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“Gege, I have a confession to make.”
“What is it?” Xie Lian looked up from his spot crouched in the garden.
“Gege remembers how I showed him those scenes when we were inside the mountain spirit in Mount Tong’lu?”
Xie Lian nodded. “It was very impressive.”
“This one may have been using the butterflies to save certain scenes when gege was a ferret.”
Xie Lian blinked up at him for a moment before laughing. “Is that all?”
“Gege isn’t mad?”
“No no, of course not.” Xie Lian stood, dusting himself off. “Can I see?”
“You want to?”
“En. I was curious about what it was like for San Lang during that time.”
So the two of them headed inside to settle in and watch the memories. Hua Cheng sat first with Xie Lian settling on his lap, moving to press forehead to forehead and close their eyes.
The first few scenes weren’t that long.
A snippet of Xie Lian curled up, head barely peeking out of Hua Cheng’s outer robes that had clearly been discarded so that he could make his little bed. Xie Lian thought he could remember it happening a few times. He was proven right when the scene changed to a near identical one, except this time Xie Lian wasn’t curled in on himself but around E’ming. Then a scene of ferret Xie Lian napping on Hua Cheng’s chest. Another of him resting in the bushes. Had Hua Cheng saved every time he slept?
The scene shifted next to a more active one. Hua Cheng was handing Xie Lian utensils, watching with almost rapt attention as Xie Lian took them and dragged them under the altar table.
Xie Lian did remember that. “San Lang, why did you keep this one?” He groaned.
“Gege was so cute.” Hua Cheng’s voice betrayed his smile as the scene continued to play.
Having run out of utensils, the past Hua Cheng had stripped himself of his jewelry to give to Xie Lian. Each and every offering got dragged under the altar table.
“I still don’t know why you let me do that, we had to clean it all up when I turned back that night. And then you just let me do it again the next day!”
“Gege clearly was having a good time, why would I stop him?”
“Why wouldn’t you?” Xie Lian sighed.
“I stopped letting gege do it after you told me not to anymore, but you seemed so sad.”
“I wasn’t completely rational.”
Having run out of jewelry, Hua Cheng of the past clearly hadn’t known what to offer, simply waiting as Xie Lian scampered back out again.
Xie Lian of course, had had a very clear plan, running straight for the belled boots Hua Cheng wore and biting at them. It didn’t take much. As soon as he realized what Xie Lian wanted Hua Cheng had pulled off his boot and let Xie Lian attempt to drag it in with the rest of his stash.
He dragged it fine. The problem was that the boot was too big to fit in Xie Lian’s hoarding place.
Hua Cheng of the past settled more comfortably in his spot, watching with furrowed brows as Xie Lian desperately tried to drag it in the clearly too small space.
After a minute of fruitless tugging, Xie Lian popped out, scampering around to try to push the boot in by a different angle.
“Gege I don’t think it will fit. Do you want to move the stash somewhere else?”
In the present, Xie Lian groaned. It wasn’t that he was embarrassed exactly, but why would his husband want to keep records of such stupid actions?
Ferret Xie Lian ignored the question though, trying from several different angles for several more minutes before scrambling his little claws up the side of Hua Cheng’s boots, latching on to the bells and pulling himself up until he fell into the top of the boot.
“Gege are you okay?” Hua Cheng of the past had moved to peer in the boot, face softening at what he saw. “Enjoying yourself?”
The quiet sound of happy chirps answered him.
The scene shifted again. Xie Lian could remember this one too, though he wasn’t sure which instance exactly this was since it had happened a few times. Ruoye had been the preferred playmate, but it was not the only one. After the first day when Hua Cheng had been able to recognize the odd flailing jumps back as a call to play, he’d released butterflies specifically for Xie Lian’s enjoyment.
And oh how his little ferret self had enjoyed them. Xie Lian softened at the scene once more. Though he looked a bit silly leaping at and around the butterflies, he was cute.
“I looked so uncoordinated,” Xie Lian murmured.
“No, gege was unique and tricky. He kept his opponent on their toes.”
“What opponent?” Xie Lian laughed as his ferret self flailed in a manner that looked as if he was just as likely to smack himself as his playmate.
The next scene was one Xie Lian hardly remembered, though he did remember how it started. Xie Lian had admitted one of the nights that his ferret form gave him very strong and fond feelings for the things that smelled like Hua Cheng and that was part of why he was so prone to climbing on him. The very next morning, Hua Cheng had decided to surprise him by giving him one of his extra robes.
Xie Lian had instantly tried to stash it. By then though, he’d already asked Hua Cheng to stop letting him do such a thing. So instead, Hua Cheng had picked him up and plopped him in the middle of the robe and then deftly swaddled him. Xie Lian had had enough presence of mind not to fight him when Hua Cheng did such things. He vaguely remembered being curious at the time as to what exactly was happening. But then he’d been wrapped up securely in Hua Cheng’s soft warm robes, enveloped in that safe scent.
Ferret Xie Lian had yawned wide, sharp teeth exposed for a moment before his mouth had drifted shut again. With just his head peeking out of the bundle, Hua Cheng had drawn him close and Xie Lian didn’t remember this part at all. He must have already been asleep or close to it at least.
“Is that good for gege?” Hua Cheng had asked, voice so soft and fond as he cradled Xie Lian to his chest, his devotion not wavering in the slightest even with Xie Lian fuzzy and small.
And of course Xie Lian hadn’t answered at the time, but now looking back at it as an outsider, Xie Lian couldn’t help but be awed. He’d already realized that Hua Cheng truly and deeply believed him to be a god, a worthy god even. But seeing Hua Cheng care for him without a hint of disrespect or disappointment for anything he did, Xie Lian was struck once more with the weight of Hua Cheng’s devotion to him.
Xie Lian pulled back, breaking the scene.
“Gege?”
Worry flashed across Hua Cheng's face for the barest moment before Xie Lian grabbed him and pulled him into a clumsy kiss.
“What was that for?” He grinned when Xie Lian pulled back.
“San Lang really would love me no matter what, wouldn’t he?” He asked with no small amount of amazement in his voice.
“Of course,” he said it like it was one of the simple truths in life like the sun in the sky.
“Even if I couldn’t speak.” It wasn’t a question, but Hua Cheng responded anyway.
“Gege would still be as incredible without a voice. Though I would miss the honor of hearing him.”
“Even if I couldn’t walk.”
“I could carry you.”
“Even if I couldn’t take care of myself anymore.”
“It’s this one’s honor to care for his highness.”
Xie Lian felt like all the air had been stolen from his lungs. “Me too.” He couldn’t breathe anyways so he surged forward to knock Hua Cheng with another clumsy kiss.
“You too what?” Hua Cheng laughed, chasing the kiss when it ended.
“I’d take care of San Lang too. Forever if I had to.”
“Gege doesn’t have to—“
Xie Lian cut him off with another kiss, teeth clicking together awkwardly. “I would. It’s my honor to take care of San Lang too. We’ll take care of each other.”
“This humble follower doesn’t want to be a burden for your highness,” Hua Cheng said softly.
“Was I a burden when I was a ferret?”
“Your highness could never be a burden.”
“San Lang couldn't either. Let me take care of you too.”
Hua Cheng seemed almost overwhelmed, but nodded.
Xie Lian rewarded him with another kiss, this one slower and less clumsy. Xie Lian had thought he wasn’t worried when he was a ferret because so many strange things had happened to him in his years. And that probably had been at least partially it. But now, kissing his husband, he realized part of it had been because of Hua Cheng too. He had known things would work out, no matter how long he was a ferret or how many odd urges he got. Because Hua Cheng was there to watch over him. He was always there, stable and steady for Xie Lian.
Xie Lian was going to make sure he was always there for his husband too.