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After a while of travelling alongside Ao Bing, Nezha realised something very peculiar- his friend seemed to pause each time Nezha complimented him, when he would calmly give his polite thanks otherwise to anyone else. It was the most intriguing thing. And Nezha, ever the opportunist, could hardly resist testing his theory out once he saw the pattern in his behaviour.
As Ao Bing drew up a slew of fish expertly from the water, Nezha stared at him with a mischievous smile, already scheming.
"You know, you're actually kinda cool." He began, his tone casual but eyes gleaming with mischief as he took over the catch. Discreetly, he peeked up to see his expression.
There it was. The uncharacteristic jolt, before Ao Bing sat down beside him. "... That's unexpected, coming from you."
Nezha frowned, cooking the fish with his ability. "Why, is it so hard to believe I can give compliments? You're strong, graceful, and you don't look half-bad either."
Ao Bing stiffened, his voice turning soft. "What?"
"Ah- you're blushing again! Ao Bing, you secretly like being complimented, don't you?" Nezha teased, placing down the sticks of cooked fish on the table.
"Nothing of the sort," His friend quibbed, fists curling on his lap as he turned his head away. "I've just been feeling odd these few days. I'm sure this is just another episode which would pass soon."
"Really? Then let me see." Nezha leaned closer, huffing with a smile as Ao Bing immediately made a startled noise and pulled his robe up to hide his face. "Come on, it won't hurt to admit you get shy when you hear my compliments."
"Don't be absurd." Ao Bing insisted, voice slightly muffled behind the fabric. "I simply wasn't expecting such words from you, of all people."
After a moment of stillness, as if composing himself, he finally lowered his robes to show his face.
It was clear he was trying to look unbothered, his jaw tense as he locked his usual calm and collected expression firmly in place. But the way his cheeks were still dusted a faint shade of pink and how his lower lip wobbled betrayed the effort.
Nezha opened his mouth in preparation to tease him again, only to freeze at the sight of his face.
For some reason, his heart lurched, and an intense heat different from his powers crawled up his neck. His control wavered for a moment, and the flame flared too high, scorching the row of uncooked fish currently in his hands to a crisp. Nezha jumped upon realising, swatting at the fire which had spread to his immediate areas.
A gentle gust of frost swept over him, snuffing out the flames.
"Are... you feeling alright?" Ao Bing asked, puzzled. "Your powers haven't been out of control for a while now."
Nezha quickly turned away, coughing to rid himself of the embarrassment. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"In any case, I'll catch another batch. Try not to burn them again." His friend looked worried as he went near the ocean once more. With some concentration, he managed to lift a portion of the sea, guiding the waves to sift out more fishes. The water obeyed him effortlessly, shimmering under the daylight as the ocean life was lifted towards him.
But as he reached out to collect them, his fingers trembled.
The water wavered, slipping from Ao Bing's grasp and splashing back into the sea. Having heard the noise, Nezha looked up to see his friend breathing hard, his footing suddenly unsteady.
"Ao Bing?" He stepped closer, slowly at first, before rushing forward to catch Ao Bing instinctively as his legs buckled. "Hey! Why are you...?" Arms wrapping against his friend's shoulders, Nezha's voice trailed off as he felt just how hot Ao Bing's skin was.
No way. Ao Bing always ran a little cold, while Nezha was the direct opposite. He shifted a palm to Ao Bing's forehead, his eyes widening. He wasn't even just a little warm.
"You're boiling up. What on earth?!"
Ao Bing briefly stirred after Nezha brought him to lie down and desperately gathered some ice cubes to place on his head.
"...Nezha?" His voice was soft, pupils unfocused. "I think... something's wrong."
"No shit," Nezha snapped. "Is your physical body falling apart again? Whatever the case, I'm bringing you to Master."
He gripped his hand, squeezing tightly while the rest of his limbs hurriedly packed their things. "Listen here. You're not allowed to die. I forbid you from doing that."
Ao Bing, barely conscious, managed a weak smile. "Bossy... as always..."
"Yeah? Get used to it. You're not getting rid of me that easy." Nezha cradled him into a bridal-carry, speeding his way back to Chentang Pass with his wind and fire wheels.
Dragons weren't supposed to get sick. Injury was rare, too, since they had healing properties. On top of that, being the spirit pearl definitely gave him an additional immunity to the common cold, just as the demon orb protected him from illnesses. So why did he collapse out of nowhere? It wasn't like they had been using their power that much.
Unless...
Nezha's eyes widened. Ao Bing had been nicked in the tendon by that assassin a few days ago, hadn't he? His wound healed up nicely within a few hours, so they haven't thought much of it. But he knew he should have trusted his gut that there was something wrong when that person ran away without a proper fight.
"Damn it." He cursed silently, willing himself to go faster.
Nezha's entrance was anything but level-headed. He barely registered the worried faces of the remaining survivors of the village as he crudely landed, holding Ao Bing in his arms. By the time he rushed his way in front of Taiyi Zhenren, Ao Bing's skin was already starting to dot with dragon scales, a sign that he was reverting to his primal form.
"What's happening to him?" Nezha asked, watching his master examine Ao Bing's physical form. Sure enough, Taiyi Zhenren quickly pinned the root of the problem to be coming from his ankles, where he was previously cut.
"Looks like he's been poisoned. His dantian is unstable."
"Can you fix it?" Nezha's voice was urgent. "You have to think of something-"
A faint, pained noise interrupted him.
Noticing that it was from Ao Bing, Nezha immediately surged forward to be beside him, calling out his name with worry.
But despite stirring, Ao Bing barely seemed aware of his surroundings. His expression was twisted in pain, and as more of his dragon form begun to reveal itself, a chill shot through the air. The temperature around them plummeted, and ice curled around Ao Bing, forming jagged spikes near his bed.
The icicles spread toward Nezha's hands, creating a numbing sensation, but he didn't pull away. Carefully, he wielded his fire to melt away the frost that had formed on a significant patch of Ao Bing's scales as well as on Taiyi Zhenren and his father, who happened to be caught in the boundary that was frozen over.
"I've got you." Nezha murmured, pulling him close. Ao Bing must be feeling awful- his entire body was scalding at this point, prompting him to continuously freeze himself over to extreme levels as an attempt to cool down. "Don't worry. I've got you." He repeated, ignoring the biting sensation of ice digging into his skin.
Slowly, slowly, the ice receded following Ao Bing falling back into a state of unconsciousness. Nezha laid him back down on the mattress, unwilling to let go or even break his gaze away when his friend was this vulnerable.
"I recognize this poison now," Taiyi Zhenren said grimly. "It's infused with Samadhi Fire."
Nezha's head snapped up. "What?" Looking towards Ao Bing, it finally seemed to make sense. The Samadhi Fire was pure destruction, the opposite of Ao Bing's nature. No wonder he was in excruciating pain.
"How do I get rid of it?" He demanded.
Taiyi made a brooding sound. "Aiya, it's already affecting his internal organs. There really isn't much we can do." Seeing Nezha's face darken, his master quickly added on, "E- even so! It's not guaranteed it would work, but we could try to counteract it by making him accustomed to the fire's nature."
Nezha frowned. "How?"
Taiyi Zhenren hesitated. "If he takes in a controlled amount of the essence of Samadhi Fire, his body might start adapting... but! Even if it works, the process would be slow."
Nezha didn't even think. Didn't hesitate.
Without further ado, he grabbed the nearest dagger and slashed it across his own arm.
"Nezha-!" His father tensed.
A line of crimson welled up and slid down his arm to his elbow. Nezha ignored his master's calls of him being reckless, using a bowl to gather his blood. As his wound closed up, Nezha then cautiously ghosted his fingers over Ao Bing's jaw, tilting his head slightly to align it with the bowl.
Ao Bing's lashes fluttered as the first few drops landed on his tongue. His eyebrows knitted together, as though signalling his body's attempt to resist the liquid, and he remained scalding to the touch.
"It doesn't seem that hot now. This means he's getting better... right?" Nezha tried his best to convince himself, pressing the back of his palm to his head and feeling the temperature over and over until it seemed as though what he said had come true.
Taiyi Zhenren exchanged a worried glance with Li Jing, saying nothing.
It became routine.
Nezha would nurse him daily, trying his best to be covert with the blood thing after Ao Bing finally started to wake up weeks later. To prevent his friend from worrying over him, he made up a tiny white lie that the blood was sourced by his master, a rare ingredient meant to neutralize the poison, which Taiyi acknowledged nervously upon seeing Nezha's side-eye.
Though, he should have known that Ao Bing would catch on sooner or later.
One evening, as Nezha handed him the usual bowl of blood, Ao Bing's gaze paused on him.
"... Your arm. What happened to it?" His friend asked. Nezha grew confused for a moment, only to realise upon a quick glance that his wound hadn't fully closed yet. Since it was the first time Ao Bing was awake this long, Nezha rushed back with the bowl of blood as soon as he could to talk to him, neglecting the fact that his regeneration required time.
"Oh, this? It was from an accident this morning." He fibbed. "There was a demon outside, and-"
Ao Bing deliberately grabbed his arm, cold hands coming into contact with the small wound that was cleaned but not fully closed yet. Nezha winced.
"The area around the wound is still hot. Be honest with me, is this blood yours?"
Nezha froze for half a second before scoffing. "It's not. Didn't I explain before? My master provided it."
Ao Bing didn't waver. "... Nezha."
Silence.
"Fine. Yes, it's mine, alright? But it's no big deal. I heal up quickly anyway." Nezha wrung his arm free, showing him. "See? The wound's closed now."
"I don't want you hurt because of me." Ao Bing looked unconvinced, lips pressed into a firm line.
"As I said. No biggie. I regenerate fast anyway." Nezha repeated.
Ao Bing retained his worried face, but did not protest further. He reached forward, gently knocking his fist on Nezha's head. "That's for not telling me the truth." He reasoned.
"Did you not eat this morning?" Nezha teased his lack of strength.
Ao Bing rose slightly, scandalized. "I'm going to knock you on the head with my ice hammer when I'm fully healed."
"By all means, try." Nezha returned the banter with a smile. He cupped Ao Bing's hand and brought it to his cheek, liking the way his touch was tinged with a slight chill once more. "I'm glad you're fine. Really. Being cut a few times is nothing, because you're important to me."
"..." Ao Bing's ears burned, and he undeniably flushed at his words.
He's turning so red, Nezha realised. He let go of his hands, suddenly alarmed. "Are you getting a fever again?" Shifting nearer, he checked his temperature with his hand. "You're burning up! I'm going to get Master."
"Nezha! It's... not the poison," Ao Bing interrupted softly, looking away. The shade of red only seemed to deepen as he spoke. "I just feel lucky to have someone like you as my confidant."
"Huh?" Nezha faltered, staring at him blankly.
"I really, really like being around you." Ao Bing continued.
As his brain finally caught up, his face exploded into colour.
"Oh..." He nodded, "M- me too." He scrambled for words, suddenly very aware of how warm his own face felt. "I really like you a lot, too."
A distinct crackling sound interrupted him.
They both looked down, and to Nezha's horror, the ground where his hand was placed had been set on fire.
Nezha jolted, frantically patting at the flames. "W-Wait, I didn't- why did- I didn't even do anything?!"