Chapter Text
Lan Wangji doesn’t remember much of the beginning, but he can recall a little of it. He was enjoying his breakfast when his brother barged into his apartment with their uncle in tow. They were both in heavy panic, especially Uncle. Apparently, people were going crazy because of some disease and attacking each other. There was no message from the government, so the people were left on their own.
Lan Wangji didn’t get to say anything before he was dragged out of the apartment. They were going to drive to the next city where it seemed safer, but as they were running out, they could see the car being surrounded by a herd of zombies, which is what the creatures are being called.
Seeing the car being slowly covered by these creatures, they ran the opposite way. A few of them noticed the trio and went after them.
They didn’t have much speed. Or at least that was what Lan Wangji thought. He later learned that a sated zombie was quite powerful. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a fun way of learning.
It wasn’t until Lan Wangji was tired and stopped, that he noticed he had managed to get separated from his brother and uncle.
Lan Wangji wasn’t a person who usually panicked. In this case he did. He remembers having difficulties breathing. He remembers seeing a couple of starving zombies slowly crawl towards him while he was having a panic attack. He managed to calm himself down and avoid the incoming bite from one of them. Then he continued running. Ever since then, he had been alone.
He learned how to kill (He once saw himself as a pacifist, but he learned that it doesn’t do much for survival), to hunt (he had to let go of his vegetarian ways after every store got raided and emptied) and to patch up wounds. He never thought he would have to live this way.
Currently, he was running away from three of them. They were unusually fast, having almost being scratched by them multiple times in the chase.
He turned a corner and thought he managed to shake them off when he tripped over an old, rusty pipe.
He managed to land on his hands and knees. He gave hiss when he felt the sting from his badly scraped hands. He tried to get up, but his knees got hurt pretty badly too.
Screeches from the zombies came closer and Lan Wangji then braced himself.
Suddenly, someone grabbed his arm and pulled him up. He let out a shout of pain but went along in a run. His legs were screaming, but adrenalin kept him going.
After a few turns, the sound of screeching got quieter and he was eventually being led to what looks like an abandoned building.
After the beginning of the “zombie apocalypse” (Lan Wangji doesn’t like that word, it sounds too dramatic), people were leaving their homes to find refuge at isolated areas, leaving most houses and buildings abandoned.
The person that grabbed him came to a sudden stop, making Lan Wangji almost trip. He got a glare in return.
He raised an eyebrow and stayed quiet.
Not running anymore, he could finally get a good look at the person that saved him. The first thing he noticed was the purple coat. On the sides, it had two pockets with a lotus flower sewn on each.
Too flashy, Lan Wangji thought. Ignoring that his own sleeves had a cloud pattern on.
The man had his hair, which seems to be long, in a tight bun. His face, despite having handsome features, were settled on a frown.
The abandoned building was covered in graffiti. Planks were covering the broken windows. On the door it said “Keep out. Do not enter”.
His savior entered the building. Lan Wangji started, but quickly followed.
It looked like it used to be an office. Desks were placed uneven, some even turned upside. Paper spread on the floor. Lan Wangji had to quickly sidestep, almost stepping on a stapler. Everything was covered in dust.
He was let to a set of stairs, which was hidden behind a shelf.
Lan Wangji was starting to get apprehensive. This man was a stranger after all, even though he was saved by him.
The stairs stopped by a metal door. His savior did a series of knocks, a code, and the door opened slowly.
On the other side was a woman, also in a purple coat.
“A-cheng!” the women rushed forward and hugged the man tightly.
“A-jie!” the man, A-cheng, exclaimed, “Why did you open the door? It’s dangerous!”
They pulled away from each other. The woman looked close to tears.
“We didn’t hear from you in a long time. I was so worried. After A-xian,” the woman stopped herself, her expression showing pain. The man did the same for a second before he hid it. However, Lan
Wangji could still see the flicker of pain in his eyes.
The women soon noticed that the man wasn’t alone. She seemed surprised and a bit reculant. Lan Wangji couldn’t fault her for that. After all, he was a stranger.
“A-cheng, who is this?”
The man barely looked behind him before he answered, “Just a clumsy idiot who almost got himself killed.”
“A-cheng,” scolded the woman. She stepped up to Lan Wangji and introduced herself.
“My name is Jiang Yanli and this is my brother, Jiang Wanyin.” Said brother just scowled and gave a nod.
Lan Wangji gave a nod back and introduced himself, “I am Lan Wangji. Thank you for your help.”
Jiang Yanli just smiled and gave nudge to her brother. He startled but caught himself fast.
“Eh- no problem,” he hesitantly said and immediately cleared his throat. It soon became silent.
“Well, I should take my leave-“ Lan Wangji began with. He was unsure of what he was going to do. He still doesn’t know why he was brought here, but he doesn’t want to bring any danger to them. He was, however, interrupted by Jiang Wanyin.
“What, no! I didn’t bring you here just to let you kill yourself again.” Lan Wangji raised an eyebrow. This man might have saved him, but he was starting to get slightly miffed.
“I am not going to get myself killed, I was just momentarily incapacitated,” he bit out the explanation.
“Yeah right,” Jiang Wanyin rolled his eyes, “Look, do you have a place to stay?”
The question shocked Lan Wangji. He paused for a moment, unsure what to say, before he decided to stick with the truth. The siblings didn’t seem too bad.
Jiang Wanyin didn’t expect an honest response but recovered quick.
“We have space here where you can rest for a while,” he said awkwardly, while Jiang Yanli gave a warm smile.
“Yes, absolutely,” she said nodding. “I was just making dinner!”
His stomach decided to rumble at that, making his ears warm in embarrassment. She let out a soft laugh.
“Thank you. I will take you upon that offer,” he said, ignoring the sound. It is only natural after not eating anything other than a proteinbars and running from zombies the whole day.
“Fantastic!” she clapped her hands and stepped through the door, her brother following.
Lan Wangji hesitated a few second before stepping through the door.
It was a small apartment with almost no furniture. Several sleeping bags was strewn on the floor, indicating that there were more people living here.
Jiang Yanli went to the tiny kitchen in the corner. There was already a boiling pot on the stove.
Jiang Wanyin sat on a pillow on the floor and gestured to another pillow on the opposite side of him. Lan Wangji moved slowly to it and sat down.
An uncomfortable silence covered them.
He didn’t know what to make of Jiang Wanyin. The man always wore a frown and looked quite stiff (he ignored the voice of his brother telling him the same). Lan Wangji noticed however how he softens when talking to his sister.
The voice was right when saying that Lan Wangji was the same. He is aware of how people think of him, that he is cold and unapproachable. It is not that he means to be like that. Communicating with others has always been a struggle to him. His brother is much better at that.
People think of him as unfeeling, but there is nothing he wouldn’t do for his family. He loves his family, and while he is not able to express it verbally, he tries with his actions.
Thinking about his family makes his chest feel tight and he feels his eyes beginning to tear up. The quiet moments where he wasn’t being chased allowed him to think about them. It has been only weeks since being separated, and while he is aware that his brother and uncle can hold their own, he is still scared. After resting here for a short while, he will go out again and look for them.
Jiang Yanli came back with bowls of soup.
“It’s lotus pork rib soup,” she said with handing out the bowl. She went back to bring one for herself and sat down.
Lan Wangji looked at the bowl containing pork, missing his vegetarian ways, but he could to nothing than lifting up the bowl and bringing the spoon to his mouth. It tasted amazing. He said so.
Jiang Yanli blushed and thanked him. Jiang Wanyin raised an eyebrow at that and sent a glare to Lan Wangji, which he ignored.
They sat the next minutes eating the soup, Jiang Wanyin also standing up to refill. No said anything, perfect for Lan Wangji who grew up with a no talking rule while eating.
When they were done, he stood up to wash the dishes. That was the least he could do for them. Jiang Yanli protested, but her brother managed to convince her to let him. She agreed reluctantly.
It felt good to do something so domestically in a time like this. It made him feel like when he was back at his apartment.
After washing the dishes, he sat back down again with the others, ready for the conversation that was coming.
At first, they all looked at each other. Then Jiang Yanli began,
“There are two others living here, Wen Qing and her brother Wen Ning.”
Lan Wangji nods. That explains the extra sleeping bags.
“They are out to gather some stuff, like medicine. Wen Qing is a doctor,” she explains.
“We have a sleeping bag for you,” she stood up, presumably to get the sleeping bag. When she got bag, she had a sad look on her face. Jiang Wanyin too.
“It used to belong to our brother,” she swallowed, “A-xian.”
“He went out to hunt, but never returned.”
She held it out. Lan Wangji took it carefully.
“Thank you.”
She just nodded and gave a smile.
She stood up, Jiang Wanyin doing the same.
“Well, I think I should get some sleep.” she said. Jiang Wanyin said the same. They went to their sleeping bags and laid down.
“Good night.”
Lan Wangji just sat there looking at the sleeping bag. He does not know why he thinks too much about it. Maybe it is because the previous owner was dead? He decides that it does not bother him, and he lays in it to sleep.
---
He wakes up during the night to muffled sounds, but soon falls asleep again.
---
When he wakes up again, it is to conversation.
He sat slowly up, taking up the sight around him.
Jiang Yanli was conversing with a woman who he assumed was Wen Qing. Behind each of them was their brothers, none of them saying anything. Lan Wangji thought that the sight of them was quite amusing.
The amusement went away when he remembered he used to do the same with his brother.
“Good morning,” Jiang Yanli said warmly.
“Good morning.”
“I made breakfast.”
“Thank you,” he said, feeling the hunger hit him. He stood up and looked around.
“Could I make use of your bathroom?”
“Of course! It’s the door by the entrance,” she said, pointing towards said door.
He gave a grateful nod to her and went in that direction.
The bathroom consisted of white tiled walls and floor. Despite how dusty the apartment was the bathroom looked clean. He then began his morning routine with washing his face.
After finishing his usual routine (he had not managed to keep the routine after the outbreak”, he went to join the others.
They were already seated on the floor with the breakfast.
Jiang Yanli looked up, “I hope you don’t mind that we already started eating.”
She looked worried.
Lan Wangji was quick to reassure her that he did not mind. He sat down and took the bowl that was offered to him. He thanked her.
“No problem!”
He did not know why Jiang Cheng was glaring at him. He had done that a lot while he was here. He seemed very protective of his sister. Lan Wangji was not sure how to reassure him that he means no harm.
After everyone finished, Jiang Yanli was quick to introduce the Wen siblings.
“This is Wen Qing and her brother Wen Ning.”
Wen Qing put out her hand. He slowly grasped it and pumped it once.
“Pleasure,” she said with narrowed eyes.
Wen Ning also put out his hand, though it was slightly shaking. Lan Wangji took his hand too.
“It is nice to meet you,” he said to them both.
“Mn,” was the only thing Wen Qing said. She seemed very guarded, even more than Jiang Wanyin.
“So,” Jiang Yanli began with, “we are running short on supplies.”
She looked around.
“Wen Qing and Wen Ning managed to bring some medicine, but we still need food.”
“I will go out,” Jiang Wanyin said. His sister looked worried at that, but still gave a nod.
“I will join you,” Lan Wangji said. They all looked at him.
Jiang Yanli looked uncertain, “Are you sure? Shouldn’t you rest some more?”
“No, it is fine. I have had plenty of rest. Let me help.”
She nodded at that, “Alright.”
Jiang Wanyin stood up, «Then let’s go.”
Lan Wangji stood up as well. He was not sure where they were going, but he supposes that he got to follow Jiang Wanyin, who currently is handing him a weapon.
“Here,” he said, handing him a sword. Lan Wangji looked at him in surprise. He was not unfamiliar with sword, since the Lan family still participated in old traditions, including sword fighting, but knowing there were others outside of the family that also was familiar with sword fighting came as a shock to him.
The sheath was brown leather with gold decorations and a red tassel at the bottom. He pulled the sword from its sheath and ran his fingers along the blade. He was not disappointed, but still preferred his own sword.
He sheathed the sword and looked at Jiang Wanyin.
His sword had a purple sheath with silver decorations, purple tassel at the end.
“Come on,” Jiang Wanyin said, already walking. “We shouldn’t waste more time.”
He could not do anything else other than follow.