excited I am, but...” He takes a deep breath as he thinks to himself, listening to the whirring of the printer as he prints out the details. “I-It’ll be fine! He won’t think it’s weird. He’s a... highly... regarded beast... after all. AAGGH!!” He ruffles his hair out of frustration and flusteredness, unable to shake the feeling that he might embarrass himself in front of Sibuxiang, his crush.
“It’ll be fine, it’ll be fine! I just gotta put on that confident charm you've perfected.” He chuckled smugly to himself, seeing the paper be finished printing out. After looking in the mirror, he sighed to himself and shook his head, beginning to fix himself up before he left. “Just introduce yourself and it’ll all be okay, trust in yourself Tuye!” He thought to motivate himself.
Soon, he left. Out the door and into the city to find the man of his dreams, Sibuxiang. Scouring the city it only took about an hour to find the store, a store known as Deerman’s. Home of Sibuxiang in the modern day, he stood behind the wall leading in.
“Hmmh.. I hope it’ll be okay.” He thought, beginning to peek behind the wall to see.... A lazy deerman, sleeping on his chair and drooling a little. “....huh?”
“What is... Is this really... him?” His eyes widened in shock, his heart beat fast though not in any negative sense, in fact... “Is this really...? This is...” He threw down the paper holding the address, beginning to excitedly tap his foot. “So... CUTE!!! The contrast, the difference between the picture and him... It’s all so handsome!”
He squeaked a little as he gushed, his tapping causing a bit of a racket behind the wall as Sibuxiang woke up. Tuye soon realized this as he went to go check on him, he composed himself and began to speak to him.
“Ahem, hello. I am Tuye, the Lord Rabbit! You must be Sibuxiang?” He introduced himself, extending a hand to shake.
A gesture to which Sibuxiang gladly accepted. “I’ve heard a bit about you, Tuye, how are things in your city life? I hear you've been doing well lately.”
Tuye nodded, responding swiftly as he spoke back to him. “Yes! I actually got curious about your shop and I thought maybe we could be acquaintances, if that’s fine?”
“YES! Nailed it. He even knows who I am!!!” Tuye internally gushed, the rabbit’s little tail just swishing side to side happily while Sibuxiang spoke.
“Well, I do need more connections outside of my clients, why not. I get busy often but...” Sibuxiang trailed off, thinking about his schedule for the week.
Tuye chimed in and finished his earlier thought. “How’s about we meet up on weekends and holidays? I don’t have much work but I’m sure your schedule clears up then.” He reasons, gesturing a little as he pulls out his phone to check the dates.
Sibuxiang doing the same and nodding, his large tail swishing a bit behind him. “Reasonable, oh, here’s my contact info.”
The two exchanged numbers to keep in contact, on the way home, Tuye just smiled so much. The moment he entered his apartment, he sighed and massaged his cheeks, still smiling though a bit sore from doing so for so long. His thoughts filled with nothing but Sibuxiang’s handsome face and handsome voice, the thought not leaving his head for a long while.
“Aaaah... He’s so wonderful, handsome, and so kind! I hope to one day...” He covers his face in a pillow, kicking his feet as he throws himself into bed. Though not after long, a creative jolt sparked within him, beginning to turn towards his set of fabrics and sewing kits, rushing to his table and getting to work.
Soon, his room was lined wall to wall with Sibuxiang merchandise he had made himself. Banners, plush dolls, pillows, cushions, you name it. Even boxes of some custom merchandise he had others help to make, like an ita bag with some pins inside, he sat comfortably in the middle of it all in front of his TV, sipping some tea.
At the end of the day, his newfound crush became the man of his dreams, and he couldn’t simply let go of that feeling.