Jiang Cheng is (sandu_shengshou) wrote in madisonvalley, @ 2021-12-31 22:07:00 |
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Entry tags: | !closed, !complete, !completed gdoc, !log, jiang wanyin (sandu_shengshou), wei wuxian (createschaos), ~2022 january |
Who: Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian
What: Arriving in the Future
When: Friday
Where: A Corner of the Park
Warnings: Language
Status: Closed/Completed GDoc
The park, as it were, had become a bit of a place for him. One that he enjoyed rather immensely. When it wasn't, of course, filled with dragons trying to eat people. That had been hell on his body. He wasn't even sure which was worse, if he was being honest. Fight Club or the resentful energy. The same night of the dragons he'd spit up far too much blood and had been useless to anyone. Luckily, Noxeema hadn't seen any of that, not like his zhiji had. His body had been overly spent and he'd hated every moment of it. Now? He was enjoying the park sans dragons and being up in one of his favorite trees. The same tree he'd been in when Wangji had fallen out of nowhere and nearly knocked him out of it. Even as he played Chenqing, just to play his dizi, something seemed off. Not that he was entirely sure why it felt that way or because of who. What had the dome done this time? Probably nothing that he'd particularly like. Maybe he should go check it out, but he wasn't so sure. Or maybe he'd stick to his tree, try to relax, and not overthink the feeling even as he plays Chenqing. One moment, Jiang Cheng was ensconced in his bed, laying on his back and staring up at the ceiling. The next moment he felt himself falling through the air. He grappled, trying to find something to grab onto when his body slammed into something, and then he landed on the ground with a softer thump than expected. He rolled off of whatever he landed on to catch his breath and figure out what happened, his body aching from the double impact. Once he caught his breath, he turned his head to see what he had landed on. His eyes widened when he saw the one person he hadn't expected to see. "Wei Wuxian!" There was no anger in the tone, just the exasperation that was so normal in Jiang Cheng’s voice all of his life. The tree, or maybe it was the dome more likely, had betrayed him. One moment he's comfortably in the tree playing his dizi and then the next moment he's being grabbed onto. He didn't have a touch aversion like his soulmate did, but that didn't mean he wanted something dragging him out of his comfortable spot. That very something that knocks him out of his tree and lands on him. There's a pain that racks his body and he feels like he couldn't breathe, not at the moment. It would probably take him a few minutes before he could probably breathe again. He just hoped that nothing inside of his body was broken or Lan Zhan was going to be upset with him. Especially when he'd just gotten better after the dragon incident. "Jiang Cheng." Oh, even that hurt. Well, that kind of sucked. "Ow." Jiang Cheng rolled over onto his side, still a bit dazed from the fall and a lot confused about what was going on. He tried to gather his thoughts as he stared at his brother. Their surroundings were unfamiliar to him, but he put that aside to deal with later. Wei Wuxian was hurt -- most probably by him -- and that took priority. They still had some issues between them that needed to be addressed, but he didn’t like the idea of his brother being hurt. Hurt by him. “You’re hurt.” Jiang Cheng stated the obvious. Wei Ying isn't entirely sure where Chenqing had gone, but he knows hitting the ground had him losing his grip on his dizi. He's also pretty sure that he just added more blood to the dizi too, since he's certain that being knocked into had busted his lip a bit. The idea that it was going to look like someone popped him in the mouth has him laughing, despite the fact that it hurt to laugh. He did not want to move from where he was laying. His body did not want to cooperate with him at the moment anyway. So, the moment his baby brother stated the obvious, he just laughs more. He promises that he's not broken. Maybe. Was that a promise he could make? He's not sure. "You did knock me out of my tree. So, yes, I'm hurt." “Then why are you laughing?” None of this made sense to Jiang Cheng as he looked around and then back at his laughing brother. Shaking his head, he moved closer so that he could examine Wei Wuxian. Frowning slightly, he reached out and grabbed his wrist with the hand not bearing Zidian and started feeding him energy to try and help him with his injuries. “You’re bleeding.” Yes, Jiang Cheng, please state the obvious. "Maybe I'm laughing because it hurts." Better to laugh off the pain. He also needed to figure out where his dizi went. Though, he does notice Zidian resting comfortably on that finger. Why wouldn't that damn ring come in with his brother? Chenqing had come in with him. So, why not his brother's spiritual tool coming in with him. "Jiang Cheng, stop. You know just as well as Lan Zhan does, that doesn't work on me." It would never work on him ever again. Not while he no longer had a golden core. His golden core resided in the man trying to fix him at the moment. "Yes, I know I'm bleeding. I can feel it." “Or you hit your head a bit too hard falling to the ground.” He had not yet realised that he had knocked his brother out of a tree. He’d feel bad when he found out -- even though it hadn’t been his fault he had arrived as he had. “You know that I can’t stop myself from trying to help when someone I care about is injured; no matter what the result.” One of these days Jiang Cheng was going to knock himself out trying to feed energy to someone that wouldn’t be able to use it. “If I can’t help you then we need to find you a healer. At least they can help with some things that don’t require energy.” "You knocked me out of the tree. Of course I hit my head," Wei Ying grumbles. Though, honestly, he's sure that he'll be fine. It was just a matter of getting back home to Lan Zhan and Noxeema. Not that he even wanted to move. Moving seemed like the worst thing possible at the moment. The other trying to give him spiritual energy just wasn't going to work. As much as the people in his life cared about him, it would never work. Both his soulmate and his baby brother knew that. No matter how much they wanted it to, it was just a waste of their spiritual energy. "We are not taking me to a healer. We're going to just give me a little time here," He murmurs. "Then we're going to get your envelope from the men of City Hall, and I can show you how things work." “I did not mean to knock you out of a tree,” Jiang Cheng grumbled right back. “Hell, I didn’t even know there were trees when I was just in Lotus Pier. I was trying to sleep and suddenly I was falling.” He did not like knowing that he had harmed his brother or caused him pain again. He reluctantly eased the energy he was giving to Wei Wuxian down and then stopped it entirely. He was tired enough that he had to listen whether he liked it or not. “How do we get back home? I have a sect to run and you have people who will be worried about you for disappearing.” That grumble, funny enough, was welcoming. Where others would probably complain about it, he wouldn't. There was nothing to complain about. Other than the pain that coursed through his body. However, he's dealt with worse pain than falling out of the tree. Like the damn ring that his brother was wearing. Zidian had been something he'd grown too familiar with. Not by his brother's hand but at Madam Yu's. "Who exactly is going to worry about me missing?" Though, the question of how they got back home has him inwardly groaning. This? It was not going to go over well and he knew it. "We don't. Not unless the dome tosses us back home. Though, if you're worried that Lan Zhan is going to worry about me disappearing, he won't. He's here too." Jiang Cheng had only used Zidian on his brother once and he regretted it immensely. Although, to be fair, he hadn’t known it was his brother at the time. And he was full of anger about other things. “Yes, I was going to list him first,” he agreed. “But you also have the Juniors --Sizhui, Jin Ling, Jingyi, and Zichen. Huiasang and Lan Xichen. There are people at Lotus Pier who miss you. I’m sure you have others at Cloud Recesses who miss you. Not to mention that annoying donkey of yours.” He was sorry, Wei Wuxian, but that donkey was loud, smelly, and very irritating. He sat up and stared down at his brother. “Explain. What do you mean we don’t get home unless a dome tosses us back?” More like his own brother had thought he'd possessed someone. He hadn't. Mo Xuanyu gave up his own body, thank you very much. There were times that he regretted that spell. Actually, a lot of his spells he regretted due to how people used them. Hopefully, none of that showed in Madison Valley. Actually, he's hoping nothing of his shows in Madison Valley. Except for maybe Lil' Apple. The donkey could enjoy time in the stables with the horses. He stares at his brother from where he was still laying on the ground," Why would Sect Leader Lan Xichen miss me? He's still..." In seclusion. That gets a bit of a frown out of him. "Lan Zhan is here. Anyone else? They could easily show up at any given moment." Including their sister. That? He would try not to think about. "Just what I said, Jiang Cheng. We're stuck here. I've been here for a few months. Lan Zhan's been here... a month, almost a month." Then as an afterthought. "You can't use Zidian here. Not unless we have to fight dragons again." “Lan Xichen is a caring individual who cares for you even if he is in seclusion. I have a feeling he would come out if he knew that anyone was in trouble.” That was just the type of person that Lan Xichen was. If you needed help or were in trouble, he’d be there for you. Jiang Cheng just stared at his brother for a long moment. His brother was talking crazy nonsense. “How could you have been here for months when I just saw you a few days ago?” That was a hard thing to wrap his head around. How could his little brother have been trapped in a place for months if he was just at a meeting with him. “Sect Leader Lan would have razed the land if his brother had been missing for a month.” Jiang Cheng would have done the same if he had known something had kidnapped his own little brother. “I don’t use Zidian unless there is a good reason to and I don’t use it on people who can’t fight back.” He was not his mother and he was deeply pained about the times he had used it against his brother. “Wha… dragons?” Did his brother just refer to fighting against dragons? "It's complicated." That was really the only way to put it. It didn't matter that his brother had only just seen him a few days ago. He, himself, had been in Madison Valley for quite some time now. There's a bit of a laugh out of him when his brother goes on and on about Sect Leader Lan, as well as a smirk that crosses his lips. Yes, he knows that he's being a brat, but it was better than dealing with pain. "Careful. You sound like you like him." He does, however, eventually sit up even if it hurt to do so," Yes, dragons. Myself, Lan Zhan, and quite a bit of the town had to fight off dragons. They attacked out of nowhere one day. Though, they're gone now. So, nothing to worry about anymore." “Everybody likes Sect Leader Lan,” he said in what was almost a huffy tone. Shut up, big brother. He is not going to get into this. “How complicated can it be? I just saw you a few days ago and yet you recall being here for months. You tell me that Lan Wangji has been here for one month -- and yet the Head Cultivator has not been missing.” He had not exaggerated. Lan Xichen would have razed towns if his brother had been missing for any length of time. Plus the world would have gone straight into chaos had the Chief Cultivator been missing for any length of time. People like Sect Leader Yao would have no doubt blamed that on his brother, too. “Dragons.” He shook his head. The truth was, he believed his brother on this. “I’m glad you’re all right after that.” He paused and then sighed. “And I’m glad Chief Cultivator Lan is as well.” Yes, he still had issues with Lan Wangji that would probably never be resolved. He was pretty sure Lan Wangji felt the same. Wei Wuxian was not going to point out to his little brother that not everyone liked Sect Leader Lan. Not everyone liked Sect Leader Jiang either. It was kind of how the world was. No one person was ever liked. Not even Nie Huaisang. Someone who used to be a real good friend of his. "It's very complicated," he tells him. "It's been longer than that since I've seen you." However, all it would take is someone telling Lan Xichen that his brother was gone or in trouble, and that would be all it took. It would just be a matter of getting the man out of seclusion. Something that he's sure his zhiji would like, but it would be a matter of trying to get the man to leave the Hanshi. "Of course he's well. We're here and together." It's almost teasing, almost. “Of course it’s complicated,” Jiang Cheng muttered. None of this made any sense and his head was starting to hurt. Yes, he was aching from hitting Wei Wuxian in the tree and then hitting the ground -- even if his brother did break his fall. But this headache was from trying to understand everything that he was being told. “What kind of magical person has the power to kidnap us from our homes and make it so that we don’t have a way to get back home?” Oh, wait until he found out he was in the future of another world. He rolled his eyes when Wei Wuxian said what he did about him and his husband. “I’m glad the two of you were at least kidnapped together. Things would explode if you were separated again.” He was not wrong. "Not a person, not that I'm aware of." Actually, he's not entirely sure whether it was just the dome or a person. Not that it really mattered too much. They couldn't get back home, though. That? He did know. Considering that he had been there for some time. His soulmate hadn't even known that he was gone, from his understanding either. He did not want to get up, but he eventually stands and closes his eyes against the dizziness that he felt. His zhiji was definitely going to kick his ass at this rate. Or Noxeema was, one of the two. "Lets move. They're going to give you a device, money, and a place to stay." None of this was helping Jiang Cheng’s headache. It wasn’t that he doubted what his brother was saying. It was that he didn’t understand how it was at all possible that they had been gone but also still back home. He knew he had been with his brother and his husband -- among others -- only a few days ago. However, his brother was adamant he had been here for several months and Lan Wangji had been here for a month. He sighed, getting to his feet and offering Wei Wuxian his hand so he could help him up. “What kind of device?” And what kind of place was he being put where he knew no one but his brother and his husband? Who said that anything was meant to help with his baby brother's headache? If he, himself, had to endure the headache then so did the other. Honestly, he remembers when he first showed up in Madison Valley. He'd been so confused and had felt out of his depth. Harry Dresden had helped him then. Something that he'd been very happy about. The man had made sure that he understood most of the things in this place. Or, well, he'd tried to help. Then he met Noxeema. Running from a dog. "This kind." Even as he says it, he pulls his phone out. "This device is what they give you." Jiang Cheng shook his head, trying to push away the pain that had developed in his head behind his right eye. Unsurprisingly, he was used to headaches starting there. When Wei Wuxian pulled out the device he just stared at it in confusion. “What the hell is that?” He felt that was a perfectly acceptable reaction to everything he was being told. Honestly, part of him just wanted to scream out his frustration, but the rational part of him held it all together. “How do you even know who to trust here?” Trust was not an easy thing for him to give nowadays. (Not that he had trusted many people in the past.) "It's a phone. Something they use in this year." That? It still messed with him sometimes. Knowing that they were in the US and about 1500 years into the future, something like that. There was so much in Madison Valley that wasn't like it was in Ancient China. Nothing was like Yunmeng or Gusu. Noting where Chenqing is, he reaches down and picks up his dizi, and places it in his sash before looking toward his little brother. Trust. Well, that wasn't an easy thing to come by. "Aiya! You talk to them. Though, I've really only talked to a few people. Lady Noxeema and Lan Zhan are the main two that I trust, though." “What do you mean in this year? Wei Wuxian where exactly are we?” Jiang Cheng believed that this was a fair and reasonable question. The phone looked like it was overly complicated and wasn’t something that was available back home. Of course, that made him curious in a way he tried to hide. Back home it wasn’t a good idea for a sect leader to seem too curious about things outside their sect and the cultivation world. “We can both agree that I am not a great conversationalist. Talking to people I don’t know outside of a cultivation conference has never been something I am good at. I’m sure you cannot disagree with me there.” He caught the name of the lady that he didn’t know but who his brother seemed to trust. “Lady Noxeema?” Look, he was trying hard not to be too curious but it was difficult. "We are in the US, year 2021. 1500 years in the future." Sorry, Jiang Cheng. He is bound to break his brother's brain a little bit more. He just hopes that there are no feral beasts to run into. The last thing he wanted to do was hide behind his baby brother. Though, at the mention of not being a great conversationalist, he nods. His brother was right about that. "You'll have to learn to be." The question about Noxeema has him giving a grin. "She's become like a shijie to me." Though, the woman would never replace Yanli. No one could ever do that. However, that didn't mean he hadn't gained family in Madison Valley. "She's a good person." The fact that everything his big brother was saying kept breaking parts of his brain was a given. None of this made any rational sense, but he also knew his brother wouldn’t lie to him about something this insane and huge. “All I can do is try like I do back home. I don’t like most people because back home they are usually angling to get something.” With a mother like his, you didn’t get to talk too much or learn non-provocative communication with strangers. His brother’s next words hit him hard, but he tried not to show it. He was glad that Wei Wuxian had found people here to trust and help him. But the idea that he had found a new sister was a wound that he didn’t understand. “I am glad you found kind people in this place.” His voice was sincere because he was sincere. “What is she like?” Fuck not being curious. This was important. "No one is asking you to be good at it right away, but you might get overwhelmed a bit. Lan Zhan did." He'd had to take his soulmate's phone from him. Unfortunately, his brother wouldn't be that close for him to take it from him if he got agitated with it. Or if it overwhelmed him to the point where he probably wanted to throw it across the room or something. That was the one thing about Madison Valley, the people. Finding those that one could trust. Or even those that they could talk to without worrying about cultivation or sect business. Not that he, himself, had to worry about that. After all, he'd defected and was everyone's villain. "Noxeema? She's good, Jiang Cheng. She'll never be like shijie, but she's family. Someone that has been there for me. She helped me when Lan Zhan wasn't here." “Lan Wangji became overwhelmed at this place?” That made Jiang Cheng pause because he couldn’t imagine the second of Lan becoming overwhelmed by anything. He certainly always seemed to be in control and made of jade. “Family… is a good thing,” he allowed after the small surge of emotional pain he felt died down. “And I am thankful that this place gave you someone to look after you.” He was quiet then smiled. “Spirits know you need it sometimes.” While he always could take care of himself, thank you very much. "Everyone can be a little overwhelmed sometimes, you know," He states, tone almost teasing. Even his zhiji could get overwhelmed. The man wasn't the statue that everyone claimed him to be. Wei Wuxian bumps his brother's shoulder and gives him a small smile, despite his body still being racked with a bit of pain, "Come on, let's get your things from the men in suits, and then I'll give you a tour of the city." He could, at the very least, do that. His brother would probably even be a bit better off than his soulmate too, maybe. "Once you're settled we'll get out and get some food, I'll even pay." |