Chapter Text
Shen Qiao felt Yan Wushi’s presence before the insufferable man even spoke. All warlocks could sense an aura from living beings, and even though Yan Wushi was an undead his signature was impossible to miss. Strong and dangerous like he was, Yan Wushi’s aura emanated power and a faint feeling that Shen Qiao associated with spun sugar candy.
It wasn’t a surprise the vampire sought him out, but Yan Wushi could’ve exhibited some subtlety instead of stalking Shen Qiao at the apothecary gardens in the middle of the night.
“Hello A-Qiao,” Yan Wushi purred as he pressed his mouth close to Shen Qiao’s ear. “Did you miss me?”
“No.”
Yan Wushi laughed and grabbed Shen Qiao by the shoulder so they were face to face, his smug smile wide enough to show off his fangs.
“I’ve missed you,” Yan Wushi said, his hand tightening on Shen Qiao’s shoulder as if he wanted to bruise the warlock but didn’t follow through. “Take me out for a drink?”
Shen Qiao sighed and batted Yan Wushi’s hand off his shoulder. “Coven Leader Yan is too forward in his request. We’re in public.”
As if that ever stopped Yan Wushi from taking what he wanted. His sharp smile only grew at Shen Qiao’s dismissive answer. He liked the game they played, especially when he could get Shen Qiao riled up enough to taste the fire in his blood, so Yan Wushi continued to push.
“That’s never stopped us before,” he said, picking up the flowers Shen Qiao had been admiring. “This one yes? They’re almost as pretty as you.”
Shen Qiao could feel the way his cheeks heated at the remark, unsure if Yan Wushi was being truthful or playfully deceptive. He could read honesty in anyone else’s aura, but Yan Wushi was an anomaly. Shen Qiao wasn’t sure if it was because of his vampirism or if it was because he was Yan Wushi.
“You’ve been away,” Shen Qiao commented as he paid for the plant and summoned a portal to send it back to his home. One of the kids—probably Duan Ying since the younger two should be asleep by now—would take care of it until he got back.
“But I’m back now,” Yan Wushi smirked as he pulled Shen Qiao into a secluded corner lit only by the moon. Backing him against the wall Yan Wushi pressed a gentle kiss against Shen Qiao’s jaw and whined, “I’m so thirsty, won’t A-Qiao let me have a sip?”
A small smile tugged at the corner of Shen Qiao’s lips as Yan Wushi kissed him again, once against his neck and again on his lips. Despite his unbearable demands and incessant teasing, Shen Qiao couldn’t help but enjoy the attention Yan Wushi gave him when he wanted a taste of his blood.
“Why would I say no when you need me?” Shen Qiao asked in his own teasing tone.
Yan Wushi grinned only for Shen Qiao to produce pre-bottled blood from his sleeve, an unimpressed expression on his face.
“A-Qiao,” Yan Wushi said as he glared at the bottle of dark blood. “That’s not funny.”
“Take it or leave it,” Shen Qiao said, pushing the glass into Yan Wushi’s hands.
Yan Wushi almost sputtered at how cold Shen Qiao was being! True he made a tasteless joke a while back, but he didn’t think he deserved this continued mistreatment!
“A-Qiao! You can’t still be mad about that! Grudes don’t become you!”
“I’m holding no grudge,” Shen Qiao said, giving off a scent of content that told Yan Wushi he really wasn’t still angry. “I’m merely taking precautions. After all, I don’t want Coven Leader Yan to forget why his biting privilege was revoked in the first place.”
Huffing angrily, Yan Wushi shot a hand out to grab Shen Qiao by the face and drag him back in for another long messy kiss. Shen Qiao struggled at first like he always did when Yan Wushi was rough, but quickly melted into the kiss.
Releasing Shen Qiao so he could admire the brief bruising on his jaw, Yan Wushi watched in fascination as the latent arcane that coursed through Shen Qiao’s soul rippled beneath his skin and wiped the ugly marks away.
Sighing heavily Yan Wushi popped the cork off the bottle and said, “If this is all my A-Qiao is willing to gift me then I’ll savor it.”
Shen Qiao had to fight against the urge to roll his eyes. Yan Wushi had been back for less than an hour and was already causing problems. It was a good thing Shen Qiao enjoyed the vampire’s strange company.