#I was having more Lee thoughts

[magic-magpie]

Word vomit here but thinking abt like y'know how Lee is Extra and Eccentric and Lavish and all that and I mean ofc he likes all that otherwise he wouldn't indulge in it but also what if it's also fuelled by a desire to make his mark and be his own person, 'cause like he was an orphan boy on the streets so he would already have experienced a kind of loss of individualism back then, but then also when he was adopted he was adopted solely to serve as a rival to Kazuya, like that's gotta fuck you up, your existence in your household and everything you do is to be compared to your brother, if you do well in school it isn't 'Well done, Lee!', it's 'Get your act together Kazuya, Lee's performing better than you', if you perform exceptionally in training it's 'Kazuya you're becoming sloppy', you are not your own person you are just an extension of your brother, and so maybe he buys the big mansions and gets the fast cars and dresses loudly and sparkly and emblazons everything with unicorns and roses and purple because these things are 100% hIM, these are solely part of him and who HE is, you see him and you see his things and you will think of Lee Chaolan before you think of anyone else

[kwistowee]

The Crow (2024) remake: Hi— Me about Brandon Lee and The Crow (1994):

[elizabeth-mitchells]

when there's a beautiful blonde that is fundamentally changed by going to an isolated place and she can try to leave but she's doomed to die in that place

[lee-minhoe]

for @minchanz 🎁❣️

[dimonds456]

Transfem Stan Thoughtdump

Okay so @/abyssalzones made a pretty good post that sums up a lot of my thoughts as well, but I have a few extra ones I'd like to add to this discussion, as well as elaborating on one of the post's points. I've been thinking about transfem Stan for a couple of weeks now and at this point I'm like "fuck it we ball" and throwing it out there. 

For one, it warms my heart whenever there's an older character who was raised in the mid-1900s/older times who realizes they're queer, or comes to terms with their identity in old age. You're never too old to realize you're part of the community, and never too late. Adding this on top of the many, MANY identities that Stan has had to take to survive in her life, it'd be like really turning over a new leaf for her. She'd get to really step into an identity that she aligns with completely, and not something else given to her or that she took to protect herself. 

Not to mention, everything regarding Ford. The fact that she had to pretend to be Ford for so long, she more than likely never had the chance to even think about taking on any other identities. She had to keep this one as intact as she could. Otherwise, she could risk loosing the Shack, and with it, the portal- her brother. No way that was happening. 

It was briefly touched in the post, but when Stan was watching that one movie and she was like "JUST LIKE ME FR", obviously the writers intended that to just be a joke since this was as far and away from Stan's identity as they could get. But we're gonna ignore that and take it at face value for a second. 

The channel introduces itself (jokingly) as the boring old lady black-and-white channel, clearly something that a manly-man like Stan wouldn't be into, and he reacts like how you'd expect. But once it gets going, he gets fully sucked into it, leading eventually to the scene where the main character, seemingly about to complete a Character Arc™, tells her mother "I'm not just a dutchess, I'm also a woman!" and Stan cheers for her, saying the "just like me fr" line. 

Without any transfem headcanons, again, this is a joke. Or you could interpret this in hindsight as Stan feeling a similar way about his father, since lines like "I'm a woman!" declared like that usually means "I'm free to make my own choices," which is a message resident make-my-father-proud-issues Stanley Pines would relate to pretty hard. Even though this isn't a conclusion Stan comes to in the show, we could easily see him coming to a conclusion like that in the future.

Now let's add the transfem headcanon back in. With that new layer to it, Stan (whose egg hasn't cracked yet) would be confused as to why she relates so hard. After all, she's a man who was raised to shove feelings down and be a manly-man man by Filbrick. She's more than likely gone her entire life trying to conform to that idea of toxic masculinity that her dad pushed on both her and Ford. Stan was always the one who resorted to punching, after all. That's a manly-man trait, so surely this goes no further right

There's a part of Gravity Falls that I feel doesn't get discussed enough, and that's the underlying misogyny of it. There's not a ton of it, but there are quite a few jokes about how men are stronger than women and the like. Stan has quite a few lines like that herself. So she would be subscribing to a similar mental state, the idea that if you like punching, CLEARLY you're a guy. Cuz that's how it works. Obviously. 

Introducing Mabel Pines, someone who is VERY much a girly-girl. She likes pink and unicorns and rainbows and makeup and sleepovers, stuff of the like. Now I could make a whole other post about my headcanons for Mabel and her queer journey, but one thing she can definitely do that "girly-girls" DON'T? Punching.

Mabel can punch. And she punches a lot. 

It's a small thing, and something I think Stan has just kinda accepted without question over the course of the series, but if she were to stop and think about it, she'd be like ".....wait a minute." and it could very well be the first piece that cracks the idea of manly-man masculinity vs just. existing as a person and what that actually means. 

Once Stan finally starts to break away from toxic masculinity and all those lessons she got thrown into her head, then her egg would finally be able to start cracking. 

As for why it even matters, first off, it just makes for an interesting interpretation of the character I haven't really seen before until VERY recently. Like, within the past 2 days recently (and maybe once like a month ago?? idk). 

But secondly, for her character, it would be a good, healthy step into really taking back her identity. Who IS Stan Pines? She's spent so long being other people, either as a form of self-defense or pretending to be her brother so she can help save him from the sideburn hell dimension, that I don't think she's really allowed herself to connect to who Stan is. 

This is true regardless of gender headcanon, but I think the transfem angle makes it so much more interesting. Who is Stan? Not even she knows. And she's starting to feel VERY confused about the whole thing. 

As for Ford, I think he'd be more than willing to support an identity journey for Stan. After all, he's traveled across dimensions and more than likely had all his teachings questioned as well. I am willing to bet money he's encountered trans people before. And, knowing Ford, he'd be open and curious to the idea, not close-minded, no matter what their father tried to teach his kids. Honestly, I could see Ford pestering Stan with questions long into the night regarding the whole thing, and taking up the whole identity mystery for himself as something the two of them can "crack" (heh) together. Just another adventure for the crew of the Stan'o'War II! 

There's SO much more but I don't wanna re-say things that the og post already said, these are just the big ones that stick out to me and what I wanted to elaborate on. 

TL;DR Stan goes on a journey of realizing that toxic masculinity Is Bad Actually and honestly so was his father, and once he accepts that and starts actively challenging his own beliefs about gender, her egg cracks and she realizes that maybe she isn't a guy at all. The rest of the Pines- but Ford especially- are supportive, and although Stan has a LOT of self-reflection to do and I could see her getting frustrated, flustered, or even embarrassed of her newfound realization, ultimately it makes her happier like this. Cuz it's her identity. She's not pretending to be anyone else anymore and she can just wholly be herself.

Thank you and goodnight

[the-genius-az]

Omega!Ty Lee pregnant with Azula puppies and headcanons of Alpha!Azula taking care of her pregnant mate

Thanks for idea, Amor!

Azula gets clingy on Ty Lee.

Ty Lee has to hide to have some alone time.

Azula perfumes her Omega completely with her pheromones.

Sometimes Ty Lee gets angry and yells at everyone saying they are useless.

Thanks to pregnancy hormones she kicked her Alpha out of the room.

Everyone in the palace could see Azula sleeping at the door of her room.

Ty Lee couldn't stand to see her Alpha for even a second.

That era ended and the horny era began, Azula had her reward!

She was definitely not going to get her Omega pregnant again because it hurt her to see how he rejected her.

She DEFINITELY wasn't going to get her Omega pregnant again when her three puppies were born.

[l0gitex]

wee

[kacievvbbbb]

Ty Lee becoming a kyoshi warrior made no sense to me. If anything it feels like a regression. Don't get me wrong I think she'd fit in well with them and I love suki/ty lee but realistically at the start of the season we hear Ty Lee proclaim that her trauma of growing up with six identical sisters is what drove her to the circus and it was kind of dismissed. and then we never really get any closure on this the time we see her she betrays Azula and is imprisoned and then after that the last time we see her she is part of the group in full garb after befriending them off screen.

she joined the one group where a huge recruitment is looking like everyone else. Why?

And the thing is this totally could have worked her coming to terms with her identity even tho she looks like everyone else she is still Ty Lee and she has a lot to contribute by simply being her (and also like how she taught them chi blocking) and so the idea of becoming another "faceless" girl doesn't scare her as much because she knows that to the people that matter they know who she is.

But like the way its done just feels like they needed a nice little fun way to wrap up ty lee's story but it also makes it feel like Ty Lee is incapable of standing on her own, if its not the circus its azula and mai if not them the kyoshi warriors. She's never just on her own being Ty lee she is always playing fidde to some group.

I think it would have been better if the ending had ty lee instead of having already joined the kyoshi warriors had instead been separated from mai and anyone she knew in prison and had had to for the first time get by on her own merits as a person not what she could do for other people. (a bit like what Suki does in Suki alone) and then a little moment between her and Suki where they reconcile Ty Lee tells her how she wants to help rebuild the word after the devastation of the fire nation and Suki's like "it's not exactly rebuilding the word but maybe you can teach me and my girls that chi blocking you do, it's impressive." and Ty lee could smile and agree. Not exactly an invitation to join but a way for her to carve out her own niche and make a mark in a safe space. It could also tie into the chi blockers that we see in LoK of Ty lee decides she likes teaching and decides to teach more non-benders how to protect themselves since the Kyoshi Warriors is pretty sacred and has traditions that not everybody can adhere too.

I just think making her a kyoshi warrior came out of nowhere and not that ut couldn't work at all but it would have needed more time to breathe. I would say have Suki introduce the fact that the kyoshi warriors are going to stay as Zuko's security detail for a while and Ty Lee's knowledge of the palace and Chi blocking skills would be an amazing hep to them so she starts of working with them and maybe int he comiucs we can see that she joined them (but I doubt they had decided this little plot line when the series actually ended)

[daria-argento]

Very interested in how these two movies portray the visual horror in small bursts and fragments, like traumatic memory during overwhelm; the long takes and uneasy score that makes it feel like a nightmare; the incongruous imagery; the concept of repression of trauma/the displacement of distress on to an inanimate object that seems strangely animate…

[mae-i-scribble]

I'm doing a very slow reread of orv with some friends, but since I can't talk about my spoilerous rambles with them too much I have decided to make a post here to get my thoughts out. Up to chapter 25, I've been surprised by the amount of little hints we're already getting for larger plot points and the things that are recontextualized now that I'm looking with hindsight rather than experiencing it for the first time, which really speaks to how phenomenally written orv is on a fundamental level. By the time we get to the 3rd scenario, we've had Dokja mention his mother once, when he briefly worries over her safety. Then we get this line:

"I looked around at the people. The first scenario was original sin. Thus, none of the people here were innocent. That made it more disgusting. Those who trampled on someone else to survive, who couldn’t even bear responsibility for their own life."

Of course it's firstly talking about the lack of morality in this world, when faced with the truth that between the major and minor groups of Gumho station, one fact makes them equal: they are all murderers. The use of the phrase "the original sin" caught my eye because when looking at Dokja's life, murder is his original sin- the murder of his father. That is what sparks the events leading up to this point. It is the true original sin of this world. However, that being followed by "That made it more disgusting...who couldn't even bear responsibility for their own life," is rather hypocritical in that regard. We have no way of knowing exactly how much of that night Dokja remembers at this point of the story, so there are 2 ways to interpret this in regards to his father's murder. 1) Dokja does not remember that he murdered his father, but remembers that his mother had taken responsibility for her crime and served her sentence. In regards to here the people of the minor are far inferior because they cannot adapt the way Sookyung did to their crime. 2) Dokja does remember that he murdered his father, and this disgust is equally leveled at himself, because he knows his mother is innocent but that she took responsibility from Dokja. Thus Dokja of back then is just like these people, unable to take responsibility for his crime.

Then, later on, we see the text, and Dokja specifically, focus on this particular pairing in the minor group.

"The people started to move. All in all, they were people who had already killed. “M-Mother!” “Dayoung, come here! Do this! Just like what you did on the subway with Mother!” Children and mothers."

Then in Chapter 25 we have:

"I honestly admired that the mother and child survived the bloody fight. If she had that much strength, they might be able to survive without going with us."

The English translation doesn't exactly lend itself to identifying the gender of the child, and I am miserably monolingual so I'm not sure if the original text specifies Dayoung's gender, but for thematic reasons I'm choosing to imagine them as a mother/son paring. In that regard, Dokja choosing to notice them out of everyone else, when he's an extremely apathetic person in these early chapters who doesn't care much for those not directly related to him or the story/his survival is very notable. I can't help but think he sees himself in that, as both the son of a murderer and a murderer himself. It's also notable that when complimenting the pair, he only focuses on the mother's strength. Which like. The subconscious projection is so real. To Dokja the child didn't do anything it seems, it's only because of the mother's strength that they will be able to live on. I'm sure I will be back to add more info on this as I trudge through the novel because Dokja and Sookyung's relationship makes me mentally ill all the time but for now I shall simply lay down and ponder(tm)

[kwistowee]

“What really drew me to it was what Rupert Sanders wanted to do with it. He wanted to completely reimagine the story and the character and tailor it towards a modern audience.” - Bill Skarsgård about The Crow remake x

Then it's not 'The Crow', is it?! Get out of here with your Pete Davidson meets Jared Leto's Joker, wannabe Constantine crap. Tell me you completely missed the point of the original without telling me you completely missed the point of the original. The Crow (1994) honored the spirit and intent of the graphic novels, rather than reimagining them.

The original was simultaneously over the top and exquisitely subtle, the character development was brilliant, and the writing was spectacular. There are no substitutions for the 1994 original, no I will not be taking any questions.

[flum3n]

lee minho and hwang hyunjin in the skzflix universe

skzflix / chihiro - billie eilish / ferrari - the neighbourhood / b me unveil / long for you - hyunjin / mixtape: on track mv / oh mv / messages from her - sabrina claudio

[lupins-hehim-pussy]

There was a joke in the Wriothesley Not-Birthday arc that didn't make the cut but it basically was someone being like "YOU WERE SKINNY??" when looking at Sigewinne's toddler pictures with her dad (Neuvillette is the one taking them, obviously). And Wriothesley is like "I was in the hospital for like a month. No shit."

[dangerliesbeforeyou]

ok so i just watched the wicker man (the original one ofc not that awful nicholas cage remake with the bees lol) and rather than making a post about it i ofc am gonna talk about mr king, aka the in9 episode that people kept saying was super similar to the film lol because if i cant relate everything to my hyperfixation then what is the POINT lol?!

first thing i will say is i absolutely LOVED the film!! i often find classic horror films either to be hit or miss (halloween sucked but the exorcist was amazing lol) and this was definitely a hit imo!

and it's super interesting thinking back to mr king and the things they chose to pay homage to from the original! creepy kids, masks and rituals, emphasis on sexuality and the harvest, even the outsider acting as a 'well-meaning coloniser' trying to 'educate' the natives lol

but i think it's in the changes that make mr king super interesting to me (and why it kinda bugs me that people keep just saying it's a remake of the wicker man... like it bugged me BEFORE i watched the film and even more now because they are v different lol something being inspired by a thing doesn't mean it's copying it smh have y'all never heard of a homage!?!?... anyway)

changing the setting to wales was SUCH a good choice imo, a place that is only really recently beginning to properly reclaim some of it's old culture after literally centuries of english colonisation (if you weren't aware, there have been recent pushes for various welsh landmarks and places to be referred to by the welsh name and not the english, which i wholeheartedly support tbh! you can't pronounce yr wyddfa? skill issue lol), and moving the focus from religion to environmental factors also made so much more sense for something set this century!

i also found it interesting the way both deal with the weaponisation of sex and sexuality... in the film it's when the landlord's daughter (willow) tries to seduce the sergeant in order to expose his hypocrisy (and ironically in not giving into it, he sealed his own fate in the end lol), and in the show it's the young girl who lies about alan being sexual towards her (in turn leading towards the whole photograph scene and, ultimately, his own grizzly end lol)... both in a way are responding to the culture of their respective times (the film commentating on the 60s/70s free love culture, mr king responding to the wider #me too movement of the last 10 or so years)

and continuing on from this, part of the horror in both speaks specifically to the audience's discomfort with open discussions and displays of sexuality, and the power that that discomfort holds over us still... and ofc in the film this manifests itself with the idea of christianity vs paganism, highlighting how both are a lot more similar than either side would like to admit to lol...

mr king is a little more murkier, since the emphasis is on environmentalism. in a way it deals a lot more with the concept of rationality (as in, science and the like) vs irrationality (as in, paganism and mysticism) than the original! though in the end the message is the same: that regardless of what or who you believe in, it ain't gonna stop you from being murdered lol! it also positions that in the mr king universe, the sacrifices aren't just the town trying to come back from a bad harvest, but instead a super important yearly ritual that, presumably, is actually working lol?? so what we may perceive as 'irrational' is actually the other way around lol...

one of the big changes from the film is the mystery element. in the film sergeant howie's whole deal is that he's gone to the island to find a young girl... in fact the town's people specifically use the fact they know he will stop at nothing to save her (even by the most degrading and invasive ways possible) as a way to trap him. alan is completely different in this regard, in that he has come to rural wales in order to escape his old life... he's not trying to save anyone, effectively he's running away! and even the mystery of the previous 'mr king' is only really something he looks into to save his own skin... both characters are selfish in the reasons why they end up in their positions, and naive to think that their positions as men in positions of authority would save them!

idkk i just think there's a lot of super fascinating stuff in this episode and how it plays with the aesthetics and themes of the film it was inspired by that i've just kind seen brushed aside just cos the 'twist' at the end was super similar to it lol??

[andi-o-geyser]

very cat pib lady meme, if i do say so myself

[kanene-yaaay]

Bunny Fields

Kanene's notes: Hi hi hiiiiii!!! Good afternoooooon!!!! The fic is finally here, let's goooo!! This is a gift for @squeaky-n-blushy for being absoluetly incredible and almost making me scream out loud w her comments and hcs and fics. Tu é um arraso, mana!

Warnings: There's a bit of animals tickling someone, not sure if it counts as warning but besides that, nothing more! Just a light cheer up tickles <3. Ticklish!Jin Ling and Ler!Shizui. Around 7.000 words.

[~*~]

Lan Shizui smiled. His eyes closed as the cold wind caressed his hair and filled his lungs, muscles immediately relaxing, making his usual straight posture falter just a bit. There was the rustling sound of the leaves and birds singing nearby to help the calm, relaxed atmosphere that fell over him and confirmed his growing suspicion that it was going to rain later after the sun set. There was still plenty of time to enjoy and spend on his favorite place, however. 

It took a few moments and no time at all for the feeling of something soft and fluffy graze his fingertips. 

Shizui bit back a joyful giggle. Restrain was difficult when he felt so at home like this, but he was no longer a tiny child squealing and gasping in wonder at each new joy, letting instead delight and contentment be shown in his small smiles and the happy dance of his heart and soul. 

As he opened his eyes, he was graced with the image of a small bunny hopping even closer, past his hand and right to his robes,  smelling them before lovingly chining it.

An indignant sound ressounded behind him and the young boy quickly put the bunny on his lap before it was scared away, again, petting it with care and offering a slice of cucumber in an appeasingly manner. From a nearby bush, another bunny moved and looked at him, nose twitching with the promise of food.

“Why do they keep coming only for you?!” Jin Ling complained indignantly, his new round of protests only coming to a halt when a pair of fluffy ears perked just about his right. 

His eyes zoned to them like an arrow to its target, robes twirling around him as he fastly turned to the animal’s direction and hastily offered the vegetable, one hand supporting him on the ground, keeping his expensive clothes away from the grass as the other stretched the farthest away as it was humanly possible in his attempt to attract the bunny. Initially it hopped a few inches away in a wary distance, making him have to stretch even more.

Even as impatience began nicking at his mind, Jin Ling kept his stance, until the bunny was back and staring at the food with interest, nose twitching and ears turned in his direction, its tiny mind clearly calculating the pros and cons of getting close to The Loud Human and having some free delicious snack or go back to its quiet safety but with no fresh snack. It was black with a big white spot on the base of his left ear and every time it moved the spot fluttered around as well. 

After a few moments passed, the bunny hopped close.

A surprised, sharp gasp came out from the leader of the Jin Sect and both boys held their breaths, watching as it stopped momentarily with his noise before coming closer and closer. The slice almost trembled on his fingertips with his barely contained excitement when the animal stopped in front of it.

An experimental nibble was taken. Pride and warmth began filling Jin Ling’s chest and he prepared to crawl in its direction, already imagining how soft and fluffy that fur would feel when he finally got to hold and pet-

A white blur passed like lightning under him, not even faltering or stopping its dash even with the loud surprised shout from the young boy as he fell on the ground with the scare. It simply continued its path and barreled on the black spotted bunny, hopping like crazy around it and then running away in all its glory and speed, quickly being followed by the first one with energy.

Jin Ling watched as they went away, his eyes narrowing when he saw something suspiciously green and round in one of the bunnies’ mouth, only then turning to look at his hand and realize that his fingers were holding onto nothing, the fresh treat being successfully stolen away.

He felt his entire face burning with the knowledge that he just had been outsmarted by a tiny and fast bunny.

He turned around and laid on the grass with his arms crossed, pout evident on his face and growing stronger as he heard Shizui’s quietly concealed giggles of amusement.

“Stupids rabbits!” 

Bunnies, actually, but the Lan didn’t think his friend would appreciate his correction at the moment.

Jin Ling stomped his feet once in frustration and for a moment the image of a small, round bunny wearing the yellow robes of the Jin sect and with a tiny red spot on his forehead, angrily stomping his feet on the grass flashed in Shizui’s mind, which didn’t really help him with the whole ‘not-laughing-at-your-friend’s-predicament’ thing. Jin Ling seemed to get even more energetic at this.

“That is why dogs are clearly superior! Even before being trained, Fairy already knew how to recognize a strong and trustful cultivator from a threat. Those rabbits are just scared of everything.”

Shizui did not point out who had just been scared by one of them not even a niàn ago, nor rolled his eyes at the other, knowing that even the half amused and half annoyed huff he let out in answer to his complains already tip toed the line of self control his sect was known and respected for.

“Do not bully the weak.”

“Weak?! Wasn’t you watching how it jumped on the other bunny and stole my treat? The only one bullying the weak here was it itself. Maybe you didn’t explain your rules to them well enough.”

Shizui felt his cheeks prickle with a small bound of heat. Since Jingyi told Jin Ling about his old habit of reciting the sect’s rules to the bunnies as a kid in order to better memorize them, the Jin haven’t left him alone until he showered said special place and bunnies to him (with Hanguang-Jun’s permission, of course).

Usually, and especially since becoming the First Disciple, Shizui shouldn’t engage in senseless banter. For a moment, he truly intended to ignore his friend’s clear provocation… but the need to defend his younger self was stronger. “They are good listeners.” 

“And clearly bad learners.” Jin Ling grumbled, watching with envious eyes the bunny on his lap and the couple more surrounding him before turning around sharply, only to find the pair of black and white still jumping around the grass, the slice of cucumber now nibbled to half and in the other’s rabbit mouth. 

He bit back a curse and turned to look at the sky. “Isn't it your obligation as the First Disciple to handle punishments? Go teach them something.”

A snort rang in the air and Jin Ling turned around just in time to see Shizui’s surprised smile for a flash before a long white sleeve ran to politely hide it.

“Maybe this one should ask shifu for some little brushes and paper? Before herding all of them to the Library Pavillion to copy the rules in handstands?” 

Only then Jin Ling realized the absurdity of his words, the mental image of a bunch of bunnies following Shizui in line with tiny brushes and books as students with bad behavior eased his frown and thawed his moping into amusement.

He didn’t smile, but also didn’t snark back and instead turned back to the clouds, enjoying the scenery. 

Soon enough his eyes began prickling with tiredness and he yawned, blinks getting slower and slower as the gray clouds continued to accumulate in the sky. Since becoming a Sect Leader, there was always something to do, some problems to resolve, a meeting to attend, emergencies that were of the utmost importance and needed his attention right now. Therefore, it was no surprise that his sleep became seriously affected by it, with little time to truly rest and even less time when his nightmares would leave him alone. It was rare to have… this. Time to just close his eyes and joy, to oblige his muscles to relax and let his mind drift away…

Something heavy lays on his robes and he jumps on the same spot with a shout, stopping himself from scrambling away when he sees that it was just Shizui by his side, now holding a bunny protectively against his chest as he petted it into calmness again.

“WHAT-” The bunny squirmed in the Lan’s hold and Shizui stared at him with a serious sharp gaze. Jin Ling frowned back, although his voice lowered, begrudgingly. He grabbed one more cucumber slice from the porch attached to his hip and offered to his friend to calm down the animal. Eventually, the bunny settled again on Shizui’s hold. “What do you think you were doing!”

Shizui watched him with such a neutral and unimpressed face that Jin Ling instectevely shivered with how similar to Hanguang-Jun he looked in that moment. In answer to this thought Jin Ling only scowled harder. If they are showing off their heritages he might as well prove his.

“Stay still.” With the corner of his eyes, he saw Jin Ling opening his mouth. “And be quiet.”

That only made his friend bristle even more, taking a deep breath in preparation for what could only be the start of a mix of threats, complaints and protests, so Shizui ran to lay the bunny again on his stomach, successfully shutting him up. 

Interrupting was against the rules, but technically he was just finishing his previous comment and Jin Ling hadn't started to talk yet, so, with a lighter tune, he quickly continued before the other found his words again. 

“They get easily scared with sudden noises and movements. We need to be careful.” 

Jin Ling didn’t bat an eye at him and his words, currently too focused on the bundle of fluff that hopped to his chest and sniffed his fingers when he offered his hand, letting him pet it without a fuzz.

He let out a soft gasp when the bunny lifted itself to its hinder legs and began cleaning its face. Shizui was pretty sure that no emergency or obligation in the entire cultivation world could convince Jin Ling to move a single muscle now, his entire form melting back on the grass, completely attentive simply only to the cute animal on him. 

Shizui could relate.

He watched the small smile blossoming on his friend’s expression and how clearer that made the heavy shadows under his eyes and his previous sour mood stood out.

Since he and lan Jingyi met Jin Ling, he had been energetic, grumpy and not afraid at all to speak his every thought in a way that Shizui could only wish to understand, going into dangers and ideas head first, defending what he believed with his entire being and bickering or even fighting with anyone who disagreed with him and tried to cross his path.

In those last months, however, it had been clear that the stress had been taking a toll on him. It was not as bad as the first seasons when his entire world came crashing down around him in a single night and he suddenly went from heir to leader of his sect. 

Yet, lately he was still clearly jumpier and easy to startle than normal. His presence had became even more scarce than previously during their usual night hunts, his remarks more painful and his regretting silence after those louder.

Each and every one of those details accumulated and flashed in front of Shizui’s eyes like flaring signals, asking without words for immediate support.

To see him now, taking it easy, being full of excitement and softness, it only made Shizui’s determination to keep cheering him up like this even stronger. Quickly, he turned around, gray eyes fastly jumping around the field in search of more bunnies to bury the other under.

There was nothing better for lighting someone’s mood than being under a pile of cuteness and fluffiness, of that he was sure.

He had just successfully coaxed two more bunnies on Jin Ling and had just turned around to attract a fourth one when a barely concealed giggle froze him on the spot.

Jin Ling tried to scrunch his neck, but stopped mid movement when the rabbit just shoved its nose even more on the spot. It had spotted his brilliant red ribbon and got closer, wanting to give it a few experimental nibbles before the human quickly maneuvered the fabric away, hiding it under his head and hair from the curious bunny. Now, very much likely in a petty show of revenge, the small ball of fluff began sniffing his neck non stop.

As soon as the uncharacteristic sound was stolen away by the wind, Jin Ling turned around with wide eyes to stare at Shizui’s back, hoping that he hadn’t listened to the most embarrassing giggle he just let out. 

(Look! He had been caught by surprise, ok? You try to contain your reactions when a stupid rabbit discovers your weakness and decides to start exploiting it as revenge for you trying to save its life!)

The Lan, however, seemed much concentrated to continue his mission of determinedly gathering more and more rabbits to absolutely submerge Jin Ling with them, for some reason. He would’ve sighed in relief if the moving ball of fur hadn’t just decided to start nuzzling right under his chin, resulting in a brand new round of giggles to bounce back and forth on his throat, being held back only by his lips being desperately pressed in a thin line. 

“You dumb animal,” the heir of the grandious Jin sect refused to acknowledge the slight tremble in his voice, whispering his words so Shiziu wouldn’t realize the predicament he is in. If he, or even worse, Jingyi discovered about him being ticklish he would have to kill them himself in order to not die from embarrassment. 

Besides, he was a sect leader, now. Sect Leaders simply were not ticklish. 

As if actively contradicting him, the little tickly sensations continued to assault his nerves. 

“Cut this off or I’ll break your legs!”

The rabbit continued being a rascal and ignored his warnings, pretty much like he himself when his uncle used that same threat with him, knowing he was all talk. 

He bristled indignantly at being ignored and quickly lifted his arms, scaring one of the bunnies left on his torso to the ground

The other flinched and looked at his arms with suspicion, not far from following the other’s lead.

Swallowing a loud squeak - because the stupid little demon on his shoulder decided that his ear looked very interesting and began nuzzling it too - he changed his path to pet the second little fluffy ball on his belly because he wasn’t actually so petty - different of some animals as it seems - to scare the rabbits Lan Shizui left under his care just because of a few accidental tickles. 

The animal quickly calmed down again and went dutifully back to search his robes for more snacks since the four slices of cucumber Jin Ling gave to it had already been devoured.

(What a greedy thing!)

It had just started to sniff his porch with curiosity when a tiny lick hit his neck and the one in yellow robes had to use all his self control to stop an honest squeal to leave from his mouth, transforming it into a yelp as his hands flew to grab the sneaky little rascal out of his shoulder. His cheeks burned from interrupting the silence with his uncontrolled reactions once again.

“I am going to roast you.” He brought the  big, round thing next to his face, right in front of his eyes so he could glare at it better.

Once again, he must not have put too much heat on his mumbled threat because the rabbit only squirmed on his hold, obliging the grumpy, frowing leader move his hands to better secure it, supporting the torso and bun, before it went right back to to excitedly licking his face.

With a protesting and dramatic disgusted sound, Jin Ling pulled it away from him and made a face, showing off his tongue in what he knew was a childish move, but after so much blatant disrespect, he didn’t care anymore.

“Stupid rabbit, I will start licking you back, see how you like it!”

“Do not bully the weak.”

“Shizui!” The surprised expression made clear that the Lan had been successful in his attempt to not be discovered watching such a cute scene with the corner of his eyes, smiling fondly with drops of exasperation. Jin Ling’s face was slightly red and contorted in a scoff. “Shut up!I am not bullying anyone, this… thing here is the one that started everything. He hates me!”

Both boys turned to look at the bunny, still sitting comfortably in the other’s careful hold and totally taking advantage of his distraction to chin his cheeks energetically. Shizui very carefully did not lift one dubious eyebrow when he turned to stare at his friend again, but for the way that Jin Ling jolted on the same place and made a face, eyes staring back in defiance, he must have realized his true feelings anyway.

The one in golden robes opened his mouth to say something - probably a snapping remark - but immediately choked, his mouth quickly clamping shut as his entire posture became stiff as a board.

“Jin Ling?” 

Said one looked at him with wide eyes, hands coming down to hurriedly drop the bunny in his hold back on his shoulders, which seemed to be trembling a little. His moves were forced and unnatural. 

Immediately looking around to find the reason for his friend’s sudden silence, Shiziu found his gaze being promptly captured by his torso, squirming around and almost dislodging the other bunny on his stomach, who kept its unrelenting digging on the porch tied on his belt, missing the target most of the time and giving the sides and stomach under it the treatment of the soft, stubborn paws, uncaring for how the torso under it kept trembling and shaking under it.

His eyes changed their focus now to Jin Ling’s arms that jerked to his midriff. That was the moment the bunny he had just decided to put down began delivering licks and nuzzles back again on his neck, now free from any restraints and enjoying the opportunity present with the best of its ability. 

Jin Ling's hands went up to his shoulder and then right back down, clearly not sure of each animal to take care of first, face getting even more red as the moments went by and the attack simply continued, lips pressed so firmly that they formed just a straight line on his expression, his cheeks starting to poof.

So it was true, Jin Ling definitely was…

Shizui tried to not smirk with mischievousness, doing his best to keep in mind and reflect in his body the sect’s rules. 

(Do not bully the weak.)

However, Jin Ling was a very strong companion, a capable cultivator and admirable leader. No other word could be more unfitting to describe him than ‘weak’. 

(Cherish your companions and friends. Value your family. Stay honest to your beliefs. Do not treat outsiders of the sect differently.)

He was here to help Jin Ling to relax and cheer up. If a new opportunity to do so presented itself so perfectly in front of him, it would be foolish to not acknowledge the benefits that resulted from it.

“Let me help you, then.” 

Jin Ling could almost breathe in relief when he felt the rabbit on his stomach being lifted away, taking care of half of his attack. With mind and arms now free from the uncertainty, he moved to move the other one as well.

The moment of peace was soon over, however, when nimbly fingers took over its place and began digging and scratching on his sides with much more skill and precision than the animal. 

He jolted with a squeal and the giggles that were already trapped on his throat spilled freely, seemingly to only encourage Shizui’s attack even more. The Lan focused in exploring every spot of sensitive skin, pinching and skittering everywhere those skillfully fingers could reach, finding the weakest spots and attacking them without mercy all while he kept evading without even a blink the clumsy dance of his own hands as they tried to stop him from his tickling and pulling the most embarrassing sounds from him.

A squeeze hit his hips and the initial giggly fit quickly grew to a loud laughter, his reactions seeing much harder to control when as soon as his barrier broke. With interest, Shizui’s hand latched on the spot, kneading the flesh and scribbling on the bone, very much satisfied with the answering guffaws that it resulted.

Such sensations spreaded like fire across his skin, a buzzing feeling that went from his hips to his entire torso in ticklish sparkles and funny tingles,  mixing with the soft feeling of soft and fluffy nuzzles on his neck like a unbearable dance that made his smile grow wider and his laughter stronger.

“No!” He tried to growl in protest, but it came out more like a whine as he held the other’s wrist in reflex, briefly pulling it away from his torso when another high pitched squeak scurried away from his lips. In a flash, his friend’s other free hand (where was the rabbit?) had been quick to jump to the rescue, diving under the captured one and latching on his torso with energy. Fingers hopping from rib to rib, playing on each bone like they were the strings of a guqin until he was more focused in scurrying to hug himself than to keep the hand secure in his hold, squirming at every prodding and vibrating that attacked the spaces in between them as if the was dutifully tuning an instrument. “D-do not! Shizui!! Whahahat are you doing?”

“Helping you.”

“You are not! C-cut it out!”

Shizui’s next words were drowned by a shriek as another cold thing touched his neck. With a foreboding sensation Jin Ling realized that the other rabbit had joined the first one next to his shoulder, also sniffing and chinning him in a horrible, revengeful attack.

(What had he even done to this one?!)

“Get out, leav-eek! Leave my ribbon alone!” His voice wobbled and his words were completely taken over by plenty of snickers and chuckles, eyes closed from how much he was smiling, the sensations exploding behind his eyelids like flares. “Why do you keep licking me!”

He tried to scrunch his neck again in a poor attempt of protection, not really being successful since the bunnies simply deviated their attention and buried their stupid fluffy bodies and their stupid tiny, pink noisy noses behind his ears with energy and obliging him to move his face away, by instinct, which, of course, only opened even more places for them to explore, more tittering snickers and protesting squeals filling the air.

“Maybe it’s because of your… sweet personality?” Shizui cringed internally, then deflated, somehow glad that his friend was very much occupied laughing his heart out to point his thoughts out. Jingyi was much better at puns. 

The fact that Jin Ling’s face still pulled into a frown, a quite weird one since there was a gigantic smile on his face, was still equally amusing, though.

“That was horrible! Bunnies do not eat sweets.”

“Fruits are sweet.”

“I am not a fruit!”

A twinkle appeared on Shizui’s gray eyes and for a moment he looked so much like Wei Wuxian that dangerous warnings began blasting on his mind. “Maybe they confused you with a red bayberry?”

Jin Ling felt his already blushing face be set ablaze with stronger flames. A series of offended and incoherent noises fell like a snowstorm from his mouth, legs starting to kick with giddy energy and his torso to more energetically twist away. The offending hands simply kept following him, although, no matter how much he turned this or that way, drumming quicker and stronger on his higher ribs for the trouble.

He prepared to string a completely cohesive and strong argument that may or not contain a few threats of breaking legs or imminent death when said worming fingers decided to climb and shove themselves in his armpits.

A shot cut across the air as Jin Ling arched his back. It took a few moments for him to realize that such inhuman sound had been his, especially as more and more shrieks continued to be fished from his lungs.

Shizui faltered for a couple of moments, surprised with his sudden stronger reaction, fingers stilling and trembling as he stopped himself from chuckling out loud in amusement at the reaction. Guffaws and snorts continued to fill the air and he gave the - as it seems - absurdly, awfully ticklish skin under his nails a quick, light series of scribbles.

Another screech left Jin Ling’s lips and he jumped on the same place, giddy, anticipatory giggling escaping from him even when the other stilled his fingers again. The first disciple of Gusu Lan felt his own mouth twitching into a grin. 

“Shizui!”

Humming in lieu of an answer, Shizui started once more his skittering, now trying to add some stronger pressure as he scratched every available patch of skin. He watched as Jin Ling’s legs began kicking again with a new kind of fervor, moves growing quicker and more frenetic the longer he went.

His eyes squinted a little bit in thought. Freeing one of his hands, he pulled one of Jin Ling’s arms upwards, ignoring the yelp (and more tittering) that this resulted.

Making his touch light and soft again - not unlike the quick tracing of brush on paper or the quick plucking of a guqin’ cords -, the Lan ran the tip of his fingers on his inner elbow, watching as the other  descended back to a hysterical snickering, kicks going from trashing to a steady pace of stomps.

(Lan Shizui tried to wash away all his smug thoughts of how hard it would be to hit such a sensitive place when wearing all the layers required by the mountains' weather. Such a pity the Jin’s golden robes weren’t as thick and numerous as Lan’s, truly.)

Then, with no warning he dived back to his pits, clawing them until another round of shrieking started anew together with, to his immense delight, energetic and quick kicks that continued to follow the speed of his tickling.

It was almost impossible to distinguish the red Vermillion’s mark in Jin Ling’s forehead with how red his entire face was. “Stop playihihihing!”

Jin Ling clasped his arms tight on his torso, trying to protect himself way too late and succeeding in only trapping his hands closer and looking one step closer of completely losing his mind.

“Get out of there!” But the rabbits also kept him let out the most embarrassing yelps and squeaks and Jin Ling no longer knew to whom his order was directed to.

“Lift your hands up and I will.”

The sect leader scoffed. It came out sounding like a snort. “I’m not falling for that!” 

With a sort of amusement, Shizui watched as his friend’s reactions began fluctuate once more, according to the kind of tickles he delivered, going from a hysterical, loud giggly fit when he wormed his hands a little down low and decided to poke and prod his higher ribs, - quickly jumping from one spot to other to hear those funny, lovely squeals that appeared each time Jin Ling was caught by surprise, - to an uncontrollable round of crackles and screeches when he decided to vibrate non stop on his pits, making him kick and squirm and arch his back with no real way to escape the ticklish feeling that flooded his nerves in a fun kind of electricity that would put Zidian to shame.

(May his uncle never hear this.)

It took several tánzhǐs before Jin Ling’s mind stopped screaming and the next words of the Head Disciple of Gusu Lan finally sank.

The fact that the rabbits finally got tired from (all the movement and decided to look for food somewhere else) messing and attacking him might have helped.

“Lying is forbidden in Cloud Recessess.” Shizui reminded, watching him with an unusual playful gleam that didn’t inspire a lot of confidence in his words.

But Jin Ling wasn’t a little, easily tricked kid anymore. He had grown up with plenty of… experience to know a trap when he saw one.

“You’re just going to-”  His voice disappeared in a loud squeal and he tried to give the boy in white robes an annoyed glare before it faded in the smile on his face, especially as Shizui continued to focus on that spot between his armpits and ribs, pulling more and more squealing laughter. 

However, he was the nephew of Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian, and no one could shut him up when he had something to say!

He took a breath and spilled everything before the other could stop him again.

“You’re only going to tickle me more!”

Instead of the surprised face of someone who was caught breaking his sect’s main rules by being a dirty liar, Shizui only smiled calmly at him.

“I assure you. If you put your hands up, I will not tickle your armpits anymore.”

Then, he kneaded on the flesh and digged his fingers, as if reminding him how absolutely unbearable and insufferable the tickling truly was, taking all the breath he had just gotten away in a wheezing crackle. “Which I can not promise if you keep me trapped here.”

For a while Jin Ling was too lost in laughter to concentrate, arms trying to go up only to go crashing right back down as the Lan just didn’t stop tickling him. 

The sadic Lan he called a friend continued to soften his touches to a light, maddening scribbling just after each attempt, only to go back to full on drumming  on his poor pits the moment he managed to lift his arms the tiniest bit, cutting off all his progress.

“Why are you doing this!”

“Doing what?”

“Tickling m-” He cuts himself just as his mind caught his words, again, he turns a (non effective) frown and a glare (without heat) to his friend, who now loses the battle against himself and begins to softly snicker.

Jin Ling frowns harder at how warm that makes him feel. It is still a funny image with all the smiling and laughing. “I already said I am not falling for that!”

“You only need to put your arms back up, Sect Leader Jin, and I will not tickle your armpits anymore.” His tune had… something. If it wasn’t Shizui, it would almost sound as if taunting.

Still, it made Jin Ling bristle and, with all the strength he could gather, shot both of his arms up at once. They shook and trembled with plenty of laughter frolicking across the grass, yet they were kept high up.

Shizui stopped immediately and Jin Ling waited, anticipation prickling on his skin, for the moment those tormenting fingers would go back to assaulting his pits. 

With wide eyes, he watches, instead, as the other simply pulls his hands away with a tranquil, almost knowing look in his face.

“Lying is forbidden in Cloud Recessess.” Shizui, once more, reminds him.

There is still… a kind of light in his eyes that keeps titters falling from the leader’s lips and a tingling to run across his nerves. 

A breeze of air passed through them, making the hair on his neck stand up and him to prepare for another attack. He quickly pulls his arms right back down and Shizui adjusts himself so he is sitting on his legs, watching Jin Ling as if he is as silly as the big smile that is still plastered on his face.

Jin Ling begins to relax.

That is when, in a beautiful, blurring and fast flash of white, two hands latch on his stomach and started clawing with energy, scratching any and everywhere, kneading up and down, spidering all around, scribbling and pitching from side to side.

“No, no, no! Not the tummy, not the tummy! Shiz-” Another high screech was out of his lungs, a surprised, belly laughter (ha-) following right after. His voice got completely taken over by the force of the sound, totally unrestrained and unstoppable.

Lan Yuan really couldn’t help it.

He kept on tickling, kept looking for the spots that brought the most high pitched reactions, the cutest sounds, the sensitive places that made him bang his fists on the ground and try to roll away from the ticklish touches only to feel sneaking fingers swiping across his spine and dancing on his back over and over again until he was back to pressing his back on the ground, kindly putting his stomach right back at his tickly attention again and again.

It took him three tries, but soon Jin Ling was able to pass coherent words in between his slow, giggly and continuous descent into madness.

“I already commanded you to stop!”

And, just like magic, the tickling actually stopped.

Jin Ling kept feeling the ghost of the scribbles and tickles jumping excitedly across his muscles and nerves. He hugged his belly and tried to squirm away, but a firm touch on his torso prevented him from doing so, pulling his attention back to his friend as he kept trying to reign all the snickers flowing from him. 

His smile dimmed a little when he realized that the other was frozen, as if stuck in a daze.

What was that about? Did he just get hit by a curse? Was someone approaching? Maybe Hanguang-Jun? Was that why he stopped all of a sudden? Jin Ling supported himself on his elbow and looked behind Sizhui, trying to see any hint of white robes, a guqin or Wei Wuxian. 

When nothing besides a bunch of bunnies and trees catches his eyes, he goes back to stare at his friend, brows furrowed in confusion.

“You didn’t.” Lan Sizhui replies, as if this explains something.

“What?”

He jolts on the place when his strong, watching gaze falls on him, looking determined. “You didn’t.”

He starts to smile, something bright and happy. Jin Ling squints his eyes.

“You didn’t ask me to stop.”

With a shock, this time the leader of the Jin Sect was the one who froze, eyes widening with realization, mind running across the moments since the attack began. He surely would… I mean, it wasn’t as if Jin Ling actually still liked… Shizui simply must have been confused!

The blush on his face grows darker and darker.

“That doesn't mean anything! Besides, I shouldn't even have to! I- I-” His tune is as squeaky as his laughter, words jumping out of his throat before he can think too much about it. 

Instead of giving up of whatever he was planning to do, however, Shizuis's face only continues to get fonder and fonder, transforming into something so utterly joyful and glad that it has Jin Ling stumbling to erase it before the other can start getting ideas. More sentences tumbles out of his mouth as his arms try to push him clumsily away. “You Lans shouldn’t even… We aren’t kids anymore!”

Shizui’s grin continues unchanging, shining in fondness and playfulness and Jin Ling continues to feel his neck getting progressively more and more hot.

“Animals still play as adults, especially bunnies.”

“What does that have to do with anything, we are not bunnies!”

“There is no age to have fun, A-Ling.”

Then his gray eyes got wide and panicked and the sudden change left Jin Ling so confused that, when the other hurriedly jumped in his direction, he only managed to defend himself in their wrestle battle for some moments before the mischievous hands were burrowing themselves once again on his armpits. Just the slight graze of the ticklish feeling was enough to turn his body into well cooked noodles until the other was able to bring him right back to the ground, kicking and laughing non stop as the drumming was right back.

“You said you wouldn’t tickle them anymore!”

His entire body shook with the peals of laughter, head being thrown back with the force of it. There was  nothing else his senses could feel except that it tickled. It really, really tickled, even more now that Shiziu seemed to catch on just how much he didn’t truly mind the playful attack at all.

There was still mercy in the world, as it seems, though. 

“That is true.” The digging stopped and Jin Ling barely had time to breath before his sides began to be attacked with some light and energetic spidering, rare pinches appearing here and there and making him buckle from one side to another with surprise. 

The sudden change caught him out of guard and his belly laughter to fall back to a series of his embarrassing snickery giggles. His shoulders hunched up and he pressed his face on them, trying to at least muffle a little bit of such undignified sounds.

Lan Shizui must have some kind of mind reader amulet with him because in the very next niàn the soft tickling went back to an unmerciful kneading that made him squeal and squirm uncontrollably until his face inevitably came out of its hiding place. He began kicking his legs with all his might, making the other one turn around to look at them with a critical eye.

“Very well.”

And, as if they just had an entire conversation and arrived to some sort of agreement, Lan Sizhui freed one of his hands to squeeze on his right knee, summoning a loud snort, more and more of them being successfully mixed with his now wheezing fit to Shizui's happy delight.  

The leader of the Jin Sect got stuck in a playful, tickly cycle of extending his legs in a poor and unsuccessful attempt to escape from the tickles, shaking them from a side to another since Shiziu discovered that scratching on the underside of his knees will get him wiggling and letting out an unending ‘eee’ sound and then getting his sides teased and scribbled on until he was a mess of giggles, pulling his legs up to another round of kicks only for his knee to receive even more squeezes.

Every step of the cycle kept being repeated over and over again, as thoroughly and carefully as possible, making him wheeze, yelp, squeal, snort (there was so, so much snorts, Jin Ling is never surviving this if Lan Jingyi ever finds out), snickers, guffaws and temporary barks of laughter that makes his shoulders bounce, his head to shake and his mind to go completely crazy with such a funny, unbearable sensation.

His core spinned and twirled with each moment, sending warmth and adrenaline across his every meridian, making every light touch, every poke and spidering much more ticklish than before. His smile is so big and there are so many memories of his childhood passing through his mind and he wants to pull and push the sensation away and…

And he giggles and giggles and giggles.

Finally, the tickling stops and Jin Ling just… melts on the grass. His mouth is still twisted in a smile longer after all his tittering and hammering heart calms down. Feeling so dizzy with adrenaline, giggly in joy and relaxed only highlights how much tense he was before. 

He closes his eyes and just stays there, catching his breath, enjoying the breeze and wondering if he should get his revenge right now or wait to first bribe Jingyi into spilling all of Shizui’s best tickle spots and then get him, perhaps even with his help.

When his eyes open, his friend is there, petting a bunny that got close with one hand and holding a porch with the other. Jin Ling moves to sit and glare when Shizui turns with a calm, happy face to offer him water.

He opens his mouth to say something - a promise, a threat, a complaint - but no words come out so he simply gets the poach and drinks the water greedily. 

Stupid noisy bunnies. 

Stupid attentive Lans.

“Are you feeling better?” 

Shizui at least has the sense of sounding a tad apologetic. As he should! Attacking someone (and a Sect Leader no less!) with such a… childish, unbecoming tactic. His uncle, Sect Leader Lan and not even Sect Leader Nie would be found fooling around like this in his place. Jin Ling almost bristles at him in answer.

The warmth and fact that he is the most relaxed he had been in days stops him. But still!

“What are you talking about?”

Shizui looks around and then at him, eyes catching his without fear or mockery and holding his gaze. They spend a moment like this until the other looks away with a soft sigh. 

“You seemed stressed, lately, so I-” 

(-thought to bring you to my safest space, where no worries can find you or matter.)

(-decided to tickle you until you looked and sounded so carefree that no problem would try to keep haunting your mind.)

(-remembered how easy and effortless it is to be playful around you.)

How silly would he sound should he say any of this. Words weren’t usually a problem for him and yet Shizui found himself not knowing exactly how to explain his motives.

“I wanted to show you the bunny fields. They’re always very effective to be calming and joyful.”

He decided to go with that.

“And since when do I need your help?” Jin Ling sniffed, “I am fine!”

Shizui blinked, stared at him, face showing no strong emotion. His eyes narrowed just the slightest bit.

He lifted one of his hands in a clawing motion.

“Wait! D-don’t! I just said that I am fine.” he made a noise between a scoff and a snickery sound. “Lying is prohibited here, isn’t it? As a sect leader, it would be unbecoming to disrespect your sect by not following them.” 

He crossed his arms and their eyes found themselves again. Without even meaning to, Jin Ling’s voice softened. “I am fine.” 

(Thank you.)

Shizui huffed, sounding both amused and relieved, smiling a little back. “Then I am glad.”