The Bride of Dragon

7. Music

The next morning Wei Wuxian wakes slowly to the sound of... nothing. A frown forms on his face immediately. Tossing his blanket off, Wei Wuxian tugs on one of his thicker outer robes and quickly makes his way to his window which is letting in a lot of sunlight. It's clearly long past dawn, likely angling more to ten o'clock, and Wei Wuxian hasn't woken to the sound of Lan Wangji knocked on his roof once.

A sharp sliver of fear suddenly embeds itself into his heart and Wei Wuxian rushes for his door."Lan Zhan!" He calls as soon as his feet stumble into the hallway. He hasn't even put on his shoes."Lan Zhan!! Where are you!!" He makes his way to the main courtyard first, his destination automatic and unconscious, and continues to only hear the echo of his own voice carrying LanWangji's name. 

The sliver digs itself in deep. "Lan Zhan!"The creak of strained wood; the hush of sliding and falling snow; a small huff. Wei Wuxian hadn't realized he had become so fond of these sounds."Lan Zhan!" Wei Wuxian cries when he finally spots the dragon across the courtyard, staring at him in what's almost a puzzled fashion. "Where were you! You didn't wake me up this morning!"The accusatory tone Wei Wuxian's voice attempts to take loses some of its authority due to its trembling, but both parties elect to ignore this. 

Lan Wangji watches Wei Wuxian approach and tilts his head to the side a small fraction. A question.Did you want me to?"You can't just give up on a job halfway through, Lan Zhan!" Wei Wuxian huffs, his heart finally satisfied when he's roughly ten feet away. "What was I supposed to think? Waking up this morning to silence? I'd almost think you'd gone and left me."There's an admission hidden in his playful pout, tucked under trembling fingers and a still fast-beating heart.

 Lan Wangji considers it carefully as he slowly inclines his head in apology, genuine in his remorse."Ahh, it's fine, it's fine! You're here now. Where were you? What were you doing?" Wei Wuxianreplies, finally lapsing into his usual cheer. Lan Wangji almost moves to guide him to it, when he notices Wei Wuxian's bare toes and lets out a low whine."What is it?" Wei Wuxian asks, baffled as Lan Wangji drops part of his body down into the courtyard, allowing him to reach and nudge at Wei Wuxian with his snout, urging him back towards his bedroom. "Ah, Lan Zhan! You're quite mean, I find you and you're banishing me away!" This earns Wei Wuxian another huff and Lan Wangji looking pointedly at his feet.

 "Ohh! You want me to finish getting dressed. All right, all right! No need to rush! But you better show me what you were up to afterward!"He does. After keeping Wei Wuxian company while the man properly dresses for the weather—Wei Wuxian enjoys chatting to the dragon as he prepares for his day, finding more solace than he realized in Lan Wangji's presence—Lan Wangji faithfully leads him to one of the far rooms of the mansion, enduring Wei Wuxian's endless teasing of, "Lan er gege! What's this? Leading me so far away~?"The room they end at is as modest as the others, with no unnecessary decorations or any hints to what it may contain inside.

 It's only Wei Wuxian's natural curiosity and Lan Wangji's fixed stare that has the man even bothering to open the door. Once he does, he lets out a small gasp as he recognizes it for what it is, a music room. Some of the instruments have cracked due to the weather and lack of care, but others have managed to withstand it and Wei Wuxian is silent as he moves through them, gently tracing their edges.

 An idea sparks in him, one that had perhaps sparked in Lan Wangji the night before, and Wei Wuxian looks in earnest through several chests before letting out a delighted cheer."You remembered!" He says, slightly awed, as he exits the room, a flute now in hand. Lan Wangji huffs as if insulted Wei Wuxian would think he would forget their conversation just the night before. Wei Wuxian laughs, full of emotion, clutching the instrument tight to his chest."Lan Zhan, would you like me to play for you? Here, clear the snow off this roof and I can climb up!"Lan Wangji works quickly and soon Wei Wuxian is settling happily at the top, eyeing the flute as his fingers seem to instinctively dance down it, already thrilled at the idea of playing. He looks up."Do you want to hear what I used to play Jiang Cheng? It's one of my favorites." 

The dragon nods, after settling himself in and along with the nearby courtyard, and Wei Wuxian gives him a wicked grin before lowering his mouth to his flute and letting out a long and loud off-key screech. Lan Wangji recoils immediately, expression almost murderous. He seems affronted that such a sound is even allowed to exist. Wei Wuxian erupts into laughter that he can barely reign before Lan Wangji threatens to leave."No, no, Lan Zhan! Lan Zhan, I'm sorry! I had to! Come back, please! I'll play properly this time!" A suspicious look is pinned on him and he grins sheepishly. "I told you I picked up the flute to pester Jiang Cheng, didn't I? Now, come on! I'll try this time and if I'm bad you have to be nice to me! It's been a while since I've played and I hardly have your musical talent."

Eventually, the dragon relents and settles back in, but the tip of his tail still gives several annoyed flicks. Wei Wuxian shoots him a smile, shyer than usual, and when he begins to play, the notes that sound carries his hesitation. The song he's chosen is not one Lan Wangji recognizes but he still finds it pleasant. As Wei Wuxian continues, the notes become stronger and even playful, but LanWangji makes a low sound at Wei Wuxian's habit of purposely going off-key whenever he opens his eyes and catches Lan Wangji watching him, especially as the man smiles as he does it.

Wei Wuxian plays one song, and then another, and then another, and another. They bleed into each other easily, despite each having its own unique tone—some are quick and fun while one carries such an aching echo of longing that Lan Wangji feels his own heart sting—and through them, all Lan Wangji pays rapt attention. It's partway through the third song that he decides that WeiWuxian is a liar. 

The man plays beautifully.The notes eventually begin to stumble more consistently, however, and Lan Wangji almost worriesWei Wuxian is doing it on purpose until the man brings the flute away and stutters over a laugh."I think my hands are frozen!" He says, releasing his flute from his left to slowly clench it into a fist. A full-body shiver follows and then Lan Wangji is pushing up and forward, landing on the roof next to Wei Wuxian, who hardly has a moment to be startled before the dragon is gently grabbing at the back of his robes and pulling him off the roof.

 "Ah? Lan Zhan!!!"Wei Wuxian is immediately herded back to the inner mansion, despite his whines and complaints that only end when his stomach lets out a growl and he's reminded of the fact he has yet to feed himself.

"Sorry, Lan Zhan!" Wei Wuxian says as he swings his legs, seated in one of the hallways near the kitchen. He takes a bite of his food and swallows hastily. "I don't know if we'll be able to make it to the library today! I still have some things to tend to with my farm..." Despite his "farm" only being several feet by several feet, Wei Wuxian takes great pride in it. Lan Wangji only shakes his head at the apology. "I'll look into it a bit more tonight, don't worry! Since the moon is back I won't get distracted by a handsome stranger wandering into my house."His eyes light up with his teasing, his grin wide as he angles himself forward and towards LanWangji. 

His flirtations started as soon as he fell into Lan Wangji's orbit, but the dragon still finds himself fumbling with them. He's never had anyone attempt such a familiar relationship with him—especially not with the last decade he's been subjected to.Still, the Shameless! Lan Wangji would have bit out, ears a dark red, seems obvious to the two of them as he swings his head away from Wei Wuxian's infectious laughter.

 The skin moving under his scales feels warm and Lan Wangji knows it is not anger thrumming through his veins."Come on, husband!" Wei Wuxian sings as he begins to clean up his dishes. "I need your help clearing a new plot of land for me. And if you're good, maybe I can play you another song tonight!"He throws in a wink, likely to try and fluster Lan Wangji more, but the dragon simply inclines his head in easy agreement, more than pleased with the trade.There is little he wouldn't trade in order to hear the halls of his home echoing with more than the lone sound of his guqin and the trill of winter birds, after all.

Chapter End....

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