INBOX (for eastbound)

[lonelydream]

Zhou Xu

missives | encounters

Comments

[lanclan]

Thank you, it is quite cold in the corridors.

[ He sinks down at the table, rubbing his hands a little as his gaze lingers on Zhou Zishu. Assessing. ]

Where is our foxlike friend?

[lonelydream]

Making a nuisance of himself elsewhere, I imagine.

[lanclan]

Oh, good. I have you all to myself yet again.

[ Is there some mischief in Xichen's eyes? Maybe. ]

How have you been since the carriage ride here? I didn't want to suffocate you with attention, I'm sure you've had plenty.

[lonelydream]

Master Lan's jokes are rather odd. I've, ah. Well. Did Lao Wen speak to you? He found out about my condition rather more abruptly than I'd intended.

[lanclan]

Odd? No, he hasn't spoken to me. I assumed his time was taken up with you.

[ No one wants to be a third wheel, so he kept his nose out. Now he tilts his head, concerned. ]

Is he alright?

[lonelydream]

He frets, as ever. But I hadn't let him pass me qi in a while, and he did while also taking my pulse. So, naturally, he became suddenly very aware of the severity of the situation. He's--worried. So I am, in turn, also concerned as to whether he'll do something unwise.

[ He pours them each a cup of warm red wine. ]

[lanclan]

He won't listen to me, if you think I could calm him down. I have only ever been there to gather him up afterwards.

[ He sips his wine thoughtfully, gaze lingering on Zhou Zishu as subtly as it can. ]

How long did you think you had left when you first came to these realms?

[lonelydream]

A week or two. Maybe a month, at most.

[ He doesn't lift his gaze from the cup cradled in his hands. ]

Yet, it's been much more than that.