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Wuxian hates winter. He never had anything against it before but now.. he officially declares it as the worst season in the year. Lan Wangji spent many months building the most beautiful and magical place in the world and now he cannot sit in Little Sanctuary for too long because he could no longer tolerate the weather outside.
His daughter on the other hand seems unfazed by the chilly wind and soft layer of snow covering everything around them. Keeper Daozi gave her a small replica of Wuxian's coat minus the fur. She, unlike him, didn't have a low body temperature to overcompensate.
Yesterday was the last day of mourning for Hweiru's biological parents. They just came back from helping Lan Ran sort through their last affairs. The little girl clung to Wuxian's robes and stayed silent, speaking only when spoken to.
Wuxian wished he could carry her and hold her tight but his hand still hurts from time to time and she was overzealous when it comes to his health. Wuxian shudders when the 'salt rock incident' pops into his thoughts.
Watching her now, laughing and carefree while playing with the bunnies warms his heart. He can't feel his hands from the cold but her happiness is worth his minor suffering. She bounced towards him and lands on his lap: "Mama, what do we do next?"
Wuxian strokes her hair while she plays with his: "Well, I have to give a class next week and I was hoping you can help me prepare for it."
Hweiru's eyes sparkle: "Yes please!"
Wuxian chuckles over her enthusiasm: "I want to test a new trick I learned not so long ago. If it works and I master it.. let's just say that my students will never complain about having a teacher as unique as me."
Hweiru claps her hands: "How may I help?"
Wuxian nods to Wen Ning, who's sitting a few paces away: "Can you go with Uncle Ning and bring me food? I need tasty stuff that I can carry with me on the go."
Hweiru pumps her fist and says: "I'm on it!"
She jumps off of his lap and drags an amused Wen Ning towards the kitchens.
Wuxian moves towards the golden rabbit, currently cuddling between the other white ones and picks her up: "Are you ready to have fun."
Da Ziran glows and returns to her snake form: "I'm at your disposal, young Oracle."
His daughter returned after a few minutes, holding her robes up like a sack that she filled with food and snacks. Wen Ning followed her while shaking his head: "She demanded every snack in the kitchen. The cooks were too intimidated by her to refuse."
Wuxian pats her head proudly: "Good girl."
She beams up at him and carefully places the food on the blanket Wuxian was sitting on while watching her play with the bunnies: "Now what?"
Wuxian takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. He imagines a white crane and Da Ziran swiftly transforms into the magnificent bird. He shared his thoughts with his spirit animal and she took flight into the bright sky, ready to execute his vision. Wen Ning had no idea what his soul-brother was planning to do. Wuxian rarely shares his crazy ideas before he attempts them, which puts the fierce corpse a little on edge.
Wuxian looks down at his daughter: "My princess, your task is to make sure that I keep consuming food constantly. I need the energy to keep Da Ziran in her transformed state."
Hweiru nods and starts sorting the food and handing him snacks as he keeps his eye on the sky.
The white crane in the sky was joined by another.. then another.. then a few more. A few minutes later, the sky had a dozen or so cranes, all following Da Ziran as their leader. Wuxian smiled. He knew that this was just the beginning.
Wangji enjoyed being the leader of his clan and all other clans. He found the job rewarding. It challenged him in ways he never thought was possible. But, no matter how hard he tried, he can never seem to master politics like Zewu Jun. His brother knew how to play with fire and skirt the line between a false truth and a bluff. Wangji's inability to lie or sugar coat things have made his job as the Excellency very difficult. He was currently dealing with preparations for the upcoming summit they have arranged to discuss Shenhua Clan with the other clan leaders. He was worried because some of the clans have expressed their displeasure over having the Divine Oracle stationed in Cloud Recesses instead of allowing him to share his blessing with them all. They claimed that Wei Wuxian shouldn't be affiliated with any particular clan to avoid conflict.
The signatures Shenhua Kai brought last time were authentic. Even if they ignore it, it's still an issue that he needs to address with the utmost care to keep the delicate balance of peace between the clans. After all, Wuxian is his soul-bond. If they refuse to accept his affiliation with Lan Clan, they cannot deny his connection to Wangji. He has no clue how they're planning to argue over this topic but he needs to be prepared.
On his way to the main hall, the sky above him started to dim into darkness. It was the middle of the day so he looked up in confusion and found himself baffled over what he saw. Swarms of all types of birds were flying in the sky. There were so many of them that they blocked the sun rays, creating a false illusion of night.
Wangji saw his uncle and brother step out of their rooms after being called by freaked out disciples. Grandmaster Queen's mouth hung open: "What the..?"
Zewu Jun was confused: "Is someone attacking us?"
When Wangji heard the possibility of an attack, he broke into a run heading towards Little Sanctuary where his soul-bond told him he would be.
He ran with all his might and only stopped when he was greeted by the most majestic scene he has ever witnessed. Wuxian was holding Hweiru's hands, dancing and twirling around as they laughed out loud in a pure display of bliss. Birds of all shapes and sizes whirled around them, creating a serene scene like a musical dance.
The swarm above his soul-bond and daughter created a window for the sun to shine. The light reflected over the golden strands of Wuxian's swirling hair, making him shine and glimmer between the colorful birds. Zewu Jun says in a breathy voice: "This is remarkable."
Qiren nods slowly: "I have no words to express how magical this looks."
The moment was broken when Wuxian's disciples ran into the garden and Jingyi yelled in panic: "IS THIS THE END? IS THE WORLD ENDING?"
Qiren smacks the stupid boy on the back of the head and points towards Wuxian who just noticed their presence. The young Oracle opened his arms, gesturing to all the birds around him: "They listen to me!"
His wonder-filled expression was all Wangji needed to move close to him: "How?"
Da Ziran, who was now in the form of an owl, landed on his shoulder and he pointed at her: "She can speak the language of the animal she transforms to and I can speak to her."
Da Ziran transformed into a canary and after a few seconds, a few landed on Wangji's shoulder, singing his song in unison. Wangji's eyes widened when he recognized the melody. Hweiru pulled on Wuxian's robes to get his attention: "Mama, food!" She hands him a rice cake and he eats it while smiling at the people surrounding him.
Jingyi groans loudly. Taiho frowns at him: "What?"
Jingyi: "Can you imagine the colossal amount of bird poop we're going to have to clean after this?"
Kaoji panics a little: "We have to clean this mess?"
Wuxian puts his hand up as Da Ziran transforms back into a snake and slithers from his arm to torso. The birds scatter into different directions, leaving Cloud Recesses and allowing the sun to shine once more. Wuxian glares at his students: "You guys are such a buzzkill!"
Hweiru moves to stand in front of Jingyi and glares up at him as he reciprocates her intense gaze. She nods slowly: "Brother Jingyi."
He nods with the same threatening aura: "Hweiru."
It felt like they were having a silent intense stare war.
Wuxian whispers to his son: "Did I miss something?"
Taiho answers him instead: "They are fighting over who's your favorite."
Wuxian sighs, sharing a knowing look with Wen Ning then winking at the man when he smiles shyly.
Lan Wangji steps next to his soul-bond: "You can control any animal? Not just birds?"
Wuxian nods: "It started as a joke with the bunnies but I just proved my theory: If Da Ziran can transform to it, then I can communicate with it."
Grandmaster Qiren: "This is remarkable! We must test it out and see how far your influence reaches."
Wangji wraps his hand around Wuxians waist and whispers to him: "Don't over do it."
Wuxian points are his daughter: "She's been diligent with feeding me while I practice. We got this covered."
Zewu Jun says on his way out: "Brother Wei, make sure you rest up for tomorrow."
Hweiru looks up at Wuxian: "What's for tomorrow?"
Wuxian smiles nervously and says: "Tomorrow.. I will meet your grandfather for the first time."
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