Emphyreal Divide

Chapter Three

They ate quickly, in near silence, the tap of chopsticks against their bowls the only accompaniment to the sounds of summer that drifted into the room from the open door. A swath of light lay on the floor, illuminating the dark wood with a wash of warmth, the rectangle of light bordered only by the reaching shadows of branches that hung high above. Setting down his bowl, he took a deep breath, tearing his eyes away from the light of the sun, from the open door.

As the two juniors finished their meal, he took his cup of tea in hand, taking a small sip, appreciating the aromatic flavor. The nervous energy remained, despite the two boys' nonchalant behavior- of which Sizhui had mastered much better than Jingyi had, and Lan Xichen wondered where, and from who, the boy had learned such diplomatic behavior from. Neither parent were exactly paragons of sociable, diplomatic action. Setting the cup down, he fixed the two with an almost serious look, "What exactly called Wangji away from Cloud Recesses?"

"I'm not sure exactly," Sizhui admitted, carefully setting his bowl down on the table. Beside him, Jingyi pulled a face that all but blatantly disagreed with Sizhui's statement, and that was the confirmation that Lan Xichen needed- there was something afoot that either the juniors- or Wangji- didn't want him to know.

"Ah. Did he take Wei Wuxian with him?" He asked, mulling over the possible reasoning that the others could have for wanting to hide information from him. He wanted to have faith that there was good reasoning for any omission of truth, but circumstances being as they were, he found doubt clouding his mind. Though, if it were something truly serious, he understood the decision to keep him away, uninformed. His track record in terms of informed decisions wasn't exactly flawless, was it? Keeping him unaware was best for everyone.

"Yes, he did," Sizhui said, and in response, Lan Xichen nodded slowly, contemplating his next move. Though it was likely inadvisable, he wanted to know- whether it was stemming from the responsibility of a Sect Leader, or simply human curiosity- what exactly was afoot in Cloud Recesses.

"That's good," He paused, allowing the room to prepare for a shift in conversation, "There have been quite a few disciples out today, hasn't there?"

Sizhui hummed a confirmation, and beside him, Jingyi sat down his own cup, a poorly masked expression of aggravation crossing his face.

"Jingyi, you've been very quiet today- is something wrong?" He asked, and Jingyi's head jerked up in surprise, eyes widening.

"Oh, uh, no- everything is fine, Zewu-Jun," Jingyi said, though his words seemed forced, and the accompanying look of weight from Sizhui, expression imploring the other to keep in line- perhaps the two boys weren't as good at lying as they might think they were. Lan Xichen took his tea cup in hand, appearing almost nonchalant as he watched the two boys silently wage war against each other.

"You know, lying is forbidden in Cloud Recesses," He said. Jingyi shot Sizhui a look, clearly imploring the other to say something, to admit that they had been caught in whatever lie they had concocted, but the responding expression said that Sizhui was determined to see this lie through- and Lan Xichen couldn't help but think of his brother, it was clear Sizhui had somehow inherited his father's stubbornness. Though, not to his detriment, and for that Lan Xichen was glad. He let out a sigh, fixing the two with an unimpressed look, sending their non-verbal conversation to a screeching halt. "Just tell me what has happened."

"Sect Leader Jiang has gone missing," Jingyi blurted out, much to the abject horror of Sizhui, who, beyond hissing the other boy's name in some form of warning, began looking between the two frantically, trying to gauge Lan Xichen's response to the news. He froze in place, more stunned, more baffled than anything. Of all the news he could have braced himself to hear, from injury to sudden political quagmire to disaster, this was one he could not predict, nor did he necessarily know how to react.