Work Text:
Shen Qingqiu felt the by now familiar weight of the shadows watching him as he finished braiding his hair for the night. Fastening it off with a soft ribbon, he turned towards his bed and found two big, red eyes peeking out, half-covered by the blanket hanging over the edge.
The quickly familiar becoming mix of warm affection tinged with a tendril of grief bubbled in his chest for a moment, like it did every time his gaze landed on the small, black form covered in spikes, with that weird red mark on its head that had reminded him so much of Binghe when he had first seen it during his latest travels that he needed to sit down for a moment. How could he have left this poor Pokemon behind? Shen Qingqiu was not a monster!
Standing, Shen Qingqiu crossed the room and gently pulled the little thing out from under the bed as it snuggled into his hold, the shadows seeming to cling to it and distort its shape before settling into dull, black spikes. A chill seemed to emit from it, making Shen Qingqiu shudder in the one singular layer he was wearing for sleep, despite his cultivation.
He smiled, giving it a pat on its head. “Come on now, Gengar. This master is going to bed, so you shouldn’t stay under it.” He looked around the room, considering. “The bed is big enough. You can stay on it, if you like. Or not. Whatever Gengar prefers.”
Gengar’s mouth twisted into a grin as it wiggled out of his grip and jumped onto the bed. Sitting down right in the middle of it, it turned back to look at Shen Qingqiu, as if waiting for him to react.
Suppressing a laugh at Gengar’s adorable antics, he pushed it towards the foot of the bed and crawled under the blanket, burying himself into the warmth it provided. With a wave of his hand, he dimmed the lights, bathing the room in darkness.
The glowing red mark on Gengar’s head stood out all the more as its body morphed with the shadows, its eyes watching Shen Qingqiu settle down. It made him feel safe, for some reason. Protected. Its presence making the silence of the Bamboo House slightly more bearable.
“Good night, Gengar,” Shen Qingqiu murmured as he closed his eyes, quickly sinking into sleep.
The next thing Shen Qingqiu became aware of was familiar in its mundanity. Luo Binghe was just setting down a tray with all of Shen Qingqiu’s favourite dishes, way more than one person could possibly ever eat on their own.
He looked up and his eyes brightened as they met Shen Qingqiu’s. “Shizun,” he greeted warmly, like he always did whenever Shen Qingqiu returned from a peak lord meeting. “This disciple prepared dinner. Is shizun hungry?”
Shen Qingqiu’s heart cracked slightly. This was not real, his poor bun was in this very moment blackening down in the Endless Abyss. To see him like this, in his Qing Jing disciple uniform and exactly where he was supposed to be, hurt.
He pushed the thought aside, thankful to not have to relive the scene at the Immortal Alliance Conference once again tonight. This was a small price to pay in exchange.
Focusing on that little lamb he had not betrayed, Shen Qingqiu gave him a small smile. “Thank you, Binghe. Binghe’s cooking is always appreciated, but he shouldn’t have gone this overboard.” He let his gaze wander over the rich spread of food before him. “What, is he planning to fatten this master up?”
Luo Binghe smiled as he sank into his usual spot opposite Shen Qingqiu, and began putting a few pieces of everything into Shen Qingqiu’s bowl. “This Binghe couldn’t decide on what to give shizun, so he made enough for shizun to pick whatever he wants. Shizun shouldn’t force himself to eat anything less than the very best.” He looked up, and his smile widened, turning blindingly bright.
Shen Qingqiu had to blink away for a moment. As his gaze landed on his almost overflowing bowl, he picked up the chopsticks that were suddenly right next to it and put some of the food from his bowl into Luo Binghe’s instead. “Silly boy. Of course everything Binghe offers is the best, so he shouldn’t worry about this master.” He took a piece of the pork and slowly nibbled at it. It tasted like simpler times, melting in his mouth. Tears threatened to spring into his eyes.
Clearing his throat, Shen Qingqiu picked up a piece of pickled cabbage next. “What has Binghe been up to while this master was out?”
Taking the cue, Luo Binghe launched into a story of his lessons that day and his preparation for an upcoming night hunt to take care of a wild Golbat. Shen Qingqiu watched him as he ate, a wave of melancholy washing over him at Luo Binghe’s childlike excitement.
Ever since transmigrating into this weird Pokemon version of Proud Immortal Demon Way, Shen Qingqiu had often wondered what this meant for Luo Binghe. Binghe had never expressed any desire to find a Pokemon for himself during his time on Qing Jing Peak, but just by virtue of being the protagonist, he had to be bound to catch them all, right? What would his first one be, Shen Qingqiu often sometimes wondered? Something basic like a Charmander? Or maybe a Eevee with the same near endless potential as the protagonist himself?
Just as he was thinking about it, Shen Qingqiu suddenly felt a pair of eyes on him, one that had quickly become familiar in an entirely different way during the past few days. He looked down and found Gengar sitting underneath the table. In the weird shadows, darker than they should be, Shen Qingqiu could barely make out more than its wide eyes watching him.
Reaching down, Shen Qingqiu gave Gengar a gentle pat on its had, scratching between its ears. “Gengar should eat too,” he murmured, reaching for some of the buns and offering them to the Pokemon. “Here, I bet Gengar will like those. Binghe is an amazing cook.”
From the shadows, Gengar’s grin flashed before it extended its tongue, taking all three buns at once from him and munching on them.
Another pair of eyes landed on Shen Qingqiu. When he looked up, he caught a glimpse of a murderous expression on Luo Binghe’s face as he was watching him with his Gengar, 100% the future Demon Emperor shining through, but it smoothed over as soon as he noticed Shen Qingqiu’s attention on him.
“Shizun has a Pokemon now,” he observed calmly but with a weird intensity, not revealing any of his thoughts as his gaze kept flickering towards Shen Qingqiu’s hand on Gengar’s head.
Shen Qingqiu frowned, setting down the chopsticks he had no longer been using anyway. “This master is sure Luo Binghe will find one for himself as well when the time comes. As many as Binghe wants.”
“This disciple doesn’t need any Pokemon. He is fully content just being with shizun,” Luo Binghe answered promptly, echoing what he had been saying for years now every time Shen Qingqiu tried to breach the topic with him.
Shen Qingqiu shook his head, but didn’t argue. He just knew it would happen sooner or later. Maybe interwoven with Binghe’s wife acquisitions, once he escaped the Endless Abyss. One Pokemon for every new wife added to his harem. Then at least the excessive size of the harem would be good for something, if it meant an equally large Pokemon collection for his Binghe. He was sure Huan Hua Palace was big enough to house both, with the wealth of courts plastered in riches currently sitting unused. The Old Palace Master sure liked to talk about those at length, he thought uneasily, as if trying to talk Shen Qingqiu into abandoning his own sect. As if he were one of those Pokemon to collect.
The scene around him shifted, and suddenly Shen Qingqiu stood on the stands overlooking Jue Di Gorge, the crowd of disciples ready to enter and compete in the Immortal Alliance Conference with a few Pokemon around the few of them that had chosen personal Pokemon and decided to bring them with them.
With no effort at all, Shen Qiungqiu’s gaze zeroed in on Luo Binghe’s curls in the crowd. He seemed like he had a spotlight pointed right at him.
Seeing him like that, Shen Qingqiu’s heart started to beat faster. No, not again, he could not—
“Huh.” Luo Binghe suddenly stood right next to Shen Qingqiu, intently watching his face as if hoping to find the answers to the universe on it, the intensity bordering on uncomfortable.
Clearing his throat, he flicked open the fan suddenly in his hand, putting a barrier between them. His gaze flickered away and landed on the Old Palace Master at the far corner of the overhang leaning conspicuously towards another figure Shen Qingqiu didn’t recognize, his Persian pouncing restlessly around him, and oh, right. He had meant to follow up on that, figure out what this had been all about. Even in this changed version of PIDW, things couldn’t have changed that much, right? Shen Qingqiu did not trust the Old Palace Master one bit, something about him just gave him the creeps.
But it had slipped from Shen Qingqiu’s mind in the aftermath of everything that had happened after. And who could blame him?
Watching the Persian pace around the Old Palace Master gave him an idea though. It would probably amount to nothing, with this being all in Shen Qingqiu’s mind, but why not. Maybe it would help him unearth another detail he might have noticed back then that could prove useful.
“Gengar,” Shen Qingqiu murmured, feeling its presence right by his side. “Can you go and see if you can find out what the Old Palace Master was trying to hide there?”
He wondered how different this scene might have played out if he had already had his Gengar back then. Not much, in the grand scheme of things, he supposed. The Immortal Alliance Conference would have still been attacked. Disciples would have still died. He would have still been forced to push Binghe into the Endless Abyss. But he liked to imagine things might have gone slightly better with Gengar around.
Gengar’s grin widened and it gave a single not before disappearing into the shadows and gliding through the crowd separating them from the Old Palace Master.
Shen Qingqiu could feel the warmth radiating from Luo Binghe’s body as he stepped closer, their shoulders almost brushing. “What is shizun thinking?”
Something about all of this made Shen Qingqiu shudder. “Binghe should be careful around that man. He cannot be trusted. There’s something…” He trailed off, shaking his head. “This master can’t tell Binghe why, but Binghe will have to trust me about that.”
“Always,” Luo Binghe was quick to ascertain. “If shizun says so, then this Binghe will stay away from Huan Hua Palace altogether.”
And skip half the foundation of his power? Yeah, right, Shen Qingqiu wouldn’t even dream of asking for something like that. He half turned towards Luo Binghe, keeping an eye on the corner Gengar had almost reached now. “That won’t be necessary. Binghe just needs to be careful around this man, that’s all this master asks.”
In his corner, the Old Palace Master suddenly jerked his head around. Lightning fast, he grabbed Gengar from the shadow it had been observing him from before it could turn intangible, the scene flickering like an old TV losing signal, and then—
Shen Qingqiu shot up in his bed, covered in sweat, his heart beating in his ears. He was trying to grasp at the remainders of his dreams, but they were already starting to slip away, leaving an unnerving sense of dread behind.
Gengar had come closer, sitting only about a hand’s width away from him. Its eyes seemed to glow red, making it almost look like a living shadow, moving in impossible ways, the mark on its forehead just barely discernible.
Taking a deep, shuddering breath to calm himself, Shen Qingqiu shook his head. “Just a dream,” he murmured, wiping a hand over his eyes. “It was just a dream.”
Slowly, he felt Gengar creep closer still until it nearly bumped into Shen Qingqiu. He lifted an arm without looking up and Gengar closed the remaining distance between them, letting itself get hugged, its dull spikes digging into Shen Qingqiu grounding him.
“I bet you wouldn’t trust the Old Palace Master either, Gengar,” he murmured. “Lucky you never had to meet him.” Thinking of that moment from his dream, somehow crystal clear in his mind, he resolved to keep it that way. Maybe it was for the best if he and Gengar never crossed paths.
As his adrenaline levels started to sink again, his grip on Gengar loosened. Shen Qingqiu sank back into his pillows, burrowing into the warmth of his blanket as he felt himself getting pulled under once again. “Thank you, Gengar. You’re the best.”
With his eyes closed, he gave Gengar one last pat on its head before he sank back into sleep.
The next scene Shen Qingqiu became aware of was an unfamiliar one. A weirdly red tinge laid over the surrounding, strangely familiar despite Shen Qingqiu being sure he hadn’t seen it before. An oppressive air weighted on his shoulders, making him overtly aware of every breath he took.
This place didn’t seem like there should be anything living in it, like it would be hostile to any such attempt.
And yet, just ahead, covered by what might generously be considered a tree if one squinted—voices, the whisper loud in the silence of this place. Someone was here, and very much alive.
Without making any conscious decision, Shen Qingqiu slid closer until he could make out words. He stopped, holding his breath.
“…stop clinging to him,” a very familiar voice hissed, the figure towering over… something. “Don’t forget this lord can throw you back where he found you at any time whenever you stop being of use.”
There was a whine—there was a Pokemon, Shen Qingqiu realized. Luo Binghe’s first Pokemon? Would he find his first Pokemon in the Endless Abyss? It would make sense. Where else would some of the really cool ones be found? Of course they would be there!
Shen Qingqiu leaned closer, trying to see which one it was. He caught a flash of black and red, before Luo Binghe’s head jerked up.
“Shizun,” he said, voice lower than Shen Qingqiu remembered it being. He suppressed a shudder.
With a wave of Binghe’s hand, the scene dissolved around them and shifted into the bamboo forest behind his Bamboo House on Qing Jing Peak, the Pokemon gone before Shen Qingqiu could hope to recognize it. “Shizun shouldn’t need to see that filthy place.”
Shizun blinked, thrown. “What is Binghe talking about?”
There was a searching look in Luo Binghe’s eyes as he watched Shen Qingqiu, but whatever he was searching for, he didn’t seem to find it. “It’s not important. Shizun shouldn’t worry,” he dismissed.
“Don’t be silly. If it’s Binghe, of course this master will worry.”
Hearing that, Luo Binghe’s lip wobbled, his eyes filling with tears. He looked like he was seconds away from throwing himself into Shen Qingqiu, the way he always did when he was younger. “Shizun.”
Shen Qingqiu tsked fondly. “So sticky. Binghe really is too old to cry over something like this.” Nonetheless, he closed the distance between them and reached out to pet Luo Binghe’s fluffy hair. Obediently, Binghe lowered his head, allowing Shen Qingqiu to reach it.
(When had Luo Binghe gotten this big?)
A rustle pulled Shen Qingqiu’s attention from his disciple. He stepped back as he turned towards the noise and watched Gengar emerge from the bamboo, it’s form manifesting further with every step, the shadows clinging to it half concealing it. “Oh Gengar, there you are.”
He sank down, beckoning Gengar closer, and of course the Pokemon obeyed, throwing a look towards Luo Binghe before snuggling up into Shen Qingqiu’s hand.
Shen Qingqiu smiled, giving it the head pat it demanded. “Come here, Binghe. Binghe should properly meet Gengar.”
”Shizun seems close to that… thing,” Luo Binghe noted, some hidden emotion lacing his tone. As he looked up, Shen Qingqiu found him shooting daggers at the hand on Gengar’s head.
He paused, suppressing the urge to push Gengar behind himself for shelter. “This master is sure Binghe would like Gengar too if he spent some time around it.”
“But shizun hasn’t—” Luo Binghe interrupted his protest, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. When he looked at Shen Qingqiu again, the intense heat in his gaze had vanished.
“If shizun says so,” he agreed non-committaly. Yet there was still something in his eyes, something that made the hairs on Shen Qingqiu’s neck stand. “This disciple was just wondering why shizun cares so much for it.”
Frowning, Shen Qingqiu straightened, shifting discreetly so he stood before Gengar. “This master doesn’t see why he wouldn’t care for it?” The Pokemon leaned against his legs comfortingly, which did not go unnoticed by Luo Binghe.
Something in Luo Binghe’s eyes splintered, turning a bright read matching the huadian appearing on his forehead. “Even that thing has more worth in shizun’s eyes than this filthy, useless disciple. Shizun, what does that thing have that this Binghe doesn’t?”
A wave of demonic qi washed over Shen Qingqiu, almost too realistic to be born from his sleeping mind, and a suspicion began to take root. What if…? But no, why should Luo Binghe bother. He never had done so in PIDW either.
But what if? If this really was Luo Binghe, and Luo Binghe was here in Shen Qingqiu’s dream realm, wouldn’t that be for the better? Shen Qingqiu was intimately aware of Binghe’s dream powers, of how easy it would be for him to break Shen Qingqiu’s mind. But he had never done that to the Original Goods either.
Meeting like this, at least Shen Qingqiu wouldn’t lose any of his limbs or get fed Luo Binghe’s blood mites. Wasn’t… couldn’t that be considered the best case scenario, under these conditions?
With all the courage he could muster, Shen Qingqiu stepped closer, meeting Luo Binghe’s crazed eyes. He could feel his heart rabbiting in his chest, in a way he shouldn’t be able to in a dream, only strengthening his suspicion. “Binghe should not talk about himself like that,” he found himself saying, his voice as steady as he didn’t feel. “Binghe misunderstands.”
Binghe’s gaze burned with barely concealed madness, so unlike his sweet bun. (Was this Xin Mo’s influence, Shen Qingqiu wondered? Could it reach poor Binghe even here in the dream realm?) “This stupid disciple begs enlightenment, then. How can he possibly misunderstand shizun choosing even a stupid Pokemon over him?”
Was… was that heartbreak in Luo Binghe’s voice? Was Luo Binghe… actually hurt by this? More so than he hated Shen Qingqiu?
It seemed far-fetched, but if this really was Luo Binghe and there was even the slightest chance that he didn’t hate Shen Qingqiu, didn’t Shen Qingqiu have to try?
Shen Qingqiu’s throat felt dry with his sudden nerves, but he took another step closer, now standing so close he could touch Luo Binghe if he lifted his hand. He was solely focused on Binghe now, their surrounding going fuzzy. “Binghe misunderstands,” he repeated. “This master couldn’t bear the silence in the Bamboo House, after—” He swallowed.
Luo Binghe’s gaze darkened even further, and Shen Qingqiu fought the instinct urging him to back off. Not now. That would end in a catastrophe. “So shizun replaced this disciple at the first opportunity.” He laughed bitterly.
“No one could ever replace Binghe.” The words were out before Shen Qingqiu could hold them back, hanging between them.
They stood frozen, staring at each other. Slowly, the red around Binghe’s eyes seemed to dim, the wind taken out of his sails. “Shizun?”
Well, he had already started, and now Shen Qingqiu couldn’t stop anymore, no matter how awfully vulnerable he was feeling. He laid all his cards on the table, hoping against hope that this would not blow up in his face. “This master may have first considered taking Gengar in because it reminded him of Binghe, but Gengar could never replace Binghe. Binghe has to know that, doesn’t he?”
The dream seemed to shake, their surrounding blurring even further until there was nothing but green around them
Shen Qingqiu ignored all of that, focused solely on Luo Binghe.
Binghe looked like he was one wrong word away from shattering into pieces. “Does Shizun really mean that?” He sounded small, unsure, and it broke Shen Qingqiu’s heart right open.
Shen Qingqiu closed the remaining distance between them and gave Luo Binghe a gentle pat on his head, just one, before backing off again. “There will always be a place for Binghe on Qing Jing Peak if he so desired.”
Around them, the dream started to fracture, then break, the green of their surrounding crumbling around them, but that was not important. How could anything be more important than Luo Binghe, right in front of him and somehow, miraculously, seeming to not hate him?
Luo Binghe tried to say something, but it was like there was a barrier between them, separating them. Shen Qingqiu saw Binghe’s face twist in the quickly dimming light of the green, hand twitching towards—
With a gasp, Shen Qingqiu woke, his eyes instinctively searching for Gengar as he had become used to during the past days on the road.
Instead, he found a fully grown protagonist, demonic qi hanging heavy in the room, and a portal rapidly closing behind him.
Shen Qingqiu tensed instinctively, readying himself for whatever might happen.
“Shizun,” Luo Binghe cried, his eyes brimming with unshed tears. So unlike the blackened emperor of the demon realm he was supposed to be at this point, and so like his little lamb. “Shizun, did you really mean it? Please take this disciple back. Don’t throw this Binghe out again. Please, shizun.”
Weak to his Binghe’s tears, Shen Qingqiu felt himself soften. Slowly, hesitantly, he opened his arms in invitation, and Luo Binghe did not hesitate to throw himself into them, his weight throwing Shen Qingqiu back into his mountain of pillows. Shen Qingqiu closed his arms around the protagonist, pressing him even closer against himself, and started carefully petting his perfect curls, fondness threatening to overwhelm him. “Hush, Binghe,” he murmured into Binghe’s hair. “It’s okay. Shizun has you.”
Holding the protagonist safe in his arms as he wept, Shen Qingqiu’s gaze wandered past Luo Binghe’s shoulder. He thought he saw something flicker, just before Gengar crawled out from under the vanity, likely spooked by Luo Binghe’s sudden arrival.
Shen Qingqiu dismissed it. Surely it was nothing. Probably just some trick of the light. Or maybe some weird aftereffect of the portal Binghe had come through. Yeah, that sounded about right.
He tightened his hold around Binghe.
Like this, with both his new Pokemon and his precious disciple by his side, for the first time, Shen Qingqiu dared to hope that maybe things would turn out okay.
(In the corner of the room, Gengar’s grin widened.)