#fof fic

[terapsina]

fury that melts the ice - zyc/zyz/wx short fic

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ao3

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Thoughts whirled through his mind in synch with the snow that would kill him. Memories and truths he'd tried to suppress.

Zhuo Yichen had always known love to be the first warm rays of springtime sunlight, melting the white snow sorrow into the beautiful pink blossoms of a cherry tree in bloom.

That was his love for Wen Xiao.

She was the melody at the edge of his heart; the soft smile that caught his breath; and the clever quip warming his cheek.

Zhuo Yichen had not known that this love was destined to own only half his heart. He had not known that he should guard himself against a love like the storm at sea.

Inescapable and unassailable.

But how did one guard against someone who would love the springtime in his heart with the same devotion as could be found in Zhuo Yichen himself? How did one protect oneself from a soul that was mate to itself?

His love for Zhao Yuanzhou was the tears wetting the earth into a new life, the blood that burned its brand over his heart like a hot ember pressed into his chest.

The ancient demon was the innuendo that caught Zhuo Yichen's tongue into a mortified trip; he was the lecherous monkey whose eyes sparked with faux guilelessness; most of all, he was the seamless dance over a calm pool of water transforming their every battle into poetry that promised one day to shred his heart into crimson mist.

He had known he would love Wen Xiao until his last breath from the moment he'd cradled the tiny blue wildflowers between his palms.

He had thought he would hate Zhu Yan until the last beat of his heart from the moment his brother's sword dropped from his numb fingers.

What agony to know that he was destined to be right about one and so wrong about the other. What cruelty that he was fated to pierce his family sword through the heart of the demon who was not the monster from his absent nightmares, after all, but instead the man who in the catching of Wen Xiao's heart had snagged Zhuo Yichen's too.

He did not even know which pain would have proved greater.

The sight of Zhao Yuanzhou transformed into golden starlight and blown away by the wind?

Or the scream in Zhuo Yichen's ear as Wen Xiao fell to her knees and wept until all that might maybe make her move were the pleas from Pei Sijing.

Zhuo Yichen would certainly not have dared burden her sight with the blood of her beloved on the hands of her friend for longer than a brief goodbye.

Was it not kinder for Zhuo Yichen to take this unexpected opportunity to cut that destined ending short? If he was the sacrifice that gave a future to the spring sunlight and the storm bringing life back to the frozen earth under their feet... was that not only right?

Was it not better to entomb himself in ice and break only his own heart? His heart would break anyway, why not let it be for something useful?

Ice spun around and around him. White across vision, the cold biting into his skin and numbing Zhuo Yichen to the reality taking shape behind him.

Behind him, Wen Xiao screamed.

Behind him, Zhao Yuanzhou raged with the cold fury of a storm at sea. Relentless and unyielding.

Even Pei Sijing loosed arrow after arrow in the vain hope of saving him - because she cared, yes, but also because to save him was to save Wen Xiao.

Behind him, he was breaking hearts anyway; hearts that refused to be broken; hearts that howled in denial and battered against his choice with the seething frenzy of heated iron.

His head turned with painful slowness until finally Zhuo Yichen's eyes were caught like a rabbit in a snare. For the first time, it felt as if the Great Demon truly did wish to rend the flesh from his bone.

His voice gone, Zhuo Yichen pleaded through his eyes. 'Let it be me.'

'No!' Zhao Yuanzhou stared back with the look carved into the face of a mountain.

[phantom248]

Adventures of Zhuo Yichen in Gong Family!

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Gong Shangjiu, Shangguan Qian, and Zhuo Yichen (dressed as didi) were having an another attempt at "family" lunch.

ZYC (as didi) *starts sneezing*

ZYC (as didi) *continues sneezing violently*

ZYC *hand goes immediately to his side in search of a sword*

ZYC *looks in betrayal at GSJ as he was always ordered to leave cloud light sword in his designated room whenever he came over to avoid suspicion*

SGQ *clocks the motion but says nothing about it* (in a sachrine tone): are you ok didi?

ZYC *in a rare display of his similarity with GYZ, grinding his teeth*: peachy

GSJ *worried the poor man would combust from constant sneezing*: didi has been working nonstop for last few days, he should rest.

ZYC stands at the clear dismissal and makes his way out, but trips very noisely in the way on a side table. GSJ makes a valiant effort to ignore this, while SGQ stares in blatant fascination.

Embarrassed, ZYC stands up and finally makes his way to the door, only to slam in it at the very end with a force that rattles everything in the room. SGQ is unable to hold her flinch back, still very fascinated at this rare clumsiness. GSJ only sighs.

"I should escort him back, maybe he is too sick."

SGQ is way too fascinated to stop him. He makes his way to his didi, and grabs his arm and leads him out.

Few moments later, a splash sound rings out, followed by a muttered question from GSJ about where the puddle of water came from despite not raining for few days. It was almost drowned out by a frustrated growl.

"That. Damned. Monkey!"

[youhideastar]

Fangs of Fortune Recs!

By popular demand! This list is very preliminary, since new stuff is being written all the time! But for now, here are a few of my favorites:

Throw the Windows Wide by achray (@achray1)

You know when an author writes a fic that captures exactly the vibe of a pairing that made you fall in love with that pairing in the first place? It’s so hard to do, because you have to start by perfectly capturing both characters as individuals, but this author makes it look effortless. Here, Zhuo Yichen sees Zhao Yuanzhou kissing Li Lun—a sight that definitely wasn’t meant for him—and has a conversation with him about it afterward. The author’s command of the characters’ speech patterns and body language is flawless, and this fic gave me SO many feelings about these two. Bonus 1: it’s followed by a VERY HOT sequel. Bonus 2: I would rate this as pretty accessible to folks who haven’t seen the series yet. Bonus 3: check out the same author’s Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Demon Sex (But Were Afraid To Ask), which is SO cute and features a lot of embarrassed Zhuo Yichen (my favorite!).

unbroken vow by ximilu

One of the great gifts this show gives fic writers is the multiplicity of opportunities for fuck-or-die setups (or, to be more specific to the genre, “only dual cultivation can save you” setups), and there are several great examples, but this one is my fave. Set during the arc when Zhuo Yichen is carrying around massive amounts of demonic qi but no demonic core to ground it… well, I can’t do better than the author’s summary: “Stop me, then.” Li Lun isn’t looking at Zhuo Yichen at all when he says it, all his attention turned to hurting Zhao Yuanzhou instead. “Save your precious Xiao-Zhuo daren. Fuck a core into him yourself.” Absolutely nobody is having a good time in this fic, each for their own different reasons, and the angst is so, so delicious.

Honorable mention goes to full of tangled karma by angryteapot, which uses dual cultivation to solve the Episode 34 dilemma with a delightful mpreg threesome scheme – come for the porn, stay for Wen Xiao righteously and literally kicking Zhao Yuanzhou when he’s down because he trampled all over her agency.

 Silly Concern, Serious Question by dykemania (@yeliuxi)

After the mpreg joke during the Ying Long arc, Zhuo Yichen asks Wen Xiao if she actually thought he might be pregnant. Their conversation is so tender and so vulnerable – the author has such a great handle on their relationship and on the two characters as individuals: Wen Xiao matter-of-fact and protective, Zhuo Yichen bravely persevering through his embarrassment. I’ve re-read this like three times already because reading it feels like a warm hug.

Others!

I also recommend Onmyo-Jin’s (@onmyo-jin) awesome collection of bite-size fics, of which my favorites are Out of habit (Zhao Yuanzhou doing a great impression of the cat who sits on your laptop while you’re trying to work) and In danger of you (the classic “we’re being chased so we have to make out to conceal our identities”).

Finally, I love fruits of your labor by ghostrunner (@witchmachine), which is another great fic that’s super accessible to folks who haven’t taken the plunge to watch the show yet. It’s a missing scene from Episode 31 (the gathering-branches-from-the-sacred-tree bit), but most of all it’s Zhuo Yichen and Zhao Yuanzhou finally stepping over the line between friends and lovers, taking joy in the discovery of one another’s desires.

(And I’d be remiss if I missed this opportunity to plug my own post-canon fic, The Wedding of the Great Demon, which is also very accessible for a reader who hasn’t seen the drama yet!)

[onmyo-jin]

ZYZ + ZYC (49. …out of necessity)

(asexual-ZYC attempts to make an advance on ZYC, out of what he feels is necessity, hurt/comfort ensues ♥️)

I cannot tell you how much joy this prompt gave me, thank you so much! It took a while to get this story down the way I wanted to, I hope you enjoy 🖤🩶🤍💜

Zhuo Yichen isn't blind. He has long since seen the eyes Zhao Yuanzhou makes at him when he thinks Yichen isn't watching, or even when he is. He has heard the flirtations (the same as directed an Wen Xiao), has heard Yinglong say zhiji, he has noticed the others giving them space to be alone, creating chances for him to confess. 

It's not that he doesn't like Zhao Yuanzhou. Most of the time the demon is sharper, funnier, more interesting, more true to his own nature than anyone Zhuo Yichen has ever seen. He wants to spend time with the demon, he wants to be the one sitting next to him, wants to feel as comfortable around the other as his friends seem to be– as Wen Xiao seems to be, despite the demon's endless stream of flirty comments.

Except…

Love is a confusing thing, to Zhuo Yichen. He loves (present tense, always present tense) his brother, his father, loves his friends. Only that doesn't seem to be the kind of love that makes people do ridiculous things. The kind of love that makes young people foolish and old people feel young, the kind of love that inspires so much art and poetry and song– This kind of love is not something Zhuo Yichen feels. Well, that or he is the most sensible person the world has ever seen.

Regardless, he likes Zhao Yuanzhou. In a way that feels different to the way he cares about his family and friends, he really likes that annoying demon. And the demon seems interested in him. So according to all the great stories, the songs, the poems (he has done his research, thank you very much), if two people like each other then they kiss. And that's how you're sure that it is love, and not just like.

And that's how he ended up here, waiting for everyone else to retire after their dinner on the veranda, hoping Zhao Yuanzhou doesn't go to bed before the others do. It is late, and they've already collectively bullied Bai Jiu into going to bed, with placations and lies that they too are about to sleep. Pei-daren may even have been telling the truth, for she retired soon after. Ying Lei is still talking, going on about this divine feast he was invited to some decades ago and about how he wants to recreate a specific dish. Wen Xiao knows him better than anyone, and winked at him when she left, claiming she had some more studying to do.

Zhao Yuanzhou has been eyeing him all evening, and Zhuo Yichen has never before had cause to wonder if this is what a piece of fruit on a market stall might feel like. He's not sure he likes the feeling of waiting to be picked, of being judged, or perhaps of being assumed to be something delicious– anyway. 

Ying Lei yawns halfway through his meandering description of herbs he'd need to grow, and stands from the table. "I'm heading to bed as well, you two night owls behave yourself!"

"What do you-"

"We always do," Zhao Yuanzhou answers over Zhuo Yichen. The mountain god snorts and shakes his head as if they were children and not an ancient demon and a human more responsible than their little runaway god himself.

With Ying Lei gone this would be the perfect time to make his move. The only thing he needs to do is to turn to Da Yao and… kiss. Just kiss him. Somehow the songs and the stories failed to mention how hard that next step would be. Zhuo Yichen stares at his tea cup, and finds himself wishing for something stronger. The tea stares back at him, growing cold in accusation of his inaction. The silence loudly proclaims his failure to act, the night sky moving inexorably on to morning.

"Zhuo-daren?" Zhao Yuanzhou's questions startles him, and he turns to the demon. "You've been preoccupied all evening, am I really so very distracting?" He knows the smirk the demon will be wearing before he even turns to look at him. When he does it is hard to look away from those lips.

"No," the lie is painfully obvious to Zhuo Yichen, and of course the demon notices too. For the first time Zhuo Yichen can say he is grateful for the fact that Zhao Yuanzhou is such a flirt.

"Did you know demons can sense lies, Xiao Zhuo-daren? Why don't you tell me what's really on your mind-"

"-Can I kiss you?" The words are out of his mouth before he knows it, and he cringes at how silly, how earnest, how innocent he sounds. His cheeks are burning, and he'd give anything to be elsewhere right now. Perhaps the earth can open up to swallow him, perhaps enemies can beset the capital, hordes of demons attack the Bureau, absolutely anything��� Anything would be better than sitting under the stars by the light of a few candles as Zhao Yuanzhou stares at him.

Surprise is the first emotion that flashes across Da Yao's face, but amusement follows it swiftly enough. Close behind it is a hunger Zhuo Yichen doesn't have a name for. Is that what love is, or even lust? A hunger? It seems strange, but Yichen doesn't have the time to think about that now. The silence stretches too long, and Zhuo Yichen is about to start making excuses, blame the food, the time of night, even an imaginary fever or poison.

Then the demon is moving, swift as a blade, and Zhuo Yichen almost tries to block and evade until he realizes: he asked for this. Zhao Yuanzhou lunges for him like he is attacking, but grabs him as soft as one would hold a flower, one hand snaking around his waist and the other around his neck. His lips meet Yichen's in a soft greeting, asking without words to touch him and yet being so much more eloquent about it. It's… strange. People do this for fun?

The lips against his own are warm, and while not unpleasant it's a little weird. People use their mouths for eating, and talking, and breathing– and then they also want to touch their mouths together? For extended periods of time? It isn't bad, per se, and Yichen is no poet or artist, but this does not seem like something that inspires such great art.

"Xiao Zhuo?" Oh gods. He's been thinking too much, and Zhao Yuanzhou has noticed while kissing him that he… doesn't care for kissing, apparently. "What's wrong?"

How does one explain to the person you just asked to kiss you that no, thank you for the scientific experiment, I'm not actually interested in doing that. In hindsight Zhuo Yichen realizes how awful his question was. He got the demon's hopes up over nothing, only to disappoint him. Li Lun's words about humanity's cruelty echo in his mind. Zhao Yuanzhou's eyes are searching his face, increasingly concerned with his lack of answer. He is still holding Zhuo Yichen ever so gently, their faces still close enough to feel the demon's breath ghost across his skin.

Zhuo Yichen shrinks back, breaking that gentle hold, trying to hide himself from those kind, concerned eyes. "I'm sorry."

Da Yao reaches for him, this time slowly instead of knife-fast, and lays a careful hand on his arm. The weight of it settles with the weight of a thousand expectations and Zhuo Yichen stares at it like it is something fearful. Whatever Zhao Yuanzhou reads in his gaze makes him retract his hand quick as lightning.

"I'm sorry," Zhuo Yichen repeats. He might be apologizing for either of his actions, or both, or for even waking up and thinking this was a good idea. He's honestly not sure which one it is. Perhaps running away like Ying Lei did is not such a ridiculous action after all. Especially because the ground isn't obligingly opening up and swallowing him whole. He focuses his attention on his abandoned tea cup, because he can feel Zhao Yuanzhou's eyes searching his face.

"I'm not sorry," the demon announces, and it's such a weird thing to say that it makes Zhuo Yichen look back into those dark eyes. "I got to kiss my favourite human, so whatever it is that you've done: I don't mind." His smile is entirely cheerful mischief and is such a 180 from moments before that Zhuo Yichen knows he is acting, and reacts accordingly to roll his eyes.

"There, that's the infamous Zhuo-daren I know," Zhao Yuanzhou drops part of the mischief-mask, but keeps his smile. He returns to his own seat instead of being so terribly close, and waits patiently for Yichen to sit upright and collect his thoughts. "Now, if Zhuo-daren would tell this lowly demon what he has done wrong, perhaps this one can forgive him, hm?" He makes it sound so easy, Zhuo Yichen thinks. He makes it sound so tempting, as well: forgiveness. 

Zhuo Yichen stares at the demon for a long moment before deciding to put away his pride. It's the least he can do for leading the demon on like that. "I… have never kissed anyone," he begins, and resolutely looks away from the smirk Zhao Yuanzhou lips curl into at those words. "All the stories say people kiss, but I've never understood why? It just… has never seemed interesting." 

"And it was interesting enough to ask now?"

"I wasn't sure– so I thought I should check, because kissing seems to be how people tell if they…"

"If they like one another?" Zhao Yuanzhou completes the words that Zhuo Yichen cannot make himself say.

"Yes," he admits, looking firmly at the table.

Laughter is probably the last reaction Zhuo Yichen expected, but Zhao Yuanzhou is laughing. "Ah, Xiao Zhuo, I have good news: there are many more ways to tell a person you like them besides kissing."

When the demon says it it sounds so simple, so obvious. Zhuo Yichen wonders why he hadn't thought of that, why the stories are so full of kissing if there are other ways to show love. Still, he feels the need to check: "You don't mind?"

"Mind? That I was given your first and last kiss? Why, Zhuo-daren I am honoured-oof," Zhuo Yichen punches him in the shoulder for that, but stays to wait while Zhao Yuanzhou gets them the wine he offered earlier. They've got much more to talk about.

[hyog-blog]

1,000 Years of Longing [fic]

I needed me some Li Lun, lots of Li Lun and Zhuo Yichen, with Zhu Yan still being present there as a shadow, a memory, a promise, and the glue keeping them both together. It's a Post-Canon kind-of-fix-it that spans across quite a devastating vista of experience, with Zhuo Yichen taking it upon himself, as he always does, to save the people that he loves the most (or rather, that one person). Li Lun gets saved as well, but definitely not by mistake.

So it's an M/M/M kind of situation and Li Lun's post-redemption redemption arc. I love that polycule to bits and now I've finally witnessed it being born (at least in my own mind :D). There's gentleness, and flirting, and teasing, and hurt/comfort, and guilt, and trying to make sense of things, and a hideous amount of waiting.

If you read it and like it - come celebrate with me in the comments! :D

Summary:

“I think you’re mistaking that feeling for something else entirely,” Zhuo Yichen says cryptically, but then decides to elaborate, seeing no understanding on Li Lun’s face whatsoever, “You don’t have to be with me to get close to him. We don’t even need to be friends, you and I. Let alone… something else,” his gaze becomes somewhat intense as he says this, making Li Lun’s heart miss a few beats.

[fluffykitty149]

@empressgeekt heard you’ve been feeling down and thought you could use a pick me up! I honestly just wrote this for fun and wasn’t going to show it to anyone, but it’s the FoF + Caught In The Middle mash up I asked you about a while ago! Had a serious brain rot about it so I ended up making this snippet!

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The wedding ceremony was going great. It never ceased to amaze Branch of the fact that his girlfriend was able to concoct an amazing party regardless of size. She may have struggled with taking charge and staying organized for defense in the past but it’s become abundantly clear that she was and is in fact a master planner. They’d gone back and forth on whether or not Branch should wear his Forest Guardian uniform at the wedding as Branch believed since he’s head of the trolls' security he needs to be ready and Poppy argued that he should dress for the occasion but both Gristle and Bridget assured them that it was okay. It probably helped that Gristle was wearing a T-Shirt tux instead of an actual one. Poppy later confessed that she just wanted to see Branch decked out in a tuz and after a bit of blushing and some persuading kisses he agreed to maybe switch to one for the reception.

As the officiant went on with her speech a forest scout signaled for Branch to come over. Branch lightly brushed his arm against Poppy’s and when she turned to him he signaled that he had to check something out and Poppy nodded in acknowledgement and scanned the rooftops herself before looking back to the bride and groom. Once Branch checked that Keith was still in the wedding rings with his blue tuft of hair sticking out he followed the scout to the other side of the reception. “What’s the situation?” Branch asked as he and the scout climbed up a building. 

“Tresillo caught some trolls sneaking around,” the pop troll answered as they continued to climb. “3 presumably male, 1 presumably female. Pop trolls like us but I haven’t seen them before.”

That caught Branch off guard. Sure he didn’t really know everyone in the village but most of the tribe recognized each other easily. The scout continued “the female one appears to be having some sort of PTSD episode? Kinda like you used to have, she’s convinced we’re all in danger right now from the Burgens. We’ve tried explaining the Burgens don’t eat us under the decree of King Gristle and if she had concerns about a particular Burgen or group she was suspicious of but it’s more like she doesn’t know about the peace that we have now.”

Branch winced at the memories of his thankfully now rare episodes before he finally scaled the wall and found where the other trolls were “go back to your post. I’ll take it from here.” The troll took a final look at the group before they nodded and walked off. As Branch got closer he could hear the group talking animatedly and the familiarity of the male trolls’ voices made a pit drop in his stomach. ‘There’s no way that’s them,’ he said to himself in denial, as he slowed down. 

“Come on man we’re Brozone! Can’t you help us out?” That was definitely JD’s voice. Turns out Branch didn’t miss it nearly as much as he thought he did.

Branch cleared his throat and the guards surrounding the group backed off and Branch was able to get a full view of three out of his four brothers. Spruce had gotten bigger and seemed to be sporting a more beach aesthetic with his hair styled down in a sweep, Clay’s hair was green instead of yellow and curled out and was much taller than Branch remembered sporting a sweater romper. He seemed to at the time be arguing with Wani who had some of her members standing by a pink troll with one of them showing her breathing techniques. JD switched out the boyband vest and pants for a more nature-like vest lined with fur and worn green shorts. Still the same stupid goggles though. And same stupid grin. 

“Would someone from your group mind explaining what’s going on here?” Branch asked in an authoritative tone. It annoyingly didn’t seem to phase his oldest Brother. 

“Hey man, sorry to bother you with… whatever is going on here.” JD gestured with his hands. “We haven’t been around the tree in a while and we’re trying to look for our siblings.”

Branch’s crossed arms helped hide his hands squeezing his biceps. ‘A while would be the understatment of the mother fucking century’ he thought to himself.

“Would you mind explaining who you’re looking for specifically?'' Was it a good idea to pretend he didn’t know them? Probably not. DId he care at the moment? Nope.

“We’re looking for Bitty B man! From Brozone!” Thank god Branch was wearing a mask because the deadly glare he was shooting right now would be beyond suspicious. 

“I don’t know of anyone named Bitty B that lives in the village. Are you sure this sibling of yours isn't’ somewhere else?” Branch asked curtly. If JD could at the very least say Branch’s actual name he might consider telling him the truth. 

“Psh come on man, who wouldn’t know Bitty B! He’s Brozone!” 

Branch drummed his fingers against his arm “again, there’s no one here named Bitty B now if you’re just here to cause a scene at a wedding that helps signal the peace between pop trolls and Bergens then I’ll have to ask you to lea-”

Before he could finish, a pink and blond blur zipped up to him and shook him by the collar “WHERE IS MY SISTER, WHAT DO YOU MEAN PEACE WITH THE BERGENS, AND WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!?” 

The other scouts turned to him warily but he didn’t flinch. “Would you mind telling me your sister’s name? We can start from there.”

The woman looked bewildered at him “SERIOUSLY!? I’M TALKING ABOUT POPPY!!! DAUGHTER OF KING PEPPY!!! THAT POPPY!!!”

Now it was Branch’s turn to look bewildered “Poppy? As in the current queen?” 

Viva’s face dropped but then was brought back up “Yes! Yes her! Is she okay!? She’s not in danger is she?”

Branch’s heart seemed to be going back and forth between panicking and sinking. “No, no,” he said gently as he removed her arms away from him “she’s why we have peace with the Bergens. You’re her older sister?”

Viva’s fear turned to excitement and Branch’s heart sank furhter “Oh my gosh she did this! No way I am so freakin proud of her!” the way she bounced in excitement reminded him painfully of Poppy. ‘Peppy what did you do?’ he thought to himself while watching her stim and cheer. 

“Poppy’s busy with the ceremony right now, would you mind me grabbing your dad?” Viva’s face shifted between distraught to hopefulness and it made Branch’s heart squeeze tighter. 

“Dad’s alive?” she asks wiping a tear.

Branch nodded “I’ll just be a moment. We have multiple guards and scouts stationed on the rooftops on the venue. Even if there was a chance of a Bergen wanting to eat a troll we have contingencies in place.” He leapt off the roof of the building onto another and ran back to the reception.

Anger began to burn in his body that fueled him to run faster to the venue. He made it to where the group is and slipped in to grab Peppy’s arm. “You’re needed on the rooftop. It’s urgent.” Peppy barely had enough time to respond before Branch picked him up with his hair and ran off. The rest of the snack pack and Prince D looked somewhat baffled but turned back to the ceremony. 

It probably wasn’t professional for Branch to be running on all fours but focusing on going fast took his mind off of the interaction that was about to happen. One of the perks of traning with Smidge was that his hair was much stronger and could easily hold Peppy well enough not to hurt him as he scaled the wall. He fired a grapling gun up to help him climb with a still bewildered Peppy in his hair. “Branch?! Is everything alrgiht?” 

“Not really,” he huffed making his way up. “You have a lot of explaining to do.” Still on all fours he managed to make his way to the rooftop where Viva and his brothers were. It was definitely a tough sprint but he skidded to a stop and carefully put Peppy down. As angry as he was at the man he wasn’t going to throw him around like a rag doll.

Peppy stumbled for a second and was about to ask again what was going on when he heard a small “Dad?”

He whirled around and saw the daughter he hasn’t seen in over 20 years. “V-Viva?” he whispered shakily stumbling towards her.

“Daddy!” she cried out jumping to hug him. Branch almost stepped in incase of a fall but Peppy let his cane drop and colleceted his daughter in his arms. 

“Oh my sweet sweet girl,” he whispered holding her tightly. “I never thought I’d see you again.” he kissed her over and over again on her head stroking her curls. 

“The tunnels-” he stuttred as he pulled he away to get a better look at her. “W-we dug for hours, all we found in the ruins was your hug time bracelet. I-I thought you-” he sobbed as he pulled her tighter again. 

“I’m alive,” Viva chuckled breathlessly. “I got everyone out, it was tough but we found this old golf course to stay in! I should have gone looking for you guys I kept waiting for you to find us and I had no idea you thought we didn’t make it!” Viva sobbed as she burried her face in his neck.

“No sweetheart, it was my fault. I never should have stopped trying to look for you.” Peppy sighed as he rubbed her back.

Branch cleared his throat and Peppy’s face turned pale. “Poppy doesn’t know about her does she?”  he whispered. He hated being the bearer of bad news but it was clear what had happened. Trolls got separated during the escape and King Peppy lied about it. ‘No troll left behind’ was a total scam. A scam Poppy believed with her whole heart. It made Branch’s blood boil.

“What?”

Branch and Peppy turned back to Viva who’s face had completely dropped with her body becoming stiff. “What do you mean Poppy doesn’t know about me? I’m her sister! Of course she’d know who I am. Right?” She turned to her dad who looked completely guilty.

“I-I didn’t want her to mourn you.” Peppy mumbled fidgeting with the lapels of her jacket.

“Were there others with you who escaped?” Branch asked but Viva remained mute in shock. 

It was Clay who spoke up “there were 36 all together. With new kids we now have 40 as a group.” he said seemingly also in shock.

“Branch is everything okay? We’re supposed to be heading to the reception now.” Everyone’s head swiveled to Poppy who carried Keith on her hip.

“Cake time!” Keith shouted with raised fists and a blank stare. Everyone stared at the duo for what felt like ages before turning to Branch and bouncing back and fourth between them.

“BRANCH!?” “POPPY!” “HOLY SHIT!”

Viva rushed to hug little sister while the brothers crowded Branch asking a million questions at once. 

“YOU’RE ALIVE!?”

“WHY DIDN’T YOU SAY WHO YOU WERE!?” “WHAT’S WITH THE OUTFIT!?”

“YOU KNOCKED UP VIVA’S SISTER!?”

“WHAT!?” Branch, Poppy, and Viva shrieked as Viva grabbed her sister tighter as she turned to Branch.

“Keith’s adopted!” Poppy said, as she tried to catch up to speed. She then turned to Viva “Hi I’m Poppy, nice to meet you. Who are you exactly?” Viva looked heartbroken while Peppy looked guiltier than ever.

“WHO THE FUCK GAVE YOU THE AUDACITY TO PRESUME ANYTHING ABOUT ME!?” Branch shouted angrily as he shoved his brothers off of him.

“TOO LOUD!” Keith screamed as he clammed his ears shut with his hands. 

Branch tensed with guilt before turning back to his biological brothers. “I took Keith in about two years ago when his dad died and we see each other as each other’s brothers.” he said with an indignant huff. He then turned to Poppy. “Peppy apparently hid the fact that there were trolls left behind during the escape. Viva, your older sister gathered as many stragglers as she could and kept them hidden.” He paused to monitor Poppy’s reaction before he continued. “I’m so sorry Poppy I swear I didn’t know.”

Poppy’s grip on Keith loosened so he slid down and ran to Branch. “W-what?” She turned to her father in shocked betrayal.

“I was going to tell you I swear!” Peppy stammered. “After the rock apocalypse I realized it was wrong of me to try and hide the truth from you. You got so busy for a while so I figured I would tell you after the wedding in the tree.”

“I have a sister?” Poppy whispered as she turned back to Viva. 

Viva gave a small wave “hi Poppy,” she said as she nervously fidgeted with her hands.

“HOLY SPRINKLES I HAVE AN OLDER SISTER!!!” Poppy cheered as she scouped Viva up and spun her around. “MUSES I KNEW I FELT SOMETHING LIKE THAT!!! I WAS DRIVING EVERYONE CRAZY WITH ‘GOD I WISH I HAD A SISTER’ OR’ HAVING A SISTER WOULD LITERALLY MAKE MY LIFE SO PERFECT’ AND YOU WERE HERE THE WHOLE TIME!!!”

Viva burst into tears and wrapped Poppy in a hug of equal force. “I am,” she sobbed in Poppy’s shoulder “I’m right here!” 

Both sisters tried getting a good analysis of each other’s appearance but got too excited and with another squeal tackled each other in spinning hugs and jumps.

Branch picked up Keith to check on him and thankfully now that the arguing stopped he’s seemed to calm down. “We’re not getting Bergen sized cake are we?” Keith said with a pout. “We can ask Bridget and Gristle to save us a slice.” Branch chuckled. 

“Branch, is that really you?” Spruce asked which soured Branch’s mood. 

He hissed between his teeth before turning back towards his brothers. “Yes it’s me. This is Keith, he’s my little brother and if any of you say anything negative about him I’ll throw you off the building.”

The ex-brozone members turned to Keith in different forms of bewilderment but JD was the one who snapped out of it the fastest. “Welcome to the family bro!” he was about to hug both Branch and Keith. Keith lunged to bite JD but Branch managed to hold him back. 

The brozone brothers remained stunned while Branch brought Keith back to him “I think we’d both appreciate not being hugged if its all the same to you.” he huffed as he readjusted Keith on his hip. 

JD chuckled nervously and brushed dust off him “heh, got it. My bad.”

“Why were you asking all those questions if you knew we were looking for you? It was just wasting time.” Clay asked, already tired from the journey.

“Excuse me if I’m not jumping for joy that the brothers that abandoned me at 2 randomly showed up. What the hell are you all doing here anyways?” 

The brothers looked grief stricken for a second and before Clay could explain things JD blurted out “we’re here to reunite the band and pull off the perfect family harmony!” he cheered with a fist pumped in the air. Bruce smacked a paw against his face and Clay dragged his paws against his.

"No thanks, I'd rather choke on rocks than go through that again." The only reason Branch hadn't lost his temper was the fact Keith was still with him and he'd rather not go on a screaming vent in front of him. "Good to know you assholes are alive but you can crawl back from wherever you came from and never contact me again if you wouldn't mind." Branch turned his back to his ex-brothers and headed to where the Royal family was to help them figure out how to transport and shelter the other trolls that got left behind.

Before he could walk far Clay jogged to get in front of him. “Look, we’re here because Floyd needs to be broken out of a diamond bottle. Some wanna be super stars kept him trapped in one to drain him of his talent. We got him out of Mt. Rageous where he was but we need to get him out of the bottle too. I am really sorry our reunion was shit and that our oldest brother has what I can only infer is foot-in-mouth syndrome-"

"hey!"

"But we're going to need all of us if this is going to work."

Branch stood still as he processed everything Clay had said while Keith hopped down to listen in on the Royal family's family issues. "Would you guys have bothered to come back if it wasn't for the harmony?" He muttered with fallen arms.

The other two brothers had caught up by now and heard what Branch had said. "Branch, I did come back." JD said walking towards them. Branch whirled around in shock and even the other two looked surprised. JD wasn't paying attention to them though, he only stared at Branch. "I came back a couple of years later and found the tree dead and abandoned. I spent ages trying to track you guys down but couldn't find a trace of anyone. With all that added up I wasn't sure if any of you were..." he sniffed and wiped his nose.

None of the other brothers knew what to say to that. 

JD noticed all eyes on him and forced back on a smile. "But you're all alive!" he said relief evident in his voice. He ran to hug Branch and while Branch remained completely limp in the hug he didn't push JD off him either. It was the first time Branch noticed his Brother's colors were a bit duller than they were when he was younger. He cursed not being able to properly see out of one eye. 

He managed to get JD off of him "so you want us to try and perform the perfect family harmony, something we messed up so badly you all didn't want to be a family anymore, to save Floyd from being in a trapped bottle?"

"That is verbatim why we are here yes." John said confidently. Clay and Bruce gave each other a look before gauging  for Branch's reaction.

Before he could respond Poppy slammed into him with a hug. "BRANCH I HAVE A SISTER!" she cheered with a shake. 

"Congratulations Poppy, I really hope your relationship with her is less of a train wreck than the one I have with my brothers."

"Hey!" Branch's brothers responded indignantly 

"You're fine Keith."

Keith nodded satisfied and climbed back into Branch's hair. 

"Oh my gosh I am so sorry I was totally busy with other stuff!" Poppy said turning to Branch's bio brothers. "Hi I'm Poppy, Branch's girlfriend so nice to meet you all! I had no idea Branch had brothers!" She zipped to each of the brothers analyzing their clothes, mannerisms, hair, teeth, expressions, everything. 

"Oh yeah, definitely Viva's sister." Clay chuckled. 

Poppy turned to him instantly "you really think that!?" she squealed and hugged him. Then instantly jumped off "sorry boundaries! Branch isn't much of a hugger."

"I am!" JD cheered and Poppy instantly jumped to hug him. 

"Ooh! Ooh! I want a Branch's girlfriend hug!" Bruce exclaimed with a laugh. Poppy rushed to squeeze him too.

"Okay great everyone's had a Poppy hug now can we-"

"Wait a second," Poppy interrupted further analyzing JD "I know you! You're that guy from Brozone! We were just listening to them!" 

By this time some of the snack pack had also made their way up to the roof building. "Brozone? I love Brozone!" Cooper cheered. 

"Was Brozone that boy band you showed me last week? Their music is tight!" Prince D responded.

'fuck my life' Branch thought to himself as he watched the scene unfold.

"Okay, okay, let me guess, you're definitely not the heart throb,"

"What?" JD asked bewildered by Poppy's statement. CLay and Bruce snickered in the background.

"Fun one? No you're way too uptight."

"Uptight?" JD asked now seemingly shocked as Clay and Bruce wheezed in the background. Even Branch couldn't fight back a grin on his face. 

"Not the sensitive one either..." Clay and Bruce struggled to hold back their laughter.

"Okay, a lot of presumptions for someone you'd just met." JD said now a bit offended.

Poppy tapped her foot on the ground "Oh I remember! You're John Dory!"

"The leader!"

"The old one!"

Bruce and Clay laughed shamelessly on the ground completely fallen over and even Branch couldn't hold back his snickers. JD rolled his eyes at their antics. "Put food on the table and this is what you get." he grumbled as he fixed his vest. Bruce gave a somewhat apologetic smile but Clay was beyond happy with the interaction. "Branch your girl is a keeper" Clay said as he wiped a tear away. 

"So wait if you're Brozone and Brozone were Branch's bros..." the memories of old magazines started to click into place as Poppy turned to her boyfriend with a loud gasp. She remembered how much brighter his original colors were when he's in an extremely joyful mood. "BRANCH!? YOU WERE BITTY B!? HOW COME YOU NEVER TOLD ME?!"

Branch was about to defend himself when Keith spoke up "Branch's brothers left him when he was two so he doesn't like them anymore." That brought the mood down instantly.

"Ooohhhhhh that explains so much about Branch's personality." Cooper said quietly

"Oh and the gift swap." Prince D commented.

"Oh yeah! Oh my god it makes so much more sense!" Cooper cheered

"Wait what happened during the gift swap?" Guy asked as Tiny climbed down to see everything. 

"Branch blew up his bunker." Tiny commented as he took some popcorn.

"WHAT!?" his bio brothers asked as their heads whipped towards him.

"Yeah, he was convinced that if he didn't get Poppy the perfect gift she'd leave him. He even had a little doodle of Poppy holding a suitcase saying 'goodbye forever!' on it. It was sad man." Cooper said with a shake of his head.

Clay inhaled sharply through his teeth, and it made Branch's head turn to his brother's reactions. Clay had pained expression, Bruce looked at Branch with pure pity, and JD looked at him in grief stricken horror. 

Branch struggled for what to say to them. His right arm was locked and twitched nervously as he struggled with something to say or just think. He could only try to keep his breathing steady as everyone's eye's were on him. There was a small tug on his hair that reminded him that Keith was still there and it kept him grounded.

"Branch, you okay?" Poppy asked as she made her way towards him. He focused on her to avoid the stares around him and it helped him calm down.

"Fine," he said exhausted from this terrible reunion. "There's 40 trolls all together. 36 that were with Viva and four who hatched on the course. We should probably start figuring out how to transport and shelter them."

"And contact their families," Poppy said with an excited grin. Her upper teeth stuck out a bit and Branch couldn't help but adore her beautiful smile. "We can head back to the village for now. Viva said something about one of your brothers being in a diamond bottle?" Poppy asked with a curious eyebrow raised.

"Apparently so. There's more than just Bergens out to get us." The crowed grew a bit tense at that. It had only been 20 years since they escaped and it barely passed the one year of peace. The fact there were more creatures out there was terrifying for all of them.

"I'll talk to King Gristle about keeping an eye out for Rageons. Did anyone here get a proper view of them?" Poppy asked.

"I kinda drew what they looked like," Clay said as he pulled a folded piece of paper out of his hair. "I gave a copy to one of the guys at the course."

Poppy took the drawing from Clay. "Awww they look so cute though." Poppy cooed.

"Theyre about as tall as the average Bergen though, that's way less cute." Clay commented.

"Oooohh look at my fabulous little sister taking charge!" Viva said as she slide over to where Poppy was. Poppy immideatly jumped to a hug that Viva was more than glad to reciprocate. 

"Awww thanks Vivs! I'm just gonna hand this to Gristle and- OH GOD I COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT THE WEDDING!" Poppy shouted as she smashed her paws against her cheeks. "Sprinkles they could be waiting for us! God I'm the worst Maid of Honor ever! I need to go ASAP!" Poppy picked up her skirt to run but Viva grabbed her by the arm and stopped her.

"WAIT YOU CAN'T GO!" Viva exclaimed terrified.

Poppy raised an eyebrow "Why not? I'm the Maid of Honor if I'm not there I can't help if there's a disaster and then Bridget's wedding will be ruined and It'll be all my fault and I-"

"Easy Poppy!" Guy said as he took her hands "We told Bridget that there was a situation and to go on without us, if things seem fine you, Branch, and your families can head back to the Village." He then straightened up and hammered a fist to his chest. "As life of the party I solemnly swear to make sure that this wedding after party is at maximum level fun for all!" Epic music played in the background.

Poppy stared in an awed daze for a moment before going back to a nervous twitch "ugh! I'd never doubt your party skills Guy, but I feel like such a let down as a maid of honor! I should be there for Bridget every step of the way! I'm like a 'maid of not honor'!" She exclaimed as she dragged her paws down her face. 

Branch hated the amount of stress Poppy was under "I'm sure Bridget would understand." He said as he gently took Poppy's shoulder. "Just give her a quick run down of the situation and ask King Gristle to have his guards keep an eye out. Then while I deal with my brothers mess, we can also check on our defenses and notify the other tribes about the Mt. Rageouns."

"Yeah, you're right, we should definitely give the other tribes a heads up," Poppy mumbled as she tugged on her lower lip. "Alright fine," she sighed. "It's not every day you find out you have a long lost sister, I'm sure Bridget would understand." Poppy then turned to Viva "I do really need to go see her and give her and her husband- still can't believe they got married!" Poppy squealed excitedly "a 411 and we can totally catch each other up when she gets back from her honeymoon but I can't leave without saying goodbye!" She pleaded, as much as she loved Viva she'd rather not be forced to stay on the rooftop any longer. 

"I- You can't just-" Viva fidgeted with her rubber hands antsily. She wasn't trying to make her sister feel bad, or piss off any Bergens for that matter. But the thought of Poppy with those beasts terrified her.

Almost as if she could read Viva's mind, Poppy took her hands in hers "I promise, those two are some of the sweetest Bergens I've ever met." Poppy said encouragingly. "Bridget was willing to risk her neck to save us, and I wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for her. And Gristle has been working hard to not only fix relations between us and help protect us, but also keep his subjects super happy!" Poppy cheered which jostled Viva a bit.

"It's okay if you're still uncomfortable around them, not every troll in the Village came to the wedding you know? I just gotta explain things to Bridget and Gristle. You can come if you want!" Poppy then tuned excited. "You'd love Bridget, she's such a sweet heart! And trust me Gristle is totally chill!"

"Poppy nearly took out his eye when she tried pitching holidays to him," Branch commented mirthfully "he was still willing to help decorate for the holidays and even helped trim the troll tree. If Poppy could get away with that I think you'll be fine."

"What?" Viva asked with a shocked laugh.

"Ugh! Come on Gristle brings it up less than you do at this point!" Poppy pouted and kicked a nonexistent pebble. Her faux upsetness melted away when she heard Viva laugh a bit more freely.

"Okay, how about I keep an eye from a distance? That way if for whatever reason they do decide to eat you I can grab you and dash." Viva asked as she pulled out her sticky hands.

"Okay 1. Those look so cool please teach me how to use them later, and 2. I totally respect you gotta do what you gotta do to keep calm but if it helps Branch has a bunch of his guards stationed all around. It's how you guys didn't get all that far remember?" 

Viva drummed her fingers in thought "that's a good point... but I think I'll keep an eye out just incase okay?"

Poppy shrugged her shoulders "no problem! Oh my gosh I have got to introduce you to Bridget I swear you're gonna love her!" She took her sister's hand to run to where the reception was. "Branch try not to kill your bio brothers while we're gone!" Poppy shouted as she and Viva ran over rooftops.

"No promises!" Branch waved back.

[jiroli]

Monkey Demon

“Monkey demon…must be…” The drunk man behind him started, making Zhu Yan wonder what was he gonna say to him,

“Must be what?” Zhu Yan also asked, playing along with this man's drunken words,

“Must be…protected…at all cost” He said to his ears while he giggled to himself. Zhu Yan actually stopped his tracks when he heard those words and felt his heart, somewhat skipped a beat,

He glanced at the man who was still leaning on his shoulders and saw how genuine he was smiling. It made his heart beat even more when those words kept repeating on his mind over and over again,

“Monkey…Demon…” Yichen still continued. And now Zhu Yan was very much, waiting for the next few words to come out of Yichen's mouth,

“Deserves…all great things”

Zhu Yan's eyes widened by the time he had heard this. It was the first time in his whole life to hear those words— To think that someone wants to protect him and wants to give him great things…Really made him froze in the middle of the streets,

He made a heavy sigh and smiled with it,

“Young Master Zhuo, Ape— I'm an ape demon, remember?”

Yichen still smiled behind him and gave him another answer while giggling,

“Still a monkey”

“If that's how you see it then”

“Mhm, mhm”

Art by yours truly

Rushed because yes??? Haha

[sugadolly]

❝the summer's wild and i've been waiting for you all this time i adore you, can't you see you're meant for me?❞

[la-muerta]

Title: no more yielding but a dream // 长于春梦几多时

Fandoms: 大梦归离 Fangs of Fortune (TV)

Warnings: Rated E.

Relationships: 赵远舟 Zhao Yuanzhou / 文潇 Wen Xiao / 桌翼宸 Zhuo Yichen

Summary:

"Is this my dream?" Zhuo Yichen asks uncertainly. "You tell me," Zhao Yuanzhou replies as the corner of his mouth tilts up slightly. "Does Zhuo-daren usually dream of me?" -- When Li Lun removes the scale of Ran Yi that had been in Zhuo Yichen's body, he dreams for the first time in years.

[Read on Ao3; 2,482 words]

[tenillypo]

First Impressions by Tenillypo

Words: 1,219 Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Zhao Yuanzhou | Zhu Yan & Zhuo Yichen, Wen Xiao & Zhao Yuanzhou | Zhu Yan & Zhuo Yichen Characters: Zhuo Yichen, Wen Xiao (Fangs of Fortune) Additional Tags: Missing Scene, Episode: e01 (Fangs of Fortune), POV Zhuo Yichen, Pre-Zhao Yuanzhou | Zhu Yan/Zhuo Yichen Series: Part 1 of Missing Pieces Summary:

"No," Zhuo Yichen agreed slowly. "I didn't think he'd be so…" He paused, searching for the right words. Unpredictable? Childish? (Sad, the inexplicable thought came as he flashed on the memory of Zhu Yan pulling the Cloud Light Sword into his own chest. ) "Handsome," Wen Xiao finished with a nod. "I know."

read the fic

[bean-in-dice]

Finally colored my Zhu Yan/Li Lun & their tree baby art for my FoF fic Flowering Season.

Thank you @emotional-mess-of-jellies for helping me with digitally polishing up the sketch and color correction! ☺️ Without you this would've remained a 10cm× 5cm ballpoint pen sketch on the back of a discarded handout.

[evolutionsbedingt]

WIP Wednesday (01/01/25)

Let's try this posting for WIP Wednesday thing again! Today, I bring to you the beginning of a FoF Modern, non-magical AU for the polycule that insisted on being written starting Friday night. About two-thirds of it are pwp at the moment, with a nice little found family cushion in between xD

Without further ado, enjoy!

★★★

The first time it happened, Yichen wasn’t even sure what the guy’s name was. They met at a party, one Yichen was sort of forced to attend as the head of their faculty’s student council and which went off the rails more quickly than he liked to admit. Not an hour in he’d been properly sloshed and only the fact that he’d promised Wen Xiao to walk her home kept him from leaving.

Except Wen Xiao was busy flirting with some guy - a senior from her high school? - and the head of the archery club, a woman so intimidating most people wouldn’t even dare to talk to her, much less swoon into her arms after getting ignored once.

But whatever Wen Xiao was doing, it was working because both Pei Sijing and the stupidly handsome prick she’d called ‘Qianbei’ were hanging off her lips and Yichen was feeling needlessly jealous about that. Needlessly because she would be going home with him. Needlessly because for all that he’d been nursing a crush on her for the better part of a decade, she didn’t do romantic attachments.

She’d climb into his bed and into his arms and it’d warm both of them for the night, but it wasn’t romance. They’d return to their daily business of terrorising the student council and the students at the library respectively and Yichen would keep yearning for the kind of love he knew he should have been supposed to find with her. If he hadn’t been so fucking gay. If she hadn’t been so deeply uninterested in romantic pursuits.

[youhideastar]

New Fic: Swallowing Embers

Fangs of Fortune / Yuanyi / 3000 words / sequel to Breathing Fire / showing up in your mortal enemy's bedroom in the dead of night to see if he can help you confirm you're gay (spoiler: he sure can)

Zhao Yuanzhou tilts his head to the side. Zhuo Yichen waits, like a mouse under the shadow of a hawk. “I heard how Xiao Zhuo-daren went to Tianxiang Pavilion to find out whether he could bear the pleasures he didn’t want.” Zhao Yuanzhou takes a step toward him. Then another. He is close enough that Zhuo Yichen can see his pulse under the skin of his throat. “Perhaps Xiao Zhuo-daren has come here to find out whether he can bear the pleasures he does want.”

Read Swallowing Embers on AO3!

[onmyo-jin]

Fic prompt: 36 to give up control

Thank you! This is ll/zyz, as requested 😁 If you've also sent in a prompt: don't worry, I'm still working on them!

The small restaurant is not so well-known around town, but Zhao Yuanzhou has found it to be one of his favorites. The food is homey,  perhaps even unfashionable by the standards of the city's humans, but the seating along the riverside at the back of the restaurant is beautiful. At night, when the city comes alive in a wholly different manner, this little riverside spot keeps to itself. From the terrace one can watch as the city goes about its nighttime routine, dazzling lights and dazzling performances appearing and disappearing like fireflies. 

He's seen Li Lun coming– and how could he not? The man's energy is as familiar to him as his own.

Zhao Yuanzhou might not have expected to see Li Lun in the middle of a human city, might not have expected to run into him without a lot more fanfare and hostilities involved, but he's not going to complain about that. Li Lun sits himself down at Zhao Yuanzhou's table without invitation, and a waiter follows him with a new bottle of wine and another cup. He came prepared, it seems.

Zhao Yuanzhou finishes his wine, but does not speak. Li Lun pours them both more wine, and they drink. He says nothing, accepting Zhao Yuanzhou's curious stare with good grace.

It reminds Zhao Yuanzhou a little too much of their past travels, both around the Wilderness and into the human world, before… well, before everything went wrong. Some evenings they would be full of jokes and laughter, telling stories of the day as if they hadn't spent it together, embellishing into unlikelihood adventures of simple days. Other evenings would be more like this one: quiet company over shared drinks, and a silence more telling and familiar than anything they could say out loud. These he has missed more than anything. After all: jokes and stories may be shared with many, but that quiet companionship is much harder to recreate.

And there was always that: the company. The two of them, together. Zhao Yuanzhou has missed this, more than he (even he, whom others call a chattering monkey) can put into words. He wonders how Li Lun even got here when he is supposed to be safely locked away, and does not ask. If he asks, when he knows, he might have to do something about it. He downs his wine, then raises his empty cup to Li Lun in silent thanks.

Li Lun's expression is unreadable, and for a long moment Zhao Yuanzhou thinks he has made a mistake after all. The restaurant bustles behind them, small enough that even a few customers make it look busy. The far side of the river has lit up with bright lanterns that reflect their glow onto the water, and in Li Lun's eyes. To Zhao Yuanzhou, it is beautiful. He wonders what Li Lun is thinking.

The great Pagoda tree stirs himself, and reaches for Zhao Yuanzhou's cup. His face has softened around the hard edges of the past, and Zhao Yuanzhou dares to hope that Li Lun too is remembering the other evenings they shared like this.

Li Lun holds out his newly filled cup, but does not let go when Zhao Yuanzhou reaches to take it. Instead he blinks a slow challenge at Zhao Yuanzhou. There were other things they did, other moments they shared on evenings like these, and Zhao Yuanzhou's heart stutters into his throat at the thought. He lets his hand fall back into his lap, and watches the long-forgotten, intimately familiar script play out. Li Lun brings the cup to Zhao Yuanzhou's lips, and he parts them willingly, allowing the sweet wine to wake a thirst in him he has not felt in a long time.

Li Lun gives him half of that cup, and then brings the wine to his own lips with that slow inevitability that only trees can possess. He does not break eye contact when he drinks down the rest of the wine, and Zhao Yuanzhou licks his own lips to chase the echo of that sweetness. With the same inexorable surety Li Lun sets down the cup, and reaches for Zhao Yuanzhou. There is a question in his eyes that you would never be able to detect in his confident movements: does Zhao Yuanzhou want this to continue, his eyes ask. Zhao Yuanzhou suspects Li Lun would let him go, for tonight, for the past nights they shared, and finds he wants nothing less.

So he does what he does best: he grins a silent challenge at Li Lun, a smile that says 'come and get me'-- only he does not run. Instead, when Li Lun's hand takes root in his hair and pulls him close, he surrenders, willingly caught in their shared history. When their lips meet it is like no time has passed, and the great divide of their actions does not gape between them, does not tear them apart. Zhao Yuanzhou's hands find themselves holding onto Li Lun's robes, holding him close, and his lips part as willingly for him as they did for his wine.

[hyog-blog]

This Time Everything Will Be Different [fic]

I needed me some Ying Long/Bing Yi gentleness, so it's a kind of M/M/M/M situation XD Exploring the reincarnation trope. Memories coming back. As if Zhao Yuanzhou/Zhuo Yichen needed another layer of depth to their relationship, but here it is. And it's oh-so-sweet.

If you read it and you like it - come celebrate with me in the comments :D

Summary

“I know it’s tough without a core, but you can do it. Just let it through. Let it be,” the soothing sound of Zhao Yuanzhou’s voice seems to be doing something, even more than the supportive heat of his dark energy that surrounds them with a thick field – both to protect Zhuo Yichen and to protect everyone else from him. “I can’t…” he gasps, clutching onto Zhao Yuanzhou’s robes as if his life depended on it, and feels his face being hugged by warm hands that just ignored how freezing he was, the coldness of his force trying to spill out into the world, his body unable to contain it, to control it.

[yingleis]

fof fic request: just...fan ying and situ ming doing their normal politician jobs and paperwork while exasperatedly watching the main team get into supernatural shenanigans 😂😂 gods these two are the ones actually running the bureau and no one can tell me otherwise

hello! sorry for the late response, I hope this satisfies your request! >_<

---

When Situ Ming agreed to his old friend's pleas for help, it had been a gesture of goodwill, to tide his old friend through his tough period– he hadn’t intended to stay long. After all, he had a family to get back to– his wife was expecting soon, and as a deity surely she was still unused to the ways of the mortal realm.

In short, he hadn't expected to still be working at the Demon Hunting Bureau thirteen years after agreeing to help Fan Ying.

(But what else could he do? The Demon Hunting Bureau’s letters never seemed to lessen, with all the demon sighting reports, pleas for help, gifts for the great Zhuo daren, medical claims to sign off on, legal suits filed against them for destruction of property…

The list was neverending, and Situ Ming felt as if he hadn't seen the light of day since he sat behind the desk).

Situ Ming sighs, sliding the top scroll off the pile. He believed in the principle of getting up early to start the day, but to be faced with an endless pile of paperwork right from the start–

Perhaps he was getting too old for this.

“Demon sighting report: Name, Bai Heng. Fruit stall owner by xxx junction. Claims that his neighbor is a fox demon… hasn't he sent the same report thrice this week already, and five times the previous month?” 

“Property destruction repercussion claim: Name, Ming Jing. Owns the tavern at xxx street. Claims that our guards wrecked her bar last night while fighting a demon. A total of ten tables, twenty two chairs, fifteen wine jars and thirty three wine cups were broken, amounting to…”

“That's…” Situ Ming sighs, shaking his head in resignation as he signs off on it.

He would have to get Xiao Zhuo to remind those kids to be more careful. Did they really think that their coffers were bottomless? The sheer amount of property destruction claims they received were enough to turn his entire head white!

He manages to work through five more scrolls before Fan Ying slides the door open, bearing a small mountain of scrolls.

“There seems to be more letters of gratitude this time, at least.” Fan Ying mutters, depositing them onto his desk with a sigh. “Xiao Zhuo is working hard as usual.”

“A-Xiao is lucky to have him,” Situ Ming replies absently, tutting at the latest medical leave claim– did this brat think that he would believe his flimsy excuse? Situ Ming wasn't blind– he could tell when his men wanted time off to spend with their lovers.

“A-Xiao…” his friend sighs heavily. “Don't even get me started on her, not even Xiao Zhuo can control that wilful child.”

“You always gave in to A-Xiao’s mother, back then,” Situ Ming reminds him, and tosses the scroll to the pile of rejected applications.

Fan Ying waves a hand dismissively and sits with a sigh. “The relationships during our youth…” 

They lapse into silence then, letting their brushstrokes fill the room instead, until an exasperated cry from Fan Ying punctures the air.

“This, this, this!” 

Situ Ming barely spares him a glance, simply shaking his head in resignation as he braces himself for the next line.

“This cost is too much for us to bear! Xiao Zhuo, that brat, what is he teaching those guards!”