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I know you don't celebrate, but I wanted to wish you a happy birthday. The noodles will have to wait until we're returned to our Ximilia, but they're coming! Don't think you're getting out of them just because we're dealing with some time travel inconveniences.
I'm happy to have been able to call you my friend for another year, Itachi.
I'm happy to have been able to call you my friend for another year, Itachi.
（ there is a — not insignificant delay.
then, eventually: ）
This time last year, we were on Viveca's world.
（ he will not say he is concerned for her, though he is, though he does not feel the need to hide it from wei wuxian. but her absence is a weight. ）
then, eventually: ）
This time last year, we were on Viveca's world.
（ he will not say he is concerned for her, though he is, though he does not feel the need to hide it from wei wuxian. but her absence is a weight. ）
Edited 2023-06-15 23:43 (UTC)
I remember. You and Clara made dango together. [Shortly before they were both arrested, albeit separately and one of them more intentionally than the other.]
You're worried for her. [It's understandable all things considered.]
I bet she's doing better than us.
You're worried for her. [It's understandable all things considered.]
I bet she's doing better than us.
Edited 2023-06-17 06:17 (UTC)
It is wrong. [He doesn't know if Itachi's thoughts have gone to Wei Wuxian's witnessing of that night, but it's where his own thoughts firmly lie. His stomach turns at the violation of being present for something he was never meant to see.]
It isn't our choice, but it is wrong.
I'm sure when we see her again she might need some time to process it.
It isn't our choice, but it is wrong.
I'm sure when we see her again she might need some time to process it.
[A few days after their return, the package appears sometime after Itachi returns to his room following his morning workout so that whenever he ventures out again after his shower, he’ll find it leaning there just to the side of his door. When Itachi examines it more closely, it will become immediately obvious that it’s some sort of soft paper that has been rolled and held closed with a ribbon. Attached to the roll is an envelope that contains a note folded inside. The envelope declares "Read me first!" in a very familiar scrawl, and should Itachi do as instructed, the note reads as follows:
Itachi,
It is not the custom of my culture to celebrate every birthday with a gift. Gifts are given occasionally, but only for years considered to be milestones. I don’t know if it’s the same for you, or if your customs are more similar to the majority here who celebrate every year in that way. Of all the traditions I’ve learned of here, I have to admit I don’t mind this one so much.
Still, you should know I didn’t intend this as a birthday gift until I realized its completion coincided so closely with the date. I want you to know that because if you don’t wish to receive any birthday gifts, this one doesn’t count.
I told you before our separation—before MY separation—that I would spend the time away perfecting my mastery of your language, enough to impress you with my command of Japanese calligraphy even. I regret to inform you that I did not become fluent in Japanese in one month. (I DID study though. A little.) And it was only half of a failure because in my free time in the evenings I diligently practiced my calligraphy. I think we both know that the art of it requires too much patience for me to ever truly excel, but I did find it surprisingly soothing.
Your fluency in my tongue far exceeds mine in yours, and so I hope you’ll find this piece of Chinese calligraphy acceptable until a time when I can butcher the beauty of calligraphy in your characters as well as in mine.
Oh, by the way, I didn’t write this! It’s a parable that I felt was fitting.
-Wei Ying
[Despite his jokes, when Itachi unfolds the paper to find a modestly sized hanging wall scroll, it’s immediately clear that Wei Wuxian’s calligraphy is far from the chicken scratch he usually writes. It’s still amateur to anyone truly practiced, but each stroke has been drawn with precision and care and the work is lovely overall. Beside the writing, a simple painting depicts two figures sitting alongside a river, one of them with a large instrument in his lap. The painting has been done with minimal strokes and isn’t as detailed as Itachi knows Wei Wuxian’s drawings can be, but the style matches the calligraphy well.
The context of the painting becomes immediately clear once Itachi reads and translates the text.
伯牙子鼓琴，鍾子期聽之，方鼓而志在太山，鍾子期曰：「善哉乎鼓琴！巍巍乎若太山。」少選之間，而志在流水，鍾子期復曰：「善哉乎鼓琴！湯湯乎若流水。」鍾子期死，伯牙破琴絕絃，終身不復鼓琴，以為世無足為鼓琴者。
Itachi,
It is not the custom of my culture to celebrate every birthday with a gift. Gifts are given occasionally, but only for years considered to be milestones. I don’t know if it’s the same for you, or if your customs are more similar to the majority here who celebrate every year in that way. Of all the traditions I’ve learned of here, I have to admit I don’t mind this one so much.
Still, you should know I didn’t intend this as a birthday gift until I realized its completion coincided so closely with the date. I want you to know that because if you don’t wish to receive any birthday gifts, this one doesn’t count.
I told you before our separation—before MY separation—that I would spend the time away perfecting my mastery of your language, enough to impress you with my command of Japanese calligraphy even. I regret to inform you that I did not become fluent in Japanese in one month. (I DID study though. A little.) And it was only half of a failure because in my free time in the evenings I diligently practiced my calligraphy. I think we both know that the art of it requires too much patience for me to ever truly excel, but I did find it surprisingly soothing.
Your fluency in my tongue far exceeds mine in yours, and so I hope you’ll find this piece of Chinese calligraphy acceptable until a time when I can butcher the beauty of calligraphy in your characters as well as in mine.
Oh, by the way, I didn’t write this! It’s a parable that I felt was fitting.
-Wei Ying
[Despite his jokes, when Itachi unfolds the paper to find a modestly sized hanging wall scroll, it’s immediately clear that Wei Wuxian’s calligraphy is far from the chicken scratch he usually writes. It’s still amateur to anyone truly practiced, but each stroke has been drawn with precision and care and the work is lovely overall. Beside the writing, a simple painting depicts two figures sitting alongside a river, one of them with a large instrument in his lap. The painting has been done with minimal strokes and isn’t as detailed as Itachi knows Wei Wuxian’s drawings can be, but the style matches the calligraphy well.
The context of the painting becomes immediately clear once Itachi reads and translates the text.
伯牙子鼓琴，鍾子期聽之，方鼓而志在太山，鍾子期曰：「善哉乎鼓琴！巍巍乎若太山。」少選之間，而志在流水，鍾子期復曰：「善哉乎鼓琴！湯湯乎若流水。」鍾子期死，伯牙破琴絕絃，終身不復鼓琴，以為世無足為鼓琴者。
Then we'll be there first. To guard them as best we can. [They couldn't keep anyone from messaging them, it was true, but that didn't mean they were entirely helpless.]
And I know you'll be there for Viveca too, when she's ready.
And I know you'll be there for Viveca too, when she's ready.
[He'd expected no less of him.]
I think she'll appreciate getting to hear about it from someone who cares about her. [And not, his words suggest, one of the many Orbers who only turned to her when they needed something. Certainly not from anyone set on interrogating her.]
I think she'll appreciate getting to hear about it from someone who cares about her. [And not, his words suggest, one of the many Orbers who only turned to her when they needed something. Certainly not from anyone set on interrogating her.]
Hey, Itachi?
( it's still not morning just yet. the young man hadn't wanted to sleep with the group - a fair call, considering how loudly a few orbers slept - so bones seeks him out instead, treading familiar ground with dogged tenacity until he finds him. he's still in disarray from sleep, the fastenings of his boots loose, the naephus coat over his pajamas giving him the look of a wild space hobo. chic. )
Y'know, sleeping alone isn't safe.
( it's still not morning just yet. the young man hadn't wanted to sleep with the group - a fair call, considering how loudly a few orbers slept - so bones seeks him out instead, treading familiar ground with dogged tenacity until he finds him. he's still in disarray from sleep, the fastenings of his boots loose, the naephus coat over his pajamas giving him the look of a wild space hobo. chic. )
Y'know, sleeping alone isn't safe.
（ itachi hears him coming from some distance off, and though he had been dozing lightly against the wall, it is enough to stir him to wakefulness. by the time mccoy arrives, he is sitting cross-legged and has produced from some impossible place or another a pot of tea and two cups. ）
Doctor McCoy.
（ it is said with a sort of ascetic pleasantry, neutral and mild. though their conversation was illuminating, he makes no presumptions. ）
Likely not. （ when has danger literally ever stopped him. literally ever. ） Would you like tea?
Doctor McCoy.
（ it is said with a sort of ascetic pleasantry, neutral and mild. though their conversation was illuminating, he makes no presumptions. ）
Likely not. （ when has danger literally ever stopped him. literally ever. ） Would you like tea?
( how does he conjure tea? the mystery of the century. it throws him off, and he blinks at it, indecisive. )
Please.
( bones remains standing, biting at his already-red lower lip. itachi presents such a simple tableau, cozy and welcoming with naught but himself and the small tea set, a fleeting moment all the more precious and beautiful because of its transience. tea will happen once more, but not here, not this way ever again, not as bones shivers as he sifts through the memories that led his feet here. they have come so far, itachi most of all, and the joy filling his heart threatens to overwhelm him. )
I remember you, ( he tells him at last, a warning ahead of action, because bones will risk a squeeze for this. )
Please.
( bones remains standing, biting at his already-red lower lip. itachi presents such a simple tableau, cozy and welcoming with naught but himself and the small tea set, a fleeting moment all the more precious and beautiful because of its transience. tea will happen once more, but not here, not this way ever again, not as bones shivers as he sifts through the memories that led his feet here. they have come so far, itachi most of all, and the joy filling his heart threatens to overwhelm him. )
I remember you, ( he tells him at last, a warning ahead of action, because bones will risk a squeeze for this. )
（ alas the pot is not quite... tea'd up yet, so mccoy is spared from wondering how exactly itachi stores ready-to-drink liquid by the fact he uses a small water jutsu to fill it, and then slaps a warming talisman of wei wuxian's on it to boil.
he is prepared to be polite to a near-stranger, indicated by his placid expression and seamless motion from one act to the next while he makes tea, but the next words out of mccoy's mouth causes a stutter to the movement, and he stills finally with his hands against his thighs.
his jaw works off to one side, and then: ）
I see.
（ he feels... relief? there is something like bone-deep exhaustion in him, weighted like an anchor, but the breath he exhales is steady. ）
I am — grateful to hear it.
he is prepared to be polite to a near-stranger, indicated by his placid expression and seamless motion from one act to the next while he makes tea, but the next words out of mccoy's mouth causes a stutter to the movement, and he stills finally with his hands against his thighs.
his jaw works off to one side, and then: ）
I see.
（ he feels... relief? there is something like bone-deep exhaustion in him, weighted like an anchor, but the breath he exhales is steady. ）
I am — grateful to hear it.
( the stutter, brief as it is, makes his heart flip. bones finds himself exhaling as well, a release of anxious tension into the station air.
lowering himself to his knees beside him, as if intending to sit seiza in the same fashion, bones gives up any attempt to not be foolishly emotional, and gathers itachi to him in a solid embrace. )
Yeah. I missed you too.
lowering himself to his knees beside him, as if intending to sit seiza in the same fashion, bones gives up any attempt to not be foolishly emotional, and gathers itachi to him in a solid embrace. )
Yeah. I missed you too.
（ oh is he getting hugged, is that happening now.
itachi is pliant beneath the man's embrace, not resisting but not especially participant either. the hug is awkward, pulled over sideways and pressed into mccoy's side under his arm. itachi has to drop his shoulder so he doesn't just bull into the man's ribcage.
for a long moment, it seems that non-reaction is the only response mccoy will get. and then he lifts his arm up, and lets his fingers hook into the fabric at mccoy's opposite shoulder. there is a very faint sense of him leaning into the man's side, letting him take the ghost of his weight. mccoy is solidly built, but more than that there is a sense of... foundation to him in a way most people lack. he may have the skill and knowledge to heal the body, but itachi has never met anyone more aptly able to guard the heart.
he could argue semantics. mccoy couldn't miss what he didn't know. but it is the spirit of the thing, he thinks, that the man is trying to convey. ）
I —
（ hm. ）
Would strongly recommend you not attempt any more forays into corrupted files, Doctor.
itachi is pliant beneath the man's embrace, not resisting but not especially participant either. the hug is awkward, pulled over sideways and pressed into mccoy's side under his arm. itachi has to drop his shoulder so he doesn't just bull into the man's ribcage.
for a long moment, it seems that non-reaction is the only response mccoy will get. and then he lifts his arm up, and lets his fingers hook into the fabric at mccoy's opposite shoulder. there is a very faint sense of him leaning into the man's side, letting him take the ghost of his weight. mccoy is solidly built, but more than that there is a sense of... foundation to him in a way most people lack. he may have the skill and knowledge to heal the body, but itachi has never met anyone more aptly able to guard the heart.
he could argue semantics. mccoy couldn't miss what he didn't know. but it is the spirit of the thing, he thinks, that the man is trying to convey. ）
I —
（ hm. ）
Would strongly recommend you not attempt any more forays into corrupted files, Doctor.
[The place Itachi finds is a simple one bedroom residence perfectly suited to their needs while they remain in Ankata. It sits on the second story of an empty business that Itachi intends to make use of and the slight elevation makes for a pretty view of the harbor town from the top of the stairs. Wei Wuxian is pleased to find a shoe rack at the entryway and he wastes no time kicking off his boots and making use of it. It had taken them most of the day to decide where they would settle and secure accommodations, which means that the sun has just finished sinking beneath the horizon as they enter.]
Are you hungry? [He asks, tearing his eyes away from the view of the setting sun through a window in the main room to fix Itachi with a questioning look. They'd eaten on the road early after their arrival and then later in town, but it's been some time since then. Wei Wuxian moves from the main living space to the adjacent kitchen, pulling his qiankun pouch from a pocket and swiftly producing a couple of apples that he sets on the narrow kitchen counter.
It's habit by now to bring a decent amount of nonperishable rations in his qiankun pouch, but it's always nice to bring a few fresher foods just for convenience's sake. Whether they eat the fruit tonight or tomorrow morning, it'll save them an extra trip as they settle in.]
Are you hungry? [He asks, tearing his eyes away from the view of the setting sun through a window in the main room to fix Itachi with a questioning look. They'd eaten on the road early after their arrival and then later in town, but it's been some time since then. Wei Wuxian moves from the main living space to the adjacent kitchen, pulling his qiankun pouch from a pocket and swiftly producing a couple of apples that he sets on the narrow kitchen counter.
It's habit by now to bring a decent amount of nonperishable rations in his qiankun pouch, but it's always nice to bring a few fresher foods just for convenience's sake. Whether they eat the fruit tonight or tomorrow morning, it'll save them an extra trip as they settle in.]
No.
（ the journey was neither long nor hard. sedate travel is still enough of a novelty to him that he's not quite certain how to feel about it. he is no longer one who looks for danger in every shadow (only most of them) and behind every blade of grass, but in a way that almost makes it worse.
he is not jumpy. but he is restless in a way he has come to recognize as an incompatibility with the tenets of the worlds to which they visit. it is telling, perhaps, that the most comfortable he has been on any of the many, many worlds on which he has now set foot was e-23b — a place torn by war and a violent police state.
he does not wear peace well, for all that every part of him craves it as desperately as a man craves water in the desert.
but wei ying blunts the edge of his unsettled nature, and by the time they are ready to retire for the evening proper he is... as contented as he ever is, these days. he's changed into sleeping clothing, and his hair is still damp from a shower as they make the transition between rooms.
the room is a simple one, furnished with a single small bed and a desk. it's utilitarian in a way that speaks to him, more monkish sanctuary than mansion, and itachi folds his pack up on itself, puts it on the floor and follows it down. he has a book tucked under one arm on the local laws and customs, with a focus on the bylaws that govern cubit care, and he leans against his pack the way one might a pillow, obviously intent on reading. it isn't a dismissal or a clear barrier to conversation, which his companion surely is aware of by now — it's more that itachi is a fucking nerd who loves to read, tbqh. ）
（ the journey was neither long nor hard. sedate travel is still enough of a novelty to him that he's not quite certain how to feel about it. he is no longer one who looks for danger in every shadow (only most of them) and behind every blade of grass, but in a way that almost makes it worse.
he is not jumpy. but he is restless in a way he has come to recognize as an incompatibility with the tenets of the worlds to which they visit. it is telling, perhaps, that the most comfortable he has been on any of the many, many worlds on which he has now set foot was e-23b — a place torn by war and a violent police state.
he does not wear peace well, for all that every part of him craves it as desperately as a man craves water in the desert.
but wei ying blunts the edge of his unsettled nature, and by the time they are ready to retire for the evening proper he is... as contented as he ever is, these days. he's changed into sleeping clothing, and his hair is still damp from a shower as they make the transition between rooms.
the room is a simple one, furnished with a single small bed and a desk. it's utilitarian in a way that speaks to him, more monkish sanctuary than mansion, and itachi folds his pack up on itself, puts it on the floor and follows it down. he has a book tucked under one arm on the local laws and customs, with a focus on the bylaws that govern cubit care, and he leans against his pack the way one might a pillow, obviously intent on reading. it isn't a dismissal or a clear barrier to conversation, which his companion surely is aware of by now — it's more that itachi is a fucking nerd who loves to read, tbqh. ）
[The decision to stay together in Ankata had barely been a conversation as it had seemed only a natural conclusion. Perhaps if it were the sort of mission that required more stealth or subterfuge, they'd have needed to make more strategic plans, but as things were, none of that was necessary this time around. Wei Wuxian hadn't given much thought to it when they'd briefly discussed it, so it isn't until they enter the bedroom with the single bed that it occurs to him that there was anything else they needed to work out.
His eyes fall onto the room's only bed and he pauses, not in concern or shock, but in consideration, and then they follow Itachi to where he sits on the floor.
Would Itachi prefer the floor even if he doesn't have his futon? Would he immediately dismiss the idea of sharing a bed? The thoughts are dismissed as quickly as they come, and Wei Wuxian unsticks himself, casually moving to one side of the bed and pulling back the blankets. His own damp hair is secured on top of his head in a messy bun, and he sits on the edge of the bed as he releases it from said bun, combing his fingers through it to get out any remaining tangles.
He remains quiet for a moment longer before he draws up the courage to broach the subject.]
Hey. Do you want to share the bed with me? [He bites back the need to immediately follow it up with you don't have to. There is being presumptuous and then there is knowing where they stand, and he's fairly sure he's doing an okay job of leaning towards the latter.]
His eyes fall onto the room's only bed and he pauses, not in concern or shock, but in consideration, and then they follow Itachi to where he sits on the floor.
Would Itachi prefer the floor even if he doesn't have his futon? Would he immediately dismiss the idea of sharing a bed? The thoughts are dismissed as quickly as they come, and Wei Wuxian unsticks himself, casually moving to one side of the bed and pulling back the blankets. His own damp hair is secured on top of his head in a messy bun, and he sits on the edge of the bed as he releases it from said bun, combing his fingers through it to get out any remaining tangles.
He remains quiet for a moment longer before he draws up the courage to broach the subject.]
Hey. Do you want to share the bed with me? [He bites back the need to immediately follow it up with you don't have to. There is being presumptuous and then there is knowing where they stand, and he's fairly sure he's doing an okay job of leaning towards the latter.]
Edited 2023-07-11 03:38 (UTC)
（ he hesitates on turning a page, fingers sliding over the unfamiliar language. the earpiece may translate it automatically, but he still enjoys the tactile pattern recognition of the sharingan, piecing the unfamiliar language together like a code.
they have not spent much time dwelling on whatever unspoken thing has occurred between them. there was little time between the return to the station, the new arrivals, and now the new mission at hand. but the question is not lightly asked, and he does not lightly answer — that faint hesitance bleeds into a nod, and he stands after a moment.
he resists the urge to make a clone that can haunt the grounds outside while they rest, but he does eventually come around to the side of the bed nearer the door. if he had anticipated awkwardness, there is none as he sits, nor shifts himself under the shared blanket. the book accompanies him, his thumb tucked in along its pages against its inner bend to mark his place.
the only warning comes — ）
I likely will not sleep. So long as that does not bother you.
（ which is less a consequence of wei ying's presence at all, and more because the house is unfamiliar, the world is unfamiliar, and he always sleeps far less than he should while they are on-mission to begin with. ）
they have not spent much time dwelling on whatever unspoken thing has occurred between them. there was little time between the return to the station, the new arrivals, and now the new mission at hand. but the question is not lightly asked, and he does not lightly answer — that faint hesitance bleeds into a nod, and he stands after a moment.
he resists the urge to make a clone that can haunt the grounds outside while they rest, but he does eventually come around to the side of the bed nearer the door. if he had anticipated awkwardness, there is none as he sits, nor shifts himself under the shared blanket. the book accompanies him, his thumb tucked in along its pages against its inner bend to mark his place.
the only warning comes — ）
I likely will not sleep. So long as that does not bother you.
（ which is less a consequence of wei ying's presence at all, and more because the house is unfamiliar, the world is unfamiliar, and he always sleeps far less than he should while they are on-mission to begin with. ）
[Feeling a little giddy with Itachi's agreement, he tilts his head and fixes him with a lopsided smile.]
You sleep? [he teases, eyes bright with mirth. He slips his own feet beneath the covers and remains sitting up for now, his back resting against the headboard in parallel to Itachi. In the wake of Gwen's departure they had slept side by side, but it is a very different thing to sleep that way out of a sorrowful desire for comfort than because they simply want to be near each other.
And Wei Wuxian wants to be near him. Knowing that as he sleeps Itachi is within arm's reach makes him feel settled in a way he's never known before. He hugs his knees over the blanket and beams softly at Itachi. Sorry were you trying to read or something?]
You sleep? [he teases, eyes bright with mirth. He slips his own feet beneath the covers and remains sitting up for now, his back resting against the headboard in parallel to Itachi. In the wake of Gwen's departure they had slept side by side, but it is a very different thing to sleep that way out of a sorrowful desire for comfort than because they simply want to be near each other.
And Wei Wuxian wants to be near him. Knowing that as he sleeps Itachi is within arm's reach makes him feel settled in a way he's never known before. He hugs his knees over the blanket and beams softly at Itachi. Sorry were you trying to read or something?]
I have been known, on rare occasion, to partake.
（ his tone is desert dry, but not unfond as he gives the man a pointed look over his nicely bound novel.
the beaming is — cute, he would admit. but it needs to be able to compete with the subject matter in which he's embroiled for his interest, and as yet has not quite managed it.
he does reach out with the hand that isn't occupied splaying the book open and turning the pages, and lets his fingers encircle the man's wrist. such a small thing, that touch, but nevertheless it is present and steady. a stroke of his thumb along the radial artery becomes a gentle repetitive motion, as long as wei ying permits the touch. ）
（ his tone is desert dry, but not unfond as he gives the man a pointed look over his nicely bound novel.
the beaming is — cute, he would admit. but it needs to be able to compete with the subject matter in which he's embroiled for his interest, and as yet has not quite managed it.
he does reach out with the hand that isn't occupied splaying the book open and turning the pages, and lets his fingers encircle the man's wrist. such a small thing, that touch, but nevertheless it is present and steady. a stroke of his thumb along the radial artery becomes a gentle repetitive motion, as long as wei ying permits the touch. ）
[For a couple of minutes, Wei Wuxian is content to sit quietly and study Itachi's form. Itachi is certainly not unaware, though he seems unbothered by it as he reads his book and so Wei Wuxian takes full advantage, mentally mapping the hair that falls beside his eyes, the focus of his gaze, the line of his nose, and the plush of his lips. His hand remains still beneath Itachi's touch, and his own lips curve into a mischievous smile as he lets out a soft hum.]
You know, [he starts conversationally] my eyes are working especially well tonight. [He taps at his temple with one finger, lips twitching upwards.]
I thought you should know.
You know, [he starts conversationally] my eyes are working especially well tonight. [He taps at his temple with one finger, lips twitching upwards.]
I thought you should know.
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