[MDZS] The Dragon and the Fox

Ghost Town

Lan Zhan and Wei Ying walked into a town. A very...quiet...town...

There was literally no one there. A cold gust of wind blew through the area, picking up dust and throwing it everywhere. It was so quiet, the howling of the wind could be heard, echoing through the many streets and alleys.

Wei Ying made a face of bewilderment when the two had searched every crevice for signs of life and found none.

Wei Ying: "Weird. I wonder where everyone went?" Lan Zhan didn't say anything. He just stared into the distance, thinking. "Could it be the same ritual as before with the other towns? What do you think Lan Zhan?"

Lan Zhan hummed. Wei Ying was happy. "Faint traces of magic linger here." Wei Ying clapped in excitement, hopping around like a hyperactive child.

Wei Ying: "Wow! You can feel magic as well?"

As well? Lan Zhan thought, staring at the fox boy in surprise. He didn't press the issue and stared at the horizon once more, enjoying the warm sunset.

Wei Ying grabbed the other's arm. "We should probably head inside for shelter." He sounded alarmed. Lan Zhan hummed in response. The dragon sensed the danger. The two found a semi-clean house. It seemed the town's people had disappeared only recently as there was still day old food sitting out on the table.

Wei Ying spied a jar of wine. His eyes widened, and his ears twitched in excitement. He grabbed the jar and smiled brightly. "Lan Zhan! Look! Who knew they had this wine all the way out here!" It was his favorite: Emperor's Smile! He quickly threw away the cloth covering it and took a whiff of the savory scented alcohol. It was ripped from his hands the next moment.

Lan Zhan: "No drinking while on a night hunt." Wei Ying was saddened. He laid his ears back and looked at the other with sad, pleading eyes, whining at the jade dragon. Lan Zhan sighed. "Just for the one night." Wei Ying clapped in joy, grabbing the jar quickly from the dragon. He sighed in satisfaction once he had drank the entire contents of the jar. He looked around for more, but, seeing there was no more alcohol, grew sad. Lan Zhan sighed.

Wei Ying: "Lan Zhan! There's no more wine! What will I do?"

Lan Zhan: "Learn to savor things and they will last longer."

Wei Ying whined. "But Lan Zhan~"

Lan Zhan shushed him with the silencing spell. Wei Ying glared at him. When Lan Zhan didn't budge, the fox pouted. An idea popped into his head. He made three fox fires. They lingered in the air, perfectly aligned. He hid them in different areas of the room. Lan Zhan rolled his eyes.

Lan Zhan: "Wei Ying. Don't cause trouble." The moment he spoke those words, a bang was heard just outside the western wall of the house they were in. "Wei Ying. What was that?"

Wei Ying: "You caught me! I set up traps." A second bang was heard near the back of the house. Lan Zhan sighed. He decided to sit with the fox until the show was over. "Before we chose this place, I had studied every inch of it and memorized where the entrances were. Then I set up traps in those areas! Don't worry, though. They won't harm us. Only the intruders. I set them so they recognize our qi."

Lan Zhan wasn't very impressed. "Try it! Send your magic to the trap and see if it activates." Lan Zhan only rolled his eyes and continued to wait for the commotion to stop. Wei Ying pouted but soon laughed as the spirits trying to invade kept falling into the traps.

After so long, the noises stopped altogether. Wei Ying was still laughing his head off, rolling over the floor, clutching his belly. Lan Zhan couldn't understand why that was.

A figure shrouded in mist appeared before them. The figure seemed to be seething with anger. "You think it's funny, young fox?! Look what you've done to my minions!"

Wei Ying couldn't help the laughter from growing louder and harder. "Yes! Yes! I'm sorry! I was bored, so I decided to have a little fun! However, you look so ridiculous, I can't stop laughing!" he spoke between breaths and laughs.

Lan Zhan rolled his eyes. "Wei Ying. Behave."

Wei Ying: "Come on, Lan Zhan! That was hilarious!" He wiped at the tears streaming down his face from all the laughter.

The figure had been burnt black from the explosions caused by the trap and Wei Ying's foxfire. He most certainly wasn't happy about it! "Young fox, I'm warning you! If you do this again, I will haunt you for the rest of your life! Even your next lives won't be spared from me!"

Wei Ying laughed harder. "Okay! Okay! I understand! I won't do it anymore! I promise!"

The figure shimmered and when the light disappeared, he was a very beautiful male. He crossed his arms and huffed. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have souls to tend to." He vanished in a cloud of gray smoke.

Lan Zhan: "Wei Ying. Who was that?"

Wei Ying stopped laughing abruptly and stared at the other in disbelief. "You mean you don't know?" Lan Zhan shook his head. "He was a death god. Please don't ask me to try and remember his name. I would most likely have it wrong."

Lan Zhan: "How does Wei Ying know this death god?"

Wei Ying turned nervous at that point and fidgeted with his hands. Lan Zhan waited patiently. "I...I..." He was having trouble speaking on the subject. His ears were laid back against his head. He gripped at his hair, his eyes squeezed shut, as if he were having a terrible headache.

Lan Zhan knew at once it was best to leave the topic alone. He carefully, and gently, pried the other's hands of their head and held their hands in his. "Wei Ying. It's okay. Wei Ying is safe." He rubbed his thumbs over the fox's hands, soothing and comforting. The dragon waited patiently for the other to calm.

Eventually the trembling ceased completely. Lan Zhan heard light snoring from the other and knew at once, the fox boy had fallen asleep. Seeing as it was past curfew for him, he decided to lay down and sleep. He only did so after placing the fox gently on the bed in one of the rooms. He went to a separate room where he would sleep for the night, but it wasn't far from Wei Ying in case he was needed.

It was a very peaceful night.

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Sorry I'm so late with this one🥺 between work and my daily life, it was hard updating it on time.

Love you all❤️ hope you enjoy!