farsickness | (no subject)

Entry tags:

(no subject)

WHO: Gu Xiang
WHEN: November
WHAT: Intro and exploring
WHERE: Gazin and other areas
WARNINGS: Mentions of death (will update as needed)

(Streets of Gazin)

The last thing that Gu Xiang remembered was dying. Something that she didn't really want to think about. She'd known that she hadn't wanted to die even with how much her heart ached. A part of her even wondered what had happened to her master. No, her big brother. The title didn't really matter, at the moment, and what did was her surroundings.

She felt severely out of place surrounded by a bunch of strangers in her wedding dress. Even with feeling out of place in her attire, she can't help but be intrigued by the language. Maybe she'd be fine there and maybe she wouldn't be. Only time would tell on that one.

(Various Shops)

There was, as it were, a lot of different shops within Gazin. Some of them seemed new compared to what she was used to and others were completely different. It doesn't, however, stop her from slipping into the shops to check things out. After all, to get to know the shops is to get to know the people. She paid attention to those around her and that's what mattered.

She does, however, eventually need to figure out other things or simply find something or someone familiar to her. Maybe then she'd feel a bit better about the place. Then again, she'd probably feel better once she was in something normal too. Something that didn't have her sticking out to others.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It's the flash of bright, vibrant color that catches Wen Kexing's attention when he's out walking the puppy his A-Xu had found (no, the puppy found them first, to be fair), and he stops still. Not sure if he could bear taking a closer look and be proven he'd imagined it.

But the whispers finally encourage him to look - and his heart almost stops before he's running without even thinking about it, white hair moving behind him and puppy happily running with him.

"A-Xiang!" Propriety be damned. Let them stare as he reaches her, a desperation in his eyes as he looks her over before reaching out to touch her. Real.

To hell with it. He reaches out to pull her close, careful just in case she's still injured.

The sound of feet on the ground, of paws, has her nearly going on the defensive. It didn't matter if she was in pain or in a strange place. She would do whatever was needed in order to protect herself. Just because she didn't have her whip didn't mean she wasn't capable of doing just that.

It takes her a moment to realize that it was his voice. That very familiar voice. A broken voice as she laid dying in his arms. She doesn't stop him when he reaches out to touch her, to test if she was real or not. A part of her is sure she'd have done the same if in his shoes, no matter what she did or did not understand about the way mortals did things.

The moment she's pulled close, however, she wraps her arms as tightly around him as she can and buries her face in his chest. She was still hurting, but none of that mattered. He was there and if he really wasn't, then it wasn't a dream or nightmare or whatever it was that she wanted to wake up from.

That defensiveness would make him proud. He doesn't need to hear her speak, when he holds her what matters is that she's clinging right back. Kexing sighs and wraps his arms around her in a way to simply scoop her up and carry her away. So she doesn't have to keep walking.

So he doesn't have to let go and watch her die over and over again. He watches the young pup lead the way, instinctively knowing where they're going - home. Just as he knows his expression is fierce, daring anyone to stop him.

"A-Xu is here. We'll take care of you," he murmurs past the thick lump in his throat.

In normal circumstances she'd make a fuss about being picked up and carried anywhere, but these circumstances were far from normal. Nor does she care what a bunch of strangers think. Her master had her and that's all that she cared about. The one person that did everything in his power to protect her.

Instead of the normal fuss she'd give, on any other given day, she merely lays her head on Kexing's shoulder. Whether she admitted it or not this was a comfort. Not because she didn't have to walk or anything as mundane as that. It was due to the fact that it was Kexing. The one person she trusted explicitly through everything.

"That's good," she murmurs back. A part of her wants to close her eyes and relax, but she's still hurting. She also doesn't want to scare her master. "Brother Zhou should always be by your side."

They both know this is far from normal circumstances. He'd lost her, and now he has her again. He's not letting go. He's relieved, not that he'd admit it out loud, that she doesn't closer her eyes, that she stays fairly alert. He remembers, vividly, the last time those eyes had closed.

Never again.

"He's working right now, but he'll be home soon. We'll get you comfortable while we wait for him." Just don't leave him again. There are rooms in their house that are better suited for those who don't require a frosty living area, and once Kexing reaches the front door he carries her inside to it. And the comfortable bed waiting.

Internally he scrambles for what he can do until then without letting her go. But he has to, so he helps her stretch out on the bed and smooths a hand over her hair, plucking the various ornaments from it to set them aside. Ignoring how his hands shake.

"A-Xiang. I killed him for you, just as I promised." Her beloved's traitorous master.

Staying alert is what keeps someone alive. She doesn't know this place or the area they're in, so she stays alert. Even when Kexing has her and isn't letting go. There are so many people and things around them. Unfamiliar faces and places, something that puts her on edge. Even if she'd never admit that.

His mention of Zhou Zishu working confuses her, but that's not a confusion that she wants to deal with at the moment. The idea of either of them working throws her off. Or maybe it was still just the idea of the place she was in now.

The house is cold, but the room warm. Not that it bothered her any at the moment. She was still hurting. Still in pain, but the bed was comfortable. Comfortable enough to stretch out on and not feel like the world was going to turn on its axis. It probably helped that Kexing was removing the ornaments in her hair too.

Those words have her stilling slightly, tears in her eyes, as she reaches out to take one of those shaking hands. That couldn't have been easy on him and she knows it. "Thank you." It's a soft whisper and she knows that she doesn't have to thank him. She'd known that he would keep his promise.

Good girl. His precious daughter.

There are mouths to feed, and his A-Xu hates being idle. The puppy stretches out on the floor, ears perked and swiveling, paying attention.

Kexing removes every last ornament and sets them on the table beside her bed. She can hide them away if that is her wish. Or keep them, to look at them. It's her choice, and one he won't make for her.

He sighs when she takes one of his hands and smiles at her, even if there are answering tears in his eyes as well, threatening to fall. No, she doesn't have to thank him. Ever.

"Silly girl," he murmurs fondly, other hand stroking over her hair again. "You know I'll always take care of you." His heart cracks even as he says those words. He'd failed her once.

Never again.

The ornaments that were in her hair would probably be put away, something to be forgotten about. Something to only pull out when she wanted to remember. At the moment? She doesn't want to remember. It's too painful for her. Or maybe that's her body protesting.

The tears cloud her vision at those words and a soft smile graces her lips," I know." She knew that he would take care of her. That was the one thing she'd always believe when it came to her master. He hadn't been the cause of her death, after all, and he'd still taken out the enemy after. He still took care of matters, of her.

She eventually lets go of his shaking hand even though she leans her head fondly into his other one. Being carried around and still being a little out of it, she hadn't noticed it before. Reaching up she brushes fingers lightly over that white hair.

"Master?" That's more confusion than anything else. After all, he hadn't had white hair during her wedding. This was new and it looked good on him. Just as she knows that he'd asked her to call him big brother, but some things just stayed ingrained in one's mind. He would always be her master, he father figure, more than her big brother.

A brittle little laugh bubbles up at that confused query, and it's his turn to lean into her hand. He smiles and doesn't scold her to not call him master any more. She can call him anything she wants and he'll answer it cheerfully.

"The old monster told me how I could save A-Xu. It should have cost my life, but..." his gaze softens as he remembers waking up. "A-Xu figured out how to share his life force with me. So we're immortal now, as long as we eat snow and ice and live where it's cold."

No more drinking wine. No more tasty human food. He'd given it all up - they both had. To stay together.

Her fingers tangle slightly in that white hair much the same way a child's would, more due to her curiosity than anything else. Though, she scrunches her nose up a bit when he mentions the old monster. The part after that is the slightly better part, minus her master dying. She wouldn't have wanted him to die.

There's a tired, pained, soft smile out of her," I'm glad Brother Zhou found a way. You weren't allowed to follow me." Though, she doesn't like the fact that they have to eat ice and snow. Her master had always had a love for food and wine, especially wine. Brother Zhou too.

"You're both fine now." Which is what matters the most.

He winces just a little, but doesn't shake her hold off. He doesn't have the heart to deny her anything now. He grins at how her nose scrunches up - it's so cute! He strokes a gentle hand over her hair, smoothing it back away from the style it had been in for her wedding.

Kexing ducks his head a little at her telling him he wasn't allowed to follow her. He won't tell her how her death had affected him. The depth of pain it had caused. She's alive again, and back with him. Even if her other half isn't here - that he's seen. He hopes, for her sake, that Cao Weining shows up and finds her.

He all but leaps on the last statement. "We are! A new shield around the city was just put up before you got here. It's safer now." Not that he'll let anything happen to her ever again. He and Zishu will defend her. And he suspects others will help, too.

Those fingers tangle a bit more in his hair before untangling and letting go. The feel of his hand smoothing over her hair has her leaning into that hand. Even if she'd only just seen him not moments before, dying in his arms, the hand smoothing through her hair lets her know he's there. That he's real. This wasn't some trick of her mind. Even if that was possibly something that could happen too.

"Why a shield?" It's a tiredly asked question. After all, she doesn't know enough about the city. Why would a shield need to be put up? Did that mean her master and Brother Zhou weren't safe? Though both could take care of themselves just fine and she knew it. That didn't, however, stop the worry that came off of her in waves.

They were safe. That's what she had to keep reminding herself. They were alive. It was all that mattered.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only