Pitched Normal

Part 22

Lan XiChen had been...mildly surprised with his little brother as of late. From the way he allowed the disciple in, to the lesser punishment that he pushed for, to the holding onto his wrist to drag him to himself and Uncle, and the way he tried to get inbetween Wei WuXian and Wen Chao, his brother certainly had been doing many things that he had not believed that he would see him do before. He was...perhaps friends was a bit of a strong word, but he was definitely...becoming close with that Jiang head disciple. Despite all of that, he had to admit that he had not expected him to actually agree to go to an outing with the head disciple, two sect heirs, and the little Wen boy. 

For all that he had noticed, Lan Wangji...well his little brother was finally letting himself be pulled around, it was somewhat amusing to see that it was Wei WuXian of all the ones that he could have chosen to interact with, but then again, he supposed that their family had a way of becoming fascinated by those who were so contrasted to them it was shocking. His father, his uncle, and now his brother as well. He gave a small smile to himself. A genuine one. He was happy for his brother, truly. He had seen him exclude himself from everything since the death of his mother.

Though, he may not entirely understand the depth of what it was that seemed to enamor his brother so thoroughly, and though he knew that Uncle would likely hate everything, he was destined to ensure that Wangji and Wei WuXian were together as much as possible. He was...still not used to seeing the small smile that graced his brother's features ever so often when nobody was looking when Wei WuXian was around him. He could tell, his brother was falling into the spiral that was the Jiang disciple. Whether that was a good thing or otherwise, XiChen was not sure, and he was not one to dwell on such things when they were impossible to currently predict. Though...history dictated...history was not what he was going by. He refused to allow the past rule his brother's life. Not when he was happier than XiChen had seen him in...well...in a very long while. 

He had not even known that his brother was truly leaving the Cloud Recesses, he had not been informed of this, but he had suspected that if Wei WuXian had asked it of him, his brother would go. The two were attached to each other, and XiChen suspected that their attachment would only grow, and given how fast that it had grown just since the two had met the first night...no, that was not when they first met was it? The first time they met was when the two locked eyes as Wangji was coming back to report the situation in the lower town with the...puppet body. Afterwards, Wangji allowed the Jiang disciples in against the dictation of no invitation no entry. Something which had surprised him, but even further surprised him when Wangji returned to him and Uncle dragging the young Jiang head disciple. 

Yet, here was Wangji, coming just before curfew, Jiang disciple in to, the other looking...so different from how he had seen him since he had met him. Perhaps that was why. Unlike the smile that barely reached his eyes, the forced laughter, and the odd lilt to his voice that seemed...tensed, Wei WuXian was looking at Wangji with utter adoration. There was a gentle look to his eyes, a genuine lift in his smile, a sparkle in the joy that he was feeling. The laugh he gave and the joy he felt was obviously quite sincere. Lan XiChen thought on the previous times that he had seen this sort of Wei Ying before and realized that it was only once before. To his own recall, the only time he had seen Wei WuXian be so...genuine was when he found out that his brother had allowed his fellow sect disciples in the Cloud Recesses, despite not having an invitation. 

The only common denominator was Wangji, in both cases. XiChen noted this with some...curiosity. A mysterious smile perched on his lips as he realized what was going on, he bit down any further reaction as the two had noticed him now. Wei WuXian rushed behind Lan Wangji, fingers hesitantly clenching the sleeves of Wangji's robes, fingers curling sharply into the fabric, eyes wide with shock, and a bit of...fear? Suddenly it was all erased from his face, but it was but a fraction too late. XiChen had already seen it. The thought hurt him. How long had he been doing this? Hiding his emotions to have managed such an effortless ability to hide everything under a blank face, or a smile? How many times has he had to do this? For himself, or for the others around him? XiChen was not too sure he wanted to know, and yet he could not help but be curious about it as well. 

"Wangji," XiChen greeted gently, his eyes turning to Wei WuXian as well. "Young Master Wei," The second gave him a small smile, tense and uncomfortable. Interesting, he wondered what it was about Wangji that seemed to leave the other so much more relaxed. 

It was not without reason that many were frightened of Wangji. Many thought that of the two Jades, XIchen was the easier approached one. In terms of speaking, XiChen knew that many would prefer his own company over that of his brother, and it was something that hurt him as much as he understood it. Wangji had...very many difficulties when it came to truly regulating his emotions, much less conveying them in a manner that others would find able to understand. It was not as though he did not understand why others could be frightened of him. His being in charge of the discipline was certainly no help whatsoever in Wangji trying to make friends, not that he had seemed all that particularly inclined until Wei WuXian had come into the picture. 

To see someone prefer Wangji over himself, his company over XiChen, but mostly to see someone who was far more comfortable with his little brother than he was with XiChen made him wonder what exactly it was about himself that made Wei WuXian so wary and cautious of him that he would cling to his little brother so tightly.