Work Text:
Lan Wangji’s eyes narrow at the dark hairs sliding from the huli jing’s high ponytail, slithering down his shoulder, carelessly, seductively.
He turns the page of his book, and Wei Ying continues copying the rules in front of him. Lan Wangji has no idea what the last pages he read were about. As a dragon, Lan Wangji has been well educated on other spiritual beings, their intentions, their types of cultivation, and their mating customs. However, since he met Wei Ying, he has been in a turmoil of emotions—reevaluating everything he had been so thoroughly taught by his shufu and teachers about huli jing!
What he had been taught to fear, avoid, or even eradicate…is lounging casually in front of him, and Lan Wangji doesn’t know what to do. In the course of just one night, his life as it was until that point completely changed. Questions follow him day and night. Is Wei Ying trying to mock Lan Wangji for his strict behavior, or is it that he is a young huli jing whose cultivation has just started to hunger for another one’s yang energy?
Lan Wangji has read the ancient texts and…
Wei Ying’s pink tongue peeks out of his mouth, and his fluffy black ears twitch.
They make no sense.
Wei Ying is…good and genuine in all his actions, though a bit mischievous at times. He is always willing to help others and has never been cruel to Lan Wangji like the huli jing are said to be. Could the misbehavior truly all be an act just because he is so attracted to Lan Wangji’s strong golden core?
“Why are you looking at me so much?” Wei Ying looks up from the scroll at the other boy. “If I missed one line, I’m not starting again, Lan Zhan! I’m already halfway to finishing, and it took me days for this!”
Lan Wangji puts his wandering thoughts on hold.
“Halfway to finishing the second scroll,” the Lan dragon clarifies sternly, looking at Wei Ying’s unusually beautiful handwriting. “You still must write the rules a third time.”
Wei Ying groans at this, dropping his head on the desk. His three tails swish behind, exposing his act.
“Sit properly. Continue.”
Those adorable black ears twitched at the frustration in the deep voice. Immediately after, Wei Ying places his hands on the desk demandingly. “I know! But I need to celebrate my small victories!”
Lan Wangji's eyes trail after Wei Wuxian’s playfully swishing tails.
“Small victories?” he murmurs questioningly, against his better judgement.
Wei Ying’s smile, with his two fangs peeking out, tells the Second Jade he has fallen for another one of his games. Lan Wangji braces himself just as Wei Ying starts to shorten the distance between them, leaning forwards on the desk, raising one knee on top of the edge of the table, in a shameless pose that makes the dragon impossibly still.
And despite that troubling sight, it is not as bad as what is happening behind him. Lan Wangji’s tail has slowly started to move side to side on the floor since Wei Ying started talking. This is a much larger problem.
Wei Ying lowers his voice to a whisper. “You need to celebrate your small victories as well, Lan Zhan. For example, in all this time you haven’t scolded me for anything, you have finally turned me into a disciplined, good little Lan student.”
Disciplined, good, and Lan send various images to the dragon’s wicked mind. Lan Wangji presses his eyes shut. “Concentrate. Finish your work.”
Wei Wuxian snickers at him and sits back to continue writing as if nothing had happened. Completely unaware of the storm he has created inside Lan Wangji…as always.
Huli jing are said to be amoral creatures that lure their prey, usually male cultivators because of the concentrated yang of their golden cores, into a false sense of comfort with sweet voices and beautiful appearances; so that no one suspects until it is too late and the cultivators are stripped of their lifeforce, or their core is drained. It is hard to believe Wei Ying would commit such a vile act to progress in cultivation. However, if it was to satiate his huli jing nature, it would be understandable — Lan Wangji himself has a dragon part that wants things he cannot reconcile, which is always haunting him with its hunger.
If Wei Ying is the same…then Lan Wangji wishes to help. He has never before lost complete control, but his dragon nature has made him do things that he has come to feel ashamed of later.
The enticing aroma of Wei Ying invades his nostrils.
This shameless huli jing!
He reminds himself that the boy from Yunmeng might not have much control over his pheromones yet, and if he did…Lan Wangji does not truly hate smelling it, it’s the reactions it stirs in his body that terrify him…but every time Wei Ying sends a wave of his scent towards him, he wants more, he aches for more.
A quiet laugh brings his attention back to the fox spirit. “What?”
Wei Ying tilts his head, amused. “Your nose is twitching! It’s very funny, Lan Zhan.”
Lan Wangji frowns, mildly offended. Wei Ying is aware of what he is doing.
Until this point Lan Wangji hadn’t answered back with his scent…but perhaps it’s time to accept it, all the things he has read about the huli jing, all the pages about dual cultivation…he has come to terms with wanting that. He wants this huli jing to take him to a secluded spot and drain his core of its yang energy. Burying his Lan-trained sense of shame, he releases his pheromones too, letting Wei Ying know he is willing to mate. He does not have to wait. Immediately, the fox’s expression changes. Bright silvery doe eyes look up at Lan Wangji in awe.
His lips part as if to speak. Lan Wangji’s claws dig deeply into his thighs, clutching at restraint.
Wei Ying’s scent turns sweeter, stronger, and Lan Wangji is barely able to keep from salivating at it—
The fox blinks away, his eyes turn to look at a point behind Lan Wangji, eyebrows pinched in confusion as the spell of their scents meeting each other…is suddenly broken.
“Ah? Lan Zhan? Why is your tail thumping like that?”
His tail!
Lan Wangji’s powers escape from his veins, reaching his fingertips and hitting the table. In an instant, the desk is covered by a thin layer of ice.
“Wow!” the huli jing exclaims, chirping.
Lan Wangji is still recovering from baring his feelings to Wei Ying. He looks at the person his heart aches for, trying to find any sign that may tell him Wei Ying accepts his scent and…he finds none. Wei Ying is still looking at his tail, as if Lan Wangji’s scent had not affected him at all, as if it had not meant anything at all.
His pheromones were brushed off as nothing. Is Lan Wangji not good enough?
Then why has the huli jing been seducing him all this time? He does not understand this huli jing at all! And to top it off…his tail, his tail is—
“That is none of your concern.”
He needs to get himself under control, if another dragon were to walk upon this and recognize his smell…that cannot happen. This humiliation must be put behind him. He stands up and begins to swiftly open all the windows, with Wei Wuxian’s confused gaze following him.
“Your tail isn’t moving anymore…”
Lan Wangji ignores him, opening up another window.
“Hey, why did you cover the table in ice? Did you get mad because I asked about your tail? Is it like a bad thing to ask dragons? Or maybe…there is a rule about it?”
The dragon clenches his fist.
Wei Ying sniffles. “I can’t remember all of them, alright?” The fox started getting agitated. “And also why Your scales are so pretty, Lan Zhan! Very shiny!”
His innocent questions and praise make Lan Wangji’s heart squeeze. He opens the last window and his hands itch to do something else. He can’t return his gaze to Wei Ying; his pride has been sorely wounded.
“So…does this mean I will have to copy the rules again?” Wei Wuxian asks, observing the frozen scroll and his distorted strokes.
Lan Wangji looks at a point far beyond the mountains, not brave enough to face him.
However, Wei Ying comes his way to continue the torture. “I won’t, right, Lan Zhan? You wouldn’t be that mean to me, right?”
This time, Lan Wangji cannot ignore, even from the corner of his eye, the sight of fluffy tails waving behind Wei Ying like dancing flames.
“Lan Zhan?”
When he looks up, a pair of shining eyes and pretty pink lips smile at him. That’s how he knows his destiny has been sealed…for a long time now. The fox spirit entering the Cloud Recesses in the middle of the night and trying to bribe him with Emperor's Smile was just the beginning.
The dragon’s tail attempts to start tapping the floor again. He forces it down, out of Wei Ying’s sightline. He will have to make Shufu avoid verifying Wei Ying’s next scroll, perhaps he could make Xiongzhang review it instead…No! Lan Wangji shakes his head inside. It’s against the rules, he won’t allow it. Wei Ying is complaining too much! Copying the rules two more times, it’s not a difficult task and—
He glances at the fox spirit. Wei Ying looks teary eyed, fluffy black ears drooping low on his head. Lan Wangji’s heart aches and…he decides that if he doesn’t let this go, Wei Ying might think his efforts were for nothing.
“No. You won’t.”
“Really?!”
Lan Wangji presses his lips together. If he had more control over himself, Wei Ying’s hard work wouldn’t have been ruined.
“Mn.”
He turns to the fox spirit, expecting to see humility in his eyes and the phrase, ‘no, I will redo it Lan Zhan!’ come out of his mouth, but instead…the fox spirit goes from pouting with his hands clasping together to laughing and patting a disconcerted Lan Wangji on the shoulder, “Ah! Lan Zhan, you’re the best! I hate copying the rules.”
And if the previous reaction had all been an act, Lan Wangji had fallen for it like a foolish young dragon diving down from the sky for a shiny thing, only to find out it was just a mirage. Lan Wangji feels played.
As Wei Ying continues talking, the dragon stays very still, shocked that he can only look at the other with wide eyes, because, Wei Ying is not even going to insist on doing his well deserved punishment? And also, Wei Ying is touching him?! His gaze lowers to glare at the hand covering his shoulder.
The fox immediately takes it away with a nervous giggle. “I know, I know! No touching.”
Exactly where Wei Ying’s hand had been, Lan Wangji inhales, and the spicy, yet somehow also sweet scent — fills his brain.
“I don’t understand why you like copying them, they are very boring—” The fox yawns. “Really, why would someone like copying them? What is fun about them?”
Lan Wangji feels his anger boiling, the teasing scent of Wei Ying tickling his nose and…and—
The temperature of the room lowers down.
“Ah!” Wei Ying gasps, quickly raising his foot.
Both of them look at the light cover of ice below Lan Wangji’s feet. The dragon is suddenly overcome by a hot rush of embarrassment — his feeble control over his powers is a reminder that he was the one who ruined Wei Ying’s work in the first place.
“I apologize for…ruining your work.”
Surprise flashes through the huli jing’s face. For a moment, Wei Ying stares at him with a fixed smile, unblinking, then, he chuckles and laughs, “Aiyah! Lan Zhan, it’s okay, I know it happens sometimes; when I started cultivating my second tail, I would sneeze and turn back into my fox form!” The boy gives him a few pats on his shoulder that Lan Wangji has no strength to smack away. “Imagine how silly that looked!”
So warm, kind, and bright. It will be hard to recover from this rejection. He might never recover. “You’re dismissed. We will continue tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?!" Wei Ying's lashes are long and dark as he blinks. "But…but it’s barely been a shichen, can’t we…continue on another desk?”
Lan Wangji stares at him with his lips parted open in surprise, “You wish to continue copying the rules…?”
Wei Ying immediately jumps a step back, shaking his hands in front of himself. “No, no, I don’t want to keep writing the rules, but…” His hands stop in the air, his nervous energy easing down like a river. “…It’s nice spending time with you, Lan Zhan.”
He has to close his eyes from the sight in front of him with great difficulty. Wei Ying might not like his scent, but he likes spending time with him. The flirty fox does not know when to stop, and Lan Wangji will not be the one telling him, either, even when he is not being clear with his intentions.
“Hmmmm, if you insist, Lan Zhan, then I can’t refuse you, but…”
The base of Lan Wangji’s antlers tingle with anticipation. “What?”
The huli jing’s eyes flicker to him with a taunting smile appearing on his lips, he places one knee on the window, arching his back and making his bottom rise up…
And his tails curl and wave behind him!
This is… this is…!
Red covers Lan Wangji’s ears. “Sit properly!”
Is Wei Ying thinking about jumping out of the window or offering himself?!
A laugh escapes the young fox. “Lan Zhan! We are no longer in punishment time! Do you have things to do today? Come with me to Caiyi?”
Lan Wangji swallows. Is Wei Ying giving him another chance? Perhaps Lan Wangji had been too fast to accept rejection? The huli jing are said to be subtle, playful creatures that like going around a subject until they pounce at it like prey — they are the opposite of dragons, who are direct and prefer situations that don’t drag on.
Maybe he needs to try again.
“Come on, Lan Zhan…say yes?”
The vulnerable face the fox makes strikes the young Lan dragon like lightning.
Wei Ying is just as inexperienced as he is! He does not know how to approach a coupling; just as Lan Wangji is a young dragon, Wei Ying is a young huli jing and there is a high chance that Lan Wangji is his first prey!
At this, his heart skips a beat and a purr escapes from inside him — he must not let his mind dwell on those thoughts, Wei Ying could lose his interest in him if he does not act accordingly. The texts said it was after reaching sexual maturity that the huli jing were finally able to drain the energy from the cores of other cultivators. His purr turned into a silent groan rumbling in the dragon’s chest; the idea of Wei Ying pursuing another cultivator is very unpleasant.
A giggle tickles his ears.
Lan Wangji has been very disciplined with his cultivation throughout his life. He is far more advanced than most among his age group and some even older than him. His core is powerful enough to withstand any drainage Wei Ying may need. The dragon is inexperienced in these matters, his antlers still have much length to grow, but he can do it.
He will help him.
“Lan Zhaaaaan! Are you not going to answer me?”
“I will go.”
Wei Ying’s face is illuminated by a big smile. “Really?!” Lan Wangji wonders if he will finally be pounced on by the huli jing, but unfortunately, he isn’t. “Lan Zhan, I’m so excited! I’m going to take you everywhere!”
Lan Wangji blushes. Everywhere?! How can this huli jing be so shameless as to say it out loud?! And how could he take him so easily?! Is he not aware that dragons have two—
Regardless…if Wei Ying needs several intakes of qi, Lan Wangji will work hard to please him; his cultivation is high, and although he may struggle, he can’t allow him to go seek the help of someone else.
A muted snarl escapes his lips. He must get stronger.
“Ah…Lan Zhan, it doesn’t have to be many places if you don’t want to.” The fox tilts his head with a glint in his eyes. “What if you get too tired? We don’t want that to happen.”
The audacity!
Choosing to ignore this, he grabs Wei Ying’s wrist. “Let’s go.”
Lan Wangji catches the mischievous turn his lips take too late. One second, they are inside the library pavilion; the next, Wei Ying has thrown them both out of the window.
“Wei Yiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing!” He growls into the open air.
Wei Ying’s laugh resonates in his ears.
Once they are on the ground and Wei Ying has stopped laughing, his fingers surround the younger boy’s wrist tightly.
“No more playing, we are leaving.”
He hears Wei Ying snicker behind him. “Alright!”
Lan Wangji pulls at his arm. The fox won’t put up any resistance? He drags him even closer as a precaution; Wei Ying most likely will try to break a rule soon.
As they walk towards the front gate, many of the Lan dragons stare at the two of them. Wei Ying doesn’t seem to have noticed their eyes, very occupied by talking out loud; he has not turned his head even once to look around, his attention fully on convincing Lan Wangji he is right about whatever he is saying.
“I’m telling you, the best way to eat them is frying the rinds!”
Lan Wangji’s eyes open slightly wider. “…the watermelons?”
One of the elders looks at him with a disapproving frown, others just glance once and go on their way without making eye contact with him. Either way, Lan Wangji makes sure to keep them away by glaring. He knows there won’t be any need to hiss, but…for some reason, he can’t seem to lower his guard.
“That’s what I’ve been talking about this whole time!” The playful fox says in a whiny tone. “Lan Zhan, are you not paying attention? Am I boring you?”
The disappointment in Wei Ying’s voice cracks his heart. Lan Wangji quickly turns his face to deny it vehemently, but the glint in the younger boy’s eyes and the way his lips are barely holding his laugh makes him grunt instead.
“Shameless!”
“Hahahahahaha! So you were distracted!”
“…”
He recognizes he has been slightly distracted for the last few days, and more agitated than usual. It isn't dragon's mating season yet, but his own rut is close. Although each dragon has their own rut cycles, Lan Wangji has never had a problem before with his own; he admits to feeling more prone to irritation and anger during those periods, but meditation had always kept him in control of those annoying needs.
Being slightly distracted has nothing to do with his rut — it has to do with Wei Ying and Wei Ying alone. He does not understand why Xiongzhang kept suggesting he spend a few days in seclusion. His rut hasn’t even started; it is still very far away. He is sixteen, not a hatchling facing the woes of the first rut; wanting all, but nothing being enough.
It’s nothing like that. Mn!
“Er-gege?”
Lan Wangji stops in his tracks. They have reached the arc of the entrance leading down the stairs.
“Are we going down the stairs or…”
He doesn’t need to finish the sentence for Lan Wangji to understand. Wei Ying wants to go down by sword.
“That is against the rules.”
The black ears stand up in surprise. “How did you know I was going to say that? Do dragons have a spell to read minds as well??”
The dragon gives him a long stare.
Wei Wuxian looks at the position of the sun, covering his eyes with a hand to protect his sight. “It’s already the afternoon, if we go down the stairs by the time we arrive, it will be nightfall.”
Lan Wangji raises his eyebrows at the exaggeration. “It won’t be nightfall.”
“But the sky won’t be bright either.”
Lan Wangji purses his lips.
The huli jing lets go a deep sigh with his whole chest. “Come on, Lan Zhan! What’s the matter? Are you afraid that the stairs are too steep to go down?”
Lan Wangji unsheathes Bichen.
“Lan Zhan?!”
If he lets the fox spirit go on his own, he would want a sword race, and that might end in an injury.
“You will go with me.”
Wei Ying inflates his cheeks. “But I can fly on my own, I bet I’m even better than you! I have some very cool tricks!”
To see Wei Ying roaming in the air like the prodigy he is…?
No, it’s too much for Lan Wangji, he wouldn’t be able to hide his reactions as easily. He ignores the comment and stabilizes Bichen in a horizontal position. There shouldn’t be many people at this hour, but it was best to avoid the main path to Caiyi.
He extends his hand towards Wei Wuxian.
The fox spirit is left speechless. Lan Zhan is seriously giving him a ride?! His face suddenly feels very warm, he hesitates at first but ends accepting the hand, climbing first to the transparent, icy sword. The last time Wei Wuxian was given a sword ride he had been very little, when his clothes were still a bit too big for him and would lift with the wind.
Lan Zhan climbs behind him right after. Wei Wuxian...shifts the weight of his feet, somehow slightly nervous at the dragon being so close. He tucks his tails close to himself to not bother Lan Zhan.
However, his anxiety soon quiets down.
“Huh?”
A cool breeze tickles his feet through vibrations. It takes Wei Wuxian a moment to understand, when he does, his ears go up immediately.
It’s Bichen playing with him!
“Are you ready?” Lan Zhan asks in his ear.
Wei Wuxian holds his breath, he tries to turn his head at the dragon but he realizes it’s an awkward movement for his neck. He ends up nodding dumbly at him. “Yes! Go ahead, I’m ready!”
The breeze hits his face and he can almost feel Bichen sing underneath his feet, surprisingly from how calm and comforting it is.
“This…this is amazing.” Wei Wuxian pronounces in awe. “I know I fought Bichen before, but this…this is incredible, your sword is amazing, Lan Zhan, it’s so soothing, a bit like a breeze but with warmth?”
Lan Wangji doesn’t know what to say. “It’s a good sword.” Feeling he should return the compliment, he says, “Suibian is impressive as well.”
Wei Wuxian chuckles at this. “Yes! Both of them are great swords.”
Lan Wangji thrusts them towards the air, his ears feel warm. “Mn.”
“Lan Zhan, I really want to duel with you again.”
With horror, Lan Wangji feels his cocks twitch in interest. Bichen trembles, making both of them almost lose their balance.
“Lan Zhan?!”
“My qi…became unstable. I apologize.”
At this, Wei Ying’s expression turns soft. Lan Wangji realizes too late that his face is almost brushing against his own. A swirl of an impulsive desire is squished by his restraint. He looks straight ahead, hoping to turn into stone.
“Lan Zhan, if it’s truly too scary for you, I can do it, I promise I won’t go too fast.
Lan Wangji considers it. He has never before flown down the mountain…this would be his first time doing it, but since he has acquired great sword flight skills from the age of seven, he knows he can do it.
“I am capable.”
Wei Ying nods, and suddenly, he is taking both of his hands and putting them around…his waist?!
“So you don’t fall, Lan Zhan.”
Lan Wangji’s breathing hitches, he makes a great effort to avoid another stumble, his hands are around Wei Ying’s sash, pressing over where the dip of his waist curves in and — he lowers them immediately, but his fingers still accidentally touch the belt with the dangling ornaments—
“That’s my Jiang clarity bell, isn't it cool, Lan Zhan?”
He puts a respectful pressure on the waist despite wanting to do the opposite; pull, undo it, and—
“Mn.” He directs Bichen to smoothly swift away from the stairs and begin to descend down the mountain on a clearer path through the trees.
“Ah? Are we taking a secret route?”
“To avoid people and to avoid hitting any obstacles.”
Wei Ying cackles a laugh, “Lan Zhan, you’re so sneaky!” The fox tries to turn again, but it’s hard now that they are moving. In a teasing lower voice, he asks, “Is this so no one sees you breaking a rule? Mn?”
Lan Wangji knits his brows together. He understood this was a reasonable decision since they had a short time to arrive in Caiyi.
“Ah? The second master Lan won’t answer this lowly fox?”
“…”
They barely avoid another tree. The muscle of his tail is tight, too tight for a good flight.
And Wei Ying’s silence…anticipates mischief.
“Seriously?” The fox inflates his chest offended, “So this is how dragons truly are, they accuse others of many punishments but when it’s they turn—”
“What—” Lan Wangji swallows down, trying to come up with something.
Wei Wuxian closes his mouth, silver eyes turn to gaze at him with attention.
Lan Wangji continues, hesitant. “What…is the Jiang bell’s purpose?” He finally asks, hoping that Wei Ying doesn’t remember the rule of ‘do not interrupt others.’
Even if he does, Wei Ying still responds with a big smile breaking on his face, “It has a protective spell, to prevent the user from falling for hallucinations created by dark spells,” He recites as if he had learned that by heart. “It’s great!”
He was aware it was an object only the Jiang clan and direct disciples of the sect were allowed to wear, but its purpose was unknown to him.
As they get faster, a delightful laugh escapes from Wei Ying’s lips and resonates like music in Lan Wangji’s ears. He takes a peek at him, and he cannot see Wei Ying’s face from behind, but the reflex to look at him has always been impossible to deny.
Everything is good for the rest of the trip. Wei Ying continues talking while Lan Wangji focuses on avoiding any tree, animal, or person.
They finally land at a meadow surrounded by a few trees. When they gaze further down, they see the town. Wei Wuxian makes a chirp that Lan Wangji is starting to identify as a sound of glee, the fox jumps down the sword, and extends his hand towards Lan Wangji.
“So? Are you going to come down, Lan Zhan?
Lan Wangji accepts the hand with grace and swiftly commands Bichen to sheath itself after stepping out.
Instead of asking, Wei Ying grabs his hand and pulls him towards the view in front of them. “Lan Zhan! Look, we are already here!” The fox exclaims as his eyes shine brightly.
The sun on his face suits him well, the golden light making his skin glow.
And then Lan Wangji notices their fingers are intertwined, Wei Ying still holding his hand tight. It’s warm, it’s strong — the heat in his gut rises and he quickly takes it away. “Mn, we are here.”
Wei Ying turns to look at him with a pinch in his brow but it soon fades away to look back at the town with a smile, his tails swishing with regained excitement.
Lan Wangji has to take a deep breath to calm himself. There are many scents already coming from around, but the one that drives him mad the most is Wei Ying’s sweet peachy scent with a hint of lotus and spice. He doesn’t like being around so many people, the smells, and anyone touching him makes him very uncomfortable, but as of right now, he is relieved, a tension he had been feeling releases with glee.
“Lan Zhan! Why don’t you scent me?”
Lan Wangji stumbles with a rock, and his tail is the only thing that prevents him from rolling down the hill. “What?!”
Wei Wuxian looks away. He tries to smile, but the smile doesn’t reach his eyes. “Never mind! It’s… just a thing Shijie does when we go out, so… we find each other if there are too many people.”
He couldn’t be asking for… that, right? Wei Ying considers the Jiang’s daughter as his family, Lan Wangji is not his family, and he is most certainly not his mate… but if Wei Ying, if Wei Ying wants to change that—
Lan Wangji takes two steps closer, and Wei Wuxian is looking at him intently, almost as if he were holding his breath.
“If I scent you, it will be different.” It will be a claiming scent, to ward others off, it will be a public announcement that Wei Ying is off limits to the rest of the world, the first step to being properly claimed by a mate of his choosing.
Wei Ying laughs nervously, a flush has taken over his cheeks. “Aiyah, just go ahead, Lan Zhan, is not that big of a deal!”
This cracks Lan Wangji. In one move, he surrounds the fox’s waist, violently pulling him forward to rub his neck on Wei Ying’s scent gland as hard as he can. If he does not take it seriously, Lan Wangji will leave him no choice but to do so!
Wei Wuxian trashes against him, laughing and trying to pull away as if it were some sort of game. “Lan Zhan! That tickles!”
Lan Wangji feels fury rise in his veins, dips his face, and straight up licks the other's neck.
A moan escapes from Wei Wuxian’s throat. Lan Wangji immediately releases him just as the huli jing fox jumps away from his grasp, his hand covering his neck with a flushed face, looking at him with wild eyes.
“That — that was…”
Lan Wangji becomes frozen, as if the roots of the ground had blocked his feet. “I…”
Wei Ying’s expression changes, as if understanding had reached him. “Oh, Lan Zhan, I didn’t know dragons scented each other like that!” With another strained smile, he continues. “I’m sorry about my reaction!”
Lan Wangji does not dare to go any further, shame already curling in his belly. “Mn. I apologize—” For being too forward? For not controlling his impulses? For wanting Wei Ying too much? Because he does not know, he decides to be honest. “I…never scented someone outside of my shufu and xiongzhang.”
Wei Ying’s ears flatten down. “Oh, I see.”
Lan Wangji fidgets with his sleeves and glances away.
“Not even…with other dragons?”
His tail curls inside, clearly sensing his shame. Socializing came natural to the huli jing, he was like a fish on a pond wherever he went — if he was told this experience was not universal for everyone, he would certainly not comprehend it, how could someone find a conversation tedious and unnecessary? Forming pack bonds with other dragons his age had always been very difficult for Lan Wangji.
And forming one with the fox…even more.
“So does this mean I’m your first time scenting someone outside your clan?”
Lan Wangji steps on his tail and almost falls. “Shameless!” He yells when he recovers.
The boy laughs behind him. Lan Wangji turns to leave him behind and starts to walk, however, another wave of Wei Ying’s scent hits him, this time stronger than before.
I like you, I want you, it so shamelessly says.
His tail begins to swing side to side quickly, his inner dragon excited at his chosen mate acknowledging him so clearly — the conscious part of Lan Wangji soon takes over, he clutches his nose to avoid doing another embarrassing thing and thankfully, Wei Ying, does not point out anything amiss, still laughing over his own silly jokes.
They go down, carefully stepping down the stones until they slowly walk towards another entrance to the town. As they reach it, Lan Wangji realizes Wei Ying has decided to take them to a public space first to ease their coupling. The dragon hadn’t thought of that while they were in the forest, but putting it into perspective, it makes more sense. While they should have had a chase, being Lan Wangji the one to catch him and then mount him — as it was the way of the huli jing foxes, because that’s what he read not just his fantasy, this alternative is much better; he can show Wei Ying he is willing to couple by providing him with food and gifts. He has the afterthought that perhaps that is closer to what a dragon would do to their mate.
He puts it away; that is not what they are, even if that is what Lan Wangji wants most in the world. Wei Ying needs to feed from a core, and he will make sure he is the only one he feeds from.
The other’s smile pulls him out of those thoughts, and he realizes they have already arrived at the market of Caiyi. Instead, he searches for a stall that sells meat and, hopefully, spicy food. The food stall he finds seems fitting; the smell of seasoned meat is strong enough for Lan Wangji to know the huli jing will enjoy it. He nods at himself and then pays for several buns. When he turns…
Wei Ying…is already speaking with another man?! A tiger spirit?!
Did this man choose to ignore Lan Wangji’s imprint on Wei Ying? He immediately walks at a brisk pace to break the pair. The man can’t be more than two or so years older than them and yet, no matter the seniority, if the imprint has been accepted; no one is allowed to interfere. From afar, he starts emitting a clear signal to make the man understand he has to leave right now.
“Lan Zhan!” Wei Ying exclaims, fully turning towards him with shining eyes. “Did you see something interesting?”
Lan Wangji ignores the flirty fox and glares at the intruder. There are social laws everyone must respect, such is life. In this case, Wei Ying chose him and he confirmed this to everyone else by letting Lan Wangji scent him. Why is this man trying his luck on an already taken mate?!
The boy visibly gulps at him. “Ah…I think I need to leave.”
Wei Ying snaps his head to the boy and then back at Lan Wangji, tilting his head as if he was trying to figure out what was going on.
“Leave.”
The tiger spirit boy visibly pales. “…ah, I’m sorry I didn’t know you—”
“You know perfectly well.”
With his intentions being exposed right back at him, the tiger spirit’s face goes through several colors. “You—you…!”
“I told you to leave.” Lan Wangji clenches his teeth, he’s doing his best to keep his distance and not to curl his tail around Wei Ying in a protective manner. “I will not repeat myself.”
The young fox interrupts to scold Lan Wangji. “Lan Zhan!” Don’t be rude!”
Lan Wangji feels his annoyment at the fox rise at the same time the need to pin him down and fuck him until he understands he mustn’t keep taunting and flirting with others while preparing for a coupling with Lan Wangji does. He blinks away and tightens his jaw more, unconsciously growling.
Wei Ying releases the air of his inflated cheeks and turns to the tiger spirit man. “Sorry, he isn’t used to strangers.”
The tiger spirit man looks at Wei Wuxian as if he had told him dogs bark and don’t bite, however, his eyes soon take a dark glint again as they fall on Wei Wuxian’s body. “No worries, I understand.”
The gall of this man!
Lan Wangji intensifies his scent, making the man gag. “Leave!”
“Lan Zhan—”
The tiger spirit man cowers, covering his nose as he goes away with an angry frown. Wei Ying drops his arms at his side, perplexed. “…What just happened?” He mumbles.
Lan Wangji tries to savor his victory, but he can’t, that insolent creature was nothing more than a paper tiger, not truly a threat to worry, but the fact he ran away doesn’t mean he or others won’t come back to try their luck with Wei Ying as soon as he turns his back again!
“Lan Zhan, are you alright? You keep growling?”
Lan Wangji goes still. Wei Ying is looking at him with a concerned gaze. He…he has been growling?!
“And it’s not at me!”
Lan Wangji’s hand shakes for a reason he can’t explain. He has been feeling odd since he woke up and the feeling deepened once Wei Ying met him in the library pavilion. He has no explanation for this either, which begins to light up a flicker of concern inside the dragon’s heart. Before he can organise his thoughts properly, the bag full of buns lets out an aroma that immediately captures Wei Wixian’s attention. Sniffing with curiosity, the playful fox peers at the bag. Lan Zhan bought them food!
“Lan Zhan, you were just hungry! You should have told me, I thought you were mad at something.”
Lan Wangji barely registers this. He is too embarrassed to speak, he had been growling the whole way?!
Wei Ying takes a big bite, letting out a sound of pleasure, “It’s so good!” Noticing Lan Wangji hasn’t made a grab for one, he offers the half-bitten bun. “W’nt s’me?”
Wei Ying fumbles with the bag as he starts his second bun. “We could have shared something with vegetables if you didn’t like the ones with meat.”
Lan Wangji’s face snaps up. Sharing food?! An image of both of them biting from the same bun appears in his mind. He draws an intake of breath. They are still in public.
“I don’t understand why you guys abstain from eating something so delicious.” The fox takes another big bite. “Especially since you guys are dragons.”
He’s about to scold the boy when his eyes fall upon his lips.
Wei Ying’s lips have always had a natural color pumped full with blood that have, against his wishes, visited Lan Wangji’s dreams more than once during the night. Now, as he observes the fox feasting on the bun he got him, his eyes catch on the plushy bottom lip being swiped over by a pink tongue.
Then, Wei Ying lets go a moan of satisfaction after swallowing down on his bite.
Lan Wangji’s cocks twitch. His tail thumps to the floor with a powerful strike. Arousal makes Lan Wangji clench his fists. “Killing is forbidden in the Cloud Recesses! The meat is brought from Caiyi!"
Wei Wuxian’s eyes widen. “So you do eat meat?!”
“…No.”
Wei Ying’s ears twitch when he tilts his head, his eyes suddenly gaining a glint of understanding. “Mmm…is that way you’re always so cranky? You just want to bite on something fleshy?”
Lan Wangji flicks his sleeves and starts to walk in another direction.
“Ah?! Hey! Lan Zhan, wait for me!”
He has to calm down, or he might lose control. He touches his forehead ribbon, confirming it’s still fastened and secure around his head. After a moment, he turns to his side and finds that a pair of big, grey shining eyes are already looking at him with a pitiful expression.
“…Lan Zhan, stop being so mean to me!”
The angry pout Wei Ying gives him, makes Lan Wangji’s heart squeeze and ache as if a little kitten was scratching it.
It’s in this momentary distraction that he is caught off guard by Wei Ying, who jumps on top of him, chirping as he embraces him from behind and…nuzzles him?!
He underestimated Wei Ying’s huli jing powers!
“Get off!” Lan Wangji’s claws enlarge, his tail swishes side to side out of control, he tries to grab the sly fox, he moves to his other shoulder, nuzzling the other side of his neck as well. “I said, get off!”
Wei Ying whines as if he was the one getting bullied instead.
The people from around whisper, some giggling as they watch them. Lan Wangji knows what they are thinking. Lan dragons do not usually engage in such blatant behaviour, not in public and even less with someone who is not their mate.
He has never done this before. Lan Wangji might be young and inexperienced (perhaps more than Wei Ying), but even he knows this is exactly what happens when two people mate. This is no different from a chase than it is from a mating flying dance that dragons engage in.
“Lan Zhan! We had to walk all those stairs down to come here… I’m so tired, I can’t walk anymore!”
Lan Wangji freezes. A part of him is going feral, and another one is feeling compelled to make sure Wei Ying’s feet don’t have to touch the ground ever again. If he were to massage Wei Ying’s feet in his animal form…would they have soft pink paws? Dragon’s talons do not have those—
It is his years of discipline that make him able to restrain himself and not fall to the huli jing’s allure so easily.
“Shameless!”
Lan Wangji is still a Lan dragon. If Wei Ying wants his the qi of his core, he has to make a proper effort to earn it.
“Mn? Does that mean you won’t carry me?”
Wei Ying's legs tighten around his waist. Lan Wangji throws another grab for him, but the fox escapes it. Wei Ying has the gall to sniff him, throwing a chirp after.
“Lan Zhan, you smell very good!”
Lan Wangji staggers, his nostrils flaring. The fluffy tails he has dreamt of rubbing his face against several times, tease him, the white tip flicking his chin almost accidentally.
“Stop it! ”Lan Wangji staggers, his nostrils flaring. “Stop it!”
It’s enough to get him hard. Lan Wangji immediately turns around and finally manages to catch the fox, grabbing him from under his armpits and forcefully placing him down, grabbing his wrist with a hand as he begins to direct them to the forest.
Wei Ying laughs as he’s dragged.
Lan Wangji can’t hold it anymore, if they don’t go to the forest now, he truly fears he could end up mounting Wei Ying right where they are in front of everyone. His scent is probably giving him away already.
There's no point in pretending, he wants to strip off all of that shameless fox's clothes and mount him hard with his two cocks — He has to consider that Wei Ying’s anatomy as it is with most of the rest of spiritual animals, will not be able to take both of them at once.
And that is the plan until…
“Lan Zhan! Look at that place!”
He turns his face and it takes him a while to understand what he’s looking at.
“We should definitely enter, places like this have the best goods Lan Zhan!”
Wei Ying’s scent is making him too dizzy…it’s starting to become concerning. The shop it’s one of the new ones that have settled in the recent years in Caiyi; they sell a variety of goods, from both local and also foreign origins.
But Lan Wangji can barely think, his grip around the fox gets tighter. He’s angry, he’s furious and tired of the cold and hot game Wei Ying loves playing, touching him in a very telling manner in public and then giggling and escaping once punishment is about to fall upon him. He’s about to pull him back towards the forest when he realizes—
Many people are giving them looks.
No, they aren’t giving them looks, they are looking specifically at Lan Wangji with a disapproving expression.
Lan Wangji closes his mouth.
Wei Ying doesn’t seem to notice them, he points to a shop with bright eyes and says, “We definitely need to check that place Lan Zhan!”
Lan Wangji stays motionless for a moment. His attention is put on the several judgemental glances he’s receiving from the passersbies. The dragon swears he has smoke coming out of his nostrils, the fire that should have been spitted out instead combusts inside him immediately. Lan Wangji looks down to the floor with his whole body heated in shame. He releases Wei Ying’s wrist as if it had burned him.
Almost knowingly, his eyes catch on the traces left behind by him, over the tanned skin. Just now…what was he thinking? Behaving like a beast…his Shufu would be ashamed of his behaviour.
He bites his lip down. Although his intention is to wallow in his misery and self-deprecating thoughts for the foreseen future, Wei Ying doesn’t take any register of this and pulls him towards the shop with no more warning. The fox grabs the hanging cloth with excitement and puts it up above their heads. “Good afternoon!” He yells at whoever is inside waiting for clients.
Immediately, they see a cat spirit woman behind a shelf arranging boxes, they can only see her black tail swishing behind her back. “Welcome! Welcome! Please enter and take a look!” The woman extends one of her arms to point at different stalls around them. “Here we have goods from all across the land, I’m sure something will definitely catch your eye!”
To his disappointment, that seems to be Wei Ying’s cue to release his hand and run towards a table displaying jewelry and small carved pieces in shapes of animals. While Lan Wangji follows him close behind without making any comment, Wei Ying coos at them as if they were real. Since the scene outside, he has been feeling deeply uncomfortable, his antlers have begun to itch and scratching them in front of others is not an option. It’s annoying.
The woman finally walks towards the young fox to start talking to him.
Lan Wangji sniffs and snaps his sleeves angrily. He is right there and yet, Wei Ying chooses to leave him at the first chance he gets. Since the unfaithful fox is busy looking at all the shiny statues, more interested in the woman’s guidance, rather than asking for Lan Wangji’s opinion or thoughts, he decides to take a look around the place.
It’s full of objects. All very different and unique, they do not match at all with one another, there are several types of ceramics, jars and bottles with strange colors. His nose quickly catches the smell of the spices he often recognizes in Wei Ying’s clothes after his prohibited nightly trip to Caiyi. He discreetly grabs a container with a sample of it and continues looking around. He frowns at how loaded the room is and finds that despite this, the visual disorder doesn’t disturb the Feng shui, energy flows perfectly and rapidly. He hesitantly takes a few more steps further away from Wei Ying, his hearing is good enough to still be able to hear if Wei Ying needs him.
Then he discovers the hanging oil lamps and his attention is caught.
All of them are a work of art of their own, however, one captures his attention the most, making him unable to look away — from the colors to the painting strokes, the lamp depicts a beautiful scene of a couple embracing each other under a tree with mountains behind, a poem painted on the side making blood rush to his cheeks, it’s one he is already familiar with…he has read it many times with Wei Ying in mind.
He hears someone snickering behind his back and turns his head towards the sound already knowing what he will find. The playful fox looks at him with amusement written all over his face, he is barely hiding his laugh. “Why are you blushing about? It’s just a lamp!”
Lan Wangji tightens his fists, the fins in his neck twitching. “Shameless!”
This only makes Wei Wuxian want to tease the young Lan dragon even more. “You’re so thin faced! It’s only a poem and you are acting like this!”
“Shut up!” He adds more aggrieviated.
The fox continues to laugh until Lan Wangji stomps his tail down. Knowing he has sent the dragon towards his limit, Wei Wuxian opts for a truce, he stops laughing and instead offers the treasure he has found up for view. “Lan Zhan, look at these rabbits! Aren’t they cute?”
Lan Wangji stares at them in awe, both are made of jade but one is dark and the other is pure white, strongly reminding him of the two rabbits waiting for him back at the Cloud Recesses, the two fluffy balls gifted to him by Wei Ying. He’s thinking what to respond when he realizes the other boy hasn’t stopped making fun of him yet, the fox picks them up and pushes the pair of rabbits together for a kiss.
The blush that had already been crawling up his neck, ends up taking over his ears as well. “Stop playing around!” He yells the last words with a barely suppressed growl.
The threatening display with the overwhelming scent has the cat spirit woman taking a step back, she cover her nose against the heavy burnt sandalwood filling the room and turns to her side to comfort the little fox, convinced he’s probably terrified at the possibility of being chewed and clawed for provoking the dragon — but it’s nothing as such. The little fox is far from afraid, he reacts by laughing at the scary dragon boy, delighted, as if said dragon was doing exactly what he wanted and even more.
And…he continues raising the bunnies over his head, not caring about the dragon’s threatening display at all as he continues making sounds of kisses every time he pushes the two rabbits together for a kiss.
Ah, ah, so it’s like that! She thought.
The woman’s eyes glint, she releases a sigh of relief as she finally understands. She had not had the chance to see how the pair interacted when they entered the shop, the little fox had started asking her for the rabbits and other jade figurines with a dazzled look in his eyes and the other boy had gone on his own to explore around. Then it all had come to a head when the little fox started teasing the dragon boy. She had been worried and mostly, confused, the little fox had a heavy scent marking all of his body that made it clear he was taken by a rather jealous and possessive mate, but said mate was nowhere in sight, instead, there was a cold little dragon looking around with a grumpy expression and a dejected demeanor.
Who would have thought said mysterious mate was the little dragon.
“The two gongzis were looking for a courting gift for each other?”
Before the woman asked this, Lan Wangji had already crossed the room to grab Wei Wuxian’s arms with the intention of putting an end to the shameless show, once he heard this, he snapped his head at the woman with his heart beating in his throat.
He licks his lips about to respond, but Wei Ying beats him to it. “Hahaha! Of course not, jiejie, Lan Zhan here is my best friend!”
Lan Wangji goes still. He lowers his hands defeated. Yes, because they aren’t courting each other, the coupling is temporary. Wei Ying doesn’t know that dragons don’t usually partake in dual cultivation unless it’s with their fated partner. He doesn’t know Lan Wangji is almost going against his nature to help him…however, does his inner dragon understand this isn’t a permanent courting?
The woman stares between the two of them, surprise only showing on the sharp ends of her black ears standing up. “Hm…I see.” She mumbles.
Lan Wangji feels the sudden need to hide himself from her eyes and the rest of the world. While in other cultures temporary coupling is normal and usually connected to seasonal ruts and heats — or even outside of it, it is not like that for him. This whole experience has been very humiliating, the idea that everyone has seen him, probably also even smelled him being aroused as he walked with Wei Ying is too much.
And now that Wei Ying, covered in his scent is confirming that this isn’t a courting but a temporary arrangement…that—
That they are just going to fuck.
Lan Wangji gives them his back and scratches his antlers to his heart’s content. Thinking it like that it’s just as bad!
“Mn? Lan Zhan did any incense here give you an allergy?”
He hears the feline spirit woman giggling behind her hand. This whole day has been too embarrassing for him, a trial to make him more humble — The dragon stops scratching his antlers out of embarrassment, with red ears he touches the base of his antlers to freeze them. The layer of ice will give him temporary relief. He squares his shoulders and looks away. “No problem.”
Wei Ying assesses him for a moment, his tails swishing behind him as if he was deeply concentrating on something on Lan Wangji’s face. With the heavy gaze’s attention on him, Lan Wangji feels pressured for the first time by those silvery lilac eyes to say something.
“…The itch will pass.”
His answer must not be satisfying enough because the fox immediately leans on the counter to ask the woman, “Jiejie do you have any sort of cream for a dragon’s skin itching?”
Lan Wangji misses a step. He recovers his balance quickly, but not the blow to his ego. Does Wei Ying truly believe this is only an allergy?! Has he not paid any attention at all in class?! He scowls at the fox he loves and desires with mild irritation. Anyone can smell his body’s reaction to Wei Ying, by this point there are probable rumors reaching the Cloud Recesses!
The woman gives Lan Wangji a compassionate smile. “I do, but unfortunately…I don’t think that will help with his problem.”
Wei Ying’s ears perk up, but his brows deepen in the middle. “What problem does he have?” The bright face snaps to look at the dragon, scrutinizing him. “What problem do you have Lan Zhan? Was it the sun? It’s particularly hot today…”
He hears the woman choke in her spit.
Wei Wuxian continues with his musings, “…Or perhaps something we ate?”
Lan Wangji doesn’t even try to suppress the growl that comes from inside him, his fins slightly protrude out as a warning just because he can, but his reaction doesn’t seem to affect Wei Ying at all. The flirty fox just sighs as if he was dealing with a spoiled child. “So grumpy Lan Zhan!”
Lan Wangji is about to growl louder again when he notices that Wei Ying’s body language has changed, his back is slightly more curved, his plushy ass protruding out as if he wanted to show his tails by slowly moving the side to side, it is easy to tell that the fox is deeply pleased. His nose catches Wei Ying’s sweet, spicy scent getting thicker, more…damp.
He quickly discovers why he had missed this change before; his own sandalwood scent had completely covered and overpowered Wei Ying’s weaker, but still spicy, main lotus scent. This way, Wei Ying is practically screaming to anyone in the around that he wants to mate! Lan Wangji stops in his tracks to stare at him dumbfounded…how can Wei Ying be this shameless?!
“Wei Ying!” He hisses at him beyond embarrassed, but the boy ignores him.
“Jiejie, I want the bunnies and the cream, please.” The fox says as if nothing improper is happening.
The cat spirit woman must be wondering the same because although she is wrapping the presents for him, she keeps sneaking looks at the fox as if she wanted to tell, or perhaps ask something? But when she opens her mouth, nothing comes out. She is probably as stunned as Lan Wangji.
However…Wei Ying’s expression remains the same, no hint of a reaction aside from a slight blush fanning over his cheeks. Lan Wangji begins to look at Wei Ying in a new light, could all this be another way to tease him?
The dragon’s pupils contract until they are only slits, he analyzes the young fox and by extension, the incriminatory fluffy tails.
Wei Ying does react to his scent, slightly, but he has shown he can register it, and yet, during their encounter with the tiger spirit man, he did not show any reaction to the disgusting stench that was being emitted between them, despite how sour Lan Wangji’s scent became after he showed up.
…Or, perhaps he was acting as if he didn’t?
Lan Wangji had never heard of anyone capable of such a feat unless they had an impairment, but that could not be Wei Ying’s case since the boy was an incredible cultivator. He approaches them slowly with the small box containing the spices in his hands, with his eyes fixed on the fox, he lands it on the counter with a soft ‘thump’
“You also want that wrapped up?”
“Mn.” The dragon expresses without blinking away from his future mate.
The heated gaze only makes Wei Wuxian tilt his head, his tails waning their fast swishing as if they had suddenly turned shy with the object of their owner’s amusement in front of them. The fox unconsciously wets his lips, feeling them dry, Lan Wangji eyes snap to the flickering tongue, dark pupils already having swallowed up the gold of his eyes.
The cat spirit, once having realized they won’t stop, puts the bag between them, essentially blocking their view of each other. “Here it is!”
With no more prompt, Lan Wangji swiftly opens his qiankun pouch and puts the correct number of taels on the counter while Wei Ying snatches the bag to admire his goods. So flushed and distracted that he doesn’t even realize Lan Wangji is already paying for them both.
The dragon is deep inside his mind reciting sutras and rules to calm down when Wei Ying releases a gasp in his ear.
A shiver travels across his body.
“Jiejie, I think you made a mistake here, you see there is something here I didn’t—”
“It’s a gift!” Before he can take it out, the woman covers his hand with her own. “No worries, it truly is a gift!”
All of Lan Wangji’s muscles go tense, a groan rumbles in his chest as he clenches his fangs.
“Use it wisely and in good amounts.” And as if it was an after thought of her own experience, she adds, “…you’ll need it.
The dragon sends a burning glare to the hand touching his mate so shamelessly, how dare she touch him so easily, can't she see that Lan Wangji is right—
Wei Ying tilts his head as he removes the lid of the box. “…Oil?”
At that comment, he snaps his head to look. He looks at the small round box in Wei Ying’s hands and confirms it. It’s oil…and it’s not any type of it..it’s the type one uses for intercourse.
The boy born and raised in the Lan sect feels his entire body heat as if he was standing on fire.
The woman was trying to help them!
Any hostile intention he might have had towards the cat spirit evaporates, instead, he is embraced by a familiar sense of shame. He had been correct, anyone in a thousand li had been capable of understanding what the two of them would be doing soon. He closes his eyes and turns away, incapable of witnessing Wei Ying’s reaction to this. From the start of their short trip, their decision of what their temporary mating would entail had not been discussed. They had merely danced around the subject because that was what Wei Ying seemed to prefer doing and that was what Lan Wangji was only capable of doing since he wasn’t as shameless to admit, or even, point it out loud.
Wei Ying’s reaction now will definitely set the tone to how—
“This is great! I needed some for my sword, thank you, Jiejie!”
Lan Wangji’s jaw falls open without his command, a million warnings flare inside his mind, but nothing can come out of his mouth, no words are enough to describe his shock, is Wei Ying being serious?
The cat spirit raises her eyebrows up. Then, thinking something else, she redirects her gaze to exchange a look with Lan Wangji.
Good luck with this one, her eyes say.
“Suibian will fly so smoothly with this!”
The weight of her gaze leaves him even more ashamed. He swallows down. “You don’t need sword oil for that.” His antlers have started to itch again.
Wei Ying rolls his eyes, putting the small box away with a bright smile on his face. His ears twitch happily as he looks at his goods, thinking of nothing else about the oil and its true purpose.
This…brings a new wave of uncertainty upon Lan Wangji; Does Wei Ying not know what it takes to perform dual cultivation? His brows knit from the effort of understanding the creature in front of him. Wei Ying continues smiling and joking with the woman. Is he feigning his apparent lack of awareness?
The silver eyes spark with joy as he continues speaking of his sword flying techniques and the dragon immediately crosses out the possibility. No, that can’t be it, Wei Ying is not someone who would do that.
However, his previous experience says otherwise. While Wei Ying might possess a somehow innocent exterior that might fool one or two people, but Lan Wangji knows better. In the last three months the fox has been studying inside the Cloud Recesses, he has already; caught Wei Ying reading spring novels, been teased by him over those same novels for their explicit sexual content and, last but not least, been extended an invitation to visit Lotus Pier with the sole purpose of being introduced to girls by Wei Ying — who also told him he would teach him to flirt with them.
A huli jing, just like dragons, are known for having a higher libido than the rest of the spirit animals of the jianghu.
His ears go red.
“Lan Zhan, are you ready? Did you want to see anything else?”
Despite his inner turmoil, the dragon is capable of nodding in response. Wei Ying immediately gives him a smile with two fangs peaking out, he grabs his arm to take him wherever he’s thinking of going.
“We’re leaving, Jiejie! Thanks for the help!”
The feline smiles at them and waves a hand. “Of course! Let me know if you like the oil afterwards!”
Wei Ying nods enthusiastically and Lan Wangji tries not to choke on a cough.
After they come out, Wei Ying spends almost one quarter of a shichen following him around trying to convince him to apply cream at the base of his antlers.
Until he finally relents.
“No.”
The ice covering the base of his antlers has started to melt, and although he keeps freezing them, a few cold wet drops still fall down his face, annoying him more.
“Come on, just a little bit!”
Eventually, not only does Wei Ying convince him to apply some of the mysterious cream — Lan Wangji applies it on himself, he doesn’t let Wei Ying touch them and this way, he successfully avoids any possible public humiliation — he also ropes them into renting a boat.
And so, while Wei Ying rows, Lan Wangji sits back and holds tight to the wood, having the dreadful, ominous feeling that something…something is definitely wrong.
He swallows down. The itch of his antlers has stopped, but he’s starting to be possessed by strange waves of heat circulating his body
“I do this all the time back home, if you visit me I’ll take you to the lotus ponds to steal seeds.”
The boy smiles and lets out a delightful laugh that makes Lan Wangji shiver all over.
“Mn? Are you feeling a bit sick?” The boy teases him with half lidded eyes and a warm chuckle. “Alright, I’ll go slower for you Lan Zhan.”
The fox bends slightly down and the dragon’s eyes accidentally lock on his plushy, round and soft backside only two steps away from him, the tails swish relaxedly and beneath Lan Wangji’s fingers, the wood splinters. He bites his lips and throws his head down before a growl can come out of his mouth.
Something is terribly wrong…terrible wrong and he thinks he knows what it is.
“Lan Zhan, look!” Wei Ying points at a point ahead of them, to a girl who’s selling loquats close to the bridge. “Do you want some loquats?”
Lan Wangji blinks and looks at where Wei Ying is pointing.
He easily recognizes this is the girl Wei Ying flirted with after they were coming back from the waterborne abyss, the one he probably even continues to flirt with when he visits Caiyi. The growl inside of him escapes completely unrestrained, this time, it comes out much more violent and loud.
The boats around them suddenly start to row faster and Lan Wangji has no time to sink in his embarrassment because Wei Ying strikes him on his side with the oar as if he was a misbehaving hatchling in need of some discipline. He barely feels it, it’s just a light tap but when Wei Ying hisses at him, fangs showing in displeasure — Lan Wangji pales, his past behavior crushing him with guilt and humiliation.
Wei Ying turns back, and rows, taking them to a more secluded part, away from people. They stay in silence until the fox finishes securing the boat to a post. Lan Wangji licks his lips, feeling his mouth dry, the usual sweet scent of the fox hasn’t changed much but now there is a sudden spike of the spiciness of it.
“Wei Ying—”
Wei Ying finally turns to him again, approaching him with the oar still in his hand.
“There you go again!”
Lan Wangji’s shoulders tense, but his face turns warm. Never before had he imagined he would get scolded by Wei Ying of all people. He feels…strangely aroused.
“Growling and acting all scary!” The boy steps even closer, angry as he looks down on Lan Wangji like a beautiful mighty deity. “Now even the skin in your neck is all puffed out.”
Lan Wangji’s eyes widen. He takes a hand to his neck to confirm the undeniable and then, to try to hide them, pressing down on the hard fins despite that being impossible. “I — I…” When he becomes conscious of the continuous rumble vibrating in his chest, he stops. “Wei Ying…” He says, in the same appeasingly tone one would use to calm an angry mate.
The fox kneels to his height, his expression is angry and slightly flushed, rounder. “Wei Ying this, Wei Ying that, you call me shameless, but then you act like this!”
Lan Wangji's breathing gets heavier, he tries to lean away but Wei Ying follows him — body leaning forwards, his face, almost only a breath away from him. His cocks get hard, starting to fill up at the accidental stimulation.
“Wei Ying…!” He begs, but it comes out as a desperate warning.
The fox’s usually fluffy hair is already hackled, Lan Wangji notices with dread one of Wei Ying’s hands has ended up on the outside of his thigh; enlarged dark nails softly dig on his skin like kitten scratches. Wei Ying’s fox claws can’t do anything on a dragon’s thick skin, but they do make Lan Wangji release a heavy breath of pleasure.
However, Wei Wuxian is too angry to hear it.
“If I walk with you, you growl, if I tease you, you hiss, and if I talk to you, you also growl!”
He…he has been doing all that? Lan Wangji can’t believe himself, all of his family teachings, all the work he put in meditating, and yet…his dragon nature betrays him?
Wei Ying crosses his hands on his chest, his chin facing the other side…away from Lan Wangji. Showing his clear displeasure with the dragon’s actions.
However, Wei Ying then tilts his head and gives him a look that totally disarms him.
“Lan Zhan…aren’t we friends?”
Lan Wangji feels his heart tighten.
And just with that, he finally understands.
He finally understands all the effort Wei Ying had been doing since the start of their outing. Finally, he understands; how could Wei Ying not be angry if Lan Wangji’s behaviour was beginning to be bordering on threatening and shameful in public? Disrespectful, very disrespectful of his part. Dragon nature is very intense…very possessive of the things that please them, they find comfort in hoarding beautiful things and once they consider something to be theirs…trouble arises.
This often extends to a mate.
If they feel their claim is being challenged, they can turn vicious and violent — and nothing of that can be a justification for his current actions. Wei Ying is not his mate, nor would this behaviour be acceptable either if such were the case. Even if Wei Ying wanted to absorb energy from his cultivation, Lan Wangji walked to his trap fully knowing this — it can’t be called a trap if he already knew what was happening and so did Wei Ying.
This…temporary coupling is not what he had expected, it was never what he had expected because Wei Ying and him are friends.
And he had made Wei Ying uncomfortable because of his dragon nature. Has he ruined Wei Ying’s hopes? He hopes all is not lost, at the very least, not their friendship.
“We are…” He swallows down, feeling a knot in his throat. “I apologize, my behaviour was unacceptable. It won’t happen again.”
It seems that although his cultivation is powerfully high, his control over himself isn’t as impeccable. With bitterness setting in his heart, he stands, going outside the boat to walk back to the Cloud Recesses — where he will have to hide in seclusion for years until his shame can be redeemed.
His xiongzhang was right.
“Aaaaah? You’re leaving?” Wei Ying’s hands fall to his sides. Still kneeling inside the boat, Lan Wangji sees his fluffy black ears twitching with confusion. “What are you talking about, Lan Zhan?”
Lan Wangji presses his lips in a thin line. Unable to face Wei Ying.
“Listen, there’s no need to be so serious about this, I don’t mind you growling…Jiang Cheng gets like that sometimes, too — we are all grumpy sometimes!” Wei Ying says as he stands up. “I just don’t understand…you said yes to join me, you bought food, and you smell like you’re happy…I think?”
Wei Ying's nose scrunches up as if wanting to confirm this. “Oh, you no longer smell like a field after the summer rain.”
Lan Wangji feels his face heating. Wei Ying is shameless…! But also…he lingers on the word…happy? That takes him aback, that would not be the word he would use to describe his scent, if anything, he had spent the whole outing trying to hide his arousal! And…and he had been unable to do so!
“But then you look all grumpy! So, are you really enjoying being out with me?”
Lan Wangji tenses from the tip of his tail to his entire body, if he moves, he feels he will surely fall down.
“I…Wei Ying is uncomfortable with me.”
The fox jerks his head, his mouth open wide. Wei Wuxian’s face flusters at the accusation.
“You are the one who is uncomfortable with me!”
“What?”
Wei Wuxian grabs one of his tails, fidgeting with it almost as if he was shy, sighing, “Listen, I just wanted us to hang out and have fun. I’ve been trying to befriend you for a long time and I really enjoy spending time with you…but if you aren’t feeling good—” Sadness flickers behind the silver eyes, quickly disappearing. “We can just go back and repeat this another day. I don’t mind.”
Lan Wangji stares at Wei Ying unblinking, unable to move. In his mind, the words are repeated over and over again; ‘I just wanted us to hang out and have fun.’ Like throwing a rock inside a water well and waiting to hear it sink, the understanding comes slow and painfully harsh to him. When it does, he releases a stifled gasp of horror, could it be — could it be that Wei Ying…never meant anything by bringing him to Caiyi?
Both of them look at each other.
A stifled gasp of horror escapes Lan Wangji. Had he been mistaken?! But…all the signs Wei Ying gave him were there, the way his scent responded to him, his teasing, how he kept trying to touch Lan Wangji…he — he even let Lan Wangji mark him with his scent! Wei Ying indicated in every way he wanted to have dual cultivation with Lan Wangji.
Every way, except…verbally.
Lan Wangji takes a hand towards his forehead ribbon. How could he have been this mistaken?! His stomach is tight with nerves as the shameful realization takes place.
Wei Ying didn’t know.
All this time it had been Lan Wangji’s perverted mind who projected his desires on Wei Ying!
His stomach swings with guilt and something else… something that starts burning. He takes a step back. Then another one. Wei Ying tilts his head with a worried frown.
Lan Wangji holds to the railing with dear life as his hands tremble. His neck is wet with sweat, his teeth ache to bite, to taste…and he feels as if his body is on fire, his antlers are itching again, the need to scratch them is stronger than before, his claws have already come out and his tail is tense, anxious to wrap around someone…to wrap around Wei Ying — He can’t deny it any longer, his rut has arrived earlier than expected. Lan Wangji breathes with difficulty as the waves of pain start to fully hit. What he had been experiencing…were the symptoms.
Lan Wangji growls, now fully conscious of this. How could he have let his pride and desires cloud his judgment like this?!
And to think that of Wei Ying of all people…
“Oh, Lan Zhan, you’re definitely not feeling good!”
A cold hand touches his forehead, barely avoiding his ribbon, however, Lan Wangji doesn’t pay attention to that fact. The cold sensation is calming the heat burning him, which is a much more important matter right now.
His mind is becoming… fuzzy, strange.
He nuzzles the cold hand and growls softly, liking those fingers. A gasp and the removal of said hand wakes him up again. “Lan Zhan, you have a fever!”
The Lan dragon shakes his head, taking in the shape of Wei Ying leaning over him with a red face. “You…you aren’t acting like yourself, Lan Zhan.”
Lan Wangji is conscious enough to feel embarrassed over the whole ordeal, but also rational enough not to put Wei Ying in danger. He weighs his options…neither of them are good.
“It’s my rut. You need to leave.”
Wei Wuxian feels his face morphs to an expression of shock. “What?! And leave you here?!” Wei Wuxian looks at the boat beneath them and then at Lan Zhan. Then, it sinks in what the dragon just said. For as shameless and flirty as he is, Wei Wuxian still covers his face with a squeak. “Your rut?! But I thought… I thought it wasn’t yet the dragon's mating season!”
At a better time, Lan Wangji would have preen at Wei Ying's interest in dragons and forgive him for remembering so little, however, now he is just—
“Dragons have individual rut cycles…!” He manages to say with difficulty, the exertion he is doing on his body to control his impulses is becoming slippery.
That had been explicitly written in the rules Wei Ying had copied today, he just hadn’t paid attention!
“You rewrote the rules several times already…!”
Lan Wangji feels the railing under his hand start to crack. He will try to remember to pay for that, before his brother or uncle finds out — or, before they find out he was careless enough to put everyone else in danger for not taking the symptoms of his own body seriously.
“Yeah, yeah, how could you forget? How can you be this shameless?!” Wei Ying imitates him, sticking his tongue out after. “Stop growling at me!”
Lan Wangji feels his control continue to slip. “Wei Ying!”
Smaller hands with black nails hold him from the shoulders. When he inhales again, an enticing smell enters his nostrils without his permission; a faint smell of lotus…with a bit of a spiciness to it and something so inherently Wei Ying, that it infuriates him to his core how delicious it is.
It’s like a ripe fruit with sweet juice still hiding inside. Lan Wangji’s mouth waters.
“Shhh, I know, I know, but keep that for later.” Wei Ying says, teasing him, with no fear of being bitten. His tails move from behind, and thankfully, their hypnotic swishing is not enough to lure Lan Wangji’s consciousness away. “I can take us both to the Cloud Recesses.”
Lan Zhan stares at him with his eyes glassy and unfocused, his antlers seem to be aching and his body’s heat temperature is clearly burning up. He must be doing everything he can to ignore the pain but he looks rather pitiful about it.
“Or I can take you to the forest? After all, I was planning for us to go there before this happened.”
Both of them stare at each other in silence.
The dragon gives him a look that makes Wei Wuxian turn red. “…What?”
Lan Wangji feels almost offended at the question. “…Huli jing prefer to mate in forests. They drain the qi of their victims and the qi of the nature around them.”
Wei Wuxian releases a sound that resembles a squeak, barely avoiding dropping him. “Victims?! What?!” The boy takes a few steps back, his face completely flushed. “I — I obviously didn’t mean it like that!”
“Then…how?”
Wei Ying gazes back at him with his mouth open and pink tongue licking his lips, nervous and at loss. “Well…clearly not like that!”
Lan Wangji squints his eyes at the fox, his chest rumbling at the temptation. He had been mistaken about Wei Ying’s intentions, but…had he been completely mistaken? It felt as if they had been dancing around each other almost since the first moment they met, even if his eyes could deceive him, his animalistic instincts wouldn’t.
There had been someone responding on the other side — or more specifically, someone tugging from his strings trying to get a response.
Wei Ying fumbles with his sleeves. “Lan Zhan…I…hm.”
Either way, Wei Ying isn’t comfortable right now to do anything about it—
Or perhaps he doesn’t want to do that with him at all.
The dragon looks away first.
He’ll sort these thoughts and feelings on his own.
“No need to worry about it.”
He can’t listen to Wei Ying rejecting him.
After another moment of silence between them, he hears Wei Ying speak to him in a pinched tone, “…Then where should I take you, Lan Zhan?”
Lan Wangji thinks about it cautiously and as clear headed as he can.
Going to the Cloud Recesses is impossible now, it will take long and he might lose control along the way in the flight with Wei Ying. On the other hand, going to the forest is not ideal either, if his murder instincts arise, he could try to escape and injure the people or animals around. Even worse, if Wei Ying accompanies him, lost in the rut, Lan Wangji in his delirious state could get the wrong idea and try to mount him.
And hurt him.
Lan Wangji massages his temple. Both ideas are terrible because Wei Ying is with him and in danger.
“Come on, Lan Zhan! Tell me, what do you want me to do?”
Lan Wangji breathes hard, struggling to focus his gaze on Wei Ying due to the fever. He glances around. Somehow, they haven’t caught the attention of others, this place Wei Ying chose is secluded and hidden by the trees.
His tail sways once, anxiously.
“The forest.” He says in a mumble.
Wei Ying nods, and with a hand around his waist, he picks him up. Before Lan Wangji can think about it, they are flying on Suibian. A minor hiss leaves his mouth, it is soon followed by Wei Ying’s laugh. “Hang in there, Lan Zhan, I will take care of you once we arrive.”
Lan Wangji’s claws dig into his own palms. “Do not say things you don’t mean!”
The fox’s face gives him back a handsome but awkward smile. Wei Ying seems to want to speak, but in the end, he turns his eyes away with a flushed face.
Licking his lips, Lan Wangji adds, in a low, embarrassed tone. “You will have to put a talisman on me.”
Wei Ying’s head turns slightly towards him. “…Why?”
Lan Wangji can’t see his face but Wei Ying sounds cautious, almost disapproving.
“To keep me in place. To make sure I stay inside one of the caves and don’t leave until my rut is over.”
Wei Ying turns to fully face him with a horrified expression. “I’m not leaving you there alone…!”
Suibian flickers under their feet.
“Face forward!” Lan Wangji growls.
Chastised, the huli jing does, but his head continues alternating from watching ahead and looking at Lan Wangji nervously. “I…can’t do that to you Lan Zhan.”
Lan Wangji feels his heartbeat go faster. He massages the base of his antlers trying to ease the headache. “You will have to. There’s no other alternative.”
Wei Ying clenches his fist, not knowing when to give up. “There is — there has to be!”
“There is none!”
His scream echoes loudly among the clouds.
Wei Ying’s features immediately twist in a mix of shock and disbelief. Lan Wangji has lashed at him before, but this time…both of them know it’s different. Wei Ying doesn’t fight it anymore, he goes quiet and simply turns back. Lan Wangji presses his lips together in guilt. What he briefly glimpsed on the beautiful face, makes him immediately want to apologize.
“I am sorry, it was not my intention to—”
Wei Ying cuts him off with a flick of his hand, “It’s alright. Let’s just focus on getting you to a safe place, Lan Zhan.”
The sadness curling over the lips that always wears a bright smile, haunts Lan Wangji the rest of the trip.
They stay silent until they reach the forest.
By the time his feet are on the ground and he can smell the trees and flowers, Lan Wangji’s head is killing him; the pain is only comparable to a hammer smacking him down and cracking every part of his being. He also feels hot, that goes without saying — but right now, the abrasive heat he feels can only be described as resembling a fire slowly burning him from the inside.
The only time he had felt in such a way had been during his first rut, and it had not been as intense nor as painful as the one he is going through.
“Lan Zhan, is this place good?”
It’s unbearable. He starts to pull from his collar, using his claws, trying to break it free, but falls to frustration when his clothes do not give way.
It’s his belt! It’s on the way, and it’s what isn’t letting him—
He gets a sudden flash of consciousness and turns to peek from his shoulder. There, standing with a very strange expression on his face, is…Wei Ying staring at him.
Upon being noticed, the huli jing starts to behave even more strangely, opening his mouth and letting go a very soft and low whine, as if he was testing it for the first time.
It sounds awkward but it makes Lan Wangji go still as a statue and immediately adjust his hearing.
Is that what he thinks it is?
With no response and slightly embarrassed, Wei Wuxian still decides to do it again, this time with more confidence.
The golden eyes narrow into slits as he sees the huli jing in front of him. That did not sound like Wei Ying’s common playfulness, that is definitely a call to Lan Wangji’s dragon spirit.
The fox’s movements are stiff as he takes a few steps closer with the tip of his toes, shy and still uncertain at the imposing figure in front of him. Once he’s close enough, he holds the dragon’s gaze and puts his neck on display, making himself look vulnerable despite the fact that he is a predator.
Lan Wangji’s heart pounds faster and he remembers, he is also a predator.
The fluffy tails move behind Wei Ying, more enticingly than usual. He can see that the black ears are up and very still, listening carefully for any sound of movement. The most telling thing that something in his demeanor has shifted is the shine in the silvery eyes — they provoke him, tease him, hoping to push the dragon into…taking action. If Lan Wangji wasn’t confused enough, the sudden wave of plum scent floods his nose. He had only smelled it briefly before and he had never been able to properly recognize who it belonged to.
But it becomes clear now that such elusive, delicious smell could only belong to one person.
Lan Wangji inhales deeply and feels himself get drunk under the power of that scent. The familiar lotus is still there, so is the spiciness, but the addition of plums makes it smell stronger, thicker — if he extended his tongue he could even taste it.
It takes him a long moment to understand he’s smelling Wei Ying’s arousal.
And then, as if he needed further confirmation, the huli jing releases a third high, questioning, very sweet whine that sends a shiver from the top of his head to the tip of his tail.
Now…now it’s undeniable. He read that in the book, that display…! That type of display is only for mating!
Lan Wangji hisses, very offended. He had already been rejected already. Why…is Wei Ying still here? He must leave before Lan Wangji pounces on him! But Wei Ying ignores his message and instead smacks his own lips, also tasting Lan Wangji’s scent.
To the dragon's further outrage, Wei Ying opens his mouth and lets his small canines show, teasing him with a threat as many other predator animal spirits usually do to entice their mates.
The dragon growls louder, frustrated as his fins fully puff out from his neck.
Doesn’t Wei Ying understand he is in danger the longer he remains here? His tail moves fast behind him, he can’t control it.
However, Wei Wuxian does something different, he takes a step forward, and then another one.
Lan Wangji bites the air, very confused and in pain.
The huli jing’s mouth doesn’t emit a sound, but his tails stop moving. All of his motions stop, and it doesn’t seem to be from fear. The black pupils of the silver eyes expand, and Lan Wangji feels bewitched by them. His pink tongue peeks once again, almost anxious. He is being…playful? Taking a sniff, the dragon confirms his suspicions. It’s Wei Ying’s scent that got stronger, thicker…as if he was interested in—
“You already rejected the coupling…!” Lan Wangji sourly reminds him.
His offer had been partially to aid him with his cultivation, but he had rejected him and Lan Wangji had accepted that, he had understood despite how much pain it caused him that he is not who Wei Ying wanted.
His lips tremble and he feels the need to curl on himself. “Do not mock me…” He mumbles.
But that is exactly what he does, doesn’t he? He teases, makes jokes and pranks at his expense, careless of Lan Wangji’s feelings, because at this point…is it not obvious how much he wants Wei Ying? Lan Wangji might be cold, he might be uptight, too serious for his age, but that doesn’t mean he should be used as a laughing stock for having feelings for Wei Ying.
He growls and pulls from his antlers, wanting to yank them out. Instantly, he feels a couple of hands pulling on his wrists.
“Let go!” He screams.
Wei Wuxian tightens his hold, he’s just as strong as him. “No! Lan Zhan, you will hurt yourself like this!”
During some intense ruts, some dragons take out their antlers to avoid it. They eventually grow them back, and while it’s embarrassing for the time being, it is an effective method to avoid a bigger problem. “You already rejected me, go away!
That seems to shake Wei Wuxian from his dazzle. The fox spirit, with a flushed face, gasps.
“What?!”
When his hold relaxes, Lan Wangji pulls back, accidentally sending both of them tumbling to the floor.
“Ouch!”
He doesn’t have time to complain, suddenly, he finds a warm body on top of him…and his two cocks.
“Get off me!”
And Wei Ying has no better idea than to bounce on them. “Is that bichen—”
Lan Wangji presses his lips together, finding no other choice but to endure the humiliation with dignity.
Understanding flickers over the huli jing’s face, his cheeks quickly bloom with a rosy flush. “Oh.”
Lan Wangji has sweat sliding down his forehead ribbon, and he still finds in himself the will to be angry.
“…Get…off!”
Instead of moving away, the younger boy turns to look below, grinding his round bottom on the bump as a way to confirm what he has awakened.
A pleading whine escapes from his lips, “Wei Ying!”
Wei Ying’s brows knit as he continues moving his hips. “So this is really your cock?! Why is it so big?! Why is it split?!”
Finally being noticed, the two cocks eagerly respond. “Stop it!”
The younger boy ignores him, gasping with his dark, thick eyebrows raised incredibly up. “There’s two of them?! Why do you have two?!”
His mind is going hazy.
He is not conscious enough when he changes their position and traps Wei Ying underneath him. “Stop teasing me!” He yells.
The fox spirit stares at him with wide eyes and a flushed face. Lan Wangji snaps his head with a hiss.
His mouth waters, but the pain keeps him in control.
As always, he has been circulating his energy to not slip under the haze of his rut, and yet, this comes with the price of having to bear a deeper pain that just keeps increasing. Pressing one hand to his head, he realizes he’s being cruel, the opposite of what he wants to be to Wei Ying. “You…you might not have known before, but right now, you can’t deny what you’re doing.”
Wei Wuxian's cheeks flush as he draws on a breath.
The smell of plums gets even thicker.
Lan Wangji is losing his patience. “Wei Ying!”
The huli jing covers his face with his two hands, unusually ashamed. “I know, I know! I’m sorry!”
Lan Wangji's jaw drops.
Before he can feel betrayed, Wei Ying explains, “Well, no, I actually didn’t!” His tongue wets his bottom lip again in a nervous gesture, “Since I met you, I’ve always wanted your attention…I didn’t think too much about it, and just let it be.” Lan Wangji sees him swallow down and look away before resting his gaze on him again. “I didn’t realize I was…acting like this only with you.”
Lan Wangji stares at him wide-eyed.
“You know… acting like—”
Interrupting others is against the rules, but Lan Wangji needs to break them if he wants Wei Ying. “…As if you wanted to mate with me?”
Wei Ying swallows down, his face and neck flushing beautifully. “…Mn.”
“And more.” He adds in his next breath.
Lan Wangji blinks. His heart pounds faster. “…More?”
“…Yes.”
Happiness. He feels an immense happiness shake him all over. A weight lifted from Lan Wangji’s shoulders. Wei Ying did like him! Wei Ying wanted him as a mate! His fingers itch to touch him, but a question makes him stop.
“My scent…was very telling, you could say it was even shamefully obvious.”
Both of them look into each other’s eyes for answers, they haven’t stopped looking at each other, so when the huli jing’s chest raises to gather air, the dragon deviates his gaze for the first time to follow the movement.
“Ah, your pupils are in slits again...”
Lan Wangji feels a thumb and the soft scratch of a pointy nail underneath his eye. “Wei Ying…” He mumbles like a prayer and a beg.
Hands cup his face, gently bringing him closer. “I’m sorry for making you think I didn't want you Lan Zhan…you see, my scent gland is kind of messed up.”
The young dragon’s eyes snap open to look at his mate. “…Messed up?”
“Ah, well, it’s like this; I didn’t have enough food when I was a child and I also…didn’t have my parents to teach me how my scent or others' scents were supposed to work…” Wei Ying avoids his gaze as a strained smile plasters on his face. “By the time Jiang-shushu found me it was already bad; I had several difficulties recognizing or understanding what the scent of the people around me meant and…then I had a harder time understanding how to use mine properly — it got me in a lot of trouble with Madame Yu, I’ll tell you that!”
Wei Ying lets out a beautiful laugh, but Lan Wangji can’t help but frown.
He had heard of such cases before, where people could feel and physically react to scents but still be unable to understand or give a proper response of their own. However…it wasn’t common for someone about to reach adulthood to still struggle with that impairment. There were therapies for that, herbs that could be taken, treatments with qi—
Lan Wangji tenses. An idea crosses his mind and he slowly turns to look at the younger boy
Wei Ying wasn’t helped.
The only case he had ever heard of a scent gland being left unbalanced and a person not allowed help…had been his mother.
To keep her pliant, to keep her dependent on others for her crime.
He growls angrily from the depth of his heart.
He won’t allow that to continue. No, once they mate, Wei Ying will receive the help he needs and their animal spirits will be able to communicate properly with each other!
Wei Ying, his Wei Ying.
“Nghhh…Lan Zhan, you’re not supposed to touch me there yet…”
Lan Wangji blinks out of his haze and looks down at where their bodies are touching. In his stupor, his tail had acted on its own and tightly wrapped Wei Ying’s entire leg. With a furrowed brow, he pushes upwards, bumping into something between Wei Ying’s thighs.
The huli jing’s features contract as a quiet whine leaves his mouth.
With curiosity, Lan Wangji rubs his tail over the same spot, wanting to bring out that same sound from Wei Yings lips despite not knowing fully well what’s causing it.
Until…he applies more pressure and feels something give way for the tip of his tail. Something plushy, very wet, makes contact with the tip of his tail, covering it with some sort of fluid. Wei Ying releases a louder moan and this time, Lan Wangji is already staring at his face to catch his reaction when he prods his new discovery for more.
“Mmm!” The huli jing squirms underneath him, fluffy tails curling and relaxing around.
Feeling another larger thing with the shape of the handle of a sword, he follows up the slit and rubs against it. Lan Wangji feels he might go wild or faint on the spot. It’s so wet, the whole area feels moist.
Hit by a strike of clarity, he finally understands what he’s touching.
Wei Ying…Wei Ying has a dual set of genitals.
A hand suddenly grabs the tip of his tail putting an end to his prodding. The dragon hisses in disapproval. His mate was clearly enjoying himself, now his scent of plums has intensified, the lotus keeps tickling his nose and the spiciness is making his tongue tingle.
Why does his mate make him stop?!
“I know, I know, but stop bullying me like that! I’m sorry that I did the same to you before but…don’t be mean to me er-gege…I didn’t know!”
His consciousness flickers. He looks at Wei Ying's shy but hopeful eyes and takes a few deep breaths to calm down.
“Wei Ying…” his fangs ache, he licks over them and his heart pounders faster. “Do you want to…?”
The other boy doesn’t let him finish, a very warm mouth is soon covering his own with fumbling attempts, but with a passion Lan Wangji wants to catch with his claws and make it his own forever.
He feels the fire inside him begin to quell — but it’s not enough, not enough! He doesn’t resist it and bites from the flushed bottom lip with his fangs.
“Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan!” The huli jing gasps into his mouth.
Ecstasy coils through him as he samples Wei Ying’s tongue for the first time. Lan Wangji sighs deeply, his inner dragon rumbling with satisfaction at finally being able to taste his mate. He sucks on the tempting lips and forces them to part open for him. The huli jing cries softly at the intrusion but opens his mouth wider — then, pressing their lower bodies close, Wei Wuxian feels the pressure of two things poking at his behind. He chuckles, ready to tease Lan Zhan for forgetting to drop his sword but a hand below squeezes where he is hot and wet.
A moan leaves his mouth, surprising Wei Wuxian. The dragon palms his cock and pussy, holding them only in one hand, pressing and grinding clumsily with none of his usual finesse. Wei Wuxian chokes and squirms, his breathing quickening.
And then his gaze catches something shiny to the side of his head that’s not supposed to be there.
Wei Wuxian eyes widen. He snaps his gaze to look down.
That's not Bichen, those are Lan Zhan’s cocks
While he’s blushing and being shocked by this, the dragon tries another approach to seduce him; he licks his jaw and lips several times, releasing a soft rumble that resembles more to a content purr than a dragon demanding for attention, Wei Wuxian laughs and rewards him with many smooches to his Jade-like face. This proves to be a lethal move because the very next moment, the huli jing has the very long tongue bullying his way past his lips and sucking hard on his tongue.
The next time the older boy kneads his cock and rubs his thumb over his claw over his clothed hole, he arches his back towards him, unconsciously spreading his legs wider. One moment Lan Wangji’s face is hovering over his own, devouring his mouth and the very next—
“Lan Zhan, what are you doing?!”
In a quick move, the dragon had ripped Wei Wuxian’s pants off, leaving him bare and exposed for anyone who could be walking past the forest to see — and had started lapping at the two wet, plumpy folds desperately, as if this was the first time he was finally sating his thirst. Wei Wuxian moans loudly and feels tears start to build at his eyes as the tongue rubs and explores his most sensitive part shamelessly,
Lan Zhan is desperate for his slick.
And that is exactly how Lan Wangji feels. He sucks for more, drinking all the delicious slick that keeps coming out of the huli jing as if it was the most delicious nectar, he tastes the sweet flavor of plums and keeps pushing his tongue deeper and deeper in the hot, wet hole, thoroughly sucking on the walls and the rim to get all of it. His lips accidentally catch on the tip of Wei Ying’s weeping cock and he immediately changes his objective, engulfing it whole. Despite the small size, it’s big enough for a mouthful, he presses the cockhead down his tongue and swirls around the shape of if, soon sliding it down his throat when he realizes the flavor is as delicious as the one before, but with the slight difference of this one being spicier, more muskier—
He stops for a moment.
He must get more from the source.
With that thought taking control of his mind, he milks the smaller cock, squeezing, swirling his tongue around it—
“Lan Zhan?!”
The sharpest part of his tongue finds the slit of the spongy head and softly penetrates it.
Wei Wuxian screams between cries. He comes violently, shaking all over as the hot mouth continues to sucks him dry, he grinds against it with tears in his eyes until he can’t hold his hips up on his own anymore — he lets his body fall to the floor, shivering and panting from the aftermath.
He thinks of cleaning the tears dripping from his cheeks and the drool on his chin, but he can’t think clearly. Never before had he felt such pleasure and bliss. He had touched himself a few times before, but nothing — nothing could ever beat this!
The purr from his sated mate has Lan Wangji’s tail repeatedly hitting the floor, almost creating a crater on the ground. He licks the few drops left of cum, trying to swallow as much as he can before moving down to capture the sweet slick from escaping and being wasted on the ground.
Wei Wuxian is still a bit dazzled when hands grab underneath his knees and pull him up until his lower back and tails aren’t touching the floor anymore, then, before he can question the other boy’s actions, the mouth of the dragon is going down on him again, torturing his swollen sex for more, sweeping his tongue over all the slick covering his pussy as if Wei Wuxian hadn’t been generous enough. “You — bad dragon, bad dragon!” He pulls from the shiny strands of black hair with his fingers but nothing seems to deter the Lan dragon from fulfilling his purpose.
As a response, he only receives a low growl that makes his hole clench. Wei Wuxian hiccups as his cock starts getting hard for the second time. He takes a look at the dragon’s eyes and notices they are a bit glazed, his face relaxed in bliss. It’s almost as if the activity of devouring the huli jing’s pussy is soothing for him. “Y-you like that?” breathing heavy he continues. “Is it good?”
The dragon blinks lazily at him.
Ah, he’s definitely deep in his rut already.
Slurping sounds are heard as Lan Wangji sucks from his pussy, he continues that way until the curious tongue slides down, following the trace behind the mix of cum and slick, accidentally sweeping over a dip a bit below the wet hole. Tension appears between the two perfect dark eyebrows at the newly found flavor, the dragon retracts his tongue for a moment, licking more slowly—
Then his tastebuds and nose are flooded with an even more delicious, mouth watering scent.
Wei Wuxian freezes. “Lan Zhan, no! You are confused that’s not—”
Wei Ying has two holes for mating!
The dragon ignores him and fervently sucks and wets the other hole more, since he just found it, he has to open it up before being able to properly taste and use it.
“Nooooo! Lan Zhan, t-that’s dirty!” The huli jing’s knees are pushed even farther down his chest — the dragon chooses that moment to finally shove his tongue inside the tight ring, extracting a wail from the young blushing fox. “Y-you got it wrong, you’re s-supposed to use the other hole! The front one, the front—” Wei Wuxian babbles as the dragon assaults his senses.
Sandalwood, sandalwood, it’s impossible to mistake it as anyone’s but Lan Zhan’s.
It’s almost as if his scent is fully enveloping him in a warm hug. Wei Wuxian doesn’t think of anything anymore, he just focuses on the tongue inside him and does his best to make it sink even deeper with his hips — but it doesn’t last long, soon, the huli jing’s bottom is back on the floor and a lustful dragon is hovering over him, avoiding any light from the sun to touch him almost with jealousy. He sees the golden eyes glow with intensity, when they fall on him, the two pupils have become narrow slits — his tongue sweeps over the corner of his bottom lip and fangs; tasting the last remains of Wei Wuxian’s slick on him.
The huli jing has a whole body tremble. He releases a long helpless chirp to motion the dragon into action.
The dragon doesn’t need further encouragement.
He is restless, it’s already been too long and while the meal is delicious, he knows he will have more time to properly enjoy it later — now he needs to satiate and permanently mate this little fox so it won’t go trotting on his paws after others who don’t deserve him. He releases a low growl remembering all the prying eyes who fell upon Wei Ying and hastily removes his forehead ribbon.
The fluffy black ears twitch with curiosity, his huli jing chirps at him in a tone that is too high and almost pierces his hearing, it would be considered rude if the dragon didn’t know beforehand that his mate has certain issues communicating properly with others. He bends down and bites on the soft flesh of one of his tits to calm his worries, releasing a low growl after.
Wei Ying moans and while it seems he wants to push him away, his hands and shorter claws dig deeper on the abandoned task that is the white and bluish clothes pooling over Lan Wangji’s hips. Since the skin of his mate is not as thick, he does not sink his fangs to draw blood as his instincts are telling him to do, instead, he sucks and nibbles on the zone, pulling from the brown, reddish buds, wetting them and licking them just like he had done with the softer, more tender part of Wei Ying’s body.
The younger boy cries softly and sobs.
Lan Wangji snaps his eyes to him, letting go of the flesh with the sound of a ‘pop’, his forehead ribbon burns in his hand, he does not want to waste any more time in making the huli jing his mate, so he quickly decides to tie the silky ribbon around the perfect curve of the waist of his beloved — only once he finishes the three knots, does he move back to admire it with pride, it’s perfect, Wei Ying belongs to him now, only him! He growls, his chest rumbling with joy, the first claim has already taken place, now it’s only natural to continue with the final step.
By the intense shining of his eyes, Wei Wuxian senses that something about the dragon’s excitement has shifted. He looks between his waist and the other boy with confusion. Lan dragons have some really particular traditions, huh. The huli jing pushes himself back on his elbows and tries to take a few breaths.
Lan Wangji observes with interest how all of his hair has finally been released from his high ponytail, falling down his back and over his chest like an enticing silky, dark waterfall. “Lan Zhan?” From the corner of his eye he sees the dragon tail go still. Saliva slides down the dragon’s mouth and Wei Wuxian stares at him transfixed. It’s only for a brief moment, then, the dragon dives down and his mouth is being captured, he kisses him frantically, biting and pressing his tongue inside, making his mouth full and his brain feel like it’s filled only with dragon beard cotton candy — The dragon uses the full length of his tongue; touching the roof of his mouth and then pushing it further down, this time, more calmly, enjoying it slow and still kissing him just the right way to convey how much he wants to swallow him whole.
Wei Wuxian purrs with great satisfaction. His dragon mate is a bit clumsy, but his kisses are excellent!
The Lan dragon lowers his head, kissing his mate’s neck but fighting with his own belt as he tries to take out his two aching cocks — he’s burning up, he wants to bury himself deep in Wei Ying’s body, take him and bite him to his heart's content, but he’s being restrained!
He groans in frustration.
An unexpected chirp escapes from the mouth of his beloved, making Lan Wangji flinch at the high frequency of it. Wei Ying, wanting to mess with his struggling mate, uses that chance to pounce on him and send him on his back. It takes a moment for the now confused dragon to understand their positions have been reversed. When he does, he growls at his naughty mate, this is not the time to play, mating is serious!
But the fox doesn't understand him, he pushes him down again and tilts his head with that innocent look in his eyes and his tails dancing behind him. Yes, let’s keep playing, I like this, I like you! And so, the excited huli jing proceeds to map his body with his dark pinprick claws; they catch on the several layers of clothing that his dragon mate hadn’t removed yet — Wei Wuxian tears them apart with great satisfaction, finally what he wanted to see.
Slowly, as the clothes fall, smooth, pale skin starts to be revealed to him. The neck and shoulders are covered by the same iridescent glow of the scales on his tail, but the skin is smooth to the touch and when Wei Wuxian nuzzles his neck and pointy ears, sandalwood makes him sigh in glee, he licks over the the thin sheen of sweat where the scent is stronger and feels himself shiver all over.
Lan Zhan’s skin is thick; no matter how much his claws try to sink, they barely scratch the surface and leave faint pink lines behind, it’s still enough to pull a reaction from the Lan dragon, who squirms as he does.
When he finishes taking off all of Lan Zhan’s upper layers, his fingers travel to the puffed out fins on his neck. With fascination, he follows the shape of them with his fingers, scraping with the tip of his claws on the edges. The older boy startles and growls at him, his hand receives a bite and Wei Wuxian yelps in surprise, Lan Wangji’s nostrils flare, he grabs the naughty fox’s waist hard and starts to rut against him.
Wei Wuxian cries as he feels the clothed cocks rubbing on his crotch, the fabric of the pants feels too rough on his poor abused pussy, it burns just like the dragon’s skin when it touches his own and the huli jing doesn’t know whether he wants to escape or for him to thrust his hips even faster — Lan Wangji envelopes him fully with arms and tail until their bodies are two pieces perfectly fitting together and there is no escape left.
He licks and sucks at his lips, not forgetting to rub their erections together with the same frantic desire that had pushed them towards that same predicament — but provided with no relief, Wei Wuxian can’t help but cried softly; the two cocks keep trying to catch on his hole as if taking turns, not fully penetrating through the barrier of the rough fabric of his white pants, but still, doing their best to feel the shape of the wet entrance clench around their round head. When they can’t, they shamelessly rub against his own cock, bullying it for being smaller and pushing it between them to expel more precum — Wei Wuxian can no longer tolerate it.
He is entirely naked already from their previous rolling on the ground but Lan Wangji’s lower half remains hidden. The huli jing, offended by this, bites his mate’s throat to slow him down, no more humping like that! Bad dragon! Lan Wangji immediately goes lax like a well behaved kit, willingly accepting his mate’s scolding with a low, timid growl and a further display of his neck’s fins. The younger boy huffs and takes his hands down to finally release the two demanding cocks from their confinement.
As soon as he does, they weep big globs of precum over his fingers as if they had been wronged.
If anyone has suffered it's definitely him! The huli ji thinks with puffed out cheeks.
His hands hold each of them by the base, playfully, he releases one to give a squeeze to the heavy sack below, is that where the little eggs are supposed to be during mating season?
“Nghhhh…!”
Lan Wangji arches towards the touch, breathing even more heavily as he tries to thrust into the loose grips. He clenches his teeth and from his throat comes a rumbling loud whine, please, please! The fox continues to touch them with great admiration but also, with a bit of fear, he has to admit he is a bit intimidated by their looks, even if it’s in an excited way; thick, flushed and with veins painfully swollen as if they are about to burst, the two cocks look as angry and pent up as their owner, so needy for touch that when he rolls down the foreskin of the upper one with his thumb, it curves up to his hand and releases there immediately, completely wetting his fingers.
He makes a high chirp in surprise, cum continues to pour out of the slit, furious for having been trapped there for so long and the Lan dragon gasps, hissing wide eyed as his hips buck faster, the huli jing doesn’t dwell too much on it, he puts his hands to work, helping him squeeze everything out, pressing around the base and then going up and down as fast as he can, massaging his sack clumsily as well ashecan master since he’s very distracted paying much more attention to the pleasure taking shape on the usually stoic beautiful face.
Wei Wuxian feels his own cock twitch at the sight. “Lan Zhan…your beauty is truly unparalleled.”
Still not recovered, Lan Wangji grunts, the heat of his face and ears rises.
As the final drops of the white hot cum covers Wei Wuxian’s hand, Lan Wangji’s breathing starts to calm down, heavy pants for air becoming slower.
Wei Wuxian also slows down his movements, when he looks below, he notices that despite the amount of cum released, Lan Zhan’s upper cock remains hard and straight as the rod of a sword. He relaxes his hold for a moment and thinks on what to do next.
The other cock below twitches in his other hand, sad, swollen and showing no signs of letting go like their partner. Wei Wuxian sighs. It's a shame he can’t have the two of them inside him at the same time, he doesn’t want to neglect either of them.
But that would be impossible even for a dragon, if Wei Wuxi remembers correctly; the upper one is for eggs and the one below, for the seed.
As he’s thinking about the mechanics of this, Lan Wangji’s mind regains more clarity. He blinks a few times, his eyes inadvertently focusing on the plushy, curved behind of his beloved, which is already wearing a few thin lines of red on one of the round cheeks — it’s that his forehead ribbon?! He cannot chase that thought any further because soon something else catches his attention.
His gaze follows the elegant back of his beloved, his shoulders broad from swimming and his skin tanned by the sun, down to his tailbone, there, three innocent, black fluffy tails are waiting to be noticed. The tips are white and Lan Wangji instantly seizes them with his hand, having no other thought behind but to pull them.
The startled huli jing let out a loud sultry moan. “Lan Zhan!” He exclaims immediately after with tears in his eyes. “I told you to stop bullying me! I am a man, I have pride too! you can’t keep treating me like this!”
At the complaint, Lan Wangji feels a bit of guilt, however, the sight of Wei Ying’s naked frame makes his mind go blank for a moment; chest, abdomen, thighs and hands covered in a mix of their sweat and fluids, the allure of the plushy bottom being enhanced with Wei Ying sitting at his heels — any shame of his actions is soon swallowed up by the urge to claim and sink deep inside him.
He maneuvers Wei Ying by his tails until the boy’s exquisite behind is flushed to his lap. Wei Ying yelps but doesn’t pull back, just looking at him with expectant big dark pupils and a dazzled expression. Lan Wangji leans down to kiss him softly on the red swollen lips. He hooks one finger over the ribbon lovingly surrounding Wei Ying’s waist and whispers to his ear. “Behave.”
Wei Wuxian shivers, goosebumps running free all across his body. He melts and goes limp on the dragon’s hands like the willing prey he is. The dragon growls softly in approval and rewards him with more kisses to his lips.
Despite the warning before, Wei Ying still directs him with a naughty look and a smile that means trouble. A finger wraps around strands of his dark hair and Lan Wangji feels himself fall under Wei Ying’s spell.
“It’s okay if you don’t know what to do anymore er-gege, I’m and expert on the matter, I’ll teach you what to do!”
Lan Wangji halts any movement. Anger boils inside him. Wei Ying did this before?!
The face that would have easily frightened anybody else if they had had it a mere inch away from their own, causes Wei Wuxian to burst out laughing. “Look at your face, hahahaha! So scary Lan Zhan!”
Lan Wangji receives an unexpected bite to his nose. He immediately pulls back, outraged, insulted — completely aroused. “You…you!”
“Me, me! Yes!” Wei Ying grabs his belly as he continues to laugh. “Such a frightening dragon, but you can't withstand being teased!”
To joke, at a time like this?!
Lan Wangji frowns as his ears heat. “We are mating…!”
This is a sacred practice, a loving union blessed by the gods and our ancestors! It’s what he doesn’t say to avoid being further teased.
Wei Ying stops laughing, playful smile still curling on his lips. “Lan Zhan you’re so cute, you really have no idea on what to do next, don’t you?”
Lan Wangji feels his lips part open in shock, his pride has never been this attacked — He looks at the body of the smiling boy below him and the clear evidence pointing the opposite and just…doesn’t understand.
Heat curls in his lower belly and he hisses. “…no idea on what to do…?!” He repeats, more provoked.
He must have done something well at least…right?!
The silver eyes narrow until they are two crescent moons. “It’s okay to admit you don’t know something Lan Zhan! Come here…I’ll tell you exactly what we’ll do...”
Very confused but willing to learn anything related to Wei Ying, the dragon lets himself be surrounded by the arms of his beloved.
“Alright…”
Lan Wangji waits eagerly for him to continue. Wei Ying doesn’t.
“Wei Ying.”
Wei Wuxian bites his lip to hold back a laugh. “…ah, so you are paying me attention?”
The dragon pulls back to glare at him. Of course he is!
Wei Wuxian has to suppress a laugh that threatens to escape him. “Ah, good, good, then I’ll start.”
Crossing his arms around his neck, he brushes his lips over the pointy ear, kissing it softly and watching it turn warm over his lips—
His nose catches over what he now knows is Lan Zhan’s sandalwood scent again — a shift happens in his body, his muscles relax and an itch to pull Lan Zhan closer begins to grow in him.
He realizes Lan Zhan is looking at him with an intense expression.
Ah, he had been purring, Wei Wuxian notices his chest rumbling and stops it. Licking his lips, he shakes his head to focus back on his plan. “Hm, so as I was saying...” He closes his mouth, turning to see if the boy is following his pace.
He is, but the dragon’s frown remains fixed between his brow, if anything, it has intensified. He seems to want to ask something else, but in the end he doesn’t. “Mn.”
The huli jing’s tails tickle his chin, and when their lips are about to touch, he tells him, “You have to call me gege.”
Lan Wangji’s eyes go wide. “What!”
He’s older than Wei Ying!
The younger boy rolls on the floor and laughs holding his belly. “Hahahahaha! Lan Zhan, you’re so easy!”
It doesn’t matter if Lan Wangji had been the one munching on Wei Wuxian like a juicy bun before and not the other way around, the boy from Yunmeng Jiang will always find a way to throw him off his axis and gain the upper hand.
“Come on, call me gege and I’ll tell you everything!”
“…”
The spring book’s images, the ones Wei Ying tricked him into reading, flickers in his mind. He circulates his energy and then grabs his upper cock.
“Lan Zhan…? Ah!”
He doesn’t allow him time to adjust — he doesn’t have to, the moment he breaches the entrance, his cock slides in with no resistance. Wei Ying moans, his eyes round and wide in shock as he stares below the.
“You are already in?!”
A wild growl comes out of his mouth, the heat in his lower belly spreads all over his body, he starts thrusting inside and finally fucks the little huli jing — Wei Wuxian cries loudly, chirps escaping in between as he is shaken like a ragdoll, Lan Wangji grabs his waist and sets a punishing pace — each time he reaches the bottom and on his way out, his cockhead rubs and touches a delicious spot inside him. The huli jing is too overwhelmed to think, his thoughts are only made up with a chant of; Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan!
The dragon sneaks three fingers inside his other hole but Wei Wuxian is too far gone in pleasure to ask or wonder further on why he is doing that, dragons are kinky bastards and that’s it. The dragon bites his neck, jaw and lips until he’s kissing him again. Jolts of pleasure shoot straight to his groin and his legs get tighter around the narrow waist. He gasps for air when suddenly, he feels his meridians come alive by soothing currents of cold energy circulating through his spiritual veins, as if calling to Wei Wuxian’s energy, seducing it to then guide it towards his own core.
“T-That — what is that…?” Droll spills down his chin, he blinks at where his golden core resides. That is definitely not his energy, it’s Lan Zhan’s! “L-Lan Zhan, we are dual cultivating?!” He asks, amazed.
His mate responds by putting one hand on top of his navel, he doesn’t say any other word, the crown of his cock kisses his cervix and a moment after, Wei Wuxian’s golden core is flooded with a wild rush of energy that sends him to coming completely undone; his head falls with his eyes rolling back and he comes from both of his sexes at once, shooting ropes of cum everywhere and slick possessively marking the dragon’s cock entirely. It’s too much and yet, Lan Wangji keeps rocking his hips forwards, alternating between hissing and sucking on his tongue while still feeding him his energy. The huli jing is too stunned to ask, even if it’s dual cultivating, Lan Zhan is going too overboard by sharing so much of his yang!
But that does not match at all his stamina, instead of decreasing, it almost seems as if Lan Wangji’s currents of qi get even stronger. “L-L-Lan…Zhan! That’s t-too—” The dragon pulls out and rubs his cock a few times over the rim of his hole, a string of slick and cum connecting it. He struggles to focus but he feels an odd pressure breaching his other hole, before he can ask, the dragon bends him down, bringing his knees towards his chest, and two cocks enter with a brutal strength, getting buried to the hilt.
“Ah! Ah! Ah!”
For the first time, his golden core feels fully fed and fat with energy. The dragon continues rocking his hips at a faster speed, hitting each time the spot that makes Wei Wuxian scream and cry the most. The older boy grunts and growls, spreading his palms over his belly until his fingers catch on his ribbon. The thrusting stops, Wei Wuxian tries to catch his breath but he’s pushed to the floor again, this time with his ass raised up and his sensitive nipples scraping the floor. He recognizes the pose in an instant, his animal instincts scream in joy and happiness, he will be properly mounted and claimed! But his human side can only feel embarrassment at being placed in such a position.
“Nuuh — y-you can’t do me like this!”
One of the dragon’s hands surrounds his tails while the other forcefully brings him forward from the ribbon. Soon, the two cocks are pushing inside and being warmly received by the heat inside, producing sticky wet sounds as they enter and come out repeatedly, Wei Wuxian moans and presses his hips back trying to follow the thrusts — the dragon hisses and fucks him deeper, now completely careless of their surroundings with no sense of any decorum left, placing bites and kisses on any surface of soft flesh he can reach with his mouth as if already claiming his body from the inside wasn’t enough.
After several thrusts the dragon pulls him up and sits him on his lap. One palm spreads over his neck, maneuvering his jaw and face towards his mouth with his clawed thumb, kissing him hard with his long tongue pressing between his pliant lips.
Wei Wuxian unconsciously clenches down around the hard rods, feeling them get stiffer as they move inside him. The huli jing sobs low in his throat, he really wants to come!
“Please, please, please!”
Almost as if the older boy could read his mind, the hand previously spread over his belly travels down to touch where they are tightly joined together, getting his fingers wet as he tries to press them alongside his cock — Wei Wuxian whines and struggles from the overstimulation, but it doesn’t matter if he moves forwards or back, he’s surrounded by the possessive heat of the dragon’s body either way.
“Nghhh!”
The hand below strokes his cock and both of them come at the same time. The dragon roars in his mouth, biting his bottom lip and fucking him at a more frantic pace as he swallows Wei Ying’s desperate moans and cries — his cocks spurt copious amounts of cum, filling him to the brim like a pastry bun. Wei Ying gasps for air, using the last of his energy to aid him with his hips, even with his legs trembling, he clenches down on the two rods, providing him with gentle kisses over the line of his jaw as he eases him to his climax.
Lan Wangji lets himself fall to the side. With one look at Wei Ying cooling down on the floor with nothing to protect him, he wraps an arm around his waist and softly brings him to his chest. The huli jing blinks surprised but immediately smiles and purrs at him.
He returns a soft growl, nuzzling his nose with the huli jing’s when he offers it.
Before laying down, he unties his forehead ribbon from the fox’s waist and instead ties it to his wrist. Then he closes his eyes.
They remain embraced like that for a while afterwards.
“Lan Zhan, that was really good. Thank you.”
The statement jolts the dragon awake. He is met with the bright silver eyes lovingly gazing at him. It takes his brain a moment to catch up.
Thank you? So it really was…a temporal mating?
But—
“We mated.” He says, helplessly.
I gave you my forehead ribbon, we dual cultivated, our bodies joined as one — we are married according to dragons, he refrains from saying. Their mating bond would properly develop with time, but right now it was fresh, too fragile and easily to break.
A wounded growl gets stuck on his throat.
He then remembers that Wei Ying only agreed to help him. He never said he wanted to mate with him for life, there hadn’t been time for that while he was deep in his rut.
Lan Wangji feels his heart become heavy with worry. Wei Ying never indicated anything else than what they said and did.
He looks at the huli jing desperate to find a trace of something that could reassure him that he’s wrong and that this wasn’t just a transaction…or a help between friends, but the younger boy isn’t looking at him anymore. There is a rosy tint on his cheeks and a smile paints his lips but he’s distracted playing with his own dark brown hair.
Lan Wangji notices his own scent sour, and immediately retracts it back to himself, hiding it from the other boy. “You’re welcome...”
He doesn’t want Wei Ying to feel that he’s now trapped. His cultivation needed an extra boost he couldn’t achieve in no other way possible and he was kind enough to also help Lan Wangji.
The fox points at him with a small black claw. “You’re welcome? You’re supposed to say; Thank you for letting me use your body however I wanted, Wei Ying!”
The dragon suddenly feels too cold. There is a slight tremor in his hands. “I…I—”
Wei Ying chuckles and grabs his face to give him sweet kisses to his cheek, confusing him even more. “I’m teasing you! Ah, Lan Zhan, you can’t fall for my jokes every time…”
Lan Wangji’s ears twitch. “You…were joking?”
The huli jing giggles and rubs his face on his neck. “Of course I was! But truly, you were kind of wild just now er-gege, you need to be more careful with me next time…”
“Next time…?”
The huli jing’s eyes snap to him, his face flushes red and he quickly uses his hands to cover it. “Ah! Lan Zhan don’t say that while you’re looking at me like that!”
The dragon’s brow knit in worry. “How am I looking at you?”
Silver eyes peek from between his fingers. “Hm…you know…”
Lan Wangji tilts his head. “My slitted pupils?” He asks, slightly self conscious. He has been told before that they are quite frightening, he can’t control it and people often misunderstand. It would be understandable if Wei Yin was put off by them.
The huli jing hesitates, biting his lips with his cheeks in a blooming pink. “No…no, it’s the way you look at me, like you want to eat me.”
Lan Wangji has to swallow down hard as heat travels down his two cocks again. Wei Ying places his hands over his chest and leans closer. “What I mean is; I want to do it again, with you — if you also want to, of course!”
Lan Wangji feels as if his heart had suddenly been kissed by a cute fat bunny, or precisely, a fox.
“I know this was for your rut…but we can do it again right?”
For his rut? This was for Wei Ying’s cultivation and—
Before the dragon can ask him, Wei Ying brings his fingertips to his antlers. “They are so cute, Lan Zhan.”
Dragons take pride in their antlers, Lan Wangji would have never before thought of them as ‘cute’ the notion of them being cute could have been an insult in the mouth of anybody else — that is, if he wasn’t as starved for Wei Ying’s praise as he was. He inclines his head to allow his beloved to touch them better.
“You made such a fuss at the market stalls before! I didn’t know sleeping with a dragon was all it took to be allowed to play with them.”
Said dragon can’t help grinding his teeth at the comment. Both the Lan forehead ribbon and a dragon’s antlers can only be touched by parents when young and by their fated one when older. “…It is written in the rules. You wrote it already.”
“Really?!” The huli jing asks him with wide eyes, laughing right after. “There are too many! Er-gege, I’m not going to lie to you, I barely remember half of them.”
He’s about to scold the lazy fox when his antlers are suddenly pinched, he shivers and a gasp escapes his lips.
“Oh, sorry, was that too hard?” He asks with concern, rubbing them softly and making it worse with his cooing. “This isn’t too sensitive for you right?”
That part of him is extremely sensitive.
Lan Wangji swallows down and presses his lips together, refusing to admit otherwise.
The fox’s voice lowers down almost as if he was cooing at him. “I’ll be more gentle, er-gege.” As he caresses them, he leans closer, “You know? I’ve never seen antlers as beautiful as yours Lan Zhan, they are so long and big…you should flaunt them more.” He starts muttering to himself, unaware of the effect he is causing on the owner of them, “Maybe with a few ornaments? A bit of mother pearls could do the trick too… ”
Lan Wangji’s ears are boiling hot from the praise. “They are still small. They will grow with time.”
A smile appears on the huli jing, however, a thought makes him move his gaze down and point at his crotch. “Are you telling me those will grow too?!”
Lan Wangji's brow twitches, he feels himself get aroused from the question. “No, they will stay like that.” Unless they…do grow as well? “I think.”
The huli jing looks at him with half-lidded, mischievous eyes. Lan Wangji secures his hold around him, trying to stop him from making any move that may take them to a dangerous situation.
“Don’t ask me these questions when we are like this.”
Wei Ying seems to want to tease him more, but he too must realize he doesn’t have any remaining energy left in his body to back up any flirting. Instead, he rests on Lan Wangji’s chest and rubs the place where his golden core is placed. “I didn’t know dual cultivation could be this great Lan Zhan! But I think you overfed me…I feel too full, like I had eaten more than three bowls of rice and I had a lot of energy to run around, but my body couldn’t respond — I mean it feels exactly like that.”
Wei Wuxian laughs but underneath him, his mate goes still.
“Mn? What is it?” He asks, raising his head from his chest.
The dragon’s face makes an odd expression, as if he was both surprised and embarrassed over something, but didn’t know how to properly express such strong emotions. “You…”
“Yes, me, what is it?”
“…”
Wei Wuxian pushes himself up on his elbows to have a better look at him.
“You have never done this before?”
The huli jing chuckles at the unexpected question. “Of course! With who would I do this?” And then because he can, he adds, “No one is as pretty as my Lan- er-gege…”
He hears a silent gasp escape from the dragon.
But the smell of dragon’s beard cotton candy tickles his nose and he ends up distracted. He knows sandalwood is the usual, that’s what he has understood is Lan Zhan’s core scent and what he smells like when he’s calm, then the one that reminds the huli jing of a field in summer after a rain? Mn…it gets stronger when Wei Wuxian is close to him or touching him, so it could mean happiness, but the boiling sugary scent that makes his mouth water and want to ask for more?
When he finally figures it out, he says, “Ah, you’re embarrassed!"
In his excitement he accidentally hits the dragon’s ribcage, who flinches a bit at the hit, but is so engrossed by being found out that he ignores any trace of pain.
“I — no, that’s—”
The fox chirps happily several times. “Yes, you are! You smell like sugar burning, like dragon’s beard cotton candy!”
“What?!” That’s what he smells like?! Lan Wangji turns his head away. “Nonsense.”
A merry laugh escapes the younger boy, who even claps at the reaction. Lan Wangji’s looks at him from the corner of his eyes and growls in retaliation. This only makes him even more amused. The fox leans forward and calmly starts placing smooches all over the perfect face, providing a few grooming licks to show he’s sorry for teasing him that much. They don’t know each other very well yet, but it’s clear Lan Zhan is more easily embarrassed than him.
Lan Wangji’s cocks attempt to rise up in interest and he’s pretty sure his scent is going wild at all the displays of affection — Wei Ying confirms it for him right after, he smacks his lips with a wet sound as if he was tasting something in the air, his eyes look drowsy when they gaze at him.
“Mnnn~ your scent is really tasty Lan Zhan, it’s the best, I really like it.”
Lan Wangji’s breathing hitches. Then he’s moving to bite the soft tendon of the huli jing’s neck with his sharp teeth.
“Auch!” The younger boy complains. “What was that for? We already mated, Lan Zhan!”
Too embarrased, he lets his head fall back to the floor and closes his eyes. “Rest.” Lan Wangji is too ashamed to confess that after everything he did, faced now in this situation; with Wei Ying mated to him, acting all sweet and cute to him, willingly offering his love not holding back at all — he does not know how to hold a conversation with him without finding the closest cave available and permanently hiding himself there forever.
A sigh leaves the mouth of the fox. There are wild sizzles of energy inside of him that are making him feel about to burst, with this much qi belonging to the dragon circulating through his meridians, hearing a dismissal means he only wants even harder to get what he wants.
And what he wants it’s for Lan Zhan to join him in his favorite activity; talking.
“But really tell me Lan Zhan, what is it? Is it because we are…like this that you are embarrased?” The fox hesitates as he says the words, feeling slightly coy as he brings their attention to their naked bodies. “Why won’t you talk to me, hm?” Flicking his tongue over his fangs, he lowers his voice to a sultry whisper in pointy ear, “Is it that now that the deed is done…you’ve lost interest and want nothing else to do with this little fox you've taken advantage of—”
Lan Wangji’s eyes snap open, his hands instantly surround his wrists, his golden eyes shine with newfound intensity.
“No, never!”
Wei Wuxian holds his breath, turning red. The dragon as well, flushes, surprised by his own reaction. He slowly releases his grip, looking at the fox unsure on what to do next.
In a small voice, the huli jing says, “I was joking, it never crossed my mind that you were but, huh, that’s — that’s nice to hear anyways.”
A more vulnerable look takes over the young fox and Lan Wangji holds his breath, not daring to hope.
“I would have been devastated if it was just because of your rut — I mean it would have been okay, I would have never blamed you but…I guess now that I know what I feel for you—” Lan Wangji’s eyes widen, his breathing gets heavier. He needs to get closer. Wei Wuxian flushes even more, their lips accidentally — or perhaps intentionally, brush as he says the next words, “I really like you Lan Zhan, and you going back to acting mean and cold towards me would have really hurt me.”
The dragon’s hands spread over his back, holding him in place. He regrets how he acted towards his Wei Ying before, but he didn’t know what to do with his feelings, everything was too much, too big and the huli jing was so very different to what he has always known that he totally lost control from the very moment he met him at that rooftop trying to smuggle alcohol in the middle of the night.
The few times he spared a thought to what having a mate looked like, he believed that wanting to be affectionate towards a partner was something that would never be possible to evoque in him. Not to his surprise, running his fingers on Wei Ying’s hair, scratching his ears and kissing his cheek with an affectionate small lick at the end, it’s extremely easy. He can’t imagine himself wanting to do anything else than that.
“Then…I know you’re always honest with me Lan Zhan, but can you be even a bit extra honest? Just a tiny, tiny bit more.”
At the prompting, the words escape his mouth freely. “I thought…Wei Ying was trying to drain my core.”
“Do you like— wait, what?” Wei Wuxian feels his mind go blank. “…huh?”
Guilt makes the older boy go quiet incredibly fast. Wei Ying leans even closer and taps his chest. “Er-gege, could you repeat that? I think I didn’t hear it right.”
But the dragon stares at him with a guilty expression. “I am sorry, I was badly mistaken about your kind.”
Once he is able to properly understand, Wei Wuxian throws himself at the dragon, hitting his ribcage without a single hint of regret. “You thought I was going to drain your core through fucking?!”
The dragon coils in himself, tail curling inside as he nods slowly.
Wei Wuxian dissociates for a brief moment, returning back to the conversation with another pounce on the dragon. “How could you?! You’ve truly been believing all those book’s nonsense since you met me?!”
“…”
“…you could have asked me, you know I would have told you.”
The small voice makes Lan Wangji’s head drop in shame. He wanted to know Wei Ying, he wanted to learn what Wei Ying liked, what he didn’t and everything that was related to him. He had been wrong, how could he have learned about him if it wasn’t Wei Ying the one telling him himself?
“Wei Ying, I deeply apologize.”
The boy has his arms crossed over his chest and his tails acting as a barrier. Lan Wangji stays on his side.
“I let myself believe an assumption. I am sorry for hurting you.”
“…hm.”
The young fox eyes flicker around the forest as the information sinks in. While from any other person the assumption would have hurt and anger him, coming from Lan Zhan makes him feel…confused?
“Lan Zhan…I need you to explain to me more clearly, because—”
Lan Zhan was very smart, how could he have been this mistaken?!
“I might be a huli jing, but you know I’ve never been like that! Why would you think that of me?!”
Lan Wangji releases a calming wave of his sandalwood scent that makes Wei Ying’s nose twitch. “You never gave me a reason to believe that, I made a mistake.”
“Hm…”
“I’m sorry.”
The huli jing furrows his brows as he realizes that …something isn’t adding up.
“…Lan Zhan.”
The dragon openly looks at him, ready to please his mate and do anything to be forgiven.
The huli jing lashes rest over his cheeks. Then he opens his eyes again and says, “…You were convinced that I was going to seduce you and then let you fuck me just so I could get my paws on all the yang of your core, yes?”
Lan Wangji turns his head away. Antlers and ears turning darker with blood. “…Correct.”
“You were convinced by this, you had no question it would eventually happen.”
“…”
“Lan Zhan?”
“…yes.”
The huli jing observes his mate in silence for a moment.
“Lan Zhan…you accepted my invite.”
“…”
“Lan Zhan…”
“…I was mistaken.”
Suddenly, the dark claws are clutching the dragon’s chest. “In your pretty head, were you planning just to go along and get all your yang and virginity stolen?”
Lan Wangji’s cheeks get heated. “…I was very mistaken.”
Unbelievable!
“Lan Zhan! It could have been dangerous! Is your libido so out of control that you couldn’t think clearly and went out with the first person you liked?!”
The question highly offends the dragon. “Wei Ying invited me.”
A loud gasp leaves the mouth of the huli jing. Both of them blush. Wei Wuxian feels his face and neck blush. “It’s a me thing?! Still— you, you bad dragon!”
Lan Wangji tries to hide his face underneath his mate’s neck, but the huli jing doesn’t allow him.
“So because it was me you were still going to accept that?!”
“…”
“Lan Zhan!”
“…Yes.” And then, in a lower tone, almost in a whisper, “I really wanted to make Wei Ying my mate…and fuck him.”
Wei Wuxian’s face heats to the point he feels he could boil a few egg on his head. He grabs one of the antlers and pulls him down. “How can you be this lustful! What happened to all the rules on proper conduct, regulation of the self and staying above worldly affairs the mighty Lan dragons of Gusu claim to follow?!”
Lan Wangji closes his eyes even tighter. His cocks twitch against his will. Wei Wuxian immediately notices this and gasps. He grabs the chiseled jaw with his other hand to force him to look at him. “What if it was someone else wearing my face and they bullied you into giving them all of your energy, would you— ”
The dragon’s eyes snap open, golden orbs find his gaze. “No.”
Wei Wuxian stops for a moment, stunned. “No?”
“…I would know if it wasn’t Wei Ying.”
The huli jing stares at the boy in disbelief. “How? That’s why you’re getting tricked in the first place.”
The dragon’s mouth does something that resembles a pout. “…no one can imitate Wei Ying’s smile.”
Wei Wuxian’s heart flutters, beating even faster, pumping full with blood to all of his body. He shakes his head, not allowing himself to be distracted by Lan Zhan’s sweet words entering his ears. “Then, answer me this; how do you explain yourself? You can’t expect me to suddenly forget about all those times you punished me, er-gege! You claim to be an honorable, very disciplined dragon, but look at how much you wronged me!” As proof of his words, he points at all the marks covering his body, from bite marks, scratches and hickies he hasn’t been able to properly see yet — and the forehead ribbon still tied around his wrist like he was a war prize. “Does this look like the behavior a proper good little Lan dragon would have?!”
The dragon’s hands on his waist tense. The usual sharp features of the beautiful face soften, making him look very young as he gazes at him with open surprise. “..No.”
“Ha! I thought so.” The huli jing huffs, he is beginning to get dangerously drunk on the power he holds over his mate, it feels a bit intoxicating, as if a need inside him got scratched good each time Lan Zhan got flustered and tried to appease him. His tails slowly swish behind him and his fangs scrap his lip as he thinks of his next mischief. “You’re not such a righteous little Lan dragon anymore, er-gege.”
The dragon’s mouth parts open but no words come out, instead, his eyes lower down. Wei Wuxian thinks he has gone too far with his teasing and attempts to backtrack, but the dragon wins ahead and embraces him with firm arms, “I will take responsibility. I will be the righteous, disciplined and honorable dragon Wei Ying needs me to be.”
Wei Wuxian falls silent as his heart pounds louder, echoing in his ears. “Lan Zhan! How can you say these things to me?!”
“They are the truth. Wei Ying is my mate, I will work hard to always please him.”
He thinks too many things and struggles to say all of them at once. In the end he sets for pulling again from one of the bluish antlers. The dragon leans on his hand and growls in a moan. “Just be yourself, be Lan Zhan! That’s all I want.”
The pupils of the dragon enhance, only a thin layer of gold is left behind. “Mn. I want Wei Ying to simply be Wei Ying as well.”
Wei Wuxian finds himself in shock, who would have said the quiet and grumpy dragon could be such a smooth talker?!
“Between you and me, who is the seductive huli jing?!”
Lan Wangji’s intense gaze flickers from the top of his hairs to the bottom of his feet, taking a hand to caress his toes and his pink paw pads like an after thought. Wei Wuxian feels his groin heat again. He swallows down.
“Wei Ying is.” The dragon states with resolution.
A shiver runs across Wei Wuxian’s body. His hand tightens around the proud antler, bringing him forward to his face until their breaths are intermingling in a kiss. His mate hisses and he feels the promise of the two thick cocks bump his bottom. “Did you listen to me?! next time you try to punish me over silly stuff and try to pull the ‘proper cultivator’ card, I will remind you of your behavior today.”
Lan Wangji’s chest rumbles and moves his head to feel the hand of his beloved touch him more. He sniffs up, noticing his mate's scent has intensified; lotus and plums with a hint of spiciness fills the air. He leans down to nuzzle his neck, placing placating kisses on the slope of it. Wanting to justify his kin, Lan Wangji brushes his lips and swipes his tongue on the part where the gland of his mate’s scent gets stronger. “Rules were created because of Dragon’s lustful nature.”
Wei Wuxian looks at him with half lidded eyes, realizing he’s slowly losing control and melting on his hands…and it’s a great thing. “Ah…so you’re all a bunch of perverts.”
Lan Wangji wrinkles his nose with annoyance, licking him again and scrapping his fangs over the soft skin.“…Huli Jings are also claimed to have a high libido.”
The younger boy goes still. When Lan Wangji peers at his face, he realizes it’s entirely red. Wei Ying coughs a bit and in a low voice, he says, “…do you want to find out?”
“…Now?
“Why not? We might have a whole life for that, but we better start now, right?”
Lan Wangji’s mouth easily finds his own for a hungry kiss.