Fate

Ch. 9

They were all enjoying the hot pot. Wei Wuxian was happy to have such delicious food. He had lived in the burial mounds for so long and the lack of good food was obvious with his weight. He was happy to have food again. He even had moments in the burial mounds where even the bland food from the Lan Sect would be good for him as it would be better than starving.

"Wuxian, are you alright?" Zhan asked, "You look like you are about to cry?"

"Um, it's just a long time since I had good food," he said, "before coming here I lived in a dark and dreary place for a good few years just to protect people...who ended up dead anyway."

"It's alright, you do not have to talk about it right now. Eat as much as you want, there is plenty of food here," Zhan said.

Wuxian nodded and looked at Wangji, "this isn't Gusu you know," he teased. Wangji's ears started to turn red. Wuxian noticed immediately and couldn't help but laugh, "how did I only now realize you blush with your ears? It's so cute!"

"Wei Ying!" Wangji warned.

Haikuan chuckled, "You two make a good couple. You know what people say, opposites attract," he said.

Yibo glanced at Zhan, "they do," he mumbled.

Zhan glanced at him, "what was that?" He asked.

"Nothing," Yibo said with a smirk.

"Do you want to share more of your story today or do you want to continue another time?" Haikuan asked.

"We can continue, Lan Zhan may not talk right now as we are eating but I do not mind," Wuxian said.

"Why would Wangji not talk?" Haikuan asked.

"One of his many rules, no talking while dining, don't sit improperly, don't do this and don't do that," Wuxian said.

"You do realize if you two are partners, you'd have to follow those rules?" Zhan pointed out.

Wuxian became silent.

Wangji smiled, "he wouldn't have to. If my sect has a problem with it then we will not live within the sect. I want him to be a free spirit as he has always been."

Wuxian looked at Wangji, "but, what about your family?"

"You are my family, my brother will understand and he will help me make my uncle understand," Wangji said.

"That one I find hard to believe, your uncle made it pretty clear that he cannot stand me," Wuxian said, "why else would he have picked on me specifically in lectures then got angry when I asked specific questions and he threw scrolls at me?"

"I cannot defend him on that, he crossed the line," Wangji said, "but what you asked no one has ever asked before. No one has ever asked about resentful energy as you have."

Wuxian nodded, "I suppose," he said and began to explain, "during lectures at the Lan Sect, his uncle was the teacher. He called on me and started asking me a series of questions. I answered them all correctly and then he asked something specific that I knew the answer to but I had my own opinions on it."

"What is resentful energy?" Zhan asked.

"It is tainted energy, or demonic energy," Wuxian replied, "in our world, when a person dies, if their body and soul was not cleansed, they will become a resentful spirit. When I lost my golden core, I started using it. I learned that resentment responds through emotions and wasn't supposed to be used for greed. I have no desire for power or greed of any kind. I feel as if the resentful energy took to me because they trusted me not to use it in vain like those of the past. I used it as a way to survive and take revenge on who wronged my family."

"You mean ghosts?" Yibo asked.

"Imps, demons, monsters, and ghosts, yes," Wuxian replied.

Yibo was silent. Haikuan looked at Yibo who grew pale, "are you okay Yibo?"

Zhan immediately pulled him into a hug, "that is their world, not ours," he said.

"Ugh?" Wuxian questioned.

"Yibo has a fear of ghosts and the dark," Haikuan replied.

"Well, that is something you can differentiate between him and Lan Zhan," Wuxian said, "even if there was, we'd help get rid of them. Nothing to fear. Right Lan Zhan?"

"Mnn," he hummed.

"Do you have your guqin?" Wuxian asked.

"Mnn?"

"Help relax his mind," Wuxian said, "I don't have Chenqing with me otherwise I'd do it."

After clearing the food Wangji summoned his guqin, "woah, that is pretty," Zhan said.

"Does it have a name?" Haikuan asked.

"Wangji," Wangji replied.

"Huh?" Haikuan questioned.

"The guqin is named Wangji," he replied.

"Oh," Haikuan said. Wangji sat properly and began to play Song of Clarity to help calm down Yibo. It helped him greatly.

"Almost like music therapy," Zhan mumbled and looked at Yibo, "are you okay now?"

Yibo nodded, "they can continue their story if they want."

They all got comfortable in the living room as Wuxian and Wangji talked about the Yin Iron, what it was and how they went to gather the shards but all ended in vain. Wangji talked about the ambush of Cloud Recesses, talking about how his uncle was greatly injured, his father passing away, and his brother going missing.

Wei Wuxian talked about the Wen Indoctrination and his family experience in the dungeons. They talked about the night hunt and them fighting Xuanwu. They explained what Xuanwu was and the techniques they used to kill it. Wangji then explained how he played Wangxian for the first time for Wuxian.

"That was its name?" Wuxian asked, "I passed out before I could hear you say the name properly."

"Mnn," Wangji nodded.

"Can we hear it sometime?" Zhan asked.

"Maybe," Wangji replied, "wrote it for Wei Ying specifically."

"You wrote it?" Wuxian asked.

Wangji nodded, "I did."

Wuxian hugged Wangji tightly, "I love you so much."

They decided to end the story telling there for the day as it was now getting later in the evening and Fanxing was getting tired. Not only that but Yibo and Zhan had to get back to work the next day. Wangji and Wuxian would have the house to themselves.

After Haikuan and Fanxing left, Yibo and Zhan brought Wangji and Wuxian to the guest room. They thought they should move out of the medical room they had in the house. The bed was more comfortable and they had a place to put the clothes they bought as it had a walk-in closet. They even had a personal bathroom as well. Yibo soon had a habit now of sleeping in the same room as Zhan since confessing their feelings for each other too. After a nice dinner, everyone turned in for the night.