[[忘羡 | WangXian 3]] : Our Flesh And Bones

[128.] Birth Day.

***

Spring turned to summer, and this year's summer came in hard and hot. 

All the windows in the House were open all the time, even at night, and the scent of fresh foliage and blooming magnolia was filling up the Cloud Recesses. The baby was awaited any day now; Miao Lu spent almost all the time in bed as her belly was huge and heavy, and she could barely walk.

Hanguang-Jun had been very gloomy in the last month or so, frowning and snapping at everyone except Wei Ying  –  to his husband, Lan Wangji was even more gentle than before, if that was even possible.

The nights were quiet, and this worried Bai Li. She saw clearly that the Masters were closer than ever, and the tension between them and the Mistress was long gone, but it seemed that their passion was gone too. Still taking care of the master bedroom in person, she could not help but notice that the Masters now used the room only for rest and sleep. 

Something was very wrong  –  this was supposed to be the happiest time for them. 

Hanguang-Jun was always tense and nervous, but it was very plain to see that he was not worried about the baby, but rather about his husband. On most days, Master Wei could not leave the bed, but he was always smiling, trying to eat as much as possible and keep Master Lan happy, satisfying his every whim and request. 

There was a secret in the air, but no one talked about it.

**

As the due date approached, Lan Sizhui took several days' leave and came back home. He was utterly mesmerized, keeping his palms on Miao Lu's belly, making her laugh by asking some silly baby questions, and wondering how such a small creature could be so strong and kick so hard. Just like everybody else, he too was worried about his dads  –  they both looked awful, each in his different way. 

The news he brought were as feared  –  the army had been mobilized and all cultivation Clans were being checked for babies born in the last month or so. The astrologers' calculations pointed to just before midsummer.

And fair enough, the day of the Summer Solstice came, and late that night Miao Lu's water broke. The midwife was called for, and Bai Li knew that finally the most important sleepless night had come. 

She informed the Masters, naturally, but Hanguang-Jun told her to call them when it was all over  –  Wei Wuxian was finally asleep and he was in bed with him, hugging him, and making sure he could get at least a little bit of rest.

Miao Lu's screams brought the Young Master Lan to the door of her chamber, and he looked so worried that the servant girls started giggling  –  he looked as if he was the newborn's nervous father.

Hours passed and Lan Wangji was listening to the awful screams of pain anxiously, thanking all the Gods that he was not born a woman  –  it sounded excruciating. His husband was dozing off in his arms, in some sort of a trance, relaxed and smiling. He wondered if perhaps Wei Ying was dreaming; he looked like someone either extremely drunk, or extremely ill.

Finally, Bai Li rushed to the master bedroom, as the time was approaching and the baby would be born very soon. She knocked and tried to enter the room, but the doors did not move. She wondered why the Masters would lock their room at such a time, but then she realized that they were not just locked  –  they were... stuck. 

And then there was a blaze of sharp light that filled the room, and then there came the screams.