Edith Redwood

Home. Wei Wuxian didn't let himself think about it often, because the thought of it was a gaping hole in his chest, a vast abyss that he would never be able to fill, a chasm he would never be able to cross. And yet, the feelings the word elicited refused to elude him, clinging to him like his own shadow, a familiar. He'd missed it so much, the feeling of being home - he didn't miss the walls that held the place up, didn't miss the furniture that adorned it, didn't miss the doors that led to it - just the feeling of being safe, the feeling that everything would be okay, the feeling that everything terrible and frustrating in the world would melt away, the feeling that no matter where he ran, he would always be able to go back, always belong somewhere. And it wasn't a feeling tied to walls, wasn't a feeling tied to places or food - and somehow that was worse. Some days he wondered if he sought for something that would always elude him, always forsake him, always betray him, the way Lotus Pier once had. A home he could never return to, a house that had long since stopped being home, even before the war. 
          Heavy was the burden of being lost. 

As sacrilegious as it was, Lan Wangji had never quite believed in the concept of God, of faith and religion. But with Wei Wuxian before him, he finally understood what it meant to believe. He was not religious, but perhaps love was the closest thing he had to worship. 

@SuzanneLH72  thank you ❤️

"You love him." There was no question in the statement. No intonation, no anger, no disappointment, no relief. Just an odd tone of finality, as Lan Qiren looked at his youngest nephew. His eyes were empty. And somehow it was worse than any punishment or adverse reaction that he could have given. 
          "Yes, uncle, I do." Lan Zhan said, eyeing his uncle warily. He had been dreading this conversation for a long time, but with the Wens being outcasted, it was only a matter of time before Wei Ying was involved, and  he was left with no other choice. "Is this where you tell me to give up and leave him alone?"
          "No." Lan Qiren said, his voice tired and resigned. "We both know that didn't end well. If you love him, go and get him. As long as he comes willingly, the Clan will have no objections."  
          

Updated MDZS Oneshots! It's a really short piece based on the drabbles I posted earlier today :) 
          https://www.wattpad.com/1615666618?utm_source=android&utm_medium=link&utm_content=share_published&wp_page=create_on_publish&wp_uname=edith343redwood

"Father, if one falls in love with a man, can one still go to heaven?"
          
          In his many years in these hallowed halls, Hu Tianbao has borne witness to many things— proposals, divorces, fights, adultery, funerals— he's gotten used to them, and yet nothing in his years of experience could quite prepare him for this question, nor this scene. 
          He could recognise that voice in a heartbeat. He's heard it many times in the walls of this very church, a deep and rich voice that blends perfectly with the rest of the choir, and yet, it's most unforgettable on its own, when he's singing to a grey-eyed boy, curled up in his lap late in the night when they think everyone else has left the sacred halls. 
          He knows who sits across from him in this crammed booth, and it takes everything in Hu Tianbao not to reach across and hug him. Instead, he returns a question. 
          "Why do you ask?" 
          "I'm asking for a friend," comes the quiet answer, but the fear in his voice speaks otherwise. There's a desperate edge to his voice, and Hu Tianbao can only smile sadly. He knows the feeling too well, an ode to his own a lifetime ago. He'd made that mistake once, and he will not make it again. 
          "There's nothing in the Bible against love," he answers simply. "Nothing about God that stands against love, no matter the form." 
          
          

Eighteen, and odd age
          Eighteen, an awkward stage 
          Eighteen, where you're stuck between
          Being an adult and being a teen
          Too old to kid
          Too young to bid 
          Those silly fantasies goodbye 
          Stuck in a contradictory tie

"so go on, tell me your deepest secrets, your darkest sins," said the gilt-eyed, stranger, his eyes glittering with a curious mischief in the dim glow of moonlight. "I won't judge." 
          And for some odd reason, Wei Wuxian believed him. Smiling wistfully, he glanced up at the sky, fighting the tears that were threatening to take over. He'd always been a quiet drunk, in contrast to his usual personality. And though he knew he wasn't drunk now, he could feel the familiar surge of feelings crashing over, drowning him in waves. 
          "I feel too much," Wei Wuxian started, wondering if there was anything in the vast expanse of the sky that could tether him to earth. "I feel like I'm overflowing every day. It's not even about big matters, it's about everything- and it's getting painful to feel. I can't turn it off like a tap, even if I should. I'm too much for anyone to handle." 
          
          The gilt-eyed stranger considered his words for a while, before finally countering. "That's not always a bad thing, though. It means you have empathy. It's a gift, to be able to feel. I know people who would kill for it," he said simply, his gaze never wavering from Wei Wuxian. "And you're never too much, you're human. You're not something that needs to be handled, you're just someone who needs to be loved," 
          Wei Ying dragged his eyes away from the sky to look back at the beautiful stranger, his nerves nearly buckling from the intensity of his gaze. 
          "But first, you need to love yourself." 

It was odd. As a kid, all Wei Wuxian he ever wanted was to grow up. But now, as a grown up all he wanted to do was to be a kid again, to run wild and free, even if his youth had been full of hubris. There was something sweet, he supposed, in staying innocent, in staying naive. 
          And watching A-Yuan playing in front of him, running happily across the barren fields, blissfully unaware of the spirits that haunted the former grave, he finally understood one thing. 
          In growing up, it wasn't that the world had changed. The ghosts had been here for centuries, and would remain here for many more. Instead, it was Wei Wuxian himself who had changed, no longer carefree, no longer naive.  

@ManuAndhale YES- did not expect to introduce him in that way, but he just spawned XD working on it!