The Rise of the Divine Oracle

Chapter 2 - Never a Dull Moment

.

They've been walking for hours and Wuxian is starting to get hungry. He doesn't know how to voice this to Wangji so he stays quiet and keeps moving. After a while, he sees a gate to a city nearby and reads the sign "Caiyi City". Memories of the water ghoul fiasco comes to him as they pass through the gate. He tugs on Wangji's hand to get his attention, and when he turns around to see what's the problem, Wuxian blushes a little and looks down at their locked fingers.

Wuxian tugs his hand again and says: "People will see..".
Wangji looks unfazed and replies: "let them see" and continues on like it's natural for two grown men to hold hands in public. Wuxian sighs with a smile and whispers: "So embarrassing". With a smile on both their faces, they proceed to the nearest pier to catch a boat to their destination.

They tie Apple at a nearby stable and rent a boat. As they sail through the city, Wuxian spots a restaurant that he remembers eating at before. If memory serves him well, they had the best spicy food he had had in a long time. They pass by it but he says nothing. His mind kept telling him: 'Don't be a burden. He might be in a hurry. He already wasted time chasing after you. We're probably already late'.

Wuxian presses a hand on his stomach and prays that Wangji doesn't hear the noises coming from it. He was too anxious to eat breakfast this morning and spent all day yesterday roaming Cloud Recesses and enhancing the wards by skipping meals and not telling Wangji about it. He hasn't eaten in almost two days.

They pass by a merchant selling pots and Wangji stops the boat to ask him: "Kind sir, where can I find your city council hall?" The man bows with respect and gives him a rough description of the location they're headed.

Once they reach the location, they dock the boat and as Wuxian steps out of the boat, he stumbles. Wangji catches him and lifts him off before he tumbles into the river. The move was too fast and left Wuxian dizzy for a moment. He closes his eyes and grabs hold of Wangji while he gets his bearings. It takes a few seconds for the world to stop spinning and let go of the arm he's holding. Apparently, it was a few seconds too long because when Wuxian opens his eyes he's greeted with Wangji's concerned stare. Wangji raises his hand to check his temperature then cups his cheek to make sure he's ok. Wuxian chuckles awkwardly and says: "I'm fine. I just didn't expect the boat to rock on my way out."

Wangji was not convinced. He grabs his wrist to check his pulse and asks: "Why are you so pale?"
Wuxian looks around to make sure no one is watching Wangji fuss over him and replies: "I just almost fell into the river. That's all."

Truth be told, since he sacrificed his golden core things haven't been right with his health. He once believed that his body was slowly failing him and that partially was why he had no problems defying the clans to do what's right. He believed that if he was to die anyway, might as well make the most of what he has left. As time progressed, his health kept fluctuating. Sometimes he felt like an Ox, sometimes he felt like he just wanted to lay on the ground and never get up.

He never told anyone about his health problems, but he suspected that Wen Qing knew when he was staying with the Wen Clan in Burial Mounds. She made sure he ate on time, slept enough hours and checked his pulse and temperature regularly. She treated him forcefully with needles and potions but never told him why. He was too scared to ask.

As he waits for Wangji to finish checking his pulse, he starts to panic a little. His thoughts ran wild: 'If he finds out that my body is failing, would he still want me as his soul bond?'

Wangji was starting to get concerned. Wuxian's pulse was slower than normal, his complexion is too light and he seems to be shaking slightly. Not good.

Wangji looks at the awkwardly smiling Wuxian and knows that even if he was gravely wounded, this man won't admit it. He steps next to Wuxian, covering the small of his back with his palm for support and says: "Let's have an early tea break".

Wuxian naturally starts to complain: "What? No! You said we had errands! W.. wait! Why are you pushing me!"
Wangji just kept going and pushing Wuxian along with him until they reached a small inn with a tea house next to it. He glares at Wuxian until he takes a seat then sits next to him. Wangji orders a pot of herbal tea and some healthy sides for both of them then looks over at a sulking Wuxian. He sighs internally and stares at Wuxian. As predicted, Wuxian pouts after a few silent minutes and says: "I thought we had errands.. Aren't we late? Why did we stop here?"

Wangji drinks his tea and then looks straight into his eyes and says: "No talking while you eat".
Wuxian sighs loudly and whispers: "So boring" under his breath and starts devouring the food like there is no tomorrow. Wangji stares at him and smiles. His life will never hold a dull moment ever again.

When they're done, they head out towards the city council hall.

.