( he stands there, dumbstruck, then goes into hand waving motion, both blushing from the back of his neck up and surprised and laughing in that awkward, reactive way, before he's making sure to properly face her and goes: )
Lan Zhan, you mean it? You really do? You want, ah, this?
( he gestures to himself, aware he's got so little to offer in the scheme of things. it doesn't make sense, it's also something he's... )
I'm what you want?
( When Wei Ying is ready. How was he even good enough in that respect? He's still learning how not to be a failure of a soulmate, and that, that's a lot! It really is! )
[She watches as he reacts to her. Her Wei Ying. As much bluster as
he gave, he seems to never think himself good enough. There is a sense of
satisfaction when she sees the red creep along his neck. But then he faces
her and just as she was sure when he returned to her life, she is sure now.
She nods]
Mmn. If you do not find that amiable, then Wei Ying is not obligated.
[The last thing she would wish would be to trap Wei Ying against his
will.]
[She's Chief Cultivator; the most talented in their generation;
raised a son without divulging his true parentage. But she's still a woman
and proposing to a man was Not Done.]
That is why there is a stack of letters and a stack more in Cloud Recesses
waiting for my response.
[She watches him quietly and thinks back to when they made their
bows at the Jiang Ancestral Hall. She stands before him and nods to show
her resolve.]
( Still staring at her, and he smiles, and that smile cracks, and he laughs, and he's red faced, and his hands, oh his hands, they're trembling. )
Ahaha, Lan Zhan, I, you... I only have whatever this is, ( he says, gesturing to himself ) to offer, and that's not trouble free. I wish I could give more than that, but if anything, you're the one who's given so much to me already, I...
Yes. Of course? It's not a question of anything but yes, but... Do...
( He moves his hands in front of him, motion abstract. )
[She takes a step, then another, then another toward him until she's
right in front of him, reaching until she is holding his trembling hand in
her sure and steady one. She looks at him in the eyes]
Mmn. Whatever Wei Ying wants. You never will walk that single log bridge
alone in the dark again.
( His hand folds to hold hers in turn, keeping her gaze. HIs smile, slow to build, is sweet and genuine. )
I haven't been alone on that bridge since you stood with me at Jinlin Tai, Lan Zhan, but thank you. I won't regret a lifetime of standing besides you, come what may.
( ignore the water in his eyes. they're burning hot, and his heart feels like claws have sunk into it, and he does, frankly, feel like he's about to cry. is being happy needing to feel like this? )
[She allows him a small smile from her and leans to capture his lips
in a brief and soft kiss. She doesn’t say or bring attention to how wet his
eyes seem and can infer that they are happy tears from his warm and sweet
smile. ]
( He shouldn't be crying right now, perhaps, but he still is, bringing his free hand up to skim her jaw and under her ear before he's tangling his fingers gently into her hair. Kissing her back, when she pulls away again, because it doesn't need anything harder to have meaning just as it is. Even if his hand still trembles, his fingers twitching tighter as he holds on, and allows himself to dream. )
[She leans up and presses soft kisses along his cheekbones and the
corners of his eyes to kiss away any tears before they even began their
journeys away from his eyes. Lan Wangji brushes her lips along the line of
his nose before kissing him softly again]
( He soaks up her affection, and it's when her lips are brushing the bridge of his nose once more, all these soft touches he's not sure are real, that his eyes truly lift to catch hers. His thumb strokes across her cheek; )
Lan Zhan.
( And this time he leans in, checks with her eyes, before he presses his lips to hers, a touch more firmly, figuring out an angle he's thought about in abstract form before, but not put to practise.
Because he is here, and he does trust her; he cares for her, deeply, and always has, even when he doesn't understand why she didn't just leave him when it was the wiser, safer way to go. Only that, he wouldn't leave her to stand alone either, and that's enough. Not knowing his worth, but trusting her, having faith in her.
Standing chest to chest, their held hands brought up between them, and all he knows is this is going to be a journey they're traveling on for the rest of their lives...
And he doesn't mind at all. It's not scary, wondering if it will or won't last. If he's good enough. If he'll fail her. If she wants children of her blood and his, or not. Those are conversations to have, and they will, but right now, he wants to bask in this moment here with her, the world outside and around not privy to the sanctuary of their shared space. )
[She gives the barest of nods when he silently asks and allows the
kiss, kissing him back more firmly in their first true kiss. There's a
thrill, a happiness that rushes through her that she never imagined for
herself. Though it doesn't match the joy she felt when she knew it was Wei
Ying that had truly come back to her and come back to this earth. It was a
selfish wish but one that had been granted. She had resigned herself to
enjoying his presence once again, thinking that he would be taken away once
again somehow, some way. But they're here. They're journeying together,
wandering as Wei Ying had wanted. And her Wei Ying breathes and lives and
he knows that a-Yuan is safe and an upstanding young man.]
[She holds onto his hand tightly and allows them to part from their
kiss.]
Wei Ying.
[It's soft. Fond. A tilt at the corner of her lips betray her
happiness at being with him in this way.]
Wei Ying doesn't mind tying up to your wagon, ( he says, and this is not. a romantic statement, and he scrambles in the realisation; ) Lan Zhan, hahaha, that is, I don't mind building any home with you. Though it'll be nice, yes, being able to travel when we wish, for the sake of the chaos that needs minding or to see new realms, side by side.
( A pause. )
With or without littles in tow.
( Questioning? Family, for her. Is it this, too? Sizhui no longer an only child? )
[Later. Later they could speak about children. About a future that
could be theirs. For now, she sets her sword into her sleeve and nods at
him again to lead the way to the festival.]
( Out, out it is: to the thriving thrum of the crowds that flow past, the chatter and laughter and shouts and every hawked ware, every scent that collides and flows over and past them, heady and hearty and everything inbetween. The press of bodies are ones he sluices through, leaving her room in his wake, one arm back to keep hold of her hand, fingers laced, like he doesn't know how to let go. )
Lan Zhan! Riddles?
( Lantern riddles, waiting for their solving and decorated in all different manners, hung and pointed out toward the crowds. One has a rabbit perched up, ears tipped forward, paws tucked up to its chest. He gestures toward it, his smile ready and happy, inviting her to the riddle, the reading. )
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... Hahaha, wait, do you have more than one soulmate?
( He can also have the self confidence and self worth of a wet piece of paper, but hey. He's... really... uncertain, here. )
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No. Only Wei Ying.
[She says it with certainty.]
When Wei Ying is ready, then we will discuss.
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Lan Zhan, you mean it? You really do? You want, ah, this?
( he gestures to himself, aware he's got so little to offer in the scheme of things. it doesn't make sense, it's also something he's... )
I'm what you want?
( When Wei Ying is ready. How was he even good enough in that respect? He's still learning how not to be a failure of a soulmate, and that, that's a lot! It really is! )
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[She watches as he reacts to her. Her Wei Ying. As much bluster as he gave, he seems to never think himself good enough. There is a sense of satisfaction when she sees the red creep along his neck. But then he faces her and just as she was sure when he returned to her life, she is sure now. She nods]
Mmn. If you do not find that amiable, then Wei Ying is not obligated.
[The last thing she would wish would be to trap Wei Ying against his will.]
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Lan Zhan, did you just propose?
( Okay so he backed up a full minute, but still. )
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I cannot propose, Wei Ying.
[She's Chief Cultivator; the most talented in their generation; raised a son without divulging his true parentage. But she's still a woman and proposing to a man was Not Done.]
That is why there is a stack of letters and a stack more in Cloud Recesses waiting for my response.
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( Said with a faltering quirk of his lips. Proposing marriage to marry in seems somewhat...
... egotistical? Presumptive? Ridiculous? All of the above. )
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[She watches him quietly and thinks back to when they made their bows at the Jiang Ancestral Hall. She stands before him and nods to show her resolve.]
Mmn, then I ask for Wei Ying's hand in marriage.
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Ahaha, Lan Zhan, I, you... I only have whatever this is, ( he says, gesturing to himself ) to offer, and that's not trouble free. I wish I could give more than that, but if anything, you're the one who's given so much to me already, I...
Yes. Of course? It's not a question of anything but yes, but... Do...
( He moves his hands in front of him, motion abstract. )
Can it be just for us?
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[She takes a step, then another, then another toward him until she's right in front of him, reaching until she is holding his trembling hand in her sure and steady one. She looks at him in the eyes]
Mmn. Whatever Wei Ying wants. You never will walk that single log bridge alone in the dark again.
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I haven't been alone on that bridge since you stood with me at Jinlin Tai, Lan Zhan, but thank you. I won't regret a lifetime of standing besides you, come what may.
( ignore the water in his eyes. they're burning hot, and his heart feels like claws have sunk into it, and he does, frankly, feel like he's about to cry. is being happy needing to feel like this? )
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[She allows him a small smile from her and leans to capture his lips in a brief and soft kiss. She doesn’t say or bring attention to how wet his eyes seem and can infer that they are happy tears from his warm and sweet smile. ]
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[She leans up and presses soft kisses along his cheekbones and the corners of his eyes to kiss away any tears before they even began their journeys away from his eyes. Lan Wangji brushes her lips along the line of his nose before kissing him softly again]
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Lan Zhan.
( And this time he leans in, checks with her eyes, before he presses his lips to hers, a touch more firmly, figuring out an angle he's thought about in abstract form before, but not put to practise.
Because he is here, and he does trust her; he cares for her, deeply, and always has, even when he doesn't understand why she didn't just leave him when it was the wiser, safer way to go. Only that, he wouldn't leave her to stand alone either, and that's enough. Not knowing his worth, but trusting her, having faith in her.
Standing chest to chest, their held hands brought up between them, and all he knows is this is going to be a journey they're traveling on for the rest of their lives...
And he doesn't mind at all. It's not scary, wondering if it will or won't last. If he's good enough. If he'll fail her. If she wants children of her blood and his, or not. Those are conversations to have, and they will, but right now, he wants to bask in this moment here with her, the world outside and around not privy to the sanctuary of their shared space. )
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[She gives the barest of nods when he silently asks and allows the kiss, kissing him back more firmly in their first true kiss. There's a thrill, a happiness that rushes through her that she never imagined for herself. Though it doesn't match the joy she felt when she knew it was Wei Ying that had truly come back to her and come back to this earth. It was a selfish wish but one that had been granted. She had resigned herself to enjoying his presence once again, thinking that he would be taken away once again somehow, some way. But they're here. They're journeying together, wandering as Wei Ying had wanted. And her Wei Ying breathes and lives and he knows that a-Yuan is safe and an upstanding young man.]
[She holds onto his hand tightly and allows them to part from their kiss.]
Wei Ying.
[It's soft. Fond. A tilt at the corner of her lips betray her happiness at being with him in this way.]
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So do we get to tell your uncle in person, or...?
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We will tell them when we return.
[She pauses for a moment. Her voice is low but no less fierce.]
...Wei Ying will not be trapped in the Cloud Recesses.
[Not like her mother. She would never hold Wei Ying to such a terrible fate.]
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( A pause. )
With or without littles in tow.
( Questioning? Family, for her. Is it this, too? Sizhui no longer an only child? )
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[She nods then tilts her head]
Does Wei Ying wish for children?
[Siblings for their beloved a-Yuan, who would love to have siblings as well.]
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( how to sound awkward on this subject: you're hearing it live right now )
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[she cuts him off with a kiss]
Later.
[After they’ve wandered for a while. After they return. After they tell Sizhui]
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Lan Zhan's word on this.
( Her word on when, if ever. For now, ah; )
What were we about to do? Walk, properly, go find food outside this tea house and inn, ah?
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[She nods]
Mmn, lantern festival.
[Later. Later they could speak about children. About a future that could be theirs. For now, she sets her sword into her sleeve and nods at him again to lead the way to the festival.]
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Lan Zhan! Riddles?
( Lantern riddles, waiting for their solving and decorated in all different manners, hung and pointed out toward the crowds. One has a rabbit perched up, ears tipped forward, paws tucked up to its chest. He gestures toward it, his smile ready and happy, inviting her to the riddle, the reading. )
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