It sure does seem that way.

It's very quiet, in that peaceful way that the Cloud Recesses tend to be, except for some nearby birdsong. Actually the birdsong is unusually nearby; it's coming from inside the room. From a bird inside a cage inside the room.

There's a soft knock on the door.

"Young Master, are you awake?"

You. 

...Young Master?

He takes in the birdcage, the room, the outdated title, and the outfit he's been provided with.  The uniform is for a young cultivator attending lectures at the Cloud Recesses.  He remembers the bird, too - a canary.  He once caught one on the way to Cloud Recesses, years ago, in that very same cage.

Pretending he hadn't heard that first call, he focuses on the bird. He picks up its cage, examining it closely.

This is indeed a canary! Inside a tiny metal cage that should be just as familiar. The bird twitters as brightly as its vivid orange feathers. 

Of course he isn't awake.

He knocks more firmly. "Young Master," he calls, raising his voice. "Can I in any way assist you in waking? The salute ceremony will begin soon. Young Master?"

"I'm awake," he calls, sounding distracted, mind still racing trying to remember the events.  Jin Guangyao - or Meng Yao as he was known back then (now?) - he hadn't been a student alongside them, only accompanying Nie Huaisang to the Cloud Recesses on the first day.  He doesn't know what is happening, but he can try to play along.

Without setting the bird down, he heads towards the door.  Once the door is opened, his face as usual shows someone who is completely hopeless and forgot what they were doing.  "What do I need to do to prepare for that, again?  I don't know."

In turn, Meng Yao's face is sympathetic and mild with fond exasperation. He looks sincere, to the extent that Nie Huaisang believes he has ever seen Meng Yao look sincere.

"Of course, Young Master." Bow. Smile. "I can help you dress or do your hair if you wish. We have your gift to present to the Grand Master Lan. Does Young Master have a speech prepared to accompany the tribute?"

Young Master definitely does not have a speech prepared. Huaisang is never prepared, because Huaisang never risks any consequences for being unprepared. If he is polite and well-spoken and gracious, he will be the Nie Sect's first heir. If he is bumbling and unsure and incompetent, he will still be the Nie Sect Heir, which is certainly more than Meng Yao can say for himself.

Nie Huaisang is a pleasant companion and an earnest friend, but Meng Yao finds the lack of care he has for his presentation continually jarring. 

Nie Huaisang does not want Meng Yao to touch him.  He doesn't let this show on his face, instead shifting to thankful friendliness and politely turning down the offer to help him dress.

"I don't have a speech," he confirms.  He's pretty sure he didn't have a speech last time either.

It would be so enormously out of character for him to have a speech.

"I would have the honor of presenting our tribute if you would wish it, Young Master. You only have to worry about introducing yourself." He bows as he backs away from the door. "We should leave within five minutes. I'll give Young Master privacy."

"That sounds like a good idea.  Thank you Meng Yao."  

And he will quickly dress and fix up his hair.  He is sure to grab his canary, confident that Meng Yao will take care of the complicated things Huaisang was supposed to be doing while he tries to work out exactly what is going on.  

Yes, Meng Yao is always taking care of the complicated things Huaisang is supposed to be doing. He cannot remember the last time Huaisang did a complicated thing.

Meng Yao actually planned the speech three days ago; that's not a concern. He checks the special sand elixir pot and its container. The present is fine - one would think he shouldn't need to even check, but there exists a very real possibility of Nie Huaisang knocking it over while playing around with his new bird or something.

Oh, and it looks like Huaisang is bringing the bird. Why is Huaisang bringing the bird. It's so loud. Why would he do this.

Meng Yao smiles, only a little strained, and gets the door.

They can walk to the hall where the salute ceremony is being held.  Huaisang knows the way, but is sure to hesitate just a bit at branches in the path.  

Elsewhere, Lan Wangji is asleep, and then he isn't. 

The first thing he notices is that the light through his eyelids is too bright; it's after five in the morning, closer to seven or eight. That's very unusual.

The second thing he notices is that he's on his back, which he thought he'd gotten better at avoiding - and he's halfway tensed in anticipation of the pain before he notices the third thing, which is that there is no pain.

His back doesn't hurt, not even in the dull aching way that afflicts him even when he hasn't agitated the scars by sleeping on them. No physical pain at all. Wangji usually only gets such relief in dreams; his dreams preoccupy themselves with other hurts.

But he isn't dreaming.

He sits upright (it still doesn't hurt) and opens his eyes.

He's in his bed in the Jingshi, exactly where he would expect to be, but some things are off - his hairpiece isn't on the small table where he rests it before bed, the wall hangings have changed, A-Yuan's art isn't cluttered over the desk the way he still often leaves it...

Wangji dresses quickly. Finds a different hairpiece in his drawers; these ones are familiar to him, from when he was younger. Straightens his robes, takes his sword, walks out into the sunlight to find his brother and his son.

He finds his brother first, looking... young, and unusually well slept. Xichen smiles softly when he seems him.

"Wangji, don't you want to wear your student robes?"

His what.

"To match the other students? There's still time for you to change before the ceremony."

He puts a hand light on his shoulder. "Are you nervous? There's no reason to be. You know as well as I do how strong you are in your studies.

Or are you nervous about... the other students? The students are nice. I don't think they are all such troublemakers, Wangji."

Such troublemakers as -

He needs to go to the library. He needs to go to the library right now, there isn't time, this doesn't make any sense - he doesn't have time to figure out how this is possible (which it shouldn't be) or real (which is impossible not to doubt), has to change into the proper robes or he might miss -

"I will change. Thank you, Zewu Jun."

"I will see you there."

Wangji is even more nervous than he was expecting. Xichen hopes he gives the other kids a chance; he knows Wangji can make good friends with enough patience.

In yet another room in the Cloud Recesses, Jiang Cheng wakes up. The last thing he remembers, he was in Lotus Pier.  

Had there been some kind of emergency that had brought him out here?  He wasn't wounded.  Zidian, Purple Lightning, wasn't on his wrist as it always was even in sleep.  Had he taken it off?  He checks nearby.  His sword is there.  The clothing prepared beside it are student's robes.

A knock comes from the door.  "Brother?  Are you awake?"

That voice.  

He leaps out of the bed to open the door.  Then stares.

"What's wrong, A-Cheng?"

She looks him over, then takes him by the arm to somewhere where he can sit down.  They need to get ready for the salute ceremony, but obviously this is more important.

He is pulled along with no resistance, focusing on the point of contact.  

"Yanli?  You're alive?"  He chokes out, voice hoarse.  

"I am alive," she assures him, patting his arm.  "Did you have a nightmare, A-Cheng?"

It seems more than that, but she can't imagine what else might have happened between the time that they'd been sent to bed and now to make him that concerned.  Certainly nothing that wouldn't have brought him into her room with his sword, raising some kind of alarm.  

"Perhaps it was the unfamiliar bed," she suggests, when he finds himself unable to answer.  "Or worry for the upcoming ceremony?  Everything has been taken care of - I checked on our tribute before waking A-Xian earlier."

"He's here?"

"He is!  I was informed when I woke up that he'd returned from town with the missing invitation, then let himself inside.  It's good he'll be able to attend the ceremony with us."

They had originally been denied entry into Cloud Recesses the previous evening due to having lost their invitation.  Rather than all of them walking back together, most had stayed and made camp in a clearing outside of the gate.  Wei Wuxian had been sent down to Caiyi Town to get their invitation.  Not long after he'd left, Lan Wangji had arrived to invite them in, having received permission to bring them to their rooms to sleep instead of making them stay in the forest.  Jiang Yanli had worried about him coming back and finding them all missing, but Jiang Cheng had insisted they follow Lan Wangji.

Cheng does not agree with this sentiment.  

He also isn't sure what ceremony she's talking about, but that's taking distant second in his priorities at the moment.  

He will receive more arm pats. 

"Speaking of which, we only have a few more minutes before we need to leave.  You don't want to be late, right, A-Cheng?"  While remaining gentle, she adds just enough command to her voice to show that there is no arguing.  He will only be more upset if he is also late to the ceremony, even if he isn't thinking about that now.

He should at least get dressed.  Whatever's going on here, he's going to need his sword.  Because apparently Wei Wuxian was here.

Yanli will be right outside.

A low bell rings from somewhere. Within moments there is some audible scrambling, and then Yanli will be joined outside by someone.

"Shijie! Did you get enough sleep? They told me that you got let in, was the bed okay - where's Jiang Cheng?"

"I slept well.  A-Cheng may not have - he's running a bit late."

"Late?" He clucks his tongue. "What a slacker! Shijie you should really scold him, you know if I were running late Jiang Cheng would already be yelling. So unfair."

(Wei Wuxian is technically also running late, but less and so the point still stands.)

Jiang dresses as quickly as possible.  Every moment that his sister isn't in his sight is one where she might inexplicably vanish.  

The few minutes are enough to let panic and horror and anger to give way more thoroughly to confusion.  The notes for his speech were next to his clothes.  He remembers giving that speech and the described gift years ago.  He'd been interrupted halfway through by the Nevernight contingent arriving and everyone drawing swords.

Had the last several years been a dream?  Was this a dream?  Normally, dreams were recognizable upon waking, but everything he remembers still seems so real - Lotus Pier burning, the Sunshot campaign, Nevernight, the years of raising A-Ling.  Much of it was terrible and senseless, but the kind of senseless of real wars not the inconsistencies of nightmares.

When he steps out, he immediately spots Wei Wuxian.  Also strangely young, face less hollowed than he remembers, wearing white robes that look so different on him compared to the black.  

He is standing far too close to a-jie.  Without thinking, Cheng shoves him backwards.  

"How dare you!  You-" he cuts off for just a moment.  A-jie was right there?  Now on his other side from Wei Wuxian, protected.  "What did you do?"

He stumbles back and clutches his chest. "Aiyah, Jiang Cheng, how could you! I didn't do anything at all. It's not my fault you were lazy - Shijie, look how mean he's being to me!"

Yanli will grab onto A-Cheng, serving double-duty at trying to hold him in place and reassure him.

Did they have some kind of fight?  But no, A-Xian doesn't know what's going on with A-Cheng either.  

"Now, this isn't the time to start a fight, you two.  We're nearly late to the salute ceremony as it is."

Something weird and unnatural is going on, and the number one suspect for anything weird and unnatural is the Yiling Patriarch.  

(Also, if he stops being angry he's probably going to start crying.)

"What are you doing, pretending you have no idea what's going on?"

...Jiang Cheng seems actually unusually upset. Wei Wuxian can't think of a single thing that could make Jiang Cheng so angry. Unless it's...??

"Did someone tell you about the fight last night already? Listen, I wasn't the one who started it so you don't even need to shout at me, I was being perfectly respectable and willing to go on my good way, with or without bribing law enforcers, how was I supposed to know that the law enforcer was a stubborn prick who hates the concept of joy - and look, I was only out that late in the first place to fetch our invitation for you!" He shakes his head and tsks. "So ungrateful, Jiang Cheng, really."

Right.  Wei Wuxian had somehow managed to pick a fight with Lan Wangji back when he first arrived.  Which was either a few hours ago or a few years ago.  Jiang Cheng does know about the fight, and he's pretty sure he hadn't been told up to this point.  Was Wei Wuxian managing to get into a fight just so obviously inevitable that his memories matching up was a coincidence, or did this imply that what he remembers from the future is true?  Students arriving from Nevernight was far more unusual than Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji fighting.  He should go to the ceremony and see if that happens before making a decision.  

Still glaring suspiciously, still keeping A-jie and Wei Wuxian on opposite sides of himself, he straightens up.  "Let's go to this ceremony."

He's still clearly bothered by something, but honestly when is he not.

Wei Wuxian shrugs this off. Together they can all hurry to the Lan Clan Mansion, where the ceremony will shortly begin.

The Nie and Jin Clans are already present and seated, along with a large number of Lan disciples. (Lan Wangji is not among them). Everyone who should be alive continues to be.

Wei Wuxian sits affably in the same desk he picked - last time, or in the dream, or whatever it was. He leaves the desk in front open for Jiang Cheng, of course.

It would hardly be proper for him to sit anywhere else, even if it does itch to not keep the other two in his sight at all times.  He goes over the notes for the speech which may or may not get interrupted later.  

Lan Wangji arrives just in time for their bows.

He looks straight ahead, straight ahead, doesn't look over to his right even a little bit. First of all, he still hasn't had time to examine the evidence for this being possible and/or real. Secondly, Xichen is already watching him, and he will ask questions if Wangji seems too upset.

Thirdly, he's afraid that Wei Ying won't be there when he looks.

Everyone stands and bows. The Lan principles are read out loud, while they stay standing. Midway through this, Nie Huaisang's bird starts chirping quite a lot.

Wow Who Could Have Possibly Predicted This.

People are looking, because of course they are. Meng Yao smiles pleasantly ahead and leaves no indication on his face that he thinks Huaisang is absurd in bringing a canary to the introduction ceremony for everyone's literal first impression.

Whoa. A bird is exponentially more interesting than any of the rules that are being recited right now, this is a fantastic development.

He leans over a little bit. "Psst, hey! What kind of bird is that?"

He glances around to make sure that only the people who won't yell at him are watching.  The canary is shown off from a gap between his wide sleeves, angled so that only Wei Wuxian can see.  

"It's a canary!  I tracked it down while coming here, for three days before I caught it," he whispers conspiratorially.  

What a pretty bird!! "Ooh, how interesting!" he whispers back. "It has such nice gold feathers..."

- it sounds like him.

They're whispering, and it sounds like him. And together with the bird they're making a lot of noise; Wangji's supposed to look now. It would be strange if he didn't. He - looks over to the right behind him.

It is so fun to sneak around like this!  A minor infraction that won't have disastrous consequences if discovered.  A game.  

When he notices someone more serious and rule-abiding is turning towards him, he quickly straightens back up and pretends he was listening to the rules.  

Aw, but it would be so much more fun to keep talking about the bird. There's truly very little that would be worth paying attention to this absurd and unnecessary quantity of stupid boring rules. 

But fine. Just since Jiang Cheng is already so wound up today Wei Wuxian will be extremely generous and attempt some """decorum.""" He looks over to see what scared off his new acquaintance.  

Ah, of course. His new friend! Kind of! His new friend who possibly somewhat hates him? But that's fine because they've already started Bonding and Wangji-xiong did let Shijie and Jiang Cheng inside the other night and honestly sword fighting seems like a perfectly fun way to spend a friendship.

Wei Wuxian beams at him and waves.

...okay so he does indeed seem to still hate him???

Lan Wangji looks. Really upset. Wei Wuxian frowns just a little; it looks for all the world like Lan Zhan thinks Wei Wuxian was the one to break his Emperor's Smile. Wei Wuxian is definitely the wronged party here and he's getting punished anyway so honestly Lan Zhan has no right to look at him like that.

But fine, he'll stop waving and face ahead again. ~~Decorum~~

- he's there and alive and smiling, he was smiling so, so brightly -

- towards the end it felt like Lan Wangji must have imagined how bright those smiles used to be. He'd concluded that the memories were exaggerated, colored by nostalgia and affection, because how could one person's smile possibly be that bright, but there it is and Wei Ying is smiling at him and -

There are so many other more important things to process right now, but he can't look away and it's really absurdly difficult to think about anything else.

When Wei Ying turns away he seems nonplussed but unaffected by whatever he saw in Wangji's face. This Wei Ying doesn't know how to read him the way he did, the way he will, and this Wei Ying doesn't particularly care if Wangji likes him. In the end he cared, for all the good that did him, and Wangji knows exactly what those bright eyes will look like when he points his sword at them for the final time -

But he won't, he won't do that, he won't ever let that happen. If this is real, if he's here and Wei Ying is here and smiling and alive, then he is never going to let that happen.

Now that Wei Ying is no longer looking at him, Lan Wangji can see the world around him again.

Jiang Yanli is there, alive. She looks beautiful and kind and quiet as he remembered. Jiang Wanyin is there: shockingly young and bearing fewer stress lines than the last time Wangji saw him, looking no less sour or miserable for it.

...Jiang Wanyin stands in front of Wei Ying. Two feet away. A sword's length away; tension claws down Wangji's arms and curls his fists. He has seen Jiang Cheng exactly twice since everything, since leaving his seclusion. Wangji did a very good job of not killing him either time. (It was hard; it hurt not to hurt him. But receiving another severe punishment would undoubtably kill Wangji, assuming they didn't save time and execute him promptly. He had too many responsibilities for that.)

(And Wei Ying wouldn't want it.)

He can't hurt Jiang Wanyin now either. It's much harder to do that when Wei Ying is right there, no matter that the man - boy, really, now - hasn't done anything yet, no matter that Wei Ying isn't in real danger. His entire body aches with the suppressed urge to lunge forward and shove Jiang Wanyin away. Wangji glares viciously at him but stays very still.

He's concerned, watching his brother, and a little surprised. Perhaps being around the cultivators from other clans is a more difficult adjustment for Wangji than he realized.

It is very hard to concentrate with Wei Wuxian standing right behind him.  Jiang Cheng wants to turn around and pull out his sword.  No matter that it would be a very bad idea when surrounded by a packed room of people, none of which seem to be aware that a future-Demonic Cultivator is in their midst.  

Instead, he mentally recites his lines, glancing down at the note hidden in his own sleeve when eyes don't seem to be on him.  

(It would be a very bad idea. If he pulls his sword he is going to die.)

No one is going to die.

After a very long time, the rules are finally finished. The same Lan disciple who read them out clears his throat and begins to call up and introduce the representatives from visiting sects, one at a time.

He sweeps to the center of the room and bows respectfully. "I am Jin Zixuan, from the Jin Clan of Lanling. I have come to visit the Grand Master."

He kneels, bows again more deeply, and continues on presenting his tribute. Jin Zixuan seems very alive: healthy and well-dressed as always.

So well-dressed, isn't he.

Seeing his brother here feels... complicated. Brother? Half-brother? It doesn't really matter; of course neither Jin Zixuan nor his father would deign to acknowledge him as either.

He watches very carefully as shiny, golden Jin Zixuan presents his shiny, golden present. The Jin Sect Heir is composed and well-spoken. (Not quite as well-spoken as Meng Yao. But of course, he would never have to be.)

He had started to warm up to Jin Zixuan, or at least his memory, after a while.  Mostly on account of A-Ling.  

Seeing him again.  Alive, younger.  Everything is getting too much for Jiang Cheng to process.  He defaults to annoyance.

Her future husband, chosen by her parents and his years ago.  

Where Jiang Cheng defaults to dislike, she is hopeful.  Despite the incident at the tavern yesterday, she thinks that she can see true kindness in him, beneath the facade that he puts on.  

An attendant accepts the tribute for the Grand Master Lan. Jin Zixuan and his fellow Jin disciple return to their seats.

"The Nie Clan of Qinghe is saluting!"

Getting to watch Lan Zixuan go first helped.  He quickly sets down the canary and prepares to step forward, trusting Meng Yao to follow.

"Nie Huaisang from Nie Clan of Qinghe, here to visit the master," he bows, repeating the same formal procedure he'd just watched.  "The Nie clan presents to you this dark-red sand elixir pot."  

With a whispered command, he nods towards Meng Yao to continue.  

He's happy to. He holds the heavy box out in front of him and, eyes lowered, speaks to the virtues of the gift and its recipient. He speaks very deliberately, very cleanly, with an articulate and poetic turn of phrase. Meng Yao wonders if Jin Zixuan will think anything of this, of what Meng Yao could be beside him. Above him.

While he speaks, there is murmuring from the corner of the room.

"Isn't that -"

"- the love child of Sect Leader Jin, isn't he? Why is he..."

"- heard that he went to the Jin Clan for a proposal... kicked out of Carp Tower. After that..."

" -children of Sect Leader Jin, they are treated so differently..."

They are not being especially quiet.

In some ways it impresses him, how far the gossip actually manages to reach. Meng Yao sometimes wonders if Father spread the story around deliberately, if he encouraged it. Perhaps to discourage his other bastards from wandering up to Carp Tower and soiling his pretty marble steps.

It burns, all over his skin like he's been set alight. The indignation of this has never once stopped burning; the angry buzzing tension in his skull, his fingers, gnawing at his stomach, it never gets any better. Meng Yao finishes his speech. He lowers his eyes and holds out the tribute and braces for them to ask about his mother, to laugh at the idea of her - that will burn worse, it always always does.

"Quiet," Lan Qiren barks.

The mumbling disciples stop whispering immediately.

How cruel of those disciples to gossip brazenly about this well-spoken young man. He's disappointed.

Xichen steps down from the dais himself to accept the gift. "I have heard that Clan Leader Nie has a helpful assistant. Hearing the elegance of your speech today, I see that my expectations are met."

If anything, Mingjue-ge had rather undersold him.

Right, yes, accepting the tribute. Is what he's doing. Xichen is an elegant and capable politician even in the face of eyes like that. He will absolutely continue accepting the tribute with only minimal hand-touching, this is very professional.

Very professional. This is the best interaction Meng Yao has had with anyone in at least the past year.

Nie Huaisang is doing his best to not pay attention to those two making eyes at each other next to him.  He's pretty sure he hadn't noticed it the first time.  This early and they were already doing it?

Lan Xichen is a good man, and hardly the only person to be swayed by Jin Guangyao's charms.  Hopefully Lan Xichen won't take it too badly when Jin Guangyao is taken down.  It's that or he'll inevitably get killed by one of Jin Guangyao's plots for power.  Perhaps it would be worthwhile to try and drive a wedge in right away, and remove his closest supporter?  Or maybe try to convince them to get closer - try and convince Meng Yao to instead stay at Cloud Recesses, and hope that the Unclean Realm and Da-ge were out of range of whatever Meng Yao wound up doing.  He'll have to think on it.  

Xichen returns to the dais with their tribute, and Nie Huaisang and Meng Yao are allowed to return to their seats.

It is announced that the Jiang Clan of Yumeng will now salute.

He heads to the center of the room.

"I am Jiang Cheng from the Jiang Clan of Yunmeng," he recites, beginning his hastily-memorized speech.  

In a shocking turn of events, he is about to be rudely interrupted.

Wen Chao strides into the Lan Clan Mansion with all his soldiers lined up behind him. His eyes glance over Jiang Cheng without recognition as he waits aggressively for the disciple to get out of his way, walking right up to him. Wen Chao sneers something about how difficult it was to get in through the gate. The two younger Wens behind him look much less enthusiastic.

Here she is. Very alive, very unenthused. One of her hands is anxiously tight around Wen Ning's arm beside her.

Here he is at her side. He's a lot of things right now, but certainly none of them are enthused.

Alive, is one of the things, although he should be dead, was just dead, dead and - something else, something blanker and colder and more painful than it had been while he was only dead - but apparently he's not. Somehow he's back in the Cloud Recesses with his sister beside him.

When Wen Ning stumbled and collapsed to the side of the road on their march to Gusu, shuddering and clutching his head, Wen Qing was very concerned. She did not seem to share his sense that he ought to be dead, or that either of them had just been prisoners, or that any other number of jumbled events had come to pass. 

Wen Ning is in his old body, a body that is fifteen and weak and doesn't yet know how to be angry. All the fear-rage-anguish-pain that has been unlocked within him since his death, such a significant piece of him since his death; that's all crammed inside this child-body that only knows how to repress and redirect and shy away from those feelings. It hurts. It feels like maybe he'll crack open.

With enough concentration (ow) (and he had never considered concentration his strength, particularly) he can pay attention to the people and places around him, the things that are happening. The things that are happening have already happened.

Wen Ning does not know what is going on and his only guess is that this is what they were trying to do when they drilled into his skull and everything went flat-cold-blank. He doesn't know why anyone would try to do this with him.

Jiang Cheng is shocked, though not for the reason everyone else is.  So he does have some manner of foreknowledge.  

He steps aside, the better to watch them.  Wen Qing, and the not-yet Ghost General.  

Nie Huaisang watches, saying nothing.  They're going to be pulling out swords soon, he knows, so he'll just prepare to stand back and out of any errant slashes.  

Even knowing that this was coming, it's an unpleasant shock to see them.

Those soldiers storming into Wangji's home. the home that they burned. Here they are, strutting among the disciples that they slaughtered - are going to slaughter - will slaughter unless Wangji prevents it, somehow - and Wangji sees the building in flames around them as they march, smells the blood and ash -

His hands tremble. He's unfocused. Wangji can't allow that; he can't defend Wei Ying or his brother or anyone if he's wavering like a child. He makes himself stop and tries to breathe. Tears his gaze away from the horrible Wen uniform and tries to refocus on faces.

Wen Chao is here, smug and arrogant as always, speaking rudely to Wangji's brother. Wangji had wanted to attack him the first time this happened, he remembers. He had started forwards, but stopped himself and looked to his brother. Xichen had signaled for him to stand down.

The urge to strike Wen Chao down now rages stronger tenfold. He can't. Wen Chao needs to die immediately but he can't kill him yet, unprepared to contend with the wrath of Wen Ruohan that would immediately crash down on his home.

Wen Qing is here, and Wen Ning. It's strange to see them again, and it hurts in a slightly different way. They both look young. They'd still been young, the last time he saw them. They had been young when he'd visited them in the Burial Mounds, when Wei Ying had looked at Wangji and begged him with his eyes to stay, and Lan Wangji had walked away from all of them. Left all of them to die.

Wangji focuses on breathing.

Wen Chao spends this time clarifying that he and his little army have come to escort Wen Qing and Wen Ning to Cloud Recesses, though not for any evident purpose.

"- besides, the Wen Clan is always teaching others. Surely we don't need your... lecture."

"In that case, why did Young Master Wen come here?"

That voice is -

He hadn't expected to ever see Young Master Wei again. Wei Wuxian looks so healthy and young and carefree: just... a happy child. Wen Ning doesn't remember noticing that when he first met him here, or thinking of Wei Wuxian as a child. He remembers being anxious and scared that anyone was talking back to Wen Chao, and wishing that the Young Master would stop and apologize before anything happened.

Now, Wen Ning sort of wants Wei Wuxian to keep talking. His voice is very grounding.

He does not want Wei Wuxian to keep talking!!! Because Wei Ying is provoking Wen Chao and one day Wen Chao is going to destroy him and Lan Wangji never found out how, he doesn't know how to prevent it - and too many people who need to be stabbed are currently unstabbed and this is all VERY BAD

"Perhaps they've come to learn how to tell time."

... strange, he doesn't remember Jiang Wanyin saying that. Nor anything similarly inflammatory. But it has been a long time. 

Wei Wuxian is surprised but delighted at Jiang Cheng's participation!! He must be feeling better; here they are working as a team already. Wei Wuxian laughs.

"And who the fuck are these pissants?"

"I'm not a pissant! I'm Wei Wuxian. Of the Yumeng Jiang Clan. You're late to the ceremony, you know; my brother, Jiang Cheng, was just in the middle of saluting. How could you come in shouting and yelling like a child? Is that what the Wen Clan teaches others?"

Very quickly a large number of blades are indeed being drawn, Wen Soldiers pouring into the room.

The disciples all draw their swords to face them.

Meng Yao does not have a sword. He moves quickly to stand in front of Nie Huaisang all the same. He might not be as much protection to Huaisang as an actual cultivator, but he's certainly more protection than Huaisang himself.

His sword is drawn, too!  Even if he won't be able to fight, he's not turning down an opportunity to posture angrily at Wen Chao. 

This is terrible.  Why can't everyone just talk without needing to draw their swords.  

That's a fantastic question. The answer is probably that Wen Chao is very stupid.

She puts an arm out, pulling Wen Ning behind her.

He goes, a little dizzily. His head hurts enough to be distracting, but he remains pretty sure that this is exactly what happened - what, three years ago? He doesn't remember precisely how long, but he's sure about the memory. No one got hurt, so Wen Ning doesn't have to feel bad about huddling behind his sister.

He is not drawing his sword, because the Cloud Recesses are burning and bleeding all around him and if he draws Bichen then he knows he's going to kill someone with it.

Stay calm, stay calm, no one gets hurt. Control yourself.

(Wei Ying is using his sword. It hurts as much as it's a relief. Here it's so easy, so natural for him, not even a question of whether it should fly to his hand. Wangji doesn't know what went wrong. Wangji doesn't know how he failed to convince Wei Ying to go back to Suibian, when he had once held it as naturally as breathing.)

Deep Sigh.

Xichen twirls his xiao in his grip and puts it to his lips. Eyes still peacefully shut, he begins to play. His playing is very powerful; he's very powerful. All the drawn swords begin to quiver and twitch, following the suggestion of Xichen's music instead of the spiritual power of their own owners. 

The swords all plunge upwards at once and soar into the air.

Wow.

The music is really nice. He feels a lot more solid than he did a moment ago.

The swords turn in the air and plunge back to the ground abruptly, digging themselves upright into the wooden floor. Wen Chao has to hop back slightly to dodge his.

It is amazing how gracefully Lan Xichen managed to take control of the entire room.  He's hardly going to draw attention by applauding.  Meng Yao is right within whisper distance, though. 

"Lan Xichen sure does deserve his excellent reputation." 

He has wanted very few things as much as he wants that man and everything he embodies.

Lan Xichen finishes playing.

He walks very slowly down from the dais once again, and stands before Wen Chao. He's extremely calm, radiating unhurried composure as he faces him down. He smiles slightly, eyes cool.

"Young Master Wen," he says, pleasant but very firm. "Today is the Ceremony Day of Cloud Recesses. I hope you can restrain yourself."

Wen Chao has the distinct look of someone who is not going to restrain himself, but Wen Qing intervenes before he can do more than scowl.

Wen Qing bows properly to Lan Xichen, and then to Lan Qiren. She introduces herself and her brother. "We are new to Gusu, and not yet familiar with the rules of your clan. We hope that Grand Master and Clan Leader Lan can forgive us."

For all that he doesn't trust any of them, Xichen immediately likes her. Someone else willing and able to diffuse the situation; there aren't many of those in the room. And she's smart about it, giving him the opening to forgive her and her brother who have clearly done no wrong, without exonerating Wen Chao and his disrespect.

A tribute gift is offered from one of the soldiers in a large, mahogany box. Xichen looks at it and hesitates.

Behind him, his uncle rises to his feet. "If what she says is true," says Lan Qiren slowly, "Then we will accept it."

Xichen takes the box from Wen Qing. He informs Wen Chao that the Saluting Ceremony is over. Wen Chao should go rest. Please be on time to attend the lecture in the morning.

He scoffs but says nothing. He yanks his sword up from the ground and sheathes it before turning on his heal. The other Wens all file out after him.

"Young Master Jiang, I apologize for that interruption. You may continue presenting your tribute, if you wish."

He still mostly remembers the speech, and can offer his tribute.

It will be accepted, and then the ceremony will actually end.

The lecture will begin at eight tomorrow morning, everyone please be on time. All the students are dismissed.

"Wow. That was a lot more exciting than I'd expected! Why do you think the Wens are here so suddenly, Jiang Cheng?"

Looking for Yin Iron.  Though, he can't actually say that.  

"Spying, probably," he says instead.

There is something unifying about having Wen Chao around as a mutual subject of hatred.  That, and he's fairly certain at this point that Wei Wuxian is not responsible for whatever happened.  He used his sword.  Jiang Cheng isn't sure why the Wei Wuxian of the future stopped, but it had been a major symptom of whatever was going wrong with him.  As long as he doesn't pick up any flutes...

His brother is alive.

His brother is alive! Here he is, slinging an arm over his shoulder.

"What do you think they're spying on? I bet we can beat them to it, if we try. Nie-xiong, what do you think?" He flaps his hand conspiratorially at Bird Boy.

"Oh, maybe.  I wouldn't know where to start looking."

He'd never learned the exact location of the Yin Iron, only the understanding that it had been found somewhere in the Cloud Recesses.  There were also some obscure books which ought to be hunted down and removed somewhere around here.  

They can start filtering out of the room with all the other disciples, out into the courtyard. "Well, we have to start now. The Wens have the advantage, since they already know what information they're looking for. How unfair. Maybe we should ask - oh, Ji-xiong! Wangji-xiong! Over here!"

He was trying to make a quiet and dignified escape through the courtyard.

He is now forced to take a break from escaping and instead stare at Wei Ying as though he'd just gutted him with a knife.

But he's acknowledging him! That's very encouraging!

"Ji-xiong, we were just going to go try and out-spy the Wen disciples, since we think they're probably spies. You know Cloud Recesses best, do you want to help? What do you think they might be spying for?"

That's odd.  He's pretty sure that the first time he saw Wei-xiong call out to Lan Wangji, the other boy walked away immediately.  Huaisang doesn't think that anything has happened differently to cause that different reaction.  

Jiang Cheng is slightly distracted by other thoughts.  Still, it doesn't take him long to also notice the incongruous stare.

"...Wangji-xioong, are you still mad about last night? I didn't mean to break any rules, I swear! I wasn't trying to make you upset on purpose! I'm sorry, and you did break my Emperor's Smile, so can't we just be even?" He pauses and then smiles broadly. "I bet if you come with us I can find more ways to make it up to you!"

"...I must go to the library. I cannot accompany you."

"We can go to the library with you! Can't we?" He glances at his two companions, but doesn't wait for them to answer him. "There has to be some interesting spying-worthy things in there, even in such a boring Clan. - Ah, ah, not that you're boring, Ji-xiong, or at least - you sort of might be, but I think it's your clan's fault. I definitely believe that you could improve, and we can probably help. Everyone helps each other, see?"

"No."

The only thing worse than being in the library with Wei Ying right now would be being in the library with Wei Ying and Jiang Wanyin. Wangji turns around and attempts to resume escaping.

"I would love to go to the library, though," he says for possibly the first time ever.  He means it, too.  Where else to hide books?  Not to mention wanting to watch Lan Wangji.  Something must have changed to cause the last minute to go differently than what he remembers.

Nie Huaisang wanting to go to a library is one of the most absurd things Wangji's ever heard. Why does he have to even entertain this - 

Wangji can't actually bar other students from using the library just because he is struggling with self control. He doesn't generally believe that people should be kept from libraries. Now, unfortunately, it's too late to decide to go somewhere else.

"You are able to follow me," he grinds out, and then strides away.

He laughs excitedly and claps Nie Huaisang on the back. "There it is, that's permission for us! Well done, Nie-xiong. Our Twin Jade must have a soft spot for you, maybe he liked that canary after all. Shall we?"

"After you, Wei-xiong."

They want to go to the library?  Now he's sure something strange is going on.  Nie Huaisang might just be going along with Wei Wuxian's attempt to find secrets, but he's feeling paranoid enough that it's coming across as suspicious too.  

Time to go read some books.

Lan Wangji leads the three of them to the Cloud Recesses library. It's a truly gorgeous space: tall elegant shelves and plenty of light. Definitely lots of books.

Most of these books burned. All of the art, the hangings.

Wangji sits at his favored table in the center of the room and looks intently down at the first book he sees there, resolutely ignoring the other boys. He sits with his back straight, marveling at the absence of pain.

He has a lot to consider. Any books here about theoretical time travel, Wangji would know. Time travel might be mentioned within books that contain many different topics, but Wangji also knows all the important books of varied topics.

If the information exists, it will be in the forbidden section. He must figure out how to check.

In the mean time, he needs to decide what to do with Wei Ying, Wen Chao, the Yin Iron, all of it. He needs to figure out how to fix everything before it happens. There is so very much to fix.

"There sure are a lot of books here," he whispers, mostly to himself.  Probably none of them have pictures other than possibly technical diagrams.  Not that he really intends to read any.  

He'll stay close to Wei-xiong for the moment, though he intends to have a thorough walk through the room when he has the chance.

He's going to lean against a shelf and watch the other three to see what they're doing.  

Well, Wei Wuxian is making a valiant attempt to be interested in this library.

It’s such a boring library. At least half of the books in here are rules, and philosophical reflections on those rules, and treatises on the consequences of violating those rules, all of which seems utterly useless. Wei Wuxian is not finding any books about cool and spy-worthy secret magics. This is extremely disappointing. There might be any interesting information buried here if he searched long enough, but that doesn’t seem like the best use of his time at all.

It takes exactly three minutes for him to give up on being a library detective. He redirects his attention towards what is obviously the most valuable source of information here and plops down beside Lan Zhan to pester him.

oh no

“Hey! Hey, Wangji-xiong, psst. Wangji-xiong this library is extremely boring and my poor head is so tired already, can’t you just tell us where the interesting things are? Here, listen, Nie-xiong and Jiang Cheng and I think that the Wens are up to something, trying to find something here in Cloud Recesses. Don’t you think that’s likely? I mean, the Wen Clan has never attended one of the lectures of the Lan, so why are they here now? None of us know any secrets here yet so you have to at least give us a hint about what they might be looking for. What do you think? What’s in the Cloud Recesses that the Wens might want to find out about?”

“No idea.”

He doesn’t yet know what he’s going to do about the Yin Iron shard, but it definitely won’t involve putting Wei Ying anywhere near it.

“Ai, Lan Wangji you have to at least think about it. Maybe it’s something you’ve heard your uncle or brother mention - you don’t have any ideas at all??”

“None.”

He pouts, Loudly. “Wangji-xiong, what sort of spirit is that! Everyone says you’re the most perfect student and scholar of our generation, but here you are not even bothering to consider my question for even a minute, before giving up and deciding to live your life in ignorance? Aiyah, how disappointing. Don’t you want to try even a little harder?”

Maybe if he stares down at his desk intently enough he will cease to exist.

“How can you just ignore me in the middle of our investigation like this! Ji-xiong.

Lan Wangjiiiiii.”

“Lan Zhan!”

Huaisang wanders around the library and looks very bored while skimming over the book titles and scroll labels.  More importantly he's paying attention to the sound his footsteps make to see if there's any hidden trap doors in the floor.  He also looks for any places where the walls don't quite match up with the shape of the building, where room for a secret staircase or ladder might be hidden.  This search also includes covert glances at the ceiling - a skilled cultivator can jump quite high, and a room where only they can enter might be best accessed through a disguised hole between rafters or something.  

Jiang Cheng watches for a minute, then rolls his eyes and heads outside.  If they find anything, they'll presumably tell him later.

In the meantime, he wants to take a look at the old Cloud Recesses, and maybe find where Yanli is.  There are more people who died in the future than just Wei Wuxian, and he's busy with his one-sided attempts at flirting.

The edges of this one segment of bookshelf seem a little suspect, set within a larger wall of shelving. The distinction is very subtle.

Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji are currently distracting each other, though obviously they will notice if Huaisang starts hauling heavy bookshelves around right over there.

Jiang Wanyin left, which is a definite improvement, but that sadly does not do as much to help Lan Wangji's mood as usual. He continues to stare into space and feel like he's been set on fire.

Yeah, there's definitely room for some kind of staircase or something in that area. 

He should probably wait until he's alone.  Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng are both very loud, and Lan Wangji is (especially at the current point in history) very rule-abiding and would probably do something if they actually found anything.  Thinking of which, he should probably make sure to do it very soon, before they can add additional wards or guards.  Hopefully they won't do so immediately just because of three kids playing detective.  

Nie Huaisang glances around.  Jiang Cheng has wandered off.  Where did he go?  Time to go outside and look for him.

Jiang Cheng is nowhere in sight, but someone else is.

Meng Yao hovers in the walkways of Cloud Recesses. He wants to bid his farewells to Huaisang and to Zewu Jun, but hasn't seen either of them since the ceremony.

Huaisang had promptly run off with his new cultivator friends the moment the ceremony ended, which was more or less what Meng Yao expected. When he sees him now, Meng Yao brightens his face and bows. "Young Master, I was hoping to see you. I must soon leave to return to our Clan Leader. Do you have everything you need?"

Nie Huaisang wants him to stay!  He needs to keep an eye on him, and keep him away from Da-ge.

"Surely you don't have to leave right away, Meng Yao.  It's such a long trip."

"Clan Leader Nie was expecting me to return promptly. If I delay, he might worry over you."

"He wouldn't expect you to leave immediately."

Normal people don't travel such distances and then leave again.  Admittedly, Meng Yao has never been normal in how much he manages to do.  

"Besides, Da-ge might wonder how I'm doing here and you won't know."

Nie Huaisang also does his best to look lost.  Would Meng Yao really leave him here all alone?  There's no one else from the Unclean Realm, and his classmates have apparently vanished somewhere without him.  

...it's unfortunately tempting.

Meng Yao weighs whether it's more humiliating to have to leave immediately because he's merely a servant, or to stay and take his time but be a servant more visibly, barred from the rest of these cultivators and their classes (and their swords and their titles and all the other things he has never had -)

There are footsteps from down the corridor, and then Lan Xichen is joining them, smiling, his pace slow and serene. He looks delighted to see them both.

"Young Master Nie, Young Master Meng. Good afternoon. Are you both enjoying your first day?"

His eyes brighten and he quickly turns to bow, deep and picture-perfect as always. "Zewu Jun. Truly, I was just about to leave. I had been hoping to find you and wish you farewell."

This is terrible news! Xichen looks clearly disappointed, concerned. "Farewell?"

"But Young Master Meng, why not stay a few days before you depart? We have enough rooms, you could stay here and rest a little..."

His expression at Lan Xichen says 'I know, right?  Help me talk some sense into him.'

He makes a clumsier bow, and in a voice that is much less sophisticated, "Please Zewu Jun, provide your hospitality to him for a short while."

Turning, "Please take a few days rest.  I'd, um, also like you to bring a letter to Da-ge for me when you go, and need time to write it." 

It wouldn't be anything important, of course.  No instruction, no tactical information.  Meng Yao would inevitably read it and not attracting suspicion is important.  But.  It's been years.  Even if it would be unreasonable for him to run back to the Unclean Realm, and even as curtailed as he is with things he could write...  There are things he should have been saying that he hadn't, the first time around.

"You are as generous as is your reputation, Zewu Jun. However, this one is just a guest of the Nie Clan, not a disciple. I do not wish to impose."

"Of course, Nie-gongzi." He dips his head graciously.

"Meng-gongzi, there would be no imposition. A bright mind is never an imposition on the Lan; you are invited to stay by both Young Master Nie here and myself. Stay for just a few days. and give Young Master Nie time to write his letter?"

"Then, if it is the bidding of Young Master and Zewu Jun... of course I could not be impolite enough to leave against both of your wishes."

He bows to Huaisang, and then to Lan Xichen. Very deeply. It's a shame that he has no courtesies less cheaply given to offer the man. "I also wished to thank you, Zewu Jun, for your help during the ceremony this morning. We are all fortunate that you were there."

Xichen catches his arms, gently guiding him back up from his bow.

"You are welcome," he says quickly. "We are peers, you don't need to thank me like this."

Oh.

"Then if Zewu Jun wishes, I will follow your lead to where I might rest."

He turns and half-bows again to Huaisang. "Thank you, Young Master," he says quietly, meaning it more than he finds comfortable.

Good.  That will give him a few days to consider whether there's anything more permanent that can be done about Meng Yao before he leaves.  And if he's very lucky, maybe Cloud Recesses will be tempting enough that he'll try to stay here and away from the Unclean Realm.  

In the meantime, Huaisang will wind his way back to the library.  It's a decent place to start writing, and maybe some of the other students are still there.  

Alas, the library is now empty.

Well, in that case... 

Carefully double-checking every corner just in case he makes his way to the suspicious shelf.  No time like the present, and he has the excuse of Wei Wuxian encouraging him to snoop in the library in particular if he's caught anyway.

Suspicious shelf: present, still suspicious. No lurking disciples are found in any corners.

Now how to open it... Pulling?  Perhaps checking for latches if it doesn't budge.  

Pulling will work if he uses some Magic Encouragement.

Once he tries that, the heavy section of self will swing slowly out towards him and reveal a dark, steep wooden staircase. The steps spiral down into a larger chamber below.

- shit.

Wangji hides himself behind one of the shelves furthest from the stairs and holds very still.

Huaisang can quickly scurry down the stairs (pulling the shelf closed behind him, in case anyone else comes into the library) then glance around for the secret music section.  

Those look like some music books in that shelf over there.

He glances around.  Steps cautiously in case there are any traps.  Tries to head towards the music shelf.  

There are no traps, but eventually his glancing will land on a surprised Lan Wangji, inexplicably pressed back behind a bookshelf.

Nie Huaisang might not actually be able to tell that Wangji is surprised, but he's definitely staring. That isn't a Lan disciple, as he assumed, that's Nie Huaisang. How would Nie Huaisang ever know how to get in here, not even Nie Mingjue would know how to get in here - 

Wangji does the sensible thing and draws his sword.

"Uh, hello Lan Wangji," he says, not masking the nervousness and complete confusion.  Why was it always swords.  He holds out his hands, which contain one paper fan and zero bladed weapons.  

Meekly, "I was looking for Wei-xiong.  I thought he was in the library.  He was when I last checked.  I, uh, thought that bookshelf looked like the sort of thing he'd been looking for?"

That was a terrible lie.  Nowhere near up to his standard.  Unfortunately, there weren't really any good lies to say.  

"It is not. Wei Ying has no idea what he is looking for." He approaches menacingly, which ideally distracts from how he was just definitely hiding behind a bookshelf. "The Room of Forbidden Books is closed to outsiders of the Lan Clan."

Also certain insiders. Such as Wangji. But Nie Huaisang is definitely even less allowed to be here.

Wangji jerks his head towards the music shelf, where it appeared Huaisang had been headed. "What are you looking for."

"I don't know.  I picked a random shelf - I don't know what's on any of them.  I don't know what you'd keep - is it porn?" he asks, trying to distract Lan Wangji.  He's pretty sure that is Forbidden here.

"Nie Huaisang explain yourself."

Why didn't he just wait and tell Wei Wuxian about the weird shelf?  That would have been way smarter.  Let him do the dangerous insane things.  While Huaisang stayed where it was safe.  Wei Wuxian had the skills to do something other than cower when there was a sword in his face.  Why didn't he realize that just because he was in the past before anyone had reason to be suspicious and he was just a kid, there were still People with Swords. Everywhere.

He thinks back.  What does he know about Lan Wangji. 

He deviated from the time path, before anything else.  Before there was a reason to.

Maybe...

How to ask in a way that's obvious if the answer is yes, but he can be worked into something else if the answer is no... Well, considering there's music.  

"Are you familiar with a flute called Chenqing?"

His sword hand trembles for a split second before he tightens his grip. Wangji lowers the blade, still staring. His knuckles turn white. "What do you know. How did we get here."

He doesn't stop acting completely, but he does switch to a slightly more mature tone.  

"I woke up this morning and I was here, in the past.  I don't know anything about how."

He pauses.  Explaining Everything About The Music is not a good idea right now.  Lan Wangji might be upset that he just tried to hook up his brother with the culprit.  

"As for being in the library.  My brother dies from Qi Deviation.  Maybe if I found the book with the Song of Clarity earlier, he would.  Have more time."

He dips his head in acknowledgement, sympathy. Wangji had heard; he was sorry to find out. Nie Mingjue had been a good man. - Is a good man.

"Song of Clarity can be taught. Stealing the music from here is riskier than learning from someone directly. Don't take anything from the room." If something goes missing, it will only become harder for Wangji to get in here when he needs to.

"Other goals?"

"Averting all of the," he waves his fan.  "Everything that went wrong?  That would be nice.  I don't know how, though."

Huaisang is overwhelmed, and looks even more overwhelmed.  There was just so much that went wrong.  Since it doesn't seem like he's about to be stabbed if he moves, he shuffles to a nearby solid object and leans against it.  

"Keeping Da-ge alive is the only thing I've thought of in the last few hours."

"Mm." He can certainly empathize.

Wangji sheathes his sword. "The war is coming. Only so much can be averted. Will you try to warn Qinghe?" 

If Huaisang were still in control of the Unclean Realm he'd be preparing them for a siege.  But he's not - hopefully he never would be.  

"I don't know.  We'd be more prepared.  Assuming I were to be believed.  On the other hand, Da-ge might choose to attack first and then the other clans would see us as the aggressors and it would stop everyone from working together right." 

Not to mention getting more of Wen Ruohan's anger directed towards them.  

"What do you think I should do?"

Nie Huaisang does not have a very impressive track record of doing things, in general. "Protect the Yueyang Chang Sect. Report that you overheard Wen Chao discussing a threat. Have them prepare for Xue Yang."

Wangji would like to be there when Xue Yang comes, to look for the Yin Iron if nothing else. He's not sure if he'll have time - there are so very many moving pieces, here. He can't return late to defend his home like he did last time.

"The Yin Iron shard in Gusu must be kept away from the Wens."

He nods in agreement.  "I'll send the warning about Yueyang."  That seems safe enough.  

"What do you intend towards Wei Ying?"

"Wei-xiong is my friend.  I never doubted him or his motives."  Maybe slightly his methods.  As effective as they were, Nie Huaisang has a certain issue with his friends and family using cultivation techniques that might cause them mental damage.

He considers this. Believes him.

Wangji nods curtly, once, and then turns to go without another word. There is no more time to comb through the library looking for abstract time travel theory. Nie Huaisang came back in time as well, which means Wangji isn't the only one, which means there could be more. Very few people from their future would be interested in Wei Wuxian staying alive.

If he's lucky, no one is actively planning to kill him yet. 

Nie Huaisang follows automatically.  He knows that there's no way he's going to be allowed to stay down here.  He'll have to figure out a different way to get the book out.  That, or find a way to maneuver the Lan elders into giving it some real security.  Or possibly have them move their secret library somewhere that isn't the first place anyone is going to look for it.

They can leave the secret library. Wangji reseals the bookshelf and brusquely escorts Nie Huaisang outside.

Once they're in the courtyard, he pauses. "Keep Wei Ying occupied. He shouldn't get involved."

The working list of things Wei Ying should not be involved with currently includes: Yin Iron, Wen Clan, Wen Chao especially, flutes, Tortoises of Slaughter (Wangji is thinking he should go take care of that himself ahead of time, get rid of the sword somewhere before Wei Ying can go near it, but he's not sure when that will fit into his schedule), Jiang Wanyin, and the general concept of necromancy. There's a lot to juggle here.

That sounds like a terrible idea.  Wei Wuxian is clever and capable, and would be a valuable ally capable of watching Lan Wangji's back and getting things done.  The safest place for him is Lan Wangji's side, because otherwise either of them is going to run off alone.  

After a longer than usual pause, "I can try to distract him from time to time, maybe.  Do you really think that anyone is going to be able to keep him away from you?" 

Nie Huaisang probably did not mean for that to hurt.

Wangji walks away. If Nie Huaisang isn't committed to being helpful, he will need to move more quickly.

He's not going to promise to keep Wei Wuxian contained.  Or any other impossible task.

Though, he should go find Wei Wuxian.  For all that Nie Huaisang has many memories of spending time with Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng in their days in Cloud Recesses, the two of them don't know him very well yet.  If he does need to distract or guide them, it will be easier if they know him better.

Wei Wuxian has been snooping around, without much success. He's taking a break for now, lounging on the rocky riverbank. He smiles and waves when he sees Nie Huaisang. "Nie-xiong! Have you found anything? Lan Wangji drove me out of the library, he's so very cruel. I don't know why he wants that boring library to himself anyway. But maybe it was a good thing - I just ran into Lady Wen out here, did you see her? She was looking around shiftily and holding these curious needles even though there was no one in sight who might need a doctor, right over there by the mountainside." He gestures in the appropriate direction. "What do you think she's trying to find, out here?"

"I don't know, Wei-xiong.  Maybe medicinal plants?  If it were me, I'd be looking for interesting beetles or something."

"We can look for beetles! There are lots of bugs out here." He crouches down to do just that, poking the ground with a stick. "Little beetles, where are you... Will you tell me some secrets finally? Hmm?"

And they can spend the rest of the afternoon entertaining themselves with similar antics.

There are so many types of beetle!

Meanwhile, Jiang Cheng is also enjoying his second chance at spending time with once-future-dead people.

Yanli is still somewhat confused over A-Cheng's strange mood, but always has time for her brother.  

She wants to take a stroll through the walkways of Cloud Recesses.  It is lovely and peaceful.  

He will go with her.  

Jiang Cheng wants to tell her everything about the future.  That seems like a bad thing to do in public.  

Instead, they walk mostly in silence.  Occasionally, one of them will share their opinions on a particular plant or feature.  At least he went back to their first day at Cloud Recesses - he doesn't have to worry about contradicting some opinion he had and can't remember.

Yanli is sure that she can get whatever is bothering him out of him eventually.  

Not today though - she already promised her late afternoon to another task.  She will see him later.

Jiang Cheng can keep walking on his own.

Wen Qing is also walking on her own. Wen Ning is close by; she had him sit by the waterfall and promise not to go anywhere.

It is hard to focus on finding the Yin Iron while something is so wrong with her brother. She doesn't know how to fix it, which is shameful. She's a good doctor. She should know what's wrong with A-Ning. 

Oh. Looks like she isn't alone anymore.

"Young Master Jiang." She bows curtly.

"Lady Wen," he returns her bow.  He's not sure what to say.  She helped him, in the future.  Her and her brother.  Before he became that undead abomination and started killing brother-in-laws.

He'll try to be polite.  They didn't do anything wrong yet either.  Well, other than sneak around trying to steal the Yin Iron.  Considering they didn't find it before, he's not too worried about their skulking now. 

He's bad at being polite.  At least Wen Ning isn't with her. 

It would be a disaster if the Wens found out anything that would happen in the future.  He keeps repeating this to himself.

"I apologize again for interrupting you at the salute ceremony. I hope we did not cause too much trouble."

They definitely caused too much trouble. Wen Chao is so dumb.

He can accept her apology with all of the practiced formality of his yet-to-come years as clan leader.  Maybe if he just pretends this is a formal affair he can avoid making a scene.

"Jiejie!" Wen Ning appears on the path, hurrying towards his sister. "I kn... I know you said to sit there but I remembered another thing, I think-" 

Oh, Young Master Jiang is here. Wen Ning lowers his eyes and bows to him hastily.

"A-Ning, you go back right now! What did I say? You need to be resting. How can I figure out what's wrong if you just get yourself into more trouble?"

She's worried that Wen Ning's episode was brought on by proximity to the Yin Iron, somehow. If she lets her little brother wander around all over Cloud Recesses, he might get closer and have an even stronger reaction.

"But Jie..."

What was he just thinking about, not making a scene?  It is driven straight out of his head by the sight of the Ghost General.  Face less pale, but still that creepy expression.  His own face contorts with rage as soon as Wen Ning comes into view.  

It is now time for swords.  

"Wen Ning - I'll make you pay for killing Jin Zixuan!"

What on earth -

It should not be time for swords why is it always time for swords - "Jiang-gongzi, what are you -"

"I'm sorry," he gasps, eyes widening. He's - disoriented, he doesn't remember - Young Master Jiang is angry at him, Jin Zixuan is dead, that puts him in the present - but he's alive and physically weak and those things are both wrong - "I didn't - I'm so sorry, Jiang-gongzi. I thought - I'd already turned myself in -"

He knows that he needs to take accountability but he'd sort of thought that he'd already done that, it is very confusing to be doing that a second time while also in the past, this is very confusing.

Jiang Cheng focuses all of his attention on the Ghost General.  Someone who could take out entire squads without a challenge.  Sure, he acts innocent, but he apparently did that in between fights in the future too.  Who knows how much skill he's been keeping hidden this entire time.  Jiang Cheng will not underestimate him even now.

He goes to strike.  

Half of him remembers how to fight and strike back, remembers the crackle of desperate fear-fury through his veins, driving power into his punches - 

Apparently this half of him does not include his actual body; the muscle memory isn't there. This is maybe a good thing - Wen Ning had accepted that he deserved a full death, had prepared for it, had known that it was important and necessary. So - he should maybe let that happen here, even if he's in the past (???) and even though he's extremely confused -

Wen Ning stumbles back, trying to untangle his thoughts enough to do the right thing - 

There is a silver needle in Jiang Cheng's neck and he is not going to strike Wen Ning at all, actually. He is going to instead spend some time unconscious on the ground.

"A-Ning - we need to get you out of here, I don't know what happened - is Jin Zixuan dead?"

"Yes - n-no, it's not - I don't know, I... Jie, he's dead in the - future, or the present, the - later... the future where I died and came back, Jiejie, when I said we were locked up? We were locked up because I killed him. Or... I, I think we did? But we're here instead now and I don't... know why..." He feels very dizzy.

Jiejie is holding him by the shoulders, steadying him. She looks scared. Wen Ning hates seeing her scared. (Hates enough to kill people? He remembers... he remembers hating enough to kill. He killed.) 

Deep breaths. "If none of it has happened yet and we're really here in Cloud Recesses, with Young Master Wei and everyone else being okay... then it's. The future, Jie, in the future I die, and Young Master Wei brings me back... and then I kill Jin Zixuan, by, by accident." His eyes widen and he swivels to stare down at Jiang Cheng, his mind finally clear enough to process what it means that Young Master Jiang attacked him here in the past. "He remembers. Jiejie, he remembered it too, this happened to him too. Didn't it? It must have..."

Wen Qing would really prefer for none of this to be happening.

"Okay. It's okay, A-Ning. I believe you, but you're also confused. I need to be sure of what's happening before we do something about this. How far in the... future... does it happen? When you die?"

"Two years? I think... lots of people die. Almost our entire family, Jiejie. In another year I killed Jin Zixuan. It's - bad. I know it was bad..."

"And Jiang Wanyin must also remember all of this," she murmurs. She's still not convinced that time travel is actually what's going on, here, but there are no better explanations. Wen Ning is at least demonstrably more lucid than he was when he last tried to explain this.

"So he wants to hurt you. Well. I am not going to let him, but I will try to find a way for us to leave him alive." She considers Jiang Cheng's body. "Mm. I'm going to wake him up now, A-Ning, why don't you go rest against that tree."

"But I can -"

"A-Ning go sit by that tree right now." She is very firm. A-Ning goes.

Wen Qing crouches down over Jiang Cheng and exchanges the needle in the back of his neck for a few well placed needles elsewhere. He will be conscious, but still immobile for now. She rolls the young master onto his back and wakes him with a flick of her fingers.

Jiang Cheng had momentarily forgotten that people other than Wen Ning could be dangerous.  And now he can't move.  Well, shit.

Now they probably think he's insane, because Jin Zixuan is clearly alive.  He can't help but think how they might not be wrong about that.  But he did predict the Wen contingent arriving.

He looks up at Wen Qing.  They probably wouldn't risk their spying mission by killing a clan heir.  Perhaps they'll haul him to Lan Qiren and have him sent home for his sudden madness.

"Young Master Jiang. I am expecting you to never attack my brother again. If you agree to meet that expectation, this will be a much easier situation to resolve.

"Do you think that my brother is going to kill Young Master Jin in three years' time?" 

He's not happy about that.  Not that he has much choice.  

"Three years sounds about right.  How-"  There's no way they should have been able to guess that.  "Do you remember too?"

"No. A-Ning does. It's hurting him; he's confused, right now. He thinks he died before he killed Jin Zixuan. Is that true?"

"Yes."

He gives a brief overview of what he knows.  Wen Ruohan going after pieces of Yin Iron, then attacking the other clans.  Wei Wuxian vanishing, then coming back with unnatural corpse-raising magic.  The other clans rallying against Nevernight in the Sunshot Campaign.  The Jin clan rounding up the surviving Wen families, and Wei Wuxian freeing them and fleeing to the Yiling burial mounds, and bringing back Wen Ning as an unstoppable killing machine.  Wei Wuxian losing control, and Wen Ning killing Jin Zixuan - his brother in law, with a new-born son at home.  Her and Wen Ning turning themselves over to be executed.  Jiang Cheng being forced to kill Wei Wuxian.  A few more years of rebuilding.

“Well. That’s very—”

Wen Ning is no longer sitting by a tree. “Master Wei died? You... you killed him?”

This is much more upsetting than the revelation about being executed, which he really doesn’t think he remembers, and very slightly more upsetting than the revelation that Jiejie was also apparently executed because at least she wasn’t killed by her own brother.

This information makes Wen Ning more angry and horrified and afraid than his current body knows how to handle. One of his legs buckles and he falls to his knees, hands shaking.

“A-Ning, stop! Stop, don’t make it worse —” Wen Qing puts her hand to her brother’s face. “Wei Wuxian is alive right now, A-Ning. Everyone is alive right now. Don’t get too upset.”

Still holding Wen Ning up - he’s still upset, he’s not listening to her, it is going to be so frustratingly inconvenient if somehow the future taught him to not listen to her - she turns and glares at Jiang Cheng. “Truly? Your own brother?”

"Use of Demonic Cultivation corrupts the mind, and becomes impossible to control.  In the end... he attacked us first."

He doesn't believe that Wei Wuxian would do that. He doesn't believe that Wei Wuxian had become corrupted enough to do that. He knew his Master Wei up until, apparently, very shortly before his death. He knew Master Wei to still be himself in the ways that mattered: generous and kind and self sacrificing.

But.

Wen Ning's hardly in a position where he can argue about losing control of Demonic Cultivation. He had never thought that he himself would kill an innocent man. He had never thought that Wei Wuxian would let him.

"But after everything he did for you, you would still -"

"Quiet, A-Ning. There is another chance, for all of us."

She sighs and evenly meets Jiang Cheng's eyes. "Many of the events you described, I want to help you avoid. I don't want innocent people to be killed; I consider it my profession to prevent as many deaths as I can. My little brother Wen Ning also does not anyone to die. None of the people he hurt are currently hurt and there is no Demonic Cultivation currently affecting him that could make him unsafe. Wen Ning is not a threat. If you vow not to hurt him, I will let you up and we can work together."

That's true.  And there won't be any Demonic Cultivation at all, if he can do anything about it.  

"I won't attack you or your brother," he agrees.  

“Thank you, Young Master Jiang.” She rolls him onto his side, quite businesslike, and plucks out the three needles that have kept him immobile. “There you are. Now. As I suppose you know, my brother and I are here to look for the Yin Iron. I have obeyed Wen Ruohan because I thought it would keep my brother safe, but apparently that doesn’t work. What can we do now instead, to prevent atrocities of the war?”

He is just going to assume that her killing Wen Ruohan and/or destroying whatever yin iron he's already found would be too much to ask.  

"I don't suppose this is something that you'd be willing to bring to Lan Xichen?  He's reasonable enough.  With two people telling the same story, he'll probably believe us."

“I don’t know him well enough to know if that’s a good idea, and I don’t know you well enough to know if I should trust your judgement. What are you hoping he’d do with this information?”

"I'm hoping he will provide you with refuge, and better hide the Yin Iron kept here.  Bolster the defenses."

He can't think of anyone that they would trust.  Other than possibly Wei Wuxian, who Jiang Cheng is not trusting to make reasonable decisions and is going to be kept as far away from this as he can.  

“It does not sound like Lan Xichen provided my family refuge when we were being hunted down and killed, in your old future.”

“I think Zewu-Jun is a good man,” says Wen Ning quietly. “I don’t think he would hurt us, Jiejie.”

“I know, A-Ning.” She doesn’t know. Her brother has always been too trusting.

“Jiang-gongzi, I would like to have a day to get my bearings here, and prepare a way to get my brother out if something unexpected happens. After tomorrow, I will see if I feel safe going to Zewu-Jun. Do you agree to wait that long?”

"I'll wait."  That seems reasonable, and he'd rather not be the only one claiming to have visions of the future. 

Wen Qing is very tired. She is probably only going to become more tired. Everything is stressful.

One thing at a time. "Thank you, Young Master Jiang. Good day." She bows politely and then leads Wen Ning away towards their quarters.

She's probably going to make him rest, now, even though he would much rather go find Master Wei and make sure that he's alright. They work together pretty well. If Jie is going to be part of a team with Jiang Cheng, Wen Ning wants to have a team too.

Also he doesn't like Jie being part of a team with Jiang Cheng at all. He's still furious at Jiang Cheng but trying very hard not to think about it because he gets dizzy every time he tries.

Wen Qing succeeds in convincing him to rest in bed for a while, because she's his sister and he's probably caused her enough worry for one day.

Jiang Cheng takes a different path.  He continues his day, working his frustration off with his sword at the training field, getting used to the changes in his body and golden core from how they've developed in the future.  Then, when it gets late: bed.

Lan Wangji is not in bed.

It's later than he would usually be up, but he has to do this while no one else is around. When he and Wei Ying first found the Cold Cave, time had passed more quickly than they subjectively experienced it. Perhaps that was an enchantment Lan Yi had used to keep herself alive longer; it would still be in place now. Going at night means less time for everyone to notice him missing and be worried.

The night is clear, and cool for spring. Wangji quickly makes his way towards the cave's mountainside entrance, reviewing what he knows so far of his plans. Step 1: retrieve Yin Iron. Step 2: ask his ancestor for advice on the rest of his plan. Step 3: have Xichen seal the Iron away in a pouch like he did last time and get an early start on his Yin Iron-related quests. (Alone, this time. Like he was supposed to be last time). 

But has he instead considered: being not alone!

Time to consider that, because here he is. "Pssst! Psst, Lan Zhan!"

what fresh hell is this

Wei Wuxian bounces over to him. "Wangji-xiong! You care about the spying mission after all, don't you? We really are on the same page! Where were you going to go look?"

"Go back to bed."

"Lan Zhan, don't be so heartless. You've already put me through so much turmoil today, you know that? I was so sad after getting kicked out of your boring library, I hardly knew what to do with myself."

He walks Faster. "No you were not.

Go back to bed."

"Lan Zhaaan. I can't possibly sleep when I know you're out here doing mysterious things without me! What is it, where are you going?

Lan Zhan. You know, isn't it against the rules for you to be out this late? Didn't you just get mad at me for that? You did, Lan Wangji, how are you such a hypocrite. What would your rules think about that, hmm? Am I the only one who should ever get in trouble?"

"Leave me alone."

"You are so ridiculous! I can tell you're not supposed to be out here either, because if you were then you'd already be dragging me to Lan Qiren's - I mean, Grand Master Lan's rooms to be yelled at again! So you're sneaking, I'm sneaking, clearly we were meant to sneak together, Lan Zhan. Where are you going?"

Well, that's fine, Wei Wuxian is great at talking by himself anyway. He will do that. The conversation centers around Lan Zhan being a ridiculous fuddy duddy, but occasionally he branches out to topics such as the alcohol he wishes he had right now, what he thinks the Wens might be up to, and suggestions for more enjoyable things Lan Zhan could find to do with the stick up his ass.

He longs for death.

At the same time, though, he - missed even this, the chattering and the nagging and the thoughtless flirting that makes Wangji want to drown himself in the cold spring before he catches on fire. As terrifying and uncomfortable as it all is, he's still pathetically grateful. Wei Ying can spend all the time he wants making fun of Wangji and thinking that Wangji hates him and throwing extremely loud, chaotic wrenches into all of Wangji's plans as long as he fucking lives.

And Wangji doesn't know what he's doing. He doesn't know how to keep Wei Ying alive, he didn't know last time and now he still doesn't know, and maybe Nie Huaisang was right that keeping him away from trouble was impossible and even unhelpful.

...maybe it's acceptable for Wei Ying to come along this once. Wei Ying never had a problem being around the Yin Iron, really; whatever went wrong wasn't specifically that. And he really... really doesn't want to send Wei Ying away.

Later. He'll send him away later. Wangji is going to kill Wen Chao and take care of that fucking turtle all by himself and then everything will be fine.

"Huh, this is sort of near where I saw Lady Wen poking around earlier. Did you see her out here too, Ji-xiong? What do you think's out here? Why won't you tell me?"

They reach the mountain face in the back hills, the secret entrance that only Lan disciples can pass through.

Wangji reaches out, and his hand vanishes through the shield, a shimmering blue distortion in the air. "You cannot accompany me."

Whoa.

"What?? What is this! Lan Zhan, why didn't you tell me about this before!" he scolds. He shoves his hand forward only for it to bounce back, blocked by some force of air pressure. Wei Wuxian gasps, offended. "Ahhh? Aiyah, Lan Zhan, what's wrong with it? What is this, why won't it let me in?"

He pokes the shimmery air pressure wall thing. The distortion wiggles in the air, reminding Wei Wuxian of the magical shield over the gate to the Cloud Recesses. 

"Only Lan disciples may enter. Wait here quietly or go back to bed."

"What? May enter where? That's so impolite, Lan Zhan, I thought the Lan Clan was supposed to be inviting. You can't just go in there without me, we're working together."

"We are not." He steps forward and vanishes into the blue air-shimmer.

Wow, he's been betrayed. Wei Wuxian should probably stop setting himself up for failure by pretending that Lan Wangji doesn't hate his guts, but unfortunately Lan Zhan is right in the center of the only interesting things that are happening.

Wei Wuxian stomps his foot. "Lan Zhan! Can you hear me? Lan Zhan? Fine, if you're too lazy to figure out a way for me to come with you, I'll do it myself. I got through the ward on your Gate, remember? I can probably get through this one too, if you just wait for me."

...oh no. 

If the ward is broken, Uncle or Xichen will know. Then he won't be able to pretend that he found the Yin Iron here by accident.

Lan Wangji reappears on Wei Ying's side of the ward. Slaps his hand down, where it was about to draw a sigil in the air. "Behave."

"Will you -"

He pulls his headband loose and loops it around his wrist, then Wei Ying's. He doesn't think anything about this at all. He definitely does not think about the last time they did this, when he'd been afraid that Wei Ying could hear his heart beating too fast and afraid to be bound in any capacity to this wild, beautiful boy who he was terrified of and not yet in love with. 

This time, he is in love with him. Still terrified.

He gives Wei Ying a don't-mention-this sort of look and sees, in his face, how utterly insignificant this is to him. That's - fine. That's probably for the best. Together, now, they can walk through the ward into the Cold Pond Cave.

Cold Pond Cave: very cold. Impressively large, the high cavern ceiling dripping with stalactites and ice. The water that they now wade through is cold enough to be ice, but somehow isn't. Already, snow is somehow collecting on their hair.

There are rabbits, snow white and wearing tiny Lan headbands, apparently content to hop around on the snow and rock.

On a snowy stone platform elevated up from the icy pool rests a pristine white qugin that almost seems to glow.

How completely unexpected!! Wei Wuxian makes lots of noises, half of them sounding impressed and the other half sounding miserable and cold. He gasps and remarks and complains, but Lan Zhan already seems to be ignoring him again.

This is correct. Lan Wangji appreciates that he is being distracted from Wei Ying, even by discomfort.

The last time he was in this cave, he lay bleeding out into these icy, healing waters. Even though his wounds had never stopped hurting, the pain then had been truly unimaginable. Worse still, the pain of grief and his own failure. His love was gone.

The time before that, Lan Wangji had stood beside his uncle and listened to the awful, vivid sounds of butchery as members of his clan were slaughtered. Killed because of him, to draw him out. Their choked screams, and Wen Xu bellowing his name...

He makes it all the way to the qugin before he stops being distracted.

He sits. Shoos Wei Ying away from the heirloom, ignores his requests for an explanation, closes his eyes and begins to play Inquiry.

Grand Master. Please. I must speak with you. I want to help.

Notes begin to play on their own, in patterns he can interpret as meaning he's found the spirit he's sought.  

From seemingly out of nowhere, a woman appears.  She is dressed in the robes and headband of the Lan sect.  Her expression is subtle, but indicates just a trace of confusion as she greets them.

Wow What

Wangji tugs him out of her way and then kneels on the other side of the qugin, bowing deeply. "Grand Master Lan Yi. I am Lan Zhan, a descendant from the Lan Clan."

"Lan Yi? Lan Zhan - is that the same Lan Yi who -"

"Oh, ah -" He scrambles to bow appropriately beside Lan Zhan. "I am Yumeng Jiang Clan's Wei Wuxian. Master Lan Yi."

She takes a seat, bunnies flocking around her.  

"For what purpose have you come here?" she asks.  

The bunnies are so cute.

This is a lot harder to navigate with Wei Ying right beside him. "I know the Yin Iron is becoming unstable. Soon it will no longer be sealed. I want to keep it safe. With it I will find the other pieces and bind them here."

"Yin... Iron...?" Wei Wuxian is not following any of this and Lan Zhan has really let him down as a detective buddy. Exactly how much information is he missing, here?

"You seem quite young to have been entrusted with this.  And yet, what you say is true.  My power to contain my burden weakens by the day."  

She glances at him, and between them.  There is, ultimately, little choice.  Even now, the Yin Iron's resentful energy seeps away through the cracks in her barriers.  It is only a matter of time before the barriers fail entirely.  To pass on the torch to the next guard is inevitable, if it is to be guarded at all.

"Does the tradition passed down still speak of the dangers of the Yin Iron?"

"Wei Ying has not heard tell of them. It would benefit him to be cautioned."

Wei Wuxian looks affronted. "I'm truly sorry, Master Lan Yi, but I've never heard of a Yin Iron before." He elbows Lan Zhan. "Someone didn't tell me, even though I asked what he came here looking for."

"You do not need to know what it is. You only need to know that it's dangerous."

"Lan Zhan that doesn't make any sense."

(This display is not putting her especially at ease.)

The yin iron is a dangerous metal, fed resentful energies through human sacrifice.  All who have attempted to use it succumb to madness, the very nature of the metal impossible to purify.  Its existence in a place draws monsters and other forms of evil.  Hence why her piece has been sealed away in the Cold Pond Cave - a place of positive energy.  

Lan Yi herself had once been foolish enough to mess with it, though her friend Baoshan Sanren had warned her against it.  She had undone the seal which kept it hidden.  When she discovered that it was too unwieldy and uncontrollable to suppress, she attempted to seal it away again.  In this task, Lan Yi sacrificed everything and became bound here.  

Wow, it's really interesting how Lan Yi's friend warned her about dark magic being foolish to mess with and then was right. That's really interesting. I wonder what we can learn from this.

Wei Wuxian is not picking up on this message from Lan Zhan's glare.

If the Yin Metal can't be purified... has anyone tried using it to do good without purifying it first? Maybe if you pit up other resentful energies against it, to keep it in check somehow - 

No. That is a much worse idea. Someone did try that and it was horrible and he died horribly and everyone who loved him was extremely sad, or dead. So don't.

Yeah, but like. Maybe that guy wasn't as smart as Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian is pretty good at figuring things out.

"You are not smart enough for this. You are not smarter than Master Lan Yi. Be respectful."

"I didn't - no, I didn't mean it like that, Master Lan Yi, I swear! I think you're really smart, I - you're the cultivator who developed the Chord Assassination Technique, of course you're smarter than me! I really mean it!

But Lan Zhan - I'm not even going to try to use the Yin Iron, I never even said I wanted to do that. I just wanted to know if people had actually tried everything. It's theoretical! You Gusu Lans love theory, don't lie, that's all you have in your library."

He's already failing again. 

"Master Yan Li. As a descendant of Lan Clan, I swear to search for the other pieces of the Yin Iron and bring them here. I will not let anyone fall down dark paths."

"And I swear too, as the grand-disciple of Baoshan Sanren!"

"You are a grand-disciple of Baoshan Sanren?"

She looks wistful.  "I haven't received word from her in so long - since she chose to seclude herself.  She took on disciples?"

"In truth, my mother was Cangse Sanren. Baoshan Sanren was her master. I don't know very much about her, or my mother, but I want to honor them both and do what's right."

"I expect you to hold to your vows.  My grand-disciple.  Grand-disciple of Baoshan Sanren."

Lan Wangji, at least, seems to be taking the warning with the appropriate degree of caution.  And if they have been sent here, in this time, then perhaps they are in fact the best people who could be chosen.  

Lan Wangji does not share her confidence. But he is going to try to hold his vow, with everything he is, with everything he can do. He wants to hold the world together this time.

They both bow again, deeply. "Thank you, Grand Master."

She plays an elaborate melody on her guqin.  The sound echoes against the walls of the cave, and almost sounds as if it is playing in melody with itself.  The shard of yin iron appears from where it has been concealed.  

No longer needing to remain visible, she begins to fade back into the chill air of the cavern.  "Return all of the pieces, and return them to be bound."

"Master Lan Yi -!?"

"Quiet. Let her rest.

We will do as we vowed, Grand Master."

The moment Lan Yi disappears completely, the Yin Iron shard thuds heavily to the ground. 

He picks it up quickly before Wei Ying can try to reach for it. "We should go back. Time moves slowly in here. It is possible we are already missed."

"What about all these bunnies, Lan Zhan? Aren't they cold?"

"They are Master Lan Yi's company in her final days. We will come back for them later."

"- Ah? We will, Lan Zhan, you want to come pick up the bunnies together?" He giggles. "We can raise them between us, Lan Zhan, how cute!"

It - hurts. The last time Wei Ying talked like this, it meant something to him. The idea of a family together. It doesn't mean anything to him now. 

Wangji says nothing.

Wei Wuxian coos at the nearest bunny. The bunny ignores him. "Ah, we have such adorable children! Where are we going to keep them, your room or mine? I bet Shijie would like to see the bunnies..."

"Pets are forbidden at Cloud Recesses."

"Lan Zhan. You just said that we were going to raise the bunnies together! Now you tell me it's against the rules and act like I'm ridiculous for agreeing with you a moment ago? You can't keep playing games with my heart like this, Lan Wangji, the disappointment hurts too much."

Literally why are they even having this discussion. A moment ago, Lan Wangji wanted nothing more than for Wei Ying to forget the Yin Iron existed. Now he finds himself annoyed at Wei Ying for taking it so lightly and already disregarding the matter.

"I said nothing about raising them. They do not need to be raised."

Wei Wuxian gasps. "Not in front of their little bunny ears, Lan Zhan, you'll make them so sad! Aiyah, how can you just announce to our children that you are abandoning them like that? They will think -"

"Ridiculous." He starts to stride away through the icy waters, towing Wei Ying along by the headband that still joined their wrists. "Worry about the rabbits when things are safe."

They stumble through the magical ward out into the back hill, and everything is suddenly much brighter. To Wei Wuxian's shock and Wangji's displeasure, the sun is already up and in the west.

Jiang Cheng has not seen Wei Wuxian all day. 

Even stranger, Lan Wangji has managed to miss the first day of classes!  

How?  

This happened before, he remembers.  Them vanishing together.  It was supposed to happen later than this, though.  

Once class is over and the students are finally allowed to join in the search, he immediately seeks out Wen Qing and Wen Ning.  

"Do you know anything about Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji?"

"No. Cloud Recesses is not so large... it is strange that it's so difficult to find them. You don't have any ideas where they are?"

Wen Ning has no ideas about where they could be, which he feels very bad about. The main thing he can do to be useful right now is remember things, but now he can't even remember anything helpful to find Master Wei.

He remembers looking for the pair, but not on the first day of classes. There had been some sort of shockwave that disturbed his spiritual cognition. That hasn't happened yet today; he doesn't know if it's a good or bad sign. He doesn't remember where exactly Lan Wangji and Master Wei had been found, only that they'd both returned unharmed.

"I might.  I was the one to find them last time they vanished.  Checking there again sounds like a good idea.

"It's strange that it happened this early, instead of when it was supposed to.  I don't think anything we changed would have caused it."

Then again, he isn't sure why they vanished the first time.  

"I, couldn't think of anything either. But if it's not us... what else could be different?"

"Hey! Jiang Cheng!"

And just like that, look who's here bounding up the path. Lan Wangji trails behind him, his headband neatly on his forehead where it belongs, the Yin Iron hidden carefully in his robes.

"Jiang Cheng, you won't believe what a day I've had. Did I miss class? Has Lan Qiren kicked me out, yet? Was Shijie - oh, hi Lady Weng, Young Master Wen. You two know Jiang Cheng?"

"Yes you missed class!  You were gone all day!  What were you even doing?"

"Everyone is searching for both of you. We are recently acquainted with your brother, because of the search."

"Well, you're not going to believe how hard it's been! This morning Lan Zhan and I were just going for a walk, and I was trying to find some of the cute beetles I saw with Nie-xiong yesterday by the riverbank when the river flared up for absolutely no reason! Just out of nowhere like it was flooding, it carried us all the way down the mountain, Jiang Cheng. And then we had to climb all the way back up for no reason at all, it was so unfair."

She glances at Jiang Cheng to see if he seems to accept this explanation. "I heard a vague rumor of water spirits causing trouble down the mountain. Nobody mentioned flooding."

"You were on a walk with Lan Wangji."

And just happened to be returning via the most direct path to the cliff he had found them near last time this happened.  

"What made you decide to do that?"  -when you didn't do it the first day of class in my memories?  What was the change?

"I was just looking around. Yknow, Jiang Cheng? How you and me and Nie-xiong and Lan Zhan were all going to look around?" He raises his eyebrows significantly. It is really very dumb for Jiang Cheng to try to get Wei Wuxian to talk about their counter-Wen spying operation in front of the Wen spies. Wei Wuxian will have to make fun of him later.

"Master Wei, did... did the water ghosts get you? Are you okay?"

...huh.

The mention of water ghosts alone would hardly be grounds for suspicion, when Lady Qing had just mentioned rumors, but it's that paired with the concern that makes Wangji almost positive that he isn't the only time traveler here. This is Wen Ning's puppy-devotion to Wei Ying that Wangji remembers, but he doesn't think that developed before Wei Ying saved Wen Ning's life. Certainly it hadn't developed before they even interacted, which up until now in this present they had not.

The very real possibility that this Wen Ning might be Wen Ning, the Wen Ning who suffered and died and then died again, the Wen Ning who stayed by Wei Ying's side when Lan Wangji would not - that's a lot to process. Wangji tries to package away the information for later.

Aw. What a sweet kid. "I'm fine, Young Master Wen. I'm sure those ghosts tried, but a few tiny water ghosts are no match for me and our Lan-er gongzi. Jiang Cheng and I have gotten rid of tons of ghosts together before! They don't scare me at all. These ones must have gotten scared and run away once we were down the mountain. I'm just very tired." He pouts at his brother. "Ai, Jiang Cheng, you might have to carry me. My poor legs..."

He does vaguely remember water ghosts at around this time.  Maybe it was just a matter of a subtle change in Jiang Cheng's behavior causing Wei Wuxian to pass through a walkway a few seconds early or later than normal.  It is true that his brother would follow Lan Wangji.  Inexplicable.  The man is as uninteresting as a rock.  But it isn't strange for him.  

"Go back inside, both of you.  Zewu Jun was looking everywhere for you, Lan Wangji," he says.  "Don't make your brother worry about you."

"And A-Jie was worried too," he says, looking at Wei Wuxian.  The memory of her, running through a battlefield to try and find Wei Wuxian.  Shouting for him, oblivious to the danger.  "Stay where you're supposed to and don't make people have to search for you."

Lan Wangji does not appreciate Jiang Wanyin ordering him around, as though Jiang Wanyin has any authority over him or as though Wangji would acknowledge it even if he did. Wangji looks back at him very coldly.

"I didn't mean to make Shijie worry, Jiang Cheng, really. I wouldn't do it on purpose."

Sigh. "If you really got swept all the way down the mountain, you should let me take a look at you before you go in."

He raises his eyebrows. "Oh? If you wanted to get a look at me you could have just asked, Wen-guniang. I'm probably much more exciting than whatever else you're looking f- ai, Lan Zhan! Where are you going?"

Away From Here.

He wants to get a chance to talk to Wen Ning alone, but that's clearly not worth sticking around for.

Also, he should get the Yin Iron to Xichen to be sealed as soon as possible. Obviously that is the reason he's walking so quickly and there are no other reasons.

Jiang Cheng debates whether or not to leave too.  Wei Wuxian is probably going to engage in shenanigans by "subtly" asking for clues about what they're looking for in Cloud Recesses for the whole time he's being examined.  Jiang Cheng isn't going to be able to stop that.  The only question is whether or not he'll have to watch it. 

In the end, he decides to wait for Wei Wuxian and make sure that he doesn't drag the Wens into any trouble.  Perhaps if he looks disapproving enough at antics they will stop happening?  

Lan Wangji is such a strange and mysterious person. Who could possibly be expected to predict his moods?

Wei Wuxian starts to march after him, indignant, but Wen Qing clears her throat.

"Young Master Wei. I still need to look at you." She looks wholly unamused.