It's been thirteen years since Lan Zhan was last in a room with Wei Wuxian, but its been five minutes since he saw Wei Ying teaching art online. Devising a complex plan to save Wei Ying from being framed from murder, Lan Zhan throws his life and he...
The forest felt subdued, the wet spring failing to chase away the vestiges of winter. Mountainous weather was always fickle, too unpredictable to those not used to it.
For Lan Zhan the sight before him, had a sick dread settling into his stomach, his fingers itching for any of his weapons. Not that there was an enemy in sight, only proof that one existed.
Already on edge, this discovery had only heightened his worries and diversified them. As of this moment, he didn't know if this was an attack against his Sect, another attempt to ransack his home or another part of the attack on Wei Ying. All of them were actually viable, if horrible possibilities.
The entire world knew that Wei Ying was here to deliver a lecture, 'in honor of his academy days'. Something that had drawn derision from his detractors to Lan Zhan's irritation but admiration from his fans. To the point where some of them were vocally disappointed they were not recorded for the internet or televised.
He didn't blame them. If he didn't semi-permanently live here, he would be disappointed too. He did actually post a comment to several of his favored Wei Ying fan-sites, especially since in two of which he held a VIP position - on this trip and the promise of other places where he might lecture. Lan Zhan hoped he would and hoped he might be able to attend those too.
Friends support each other after all.
It felt so good to communicate with other people who admired his love.
Lan Xichen stood by the closest tree, pale and to those who didn't know him, or perhaps had not grown up with him, he might seem expressionless. Lan Zhan through could see the white knuckle grip he was maintaining on Shuoyue's hilt and the coldness in his gaze. His cultivation power was keeping this small area of the shield visible.
At the other end of their group, Wei Ying was examining the tear in the shield, shivering slightly when the mountain wind swept down through the trees.
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Lan Zhan watched with a heavy heart as Wei Ying grimaced when he stepped back, his perfect mouth tightening, eyes hooded. Troubled, but he wasn't speaking and the silence was beginning to unnerve Lan Zhan.
"What is it?" Lan Zhan asked pitching his voice low. Something had unsettled Wei Ying, something specific.
Grey eyes flicked to meet his and he wordlessly gestured. Lan Zhan didn't know if he was encompassing the horror of having the shields breached, the need for a tri-layer shield or the general victimization of Gusu. Sometimes he just could not follow the path of Wei Ying's thoughts and he was less skilled at it when he was upset.
But there was a darkness in his gaze that worried Lan Zhan. A tension in his posture that was more than the frigid air and stress. It didn't seem as though he was going to say anything more yet, but the quiet exchange had captured Lan Xichen's attention immediately.
