WangXian Forever 5

Chapter 3 Need

Jiang Cheng was muttering under his breath, still annoyed with his brother.

"Cheng Cheng," he copied in a higher nasally tone, imitating what Wei WuXian had said to him. "You won't make it for an hour." He smiled with determination. "I'll show you." He said in his normal voice.

He stripped off his clothes, watching the bubbles on the surface of the Cold Pond, and knowing the freezing waters so well, he jumped in.

That was the thing; going in one limb at a time didn't cut it. He had tried that before and hated it, feeling colder in increments rather than all at once. Jumping in however, left no time for doubts.

He walked to the deepest part, thinking about what he was going to say to his brother in an hour's time. His shoulders were above the water line, and decided to submerge his whole body, thinking Huan would be proud of him, when he came face to face...with a green face.

Vivid blue eyes looked at him with interest, turning to panic when Jiang Cheng screamed. He stood up, arms flailing in his haste to get away, but the face looked curious and followed him, faster because of his silvery tail.

Jiang Cheng, ordinarily a fast swimmer, well known in Yunmeng, swallowed too much water trying to reach the shore, where Zidian lay with his clothes.

*****

Wei Ying soared.

Lan Zhan stared at his husband, so in love with him, he couldn't look anywhere else.

Not at the treetops they were gliding past, nor the houses that looked like matchbox buildings, nor the people that looked like insects from this height.

The great iridescent wings flapped powerfully, carrying them both to the Cold Pond, which looked like a puddle until Wei Ying swooped down. The whole journey had taken less than a minute, and Lan Zhan felt disappointed when Wei Ying let him stand on shaking legs, just to dive into the waters.

His sharp hearing had heard Jiang Cheng scream, and knew exactly what he would do. Just as Zidian sparked to life, sizzling in the cold waters as Jiang Cheng released its full powers upon the innocent young man, cowering in fright.

Wei Ying got there just in time, as the purple lightening struck his back, instead of Shui. Wei Ying wrapped his arms around the frightened boy, as pearls fell from his beautiful eyes.

Lan Zhan screamed.

He saw the purple whip hit its target, and he feared for Wei Ying's safety. He jumped into the pool and snatched the tail of Zidian, ignoring the burning stench of his own flesh, as he yanked the weapon off Jiang Cheng's wrist, flinging it as far as he could.

Lan Zhan turned around to catch his husband, who must be in agonising pain right now....only to see him speaking softly to the boy, wiping his eyes as gently as he could.

Shui had gone from curious to scared to downright terrified, and his brain had not caught up yet. His ears listened to the soothing voice of someone he loved, felt warm arms wrapped around his body and he felt safe.

Safe enough to open his eyes and recognise Wei Ying. Wei Ying had wrapped his wings around the boy too, for added protection.

Now, the boy touched his wing, smiling.

"Pretty." He whispered, eyes shining with love.

Wei Ying finally smiled, and patted his head, which made the boy curl into his chest and start to purr.

"What the hell is that thing!?!" Jiang Cheng shouted, still not recovered from his fright.

Shui cowered, whimpering.

"Stop it, Jiang Cheng, you're scaring him." Wei Ying told him sharply, and then returned to the boy. He kissed his forehead and held him closer, whispering words of reassurance.

"I'm scaring him??" Jiang Cheng couldn't believe it.

Luckily, XiChen turned up then, followed by Li XiWang and Daden Yaonu. He also jumped into the pond, and made his way to his husband, seeing Lan Zhan standing protectively between the brothers.

"Wanyin, don't be afraid. He's the Royal Son of the Jiaoren, and our guest. He cannot be harmed." XiChen stood in front of his husband and looked deeply into purple eyes, hoping he was getting through. Gradually, the bewilderment left his face, and he calmed down.

"Are we okay?" XiChen touched their foreheads together.

Jiang Cheng nodded silently.

"Get him out of here for now." Lan Zhan ordered, still furious about his unwarranted attack.

"Didi, it's fine." XiChen tried to placate him.

"Fine? FINE? He attacked Wei Ying! With Zidian!" Lan Zhan roared. He lowered his voice, afraid he had scared the boy further, but Shui only had eyes for Wei Ying.

XiChen however, looked horrified. He faced Jiang Cheng again.

"Is this true?"

"It was an accident." Jiang Cheng said, his voice hollow, because he understood too well how much Zidian could hurt.

And how familiar Wei Ying was with the weapon.

XiChen took his arm and led him out of the pool, wordlessly.

When Jiang Cheng tried to talk to him, he was stopped.

"Don't speak. I will not either. I am too angry right now." XiChen told him, his voice rippling with fury.

For the first time, Jiang Cheng was scared that he had committed an inexcusable crime.

Wei Ying unwrapped his wings after he made sure Jiang Cheng was no longer nearby. He heard it in the tired sigh of relief from his mate, standing guard at his back, so close that he could feel his body heat through his robes.

Shui pulled his arms and took him under the water, swimming with precision and skill, churning the shallow waters with their game, chasing one another.

Only when he thought Shui had recovered from his ordeal, he stopped playing around and spoke to the boy.

"Shui, do you want to play with your sister for a while?"

Li XiWang heard that and jumped into the Cold Pond with Daden Yaonu.

"Look after Shui and make sure he's safe." Wei Ying  told her.

She nodded, smiling brightly. "Where are you going,  father?"

"To do something I should have done a long time ago." Wei Ying marched up to Lan Zhan and picked him up, bridal style. His wings spread out and he shot up into the sky.

*****

A/N

For those of you who might be thinking that electricity and water do not mix well, you're right, but Zidian is different.

That's all I'm saying...