Under The Lake

Chapter 15. In Which Wangji Has A Very Eventful First Class.

Wangji woke up on time the next day, feeling infinitesimally well-rested. He shook his head as he sat up in bed, trying to recall the previous day. He found the Cold Pond Cave, met his grandmother, watched his grandma turn into sparkly lights and die, took the responsibility of the white jade Zither and the yin iron, ran into that stupid Wei Wuxian and...

Staring down at his hands, he did the same thing he did whenever he transformed. 

Picture it in your head. Visualize it. 

Slowly, small bits of ice formed on his hand, curling around his wrists like vines. 

He could feel his Qi mixing in with the ice as it kept forming. It felt good; it wasn't warm, obviously, but it felt revitalising in a way. 

Gliding his fingers over his solid oak bed frame, he watched as it was completely covered in a thick layer of ice in under a minute. 

Alright then...

Being a lot more careful with his hands, he got himself dressed and combed through his hair, making sure not to freeze it off accidentally. 

Today was the first day of classes, and he couldn't afford to have anything go wrong. Wei Wuxian luckily didn't notice what happened yesterday, but things could get ugly if he didn't keep his rage in check. 

                                                                                         ✿

Wangji sat upright at his desk as he listened to his Uncle recite the Gusu Lan principles from a scroll. 

"The sixth rule is to accumulate virtue and merits. The seventh rule is to be compassionate. The eighth rule is to be loyal, filial, and dutiful." Lan Qiren's voice rang through the classroom as everyone listened attentively. Well, almost everyone. 

"Wake up." He heard the Jiang heir whisper-shout, hitting Wuxian on the head, while the man in question groggily glanced around before lazily resting his head on his hand.

"Be virtuous, be kind. Be merciful and understanding." Lan Qiren walked through the classroom, one hand placidly behind his back. 

Taking his chance, Wuxian stuck a poorly drawn fish with a long beard on his back.

Instantly, the whole class broke out into fits of hushed giggles as they all tried not to attract the attention of Lan Qiren. 

With his right eye twitching at the oh-so-clever prank, Wangji quickly pulled it off his uncle's robes before he noticied anything was amiss. 

Wei Ying watched with poorly concealed glee as he pressed his lips together in a futile attempt to hide his grin. Wangji took deep breaths in as he maintained his indifferent face. 

I'm not done with tormenting Young Master Phantom just yet, Wei Ying thought.  

Wangji could hear the small sound of tearing and folding coming from the desk across from him. 

What is he doing now?, Wangji exasperatedly thought, preparing himself for the worst. 

The entire class watched in awe as a small paper goldfish swam in the air and made its way over to Lan Wangji. 

Lan Wangji watched as it hovered a few inches above his desk and swam in a figure  eight, its paper fins slightly rustling.  

He should have felt pure, unbridled fury at that moment and crumpled it up in his hands; he really should have.