openmisc | Pagan/Huaisang

"Ah! No, no. I don't need to send the messenger. Just let me go," he tells the guards at the gates, waving them away as he walks straight through with his sword at his side, his entourage behind him. They walks in with their white robes, though Pagan is in red and black, and he breathes in the Impure Realm. He hasn't been here since the death of the Nie clan leader, but he's been aiming to check on their newest leader. It's been a dark time for them, for all of them, but he still feels more than a twinge of affection for the boy.

Well, man. He's been a man for several years now, but it doesn't seem like anything has changed.

Still, he promised he'd continue to offer support, so he walks on, ignoring the protests of the guards.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

threedontknows

Any of the great clans - not the Lan, surely, with their focus on peace and genteel cultivation, or the Jiang, who at the time were either still run by the kind and generous Sect Leader Jiang or no one at all. Not the Nie, of course, they never would cross a close ally.

It left the Jin or the Wen.

He can read Pagan’s posture, the tightness in his face. He frowns. “How old was she?” he asks softly.

He wants to know what happened to his wife and son. They were still alive - are they not now? But one question at a time.

From:

crab_rangoon

He lets out a breath. "We had been preparing for her second birthday," he tells him softly.

From:

threedontknows

She wasn't even two. Whoever had crept into Min Pagan's family home had murdered a baby. He feels himself visibly recoil, disgusted and horrified. There had been atrocities committed during the war with the Wen, young disciples butchered, the dead raised, people tortured -- but murdering a child for whatever political purpose it had served is one of the worst things he'd ever heard.

"And your wife? Your son?" he asks softly, almost dreading the answer.

From:

crab_rangoon

"Alive. Living safely across the borders where no one dares to go. She cannot stand to look at this place any longer. And a boy needs his mother."

It was the lie he told himself to let them go. Ishwari's grief could not be quieted. To deny her the home she had grown up in and the boy she loved would have killed her. And Pagan would not do that to her. He had said his goodbyes to them, tearful over his son, and let them go. The last thing he told Ishwari was that he would personally kill the one who had broken her.

From:

threedontknows

Alive, but estranged from him. Suddenly a lot of things start to click into place about Min Pagan and his place in the cultivation world. Suddenly Nie Huaisang actually seems him, instead of just some facade he’s always known.

He looks at him with a quiet, thoughtful expression, then turns his head away to look at the gates of the Min Clan and those old familiar halls he used to know as a child. Things are different now, for him, for Min Pagan. What must it be like to have to make that sort of sacrifice for one’s family and one’s clan?

His brother would have understood. Did Pagan know just how sick he was in the end?

“Does this place haunt you as well?” he asks thoughtfully, without any innocence behind it. He’s wise and knowing, and upset for his clan’s closest ally.

From:

crab_rangoon

And Pagan speaks to him in a manner befitting an ally. A friend. Someone in his closest confidence.

"No. I sealed off everything for her," he mutters. "Aside from her shrine, done in the way of Ishwari's people."

From:

threedontknows

It would haunt him, he realizes. His Da-ge does haunt him.

“I’d like to see it some day.”

He realizes how it sounds, but he’s sincere. He wants to pay his respects to Min Pagan’s daughter - and he’s fascinated by this side of him, this unexpected story that’s emerged.

From:

crab_rangoon

"I - think I would like that."

But that's all he can say because they've made it to the gates, to the way it opens up to the mansion near the mountain. The people are a mixture of ones who look like Pagan and Huaisang and those who are from the other side of the border, which isn't so much a border this far out but an invisible boundary that no one really notices. The Min's have been able to seamlessly integrate his people, his cultivators and his culture, with those of their neighbors. Pagan has been the most successful in this.

He dismounts, gesturing for Huaisang to do the same.

"Come, you're tired. Let me show you to your room."

From:

threedontknows

Nie Huaisang’s glad that Min Pagan will grant him such a private thing. He’s even more glad to change the subject - it was a heavy topic, and Nie Huaisang needs a little time to think.

The realm of the Min is more bustling than he remembers, and a lot more diverse too. He takes it all in as they walk up to the Min family quarters, letting servants take his horse and returning the polite bows to the people he passes.

From:

crab_rangoon

Shennongjia is a beautiful place, but Pagan has no eyes for it now. He does, as they approach the doors, point out a flock of colorful birds standing along the wall.

"They nest there when it's warm," he tells him with a smile, but continues walking into an open wing, doors covered in cloth to let the cool air circulate.

From:

threedontknows

They’re very beautiful birds, but Pagan is right, Nie Huaisang is tired. He walks into the airy chambers, similar but very different in the way they feel since he was a child exploring these very rooms, head swiveling to look at all the art and carvings on the high walls.

From:

crab_rangoon

It is far from the modest lands of the Lan. The White Cloud Fortress is decorated in reds and golds, the colors blending together in all the art and walls.

"Sleep well, A-Sang. If you need anything, Sunder is just outside the door."

From:

threedontknows

The rooms that Min Pagan house his guest is are impressive, bright and rich but not obnoxious like the gold of the Jin. Nie Huaisang bows to his host and then shuts the doors, immediately sending a butterfly to his advisors asking about the whereabouts of certain Jin and Wen disciples during a certain period of time.

It’s a wide net to cast, but he’s determined to figure out who did this to his friend and closest ally.

From:

crab_rangoon

Pagan doesn't sleep well that night. He spends his time at Lakshmana's shrine, bent in prayer as he fashions a new bell for her. It's well after midnight when he stands up, legs shaking, and retires to his room to fall asleep face down on the bed.

Nothing about that shows in the morning. He's up bright and early, whistling a little as he walks through his home, off to ensure that Huaisang is awake. He has a full day planned for them.

From:

threedontknows

Nie Huaisang sleeps well, as far as his usual sleep schedule goes, and he wakes early in the morning to wash and dress and rebraids his hair. He leaves the room and nearly runs into Min Pagan himself, smiling in apology for almost knocking him over.

"Good morning, Sect Leader Min," he says with a coy bow at the wait.

From:

crab_rangoon

"There you are!" he declares, returning the bow. "Come, I had quite the meal prepared for you this morning. Moong Dal Chilla," he declares, as if that might mean something to the younger man.

From:

threedontknows

He knows the word ‘dal’ - lentils, if he remembers his time on the border when he was a child. But the rest is a mystery, and he’s eager to try whatever delicacy Pagan’s set out for him.

“You’re too good to your guest,” he says with a smile, taking his signature fan out from his sleeve.

From:

crab_rangoon

"We aren't known for our hospitality, but that's because no one comes to visit," he laughs, as if he didn't just take him through an illusion of a rock in order to get here.

He leads him through the halls to a raised table with seats around it. Ishwari had insisted on the table, and Pagan had accommodated her, of course. He gestures to one of the cushioned chairs and the table, set with their breakfast.

From:

threedontknows

The raised seats are strange, but Nie Huaisang doesn’t say anything about the custom. He takes his seat, feeling wobbly, and looks down at the yellow pancake with a smile.

“This looks delicious,” he tells him. And the tea! So fragrant! Nie Huaisang picks up his cup and inhales appreciately.

From:

crab_rangoon

"Eat them as you wish. And the tea is spiced so - be careful," he warns with a laugh. It's warmed with cinnamon, after all.

From:

threedontknows

"I can handle a little spice," he says, "I'm from Hebei, after all." He's no Jiang, but he can handle peppercorns and turmeric here and there!

He picks up his cup and sips carefully, warned by the smell of the spice. It's delightful and warm, and he smiles as he sets it back down.

From:

crab_rangoon

"I know you can," he smiles, watching his face, hoping to find a little happiness there.

"What do you think?"

From:

threedontknows

“The tea is good,” he tells him, pulling up the sleeve of his robe to eat the lentil pancake with his fingers. He remembers this part was tradition. “But this? This is excellent.”

From:

crab_rangoon

He nods. "Good," he says, pleased to see him enjoying himself so much. "I'm so glad for it. Once you're finished, I'll take you on a proper walk of the grounds so you can see it in the morning light. We will...need to dress for the walk."