lightbearinglord: (qin & bunny)
Lan Wangji (蓝忘机) ([personal profile] lightbearinglord) wrote2024-03-08 08:16 am

[ open post: Lan Wangji and guests ]

In the wake of his disorienting and unpleasant stint in Gu Xiang's body, Lan Wangji has done his utmost to resume and enjoy all of his usual pursuits. He has, he believes, thoroughly made up for his lapse in his promise to Wei Ying. He has wielded kitchen knives, his ink brush, and Bichen with precision and enthusiasm. He has sunk into long, restorative shichen of meditation. He has, at Claudius' behest, thoroughly perused Emily Post's instructions regarding how to conduct oneself as the best man at a wedding.

There is the matter of his qin, too. The discovery of the spirit in Gideon's sword struck Lan Wangji with greater surprise than he might have expected. Such things were once commonplace for him; he hardly went two weeks, before he came to this place, without finding himself called to some night-hunt. He does not like to believe that he could become complacent, and he has always practiced diligently, but still.

The tableau is a familiar one: a certain parlor near the entryway of the mansion, one that often houses this particular cultivator along with his spiritual instrument. Wangji is balanced on a table at the center of the room, polished black wood gleaming and strings freshly tuned, and Lan Wangji sits cross-legged before it. He is not actually playing it at this precise moment, however, because he currently has guests. A small white rabbit sits next to the qin, munching his way through a piece of lettuce. An equally small brown rabbit is perched in the crook of Lan Wangji's elbow, eyeing his brother with some envy. Ostensibly, the rabbits are in trouble, because they have recently laid waste to Lan Wangji's copy of Emma. It is impossible to tell, because Lan Wangji is petting Danding's head with exactly as much solemn focus as always.
ravkanwitch: (smirk)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-10 09:55 pm (UTC)(link)
"Of course," Nina says, with a smile. "I'm the same way." She gently offers the lettuce to both Danding and Xiaoxue.
ravkanwitch: (smirk)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-11 07:34 pm (UTC)(link)
"What he said," Nina says, then sits in silence and watches them for a short while. "They look so soft. I've never had any animals before."
ravkanwitch: (Default)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-12 02:00 am (UTC)(link)
Nina lightly strokes Danding on the top of his head with two fingers, since he seems the less nervous of the two. "Are they... angelic rabbits? Since an angel created them?"
ravkanwitch: (portrait)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-12 10:03 pm (UTC)(link)
"Except being exceptionally cute, of course," Nina says, giving Xiaoxue a gentle pet on the head as well. "It's been a while since we've talked. How are you? The switching of the bodies...?" She trails off slightly, bringing her gaze up from the rabbits to him. She fared fine but she doesn't want him to feel obligated to talk about it if he had a difficult time.
ravkanwitch: (solemn)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-13 01:09 pm (UTC)(link)
Nina's eyes widen slightly; she only spoke with Gu Xiang briefly at the birthday party but she knows that that wasn't a trade that was a good fit. "At least she's..." She searches for the correct word. Nice isn't quite it. Not responsible either. She likes Gu Xiang, so she feels bad that she's searching so much. "...Not terrible? She can be sweet."
ravkanwitch: (smirk)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-13 10:24 pm (UTC)(link)
"Good. I was a cat," Nina volunteers, petting Danding again. "Mothwing. I caught a fish in the pond for Drosera."
ravkanwitch: (smirk)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-14 01:27 am (UTC)(link)
Presumably, Nina and Mothwing were very sensible and met up again at sunset as promised, to check in on the state of their own bodies. She nods with a little smile. "Yes, I think she really enjoyed it. Both Sagramore and Susan made her human food-- twoleg food, as she calls it."
ravkanwitch: (smirk)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-14 06:20 pm (UTC)(link)
Well, okay, she pets Xiaoxue as well. "That's a good thing because they're perfect the way they are," Nina declares. "During the first body swap, I kept running up to someone only to discover that they were someone else. It was a little embarrassing." She doesn't seem too hung up on it, though. Even though she ran into Aleksander in Luo Binghe's body, it all worked out in the end.
ravkanwitch: (smirk)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-15 04:19 am (UTC)(link)
“Oh, I did the same,” she says, with a little smile. “It was a little awkward at first but it was fine. I think I’m lucky in that I get along with most of the people here.” Nina sometimes wonders if she truly does or if there’s something in her that craves approval and belonging, enough that she turns on charm when she needs to. It’s almost conniving in a way. Kaz would be proud.

“Not that I haven’t had some false starts with people,” she confides. She thinks of Claudius — and Galahad too.
ravkanwitch: (close-up)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-15 11:48 pm (UTC)(link)
"One of them was Claudius." Nina leans in closer, though it isn't much of a secret. She suspects Claudius wouldn't mind the retelling; it's water under the bridge at this point and much less touchy than her conversations with Galahad. She even gives Lan Wangji a small smile to note that it's not serious. "We were both in an awful mood when I first arrived. I was stressed. He was exhausted. I cried to get out of the telling him too much about myself."
ravkanwitch: (smirk)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-16 02:36 am (UTC)(link)
"He was brewing something with a lot of herbs. It was a little creepy. And I was so paranoid, I briefly went by a different name when I first arrived." Nina laughs a little and gives both of the rabbits and extra little scritch on their soft heads. "I helped him pick out a watch for Galahad recently. We're fine now."
ravkanwitch: (Default)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-16 08:31 pm (UTC)(link)
“That must have been really disconcerting. I’m glad he’s here now,” Nina sympathizes. She suddenly realizes something. “You know, the second before I came here I was actually in a different body. Slimmer. Blonde. Maybe that added to the disruption.”
ravkanwitch: (Default)

[personal profile] ravkanwitch 2024-03-17 01:54 am (UTC)(link)
Nina hesitates, just for a moment. “In my world, there are Tailors, who are able to change appearances a little bit little, using pigments and other supplies to help their work. I used to be able to do their work, even though I wasn’t trained in it — except under jurda parem, I was able to transform someone into someone else with what was basically the snap of two fingers.” She only hazily remembers that. Kaz’s request. Wylan’s agreement. His blonde hair darkening into Kuwei’s black hair.

“I was under cover before I came here. For my country and my King. I suppose I looked too Ravkan because they made me more Fjerdan to blend in — but when I arrived, the changes were gone.”

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