Chapter Text
Liu Qingge’s p.o.v:
Having decided to stay as they were, Shen Yuan suggested that they wash each other’s hair. He had initially agreed to it, but as his shixiong leaned forward and reached over his shoulder to grab the bottle of shampoo, he instantly regretted it. Sure they had been close before that particular movement, but now he couldn’t pretend as if he wasn’t hard as a rock down there. Feeling slightly panicked in his embarrassment, he hastily lifted the fox spirit off of him by the armpits and gently set the other man aside before looking away.
“..Mingyi? Did I do something wrong?” Shen Yuan asked concernedly, ultimately forgetting his side-quest for the shampoo and grabbing hold of the war god by the bicep. He’s not gonna run off, okay? There’s no need for all that!... Not that he really minds. It’s honestly kind of nice having his A-Yuan cling onto him like this. Ever so slowly, he turned his head back towards the huli jing, his face undoubtedly giving his current state of mind away as he shook his head.
“Then why did you..?” Shen Yuan mumbled, trailing off to give the other man some room to explain himself. “..I can’t calm down if you’re on my lap like that, alright? I thought I could handle it with sheer willpower alone, but you’ve clearly proven me wrong. That’s why.” He answered bluntly, having to momentarily look away again after he caught the huli jing stealing a glimpse down at his crotch. This mischievous fox of his! He’s trying to hold himself back, damn it!
“But Mingyi, is it really that big of a deal?.. I mean- unless you’re not in the mood to actually do it, I’d understand of course. If you think I’d be opposed to it then that’s a little silly, considering how I suggested dual cultivation earlier to make our mission a little easier.” Shen Yuan rambled amusedly, his face as flush as can be as he tried to be nonchalant about it all. It’s not that he doesn’t want to do it..
“You know, our qi is actually rather compatible. Isn’t that funny A-Yi? We’ve been at odds with each other for years, yet our spiritual veins practically thrive off of one another!” Shen Yuan mused teasingly, resting his head against his shidi’s shoulder as he held the war god’s arm snugly against his chest.
“En.. It is kind of interesting.” He hummed in reply, trying to keep his thoughts from straying back into impure territory. How is he supposed to stay level headed when his A-Yuan is pressed up against him in such a way? It’s almost as if he hadn’t removed the man from his lap at all!! But.. Shen Yuan said he wasn’t opposed to doing it, so..
“Would you… Like to dual cultivate?” He asked shyly, feeling ridiculous for how hard it was to get the words out. The huli jing glanced around before nodding against the war god’s arm. “Should we go inside, or do you want to stay out here?” Shen Yuan questioned playfully, looking up at his shidi expectantly. “Staying here would be ideal..” He hummed sheepishly in reply, face as red as can be since his shixiong was practically staring into his soul and clinging to his side.
“Then.. Can I get back on top?” Shen Yuan asked shyly, batting his pretty lashes up at the war god. There is no need for that kind of expression! It’s not like he needed more encouragement for such a request- He was already plenty interested!! Liu Qingge nodded his agreement before turning partially to rummage around in their belongings for the medical qiankun pouch, quickly locating the lotion and setting it to the side so he could help his shixiong get into place.
Shen Yuan carefully got back into a straddle position over the war god’s lap, holding onto his shidi’s shoulders as he readjusted himself. With the seemingly accidental brush of their cocks against one another, the huli jing quietly gasped and raised the back of his hand to cover his traitorous mouth. As he was fumbling with the lotion jar to get it open, his shixiong experimentally grinded forward against him and it caused him to twitch suddenly and drop the damned thing into the water.
His shixiong smiled at him apologetically and easily retrieved the jar of lotion for him, his ears lowering ever so slightly as he moved to cup the war god’s face between his hands as if he were some precious artifact he’d like to study. Liu Qingge’s eyes darted around a bit under the attention, ears flushing brightly despite his efforts to look outwardly unaffected. "What are you so nervous for, hm? It's just me you know." Shen Yuan cooed sweetly in an attempt to calm his mate’s nerves.
“..I just don’t want you to think that I only like you for this- For your body and dual cultivation, I mean..” He tried to explain, settling his free hand on his shixiong’s waist as he set aside the lotion once more. “A-Yi, at this point you’re probably the last person I would assume that of.” Shen Yuan replied affectionately, chuckling to himself as he brushed the war god’s hair out of his face. He grabbed the other side of the huli jing’s waist now that his other hand was free, pleadingly looking up at his shixiong.
“Aiyah! Don’t look at me like that, I’m serious! You were always such a prude when we were growing up that the thought you might only use me for such a thing has never really crossed my mind! In fact- I’m honestly surprised you’re into me in this kind of way at all!” Shen Yuan rambled offhandedly, playfully pinching the war god’s cheeks before giving them a light pull and letting go. “A prude..” He mumbled disapprovingly, watching in real time how his shixiong scrambled to placate him.
“Well??? You kind of are, aren’t you? I mean you practically blew a fuse when you caught my brother visiting the local brothel- even though he doesn’t do anything other than check in on the girls and ward off any unruly customers.. Not to mention the whole ‘I must court you’ deal you had me make in turn for curing me- But I didn’t mean it as an insult! Just?? A describing adjective! At most, for a bit there I was worried you were mixing up carnal and romantic desire but I’d never think you capable of using me in that way!” Shen Yuan ranted nervously, afraid that he had actually greatly offended his shidi.
The war god sighed and lifted one hand to cover his frantic companion’s mouth, earning a muffled apology for rambling. “Can we please not mention your brother when we’re like this? Now is definitely not the time.” He grumbled as he slid his hand back down to his shixiong’s waist, abruptly pulling the huli jing a little closer. Shen Yuan yelped in surprise at first, but otherwise nodded and wrapped his arms around the war god’s shoulders.
Liu Qingge loosely cradled his shixiong’s head with one hand and reached over to retrieve the lotion with the other, popping it open and leaving it there to the side as he dipped his dominant hand into it. “Are you sure about this position, A-Yuan?” He asked cautiously, not wanting the fox spirit to regret it later. The huli jing pulled away enough to look the war god in the eyes, giving an enthusiastic nod before leaning in and promptly smooching him. He clumsily reciprocated the kisses as his lubed up hand drifted downwards, starting the very slow but necessary process of working the huli jing open.
Trying to ignore the intruding fingers as he slid his tongue inside the war god’s mouth, Shen Yuan completely engrossed himself in kissing his shidi breathless. Their tongues curled together repeatedly as they explored one another’s mouth, the inevitable moans and groans getting swallowed up and muffled by each other. Having been a bit too enthralled by the fox spirit, he had to force himself to focus on his task. He was doing his utmost to both reciprocate Shen Yuan’s more than welcome attention, whilst also thoroughly preparing the man for what’s to come. The last thing he wants to do is hurt his A-Yuan, after all. Especially if it’s more than avoidable.
"A-Yi.. Ooh... Aah! Right there- yes!" Shen Yuan gasped out as they broke apart for air, panting and pleading for more against the war god's neck. He repeated his last motion with his hand, relishing in both the vocal and physical reactions he was garnering from his partner. Is it inappropriate of him to think that Shen Yuan is beautiful like this? All disheveled and needy, clinging to him like this.. He can’t help but be somewhat proud of the fact that this is all his doing, that he’s the one making his shixiong feel this way.
“Mingyi~ Mn! Kiss me..! A-Yi, please!” Shen Yuan moaned out breathily, desperately urging the war god into sharing another tender kiss between them by physically tilting the man’s face back toward his own inviting lips. Who is he to deny his A-Yuan? Honestly, he should probably be concerned that he might’ve been bewitched somewhere along the way as he’s been finding himself more enamored by the day. But even if he was somehow bewitched, being with the man in his lap like this would be more than worth it. He’s never felt so needed or wanted in his life by another human being before and he would probably do anything to keep things like this between them, even if it later came out that he had been tricked.
Their lips met and it wasn’t long before their tongues were once again making contact and slipping and sliding against one another, that strange yet tantalizing feeling only getting him even more riled up as he worked hard at his task. While he knows logically that they definitely rushed things regarding their relationship, when they’re together like this, he can hardly care about all the steps of courting they skipped over to get here. He’ll just have to make up for that fact when they return to the sect! Proper courting gifts are definitely in order!!
“Mnh..! A-Yuan.. Do you think you’ve been stretched wide enough, or should I continue opening you up?” He asked between panting breaths, absolutely rock hard and nearing his limit. “En, I think it’s fine now A-Yi.. Just go slow at first, hm? We’ll definitely be able to tell once it’s in.” Shen Yuan replied encouragingly, his words whisper-soft and shiver-inducing against Liu Qingge’s ear.
“Should we change positions, or…?” He trailed off awkwardly, feeling almost dizzy with the heat gathering in his face. A very eager part of him hoped his shixiong wouldn’t want to move, that they’d stay like this and he’d inevitably be ridden by Shen Yuan. Was it a foreignly lewd thought? Of course. But Is it truly so wrong of him to want to see his A-Yuan like that again? They had done it in a similar position once before in the inn bath, but he can’t help but want to see that sight again.
Shen Yuan dazedly shook his head at the suggestion and settled his hands on the war god’s shoulders, slowly easing himself up onto his knees before fumbling to position the war god’s cock against his hole. This is exactly how he had envisioned it! Gods.. His shixiong is breathtaking. Truly, If his A-Yuan’s existence hadn’t been hidden away like a prized gem all these years surely someone else would’ve already swept the man off of his feet! Liu Qingge’s hands gently but firmly settled on either side of the huli jing’s hips, his gaze unable to leave the other man’s gorgeous features. He reveled in every minute reaction in his shixiong’s face as the fox spirit slowly sunk down onto his cock.
“Oh- Gods.. Have you been staring at me so intently this whole time!?” Shen Yuan gasped out, sounding and looking almost scandalized as he paused his progress downward. Is that really so surprising? Is it strange that he is doing such a thing considering the activity they are currently partaking in?
“A-Yuan, please don’t ask me to turn away during moments like these. It’d be cruel to ask such a thing of me, especially when you look so breathtaking.” He unabashedly pleaded, reaching up and brushing a stray strand of hair out of the fox spirit’s blatantly embarrassed face. If his shixiong suddenly enforced a ‘no looking directly at him during sex’ rule, it’d be hard to accommodate since he can hardly keep his eyes off of Shen Yuan these days in general..
“Don’t say such things with a straight face, you- you pervert!” Shen Yuan accused sheepishly, ears flat against his scalp as he decidedly kept his gaze elsewhere. “Are we not to be cultivation partners? As well as parents? Hm? Are you truly asking me to avert my eyes when we are to spend time together like this? I respectfully decline.” He argued petulantly, needing his opinion on the matter to be known.
“But eye contact while I’m- it’s just too much!” Shen Yuan replied helplessly, still unable to bring himself to look the war god directly in the eyes even as he lowered further down. He sighed and used his free hand to tilt his reluctant shixiong’s face back towards him, their gazes inevitably meeting after a few hesitant glances on the fox spirit’s part. His thumb gently caressed Shen Yuan’s cheek, soothingly swiping side to side. The huli jing accidentally slid the rest of the way down and ultimately bottomed out, both of them groaning at the abrupt sensation.
“Are you okay, A-Yuan? It didn’t seem like you were ready..” He inquired concernedly, lifting his other hand to cup the other side of his shixiong’s face. “It’s nothing I haven’t taken before! I’m fine.” Shen Yuan replied hastily, keeping his gaze fixed just below the war god’s eyes as his face flushed profusely. “…Do you really not want me to look at you?” He asked evenly, now using both thumbs to lightly rub against his shixiong’s cheeks with gentle strokes. Shen Yuan looked helpless in his lap, still avoiding eye contact as he slowly lifted his shoulders in a shrug-like motion.
“Well, if it’s really a problem for you I need a straight answer. I’m not a mind reader by any means, A-Yuan.” He reiterated clearly, unrelenting in his gaze as he watched the fox spirit internally struggle to find the right words to express himself. “Am I really a pervert for coveting such a sight? Is it so horrible to have my eyes on you?” He asked genuinely, trying to read the other man’s features for the answer he wasn’t receiving.
“I’m just!— Thin faced, okay!? It’s embarrassing enough to have to put it in on my own- let alone having you stare at me like that while I’m trying to take it all in! I mean- what are you even looking at really!? You’re the pretty one out of the two of us!!” Shen Yuan shamefacedly rambled, tears of embarrassment threatening to form at the corner of his eyes. Are his shixiong’s eyes just for decoration? Has his A-Yuan never looked in a mirror? Or any reflective surface for that matter?
“..First of all, I disagree with that last statement. Second of all, I’m looking at the man I want to spend the rest of my immortal life with. Gods forbid I get excited over you taking the lead this time.” He grumbled almost petulantly, taking advantage of his hand placement to lightly pinch the fox spirit’s cheeks out of mild annoyance. Shen Yuan seemed stupefied by the answer, too stunned to care that his face was just pinched.
“Look, if you don’t want to continue on tonight that’s fine, just say so.” He said as he moved his hands just beneath Shen Yuan’s armpits, getting ready to lift the huli jing off of him. It’s not like he wants to force his shixiong to be with him like this.. Just as he was about to actually do so, the huli jing panicked and clung to him, arms wrapping around his neck like a clingy octopus. He loosely wrapped one arm around Shen Yuan’s waist to hold the man closer, the other raised up so he could comfortingly pet his shixiong’s hair.
“I didn’t say that! We could even stay like this and it’d be fine!! I just.. Your eyes are too intense!!!” Shen Yuan hastily countered, sounding a bit muffled due to his face being half buried in the war god’s neck. “Then.. Do you want me to start moving or shall I let you?” He asked quietly, finding himself slightly amused at the way the huli jing’s ear twitched in response to his question.
Practically able to feel the way the fox spirit’s face burned against his neck, he figured it’d be requested of him to start them off, but then Shen Yuan unexpectedly lifted himself up and then abruptly slammed himself back down. Both of them moaned at the sudden and intense pleasure and the war god couldn’t help but move his hands back to Shen Yuan’s hips once more, waiting until the huli jing shakily repeated this action to thrust his hips up into him.
“Ah- A-Yi! Oh gods- Why’d you do that? My legs feel kind of funny? Mhnph!” Shen Yuan breathily gasped out as they continued to try and match one another’s movements, eventually finding some kind of rhythm to it a couple experimental thrusts later. At this point the huli jing truly was holding onto the war god for dear life, just barely able to keep up with his shidi as he was struggling with the jelly-like sensation starting to take over his legs. “You’re taking me so well, A-Yuan! It feels so good..” He muttered feverishly, the thrust of his hips feeling just short of uncontrollable.
“Nng.. Ah! Mingyi! I’m so close- Ahn!?” Shen Yuan whimpered pathetically, crying out as he came all over their abdomens. Liu Qingge quickly tried to chase his own orgasm to make it easier on his shixiong, holding Shen Yuan nice and tight to his chest as he repeatedly jutted his hips upward. Feeling as if he couldn’t quite do what he wanted in this position, he swiftly took Shen Yuan with him and laid the fox spirit down in the grass before continuing.
“Oh gods- A-Yi! I feel so full!? Engh! Ahn?! There! Right there!!” Shen Yuan babbled senselessly, arms looped around the war god’s neck as he was relentlessly pounded into. With one last jolt of his hips, they both came and he practically flopped down onto Shen Yuan in a tired heap of flesh. “Hah.. I’m sorry, I’m probably crushing you right now.. I’ll move in a second, A-Yuan.” He assured his companion breathily, just trying to catch his breath for a moment.
“It’s alright, it’s actually kind of nice. You’re like a weighted blanket.” Shen Yuan commented offhandedly, readjusting slightly as he ran one of his shaky hands through Liu Qingge’s hair.“…A weighted blanket? What the hell is that? Is it some kind of training thing people on Qing Jing use?” He asked tiredly, unmoving from where he was despite his previous statement since the huli jing seemed to like having him there. At this, the fox spirit snorted. Was it really such a bad guess?
“Uhm.. No, I can’t say that it is. They’re just slightly heavier blankets. Typically they have sand evenly distributed inside of them, but I suppose anything could really be used to weigh them down. I just like the feeling of them, since they would help me feel a little less anxious sometimes. I guess I’d have to specially commission someone with exact instructions or make one myself to get my hands on another one..” Shen Yuan rambled as he continued to play with the war god’s hair.
“En, we could do that. I’m sure we could find someone willing to craft you one.” He mumbled affirmatively, carefully pulling out so he could comfortably lay his head down on Shen Yuan’s chest. “Even if we can’t, I have you don’t I?” Shen Yuan replied smoothly, relishing in the sheepish expression he garnered from the war god lying on top of him. “Mn..” He hummed in reply, rubbing the side of his face against his shixiong’s chest as he made himself even comfier where he was.
“Ah, but I suppose you wouldn’t be able to lay on me like this once I start showing.. The bump wouldn’t just be in the way, but you’d probably be crushing them.” Shen Yuan mumbled offhandedly, startling slightly as the war god laying on top of him jolted upright into a sitting position between his legs. Liu Qingge looked as if he had just been slapped, guiltily glancing between his shixiong’s face and stomach.
“What…? Oh- Pfft.. A-Yi I’m sure it’s fine! They’re probably not even the size of a grain of rice right now! Come back here!” Shen Yuan insisted, holding his arms out to welcome the man back. “…No it’s alright, let’s get washed up and go to bed. We’re probably going to have a long day tomorrow.” He suggested evasively as he carefully stood up and got back into the hot spring. The huli jing watched the war god petulantly, tails thumping against the ground somewhat annoyedly. “..Fine.” Shen Yuan huffed out eventually, dragging himself back to his feet and taking up a spot just beside Liu Qingge.
As he washed himself up, he eyed the fox spirit huffily doing the same beside him. “..Are you mad?” He asked stiffly, honestly a little afraid of the answer. “Not exactly.. I was just enjoying that little moment of ours is all. It’s a shame it had ended so soon just because of something I had gone and said.” Shen Yuan admitted with a sigh, resting his head against the war god’s shoulder as he absentmindedly kicked his legs in the water.
Feeling a bit bad now, he slowly tilted his head to the side until it was resting partially on top of his companion’s. The huli jing chuckled quietly at the gesture, effortlessly finding the war god’s hand and intertwining their fingers together in his lap. “We can continue to lay like that in bed, if you’d like? I mean… If you’re sure I wouldn’t be crushing you or the baby?” He offered quietly, not wanting to deny his shixiong much of anything these days. “You’d be willing to? Really?” Shen Yuan asked with a hint of excitement in his tone, snuggling up ever closer to the war god’s side.
“En, If that’d make you happy.” He replied easily, unable to keep himself from smiling at the other’s reaction. The huli jing nodded affirmatively, lifting his head away a bit before leaning closer and placing a kiss to Liu Qingge’s cheek. He looked at his shixiong dumbly, wondering what that was for since he hadn’t really done anything too remarkable to deserve that kind of show of affection. Especially since he had been the one to upset the fox spirit in the first place.
“Hm? What’s wrong, A-Yi? Fox got your tongue?” Shen Yuan teased playfully, an impish grin on his face that perfectly exposed his fangs. “..Not at the moment, but you have had possession of it before.” He replied with a halfhearted roll of his eyes, leaning forward with intention to steal a quick kiss but the huli jing did so first. “Hey!” He cried out indignantly, trying to redeem himself by going for another kiss but his shixiong purposefully swiveled his head in the opposite direction.
“A-Yuan!?” He questioned in disbelief, feeling a bit chagrined by his shixiong’s antics. “What? Does the big strong war god want another kiss?” Shen Yuan asked teasingly, still turned away to keep his lips from being captured. “Yes!” He answered unabashedly, having never wanted something so much in his goddamn life before. The huli jing laughed at the extremely honest response, only upsetting the war god further. Shen Yuan moved to turn his head back towards his shidi, almost comically getting caught off guard and swept up into a feverish kiss. When they finally broke apart for air, both of them were panting heavily.
“A-Yi.. Remind me not to withhold kisses from you in the future, hm? We may actually suffocate one of these days if we’re not careful.” Shen Yuan mumbled amusedly, getting up to get out of the hot spring and gather their things. “As if you’d listen if I did? You love messing with me any chance you get, you mischievous fox.” He grumbled halfheartedly, following after his shixiong back to the hut with nothing but a towel wrapped around each of their waists.
As Shen Yuan set everything down on the low table, he got to work setting up privacy talismans and medium level protection wards. “Mingyi, come get a drying talisman.” Shen Yuan prompted, a very familiar glint in his eyes as he held it up. “…You’re going to stick it to my forehead, aren’t you?” He asked plainly, not even surprised at this point after the last time they bathed together. “I would like to, yes.” Shen Yuan admitted easily, wearing a shamelessly impish grin.
Sighing, he sat down beside Shen Yuan and just let it happen, the ‘thwack’ of talisman paper slapping onto his face all too comically to keep the huli jing from giggling to himself about it. He wordlessly pulled it off and used it to dry his hair, stealing glances here and there as his shixiong did the same. Shen Yuan really is just so pretty..
"This is going to take forever!” Shen Yuan grumbled to himself, having to start the long process of drying each of his seven tails one by one. Two of those tails are arguably his fault. One from dual cultivation, the other from.. Whatever went down after he lost consciousness from being stabbed with a poisoned blade. “I could help if you’d allow me to.” He offered readily, just itching for permission to do so. “I mean- that’d really be great, but you know you don’t have to right?” Shen Yuan replied meekly, shyly ducking his head down a bit so that his expression wasn’t in clear view.
He grunted the affirmative as he moved to sit behind his shixiong, carefully scooping up one of the huli jing’s tails and slowly working his drying talisman over the thick fur. “…Mingyi? Do you think I’ll become even more beast-like as I gain more tails? Well- if I gain any more tails. Hell, I never imagined getting my sixth tail and here I am with seven!” Shen Yuan rambled as he dried another tail, trying to keep them all from swishing about but failing somewhat since he was truly worried about it.
“I wouldn’t stress too much, A-Yuan. It won’t change who you are or how I feel about you.” He replied solemnly, swapping the dry tail for another wet one and starting the process all over again. “You say that now, but what if I’m hard to look at with more fox features? Hm? I don’t know what comes after getting this fox nose of mine.. I mean, I didn’t even know that kind of thing would happen once you gained a seventh tail! I just.. wish someone knew more about it and could just tell me what to expect, you know?” Shen Yuan ranted nervously, running his hands through one of his dry tails in an attempt to soothe himself a bit.
“…Mn, it’s fair that you want to know ahead of time what will happen but no one here seems to know the answers to your questions.. And for the record, I think that little fox nose of yours is cute..” He commented quietly, moving on to dry the next tail. “You think it’s.. Cute?..” Shen Yuan mumbled to himself in quiet surprise, one of his hands absentmindedly reaching up to ghost over his nose. “En.” He grunted in answer, keeping a close eye on his skittish shixiong as he got to work on drying the next tail.
The fox spirit muttered something unintelligible under his breath as he got back to the task at hand, pulling one of the last two tails into his lap and drying it off. He let out a quiet huff of amusement as he moved on to the last tail, taking his sweet time with it since he didn’t quite want this nice little domestic moment of theirs to end so soon. They’re definitely going to be really busy starting tomorrow.. Not that it can really be helped.
“Mingyi, can I ask you something?..” Shen Yuan questioned slowly, sounding hesitant to even bring it up. “En, what is it?” He hummed in reply, carefully setting the last tail aside as his shixiong turned to face him. “..How come you let me live so easily when you first caught me?.. I mean- there was no way of knowing if I was telling you the truth or not..” Shen Yuan asked nervously, clearly having been wondering about it ever since that incident occurred. It’s honestly such an embarrassingly simple and arguably ridiculous reason..
“..Well, you seemed earnest enough in your explanation and… You looked adorably helpless . Which is to say- I mean- I like cute things and you uhm, well.. I decided to trust you and that if it came down to it I could deal with the repercussions if it turned out I was being deceived.” He rambled sheepishly, one hand restlessly rubbing at the back of his neck as he blabbered on and on uselessly. Gods, he’s terrible with his words and it seems as if he’s picked up Shen Yuan’s habit of spewing out every damned word he can think of all at once! It’s endearing when his A-Yuan does it! It’s terrible when he does it! He could listen to his shixiong go on and on for hours but he’d rather get run through by another sword than listen to himself talk!
A little stunned by the confession, it took Shen Yuan a moment to process before laughing about it, the unease seeming to melt away from his body at the answer. “This one thanks you for having mercy, A-Yi.” Shen Yuan teased playfully as he stood up, holding out a hand for the war god to take and carefully pulling the man up to his feet. “My gut isn’t usually wrong- Okay!?” He hissed in embarrassment, turning around to get dressed despite what they had done not too long ago together.
The huli jing snickered once more but otherwise just got dressed behind him, eventually climbing into the middle of the bed and lying flat on his back, holding his arms outstretched to welcome the war god. He felt his ears burn slightly as he carefully got into bed, going wherever Shen Yuan ushered him without any fuss. It should be of no surprise that they ended up in a similar position to when they were cuddling earlier, since Shen Yuan had seemed to like it..
The happiest little fox spirit in the world simply pulled up and rearranged the blanket over top of them, caressing Liu Qingge’s face and hair as much as he pleased as drowsiness started to try and lull him to sleep. Gods, his heart could burst with how much affection he feels in this moment! What the hell is he supposed to do with it all exactly!? Feeling overwhelmed by it all, he allowed himself to lightly squeeze Shen Yuan in their embrace, trying not to be too rough about it.
“Goodnight, A-Yi.” Shen Yuan murmured, pressing a chaste kiss to the war god’s forehead before letting out a drawn out yawn up towards the ceiling with one hand carded through his shidi’s hair. “En, goodnight A-Yuan..” He replied just as quietly, minutely rubbing the side of his face against his companion’s inner robes before he truly felt content enough to close his eyes and succumb to sleep.
. . .
Upon waking he found himself a bit more restricted than when he first went to sleep, his shixiong’s clinginess seeming to have reached new heights sometime during the night. They had apparently rolled over onto their sides at some point, but otherwise not much changed about their positions. Shen Yuan is… Good at cuddling.. Can people be good at that? If so- can people be good at that naturally without practice? But if practice is how one gets good at it, then who would his shixiong have cuddled with to do so?
Liu Qingge’s face was nestled into his shixiong’s inner robes, his arms loosely wrapped around the man’s middle and their legs somewhat tangled up beneath the blankets. Having his head cradled by one of Shen Yuan’s arms and embraced snugly to the fox spirit’s body by the other, he couldn’t really move lest he risk waking his companion up. He feels almost.. protected in a weird way. He couldn’t really fully appreciate it when he was asleep, but now he can.
Shen Yuan stirred slightly in his sleep, giving the war god a light squeeze and eventually throwing a restless leg over his shidi’s hip. He froze momentarily, not wanting to bring his shixiong to full wakefulness just yet. They really will be busy starting today.. His A-Yuan arguably more so due to the fact that some training is in order, both with memory manipulation and wielding fox fire.. So he needs to drink in every precious moment of alone time he can get right now.
The fox spirit holding him so dearly yawned and groggily nuzzled into his hair, muttering something unintelligible before giving Liu Qingge another squeeze. He can’t really tell if his shixiong is awake just yet or if his A-Yuan is simply sleep talking.. Very slowly, he started rubbing small circles into his shixiong’s lower back using the heel of his palm.
“Mn.. That feels nice.” Shen Yuan mumbled sleepily, letting out a quiet sigh of contentment. “..Does it?” He couldn’t help but ask, to which the huli jing only hummed a groggy ‘mhm’ in response. It’s almost mid-morning already.. He really doesn’t want to rush his A-Yuan but they really do have things to get started today.. “A-Yuan, I’m sorry but we really need to get up and start our day. I’m sure you want to get this over with and go home just as much as I do, right?” He chided gently, slowly but surely untangling himself from the fox spirit and lightly shaking his shixiong by the shoulder.
“Mhn.. Mornin’ A-Yi.” Shen Yuan muttered groggily, letting out a long and drawn out yawn as he forced himself to sit up in bed. He felt a smile tug at the corners of his lips as he watched his shixiong fight the urge to close his eyes once more, leaning in to place a chaste kiss to the man’s lips before climbing out of bed to get dressed. As he pulled on a set of clean robes at the edge of the bed, he heard his shixiong huff and puff before eventually dragging himself out of bed to get dressed too.
“Once this mission is over, we can finally start heading back home.” He said in an attempt to lift his shixiong’s spirits. “As true as that may be, A-Yi, I can’t help but be worried about how our return might go.. My brother might actually have a qi deviation after finding out about us, not to mention the pregnancy.” Shen Yuan replied grimly, taking a seat at the low table after he was dressed to go through his qiankun pouches. That’s fair, considering Shen Qingqiu probably had a lot of faith that Shen Yuan wouldn’t have been found out as an imposter in the first place. Let alone get found out and then have their relationship escalate so quickly.
“..Maybe we should go to qian cao peak preemptively then? You know, just in case he does qi deviate in response?” He suggested stiffly, knowing that having that happen at all wasn’t ideal but not knowing what else they could do about it. It’s not exactly like they can keep their relationship a secret, nor does he think that they should. Even if they had tried that they’d inevitably be found out anyhow, since Shen Yuan will eventually start showing and then proceed to give birth later on. Besides- he doesn’t want to be apart or sneak around just to avoid an uncomfortable conversation with Shen Qingqiu! It’d frankly just not be worth it.
“..Yeah, maybe that’d be for the best.. I’d probably be too afraid to tell my brother everything without Mu-Shidi there on standby.” Shen Yuan begrudgingly agreed with a sigh, fidgeting with one of his tails in his lap. Yes, it’d be best to relay everything in one go rather than beating around the bush in this case. “En, then that’s what we’ll do after reporting to Zhangmen-shixiong.” He replied resolutely, taking up a spot just behind the fox spirit after he was done putting his hair up into his usual hairstyle.
“..Want me to do your hair?” He offered readily, his comb still in hand from when he did his own. “Hm? Oh! Yes, actually, I would love that! I’ve been meaning to ask you about doing it again!- I’m glad you offered.” Shen Yuan rambled sheepishly, pulling out some hair ribbons and pins for the war god to choose from. He picked up and set some of them aside, planning to use them.
“Would you want your hair done up in any particular way?” He asked patiently, slowly but surely working through the knots in his shixiong’s hair with his comb and fingers. “I liked how you did it the other day but maybe.. you could do my hair like yours? It’d probably be nice to have it all up and out of the way like that.” Shen Yuan suggested hesitantly, his tails swishing restlessly between them. Does his shixiong think he’d decline such a simple request?
“En, that’s fine.” He hummed in reply, carefully parting and figuring out where the braid on either side of the fox spirit’s head needed to go. He kept two long strands of hair out of the side braids and high ponytail, having Shen Yuan momentarily turn to face him so he could make sure that those strands he saved were loosely framing the upper part of the huli jing’s face before securing them into the ponytail as well.
“Is it okay? It’s not too tight is it?” He asked tentatively, double checking his work by tilting his own head this way and that to get a better look. Shen Yuan gave his ponytail an experimental shake, testing the weight of it as it swayed side to side against the nape of his neck. “No, it’s perfect! I honestly haven’t had my hair up like this since we were disciples, I forgot how nice it is!” Shen Yuan commented excitedly, spinning right around to face the war god and snatching up those calloused hands into his own.
“Thank you, Mingyi.~” Shen Yuan cooed appreciatively, giving their joined hands a light squeeze before lifting the war god’s hands up to his lips on a whim. He froze dumbly as his shixiong started to pepper kisses all over his knuckles, then threatened to flush violently as the huli jing scooted closer to him and redirected that beloved attention to his lips, sharing a short but sweet kiss. “..Can this lowly fox ‘take possession’ of your tongue?~” Shen Yuan asked teasingly, watching the flustered war god closely. Anytime.
“Come take it then.” He suggested breathlessly, his heart absolutely racing at the boldness of it all. The huli jing grinned and wasted no time climbing into the war god’s inviting lap, purposefully situating himself sideways before he looped his arms around Liu Qingge’s neck. “Aiyah A-Yi, you’re looking at me so expectantly! How am I supposed to go in for the kill like this? Give this poor fox a chance, hm?” Shen Yuan commented playfully, freeing up one hand to gently pinch and pull at the war god’s cheek.
Shen Yuan soothingly stroked the abused cheek for a moment with the very hand that had done it before finally tilting the war god’s head down to kiss him, their tongues quickly finding their way into one another’s mouth and entwining together. Just as their kiss was becoming a tad bit more heated and feverish, the huli jing playfully bit the end of his tongue, causing him to involuntarily moan into the other’s mouth at the harsh and sudden sensation. What was that for??
“Oh don’t look at me like that, I didn’t bite you that hard! What? Are you embarrassed of the sound you made or something?” Shen Yuan questioned teasingly, yelping in surprise as he was abruptly tackled to the floor. “Aiyah! If it was about the noise- you shouldn’t be embarrassed! I mean, I’ve surely made plenty more embarrassing ones during our time together!” Shen Yuan added hastily, his hands resolutely being pinned down to either side of his head by his shidi.
He shook his head, opting to temporarily ignore the huli jing’s antics to go back to kissing the man. It didn’t take long to turn his beloved shixiong into a panting mess beneath him, breaking apart for air when he finally felt satisfied. “..You should probably borrow a set of my robes, as your usual ones are probably not going to be ideal for training with fox fire.” He suggested offhandedly, freeing and getting off of his shixiong to search his qiankun pouches for a clean set of robes.
“Way to change the subject.” Shen Yuan muttered amusedly, propping himself up on his elbows as he waited. “En, these should fit.” He mused aloud, pulling out an older set of robes he had on hand and holding it out for the fox spirit to take. They’re not that different in size, so it should be fine. “Alright, it won't take long for me to get changed.” Shen Yuan hummed in reply, taking the robes and finally pulling himself up and off the floor to strip out of his more elaborate and flowy robes.
“Here- I’ll fold up your robes, just keep getting dressed.” He awkwardly insisted, needing to distract himself from his shixiong undressing just a few feet away from him. They really need to get their day started here, he can’t let himself get all worked up like this! Where did all that self control he used to pride himself on go?! He really needs to focus on their mission. He went over to the low table and stuffed the newly folded robes into one of Shen Yuan’s qiankun pouches, deciding to just scoop them all up to bring them back to his shixiong.
“Your robes are honestly the better option for training in, thank you for letting me borrow them A-Yi.~” Shen Yuan crooned sweetly, taking the qiankun pouches one by one and tying them to his belt. Once everything was where it was supposed to be, the huli jing grabbed the war god by the hand and led them out of the hut.
“Ooo, wait! Can we ride Cheng Luan back down the way we came? Please?~ If we’re flying low to the ground it shouldn’t matter too much, right?” Shen Yuan rambled excitedly, clearly having been looking forward to another chance to be on said spirit sword since the last time. He lovingly rolled his eyes, summoning Cheng Luan with his free hand before making it hover above the ground, stepping up onto the back of it and urging Shen Yuan to stand at the front of it. He doesn’t want to risk his shixiong falling off, after all.
His arms were wrapped snugly around Shen Yuan’s waist, keeping the fox spirit in place as he maneuvered his sword around the hot spring to get back to the path they had originally come in on. His shixiong clung to one of his arms particularly tightly, using it to remain as balanced as possible as they started flying down the semi-steep and rocky path. Like this, it really didn’t take them long to reach the edge of the huli jing village at all.
He brought his sword to a stop as soon as they reached it, carefully helping Shen Yuan step off of Cheng Luan by holding hands before he himself hopped down and sent his spirit sword away with a swift sword seal. Their hands were still decidedly joined as they walked further into the quaint little village, the two of them trying to find their way back to Lin Heng’s house. He bristled as he sensed something approaching them, forcing himself to relax when he realized it was just Qin Zhan and Qin Feng, Qin Daiyu’s twins.
The kits were in their fox forms as they rushed towards Shen Yuan, quickly running around and in between the two cultivators as they chased one another. “Boys be careful!” Qin Daiyu chided from across the way, walking over to join them rather than running. “Good morning, Miss Qin.” Shen Yuan greeted politely, ignoring the rambunctious kits play-fighting around their feet. “Good morning to you too, Master Shen. Sorry about them.. Zhan-er, Feng-er, come back over here!” Qin Daiyu replied strainedly, snapping her clawed fingers and pointing to the space beside her. What? He doesn’t get a good morning? How petty!
Once her boys were in her reach she snatched them up, which was easily done since they remained in their fox forms all the while. “So, where are you two off to?” Qin Daiyu questioned nosily, resting each of her kits over either shoulder. “We were going to report to Lin Heng first, then figure out where to go from there.” Shen Yuan answered easily, gesturing for her to join them as they continued walking the path.
Qin Daiyu ended up taking the lead as they grew closer to their destination, being the one to knock on the door and greet Lin Heng first. The old woman was overjoyed to see the kits in attendance with them. “Oh sweet little FengFeng! And ZhanZhan, my look at you both!” Lin Heng exclaimed adoringly, scooping both kits off of Qin Daiyu’s shoulders before inviting them all inside. “Come sit, all of you. I was just making tea and there are already snacks set out at the table, make yourselves comfortable.” Lin Heng added cheerily, going back towards the kitchen area to retrieve said tea.
He and his shixiong sat on one side of the table, Qin Daiyu taking up a cushion across from Shen Yuan on the other. Lin Heng joined them a moment later with a tea tray consisting of four mismatched cups and a beautiful teapot, setting it down next to the large plate of assorted snacks in the middle of the table that Qin Zhan and Qin Feng quickly took notice of and swapped to their human forms to indulge in.
Having noticed his shixiong eyeing the sweets, he subtly swiped a few with his free hand and gave them over. Shen Yuan’s face practically lit up, quickly stuffing one in his mouth before hesitating on the next, looking over at the war god for a moment before holding one of the sweets in front of Liu Qingge’s lips. He awkwardly accepted it, not having the heart to tell his shixiong that he doesn’t particularly care for them.
“Oh that’s right, there probably wasn’t anything up there for you two to eat.. Ah- That won’t do for an expectant mother! I’ll arrange for something to be made, I apologize for not thinking ahead of time about it.” Lin Heng assured them profusely, looking slightly appalled with herself for not considering it sooner. “That’d be appreciated, though I will personally pass on breakfast. I thank you for thinking of Shen Yuan.” He hummed in reply, earning an incredulous look from his shixiong.
“You should stay here and eat, I’ll go hunting and bring back whatever I can. While I’m away you can get some training done, hm? It’ll be more time efficient that way.” He suggested easily, already making moves to stand up and go. Their joined hands is what kept him from going anywhere, his gaze falling to the pouting huli jing. “You’re abandoning me here? Why? Do you think I’ll be in the way or something?” Shen Yuan questioned accusingly, his ears slightly pinned to his head and his tails swishing anxiously behind him.
“I don’t think that at all. Wouldn’t it be better for you to have more time to focus on training? You not only have fox fire to master, but also memory manipulation as well. Just let me take care of the grunt work for now, okay A-Yuan? It’s not like I won’t come back.” He reiterated carefully, taking a knee on the cushion as he reached over with his free hand to cup his shixiong’s face. Shen Yuan reluctantly leaned into the war god’s palm, eyeing the man uneasily.
“...Fine, but you’re taking the preservation talismans with you.” Shen Yuan eventually sighed in response, finally parting their joined hands to dig through a qiankun pouch on his hip to produce said talismans. He pretended not to notice the tracking talisman that his shixiong slid into the stack before giving it to him. “En, I’ll probably be back later in the afternoon depending on how far I must go to find anything worthwhile.. But I will be back, A-Yuan. Don’t worry.” He reassured his shixiong, carefully shoving the gifted talismans away into one of his own pouches before he went back to cupping Shen Yuan’s face in his hands.
His shixiong stayed decidedly quiet, face flush as can be as he looked up at the war god, hands reaching up to lightly grasp Liu Qingge’s wrists and keep those calloused hands there. He let out an amused huff of air before leaning in and pressing a chaste kiss to Shen Yuan’s lips, then pressed another to his shixiong’s forehead before standing up and begrudgingly parting. Shen Yuan looked utterly disappointed to see him leave, ears drooped and tails being dragged into his lap for comfort.
“We’ll look after your mate while you’re gone, don’t worry.” Lin Heng assured him sweetly, nonchalantly waving him off. “En, thank you.” He replied earnestly with a bow, stealing one more glance at Shen Yuan before he turned to leave. It’s hard parting from his A-Yuan like this, but it makes the most sense. Shen Yuan needs to be able to properly wield his special huli jing abilities to deal with the humans, and the people of the huli jing village need food.. It’s supposed to be a win-win situation and yet he feels as if he’s somehow losing.