Chapter Text
Wei Wuxian combed his fingers through little Lan Yi’s silky smooth hair. He smoothed it back from her forehead, then sectioned off the pieces for a sleek braid for the nighttime. He tied off the end with a bit of ribbon she handed over and then let her inspect his handiwork for any mistakes.
He was glad to be away from the heaviness of the conversation going on about the different guardians and the thinly disguised expressions from his Bonded that seemed to be hiding a bigger secret than either of them had let on.
A secret that he would definitely be trying his best to uncover before any of them dared to set foot outside of the Cloud Recesses. By the Void, they were newly bonded! No one in their right mind should ever suggest separating a newly bonded Circle or even just a newly Bonded addition to an established Circle.
It’d be lucky that he was a newly bonded addition, but that still didn’t make it right. It only meant that because his Bonded had a foundational start before his arrival, they wouldn’t suffer too much if there was a brief separation for the sake of duties and responsibility.
Didn’t mean any of them had to like it though.
He’d excused himself with the mention of helping Lan Yi settle down for the night, only to find Nainai and Lan Lihua suggesting that they handle the little girl’s nighttime routine—even if she was the Gusu Guardian.
Unable to really refute that—mostly because both women had looked so hopeful and happy at the chance of spending time with such a solemn and adorable child—that he’d checked to see if that was an acceptable option. It would give him some more time with his Bonded, which would be excellent for secret-prying, but also require some measure of intimacy that he didn’t wish to engage in with a child present.
Well, a child-shaped Guardian.
It would also be good for her to spend some time with other members of the Gusu Lan, so she could see what they were up to and how her protection and influence were present in the clan.
“You can still come with me tomorrow,” he’d told her. “We can have breakfast!”
So, Lan Yi had considered it with the same grave air as everything else, before agreeing on the grounds that he did her hair for the night—as an excuse to have another conversation away from prying ears.
He wondered how long it would take everyone to realize that she was definitely more aware of what they were discussing and how it would affect the Gusu Lan, than she appeared. Such a small and delicate appearance was definitely quite distracting, but it also meant that no one bothered to stop him as conversations switched over to what ought to be said in the various letters to be sent.
She hummed, low and deep in her throat, wizened eyes turning to fix on him with a heaviness that did not suit such a small and chubby body.
He sighed. “I don’t know. I’ve never met Jin Guangyao. I’ve met several Jin and I can’t say that I’m very impressed about any of them, but there can only be one Guardian Keeper at a time, right?”
Gravely, she nodded once.
“I’m worried too,” he said, plainly. “But I’m sure we’ll figure it out. We have a little time, don’t we?”
She gave a little shrug.
“Well, if something is happening on such a large scale, it doesn’t bode well for the rest of the Guardians. I’ve barely even heard anything about them. I wouldn’t have known about ours at Lotus Pier if Madam Yu—if she—hadn’t tried so hard to get out of properly caring for them.”
Lan Yi tilted her head almost entirely sideways.
Wei Wuxian smiled, gently. “It’s a long and ridiculous story,” he said with a bit of theatrics. “And newly transformed guardians need lots of sleep and rest so they can regenerate their powers and grow nice and strong, yeah?”
She blinked up at him with wide, open eyes, and just the barest hint of a shimmer.
He laughed. “Alright, alright—storytime. Then you’re going to say with Nainai and Lan Lihua for the night?”
Lan Yi nodded again.
“Alright! It’s not really that long or ridiculous though,” he began, toppling sideways onto the bed beside her. He only held up an arm when she snuggled up into his side, to pull a bit of the blanket over her little feet and tail.
A pleased little chirp came from her.
“See, at the time, I only knew that no one was supposed to go into the back ponds behind her wing of the estate. It’s built over the water in some cases and hers was closer to land than anyone else. Jiang Shushu said that she wasn’t used to the water, so it was best for her to have a space closer to land. He liked the water though, so he was in the proper Sect Leader’s rooms, always.”
Wei Wuxian flicked a hand and little shadow puppets began to dance on the blanket in front of Lan Yi. His shadows had been antsy and plentiful since returning from the caves, dragging along new bits of shadow that were hastily trying to acclimate to his control over them. It was reassuring and unsettling at the same time, as some of those shadows were older than any he’d ever known.
And some of them were so new, he couldn’t figure out where they’d come from.
The thought was pushed aside for later musing, however, because the issue of the guardians was now front and center in his mind. “See, it looked like this—and I used to stay over here—close to the servant’s quarters, because I wasn’t—they didn’t consider me to be a proper Jiang. I wasn’t even an official ward or anything, I was just—me.”
Lan Yi growled.
“Anyway, one day, it rained so bad that we had some flooding. The kind of the flood that’s usually handled by talismans and anchored wards, but apparently no one had bothered to renew the carved radicals along the docks or refresh the talismans burned into the walls. In fact, no one had renewed anything at all since I’d come to Lotus Pier. At one point, I thought it was because I was doing all of it that no one else was—I realized later, after the Pits and when I came back—that it was simply because no one ever did at all. We an old talisman Master, you see, but he never had a proper apprentice or a replacement. He had a cousin that was supposed to come and refresh things every couple of years—a contract that he agreed to as a favor.”
The shadows danced up and down accordingly on the bed.
Lan Yi gave a little hum of consideration.
“Well, guess who thought that contract was too expensive to renew? And guess who never bothered to keep on renewing or looking for a replacement? Exactly. Now, I was—what? Well, yes, we didn’t. No one did, but—no. No, there wasn’t. Well, that’s why it flooded again. But this time, it was worse. The last time, we had some lingering protections, this time—she tore down everything I put up. Everything I renewed. Shijie was lucky, because I realized that I had to hide it by then, so her rooms and mine weren’t ruined like everyone else, but I don’t think she knew why. My rooms have always been a cluttered wreck, so even if they were untouched, no one would barge in there for longer than a minute, tops. Always worked in my favor, you know?”
Lan Yi snuffled in answer.
“Well, the first time—I went to go and see, you know? And at that point, there was too much water everywhere and I slid off the docks and into the pond and I met the guardian.” A tiny smile surfaced on Wei Wuxian’s face. “We startled each other and then had a nice little chat. They told me to come back, so I snuck away and I returned later. Managed pretty well for about a year—before the droughts started, anyway—and one of those times, I was caught. Since the esteemed madam couldn’t stand taking care of a Guardian herself, but she also couldn’t bear the thought of a servant’s son doing such a special task, she assigned it to Jiang Cheng and he insisted I go with him. The usual visits for offerings, to show respect and that sort of thing. They normally stayed close to the Sect, but there was a hidden cove they preferred. The guardian is a frog, you know? A very fat, lazy frog. Very friendly too, at least to me.”
Lan Yi rolled over to stare at him, her gaze critical.
“No, they are! I’ve had conversations with them. Trust me. I would know what a frog looks like.”
She shook her head again—once—in that oddly decisive way.
Wei Wuxian grew wary. “No, they’re a frog. They’ve always been a frog. I’ve never seen or heard of anything other than—well, yes, they were in the hidden cove. They were there more often than not. I think they just floated towards the sect when it flooded.”
Lan Yi growled.
“No, I didn’t. Just like I told you in the caves—they were apologetic, but they couldn’t help. The drought was bad, Great One. Lotus Pier’s specialty import is all lotus-related. Lotus pods, seeds, flowers, handcrafted goods, and of course, lotus silk and medicinal tinctures. It would’ve crippled the entire territory if we didn’t do something. People were hurting.”
Lan Yi sat up, frowning severely.
“I don’t know,” Wei Wuxian said, honestly. He sat up alongside her, keeping an arm over her shoulders when she snuggled into his side, fiercely contemplative. “My shadows have heard that they’ve cut off all outside communication from Lotus Pier. I don’t know what that means for them, but I think everyone would be fine. Jiang Cheng is probably better off now that I’m not there to steal the spotlight from him and Shijie’s engagement is finally in place again, so that means good things. It’s all they ever wanted. Me, out of the way, and them able to do whatever they liked.”
Lan Yi clicked and chirped at him. She reached up with small chubby hands and patted at his cheeks, her gaze sadder than it should’ve been.
Wei Wuxian tried for another smile, but settled for leaning forward so his face rested in her small hands. “You would be the only one to think so, Great One,” he said, softly. “The only one to think that my presence is more than enough and not what I can do for someone beyond simply existing.”