Chapter Text
Wei Wuxian walked through the gardens of the main Palace, holding his cooing son in his arms. His nine tails danced slowly behind him, his body still tired from the birth of his dragon son.
That being said, Lan Wangji massaged his body when he felt exhausted, washed A-Yuan with the happiness of a husband instead of the Emperor of Gusu.
“Ah A-Yuan, A-Yuan” he cooed, holding Lan Sizhui close to his chest. He had been covered in black and scarlet robes, and an extra outer coat due to the growing cold. It was unfortunate that Gusu had just entered winter, making the cold even more miserable to the fox. That of course, made him inconsolable till Lan Wangji returned and coaxed him into another blanket. Ah how lucky he was.
“Look at you, an entire celebration and all you want to do is sleep. Tsk tsk.” Wei Wuxian teased, pinching his son’s nose.
Today was a celebration for A-Yuan yet his son had a habit of sleeping for long hours, just like his mother. The baby cooed, swaddled in exquisite robes dyed white with red and gold embroidery on the hem and sleeves. He had a tiny chain on his forehead, considering he wasn’t old enough to wear the Gusu Lan forehead ribbon. The chain had a small emerald in the middle, which the little dragon liked to grab at when his mother was being pampered by his father.
Wei Wuxian walked to the fountain, sitting down on the bench as he cradled his son in his arms. He was getting tired again, but less than the first week of his son’s birth.
He sighed in content, looking up at the bright Sun which blessed A-Yuan’s face. The child cooed happily, before closing his eyes, and nestling back into the blankets he had been wrapped in.
Wei Wuxian smiled, lowering his head to brush his fluffy ears against his son’s face. The child nuzzled his face into it, before soft snores were heard. Lan Sizhui had fallen asleep.
Wei Wuxian kissed his son’s forehead, and stood up, ready to head back. He turned around, ready to hum a song when he felt the tip of a blade pierce into the skin of his throat.
“Well, well. Good to see you,Empress.” Wen Chao snarled, eyes locked on Wei Wuxian’s wide ones. His phoenix wings fluttered wildly, as he laughed manically.
“If you want that child of yours to live, follow me silently.” He snarled, nodding to the tree and to Wei Wuxian’s horror, more Wen soldiers came out. He held his son tighter to his chest, swallowing the fear. He didn’t have his sword or Chenqing to kick their asses with, so all he could do was follow Wen Chao silently, praying his son didn’t wake up.
He walked behind Wen Chao, walking through hidden tunnels that the Lan family most surely didn’t know about. He winced when one of his fluffy ears caught on a tree branch. That earned him a sharp push from the back, followed by murmured whispers and laughs.
His ears pressed flat against his head after that, and his tails stopped dancing. He held his son tightly, hiding his face in the crook of Wei Wuxian’s neck.
“Oi. Go grab those two bastards.” Wen Chao commanded the soldiers behind Wei Wuxian, who instantly fled, leaving him alone with the oily phoenix. He smirked at the fox, and pointed his sword at a rock, and Wei Wuxian silently sat down. “Good. You know how to be compliant.”
The man commented, turning around to use the tree in front of him to relieve himself. Wei Wuxian’s nose wrinkled in disgust, but he bit his tongue. He couldn’t risk any insult that could bring harm to his child.
He instead reached into his hair, and pulled out one of the hairpins, and stabbed it into the back of the tree, praying some soldier saw it and realized what had happened.
He prayed that it was Lan Wangji.
He had just turned back when Wen Chao had pulled his pants back up, and turned back to smirk at him, watching the distasteful expression on Wei Wuxian’s face.
“Not so proud, are you now, stupid fox?” He snarled, spit landing on Wei Wuxian’s face. Wei Wuxian bit his tongue so hard he could feel the taste of copper fill his mouth. Keep it together Wei Wuxian. He reminded himself.
“Wonder how silent you’ll be once you arrive at Qishan. I’ll make sure your son gets a good view.” Wen Chao barked, grin widening. Wei Wuxian’s heart froze. He knew he was going to be held captive- but—
“E-empress W-
“SHUT YOUR MOUTH.” The soldier barked at Wen Ning, kicking him hard in the back. The man fell forward with a grunt, looking pitiful. Wei Wuxian stood up, only to have a knife pointed at his throat again. “Sit back down, fox.” Wen Chao demanded, watching with smugness as the fox sat back down.
“Tie the siblings up.”
Siblings? Wen Qing was here too?!
Wei Wuxian’s eyes widened as he stared at the bruise forming on Wen Qing’s jaw. She glanced once at Wei Wuxian, and both understood the message silently. Her eyes glanced down at the sleeping child, widening for a fraction of a second before she forced her expression to be neutral.
Once she and Wen Ning’s hands were tied, they were led down a shed, under a hidden floorboard. Wei Wuxian swallowed as the soldiers neared him. One glanced down at the child in his arms, pausing for a mere second before he tied the rope around Wei Wuxian’s waist, though loosely.
He glanced once at Wei Wuxian’s surprised gaze before hauling him up. He held the rope tightly, while his buddy walked in front. The soldier glanced down at the child in the fox’s arms once more before whispering hurriedly, “Hide your son once you reach.”
Wei Wuxian didn’t nod or thank. He was sure the soldier understood why. But he now understood one thing.
Either he made it out alive with broken bones, or he’d end up dead.
——
Wei Wuxian watched as the Wen siblings were thrown into the bottom of the ship, while he was simply yanked along. It seemed the Wen soldiers had a bit of leniency towards children.
He was put into a corner, and the rope around his waist was replaced with heavy chains that were tied to a post on the ceiling. The Wen siblings also had the same, although more roughly.
“Keep your mouths shut and we’ll send you food down.” Wen Chao commanded, before slamming the door shut. And soon, they were on the water, departing from Gusu to Qishan.
Wei Wuxian kept the nausea in his stomach, giving a weak smile to Wen Ning and Wen Qing. Wen Qing hung her head low, most definitely feeling guilty.
Wen Ning on the other hand was staring at the wooden boards, fear plaguing his mind. As a wave hit, he suddenly lurched forward, sweat trickling down his forehead. Even Wen Qing didn’t look that well.
Wei Wuxian wanted to ask if they were alright, only to remember Wen Chao’s words. He held A-Yuan tightly, watching as his son’s face scrunched up. Was his son also sea sick? He slowly bounced Lan Sizhui up and down, patting his back, trying to make sure he didn’t begin wailing.
Thankfully for Wei Wuxian, his son remained quiet, but whimpered every now and then, the tips of his horns emitting a pale yellow light instead of the usual white. Wei Wuxian kept patting him gently, hoping to ease whatever unease his son felt. He stared up at the wooden boards, listening to the footsteps of soldiers.
Lan Wangji would have noticed something was wrong..but how fast would he realize his Empress and heir had been kidnapped? Would he find the hairpin? Would he find their footsteps? Would he find Wei Wuxian’s scent?
The fox swallowed, attention being brought back to his son who had managed to fall asleep despite the rocky waves. His tails bundled around his little son, keeping him tightly strapped to Wei Wuxian’s chest. His mark wouldn’t be able to send a message from this distance, but he could do one thing.
He shifted around carefully, ensuring that the chains didn’t drag onto the ground. He reached into his robes, and pulled out a hair ribbon. Hair ribbon with their names engraved on it. After making sure most of the soldiers had walked to the other side of the ship, he pushed the ribbon through the small crack in the boards, watching as it floated in the water, moving further and further away.
He prayed it reached the sights of Lan soldiers and that they’d rescue them soon. Before things got violent.
——
Wei Wuxian didn’t know how much time had passed. All he knew was that food hadn’t been delivered since they got down here. Lan Sizhui had woken up, and had been feeding from Wei Wuxian’s breast, yet the fox was losing energy and strength rapidly.
After the younger dragon latched off, Wei Wuxian tugged his robes back into place, while patting his son’s back. He was getting tired, but his son was now energetic. If the Wens caught him wailing, the fox wasn’t sure he would be able to make it out alive.
“There, there A-Yuan…back to sleep…” he tried, tails wrapping around his son who simply played and nibbled at them, sleep barely filling those gray eyes. Wei Wuxian didn’t want to poison his son just so he fell asleep, but if he had to ensure his safety then he would have no choice.
For now, he would let him nibble on his tails, while Wei Wuxian fought sleep. He glanced at Wen Ning, who had managed to sleep against his sister’s shoulder, but Wen Qing kept staring at the floor boards, head hung low.
“Qing-Jie..” he whispered, watching as Wen Qing’s head snapped up. And that’s when Wei Wuxian realized that she had been crying. Hot tears ran down her face, as she bowed before Wei Wuxian, despite his attempts to tell her to get up. “What are you doing?!” He whispered, energy returning to him.
“I-if it hadn’t been for us..,you’d wouldn’t have been captured” she cried, wiping her tears roughly. The two siblings had much, much smaller wings compared to the soldiers and heirs above them, but were definitely much more kind hearted.
“Wen-Qing…if you weren’t here..my son wouldn’t have been born either..” he whispered back, watching as she gave a small hopeful expression. "It's not your faul—
Bang.
The door slammed open, and Wen soldiers entered with plates of what looked like food. Behind them, Wen Chao stood, smirking as the plates of food were kept in front of them. The soldiers then stepped aside, letting him descend.
He instantly walked over to the fox, who had pressed his son close to his chest. “Well, well. The little Prince is awake now is he?” Wen Chao tried grabbing the little kid from the fox's hands , only to be swiped by a sharp claw.
The man yelled in pain as a small trickle of blood fell down his hand. He grabbed Wei Wuxian’s head and slammed it into the wooden boards, over and over again, ignoring Wen Qing’s cries.
Wei Wuxian grit his teeth, refusing to let out any noise that would satisfy the man’s sadistic ways. His tails wrapped even tighter around Lan Yuan, refusing to let him see the torture his mother was going through.
“Stupid bitch..” Wen Chao muttered as he finally let Wei Wuxian's head go. He threw in one more punch before stomping upstairs, barking at the soldiers not to feed him till two days later. Wei Wuxian spat the coppery taste of blood out of his mouth, before giving a watery smile to Wen Qing who had new fresh tears falling down her face.
“It’s okay. It’s going to be okay.” He mouthed, before turning to the stale food. It was a piece of bread and some water. It wasn’t enough for strength, but definitely enough for survival. He watched as the blood dripped down onto the floor, but became less and less as each second passed.
Thank God for his golden core.
He ate the food silently, ignoring the sharp pains in his skull, which were decreasing but still there. He hoped he could get Wen Qing to check it if they had some time. For now, he focused on retaining his strength and finished the food quickly.
He looked back at his son, whose robes had become soiled. He needed to change him quickly. Wei Wuxian looked around for anything he could use when the door suddenly opened, albeit weakly. He noticed that it was the soldier from before, who had told the fox to hide his son. He hissed, moving back, not trusting him any longer.
“I-I mean no harm..” he whispered, shutting the door. He ran forward, and placed clean inner robes for children into his hands. “I know the heir is cruel..but please just listen to him..it’ll save you and your son.” He whispered, pressing a piece of candy into the fox’s hand.
“You…you have a child at home don’t you.” The fox spoke quietly, watching as the soldier left for the door. The man froze, before nodding stiffly. As he moved to open the door, it suddenly swung open, startling the fox, the soldier and the Wen siblings.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Wen Zhuliu asked, eyes squinting to see the captives. Wei Wuxian quickly folded the inner robes and hid them in his sleeves, while holding Lan Sizhui closer. The phoenix's gaze settled on him for a moment, before landing on the soldier. “I asked you a question, soldier.”
“The stench of soiled robes was reaching the deck. I did not want to disturb Second Master Wen.” The man spoke, a tinge of disgust in his tone. Wen Zhuliu stared at him for a moment, before stepping aside. “Ask before entering here. Do not make me repeat myself, soldier.”
“Yes, sir.” The man bowed once before leaving, with Wen Zhuliu following him. The door shut once more, and Wei Wuxian could hear the lock slide in place. He turned back to his whimpering son, who was still swaddled in pristine robes, but the fox knew his son was uncomfortable. He slowly undressed A-Yuan, tossing the dirty inner robe through the small crack in the wood, and into the ocean. He once again redressed his son, and held him close, before resting in the corner.
How long would it take to be rescued? How many hours had passed? How far were they from Gusu? Questions clouded the fox’s mind, and soon, he fell asleep, despite knowing that being unconscious was the worst thing to do right now.