deadwenwalking | ic inbox (aefenglom)

I...

[He looks a little sheepish.]

I'm still not used to being able to, ah... to just interact with others normally. And people seem to keep disappearing.

I'm afraid I might be bad luck.

Wen Ning!

[ apparently, his words are enough for nami to actually switch on the video function, just so he can see her pointing at him, eyes blazing. clearly she has Thoughts about this. ]

That's nonsense! None of us can affect who stays and who goes, here... do you think Yanli-chan would have left if she'd been given the chance to stay? The same goes for A-Xian. Whatever the reason that this world made him return... it's not your fault!

A-ah...

[Wen Ning visibly leans back away from the screen as if this might save him from Nami's admonishment.]

I-I'm sorry. I know. I know I have no say over it.

It's... it's just the uncomfortable feeling in my gut.

Oh no — why are you apologizing?

[ she frowns, realizing she must have scared him... the poor guy. oh! well, in that case — ]

Look... your gut is trying to trick you into believing something that's not true.

You know what? Come and have some tea and cake with me! If you're not used to talking to people a lot... then let's start practising!

[Has he not offended her? That's good, at least. Her personality type isn't one he's used to dealing with.]

I-Is that appropriate? You're, ah. You're Sect Leader Jiang's bonded. I'm not sure he'd appreciate it.

[Also a woman. A very well-endowed woman. He feels as if just looking at her is taboo. If she's a romantic interest of the man he doesn't want to risk literally having his legs broken.]

[ oh, if only he knew how difficult it is to offend her...

though, his comment makes her sigh and shake her head. ]

Eh, and what of it? I'm not about to let him tell me who I can be friends with! And if he disapproves, then he should take it up with me, not you!

[ if he ever dares to try to tell her what to do or not do, she'll tell him in clear words just what she thinks of that... not that she thinks he ever would. jiang cheng knows her well enough to know she'll do exactly what she wants. ]

So the only reason for you to say no is if you don't want to be my friend.

[He shakes his head vehemently.]

N-no! I mean. No, I wouldn't say that I don't want to be your friend! You seem very nice. It would be rude of me not to accept your invitation.

[Then he bows at the screen, the movement causing his device to fall over from where he's set it on its side. (In hindsight, not the best way to use it.) He's quick to right it again.]

Did you... really want me to come over right now?

[ oh no, he's such a mess..... it's rather adorable. he's like a puppy, she thinks fondly, and she can see why wei wuxian would have wanted to befriend him. she barely knows him, and she already feels a strong instinct to protect him.

as he rights the device, she taps her cheek. ]

Maybe we could go out for lunch? Or how do you feel about cake and coffee — or tea? Though if you want to come over, you could meet Tangerine.

[That really does sound like a date! Wen Ning likes having use of his legs, and it sure would be a shame if Jiang Cheng decided to go and break one. Or both. But he's basically already agreed to this. It would be rude to back away now.]

T-tea is... tea is fine. [Though he doesn't like the tea here as much as the tea he's used to back in his world, he's even less a fan of the overly sweetened desserts they have here.]

Or. Whatever you would prefer.

[ what is it with Ye Olden People and thinking men and women can't just be friends and hang out??

at his lackluster reply, nami just sighs and mutters, ]

Never before has a man seemed less enthusiastic to spend time with me...

[ maybe that's the problem. maybe wen ning isn't used to just hanging out with people. she wonders if he'd be more comfortable with having something to do. ] Right, here's what we're going to do. I'll give you the address to my house, I'll have Sanji-kun make some food for us, and then you can train with me. Or play with Tangerine, or help me with gardening. Whatever we feel like doing. Does that sound alright?

Y-yes...

[Wen Ning nods immediately, hating that he's been such a failure at this. It's no wonder he doesn't have any bonds yet.

The last woman outside of anyone from his family to have done anything kind for him had been Jiang Yanli, and he'd later repaid her (even if not on purpose) by killing her husband. That's not a concern here and he knows it. All the same, her connection to Jiang Cheng doesn't alleviate his concerns.]

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be difficult.

No, no, it's okay, [ she sighs and smiles at him, genuine and not at all annoyed despite all this not having gone nearly as smoothly as she thought it would. ]

We established that you need practice, right? So don't apologise! Just be yourself, and you'll get used to hanging out with friends eventually.

[ after a moment, she sends him the address, along with a picture of the house — more a cottage than a real house, as he'll see, with a garden barely visible over the fence. ]

I'll see you soon!

Mn!

[He agrees with a quick nod and a small smile before ending the call.

It isn't too hard to find when it comes time for him to be there. He shows up looking somewhat fidgety with a winged bunny on one shoulder.]

[ as soon as he shows up, though, nami is there to open the gate for him. ]

You made it, great! [ she may have thought he might bail on her... but he didn't, so she's delighted.

then, noticing the bunny, her smile widens. ]

Aw, who's this? So cute!

[Wen Ning already feels as though he's in over his head. How is he supposed to deal with this kind of energy?]

That's, ah... That's Flappy. My familiar.

[Before they'd disappeared, he'd been offered the chance to look at the flying rabbits owned by Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji to see if one might work as a familiar. This is what he'd ended up with. It's not as good as an actual bond, but it should give him more time to find one.

The small rabbit sniffs in her direction, then begins wiggling its way into Wen Ning's collar.]

[The witch bows politely.] Thank you for having me...

[ fortunately for him, as nami starts to lead him to the garden, her energy calms into something perhaps more manageable — she's always bright and excitable, but it's more of a simmer now than a boil. ]

So you did get a familiar! That's good... I'm glad. Has he helped you?

[ she doesn't seem to care one way or the other about his politeness, just waving her hand for him to follow her. ]

H-he has. Yes.

[Wen Ning might have had what he considers the equivalent of a qi deviation now if not for this small furry winged lump. He's still short a bonded, and that needs to change. The familiar will only help for so long before even that power transference isn't enough.

He relaxes a bit more as he follows her. Though in the back of his mind he reminds himself that this is a place Jiang Cheng lives in too, so he needs to be on his best behavior all around.]

Master Wei recommended I look at the litter... so I did.

[ she leads him to the courtyard: there's a very small archery range, there, along with a clear space where there's foot prints etched on the ground that speak of sword forms.

but a little to the side, there's a patch of ground that's been tilled into neat rows, with little green stalks sprouting from the earth. it's nami's little addition to the garden. ]

Oh, that's good! See, this is why you listen to your friends. [ she motions for him to follow her to the gardening patch. ]

Do you want to help me weed this? Wei Wuxian said that he knew how to grow plants, so I thought maybe you do as well... [ lowering her voice, she grins, ] A-Cheng's hopeless, but don't let him know I said that!

O-oh, I won't. I would never. [Well, to be fair, he can't say he wouldn't ever call Jiang Cheng hopeless. He's come very close to it before. He won't do it in regards to gardening, though, now that Nami has insisted.

Unfortunately Wei Wuxian's knowledge of gardening doesn't extend beyond Wei Wuxian. Wen Ning had helped out a little, but his friend had been very particular about his lotus crops and didn't want too many other hands digging around in their mud.

His tasks had mostly been regulated to heavy lifting and cooking. What gardening he'd done had involved their daikon radish patches, and those were notoriously hardy plants.]

I-I can try... But. You would need to point out what to pull up. The plants in this place aren't all the same as the ones that grow in my world.

[His world isn't completely alien to this one, but the time period and global locale vary greatly. He doesn't want to get the crops mistaken for the weeds or the other way around.]

Edited 2021-04-13 01:07 (UTC)

Oh, that's alright! You can watch what I do, at first, and then just pull up everything that looks the same as what I'm pulling up.

[ easy, right? she pats the lawn next to her, crouching there next to her little garden as she starts to pick out the little patches of grass and other weeds that have made their way there. ]

So... why don't you tell me a little about yourself? I realise I don't really know much about you, Wen Ning. Oh, or we could trade? If you have things you want to know about me, too.

[That does sound reasonable, so Wen Ning nods. He's hesitant to sit beside her when she motions for him to, but he doesn't want to hover over her either. He decides on a kneeling position, so he looks the most attentive. Then he watches with interest.]

Trade...? I'm not sure what I would ask. I-I don't want to pry...

[Talking about himself can get awkward too. He'll have to approach things from the most basic perspective possible.] I'm just a friend of Master Wei's. He helped my family out when we were in dire straights, so... I tried to help him out where I could.

[It doesn't get any more basic than that.]

[ luckily, the potato and tomato stalks are easy enough to differentiate from the other, more round-leaved small weeds; though nami won't do anything to hurry him, just letting him start working when he feels comfortable. ]

Don't worry, it's not prying if I'm giving you permission!

[ that's logical, right? ]

I'm sure you're selling yourself short... but alright. Hm, what about your interests? What do you like to do? Do you have any hobbies? Oh — do you do the whole cultivation thing too?

[ today on: straw hats and their tendency to call serious and important things with...... far less serious and important names ]

[If Nami knows several of the other cultivators that were brought here, then of course she's going to know at least a little bit about cultivation. Though the question gives him a moment's pause, since he's not sure he can entirely call himself a typical cultivator at this point.]

I... did. Sort of. I wasn't as good as them.

[He smiles gently, standing and moving to where he can start helping her pull the weeds out, now that he knows what they look like.]

I used to... practice archery. But I haven't done that in a while.

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