Jin Ling tumbles in immediately, with Fairy at his heels. He quickly shuts
and locks the door, and then starts to check the windows to make sure
they’re locked. “It’s Jin Guangyao. He’s here. He’s alive. He’s missing his
arm after Hanguang-Jun cut it off him and I think he’s going to try to kill
me.”
Jin Ling makes another paranoid circuit of the home, then finally settles
down enough to curl up in a chair. Sizhui will know what to do. Jin
Guangyao won’t be able to get him if they’re together.
Once inside, he found Jin Ling closed the door and the locks the door for him. Then Jin Ling is running around in his apartment, checking the windows which they are indeed locked. He looks scared and terrified that Sizhui is worried for him in his nervous state. Tea will help hopefully.
Thankfully, its a sofa chair, so it's comfy enough to curled up on and Fairy is welcomed to hop on and curled up with. "Jin Ling? Are you...are you okay? Rest here. Let me get some tea and something to eat."
Sizhui goes to the kitchen to fix up snacks and refreshments. "Jin Guangyao...isn't he your sect leader? Why does he wanted to kill you?"
"He admitted to planning the death of my father. Because of events he set into motion, he killed my mother. He admitted to killing his father, his wife, his son, his sworn brother Nie Mingjue."
Jin Ling takes a deep breath. He tries to start at the beginning. "Senior Wei and Hanguang-Jun were pursuing this resentful spirit, they had the arm from Mo Village or something, and then they found the leg at the Man-Eating castle, and it was Nie Mingjue, because someone had cut him to pieces and separated the parts because he was filled with so much resentful energy, and Jin Guangyao had kept his head, and anyway the point is that Jin Guanyao was behind it all and he framed Wei Wuxian and he kills people who know too much and now that's me, because you and Hanguang-Jun and Senior Wei don't know anything and now he's here and he knows I know..."
Sizhui stopped what he was doing and listened carefully. He was shocked to hear that.
"That's terrible. Why would he do such a thing? A sect leader shouldn't do that. I..." His mouth was slightly open at first, as it was a shocking discovery. He heard much about Jin Guanyao. He was a frequent guest in Cloud Recesses. He's highly respected. "I'm sorry Jin Ling. You're here now, you're safe."
Sizhui brought a tray of tea and snacks to place on the coffee table within reach. He sat next to him. Having no idea how to comfort him. Eventually, he has to get food for the dog too if the both of them are planning to stay here.
"It's going to be all right. You're here now. You should have called me sooner so I would have come for you. If you wanted to stay with me, you can." Like they used to stay together and share a room and huddle together back in Cloud Recesses with the other trainees.
"It was faster for me to come to you," Jin Ling explains. "I couldn't bear to sit and wait around. If he could figure out how to track me using the network, he might have found me and... I don't know." He's feeling very paranoid.
Jin Ling's communicator buzzes and he snatches it up. It's a text from Wei Wuxian. He sends off an immediate heated reply without thinking, and then starts trembling again.
Handing the communicator over to Sizhui to see the texts, Jin Ling picks up some of the tea, sipping at it and curling his hands around the warmth. "I'll stay. We'll be okay if we're together."
Sizhui listens carefully and nodded solemnly. It made him feeling a little uneasy, knowing Jin Ling is in possible danger. It's quite possible to track any person through the network.
"He sounds very dangerous. I'm glad you came to find me. You can trust me, I'll protect you like I always do. We have to tell my dad about this eventually. He'll know what to do. In the meanwhile, you should stay here with me if you're so sure of his motives. It's better if we work together."
Sizhui tries his best to smile and reassure him, "You'll be safe if you stay here. I'm going to set up one of the spare rooms, so you and Fairy can stay and sleep here. You can stay for as long as you like."
It was lonely staying in his apartment by himself when he's used to sharing his rooms with his fellow juniors back home. So Sizhui truly does hope they stick together like they used to back home.
“You have a spare room?” Jin Ling asks, immediately jealous again over Sizhui’s good luck in housing. “I’m definitely staying with you from now on. I’m not going back to that house with the strangers. I already brought all my things with me.”
Besides, he likes being around Sizhui, and he feels much safer now that he’s here. Sizhui is one of his only friends, and maybe his only friend. Even though he’s tentatively willing to consider Lan Jingyi and OuYang Zizhen his friends, he’s not sure if that’s mutual, and even with Sizhui he’s pretty sure that he’s very low on the list of valued friends.
"Anyway it's not like I need protection." He does. "But it makes sense for us to stay together, just in case."
Fairy remains tucked close against Jin Ling's side on the couch, eyes moving between Lan Sizhui and Jin Ling, glad that one of the Good Humans is here to help with whatever is making Jin Ling so upset. Jin Ling keeps an arm around his dog, grateful for Fairy's presence. He's desperately touch-starved, and the dog is the only creature in his life that he can touch and hug, so he clings to her now while he's upset.
With a nod, " A spare room. Both you and Fairy can use it and make it your own." Since Sizhui is confident that no one else is going to use it. Should Jin Ling investigate the spare room, it's empty and open for claiming.
"You're pretty sure you're staying? I don't mind. If you brought everything with you, you can go claim your bed." As Sizhui thinks Jin Ling needs a rest from a trying day.
Sizhui does indeed missed Lan Jingyi and OuYang Zizhen, so he has to make do with whoever is here in the world with him as his junior team.
"It will be all right. I'm glad you're here and seek me out. I'll help you." Sizhui can see how shaken and upset he is. "I promise. I'll stay by your side. I believe in you."
Sizhui scoots closer to him, tugging at his sleeve, speaking in a soft, comforting manner, and big brotherly protective even to make him feel safe. "It will be all right. Let me show you to your room."
Jin Ling nods, leaning just a little bit toward Sizhui so that their
shoulders are touching. “It will be all right.”
When Sizhui tugs his sleeve, he shakes his head. “I’ll stay out here
tonight. I won’t be able to sleep anyway. Fairy and I can keep vigil, and
we can wake you if anything happens.”
Sighing, he hugs his legs up to his chest, leaning a little more against
Sizhui as he does so. “He might not even be that dangerous anymore. He’s
only got one arm. I don’t know how he’d garrote me with only one arm.” He
immediately thinks better of that. “No, he’d find a way. He’s very
resourceful.”
He nudges his shoulder against Sizhui. “It’s okay. You should go to bed.”
"Hm, he has only has one arm..." The closeness feels warm when they huddled together. Sizhui is concerned for him for his restless nature. "Okay. But if you are tired, you should come back here. Don't try to stay up past nine."
He nudges back, "You should too." But just in case Jin Ling feels the need to stroll to vent his steam, Sizhui got an idea and he got up, and when he returns, he gives Jin Ling the copy extra of the key to his apartment. "Here, this is your key. It's the key to the apartment."
Jin Ling is planning to stay up all night. He's far too jumpy and paranoid to sleep. But he doesn't want Lan Sizhui to worry, so he doesn't say anything.
His face brightens when he receives the key, and he gives Sizhui a tentative smile.
Clasping it between his hands, he performs a little formal bow without getting up. "Thank you."
Handing him the key, it simply means Jin Ling has a safe place to stay with him. The situation is making him tense, but this is the best that Sizhui can do for him. He can see the fear in his eyes.
"Jin Ling. Please be careful. If you need help, you can count on me. I'm on your side. Even if you're from the other sect, you're my friend." Smiling brightly. "I'm a Lan, so my family protects."
Jin Ling nods. His smile is still shaky and fragile, but it's there. He trusts Lan Sizhui, and he likes hearing that Sizhui thinks of him as a friend. "I'll be careful. You're my friend, too."
He tucks the key inside the front of his robes and then curls up again, hugging his knees to his chest. "Are you going to bed now?" He hopes not. He wants Sizhui to stay nearby a little bit longer.
Sizhui isn't going anywhere. To calm him, he places a hand on his shoulder and gives a comforting rub to get him to calm down and feels he's very tense.
"I will eventually. But not until you settle in. Do you need to shower first? If you want anything to eat, I can whip up something quick and cook in the kitchen, but I'm not as good as dad's cooking." Sizhui's cooking is basic, but it's not bad. "I know we're used to bathing by the waterfall, but the shower here is actually really neat. I turned the handle around and water comes falling down like rain."
Jin Ling's lips twitch a little, charmed by Lan Sizhui's discovery of the showers in this world. "Sizhui, the waterfall in Cloud Recesses is frigid. The showers here are so much better. They're warm."
He uncurls a little bit, picking at some of the snacks Sizhui prepared. His tea has gone cold now, but Jin Ling drinks it anyway. "I'm not hungry."
"All right." Sizhui continues to rub at his shoulders to ease him up and convince him to uncurl a little more. His touch and pressure is gentle and firm, to help him relax. He even gently set his ponytail aside and rubs at his neck.
"The showers is warm and I agree, they're much better. I promise. You just have to set it at the right temperature."
The touch is soothing, and he leans into it, relaxing more and starting to blush. "Sizhui, what are you doing? You're not some servant."
His tone is a little bit indignant, but he leans into it like a cat being petted. When Sizhui's hand finds the tense muscles of his neck, he makes an involuntary noise, almost a whimper.
He freezes at hearing himself make such a noise, turning deep red.
Sizhui remains humble and there's a small blush on his fine cheeks. Taking a deep breath. "I'm...I'm not a servant. I'm trying to relax you and loosen you up around the trigger points. Don't think much of it. I'm sorry that hurts."
He rubs the sore spots on his shoulders. "Your uncle won't come for you. I promise. I'll figure out a way. If he's too much trouble, then my father and uncle will help."
Because Lan Sizhui doesn't chide him for that embarrassing moment of weakness, but just keeps on massaging at him, Jin Ling's usual bluster and defensiveness has no legs to stand on. He doesn't have any real reason to reject this, since Sizhui clearly doesn't think it's strange for something like this to be happening between them, so he just accepts it. Maybe this is normal among friends. He wouldn't know.
Leaning farther into it, Jin Ling goes ahead and rests his arms and upper torso on Sizhui's lap, relaxing completely and letting Sizhui do whatever he wants.
It’s pretty normal to give massages as a gesture of friendship. Especially when training within the sect can be long and brutal that muscle soreness and cramps from long, strenuous hours of training and injuries is quite common.
With Jin Ling curling up comfortably on his lap, Sizhui is being more gentle, minding his own arm strength as he rubs and massages his neck and shoulders to loosen up the tight knots. He evens hums a cheerful tune, a folk song from Gusu to invoke a memory from home.
Jin Ling nods, cheek nuzzling against Sizhui's thigh with the motion. He sighs once, body relaxing further as Sizhui massages him and hums soothingly.
Within a few minutes, his determination to stay up all night is forgotten and his paranoia is soothed away. There's no way he can remain paranoid and tense while Sizhui has got him melting across his lap like this. One of his arms slips, dangling off the edge of the couch, as Jin Ling falls asleep in Sizhui's lap.
"Good, I'm glad. Good night, Jin Ling." Sizhui succeeded in relaxing him and lulling him to sleep. When Jin Ling fell asleep on his lap, he waited for a few long moments to make sure he is completely asleep. He even stroke his long hair to comfort him.
Then with his strength, he lifts him up in his arms and carries him to one of the spare bedrooms where with great care, he lays him on the bed and tucks the blanket to keep him warm.
Fairy has a bed on the couch tonight and Sizhui wrapped an extra blanket around her to keep her warm too.
No bad dreams will follow them that night with Sizhui keeping vigil over them.
Jin Ling half awoke for a moment as Sizhui lifts him. “Sizhui,” he murmurs,
nuzzling his head against Sizhui’s shoulder and curling his fingers around
one of Sizhui’s lapels.
He mumbles again, inaudible, as Sizhui ticks him in. The bed is warm, and
it’s safe here. Sizhui won’t let anything bad happen. He’s glad that Sizhui
is his friend and glad that they’re together. Everything will be fine, if
the two of them are a team.
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Jin Ling tumbles in immediately, with Fairy at his heels. He quickly shuts and locks the door, and then starts to check the windows to make sure they’re locked. “It’s Jin Guangyao. He’s here. He’s alive. He’s missing his arm after Hanguang-Jun cut it off him and I think he’s going to try to kill me.”
Jin Ling makes another paranoid circuit of the home, then finally settles down enough to curl up in a chair. Sizhui will know what to do. Jin Guangyao won’t be able to get him if they’re together.
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Thankfully, its a sofa chair, so it's comfy enough to curled up on and Fairy is welcomed to hop on and curled up with. "Jin Ling? Are you...are you okay? Rest here. Let me get some tea and something to eat."
Sizhui goes to the kitchen to fix up snacks and refreshments. "Jin Guangyao...isn't he your sect leader? Why does he wanted to kill you?"
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Jin Ling takes a deep breath. He tries to start at the beginning. "Senior Wei and Hanguang-Jun were pursuing this resentful spirit, they had the arm from Mo Village or something, and then they found the leg at the Man-Eating castle, and it was Nie Mingjue, because someone had cut him to pieces and separated the parts because he was filled with so much resentful energy, and Jin Guangyao had kept his head, and anyway the point is that Jin Guanyao was behind it all and he framed Wei Wuxian and he kills people who know too much and now that's me, because you and Hanguang-Jun and Senior Wei don't know anything and now he's here and he knows I know..."
Jin Ling clings to Fairy, trembling.
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"That's terrible. Why would he do such a thing? A sect leader shouldn't do that. I..." His mouth was slightly open at first, as it was a shocking discovery. He heard much about Jin Guanyao. He was a frequent guest in Cloud Recesses. He's highly respected. "I'm sorry Jin Ling. You're here now, you're safe."
Sizhui brought a tray of tea and snacks to place on the coffee table within reach. He sat next to him. Having no idea how to comfort him. Eventually, he has to get food for the dog too if the both of them are planning to stay here.
"It's going to be all right. You're here now. You should have called me sooner so I would have come for you. If you wanted to stay with me, you can." Like they used to stay together and share a room and huddle together back in Cloud Recesses with the other trainees.
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Jin Ling's communicator buzzes and he snatches it up. It's a text from Wei Wuxian. He sends off an immediate heated reply without thinking, and then starts trembling again.
Handing the communicator over to Sizhui to see the texts, Jin Ling picks up some of the tea, sipping at it and curling his hands around the warmth. "I'll stay. We'll be okay if we're together."
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"He sounds very dangerous. I'm glad you came to find me. You can trust me, I'll protect you like I always do. We have to tell my dad about this eventually. He'll know what to do. In the meanwhile, you should stay here with me if you're so sure of his motives. It's better if we work together."
Sizhui tries his best to smile and reassure him, "You'll be safe if you stay here. I'm going to set up one of the spare rooms, so you and Fairy can stay and sleep here. You can stay for as long as you like."
It was lonely staying in his apartment by himself when he's used to sharing his rooms with his fellow juniors back home. So Sizhui truly does hope they stick together like they used to back home.
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Besides, he likes being around Sizhui, and he feels much safer now that he’s here. Sizhui is one of his only friends, and maybe his only friend. Even though he’s tentatively willing to consider Lan Jingyi and OuYang Zizhen his friends, he’s not sure if that’s mutual, and even with Sizhui he’s pretty sure that he’s very low on the list of valued friends.
"Anyway it's not like I need protection." He does. "But it makes sense for us to stay together, just in case."
Fairy remains tucked close against Jin Ling's side on the couch, eyes moving between Lan Sizhui and Jin Ling, glad that one of the Good Humans is here to help with whatever is making Jin Ling so upset. Jin Ling keeps an arm around his dog, grateful for Fairy's presence. He's desperately touch-starved, and the dog is the only creature in his life that he can touch and hug, so he clings to her now while he's upset.
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"You're pretty sure you're staying? I don't mind. If you brought everything with you, you can go claim your bed." As Sizhui thinks Jin Ling needs a rest from a trying day.
Sizhui does indeed missed Lan Jingyi and OuYang Zizhen, so he has to make do with whoever is here in the world with him as his junior team.
"It will be all right. I'm glad you're here and seek me out. I'll help you." Sizhui can see how shaken and upset he is. "I promise. I'll stay by your side. I believe in you."
Sizhui scoots closer to him, tugging at his sleeve, speaking in a soft, comforting manner, and big brotherly protective even to make him feel safe. "It will be all right. Let me show you to your room."
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Jin Ling nods, leaning just a little bit toward Sizhui so that their shoulders are touching. “It will be all right.”
When Sizhui tugs his sleeve, he shakes his head. “I’ll stay out here tonight. I won’t be able to sleep anyway. Fairy and I can keep vigil, and we can wake you if anything happens.”
Sighing, he hugs his legs up to his chest, leaning a little more against Sizhui as he does so. “He might not even be that dangerous anymore. He’s only got one arm. I don’t know how he’d garrote me with only one arm.” He immediately thinks better of that. “No, he’d find a way. He’s very resourceful.”
He nudges his shoulder against Sizhui. “It’s okay. You should go to bed.”
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He nudges back, "You should too." But just in case Jin Ling feels the need to stroll to vent his steam, Sizhui got an idea and he got up, and when he returns, he gives Jin Ling the copy extra of the key to his apartment. "Here, this is your key. It's the key to the apartment."
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His face brightens when he receives the key, and he gives Sizhui a tentative smile.
Clasping it between his hands, he performs a little formal bow without getting up. "Thank you."
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"Jin Ling. Please be careful. If you need help, you can count on me. I'm on your side. Even if you're from the other sect, you're my friend." Smiling brightly. "I'm a Lan, so my family protects."
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He tucks the key inside the front of his robes and then curls up again, hugging his knees to his chest. "Are you going to bed now?" He hopes not. He wants Sizhui to stay nearby a little bit longer.
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"I will eventually. But not until you settle in. Do you need to shower first? If you want anything to eat, I can whip up something quick and cook in the kitchen, but I'm not as good as dad's cooking." Sizhui's cooking is basic, but it's not bad. "I know we're used to bathing by the waterfall, but the shower here is actually really neat. I turned the handle around and water comes falling down like rain."
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He uncurls a little bit, picking at some of the snacks Sizhui prepared. His tea has gone cold now, but Jin Ling drinks it anyway. "I'm not hungry."
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"The showers is warm and I agree, they're much better. I promise. You just have to set it at the right temperature."
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His tone is a little bit indignant, but he leans into it like a cat being petted. When Sizhui's hand finds the tense muscles of his neck, he makes an involuntary noise, almost a whimper.
He freezes at hearing himself make such a noise, turning deep red.
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He rubs the sore spots on his shoulders. "Your uncle won't come for you. I promise. I'll figure out a way. If he's too much trouble, then my father and uncle will help."
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Because Lan Sizhui doesn't chide him for that embarrassing moment of weakness, but just keeps on massaging at him, Jin Ling's usual bluster and defensiveness has no legs to stand on. He doesn't have any real reason to reject this, since Sizhui clearly doesn't think it's strange for something like this to be happening between them, so he just accepts it. Maybe this is normal among friends. He wouldn't know.
Leaning farther into it, Jin Ling goes ahead and rests his arms and upper torso on Sizhui's lap, relaxing completely and letting Sizhui do whatever he wants.
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With Jin Ling curling up comfortably on his lap, Sizhui is being more gentle, minding his own arm strength as he rubs and massages his neck and shoulders to loosen up the tight knots. He evens hums a cheerful tune, a folk song from Gusu to invoke a memory from home.
“How is that? Feeling better?”
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Within a few minutes, his determination to stay up all night is forgotten and his paranoia is soothed away. There's no way he can remain paranoid and tense while Sizhui has got him melting across his lap like this. One of his arms slips, dangling off the edge of the couch, as Jin Ling falls asleep in Sizhui's lap.
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Then with his strength, he lifts him up in his arms and carries him to one of the spare bedrooms where with great care, he lays him on the bed and tucks the blanket to keep him warm.
Fairy has a bed on the couch tonight and Sizhui wrapped an extra blanket around her to keep her warm too.
No bad dreams will follow them that night with Sizhui keeping vigil over them.
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Jin Ling half awoke for a moment as Sizhui lifts him. “Sizhui,” he murmurs, nuzzling his head against Sizhui’s shoulder and curling his fingers around one of Sizhui’s lapels.
He mumbles again, inaudible, as Sizhui ticks him in. The bed is warm, and it’s safe here. Sizhui won’t let anything bad happen. He’s glad that Sizhui is his friend and glad that they’re together. Everything will be fine, if the two of them are a team.