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A gentle breeze whirled around corners and leaves—swinging high and low across branches and valleys. A mixture of whites, blacks and some gray chased each other around a large luscious field of gentians. Their small blue petals rustled with each tussle. Suddenly, a wind rushed by.
It was strong, scattering the bunnies as the black boots landed with a thump.
Wen Ning looked at the skittering bunnies, their fur puffed up to look intimidating, yet failed to do so as they looked even cuter than before. He huffed a smile, walking gently in between the newly bloomed gentians, making his way up the hill to finally reach the top of the summit.
Across the fluffy white clouds was the setting sun, its hues casting orange-like flames that seemed to dance alongside the shifting clouds.
It was the first dawn of spring, the freezing winter weather melting away into the gentle embrace of spring. It was Wen Ning’s favorite time of the year, where people's smiles suddenly grew bigger. Where farmers became less rigid knowing that their crop will bloom, to seeing the days get longer over the horizon as children played on the dirt roads of Caiyi Town.
He sighed, taking a seat on the lush grass around him, breathing in the frosty Gusu Lan air. Spring takes longer to reach here than it does anywhere else, but it was still a wonderful feeling nonetheless, regardless if he needed to breathe or not anymore.
This stillness was quickly shattered with the squawking of a certain man clad in black and red robes. “Wen Ning! It's freezing out here—Lan Zhan is making supper, would you care to join us later?”
Ahh, Wei-gongzi—always forgetting this one is deceased, how typical of him. His smile grew bigger, patting the grass next to him as a silent invitation.
Wei Wuxian, even without the aforementioned invitation, quickly plopped down right next to him.
“Sooo…” Wei Wuxian begins.
“Yes, Wei-gongzi?” he replies.
“...” They both look at each other with silence gracing the field, the gentle woosh of cold wind surrounding them both.
Wei Wuxian clapped his hands, dispelling the awkward air from before, “Wen Ning! My dearest friend, I have one simple question on this fine evening!”
Wen Ning was, to be honest, confused. Not knowing how to reply, he hummed, showing he was listening to Wei Wuxian’s extravagant inquiry.
“Well, this humble Wuxian must ask you this: what day is it today?”
Now I’m even more confused…
“Wei-gongzi, have you hit your head? Do I need to fetch Hanguang-jun?” He was starting to get concerned, face contorting into an expression of worry. Wei Wuxian looked aghast, putting a palm to his chest with a face filled with hurt.
“Wen Ning! You think me to be so clumsy?! How could you!”
Wen Ning grimaced, a sudden backlash of memories invading his mind as he said, “Well… to be honest, Wei-gongzi, do you remember that one time we were checking on the talismans at the borders of the Burial Mounds?”
Wei Wuxian nods, following along.
“You were doing…something—and then suddenly fell off the cliff. With A-Yuan.”
Wei Wuxian’s shoulders raised, looking both defensive and offended at the same time, “I don’t remember that! Your brain must be clogged up with nonsense! I, the great Yiling Laozu, would not be susceptible to falling off a cliff! With a child at that!”
I fear my memory is more reliable than yours, Wei-gongzi, but whatever you say…
“You must be right, Wei-gongzi, my apologies.”
Wei Wuxian pouts, crossing his arms as he looks away, huffing a breath, “And today I decided to be kind, too! What injustice is this?!”
Wen Ning pats his shoulder, semi-sympathetic to Wei Wuxian's antics. He coughs, shaking his shoulder in an attempt to remove Wen Ning’s hand.
“Anyway, it’s actually a pretty important day today, wanna know which one?”
Oh dear…did I forget some type of anniversary?
Wen Ning racked his brain, cataloging whatever dates and times he's remembered for the past few months.
“I fear that I’ve forgotten…”
Wei Wuxian laughs, a smile that etches dimples onto his face, making his eyes look like crescent moons.
“Ahh my good friend, happy birthday!”
Eh?
Wei Wuxian stared at him for a long moment, contemplating something. “Wow, you seriously forgot it was your birthday?”
Wen Ning sighed, nodding.
“Well, it makes sense, I suppose. This is probably the first time in, what—a decade, two, even?—that we’ve had the chance to celebrate freely. With…everything that's happened, I wanted to do something meaningful, to make up for all the pain I’ve caused.”
Even after all this time, he remembered?
Wei Wuxian rubbed his neck, twisting the stray hairs there. “I’d share a drink with you, but…”
The gloomy air was uplifted by a simple comment, making both men laugh once again—almost as if they were young and free once more.
“Wei-gongzi, thank you—for everything. Even with the…minor hiccups along the way, I still thank you for all that you've done.”
Wei Wuxian laughed. It sounded like he was trying not to cry. “What meaningful words, I’ll keep them close to my heart. But first!” He springs up, running down the hill with his arms spread wide, colliding into a much taller man.
Lan Wangji smiled in his usual restrained way of smiling, looking down at Wei Wuxian with an almost natural sort of warmth before looking to his left, stepping to the side to let Lan Sizhui pass by him.
“Ning-shushu! I heard it was your birthday, and… Hanguang-jun and I wanted to help Wei-qianbei with making you a present!”
Lan Sizhui looked nervous, holding a covered item in his hands, shoving it into Wen Ning's arms with the highest grace any Lan child could possess before running back to hide behind Wei Wuxian.
The hidden item felt heavy, yet perfectly balanced in his hands. He swiped away the cloth, looking down at the item with widening eyes.
“It’s…”
A bow.
It was crafted with a burgundy red wood, most commonly seen in the Qishan area. The back of the bow had small golden flames attached to it, all evenly spread out into six total flames. It was smooth, perfectly oiled and primed for archery. Not even the smallest hint of warping in the wood, it was seemingly perfect in every way.
This is…
He looked up, throat clogged with emotions he didn’t know he still had.
“This is… Thank you, this is a wonderful gift.”
Wei Wuxian slapped Lan Wangji’s shoulder, exclaiming with pride, “I told you he’d like it! Now—Sizhui, go give your Ning-shushu a hug!”
Wen Ning inhaled a breath he no longer needed, looking down at Lan Sizhui twiddling his thumbs. He gently set the bow down, opening his arms for a hug. The little Lan wasted no time running up to him, crashing into him with a thump.
“Ning-shushu,” Lan Sizhui whispered.
“Yes?” he questioned.
“I want to celebrate all the birthdays I missed with you, and I hope we can continue this every year, okay?”
This kid…
“Yeah. Yes, of course we can.”
He hugged him tighter, smiling at the fact he’d get to enjoy another year of peace with his family.
“Don’t leave us out of this hugging session!” Wei Wuxian interrupted, running into the hug as he collided with Wen Ning’s side, with Lan Wangji simply standing to the side with the edges of his lips curled up a bit in as much as a smile as he was willing to show around others that weren't his husband.
The sudden smell of burning food wafted through the air, with Wei Wuxian running out of the hug, dashing away towards the Jingshi like a madman.
“I'm assuming we aren't having supper anymore, then?” said Lan Sizhui.
“Yes, you are correct.” Lan Wangji answered, quickly walking in the direction of the Jingshi to see the extent of the damage.
Wen Ning turned around, grabbing his bow with a small smile. A sudden idea came to mind.
“A-Yuan, want me to teach you how to use a bow?”
Lan Sizhui looked shocked, with stars in his eyes as he exclaimed, “Yes! I would love that! Uh, when can we start?”
He started walking down the hill, “Right now!”
Lan Sizhui scrambled to catch up to him, asking questions left and right as they made their way down.
Behind them, dusk seemed to finally settle in with gentle arms. Small twinkling stars graced the horizon sky—the Silver River1 showing its true colors amongst the other shining glimmers. The scared bunnies seemed to repopulate the field, their little noses twitching as the evening settled in.
Laughter and the sound of a guqin dueting a dizi rang throughout the night, as the quivers of drawn arrows rang through in the distance. Their paths are ever true, never straying once more.
─ · ·✦•๑࿔༻𖤓༺࿔๑•✦· · ─