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Chapter Text

Lan Wangji was standing in front of the main gate to the Cloud Recesses and was waiting for guest disciples and their entourage to arrive from all different sects in the cultivation world. Tomorrow was the day when the guest lectures were to start and almost everyone had already arrived. Everyone with the exception of the delegation from the Yunmeng Jiang sect.

Since Jiang Fengmian had confirmed participation of his son, his daughter and the head disciple, they should have been here already. It was not as if Lotus Pier was farther away than for example Koi Tower. And the Lanling Jin sect disciples had already arrived hours ago, including the unsufferable sect heir Jin Zixuan.

So where was the Yunmeng Jiang delegation? Could it be something had happened on their way?

It seemed like Lan Xichen who was waiting here together with Lan Wangji also realized that something may be amiss. He looked down the steep path leading down the mountain and said pensively: “Young Master Jiang, Maiden Jiang and Young Master Wei should have already been here. I wonder what could have made them this late. Night is almost falling and if they do not come soon, the barrier will have to be sealed until morning.”

Lan Wangji did not deem it necessary to say anything. His brother already knew that he had the same concerns. Though for different reasons.

Lan Xichen was worried for the Yunmeng Jiang sect disciples while he was more concerned about the rules that they may need to break later if the delegation would not come in time. What were Jiang Wanyin, Jiang Yanli and Wei Wuxian thinking? Did they not know that it was rude to be late for the lectures? It could even warrant them being send back home if an elder was in a bad mood.

Not that Lan Wangji would mind if they were turned back from the gate and asked to leave. He would even be glad perhaps. He had heard many stories about the head disciple of the Yunmeng Jiang sect and before even meeting him after a long time, he was pretty certain they would come head to head sooner rather than later.

His brother had already warned him that people from Yunmeng were more free-spirited than the disciples of the Gusu Lan sect. But that seemed to be a great understatement. At least according to those rumours about how wild, untamed and mischievous Wei Wuxian in fact was. While he was one of the greatest cultivators of their generation and had won many tournaments and night hunting competitions, Lan Wangji could not find it in himself to like him.

They had met several times in the past and the other boy had always been way too familiar with him. Well, truth to be told, not just with him but with basically everyone. He always had a smile on his lips and never stopped talking. Whenever Lan Wangji saw him, he always got a headache. Wei Wuxian was too much for him to handle.

Lan Xichen had indeed not been waiting for his reply and he continued, as pensive and worried as ever: “Maybe we should send someone to look for them, in case there had been an accident on their way.”

Lan Wangji continued looking down the mountain path. He could feel his brother’s gaze on his person and he knew what was coming.

“Wangji, how about you go down the path and I will send out several disciples to go search from the above? It can also be that they had been delayed even before entering the mountain and have decided to stay in an inn to wait for morning. We will check there as well.”

Fighting with himself, Lan Wangji nodded his head. He of course had nothing against Lan Xichen’s way of thinking or his decision. It was just that he could already feel a headache building up and he had not even seen Wei Wuxian yet. It would indeed be a very long year of guest lectures.

Without waiting for further directions, he gripped tighter his sword, bowed politely to his brother and started descending the mountain. It was quickly getting dark and Lan Wangji hastened his steps. He was not running, running was forbidden in the Cloud Recesses, but he was definitely walking briskly. He could not afford to miss the time for closing of the gates or he would be locked outside as well. That would displease him.

Deep down, he was starting to get the feeling that this was possibly another one of Wei Wuxian’s little pranks. From what he had heard, it would definitely fit that troublemaker’s style. Lan Qiren had warned him in advance and cautioned him against the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple in advance. Apparently, he had once been classmates with his mother and knew her character the best.

Lan Wangji did not have any reason to not believe him and he was cautious about Wei Wuxian way before meeting him and inviting him to wreak havoc on his sect’s sacred grounds.

He only made it down several turns of the path when he heard voices from up ahead. They were still too far away for him to catch the whole conversation but he already noticed that there were two male voices, one whiny and they other one angry, and one soothing female one. He must have run into the Yunmeng Jiang sect party.

He wanted to continue walking down the stairs and meet them as soon as possible. They all needed to hurry or they would be camping outside of the gates tonight. However, something stopped him from advancing. Despite his education and his own conscience, he stood there and listened in on the conversation.

“A-Xian, please, we need to hurry so we arrive in time. You know that the Gusu Lan sect is very strict with their rules and principles. We cannot be late.” The female voice said with a hint of desperation. It must have been Jiang Yanli trying to convince her brothers to hurry up. Lan Wangji was thankful, they had the same objective.

It however did not seem like her brothers were too willing to listen to her. Or at least one of them. “Come on Shijie, what would happen if we take our time? I am tired already,” there was a sound of yawning accompanying that statement, “why do we not rest here for tonight? It is not like the lectures are starting today. We still have plenty of time to avoid the infamous Gusu Lan sect rules…”

The angry voice interrupted and it was echoing all throughout the forest and the mountain path: “Wei Wuxian, get a grip already! Stop whining like some maiden who is about to see their betrothed for the first time and is scared out of her wits. Do you hear me complaining about all the rules? You better be on your best behaviour from now on. No freaking out during the night as you do lately.”

“It is not like I can help it,” now the first male voice, it must have been Wei Wuxian, was way more subdued, “I never remember anything from those dreams. I just have a bad feeling about coming here. Like something is about to happen. And about Second Young Master Lan…”

Lan Wangji never learned what Wei Wuxian wanted to say about him as the three disciples came into view right then and stopped when they saw his figure standing on the stairs. Jiang Yanli and Jiang Wanyin got over their surprise quickly and bowed to him in greeting. He reciprocated.

However, Wei Wuxian did nothing of the sort. His eyes went wide and shone in the falling darkness as if he was scared to death. He shook his head and he backed away. Unfortunately, he missed the step below and if it had not been for Jiang Wanyin, he would have fallen down. The next second, he went limp in his brother’s arms and lowered his head. His lips were moving in an incessant stream of silent: “No, no, no…”

A series of images flashed in front of Lan Wangji’s eyes and strange feelings overtook his heart for a second. Lan Wangji coming up the stairs in a different set of robes, the same ones he had worn few hours prior when he had been returning from his night hunt. His chest felt tight and there was a mixture of admiration, curiosity and infatuation mixed in. Lan Wangji greeting Jiang Cheng and Jiang Yanli. Lan Wangji walking around at a measured pace and continuing up the stairs without looking anywhere else but up ahead.

Lan Wangji’s head was turning and his breath was accelerated. What in the world was that?

Chapter Text

Lan Wangji stood under the shining light of the full moon and he was reflecting on today’s events. He had been sure that he would hate them even before the day started, but he had not expected that it would be this much of a disaster. He sat down in lotus position on the rooftop where he could see the dark window of Wei Wuxian’s room and reflected on everything. He had a night patrol today and could use the time for quiet musing.

After the first encounter when the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple seemed to have gotten completely out of his head and had even fainted for a minute after seeing Lan Wangji, his eyes had been hard as steel. There had been a polite but cold smile on his lips as he had greeted Lan Wangji with perfect courtesy: “Second Young Master Lan.”

Lan Wangji had been so taken aback by the abrupt change that he could have only automatically returned that greeting and turned around to hide his confusion. He had let the three Yunmeng Jiang sect disciples who had fallen silent from that moment on up the mountain. He had showed them their rooms and had headed off, feeling as awkward as ever.

He could not tell what that atmosphere had been. It had almost felt like there had been coldness seeping out of Wei Wuxian, so much so that even his siblings had been keeping their distance from him. They had been exchanging glances between the two of them and occasionally, they had been also shooting worried looks in their brother’s direction. Wei Wuxian had not seemed to have noticed at all.

Lan Wangji was wrapping his head around what could have caused such an abrupt change. At one moment, the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had seemed to be the same one Lan Wangji had heard so many rumours and stories about. But the next second, it was as if a completely different person was standing there in front of him.

And most importantly, what were the images he had seen? It felt like an out of body experience. Why had he been watching himself walking around? It would have been fine if he had just remembered how he had come back from his night hunt. Although it would still be strange to be thinking about it at a time when he had met Wei Wuxian and his siblings. But why had it felt so weird? Moreover, it had not felt like a memory at all, more like someone else was watching him and he had been just a witness in the whole story.

Lan Wangji had not even finished his line of thoughts when his head spined again, completely out of the blue. One of his hands instinctively went to cover his forehead in an attempt to ease the uncomfortable sensation and ground himself. He however discovered that he could not move his body at all. Once again, he could only watch from afar.

Lan Wangji was standing in the middle of a cheering crowd. It must have been during a night hunting conference; there were stalls set up and all the sect leaders were sitting in their seats and watching the show. Lan Wangji lifted his hands and thanked the crowd. He could feel there was a huge grin on his lips, it was extremely foreign. The bow in his hands was heavy and he could feel the smooth wood under his fingers, in his other hand, there was a piece of cloth, a red ribbon. In the crowd, he saw himself as one of the many spectators. Jiang Cheng came towards him with a sour expression on his face.

Lan Wangji was breathing heavily due to shock. He stared into space for a long while, not sure what had just happened. If it occurred only once, it was already strange, but why a second time? This was getting concerning. Was he perhaps falling sick?

Moreover, everything was even more unusual because of what he had seen and felt. He had never had much of a vivid imagination. Could all of this be really coming from his own head? Well, perhaps the part where he had seen Lan Xichen sitting among the other sect leaders. Although his brother was still not officially appointed, it was a widely known fact that this would happen soon.

But standing in front of a cheering crowd, grinning like some idiot – smiling foolishly was forbidden in the Cloud Recesses too – and being all happy and excited about the congratulations? That did not seem like him at all. Since when did he ever had such vivid and completely absurd dreams? It was not like him to daydream.

In fact, he could not remember a single instance of a similar occurrence. Could it be that only seeing Wei Wuxian earlier had had an impact on his composure? Lan Qiren had warned him to not get close to the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple. Maybe his worries had been warranted after all.

Lan Wangji closed his eyes. He was on a night patrol and knew that he should not be zoning out like this. He had to calm himself down, otherwise, he would be completely useless. He consciously regulated his breathing. In and out. In and out.

Initially, he had wanted to keep an eye on Wei Wuxian, just in case the other tried anything. But he decided that it was perhaps a little too much for him right now. It was only the first night into the guest lectures and he was already letting the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s presence get under his skin. Why else would he had just thought about holding a Yunmeng Jiang sect bow instead of his own?

Lan Wangji decided that he would not dig deeper into this strange vision. He was probably only tired and his mind was playing tricks on him. He should finish his patrol and get back to his quarters. A good night’s sleep was what he needed right now. He had been too preoccupied with helping with preparations for the guest lectures and he had not been sleeping as well as he very clearly needed.

Without another glance in the direction of Wei Wuxian’s window, Lan Wangji collected his sword and stoop up in one smooth motion. He headed away from the guest disciples’ building. All windows were dark and it did not seem like anyone wanted to go around breaking any rules. There was no work for Lan Wangji to do. It was not as if he was abandoning his duty, he had self-appointed himself for this patrol. He did not want Wei Wuxian to run around uncontrolled.

After finishing his round, Lan Wangji quickly retreated into his rooms. He prepared for bed and meditated for a while before laying down. With his mind calm, there were no other strange incidents. It must have been because of his tiredness after all. His last conscious though was that he would have to be more careful in the future and not push himself too much.

Chapter Text

Lan Wangji managed to forget all about the two unusual incidents from the day before. His sleep that night had not been disturbed by anything, and even if he had dreamed about something, he did not remember it in the morning. He woke up calm and refreshed.

Only when he was putting on his forehead ribbon did his thoughts strain to the upcoming day. And inevitably also to Wei Wuxian.

His determination to keep an eye on the supposedly rowdy Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple was back. After all, he was the main disciplinarian in the Cloud Recesses, especially among the younger generation, if he did not maintain order, who would? For sure, Lan Qiren and the other elders would be on high alert as well, at least in the first few days and would educate the guest disciples when it came to the Gusu Lan sect rules. However, Lan Wangji wanted to make their duty easier by personally being aware of Wei Wuxian’s every move.

He went to breakfast in high spirits. As expected, he was one of the first ones there. The guest disciples would be given several days for adjusting to the new routine so no one was expecting them to follow all the rules right from the start. He looked around, enjoying the calm atmosphere. He was worried that the usual quietness of the Cloud Recesses would be soon disturbed.

He was not incorrect. Though he would hare preferred to actually have a rowdy and loud disciple to deal with over another daydreaming vision.

It happened just as he had finished his breakfast. While he has been eating, small groups of guest disciples have been filtering in and sleepily getting their morning meal. It looked like nearly all of them were actually aware of the breakfast time. Even the Yunmeng Jiang sect party showed up kind of on time. Jiang Yanli looked the same as yesterday, but Jiang Wanyin and Wei Wuxian were clearly having a lot more trouble to stay awake at this early morning hour. The last one’s head was falling down at times, as if he was in fact falling asleep again.

Lan Wangji was watching him with eagle eyes, ready to go reprimand him at the slightest of infractions. It was better to keep him in line from the very beginning than to regret later on. Then, when Wei Wuxian’s head fell down to his chest again, Lan Wangji’s eyes were suddenly watching a whole different scene.

Lan Wangji was sitting in the lecture hall, feeling bored. His uncle was standing in front of the class and reading the Gusu Lan sect rules one by one. He had only just started the list when somewhere around rule 134, there was a loud bang from the back of the classroom. Lan Wangji turned his head with a start, a bout of curiosity run through him like electric current. The sound was made by the door being roughly opened. A delegation of disciples in Qishan Wen sect colours were standing on the doorstep and marching into the classroom as if the place belonged to them.

Lan Wangji closed his eyes and shook his head slightly in an attempt at chasing the vision away. His head was spinning from the quick succession of images in his mind. This particular daydream had been a lot shorter than the two previous ones. And also a lot messier in a sense. Everything seemed to have happened way too quickly and out of any chronological timeframe. For a second, Lan Wangji was considering going to see a healer. He was afraid that something was seriously wrong.

After another second of consideration however, he decided against this idea. Although this had in fact happened thrice to him now, there was no reason to think too much about it. He must have still been tired, he would go to rest earlier today. Some meditation was perhaps also called for, he needed to regain his usual calm and composure.

If this had been any other time, he would have gone to his brother or uncle for advice. Surely they would know what was wrong, or if not, they could at least point him in a correct direction. He fully believed that this had already happened to people before him. As things stood however, both Lan Xichen and Lan Qiren had their hands full with the guest lectures hosting. It would not do to give them even more worries. Especially if he himself did not know if he was just imagining things.

He stood up unhurriedly as his balance was still not fully recovered after the confusing vision. He had decided to call them visions for now as he could not find any better term. He put his bowl and chopsticks away and went out of the dining hall. His steps took him to the Library pavilion. Luckily, he had the key so he could access at any time of the day. Not that he usually needed it, but today was a special case.

He found a quiet spot and sat down in lotus position. He wanted to meditate a little bit first before going to the lectures. He still had some time. He could try going though the books afterwards to see if he could not find any clues in one of them.

His mind was however refusing to cooperate with him and was bringing back many questions to be considered. He wondered why this kept happening to him. If it had been only once, it could have just been a strange occurrence. If it had been twice, then he was tired. Three time through, that was uncomfortably close to a repeated habit. And why such strange visions? He had never been in those places for the bigger part of them. They could definitely not be his memories.

After several minutes of failed attempts at meditation, Lan Wangji finally accepted that he would not be able to properly calm down before he dissected this problem and found a solution. He did not want this happening again, it was interfering with his daily activities and duties. On top of being very unusual, strange and concerning.

He thought back to all the three times he had had those visions. Had they had something in common?

He came up with several points:

Firstly, all the visions had felt more like a dream than anything else. The images were flashing in front of his eyes without actually showing a full scene. Sometimes, they had even been out of order and hazy.

Secondly, they have been portraying him as another person. They were definitely not memories, and if yes, then not his own. The first one was the biggest clue as he had seen himself coming up the stairs to the Cloud Recesses. But also the other two had felt more like he was not himself. Why else would he had been grinning or had been so easily excited when there was a distraction from a boring lecture? He did not even think that his uncle’s classes were boring!

And third common point, although he did not want to admit it, was that he had been watching Wei Wuxian. On every single instance, the vision had flooded his mind when he had been in the proximity to the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple or had been watching the window of his room at night. This could have been completely unrelated – and he actually hoped it was – but it seemed like a little too much of a coincidence.

He decided not to discard this clue right of the bat but also not to think too much of it for now. He did not like the thought of Wei Wuxian being somehow, even marginally, part of this all. It had to be tested if this hypothesis was the correct one or if he was imagining things. Now that his imagination was actually playing tricks on him, he knew he apparently had abundant amounts of it.

Chapter Text

In the end, Lan Wangji had not had time to neither properly meditate nor find a book that could help him in his predicament. The moment to go to the classroom for the first lecture was upon him. With a great sigh, he put down the book he was currently holding and he sneaked out of the Library pavilion. He locked the door again and headed to where the guest lectures were to be held this year.

He was the first disciple to arrive, just as it was proper for the head disciplinarian of the hosting sect. He bowed politely before entering the lecture hall. As he was walking towards the small podium on which was the teacher’s – his uncle’s – desk, he felt like something was not completely right.

He slowed his steps and looked around attentively, trying to pinpoint the source of his sudden unrest. However, he could see nothing out of the ordinary. The classroom was prepared for a number of disciples, exactly in a way it would be for any other lecture. Scrolls for taking notes, inkstones and brushes were neatly arranged on every desk. Everything was without a speck of dust or dirt anywhere, all clean and proper, just waiting for the students to arrive.

Lan Wangji went to the place which he usually occupied and sat down with his back perfectly straight. He had to set a good example for the guest disciples. It would not do if they saw him spacing out or sitting improperly.

It was only after he looked towards the teacher’s desk that he finally understood what had been feeling so strange to him. It was like a déjà vu in fact. The view he had of the scenery before him was way too close for comfort to the one from his vision earlier. Perhaps if he was sitting just one desk to the right side, it would be the exactly same one. Even the view out of the open window and into a closed off courtyard was matching perfectly.

Lan Wangji stilled for a second, he even forgot to breathe. Sure, the classroom was looking very similar to any other one. But it was still only on the level of very similar, not exactly the same. As a matter of fact, Lan Wangji had never been in this particular classroom before. How come he had had a vision of it?

And not only that. He had seen the Qishan Wen disciples coming in and possibly steering up trouble. It could not be that he had had a premonition, right? That would be way too strange. No one had the power to predict future.

Lan Wangji was so lost in his musing that he barely noticed he was not the only one in the room anymore only after the noise around him had gotten too loud to ignore. The lecture hall was full now, it was almost time to start the class. The only place that he could see not occupied was the one to his right.

Suddenly, a disciple in a white guest uniform plopped to sit in that seat. He looked all dishevelled and slightly out of breath, as if he had been running in order not to be late. Lan Wangji wanted to reprimand him, but he held his urge back. After all, it was only the first day and it was possible that not all of the guest disciples were fully familiar with the Gusu Lan sect rules. That was why he was here, to act as an example and teach them the correct ways.

The disciple to his right turned towards him and Lan Wangji’s eyes went very wide. In the same way as the other’s did. For that person was no one else but Wei Wuxian.

The Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had had a huge grin on his lips until then. However, as soon as he realized who was sitting next to Lan Wangji, his expression went icy and he bowed his head politely in a greeting: “Second Young Master Lan.”

Was he perhaps trying to make Lan Wangji believe that he had not been acting all rumbustious just a second ago? What were his intentions? He surely must have had a hidden agenda of sorts. Nevertheless, seeing that he had to return the greeting, Lan Wangji also bowed his head slightly: “Wei Wuxian.”

It looked like the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had not expected his name to be known. His eyes went wide again and something flashed thought them. It was gone before Lan Wangji could name it properly. It must have not been important.

Wei Wuxian turned away towards the seat behind him and whispered to another disciple who was sitting there: “Brother Nie, do you want to switch with me?”

That disciple, Lan Wangji now recognized him, he was the younger brother of the Qinghe Nie sect leader, Nie Huisang,  hid behind his fan and shook his head: “Sorry, brother Wei, I think I am actually better here.”

Lan Wangji saw Wei Wuxian make a pouty disappointed face and then the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple turned back to look forward. He put one of his elbows onto the table and rested his head in his palm. He still looked pouty and for a very strange reason, Lan Wangji suddenly did not want to scold him anymore. Wei Wuxian seemed very tired and his eyes were falling closed. Lan Qiren could reprimand him when he came in, but until then, Lan Wangji would ignore this subtle rebellious gesture.

It did not even take one incense stick of time and his uncle was already coming in. Lan Wangji glanced at his neighbour, but Wei Wuxian was already doing his best to sit properly again. Nothing to be unsatisfied about anymore.

The lecture started and Lan Wangji was once again startled by how similar it looked to his vision. Lan Qiren was reading the rules and everyone was listening silently. That specific point in the recitation approached, the one where the door had flown open in his daydream and Lan Wangji was getting unsettled. It had already been very curious, strange even, how similar everything looked until now. If it would continue like this, Lan Wangji would actually have to admit that he had in fact had a future predicting dream.

Chapter Text

Lan Wangji was standing in the middle of a huge field. It was noisy, so noisy he wanted to cover his ears. His head was hurting, as was his body, he was feeling cold, so very cold and tired, deep to his bones. All around him cultivators were fighting. All colours of clothing were mixed in together, the white of the Gusu Lan sect, the olive green of the Qinghe Nie, the fiery red of the Qishan Wen, as well as smaller groups of cultivators in purple, gold and those from other minor sects. All the noise was caused by a battle, the cultivators were fighting with their swords, all sects against the Qishan Wen it seemed. Lan Wangji lifted his hands to his shoulders. He was not holding a sword, but a flute.

Lan Wangji was greatly startled. Both by the set of images which had just flashed in front of his eyes and by a loud bang of the door being opened with force. Everyone in the room immediately turned around to have a look and Lan Wangji followed suit. Although he was still confused by seeing the new vision just now, his heart was tight for another reason entirely.

For it was Wen Chao and several other Qishan Wen sect disciples who were marching into the lecture hall as if it belonged to them. This scene was so familiar that there could not be any doubt, it was the same one from his previous daydream.

The whole lecture hall was silent for several seconds. Lan Qiren and the guest disciples were still processing the intrusion, and Wen Chao was grinning victoriously and very visibly enjoying the situation. It seemed that he had planned this unsavoury demonstration of power all along and now he was all smug when he succeeded in attracting all attention towards himself.

Everyone was frozen. That was why Lan Wangji’s eyes immediately spotted a subtle movement to his right. Wei Wuxian was sitting hunched into himself and he was holding his head in his hands. What happened? Was his head hurting? Between his fingers, Lan Wangji could see how pained and aggrieved the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s expression was. He was taken aback. This looked quite serious.

In the next second though, Wei Wuxian suddenly lifted his head and straightened his back. Instead of pain and devastation, he was now burning with fire of anger. Lan Wangji could only wonder why. The shift was way too sudden.

At that exact moment, Lan Qiren finally got over his surprise and asked the intruders sternly: “What are you doing here?”

Wen Chao was still enjoying himself and he did not seem to pay any mind to the cold tone. He looked around lazily, his eyes taking in all the gathered guest disciples. He finished his round and finally acknowledged Lan Qiren’s presence. He smirked again.

Two things happened at the same after that. A female cultivator with small and lithe figure came up from behind Wen Chao and bowed to the elder, and Wei Wuxian jumped up to his feet. Only to be kept down by Nie Huisang who extended his hand from behind and stopped him just in time.

“Great Master Lan,” the female cultivator said, “our cousin, Second Young Master Wen, is here to escort me and my brother. Our uncle sends us to attend the lectures that the esteemed Gusu Lan sect is hosting. He believes it can help strengthening ties between our sects and promote good relationship. We kindly request you to grant us entry and treat us as the other guest disciples.”

After this introduction, the atmosphere in the room seemed to have gotten even heavier. For who else could this confident and sharp female cultivator be than Wen Ruohan’s niece, the one aspiring fort the title of the best doctor among her generation, Wen Qing. What was not clear to Lan Wangji was why she and Wen Chao would come here now.

Lan Qiren must have been thinking along the same lines as he asked: “Why is Qishan Wen sect sending disciples to attend the Gusu Lan sect lectures? Our invitations have been overlooked for years now.”

Wen Qing smiled, bowed to Lan Qiren and explained with prowess: “Great Master Lan, in recent years, we have been holding many selection exams to dispatch disciples for your lectures as we believe that only the best of the best can fully benefit from your teachings. Embarrassingly enough, we have not thought that any of our outstanding youths could be up to your standards. Now that a new generation of young masters from all the sects are here, me and my brother wish to participate in person to represent our sect and promote harmonious relationships in the future.”

There was a strange feeling in Lan Wangji’s stomach, like a premonition, a very bad one. What harmonious relationships? It must have been clear to everyone what this was supposed to mean. Wen Ruohan thought that the next generation of sect heirs and the best of their followers could be easily influenced if he sent someone to monitor the situation on site.

Suddenly, Lan Wangji could not ignore the hidden possible meaning behind his vision only minutes before. He had been watching a battle, a battle between all cultivation sects, and everyone had seemed to fight against the Qishan Wen sect. If he had already had one vision which had come true – as Wen Chao had in fact barged uninvited into the lecture – it would not be impossible to have seen another one. As absurd as it sounded, Lan Wangji now had a serious concern.

He was not the only one though. Hearing Wen Qing’s words, several of the guest disciples jumped to their feet, enraged by Wen Ruohan’s arrogance. Although the message was delivered masterfully, the hidden meaning could not have been overlooked.

“Bullshit!” exclaimed Jiang Wanyin, by far the most explosive among the guest disciples. “There must be a plot behind this…”

He never got to finish his sentence because Wen Chao turned his head towards him. As if that was enough of an order, the disciples behind him drew out their swords and pointed them at the Yunmeng Jiang sect heir. Wei Wuxian retaliated in kind, stepping in front of Jiang Wanyin who also drew out his sword a fraction of a second later. In the time of a single heartbeat, they were all ready to attack.

Lan Wangji looked at his uncle. They could not let the situation escalate anymore. If what he had seen in the vision was true, could this be the start of the war? Of course, he could not be sure that his visions were indeed premonitions of future events. For that, he did not have enough evidence yet. However, if it was even a possibility that he knew what would happen, he had to prevent it. It would be a disaster for the whole cultivation world if the great sects started fighting among themselves and dragged everyone else into it.

Suddenly, there came a sound of a flute and all the swords flew up to the ceiling. Lan Wangji recognized the music and also the one who played it. He would never mistake his brother’s gentle notes for anyone else’s. He gave a sigh of relief. If Lan Xichen was here, surely he and Lan Qiren together would be able to calm the tense situation. There was no reason to truly believe that there would be a war because of this childish disagreement.

Chapter Text

After the unsavoury disturbance caused by the Qishan Wen sect disciples, the lecture slowly continued. Everyone seemed not to have a mind to listen to the rules being recited, they were clearly unfocused and distressed. Most probably because Wen Qing and Wen Ning were now sitting in the last row of the classroom where two additional tables had been brought for them.

Lan Wangji believed that it was only due to his uncle’s authority and his cold glares towards everyone who as much as thought about turning back and staring that all the guest disciples behaved and listened to the rules he was reading. Or, most of them to be precise. Wei Wuxian to his right seemed to be sitting on pins and needles and was glancing over his shoulder every so often. Lan Wangji did his best to look forward himself, however he could still see the other’s movements in his peripheral vision. It was distracting to say the least.

After a while, and several admonitions from Lan Qiren on the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s account, Lan Wangji could not take it anymore. He was the head disciplinarian. How was it looking now to the rest of the guest disciples? He could not even keep one of them in line; nor his uncle but that was completely beside the point. He had taken it upon himself to make sure Wei Wuxian was not causing any trouble but he was failing spectacularly now, was he not? All the more that the disciple in question was sitting right next to him.

He mused if he should stand up and propose to his uncle that he would take the distraction away for a punishment. If Wei Wuxian could not even pay attention for two full hours, they needed to educate him sooner rather than later. Otherwise, he would keep disturbing the lectures. He was here to learn about the ways of the Gusu Lan sect, just like everybody else. How did he dare to be so rude and completely disregard Lan Qiren’s good will in reading all the rules? That had not originally been part of the curriculum, the elder must have added it to remind all the troublemakers – remind Wei Wuxian especially – about how they were expected to behave during his stay in the Cloud Recesses.

Finally, Lan Wangji could not take it anymore. He could barely understand how his uncle had so much patience for the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple. He could tell that he too was growing weary with the distractions, but he was still holding back on a punishment. If only barely. It was Wei Wuxian who could not, or would not, take a clue and continued glancing back more and more frequently together with shifting in his seat and slouching forward when he was not looking towards Wen Qing and Wen Ning.

Lan Wangji turned towards him to shoot him an icy cold glare of his own. He had had enough. How could have the Yunmeng Jiang sect named Wei Wuxian their head disciple? He could not behave himself for the life of his it seemed. He was a complete disaster. One that Lan Wangji and Lan Qiren had to educate on the correct ways sooner rather than later.

He was however taken aback as soon as he looked at the other properly. Wei Wuxian’s complexion was pale and his eyes, although distracted and unfocused as Lan Wangji had assumed they would be, were in fact more haunted and pained than anything else. His muscles were all tense and he was gripping the edge of his desk so tightly that his knuckles were snow white. All in all, he did not look good at all. Was he sick? Or was it simply because he had been up late the night before and did not get enough sleep?

For a reason Lan Wangji could not quite name, he was suddenly not feeling like reprimanding him anymore. Or at least not so harshly. The boy who he had seen grinning foolishly this morning was nowhere to be found. The one sitting next to him had somehow aged by several years over the span of the last two hours. Lan Wangji could not make any sense of what he was currently witnessing. This must have been why Lan Qiren was still tolerating the Yunmeng Jiang sect disciple’s antics, he looked kind of pitiful.

Though it seemed that was not entirely the case. As next second, Lan Wangji saw Wei Wuxian getting startled when Lan Qiren finally decided that enough was enough: “Wei Wuxian! I had enough of you!” Then, the elder turned to his nephew and continued: “Wangji, take him to the Library pavilion immediately. If he is not willing to listen to the lecture, there is no other possibility but to let him copy the rules until he remembers them.”

Lan Wangji stood up immediately and nodded. That was actually a good idea his uncle had come up with. It would serve all the purposes at the same time: he would be able to look out for this troublemakers every move, the class would continue in peace and as Lan Qiren had stated, Wei Wuxian would hopefully learn the rules. It was a win for all the sides.

“Wei Wuxian, come with me,” Lan Wangji prompted when it did not look like the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple was about to move. In fact, there was an even more haunted expression on his face and his eyes were as wide open as ever.

It was Lan Wangji’s turn to get startled. He had never seen anyone this vulnerable when they had been fine just hours ago. He was at a loss about what to do. There was something seriously wrong and he could not even say what.

“Wei Wuxian! What are you doing?” whisper-shouted Jiang Wanyin from his place several seats over.

It looked like he too had seen the situation growing worse and worse by the second and had decided to interfere. From his voice, Lan Wangji could not guess whether he was simply trying to snap his brother out of his dazed state or if he was mad at him. Knowing the Yunmeng Jiang sect heir for only hours at this point, it could be either of those or a mix.

Lan Wangji was just about to turn to his uncle for support and advice when Wei Wuxian finally lifted his head. He looked around with a minute surprise in his expression. As if he could not remember where exactly he was. Then, the moment was over. The lost expression was replaced by a plastered-on smile. Lan Wangji could not even be sure if he had seen correctly.

And when he checked, he could not see anyone around him acting any different than before. Could it be he was the only one to have noticed that something was not quite right? Was he the only one to get confusing vibes from Wei Wuxian? For in the next heartbeat, Lan Qiren had finally lost the rest of his patience and he spoke very strictly. If Lan Wangji did not think his uncle would never go against the rules, he could have even called his tone of voice shouting.

“Wei Wuxian, get out!”

Hearing this, either because of the clearly displeased order or because he truly needed to get out of the classroom, the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple all but jumped to his feet and run out of the lecture hall. Lan Wangji could not be sure, he did not see Wei Wuxian’s face after all, but he had a feeling that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had made a conscious effort to not look in the direction of the two Qishan Wen sect disciples in their fiery red clothing.

He stood up as well, gave Lan Qiren a quick polite bow and followed after Wei Wuxian. He heard Lan Qiren mumble something to himself and he was afraid that he would retaliate against the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple later for breaking yet another rule. But that was not important right now. Lan Wangji had to find him. There was a dread pooling deep in his guts. It felt like if he did not act right now, something terrible would happen.

Chapter Text

Lan Wangji was standing on unsteady feet. The ground below him was rocking and he had a hard time maintaining his balance. All the more because his back hurt so badly he wanted to start crying. He had never experienced such pain, not when he had fallen down and lost his breath during a night hunt and not when his uncle had punished him for crying too much after his mother had died. Though it was a little similar in a sense. The pain went however mostly unnoticed because in front of his eyes, he was watching a terrible scene.

There was a city and it was burning. And Lan Wangji’s heart felt like it was burning together with it. He could hear distant sounds of battle and agonized cries coming from that direction. It looked nothing short of an inferno. Next to him, someone was calling desperately: “Mother! Mother!” A female silhouette turned around hugged the one standing next to him. Lan Wangji cried for real.

As soon as Lan Wangji left the lecture hall, he had to steady himself on the railing of the stairs. If he had not, he would have keeled over the second the vision had hit. It was utterly terrifying, especially after seeing another war scene in the last one. Somehow, this one had felt even more intense and raw. More personal too.

He could not tell who were the people he had seen in the vision. The images had been flashing in front of his eyes way too quickly to make any sense of them. The pain he had been feeling had also overtaken his whole body and he could still feel tears in his eyes. All he knew for sure was that the place which had been burning had been Lotus Pier. That much was clear to him, after all, the Yunmeng Jiang sect headquarters were one of a kind and had the sect crests engraved on every burning door.

Lan Wangji tried to catch and steady himself. The vision may have shaken him, but right now, he had more important task than to dwell on its meaning. He could still not say with certainty if his visions were just daydreams caused by his imagination and fatigue or if there was something more to them.

He had to find Wei Wuxian before it would be too late. Too late for what, he did not know. The only thing which was guiding him was the bad feeling he had, and it was growing worse and worse with every passing second. He had to move from here. He had to straighten his back, let go of the railing and go down the two stairs.

When said like that, it was so easy. Only, there was nothing easy in actually going through the correct motions. Lan Wangji’s body was still feeling the phantom needles of pain ravaging his back and coursing through his veins. It was so bad he was worried that he would throw up. Or fall unconscious; perhaps that would be a way to find relief.

But he could not allow himself to be weak, definitely not right now. He could meditate and get his body and mind under control once he found Wei Wuxian and took him to the Library pavilion for his punishment. There would be ample time then.

Lan Wangji made a conscious effort and let go of the railing. His head was now spinning only marginally and he believed that he would be able to walk more or less normally without falling down even if he did not keep a strong grip on some support. He still kept his steps deliberate and slow, there was no reason to try his luck any more than he already was. It would not help in the slightest if he fell on the ground here and now.

His vision finally cleared of the unwelcomed tears. He won the battle with the stairs and was standing in the courtyard in front of the lecture hall. Where could have Wei Wuxian run off to? He had not looked well at all, Lan Wangji was somewhat worried about him. It would not do if a guest disciple got hurt in their care. For the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had indeed looked like he had run out mindlessly and who could say if he had fallen down some stairs and broken his bones already. Lan Wangji had to find him. And quickly.

A soft but heart-breaking sob came from behind him. He immediately spun on his heel, though it made his head hurt even more and the concern of him saying goodbye to his breakfast was becoming pretty material. He longed to sit down, put his head between his knees and breathe for a while. That would surely help. Not that he had the luxury to lose this precious time.

For his eyes had fallen upon a figure sitting next to the steps he had just walked down. The person was wearing guest disciple robes and was huddled in a tight ball. Even without checking for a fiery red hair ribbon that Wei Wuxian had been wearing this morning, Lan Wangji knew who that person was. He had found the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple.

“Wei Wuxian?” he called softly, not wanting to startle the other too much. Although he could not hear any more sobs, he could not be mistaken. Wei Wuxian had been, or perhaps still was, crying.

The lithe disciple was huddled into himself and his head was hidden in his arms and knees. Now that Lan Wangji was looking more closely at him, he saw that he was trembling all over too. He had no idea what was happening, however, his heart squeezed tight in his chest. For a reason he could not quite name, he was worried about him.

“Wei Wuxian?” he called again without any success. It was as if the other was completely lost in his world and could not even hear him. Or had decided to ignore him like earlier in the classroom. This option though did not seem too likely as he looked too distressed to care about the rest of the world.

Lan Wangji extended his hand when he did not get any reaction. If calling the other did not do the trick, perhaps a light pat on his shoulder would actually get the attention he wanted. He hated seeing Wei Wuxian like this. Even if it was making him believe he had gone crazy, Lan Wangji preferred the cheeky troublemaker grin over this. There was a strange aura surrounding the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple, the air around him seemed to be shivering with something ominous. It was making Lan Wangji’s skin crawl.

He never got to finish his motion. Wei Wuxian must have felt someone approaching because his head suddenly shot up. His teary and bloodshot eyes focused on Lan Wangji and his expression changed into one of pure horror. He smacked the offered hand away with force.

“No!” he shrieked so loudly everyone in the Cloud Recesses must have heard him. It got Lan Wangji’s ears ringing.

The Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple tried to crawl away, looking more and more panicked by the second. “Go away, go away…” he was mumbling to himself as his heels were searching for support to get him as far away from Lan Wangji as possible.

Then, he jumped up to his feet and started running.

Chapter Text

Wei Wuxian jumped up to his feet and started running.

Or, more precisely, he tried. But it looked like he was even more shaken than Lan Wangji himself and the great effort of standing up had already been too much. Before the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple could take even one step, Lan Wangji watched with horror how Wei Wuxian’s eyes rolled back into their sockets, his knees went slack and he was falling.

Lan Wangji remembered the hand that was still uselessly floating in the air, at a mid-distance between himself and the now unconscious guest disciple. His body reacted without his command and launched forward to catch the other. His fingers made contact with the white fabric of Wei Wuxian’s robes and he tightened his grip as if his, and the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s lives depended on it. In his mind, that was exactly what was happening. For right at that moment, he was hit by another vision, even stronger and more life-like than the last one.

Lan Wangji was falling. His hands outstretched to the sides, he was watching as a scenery of a fight was slowly disappearing from his sight, replaced by smoky black clouds. His legs lost their purchase and for a second, it felt as if he was just floating in the skies, unburdened by the mortal world. His body stopped hurting, he was relieved and liberated. He closed his eyes. This was the best solution, he thought.

Then, his fall was abruptly interrupted by someone grabbing his hand. Lan Wangji was surprised – and also a little angry, he did not want anyone to stop him – as he looked up in utter bewilderment and did not even try to hold onto that hand. And up there, there was a silhouette in white contrasting with the dark sky so much that his eyes were hurting. It was another Lan Wangji, holding onto him with a terrified expression. His hand was bleeding and the previously falling Lan Wangji felt a pang of pain in his heart. This was all his fault; he should just disappear and leave everyone alone. The world would be much better off without him.

The other Lan Wangji had tears in his eyes and a name on his lips: “Wei Ying…”

Lan Wangji sat up so abruptly that his head was spinning again. Today, it was becoming an unwelcomed trend already and he could not find a way to break out of it. The vision he had just seen was still flashing in front of his eyes.

This one had been the most terrifying and most vivid one he had experienced yet. Not only had he seen images and felt emotions he knew could not be his own. This time, it had felt like he had only been a spectator of a drama happening around him. As if he had been in someone else’s head in fact and could also hear their thoughts. It had been so life-like that he still had goosebumps all over his body.

Moreover, he now believed that he knew in whose head he had been. The other Lan Wangji had called out a single name. ‘Wei Ying’. As far as Lan Wangji knew, there were no other cultivators going by this particular name. He had been experiencing his visions, and all of them if he should generalize, from the point of view of Wei Wuxian. The same guest disciple he had been trying to save from a fall earlier.

Lan Wangji realized that his hands were free now, he was not holding onto Wei Wuxian anymore, and he looked around, confused. His mind was only slowly processing that he was not in the courtyard in front of the lecture hall anymore, but sitting on a pristine white bed. He examined the room a little more closely. He was definitely not back in his quarters, although the bed itself was very similar. A medicinal cabinet on the side of the room and several other beds arranged in neat line, one occupied by a seemingly still unconscious Wei Wuxian, helped him to draw a conclusion. He was in the Cloud Recesses infirmary.

The reason for him being there was a mystery. He would have understood Wei Wuxian, the other had been way too distressed to have been left alone to fend for himself. But Lan Wangji? Aside for the slight aftereffects of his latest vision – he did not want to examine the implications of seeing everything from the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s point of view – he was just fine. Though, apparently, he had been either sleeping or unconscious seeing that he had just woken up.

Before he could properly decide what he was to do next, the door of the infirmary opened and three people came inside. Two of them were healers he had seen in passing and the third one was his brother.

Lan Xichen looked alarmed and Lan Wangji immediately got the feeling that something was very wrong. His brother only ever made such an expression when he was extremely troubled. A myriad of questions sprouted in Lan Wangji’s mind. What had happened? Why was he in the infirmary? How long had he slept or had been unconscious? How was Wei Wuxian doing? However, just like every time he became overwhelmed and confused, his words would simply not come out. All he could do was stare at Lan Xichen with begging eyes and try to put all he was feeling into a single look.

His brother came to stand next to his bed and immediately exclaimed: “Wangji, I am so glad you are awake. You gave us a scare. How are you feeling?”

Lan Wangji only made a noncommittal hum but he sat straighter. It seemed to have eased Lan Xichen’s worries a little and he relaxed his tense muscles, if only slightly. From the corner of his eyes, Lan Wangji could see that one of the healers went to check on Wei Wuxian. He turned his head in that direction, wanting to check on the other.

The Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple was apparently still deeply asleep or unconscious. Even when the healer lifted one by one his eyelids to check his eyes, he did not as much as stir. Much less when the other healer took hold of his arm to check his spiritual energy. He only laid there, completely lifeless and unmoving, it was scaring Lan Wangji out of his mind.

Lan Xichen had guessed the train of his thoughts correctly and he reassured: “Young Master Wei is fine. The healers gave him medicine to help him rest better as he had been extremely sleep deprived.”

There was a short pause when Lan Xichen was waiting for Lan Wangji to turn back to him. He only did so after the healers finished their examination and exited the room. If they were not fussing around Wei Wuxian, then he must have been fine, reasoned Lan Wangji with himself. Once he turned towards his brother, the other finally asked that most important question:

“Wangji, what happened? We had found you both unconscious on the ground in front of the lecture hall. Everyone had heard a commotion and Uncle had come out to check on you. He had also gotten quite a shock and had sent for me and the healers. Can you tell me what happened before that?”

Lan Wangji thought for a second. How should he explain this when he himself barely understood what was happening to him? When he was not sure if his visions which had started so abruptly only hours ago could or could not have something in common with Wei Wuxian’s person? How was he supposed to gather his words and where should he start?

He longed to tell everything to his brother and hopefully get reassurance from him that he knew what was happening and how to stop it. At the same time however, he had no idea how to explain his and Wei Wuxian’s current circumstances. Would Lan Xichen even be able to help him if Lan Wangji managed to explain clearly? Would he not just assume that he was overworked and that his imagination was playing tricks on him? After all, was it even possible for someone to have visions where he was someone else? Premonition visions as it turned out? Was it even possible that the cultivation world was in fact heading toward a war?

Lan Wangji was fighting with himself until he finally took his decision: “Brother, I am not sure. Wei Wuxian was falling. I tried to catch him. Nothing else.”

It was not as if he was lying. He truly was not certain about anything yet. Perhaps if he remained close to Wei Wuxian and had several more of these visions, even though they frightened him to his core, he would be able to discover the truth. He could always go to his brother for advice once he had a clearer picture. Deep down, he was strangely secretive about this whole situation, telling anyone, Lan Xichen included, just seem profoundly not right.

Chapter Text

After Lan Xichen and the healers left, insisting he took the rest of the day off just to be sure, Lan Wangji found himself all alone with the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple. Wei Wuxian was still knocked out by the medicine and all that could be heard were his deep and slow breaths. Sleeping like this, with his face as pale as the bed sheets, only disturbed by the deep bruises under his eyes, Lan Wangji thought he looked very sick.

He could still not get out of his mind the moment when Wei Wuxian had been so scared of him back in the courtyard in front of the lecture hall. He had no idea what could have triggered him like that. Sure, he had not been open or warm with Lan Wangji even before that but it had still been an over exaggeration. It was one thing not liking the other person and still treating them courteously – like Lan Wangji had been – and it was something else entirely to deny the other’s help and try to run away from them.

He wondered what could have made Wei Wuxian behave in this way. He was so outgoing and friendly with everyone else. It was only when he was in Lan Wangji’s proximity that he would reject him on every occasion. Or at least that was the impression Lan Wangji had gotten after observing the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s behaviour these past two days. It was an enigma. Wei Wuxian was an enigma.

Since pondering on the subject so much without being able to find any replies to his questions was making Lan Wangji’s head hurt, he decided to rather meditate for a while. With his thoughts all over the place, it was no longer possible for him to properly concentrate on anything anymore. Moreover, what would Wei Wuxian do if he woke up and found Lan Wangji staring at him? That would be awkward.

Lan Wangji sat in lotus position and straightened his back. He closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing. The slow inhales and exhales coming from the other bed were keeping just the right rhythm and he synchronised with them. It was a hard work and it took a unusually long time, but at last, he was able to clear his head and start meditating.

At least until a new series of confusing and terrifying feelings and images overtook his whole being.

Lan Wangji was skipping down the steps to the Cold Spring. His feet were light but his heart was heavy. He was scared of being back in the Cloud Recesses and even more of being imprisoned here. He knew he had to get away, and the sooner the better. He had successfully sneaked out from the Jingshi, now it was only the matter of few instants so he would be able to borrow someone’s jade token and actually get out of this place bound by countless rules.

Lan Wangji’s steps slowed down until they came to a sudden stop. He had hoped to find someone in the Cold Spring, preferably meditating and thus an easy victim of his ‘borrowing’. He had however not expected that it would be Lan Wangji himself, or better a much older version of him. He felt his breath being stolen from his lungs, and not in a good sense. For that other older Lan Wangji’s back was marred with countless deep scars. What could have the other Lan Wangji done so bad that he would be punished like this? For it was impossible for him to get hurt this badly otherwise.

The other Lan Wangji must have felt something because he stood up and turned around. A new wave of shock shook Lan Wangji’s very being. There was an ugly looking scar also on the other’s chest. It was a Qishan Wen sect emblem which had been, from the looks of it, put as brand on his person. Lan Wangji felt tears stinging in his eyes for no reason at all.

Suddenly, he was woken up from his meditative – or dream-like? – state by Wei Wuxian sitting up and screaming on top of his lungs: “No, no, no…” Then, he hunched into himself and hid his face in his palms. He sounded utterly broken: “Lan Zhan… no… sorry… my fault…”

Lan Wangji could only hear a few whispered words, but those were already enough to convince him that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had in fact just had a nightmare. About him if Wei Wuxian calling him ‘Lan Zhan’ had anything to say about that.

Moreover, something was telling him, that he had seen it too. He could of course not be sure, unless he would be insensitive and impolite enough to actually ask the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple in person. However, one fact was undeniable: his own chest was still hurting terribly from the turmoil of emotions he had experienced during that vision.

Once again, he was getting more and more suspicious that he was, in whichever way it was possible, getting to share Wei Wuxian’s dreams. One thing was clear now; he only saw visions when the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple was either asleep or unconscious. The implications of this discovery were deep and Lan Wangji was definitely not about to ponder on them right now.

He quickly stood up and closed the distance between himself and the bed where the very distressed Wei Wuxian was hunched into himself. He could not watch this. True enough, he did not have experience in soothing people, that was more of his older brother’s area of expertise, he still wanted to somehow help Wei Wuxian though. There was an inexplicable urge in his chest and it was impossible for him to resist. He simply did not like to see the other broken like this. It did not fit with his usual persona, the one from all the rumours and his past experiences.

“Wei Wuxian?” he called as gently and warmly as he could manage. Which was to say not all that much, he lacked practice after all.

Still, he did his best and it worked. Though differently than he had anticipated. 

Wei Wuxian’s whole body froze for a fraction of a second. He slowly lifted his head and looked around while blinking several times. He took in the room he was in and then Lan Wangji. Whatever emotions had been in his eyes vanished as if by magic and his expression turned icy and unapproachable. Even his voice was detached, only shy of cold, when he spoke:

“Second Young Master Lan, what are you doing here?”

Lan Wangji could only silently wonder what was going through the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s mind. One second, he had been clearly distressed and calling him by his birth name. And the next moment, he was all polite and detached as if he had never seen Lan Wangji before. Or perhaps more like he had seen him but had decided that it would be better to keep his distance and be on high alert around him. Wei Wuxian was confusing Lan Wangji greatly.

Chapter Text

“Second Young Master Lan, what are you doing here?” asked Wei Wuxian with such a cold gaze that it could have rivalled one of Lan Wangji’s own displeased looks. For a reason unknown to him, the Yunmeng Jiang sect disciple was anxious and angry at the same time.

There were two instincts fighting inside of Lan Wangji’s heart as well, albeit different ones.

He wanted to step back, shocked to his core at the transformation that Wei Wuxian had just gone through. No one should be able to change their emotions this quickly. Moreover, Lan Wangji was not really used to someone treating him like this. Sure, he was not all that well liked even by his fellow martial brothers and sisters, but no one had ever treated him with contempt.

On the other hand, he was also tempted to step closer and do some more soothing for Wei Wuxian. Neither this urge could not be explained so easily. It was just that Lan Wangji had seen the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple looking so vulnerable and broken before and his whole being edged to help and provide the little comfort he could. His heart was going out for the other and he did not have time to closely examine what it could mean. He simply did not like Wei Wuxian looking hurt in any way.

He had no idea what to say. Should he try to explain he was here because he was worried about the other? Should he admit that he had not been able to properly meditate earlier because he had been almost out of his mind attempting to figure Wei Wuxian out? Should he give in to his sudden urge, grab the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s shoulder and shake this bizarre and uncomfortable behaviour from his head? He liked Wei Wuxian’s smile, not this cold glare and even colder words. Even though it was making him confused why he would think so, especially because he had been silently berating the other for such behaviour only hours prior.

Instead, he said the only thing which seemed neutral enough: “We are in the infirmary.”

Well, he should congratulate himself, he could not be anymore imprecise. Of course, anyone could see that they were in the infirmary. It was not even what Wei Wuxian had asked. “We fell.” Lan Wangji added unhelpfully, not knowing what else he should say.

This seemed to have gotten Wei Wuxian’s attention, in a completely different way than Lan Wangji could have predicted. The Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple immediately tensed and looked at him with eyes full of concern: “Are you alright, Lan…” He caught himself, coughed slightly and then schooled his expression into something less anxious and worried. “Second Young Master Lan,” Wei Wuxian finished his inquiry.

Lan Wangji could not be sure if the other had wanted to call him by his courtesy name or by his birth name earlier when he had stopped. Both were possible and given their current relationship, inappropriate. However, Lan Wangji had a feeling that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had just been about to address him as ‘Lan Zhan’. The same way he had done when he had been calling out while distressed after his nightmare.

Something tugged at the strings of Lan Wangji’s heart. Hearing the official title from Wei Wuxian’s lips felt strange. It had seemed way more natural hearing him say ‘Lan Zhan’, even if only when he had been out of himself. Lan Wangji imagined that this was how he was calling him in his dreams that he had been a witness to. It was clear that in Wei Wuxian’s eyes – and perhaps in the future if it truly turned out that those visions were the other’s memories of future, no matter how unlikely that was – Lan Wangji was something more than the head disciplinarian of the Gusu Lan Sect. According to the feelings he got from those visions, they must have been friends, if not something even closer.

Still, it was not as if Lan Wangji could just ask something like ‘Wei Wuxian, what have you just been dreaming about?’ It would have been great if he could, it would help him to understand his current situation in a single instant. There was just one problem. Well, two in fact. First, his education would not let him be this blunt and personal, especially with someone he had just met, and second, Wei Wuxian would not reply to such a direct question anyway.

After careful consideration, Lan Wangji decided to let the matter go for the moment. Wei Wuxian was still not looking good and seeing the black circles under his eyes hurt Lan Wangji’s very soul. He needed rest, everything else could wait, at least for now.

As such, there was only one thing that Lan Wangji could say with clear conscience: “Healers said you need sleep. Punishment can wait till tomorrow.”

To his surprise, Wei Wuxian laughed, half humourlessly and half mockingly: “Figures.”

Lan Wangji could not tell if the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple was referring to the fact that he was so sleep deprived that he would fall unconscious in the middle of the day and being brought to the infirmary or to the mention of his awaiting punishment. Perhaps both.

His previous anxiousness and evident care for Lan Wangji’s well-being were suddenly nowhere to be found. He was back to his cold demeanour. This abrupt change, not the first in such a short time span, was making Lan Wangji’s worries spike. There was no way he could leave the other alone in this state. Something was definitely very wrong; the only thing was that he could not quite figure out what exactly and it was stuck in his mind like a wooden splinter that could not be removed by non-invasive methods.

When Lan Wangji continued standing next to his bed, hoping that perhaps Wei Wuxian would say something more, the other only sighed and rubbed the root of his nose. The gesture was betraying fatigue. Or perhaps a budding headache; Lan Wangji had seen Lan Qiren sometimes try to sooth discomfort away like this. He considered going to call the healers back, he was not sure if sleep was everything that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple needed to get better.

Then, Wei Wuxian laid back into the bed and drew the covers almost over his head while turning his back to Lan Wangji. It was a clear sign that he did not want to continue the conversation and did not want to be disturbed. Lan Wangji took one long look at his unhealthy complexion before he turned around with a sigh of his own.

Deep in his heart, a single thought which he barely understood was urging him to look back and wish Wei Wuxian good night. To gently and lovingly whisper ‘Sleep well, Wei Ying’ and give him a kiss on his forehead where a Gusu Lan sect forehead ribbon would usually be. As if they were truly something more than just acquaintances of a single day. He did not want to leave the other’s side.

Lan Wangji shook his head. There was clearly something wrong with him as well. He better get back to his meditation and hope that he had not hit his head as hard as it now seemed.

Chapter Text

Evening approached and Lan Wangji still lingered in the infirmary. It was true that Lan Xichen had told him to take the rest of the day off, but he had not specified where. Thus, Lan Wangji took his orders with some deliberation and remained to keep an eye on Wei Wuxian.

He could not be sure that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple appreciated his gesture though. He way laying in the bed, in the same position this whole time and Lan Wangji was somehow doubting that he was truly sleeping as he had been advised to.

True, his breathing was deep and regular and his body was relaxed. However, the slow exhales and inhales were perhaps a little too regular to be completely natural. And the biggest tell-tale sign of Wei Wuxian not resting peacefully was that Lan Wangji had not had any new visions this whole time. The Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple was only pretending to be asleep. Why, Lan Wangji could only speculate, possibly because he really hated being in the same room with him and having to face him if he was awake?

In absence of any confirmation or rebuttal of this hypothesis, Lan Wangji made himself comfortable on his own bed and went back to meditating.

Or, pretending to be meditating. He was not succeeding in taming his racing thoughts, especially his double guessing if it would not be better if he left Wei Wuxian alone. Perhaps then, the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple would actually be able to get some decent sleep. There was only one problem with this course of action, his heart would not let him abandon the other.

They stayed like that until the time of the end of the lectures was upon them. Not even an incense stick later, he could hear hurried steps approaching from the outside. The door flew open without any care for whoever could be sick in the infirmary, and Jiang Wanyin swept inside like a hurricane. He did not even stop to see that Lan Wangji was there, if he had noticed his presence, he did not acknowledge it. Instead, he took a bee line to where his brother had been laying until now.

Lan Wangji’s earlier suspicion must have been correct because Wei Wuxian sat on his bed, immediately alert and awake. It was possible that he could act like that normally, but if Jiang Wanyin’s surprised expression had anything to say, it was not his usual waking up routine. And frankly, with what Lan Wangji had known about Wei Wuxian before his coming to the Cloud Recesses, he was almost certain that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple would not be one to get out of the bed easily.

At that exact moment, another lithe figure came in, much more quietly and slowly. It was Jiang Yanli. She at least noticed Lan Wangji sitting on one of the beds and bowed to him in greeting: “Second Young Master Lan, thank you for taking care of A-Xian. We heard what had happened from Zewu-Jun.”

Minutely, Lan Wangji wondered what exactly Lan Xichen had told them. He personally had not explained anything to his brother, and neither had Wei Wuxian, unless he had done so while Lan Wangji had still been unconscious. No matter what the story behind was though, it did not look like it was all that important. As Jiang Yanli mentioned, the paramount part was that both Wei Wuxian and he himself were fine. Or, as fine as they could be.

Lan Wangji was just humming his reply and standing up to reciprocate Jiang Yanli’s courtesy when Jiang Cheng exclaimed loudly: “Wei Wuxian! Quit always worrying Sister like this! What in the hell have you even been doing to finish in the infirmary? Were you not supposed to go copy the rules as punishment? Just wait what mother and father would have to say about this, you are bringing shame to the Yunmeng Jiang sect already. And it is only the first day we are here!”

Jiang Yanli saw that the conversation – if it could even be called a conversation with how one-sided it was – between her brothers was not progressing well. She shot an apologetic smile to Lan Wangji and hurried over to mediate between them: “Now, now, A-Cheng. You know that A-Xian had not been feeling too well lately. I am sure that he will get better with some good rest. We do not have to immediately alert mother and father.”

“Hmpf,” Jiang Wanyin did not seem quite convinced but he still stopped scolding Wei Wuxian.

He turned his head away in a clear message that he did not want to have anything in common with his brother. It was only then that he noticed Lan Wangji standing next to his own bed. His eyes widened in shock and he at least had enough decency to look ashamed of his outburst. Good, Lan Wangji though, he did not like the way the Yunmeng Jiang sect heir had been treating his brother.

Jiang Yanli sighed in what sounded like fond exasperation and she turned towards the older of her brothers. “A-Xian, how are you feeling?” she asked with worry.

Once again, Wei Wuxian’s demeanour and behaviour changed drastically from one second to the other.  His lips parted in a wide grin and he made a show of stretching his limbs lazily and yawning: “I am fine Shijie, I slept very well.” Then, he grinned at his younger brother and playfully reached out to poke his side, assuming a chastised and apologetic look while still maintaining a mischievous glint in his eyes: “A-Cheng, do not be like this. I am sorry, alright? I have just been tired as Shijie said, I am all better now. I will not cause any more trouble, I promise.”

“You better not,” Jiang Cheng grumbled under his breath but seemed to have let the matter go for now. Though he was still scowling grumpily and unhappily. “What are you waiting for then, let us go back!” he snapped when Wei Wuxian did not seem like he was about to follow him any time soon.

That was it, Lan Wangji had had enough. Where did Jiang Wanyin think he was? This was the infirmary, a place of quiet and recovery, he was not allowed to shout and make a scene here. Yes, that was it, that must have been the reason why Lan Wangji was angry. Definitely not because he saw Wei Wuxian slightly twitch with the angry words and look ever more miserable than before. Definitely not because he wanted to help him and protect him from his brother’s reproaches.

He calmly approached the trio of Yunmeng Jiang sect siblings. He had seen enough; Wei Wuxian was still not feeling well and he needed more rest. Evenly and calmly, he addressed the Yunmeng Jiang sect heir: “Jiang Wanyin, this is an infirmary, restrain yourself.”

After a second of deliberation, he decided that it was better for the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple to stay here for the night and not have to deal with his brother at least for a short while. It saddened him greatly when he realized that he would also have to leave for the night, both because he was not truly sick and would not be allowed to stay in the infirmary for much longer and because the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had not been sleeping in his presence.

“Wei Wuxian needs to stay here for the night. Leave now.”

Jiang Wanyin looked like he was about to dispute but Jiang Yanli gently stopped any arguments: “A-Cheng, Second Young Master Lan is right. A-Xian is still recovering and he needs his rest. He should not go against the orders of the healers.”

This at least seemed to have stopped any further arguments. Jiang Wanyin did not look happy in the slightest, his cheeks puffed out as if he was a small child throwing a tantrum, but he did not oppose any longer.

Wei Wuxian also chipped in and teased: “Do not worry Jiang Cheng, I will make sure to grace you with my presence the first thing tomorrow morning. Or…” He blinked several times and made a childish face, “could it be you are worried about me? Will you be missing me?”

“Who is worried, you idiot!” snapped Jiang Wanyin and as quickly as he had come into the infirmary, he stormed out like a raging winter blizzard.

Wei Wuxian laughed loudly and it was like music for Lan Wangji’s ears. And oh, he wished that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple would never stop laughing like that.

Jiang Yanli sighed exasperatedly again but the smile playing on her lips was betraying her fondness for her brothers’ antics. She bowed to Lan Wangji: “Second Young Master Lan, please excuse my brothers. A-Cheng is only worried because A-Xian had not been doing well for a while. I hope that he will get better in the care of the Gusu Lan sect healers.”

She turned towards her brother and reminded him with pretended sternness: “A-Xian, do not cause any more trouble for Second Young Master Lan. Get to sleep early today and me and A-Cheng will see you tomorrow.”

“Of course, Shijie,” agreed Wei Wuxian easily and smiled at her reassuringly. Jiang Yanli smiled back and then she left. The Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s face fell.

Chapter Text

“Sleep well,” whispered Lan Wangji more to himself than to Wei Wuxian and, with a heavy heart, followed after Jiang Yanli out of the infirmary.

From the corner of his eye, he had seen Wei Wuxian’s shoulders sagging and his expression betraying exhaustion. He knew he was not welcomed here; he worried that if he stayed, the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple would only pretend to sleep again and not get any real rest. Which right now was less than optimal solution.

For the whole afternoon, Lan Wangji had been thinking about all of this. He had already concluded that the visions he had been seeing must have in fact been Wei Wuxian’s dreams. They only ever happened when he was close to the Yunmeng Jiang sect disciple and, that was the second condition, every time, when the other had been either asleep or unconscious. It did not seem like a far-fetched guess to assume that Wei Wuxian had been dreaming during those moments.

What was however still not sitting quite right with Lan Wangji and the question he could not find an answer to was something different. Sure, those visions could have been only fruits of Wei Wuxian’s abundant imagination and could not have to have anything in common with reality. After all, the events that Lan Wangji had seen had been so horrible that he was reluctant to believe them being reality.

However, deep down, he had to admit that he was worried about them being in fact the other’s memories. It did not seem possible for them to be dreams foretelling the future, for that, they had been way too precise. Lan Wangji had also felt everything that Wei Wuxian had had and had heard his thoughts. If those were not memories, he did not know what else they could be. No matter how unbelievable or improbable this was.

His heart was hurting at this realization. To live – or even dream about it if his guess was not correct which he truly did not believe to be the case – a war, to fight in it and be hurt so terribly his whole body would be aching all over… That was something which was bringing tears to his eyes. He could still not fully figure out what exactly was happening, but one thing he knew: Wei Wuxian was suffering and he hated it.

When he left the infirmary, he headed to his brother’s rooms. He had no intention of going back to his own quarters and pretend like nothing was happening. He needed – yes, needed to, it was a want so urgent and strong that it could not be called differently –  to make sure that Wei Wuxian would be alright. He needed to keep an eye on him and if another nightmare popped up, he needed to be by his side to help him. If not during the nightmare as such, then at least in the aftermath. He had no idea how he was going to do this, but the urge to act was stronger than anything he had ever felt.

Lan Xichen had seemed surprised but he did not oppose his request to take the night patrol duties. Lan Wangji could only wonder what his brother had seen in his eyes, but one look had been enough for him to agree. He only reminded him to still go back to his room and get some sleep after he finished the patrol. Lan Wangji only nodded in acknowledgment; he was not able to promise anything.

His permission obtained; he hurried back to the infirmary. He did not enter the building where Wei Wuxian was presumably already sleeping, all the windows were dark even at this time way before the curfew. Just as he had done during the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s first night in the Cloud Recesses, he sat down on a rooftop of another building and watched the dark windows. This time, he hoped to see another vision so he would be able to make more sense of what was happening.

It did not even take a full incense stick of time and Lan Wangji’s heart started beating faster as images of a new vision flashed in front of his eyes…

Lan Wangji was running through the Cloud Recesses and was dragging someone behind him. He was feeling ecstatic and in anticipation. He could feel his lips shifting into a wide grin when he finally saw the people he had been trying to catch up to. He slowed his pace and waved his hand at Lan Xichen and another Lan Wangji, a young one this time.

“Young Master Wei, Young Master Jiang, here you are. Are you ready? Should we go now?”

Lan Wangji nodded enthusiastically: “Of course, Zewu-Jun, we cannot wait! But still…” he became more pensive and intrigued, “receiving reports about water ghouls in Caiyi Town, how peculiar… I would have thought that people living near a great lake like that would be good swimmers.”

Lan Wangji opened his eyes and was trying to catch his scattered thoughts. This vision was so different from all his previous ones. It was vivid and he really felt like he had lived through it, as Wei Wuxian, that was. Moreover, this particular scene must had been set in not a very distant future. The dream Lan Wangji and Lan Xichen were young, perhaps even as young as right now. Could the vision had been referring to an event which would take – had taken? – place during the guest lectures?

Lan Wangji’s heart was racing and his stomach was knotted, his mind was hazy with adrenalin and fear for his life. He was balancing himself on his sword with the last of his strength and he was afraid that if Su She would not finally stop squirming around, he would drop both him and Wen Ning into the bubbling black water below. He had finally figured out what lurked beneath the surface of Biling lake. Those were not normal water ghouls, but rather a Waterborne Abyss.

With heart overflowing with gratitude, he was finally able to pass Wen Ning to Jiang Cheng. However, at the same time, something grabbed his left ankle. He looked down with a terrible dreadful feeling. It was the Waterborne Abyss. Then, he was yanked from his sword and he was falling.

The impact did not hurt as much as he had imagined, although his back sore from previous punishments assigned by Lan Qiren did not make the experience much desirable. What was worse was the omnipresent resentment in the water. It immediately surrounded him and crushed and pushed from all sides. It was suffocating and scary.

Lan Wangji’s visions was slowly giving up as he was fighting the instinct to breathe in the murky water. His mind was hazy and he could not move his body even if he had somehow been able to figure out what exactly he should be doing. The resentful energy was probing at him and whispering incoherent and undecipherable promises. He raised his hand to meet it half way. It touched him tentatively…

Lan Wangji woke up from his vision so abruptly he almost fell down from the rooftop. Only his years of rigorous training had helped him to keep holding on. He was utterly horrified. Wei Wuxian had almost died just now. Be if not for the dream version of Lan Wangji who had pulled him out of the water, he would have been taken over by the resentful energy and become a part of the Waterborne Abyss.

That definitely cannot happen, not in reality! Lan Wangji had felt all the fear that Wei Wuxian had had and he was determined to not let this particular future occur if it even should. Not if he would have any say in it. And even if it would happen despite all his efforts, he would make sure to pull the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple out faster.

Chapter Text

Lan Wangji got hardly any sleep that night. He had spent the whole time watching the window to the infirmary, wishing Wei Wuxian to have a good rest. All the while though, he knew that it was the farthest from the truth as it could get. Ever since coming here, he never stopped having more and more visions, every one more confusing and terrifying than the other. For various reasons.

Lan Wangji sitting in a gorge of a cavern and playing some unknown music while watching the moon. It sounded like a melody from the Gusu Lan sect. He was immensely sad and there was a suffocating longing in his heart. Longing for someone he had long lost and could never have back. For someone who was far away but still felt close with the song.

Snap.

Lan Wangji was laying on a piece of rock and seeing Wen Qing and Wen Ning in front of him. Both Qishan Wen sect siblings were telling him something with tears in their eyes. He did not hear their words clearly; his hearing was muffled and his head was getting dizzy with how much his heart was hurting. Hot tears were running down his cheeks and there was an agonized scream stuck in his throat. Then, everything went black.

Snap.

Lan Wangji was fighting in the middle of a chaotic battle. He was surrounded by fierce corpses from all sides. But he was not scared. On the contrary; they were all obeying his command, even if it costed him way more strength than he was ready to admit. His head was pounding heavily as he mechanically moved his fingers across the flute, creating an unsettling tune. It was mixing with the screeching and whispers in his ears and making him even dizzier.

Snap.

Lan Wangji was standing in front of a cavern. There were many young cultivators shuffling nervously behind him. There was that other older Lan Wangji standing by his side. They were facing a crowd of enraged cultivators who demanded they returned their children to them. Lan Wangji smiled sadly, were they about to misunderstand him once again?

Suddenly, a horde of fierce corpses came running in from the surrounding forest. Lan Wangji ushered everyone to come into the cave so he could protect them. The older version of himself was still by his side, as if refusing to take even a single step away. Lan Wangji’s heart was warm and he smiled to himself, happy and moved.

Snap.

Lan Wangji was running away in panic. He heard frantic pants approaching from behind. He looked back and his heart almost stopped. The fangs of the beast pursuing him and its sharp claws seemed as close as ever. He was about to be attacked any second now, the dog was enormous and fierce, it  would snap his neck in a single bite.

“Lan Zhan, save me!” he shouted on top of his lungs. He was calling for the only person who was still on his side after everything, the only person who had promised not to leave him ever again.

An older version of Lan Wangji suddenly descended from the sky as a graceful deity. Lan Wangji’s heart stopped beating for a second time. Now for a different reason though. ‘Lan Zhan looks way too handsome like this,’ he though.

Snap.

Lan Wangji was screaming his lungs out. There was a vivid fire ranging in his lower abdomen, exactly where his golden core rested. He turned his head to the side and thought his tears looked at Jiang Cheng who way laying next to him. He knew for whom he was doing this. He knew it, and he would not be swayed in his determination by a little bit of pain. His brother needed his golden core way more, how else was he to revive the Yunmeng Jiang sect?

Snap.

Lan Wangji was darting away from a sword pointed at him. He was sitting on the ground and his hands were tied so there was not much space to actually escape. Though, he had no intention of actually getting away. The older version of Lan Wangji was sitting by his side and he had to protect him. Instead of avoiding the sword, he was putting his own body in between the weapon and the older Lan Wangji’s chest.

Snap.

Lan Wangji skipping towards the older version of himself and he was grinning widely. The shopping street was lively and he loved it. He was especially excited by all the stuff he could see at the festival stalls. And most of all, there was another eye candy standing just up ahead, waiting for him. The older Lan Wangji smiled faintly when he came closer and stopped in front of him. They looked into each other’s eyes and Lan Wangji almost could not contain himself out of sheer happiness. He had no idea what he had done in his previous life to deserve someone as perfect as Lan Zhan.

Snap.

Lan Wangji felt stabbing pain in his abdomen. It was so bad and so sudden that he only stood there, completely frozen and did not even lift a hand to defend himself. And why would he when it was his nephew who had just stabbed him? And was that sword the one he had inherited from the father that Lan Wangji had killed in his previous life? He closed his eyes and let his knees give out under him. There was no more need for fighting, he deserved it. He was the terrible Yiling Patriarch after all, he should not be haunting the cultivation world and hurt all those he loved for another second.

Snap.

Lan Wangji’s eyes widened as a sea of arrows was shot in his direction. The Jin cultivators around the gorge were sneering at him and Jin Zixun looked like he was about to burst with pride and contentment. Lan Wangji lifted his flute to his lips but soon realized that there were no dead bodies for him to rouse anywhere in the vicinity. He was defenceless. Wen Ning’s figure flashed in front of him, blocking the attack. The Ghost general was the last person he had supporting and protecting him.

He wondered if Lan Zhan had betrayed him and had any hand in laying down this trap. After all, he had been the one who had sent the invitation to celebration of Jin Ling’s birth. Lan Wangji hunched his shoulders a little in pretence to be hiding better from the incoming arrows. In fact, he was being torn apart by heartbreak. Had Lan Zhan really betrayed him or did he have nothing to do with this ambush?

Lan Wangji lifted his flute; now was not the time to ponder on such matters, he had to protect himself or he would never be able to find out the truth from the man himself.

Snap.

The visons kept coming faster and faster and Lan Wangji’s head was now spinning so much he had to keep his eyes closed the whole time. He was even getting confused about where exactly he was or who he was.

The images were swimming in his mind, overtaking everything else. Was he Lan Wangji, the respected head disciplinarian of the Gusu Lan sect? Or was he Wei Wuxian from whose point of view he was seeing everything? Or was he an older Lan Wangji, the esteemed Hanguang-Jun who was very clearly in love with the former Yiling Patriarch?

He truly did not know anymore. His forehead was threatening to explode as he was doing his best to continue holding onto his sanity and not let himself be carried away by the violent torrents of someone else’s dreams. It was not helping at all that the visions were not in any particular chronological order, at least as far as he could tell. Moreover, Wei Wuxian was also getting called another name in several of them. Who was Mo Xuanyu and what was his relationship to the current Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple?

There were so many questions in Lan Wangji’s mind. Although he was seeing more and more fragments of memories, he was only getting more confused with each new one. They did not fit together at all. How could they when Wei Wuxian was at times a happy and smiling youth, and then he transformed into a broken young man who could manipulate resentful energy and even another youth who went under the name of Mo Xuanyu and had an older version of Lan Wangji travelling with him around the cultivation world and protecting him?

Just who was Wei Wuxian?

Chapter Text

Through the haze in his head, Lan Wangji unsteadily got to his feet. He had seen enough and he felt like he could not bear anymore. If everything he was seeing were in fact Wei Wuxian’s memories, or even if they were premonition dreams of his future, no one was supposed to go through so much pain in their lifetime. He had to do something to help the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple.

How? He had no idea, he just needed to be by his side. And that was right now.

Lan Wangji was seeing all red. The resentful energy was raging inside of his body and making even breathing an impossible feat. Its whispers had transformed into screams and it was hard to have a single clear thought. His heart had already been broken into million pieces after seeing ashes of his two best friends – and siblings – being scattered into the wind. As if they were some criminals. Eyes of the whole cultivation world were piercing him at that moment, full of hatred and murderous intent.

Lan Wangji’s mind was still being flooded by images of events which had not yet happened and it was hard for him to concentrate on anything else. He pushed through though and did his best to stagger to the edge of the rooftop he had been until then sitting on. His depth perception was greatly perturbed, but luckily, he still remembered just how deep down the ground was. His landing was less than graceful; not that it mattered anyhow, it was late after curfew and there was no one around to see him. And even if there was, just let them see, Lan Wangji had more important places to be.

Lan Wangji was being carried away by someone. There was a known fragrance in the air, however, where it had before made him comfortable, it now irritated him to no end. He could hear a familiar voice, but he could not make sense of the words. Or was the other even speaking? Perhaps they were screaming, just like him.

He fought tooth and nail to escape the suffocating imprisonment. He needed to go back and rescue what he still could of the remains scattered in the wind. The strong hands around him only let go after a very long time, when he had already depleted all his physical forces and his voice was hoarse from screaming. “Go away! Leave me alone!” He was pushing the other person away with all his might.

Lan Wangji staggered through the short distance between the building he had been sitting on top of and the infirmary. He did not remember the distance being so long before. He gritted his teeth and pushed on. He knew that Wei Wuxian needed him. He was sure of it with the same certainty as that the sun would go up in the east every morning without a fail. His heart was urging him to hurry more and more.

Lan Wangji opened his eyes in complete darkness. It took him a minute to realize that it was in fact not so dark. There was moonlight coming in through cracks in the door and windows. He had no idea where exactly he was or what he was doing here. Suddenly, the door burst open and someone kicked him to his chest so hard that he lost his breath and on top of it, was also propelled onto the ground. He coughed laboriously, squinting his eyes at the intruders.

Lan Wangji only barely noticed that the moonlight disappeared and the night got a lot darker. The moon was now shadowed by clouds and he almost missed the door handle. Almost. Of course, he remembered where it was and threw the door open as soon as he got hold of it. He was in such a hurry that he did not even knock, ignoring how inappropriately and impolitely his entrance could be perceived. If Wei Wuxian had not been glaring at him before this, he surely would start disliking him even now.

Why though, a small part of Lan Wangji’s brain pondered. It was clear from those visions that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had been quite friendly with the older version of Lan Wangji. If friendly was even the correct word. More like infatuated really. He could feel it very well during those few visions which were less violent and hurtful and which were starring the older version of Lan Wangji who was smiling at the boy called Mo Xuanyu.

Upon this realization, Lan Wangji had another, even deeper, one.

Not only was Wei Wuxian apparently in love with him, but Lan Wangji returned the feelings. Not only was this true for the Lan Wangji from the visions, but for himself as well. He had thought that it had been just protectiveness, but seeing those two adult men together in his dreams, his own heart was now full of conflicting feelings and emotions.

He was well aware that he only knew Wei Wuxian for but a day, nevertheless, he could not fool himself into believing that he did not know the other well. He had just seen so many visions, so many memories, it was impossible to think otherwise. He had just witnessed Wei Wuxian’s whole life, whether the person in question was aware of it or not.

Perhaps he did not know, thought Lan Wangji. After all, the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had been keeping his distance from him at all times – so much unlike during those visions – and refused to even talk to him. The reason for this discrepancy between the dreams and the reality kept escaping Lan Wangji’s understanding. All he knew was that Wei Wuxian was hurting and he did not like it.

Lan Wangji felt something hot slowly dripping out of his nose. Bewildered, he raised his hand and widened his eyes when he discovered there was blood on it. The older version of Lan Wangji and Jiang Cheng were watching him with shock clear in their eyes.

“Lan Zhan, let us go away,” he whispered with difficulty.

His head was pounding painfully and spinning, making the whole world feel out of focus. His lower abdomen was as empty as ever and he was terrified of Jiang Cheng finding out. He truly did not want to deal with his brother right now. And preferably never. This was something he had decided to take with him to his grave.

He heard the sound of Zidian crackling behind his back and wanted to turn around. At this point, confrontation seemed inevitable. His body was however apparently in much worse shape than he was willing to admit. His knees gave out under him and his eyes closed against his will. Only a steady hand around his waist was keeping him from falling down and cracking his head open like an overripe melon.

The inside of the infirmary was pitch dark, even darker than outside. Lan Wangji minutely lamented not being prepared and not having a fire talisman with him. He however quickly recovered and continued to where he remembered the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s bed was. It was not hard to find it despite the darkness. Wei Wuxian was faintly whimpering and the rustling of sheets caused by fitful sleep was filling the room. It did not matter that Lan Wangji could not see quite right because of always more and more images invading his sight.

He followed those sounds until his outstretched hand could feel another person’s warmth. The whimpering intensified and Lan Wangji could now recognize a few words of begging and calling of his name. It was going together with the visions of a massacre of some elderly people in the Qishan Wen sect clothing.

Lan Wangji did not hesitate even for a second. It was the nightmares which were causing the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple so much distress and it was time to end it. Lan Wangji’s hand found Wei Wuxian’s shoulder and he shook it decisively.

“Wei Ying!” he called at the same time. Using the name he had just heard so many times in the visions felt only natural.

Chapter Text

“Wei Ying!” Lan Wangji called in a desperate attempt to wake Wei Wuxian up. He also continued to shake the other’s shoulder.

Lan Wangji was frozen in utter horror and his knees gave out under him. There, just in front of his eyes, was a scene he never wanted to happen. Jiang Cheng moved faster than him and he cradled the bleeding body of their sister into his arms. Shock was written all over his face and he shouted desperately: “Sister!”

Lan Wangji’s body finally moved and he was able to crawl closer on his hands and knees. He would not have been able to stand even if he had tried to. He was way too shaken. He reached out his hand, unsure how he could fix this but willing to do anything for his sister. Jiang Yanli could not be dead, she simply could not. She must have still been alive, although heavily wounded. They needed to get her help.

“Do not touch her! It is all your fault!” Jiang Cheng screamed in a fit of righteous fury. He slapped his hand away and Lan Wangji immediately retreated. It hurt way more than such a simple gesture should have.

Lan Wangji truly needed to get the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple from the grasp of his nightmares. If he had not believed before that the visions he had been seeing had been the other’s night terrors, he would have now. Wei Wuxian was whimpering under his breath, sometimes sobbing, sometimes calling out for people that Lan Wangji did not even know, even though his name was the most common in the mix. He was visibly in pain, his brows furrowed tragically and his head was moving from one side to the other as he was trying to escape the horrors on his own.

Lan Wangji was running through a field of high grass. His body was hurting all over and he could not quite get a propre breath. His heart was broken several times over and he had no idea if it would ever become full again. He just knew that the wounds on his back had opened up again. Not that he cared though. He sped up some more and reached out his hand to catch the running figure in front of himself. Finally, he succeeded and Jiang Cheng was stopped in his mad rushing. His brother turned around with an expression of pure fury.

Lan Wangji’s eyes were tearing up and it took all of his concentration to stay in the current moment. The visions continued to plague his sight, one more violent and confusing than the other. All extremely painful to watch.

Lan Wangji was being pushed down onto his back by Jiang Cheng. His heart was broken again. How many times had it been now? He knew that it was all his fault, everyone had died because of him. His brother did not even have to say it aloud – scream it at him on top of his lungs – for him to be drowning in guilt and helplessness. How could he atone now? It was already too late, only regrets remained.

Perhaps it would have been better if he had never been brought to Lotus Pier. Perhaps it would have been better if Uncle Jiang had never found him. Perhaps…

Suddenly, he could not breathe anymore at all. Jiang Cheng’s hands were tightening around his throat. He closed his eyes; if this was how Jiang Cheng wanted him to atone, he would not object. He deserved it.

“Wei Ying!” Lan Wangji called again and shook the other’s shoulder one more time.

Who knew what finally did the trick, but Wei Wuxian sat up abruptly, gasping for breath. Lan Wangji could only see his silhouette, white guest disciple’s uniform was a speck of a lighter space in the darkness. Just like Wei Wuxian’s widely open eyes.

Lan Wangji of course could not tell what kind of expression the other had or how much he was still affected by the previous terror. However, he had a pretty good idea as the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple pushed his hand away immediately and curled into himself. Lan Wangji could hear quiet sobs and gasps for air. Wei Wuxian was still very much in distress.

“Wei Ying…” he called out for him for the third time that night.

All he wished to accomplish was to ground Wei Wuxian to the present moment and remind him that he was not in his nightmares – memories – anymore. He wanted to tell him that if everything he had seen should one day come to pass, he would do his utmost to not let it happen or at least be by his side and support him. His heart was full of determination to protect the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple, from the whole cultivation world if it came to it.

He had no idea from where such strong feelings were coming from. He was usually much more successful in controlling his emotions and urges. They had no place in the Cloud Recesses. However, right now, his heart was agitated without any means for him to control it. A small part of him actually did not want to do that. He had seen the older version of himself smile tentatively and indulgently at Wei Wuxian and he knew the other loved it, he had felt it in fact.

“Wei Ying…” he tried again to calm the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple down. He hated to see him in such a state and was at a loss of what else he could do to help.

This time around, the call had been acknowledged. Although in a different way than he had expected and hoped.

He more felt than saw Wei Wuxian sitting upright. The atmosphere around him suddenly shifted into something way colder and much less welcoming. For a space of the longest second Lan Wangji had ever lived, the world seemed to have stopped and waited in tense silence together with him.

How would Wei Wuxian reply to him? Would he go back to acting as he had done since yesterday, cold and reserved and pushing Lan Wangji away, or would he behave as he had in his dreams? Though that would be a lottery as well since the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple from the visions already had way too many faces: a happy-go-lucky teenager, a broken young man, a terrifying and hated-by-all Yiling Patriarch, a calm and somewhat subdued youth who was tormented by his past but still managed to enjoy life to the fullest. Which one would greet Lan Wangji this time?

“Second Young Master Lan, what are you doing here?” Wei Wuxian asked. His voice was as cold as ever, displeased and full of disapproval.

Lan Wangji’s heart fell. It looked like the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple was for reasons which completely escaped his understanding and imagination back to his previous behaviour. It was almost like his nightmares never existed in the first place. As if he did not know who Lan Wangji was and treated him like a stranger who had just broken uninvited into his room at night. It hurt.

Chapter Text

“Wei Ying, I..” Lan Wangji tried to find his words.

Now that he was no longer being kept prisoner of the visions, he could finally think clearly. And he realized that he had no idea how to respond to Wei Wuxian’s sudden coldness. It felt like going from basking in warm afternoon sun to being submerged in ice cold water. The change really was too big and too quick for him to follow properly.

He more felt than saw that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple glared at him and straightened his posture even more. The atmosphere got even more icy, if that was possible. Lan Wangji must have offended him somehow. He thought back to what it could have been but came out emptyhanded.

Wei Wuxian did not leave him in the dark for long though: “Second Young Master Lan, please do not be so familiar with me.”

Lan Wangji was confused. He had no idea what Wei Wuxian was talking about. Had he not just dreamed about him? Had he not just been friends and more with him in those visions? Why was he suddenly acting like he did not know Lan Wangji at all? Or perhaps there was something more to this? It was very confusing indeed.

“Wei Ying, what…” Lan Wangji tried again only to have his voice disappear into nothingness before he even formed a full sentence. He could feel a cold stare on his person and he had forgotten what he had wanted to say. He shivered under the unseen gaze.

Wei Wuxian’s tone had become several degrees colder and more displeased when Lan Wangji did not continue with his explanation. He sounded annoyed and tired: “Second Young Master Lan, we barely know each other, so please refrain from addressing me in such improper manner. Otherwise, I may start thinking that the esteemed Gusu Lan sect cannot educate their own disciples properly. I offered you respect and it is only polite to return it, do you not think so? Now, if that was everything you wanted, please leave.”

It took Lan Wangji a moment to gather himself. He was shocked that he had been called out for being impolite, by Wei Wuxian of all people. He still could not understand how it was possible for the Yunmeng Jiang sect disciple to dream about being in love with him one second and then be rejecting him like this the next one. It was almost as if they were two people different people altogether. Two different people with two different sets of memories, there was no other explanation.

He straightened his spine and stubbornly refused to leave despite being directly told so. At least not until he made sure that when Wei Wuxian would go back to sleep, he would not have any more night terrors. He could not bear the thought of leaving the other here to suffer all alone. If only those dreams were of a nice kind, Lan Wangji would not have minded. But what he had seen in his visions, those were truly terrifying scenes which would keep one cowering under their blanket in pitch darkness with their nerves all around the place.

He was actually amazed that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple was as composed as he was right now. Lan Wangji doubted that he would have been able to keep himself this untouched and under control. Not with dreaming about a war and being injured and in pain so many times.

He swallowed down his nervousness and the urge to grab the other’s shoulders and shake him until that cold demeanour would crumble and Wei Wuxian would display at least some emotions. Well, other than his clear distaste for Lan Wangji, that was. There was enough of that at the moment.

“Wei Yin…” he started but when the air around him got colder still, he quickly corrected himself, “Wei Wuxian, you were having a nightmare.”

His heart was hurting for no particular reason when he had to forgo the more familiar birth name in favour of the courtesy one. However, if he was going to get somewhere this way and would accomplish lowering Wei Wuxian’s defences the tiniest bit, it would still be worth it. All he wanted was to help the other, nothing more.

He heard a quiet groan from the bed and only barely stopped himself from reaching out. He was cursing the darkness of the infirmary as he could not see what Wei Wuxian’s reaction was and why he sounded like he was in pain. All he could tell was that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple put his head into his palms – he could no longer see the white of his eyes shining through the omnipresent darkness – and hear how his breathing had become somewhat ragged.

“Nightmares…?” he whispered in a tone which was betraying confusion. Or disbelief perhaps, Lan Wangji could not tell with certainty.

Then, the vulnerable moment was over and Wei Wuxian picked himself up. The bed sheets rustled as he moved to sit straight again. His eyes pierced Lan Wangji’s very soul when he went back to glaring at him.

“Second Young Master Lan,” he said, putting accent on every word so as to there would be no room for misunderstanding. “I do not know what you are talking about. It truly is inappropriate of you to come into my room during the night. Leave.”

Lan Wangji had tears in his eyes. He hated seeing Wei Ying, his Wei Ying, like this. It was not him. He still did not get how it had happened, or what had happened for that matter, for the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple to behave like this with him. He had seen him, he knew him, this was not Wei Ying.

With such a clear rejection though, there was only little he could do. Heartbroken, he turned around and headed out of the infirmary. It felt as if everything had just gotten stripped away from him. The light of his days, his reason for living, his future… his whole life was gone with just one word from Wei Wuxian.

‘Leave’, the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had told him. Lan Wangji could only obey.

Chapter Text

Lan Wangji turned away to do as Wei Wuxian had asked him to. To leave. To leave the infirmary, to get out of the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple’s sight, from his proximity, from his life. He was completely devastated and the wetness in his eyes was getting harder and harder to ignore. If he could see himself in a mirror right now, he was sure he would not recognize the person standing there. His expression must have been one of tremendous torment and heartbreak.

Wei Wuxian wanted him to leave. His whole world was crumbling and he was not certain how he was still managing to stay sane and standing. Leave. That word had pierced his heart like a dagger and was now being twisted and turned in place with his every heartbeat. He was amazed that he had not yet passed out from the agony.

Wei Wuxian wanted him to leave. The guest disciple he had just met yesterday – although he had heard rumours about him way prior to their first encounter – had gotten fed up with him in a single day. That should not have surprised him, he had always been told that he was not the best when it came to interaction between human beings. However, this one and only time, he had truly wished to make this work. He had tried his best, going out of his way and making sure to keep close to the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple. And it was still not enough.

Wei Wuxian wanted him to leave. He did not want to see him anymore. What if, Lan Wangji was scared by his own realization, it had been all because of him that the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple had been suffering? Was it for whatever reason his tenacity to stay close to him that had been hurting him all along? If that was the case, it was truly the best for him to leave and not look back. Wei Wuxian would be happier without him around.

But something made him stop before he even finished his first step. His heart had already felt like it was breaking and his eyes had been wet. However, a new sensation completely overtook him. He stood stunned in place, unable to move. He was in awe and shock, a pleasant one to his surprise. All that, because his sight got hazy again and he was seeing another vision. This time though, the main protagonist was he himself.

Lan Wangji was standing frozen in place, his spiritual energy locked away out of his reach and all he could do was watch as the light of his days, his beloved, his one and only soulmate was being held hostage by Jin Guangyao. There was a thin line of blood where a string was being held close to Wei Ying’s throat.

He felt like he was the one being strangled right now. He was internally panicking and promising murder. He had to somehow save Wei Ying from that monster which had been pretending to be his brother’s friend all the while he had been grinning maliciously from under the sheep’s clothing he had hid himself under.

Suddenly, Wei Wuxian shouted at the top of his lungs: “Lan Zhan! Lan Wangji! Hanguang-Jun! Back then, I-I really wanted to sleep with you!”

Everything stopped and froze for an undefined eternity. Even the Earth seemed to have held its breath and waited for what would happen.

Then, the world started moving again, in accelerated motion.

Jin Guangyao released Wei Ying from his hold, probably too shocked himself to keep holding onto him. Wei Ying all but run towards Lan Wangji and put his hands around him in a crushing hug, clinging to him for dear life. Lan Wangji was still too bewildered to react in any way. His mouth was agape as he wanted to ask that single question that was swirling in his mind in a myriad of different iterations. But no word came through his tight throat.

He wanted to make sure that he had not heard wrong. He wanted to ask Wei Ying if what he had just said had been meant as a joke, a not too tasteful distraction, or if he had confessed to him in all seriousness. And most of all, he wanted to hug him back.

Wei Ying clung to him even tighter and whispered into his ear: “I like you. Or in other words, I fancy you, I love you, I want you, I can’t leave you, I whatever you. I want to night hunt with you for the rest of my life.”

The vision ended and Lan Wangji found himself standing back in the dark infirmary. There was warm wetness on his cheeks, just like back then at the temple when Wei Wuxian had declared his undying love for him. Lan Wangji had never gotten to say those words back, the vision had been too brief and he had been too dumbstruck to react. Now, he could not bear it anymore. His chest felt like it would explode any second and he had trouble breathing.

His body moved on its own, knowing perfectly well what he needed. Before he even fully realized it, he was hugging Wei Wuxian with fierce force, determined to never let him go. He did not mind that his soulmate was in another body than the one in his vision. Or that his confession would most probably only come years in the future. The soul remained the same and Lan Wangji was just happy to keep holding onto him and cry.

They had made too many mistakes in the past and they had waited for way too long to be together. He would not let it happen a second time. Or, not at all if that was the case. He did not have the slightest idea why he had kept seeing those visions, but now he believed, it had been so he could avoid making the same stupid mistakes. If he was given this chance, he was not about to let it go. He took a deep breath and finally was able to let his voice out:

“Wei Ying, I love you.”

He finally, finally said those words which had been stuck in his throat and which were making so much sense to him. He had been agonizing the whole day over why he was so attracted to the Yunmeng Jiang sect head disciple, so much, that he was not willing to leave him alone or out of sight for even a minute. It had hurt whenever the other was cold to him or rejected him. It had just not felt right.

Now, at last, everything was as it should be. He had his Wei Ying back, and it was everything he could have ever wanted.

“I love you,” he whispered again, overjoyed and satisfied.

Then, there was only darkness. He closed his eyes and held his breath, preparing himself for the worst. He was waiting for Wei Ying’s reaction.

Chapter Text

The first thing Lan Wangji noticed was that someone was crying and panicking right next to him, calling his name nonstop in a more and more broken tone each time. The second thing was, that that someone’s voice was very familiar. In fact, it was the only voice he wanted to hear right now. It was Wei Ying, his Wei Ying.

But why was he in such distress? It was clear from the other’s voice that he was on a brink of a panic attack, if he was not already having one. Someone – Wei Ying for sure – was clutching his hand so hard it actually hurt. His palms were ice cold but sweaty at the same time. They were trembling too.

Realizing all this, Lan Wangji’s eyes shot wide open and scanned the unfamiliar room for his husband. After several tries, he finally found the figure and was able to focus his eyes on it. For some reason, his vision kept getting blurry and it was hard to retain concentration.

“Lan Zhan…” Wei Ying called out to him again, brokenly and wretchedly. As if his whole world had just crumbled and there was no way forward anymore.

Lan Wangji wanted to tell his husband that he was fine now. He wanted to reassure him, if nothing else. Since Wei Ying had his head buried in his hands which were clutching hard one of Lan Wangji’s, he could have not seen that he did not have to weep so pitifully anymore. Lan Wangji was awake and more or less present. There was nothing his husband should be worried about.

Lan Wangji opened his mouth to do just that, but realized that he could not speak a single word. His throat was parched and there was no way his voice would make it through. At this point, he was starting to panic himself. He needed to find a way to console Wei Ying, it hurt seeing him in so much pain. He tried to move his hand, the one that his husband was holding, to let the other know he was awake, but he could not even do that much. His body was refusing to listen to him.

In his heart, he was bubbling with frustration. To what end served his many years of cultivation when he did not have any strength in the moment it mattered the most? He was angry with himself, what was he doing if he could not even sooth and reassure his own husband at a time like this?

“Wuxian, look.”

Luckily, and to his never-ending relief, it seemed like he and his husband were not the only people in the room. His eyes strayed for just a fraction of a second a little above Wei Ying’s shoulder, to where the voice of his brother had come from. True enough, Lan Xichen was standing behind the crying former demonic cultivator and gently but urgently tapping his back to both sooth him and get his attention. He was speaking in a low voice, however, it still rung like shouting in Lan Wangji’s ears. Together with his husband’s distress, he was getting overwhelmed and even more frustrated at his inability to properly move or do anything right now.

Upon Lan Xichen’s prompting, Wei Ying suddenly stopped crying, as if he held his breath, and slowly lifted his head. Lan Wangji did his best to retain clarity in his vision, he would do anything not to lose the chance to finally see his soulmate’s face properly.

He was still confused with what had happened. He remembered blocking a throwing dagger which had been about to hit Wei Ying and getting scratched by it in the process. Then, he had been back to the Cloud Recesses during the time of his youth. Nothing had gone as in the past though. He recalled Wei Ying being extremely cold to him and telling him to leave him alone. The next thing Lan Wangji did, was confess and hug him with all his might and then he woke up here. He could not make sense of the events, especially the reason why he had been having such a terrible nightmare and why he had had no memories of his lifetime with Wei Ying during his sleep.

All of these questions could wait though. His husband was now looking at him, his eyes very red and puffy, he must have been crying for a while already. Luckily, his pained expression quickly brightened when he saw that Lan Wangji was awake. He went from a complete wreck to his usual smiling self in a matter of a single heartbeat.

“Lan Zhan,” he whispered hoarsely, “oh, Lan Zhan…”

It looked like he wanted to say much more, but he went silent, fighting with overwhelm. Lan Wangji understood the emotion, he was no less distressed and relieved. This was the Wei Ying he knew, not the one from his nightmare. He almost wanted to cry with how much he had missed his husband. He would not have survived any longer in a world where his soulmate was not by his side.

Suddenly, Wei Ying could not bear the separation for another second. In this aspect, they never had to say a single world and they always understood each other. He leaned down to hug Lan Wangji as much as he could given the awkward position.

Lan Wangji’s heart immediately slowed down, content. This was all he needed. Although he way still laying on his back and could not move an inch, this was perhaps the best hug ever. Only, it was sad that his body was still not willing to cooperate and return it. Looking back, there has been many hugs in the recent future which had gone one-sidedly, either from his side of from his husband’s.

“Lan Zhan…” sniffled Wei Ying into his chest.

Lan Wangji could feel the fabric of his inner robe getting wet right where his husband’s head was and he dearly wished he could move and comfort him. He had missed him as well. He could not tell how long he had been sleeping, or perhaps better description would be that he had been unconscious, but even several seconds would have already been too long. Wei Ying must have been very anxious. In the same way Lan Wangji would have been if it was his husband laying in the sick bed.

Once again, it was Lan Xichen who read his mind and hurried to help. He gently rubbed Wei Ying’s back and let his hand linger to provide support and comfort. Lan Wangji’s eyes flickered up from to shot him a quick look full of gratitude. Lan Xichen gave him a small smile in return.

Even as his expression remained worried, he reassured: “Wuxian, it is alright now. You brought him back.” He patted the former demonic cultivator’s back again before whispering more to himself than to anyone else: “You really brought him back…”

Chapter Text

After some more tight hugs and a thorough examination by a healer, a small man in olive green robes, Lan Wangji was finally being left to breathe for a second. Wei Ying and Lan Xichen lingered nearby so they would not obstruct the doctor’s work. Lan Wangji was shooting them glances ever so often during his examination. He dearly wanted it to be over, then, he would finally be able to properly sooth his husband who still looked quite distressed, although very relieved.

“Are you feeling any better now?” the healer asked him and Lan Wangji had to once again pay attention to him.

He managed to nod weakly. With the doctor’s careful care, he was finally able to control his body, if only a little bit. It was understandable though, when the thought about it.

Lan Xichen had quickly guessed that he had been confused and had provided at least the basic set of information. Apparently, he had been unconscious, or more like asleep since he had in fact been hit with a kind of sleep curse activated by poison on the dagger he had stopped for his husband. He did not yet get full clarity on all the details, but the main fact stayed the same; he had been asleep for over a month. No wonder his body was feeling all stiff and weak, the poison had also a pretty inconvenient side effect where it suppressed his golden core and basically made him a normal person, at least in what concerned his health.

“I am glad to hear that,” the healer gave him a nod of his own. He looked young and tired, he must have been taking care of Lan Wangji very diligently, and probably also without any rest. In fact, he was no better off than Wei Ying and Lan Xichen in this aspect.

He took out a bottle of medicine from his sleeve and prepared a concoction in a bowl. He did not directly move to make Lan Wangji drink it luckily. Although it was probably part of his job to make sure that his patients got their medicine, even when they were so weak they could not drink it by themselves, he had only put the bowl on a side table and stepped back with a long sigh. He must have been truly exhausted.

“This will help with your throat,” he explained as he pointed at the medicine.

Lan Wangji was confused for a second as to why he was just leaving it there. He wanted to take it immediately. If it could truly help him to be able to speak again, he needed it right this instant. He still had a very anxious and borderline panicking husband to reassure. Why would the healer not help him with this? He was still too weak to reach out for the bowl and drink the medicine without any help.

The healer ignored his worries, perhaps he could not read him or he was too tired to care anymore. Or he was aware that there were other people in the room who would support and help him.

Lan Wangji saw Wei Ying nodding his head vehemently from the corner of his eye. He seemed more than eager to take care of him. His heart was melting from the warmth which completely overtook it. He felt wetness well in his eyes.

It was such a stark contrast to the Wei Wuxian he had seen during his sleep, this was his husband, no doubts about it. Lan Wangji would not take it any other way, he was grateful that he was once again able to bask in Wei Ying’s love and kindness and not be constantly rejected and pushed away. Especially now that he knew how painful it could be. There was no way he would lose his husband ever again, he would not allow it.

“Of course,” his soulmate was quick to reassure the healer that he understood what needed to be done next.

The man looked satisfied and several wrinkles disappeared from his forehead. He turned back to Lan Wangji: “Second Young Master Lan, your golden core is already recovering, but I would still advise for you not to strain yourself for the next few days. Our sect leader will welcome you for however long will be required for your recovery. And,” at this he gave Lan Wangji a small tired smile, “Young Master Wei and acting Sect leader Lan will for sure explain the situation better than me. I will be in the room next door, come find me if you need anything.”

Lan Wangji gave a nod of gratitude, at least now he knew what he was facing. He had many more questions, but he did not want to keep the healer away from rest any longer, the man truly looked like he would keel over any second. He could get the whole story from Wei Ying.

His husband was as always thinking the same and he spoke for him, giving the man a bow of gratitude: “Thank you for all your hard work. I do not know what we would have done without you. Have a great rest.”

The man bowed back, his eyelids already dropping, and he left the room the next instant.

Lan Wangji wanted to have Wei Ying close so he appreciated it very much when Lan Xichen came to his bed to echo the doctor’s words: “Wangji, I am really happy that you are finally awake. These last few weeks have been extremely… challenging. I will also excuse myself, we can talk about official business at a later date. I believe that right now, you most likely want Young Master Wei by your side more than your boring older brother. Let me know if you need anything though, Wuxian knows where to find me.”

Once again, Lan Wangji could only nod his head. His throat remained mostly unusable despite having been made to drink some water not long ago. For now, this much seemed the only gratitude he could offer to his brother. For he was sure that Lan Xichen had been greatly underestimating the actual gravity of the current situation when he had said it was ‘challenging’.

The inter-sect politics and Wei Ying’s reputation had been pretty fragile when he had been injured by the dagger already, how bad could it have turned in one additional month without him fighting tooth and nail against everyone? After all, Lan Wangji had been injured during an attempt at his husband’s life. The events at the Guanyin temple had tipped the balances of power and relationships between the great cultivation sects and he had been running high and low to fix everything and to make the world know the truth about the events of sixteen years ago.

His brother must have had a really tough time when Lan Wangji had been indisposed. He also looked like it; despite keeping up a kind smile, his expression was deeply exhausted. There was also not so well hidden sadness and it was only now that Lan Wangji realized that Lan Xichen had come out of his seclusion and had interrupted his grieving period, presumably just for him. Someone must have maintained everything in order and step up as a temporary Gusu Lan sect leader. Lan Wangji could never wish for a better brother, he would have to thank him profusely once he was feeling better.

Finally, it was only him and Wei Ying in the room. Lan Wangji let himself relax more into his blankets, glad that he did not have to keep up any pretence in front of his husband. Although he had told the healer that he was doing better – which he was in fact – he was still far from recovered. He did not want to go back to sleep but his body was not exactly cooperating with him in this aspect.

He felt Wei Ying gently kissing his forehead and hugging him tightly again. He was keeping his eyes open with some difficulty, he wanted to see Wei Ying, his Wei Ying. Then, his husband gently helped him to sit up, holding him in place until he was able to get behind him and provide more support. It was time to take his medicine and to finally say what he had wished to ever since he had woken up: Wei Ying, I love you.

Chapter Text

“Lan Zhan, I am so happy to finally have you back…” Wei Ying sighed into Lan Wangji’s shoulder and cuddled a little closer to him.

It was now later into the evening of the same day and they both calmed down substantially. Wei Ying had crawled into his sick bed as soon as he had made sure that Lan Wangji was healthy enough so he would not aggravate his condition. Since then, they both stayed like that, fully satisfied with just laying there – occasionally dozing off but none of them was about to point it out – and being close to each other.

“Mn,” agreed Lan Wangji. He was happy to see his husband too. And more importantly, the loving version of him, not the cold and distant one from his dreams.

He was still confused with what had happened while he had been fighting with the poison. Now seemed like a good time to ask: “Wei Ying, how?”

Even with that simple of a question, which definitely did not contain the entirety of the situation, his husband still understood. He stirred a little and sat up, Lan Wangji followed his motions until they ended up with their backs against the head rest, still intertwined in a comfortable and soothing hug. He had a feeling that this was not going to be easy for either of them.

“After you have blocked that dagger for me, you just fell down like a dead. It was only a small wound so we were quite shocked a immediately called the healers. Brother Nie had arranged for you to stay here in the Unclean Realm and had smoothed the situation. I do not know how exactly, I did not care, I only wished to stay by your side and see if you were alright and how I could help.

We discovered pretty soon that the dagger had been poisoned. Though, it took us a lot more to understand what kind of poison it was. We had to contact your brother at that point and he arrived with all sorts of secret books from the Cloud Recesses Library pavilion. It was for nothing in the end, we still had no idea about anything. We would have not been able to even get a clue if Brother Nie had not caught the culprit behind the assassination attempt. They finally shed light into the curse the poison had triggered.

Such an ancient and vile curse… We were getting desperate as no one knew the cure. It was said that it had been used to punish criminals by making them relive their whole life in a dream. They would never wake up as the curse would take them through every small detail and would not be lifted until their memories came to the present day. What more, the victim would not remember anything from outside of the dream and would be trapped with no will to escape. What more, their memories would be altered ever so slightly to turn the whole ordeal into a nightmare.”

Suddenly, Lan Wangji had a bad feeling. He was suspecting he knew where this was going. But he kept quiet, unwilling to interrupt his husband. He just hoped that none of them would ever have to live through something like this again. He had had it easy, it had been Wei Ying who had suffered terribly.

“After days and days of research, we finally found a loophole in the curse’s structure. A loophole I decided to use to get you back.”

Wei Ying stopped talking and his expression suddenly looked very strained and his smile very fake. It seemed like he was not willing to reveal the exact functioning of the loophole. He was probably behaving like this because he believed that he could protect Lan Wangji in this way. Like all those other times when he would not say anything and needlessly suffer while pretending he still had his golden core and only chose to turn to demonic cultivation out of arrogance, not bare necessity of survival.

However, Lan Wangji needed to know the truth, if not to help his husband move on from his terrible past, than to protect him in case they should ever find themselves poisoned and cursed again. No matter how unlikely that was.

“Loophole?” he gently prompted and kissed Wei Ying’s forehead.

His husband sighed and turned his eyes away, a clear sign that what was coming was definitely not of a pleasant kind. However, he too understood that the solution needed to be known to both of them, for their safety.

“If the victim of the curse could remember their future, like the life they had lived before the curse was activated, then they would possibly be able to wake up.

There is a catch though. First, they would not be able to remember on their own and someone would have to risk going into the dream with them. The catch is, they would have to forget their own life beforehand or they would not be able to enter. One of the healers had given me a special medicine, apparently a secret of his family, which could make one forget. Secondly, that someone, the closer they had been to the trapped person before, the more their relationship would turn opposite to what it had been. After all, this curse was created to make people suffer and turn their life into a living nightmare… And last, depending on what exactly the trapped person would remember, they would also have to make the other recall the same memory or truth or they would only be able to escape the dreamland on their own, leaving the other stuck there forever.”

Lan Wangji drew his husband closer to his chest and hugged him tightly. Now he understood everything. Why Wei Ying had seemed so cold to him and also why he had been having so many nightmares. And especially how much danger he had put himself in when he had willingly drunk medicine to forget his life and joined Lan Wangji in his dream.

As he had made himself forget his life and was made to hate Lan Wangji on top of it, this was what probably caused him to have nightmares. Nightmares, that he would not remember once he had woken up because the curse would make him forget over and over again. The medicine must have only repressed the memories, not erased them. Such a cruel torture. It was true to say it should be used to punish criminals. Only, Wei Ying was not one. Never have been.

The only thing that Lan Wangji did not understand was why he had been able to see his husband’s repressed memories. Why had the curse not let him forget as soon as he had seen them? Why had he been able to witness them in the first place?

Wei Ying chuckled awkwardly in his arms and admitted quietly with a hint of guilty conscience: “I am happy it worked. The text we have found was only a theoretical study. No one had ever attempted to actually dive into the dream to rescue the cursed one. Or at least there were no recorded cases ever since the curse has been created hundreds of years ago by the founder of the Qishan Wen sect.”

With this, Lan Wangji could feel his husband’s breaths suddenly getting deeper and slower. Wei Ying fell asleep. He must have been truly exhausted from trying to rescue Lan Wangji and caring for him before that. He needed rest.

As did Lan Wangji himself. Any conversation he wanted to start could wait. They could tackle the open questions together at a later day. What did it matter that Lan Wangji had been able to see Wei Ying’s worst memories right now? Of course, they would have to talk about everything that his husband had been trough but was still hiding, but that could wait as well. Their minds would be refreshed and clearer after a good rest.

Lan Wangji’s eyelids were falling and he did not fight anymore. With the warmth of his husband in his arms and his soulmate’s head safely tucked in the crook of his neck, he slowly drifted to sleep. His dreams were ones of happiness and his beloved smiling Wei Ying stood by his side in all of them.