kiss_it_better

[ Chang Geng's joyous smile lifts his heart. Why had he waited at all for this? Rather than dithering about the "right time," he should have given this thing to Chang Geng immediately.

While he's immersed in such thoughts, the ring resizes to fit his finger perfectly as well. The rush of chroma takes him by surprise, and he gasps. He'd been told the rings' special powers wouldn't take effect until the wearers were intimate with one another. He'd taken that to mean, after they've been put on. But because he and Chang Geng have been intimate with each other—so many times—the chroma-boosting effect engages at once.

He leans in, to kiss Chang Geng again, but doesn't linger. That rush of chroma reminds him why he'd picked the wrong time to do this. ]

Chang Geng. I need your help.

[Having the ring put on him hadn't been that strange, but the moment it's also on Gu Yun he feels a sudden influx of Chroma that takes him by surprise enough that his hand twitches, gripping Gu Yun's hand more tightly for a second.

He's still trying to figure out what was going on when he's kissed. The moonlacing...it feels different, though the kiss ended too quickly for him to pinpoint exactly what had changed.

Between the proposal and all these surprises...he's a little dizzy with all these developments. But at least his answer will never change.]

Of course. [Then, because he can't help it, he brings Gu Yun's hand up to place a kiss on his fingers.] Anything for you.

[ Those kisses feel subtly different; he is overwhelmed with happiness, but it's as if he's experiences someone else's happiness as well; the sensation is as alien as it is familiar.

He doesn't have time to puzzle over this, using their joined hands to lift Chang Geng from the bed. ]

Good. Come with me, we've just got to....

[ Suddenly, everything changes. ]

[ The thing about n-dimensional rifts, being inside is the same as being outside, as far as they're concerned. An opening in the sky might as well be an opening in the earth, and whether you're ready for them or not, they take you.

Gu Yun has been through this before: the sickening sensation of being upside down and inside out, of feeling the entire universe shrunk down to a point that his body has to pass through. Last time he'd appeared on the barren surface of this planet, with death and destruction all around. ]

[ ......but not this time.

This time, his hand is still joined to Chang Geng's. The ring encircling his finger is pulsing with a comforting flow of chroma.

He's standing in the courtyard of a house. His house. Their house. A house on Level 1, a stone's throw from the Moon Knight headquarters. He's clad in a uniform decorated with ornamental golden pauldrons.

In an instant, he knows. Somehow the information has inserted itself into his head, as if it has always been there. He is the Knight Captain. ]

I should be home early tonight.

[ He is saying this to Chang Geng. ]

[ His eyes focus on Chang Geng's face. He's in his early thirties, it seems.
That is, it's said, the best time of life for a man. His figure has filled out a little more: he's taller, his shoulders a little broader.

Gu Yun stares at him, transfixed by beauty. ]

[ Finally, he takes a shuddering breath, and calls out: ]

Chang Geng!

[ Dread and confusion give way to relief: they're together. He draws Chang Geng into his arms, holding him tight. ]

[The moment the rift opened, Chang Geng's grip tightened, moving closer to Gu Yun, prepared to hold on more securely if needed.

But then the world resolved itself into something different but not threatening. He feels a little different physically but it also felt like he's been like this a while.

The house is also strange but familiar in the same breath and when he looked around he felt a strong sense of vaguely befuddled fondness.

He didn't understand Gu Yun's interests in design and landscaping but he appreciated his enthusiasm never the less.

He turned back to Gu Yun when he mentioned returning early, thinking (as if remembering) that he was going to go buy a nicer wine to go with dinner. Gu Yun could have one cup since it's their anniversary.

Their ten year anniversary.

The thought was comforting and confusing in equal measures not only because he could still remember sitting beside Gu Yun after the siege, not knowing if he'd survive, but also because Gu Yun is healthy enough to have a cup of alcohol.

Their house in nice area (and the house it self was far nicer than the one they had in Caihong) Gu Yun's promotion, none of it was as wonderful to him as the fact that they would have many more anniversaries to come.

He stared in return, thinking, no matter what age Gu Yun was he was still so lovely...all the more so because he knows Gu Yun always expected to die young.

He's still trying to make sense of what was happening when he's pulled into an embrace. It's instinct to return it.]

Zi Xi...what's happening?

[ It's a long moment before he releases Chang Geng from the embrace. It's partially from relief, and partially because he's still getting used to the way moonlacing now feels, enhanced by the rings.

Eventually he does draw away, and looks up. Gu Yun's eyes crinkle a bit more when he smiles, but otherwise age doesn't seem to have affected him. If anything, he looks healthier at 38 than he did in his mid-twenties. There's color in his cheeks, and his hands are warm. ]

The scientists at Lunar Scientiae call it a "dimensional rift." Um... a "crack in spacetime," those were the words they used. I was just going to repair one of them, when I woke you up. When I asked you to help me, I —

[ He's interrupted by a sudden rush of clucking. A flock of chickens, clad in all manner of fancy feather patterns, come dashing through the yard. ]

[The chickens came at a good time because he had a split second of concern when he realized that what Gu Yun probably wanted help with probably involved repairing these rifts. That left the question: was the proposal also related to the rifts?

But in the next second, that concern was dismissed. Gu Yun said a lot of nonsense and teased a lot but when it came to things like this, he wouldn't be anything but serious.

Whether the rifts had anything to do with the timing or not, the words and the proposal were most certainly sincere.

He smiled and knew, as if it were something he did everyday that the reason for the sudden noise was because the chickens needed to be fed.]

They haven't eaten yet.

[Whether the chickens in this rift were real or not, Chang Geng didn't intend to leave them to starve. So he headed over to where the chicken feed was kept.]

How are these rifts repaired?

[ One of the chickens—black with a fancy ruff of white feathers around its neck—runs up to Gu Yun with its wings flapping. It makes a low clucking noise, baaak baaaaaak. Instinctively knowing it wants to be picked up, he crouches down and lifts the bird, cradling it in his arms.

Idly he strokes its soft feathers. Most animals can't stand his itchy fingers, but this one doesn't seem to mind it, seeking his attention out in fact.

Chuckling helplessly, he looks up at Chang Geng. ]

With chroma.

[ A beat. His chicken, seeing that it's feeding time, struggles out of his arms, flapping to the ground and running over to join the rest of the flock. Gu Yun exhales. ]

I know what you want to ask. I've had those rings in my pocket for weeks now, waiting for the right time.

[ He smiles sheepishly, glancing away. ]

You could say this was a "right time," of sorts, but not entirely what I had in mind. Forgive me.

[The feed is a little different from what he'd been feeding their two hens. He remembers the logic of how he'd come to adjust it and it was all very reasonable though it was a little odd to remember it even though he hadn't done it yet.

He scatters the feed for the chickens to peck at and had to hide a smile at the way Gu Yun spoils these birds.

Gu Yun guessing his thoughts was a little embarrassing. He didn't mind being reassured but he also knows his thoughts were foolish.

His returning smile then is also a little sheepish.]

I know you wouldn't have said it if you didn't mean it. As long as that's true, it doesn't matter to me whether it is the right time or not.

[Though he was also aware that that wasn't the same for Gu Yun. He always worried about these sorts of things more between the two of them.

When it came to things like that, whether it's the timing of a proposal or even clothing or food, he had very little opinions about them and even fewer standards when it comes to himself.

Which is probably why most days Gu Yun picks out his outfits. It was something he just accepts happens most days and he doesn't mind it, to be honest.]

Is there an exit to these rifts?

[ He shakes his head, walking over to Chang Geng. ]

Not that I've found. I fell into one yesterday. It led to a time in the distant past. The world was...

[ He looks up. The morning sun is shining, and fluffy white clouds drift lazily through clear sky. Birdsong fills the pristine air. Everything seems to glitter. ]

...very different.

[ He hesitates, deliberating whether to explain the planet's devastation, when voices cut him off... ]

[ Gu Yan! Gu Yan, are you ready? Gu Yan!

He looks up. It's a gaggle of Prismal children crowding around the gate. He doesn't have time to wonder who this Gu Yan could be, before the sound of little feet appear behind him. He turns.

Go ahead, my daddies are walking me to school today.

"Gu Yan" is a native Prismal girl, about six years old, with pointed ears and a bushy wolf tail. Did they.... did they adopt her?

Right? Gu Yan looks up at them, reaching up to tug on their respective sleeves. Since you're making me stay at Uncle Chu's tonight. ]

[ Gu Yun, still speechless, looks down at her for a long moment, and then up at Chang Geng. Their eyes are the same. And this is when his memories align. This was magic (he can think of no better word) of the Lunar Scientiae. This girl is blood-related to both of them, like a natural child: her eyes Chang Geng's, her facial structure Gu Yun's.

Hadn't he once daydreamed about wanting a daughter? ]

And how did you learn to be so spoiled?

[ He reaches down to pat her head, while smiling up at Chang Geng. It's almost painful, as if his heart will break from joy. ]

[Knowing how Gu Yun is the sort to only give good news it's not hard to guess that what he saw had been unpleasant.

...the past...could it be during the catastrophe that caused this place to lose its Chroma?

He'd already reached out to take Gu Yun's hand when the chorus of voices started.]

[When the girl steps into view Chang Geng is immediately struck by the resemblance. He had wondered idly what Gu Yun would have looked like as a child....now he had a little idea.

He doesn't immediately recognize the features that resembled his own, so taken he was by observing all the ways she looked like the single most important person in his life.

And then there's another memory, of holding an informational pamphlet in his hands and realizing that...they could have this.

Chang Geng was a practical sort. He preferred to focus on problems that could be solved rather than ones that were impossible.

A child carrying both their bloodlines shouldn't exist. It had taken everything he could just to keep one Gu Yun safe. A blood descendant of both Yuan He Emperor and Emperor Wu...even if he could protect the child what about after? Will they lovingly raise a child only for them to grow up and suffer because of who their parents were?

Besides that, any lingering regret he may have had over the fact that Gu Yun probably would have liked to be a father were easily dispelled because neither of them could have children so there had never been a point in wanting what couldn't be.

But in this place, none of those things were concerns. Stripped of all those things, the only question they had to answer was if they wanted to or not.

And he remembered, sitting at Gu Yun's side as they looked through the pamphlet together, that he wanted to very much.]

He smiled a little helplessly.]

Isn't it because you keep spoiling her?

[And yet he doesn't reprimand her either.]

Did you remember to pack your homework?

[The homework, he recalled, that he'd had to explain to her the night before. Because she asked for help and even though he knew she knew he sat with her anyway. He hadn't quite figured out how to say no to her when she looks so much like Gu Yun. Besides, it doesn't hurt to have something repeated, surely.]

[ Gu Yun chuckles. She is their precious daughter; naturally, he spoils her. Chang Geng spoils her too, by fussing over her. When Gu Yan nods that she does indeed have her homework, Gu Yan reaches down to take her hand. ]

Come on, then. Let's not be late. Oh — speaking of spoiling, don't let Uncle Chu give you so much candy.

[ Throughout his time upon this planet, he's seen people come and go. That the two of them might one day be sent home is something he's accepted; not only that, but if he were called on to make a choice about that, he would absolutely go back. Before, it was simply a matter of leaving behind an idyllic life, free from war and court politics. But supposing this timeline is illusory, and they must in the end return back to present-day Prismatica, and from there one day go home...

He squeezes Gu Yan's hand gently. This is the potential future they'll be leaving behind. He feels a painful knot forming in his chest. But for her sake and for Chang Geng's, he smiles through it. ]

[He takes her other hand and simultaneously he's struck by the thought that it was so little which contrasted with the thought of how much bigger she's gotten compared to the memory of her tiny hands when she was still an infant.

He always gives her too much candy. Because the man in question had no concept of too many sweets.

Still, over time Chang Geng has realized the best solution was simply to send Gu Yan with food. At least, Uncle Chu would make sure she ate everything.

But he can't bring himself to complain about it right now. Because for all that Gu Yun wanted to spare him, Chang Geng himself was more than aware of the situation.

Whether or not this was what the future was going to entail didn't matter. If they had been given a chance to return they would take it. If Gu Yan had already been born Chang Geng would have brought her with them no matter how much trouble it might cause him or how hard he'd have to work to keep her safe and hidden.

But if they return to the time they'd come from, where she was not yet born and leaving would mean she never would be...he would give up on this future to return.

It wasn't fair and it was painful but his smile doesn't show a fraction of that (or how he wondered if his mother had felt anything like this when she died, leaving him behind...the answer was probably no and yet he couldn't help but wonder, if only for a second...)]

Yan-er is a good child.

[It would normally be a reminder to not eat too many sweets. Sometimes it might even be just praise. They were not words he said often because he (remembers) has read parenting books and it was more important to praise the effort than praise the child.

Today, it's a soft and sincere apology. I'm sorry I can't choose you. It's nothing you did wrong..]

Tomorrow I will make your favourites for dinner.

[ The school is nearby, only a few blocks away; he wishes it were farther. Every moment holding Gu Yan's small hand seems too short. She basks in the attention, chattering happily about the chickens and the frog pond and her friends and an insect she'd found yesterday and whether robots have feelings, leaping from topic to topic with no proper beginning or end—just like one of her fathers.

At the school gate she hugs them both and begs for kisses and runs to catch up with the gaggle of friends she'd told to go ahead.

He watches her go. Once she turns away from them and hurries into the schoolhouse, his expression becomes complicated. Softly, he exhales, turning to Chang Geng: ]

This kind of future, I wouldn't mind it.

[ He chooses his words carefully. Not that he would stretch out his hand for it, but that he could accept it, if staying here is what fate holds for him.

If it doesn't, he will accept that, too. ]

[He considers telling her to stay. Surely taking a day off school wouldn't be so terrible.

And yet, he knew that would be thr wrong choice so he let her go with a quick kiss to her forehead and after tucking her hair behind her ear.

His own expression doesn't change much but his eyes linger where he last saw her as if trying to commit her to memory.

Finally he let out a soft breath, not quite a sigh but reminiscent of one.]

It would be easy yo be comfortable in a life like this

[and yet, like Gu Yun he wouldn't stay if given the choice.

Yet to say he wouldn't reach for any of it and try to grab hold of it...

He focused on some of those memories, trying to bring the past of this world to the forefrontof his mind and he thought, between the two of them he had always been the greedier one.

Still he decides to keep his thoughts to himself for the moment, just in case everything in this dimension was merely nonsense.

He took Gu Yun's hand.]

You would make a good father.

[ Not only watching Gu Yan, he also watches Chang Geng with her. He'd been treated with such cruelty as a child; and yet, he has so much love and kindness to give his own daughter. Truly it is something heartshaking to watch. Even if he wouldn't grasp such a future for himself, how could he fail to do so for Chang Geng?

...

If only things were that simple. If he had to worry only about the happiness of his lover—no, his husband—how simple life would be. ]

[ He squeezes Chang Geng's hand in return, and pulls a face. ]

You, of all people, telling me that.

[ That person who insists on calling him "yifu" in bed, how shameless! ]

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