Chapter Text
There was a time period in Gusu that all the residents looked forward to; the weeks between the end of winter, and the new bloom of spring. It was when the skies lost their gloom, when the last of the stubborn snow melted, and the trees breathed life again. It was during this that the exuberance of Caiyi town on a mid morning, pre-spring day was a beautiful sight to behold.
The streets bustled with a steady traffic of people, merchants in their stalls lined the stone pathways of the inner marketplace while boats sat at the foot of the copious docks with fishermen bringing in their hauls by the net. Workers exclaimed product descriptions and prices as families weaved their way through the chaos of the inner market, and the hung lanterns swung gently in the breeze.
Children scampered afoot, squealing and waving toys in their fists. Sizhui walked steadily beside him, and Jingyi felt as though he was perfectly in his element.
It was Sizhui’s first trip to Caiyi town after he presented. The new alpha was recently cleared to be outside again, after spending a week in the awfulness of his first rut.
Which was so. Cool. In Jingyi’s opinion. His best friend was a super tough and amazing alpha, like Zewu-Jun and Hanguang-Jun! He was even taking special alpha classes now.
His presentation came as a surprise; the two of them were relaxing during their freetime in the back hills, near the bunnies. Jingyi was feeding a black and white spotted one pieces of lettuce from a basket when Sizhui had plopped next to him and promptly laid his head in his lap with a huge sigh. Jingyi had blinked at him in surprise; Sizhui wasn’t one for initiating physical contact. It was usually Jingyi, who was known for slinging an arm around his shoulder or hanging off his friend. Even Sizhui seemed surprised at himself, raising his head and shaking it in confusion. His face was red and his eyes glassy as he pulled himself into a sitting position.
Then, Hanguang-Jun came up from the path, noticed Sizhui, and swifty made his way over. And then, he told Sizhui that he was presenting!
He was ecstatic for his friend, when it was finally revealed what his secondary-gender was. Everyone thought the mild-tempered Lan would be a beta, since he was unassuming and polite with a constant, kind smile on his face; not brash or domineering in the way society portrayed Alphas to be.
Sizhui was ambushed by Jingyi on his first day out of seclusion— with his new scent permeating the air. He smelled very earthy; not the common herb scent betas usually had, but like the mountains after a strong rainfall, with an undertone of something...ashy. It was sharp but soothing. Demanding attention, but at the same time, offering protection. It was...Sizhui.
When he was happy, it was like a fresh bloom of the mountains. The time during spring where everything is renewed and vibrant, with freshly bloomed gentians and tangy pine needles. Angry, he smelled like a growing forest fire, a savage ash of whirling flames, dominating and red. The smell burnt his nose.
Since Sizhui’s scent was fairly new, Jingyi hasn’t gotten to know all his emotional changes. The only other one he barely got a whiff of was sad— a fleeting moment of soured Azaleas— But, he was happy to note them all the same.
When Jingyi asked Sizhui what his rut was like, Sizhui had cocked his head at him with a raised eyebrow, asking why he wanted to know.
“Knowledge, duh,” he had responded like it was a no brainer, waving an ink brush around in the air. They were supposed to be doing work in the library, But, Jingyi was Jingyi, so…
“I wanna know what to expect, A-Yuan! I’m gonna be an alpha too, you know.”
At that, Sizhui’s gaze turned complicated. He glanced away before Jingyi could decipher that look, feigning interest with the corner of paper in front of him.
“It wasn’t anything special,” he said as he brought his gaze back, still picking at the side of the page, “painful...it felt like I wasn’t in my own body, for the most part. First ruts aren’t really…ruts. They’re just your body starting a rapid change into your secondary gender. Which is why it hurts so much.”
Jingyi had filed that little nugget of information away in a cabinet inside his brain. Sizhui was so smart.
And then, of course, when Sizhui was finally good to go, he begged to accompany him. Jingyi was too young to go into town without an adult escort, especially because he was an unpresented pup, but since Sizhui was an alpha and therefore officially labeled as responsible, he’d hoped that they would let them go into Caiyi without one.
They did.
And Jingyi was excited. They never got to explore without supervision. And the senior assigned to them never let them have any fun, anyway—it was always don’t go too far! And stay close to me, or you’ll be copying rules.
Mayhaps Jingyi had made a name for himself by being the child most likely to cause trouble on trips like those. He always felt burning eyes on him, like he was going to make a break for it any second. Just because he did that once or twice didn’t mean he was going to do it again.
The Caiyi trip was like a fresh sip of cold water after being exposed to the raging summer heat for hours on end. He’d been feeling weird for the past few days—like the beginning of the seasonal fever he’d get annually, though, he already had one during that year's winter—and felt like some excitement and new air would have him out of his slump.
As they walked, Jingyi unconsciously strode closer and closer to Sizhui, who was watching the stalls they passed with rapt attention. His scent was comforting, the earthy fragrance like a calm wave crashing over his sweaty body.
Jingyi didn’t notice he was right next to Sizhui until his cheek touched fabric, and his friend’s arm steadied him.
“Jingyi?” Sizhui asked, bending to properly look at his face. His voice sounded muddled and far away, “are you all right?”
He blinked, lethargic. It was hot. Why was it so hot? It felt like the middle of summer; a raging heat that lit him up from the inside, a burning flame that scraped excruciatingly against the barriers of his skin. Everything felt like it was too much—the fabric against his body, Sizhui’s gentle grip on his shoulder, it burned and burned and burned.
It was only the cusp of spring.
“Jingyi? Jingyi?!”
The instantaneous, blinding pain caught him off guard.
It was a fleeting pulse of pure agony from inside his gut, near his lower regions. The suddenness of it had him flinching. The next wave of it had his legs buckling.
He crashed onto the ground in a heap, knees first. The impact of bone against stone hardly registered over the racking spikes of torture currently ravaging its way through his body. Sizhui’s arms held him up, bruising grip and heavy scent a vague comfort. He could indistinctly hear his frantic voice through the fog that took over his brain, but when he opened his mouth to respond, all that came out was a pain-filled keen as he listed to the side.
There was something—something wet between his legs. It was steadily growing more and more. Thick and warm...like—like blood.
Was he bleeding? Why was he bleeding? Did he get...stabbed? Was he hurt? Why didn’t he see it coming, why didn’t Sizhui see it coming—
Cool hands cupped his cheeks. He whimpered, trying to turn away as the sun caused twinges of pain to break out along his temples.
Sizhui’s voice met his ears in nonsensical babble— a blurry mass of words he couldn’t make out. Grey silhouettes in the indistinct shapes of people filled his vision. Men, women, Alphas, betas—
A woman gasped and dropped her basket. The fruit inside clattered onto the dirtied stone and rolled. One of them reached his face, coming to a stop just before his nose. The colors melded together to make a blurred picture.
It was a peach.
The pink, fresh smelling fruit and him had a staring contest for a bit, as his vision blipped in and out of focus and the agony rippled through his torso in rippling waves. Spikes and twinges that soon had him hiccuping in absolute misery.
“Look….an Omega…..poor kid…..Lan….”
Suddenly, the world blurred once more, and he was being lifted into a pair of familiar arms.
There was a steady vibration he could feel rumbling through him. His head was being cradled onto a chest, and—
And Sizhui— Sizhui was growling.
Jingyi felt his hand move as he hid his face in Sizhui’s robe. He didn’t care that the fabric felt like it scratched through his skin— the familiar scent grounded him and provided fleeting solace as it wrapped him in an embrace.
He sobbed deliriously into Sizhui’s chest.
Distantly, he heard the crackling of a flare go off.
Then, in a long awaited moment of freedom, his body finally went limp.
His consciousness slowly and briefly trickled in later on. He didn’t know how much time had passed. Eyes cracking open a sliver, he was met with white, a pungent smell of medicinal herbs, and a never ending trail of agony flowing through his body.
Everything was on fire. His body screamed for relief. He wanted to writhe, to rub himself on the blankets to tear the skin off his body to make the pain cease— but he couldn’t move.
“A-Die, Hanguang-Jun, please let me—“
“He’s going to be fine, A-Yuan.”
“No,” a startling growl blew through the air. It was low, raw and feral. He felt it in his bones and shivered—violently, “I need to see him, A-Die, please—“
There was a pause, and then a brief scuffle. Then he felt something cool being placed to his lips, and a bitter liquid found its way into his mouth, pouring down his throat. He swallowed obediently, desperate for something to quell the burning within him, and then felt his lips moving before his brain could catch up.
“I’m a— omega? No, but….but I— not an omega..am I? It..hurts.. Can’t...no….Lans aren’t—“
Then his vision went black once more.
He woke up again— for good, that time— an undistinguishable time later.
His eyes opened blearily; in the way they do when you sleep for an unsuspected amount of hours.
Sleep crusted them awfully. His stiff body creaked as he slowly pushed himself up, arms wobbling with obvious strain.
Ah— he was in the medical ward.
The moonlight shone in through the open windows and the light drapes danced as a light breeze swept through the simply decorated, square room.
Jingyi sniffed the air and immediately reared back, face scrunching. There were- there were so many new smells. It was interesting and overwhelming— he could pick up on so much more than before, even if he didn’t know what most of the new scents meant.
As he shifted, he groaned in discomfort. Along with the steady pulse of his lower torso, his body felt wet. Lifting up the blankets to look, he noticed that his robes were absolutely soaked through with sweat and...sweat and slick.
“Jingyi,” a voice broke in gently. He jumped and turned, dropping the blankets like they burned.
Zewu-Jun was sitting a little ways away with his Xiao in his lap. The man was immaculate as usual; his hair laden of his usual topknot layed neatly down his back, his robes smoothed perfectly under his knees from where he was resting.
“You’re awake, I see.”
Jingyi fumbled for his words, mortified and blushing red, “Z—Zewu-Jun! What’re you, you— you smell like lavender and—and berries. Why do you have more scents?”
Xichen blinked once. And then again. Then, he laughed. A quiet, soft laugh that had Jingyi flushing in embarrassment. At that point, his face had to be as red as a ripe tomato.
“Those are people who have scented me before,” he explained with mirth shining in the lines of his face, “now that you’ve...presented, you’ll be able to smell more than you could while a pup. It may be overwhelming at first— Ah,well, you’re still a pup but now…”
His voice drifted, tapering off awkwardly, and looking conflicted. After a moment, he sighed.
The man crossed over to the bed, sitting gingerly on the side of it. He looked Jingyi square in the eyes.
“Now you’re an omegan pup.”
Jingyi flinched back from him as everything he feared came crashing down at once. His lip wobbled, and a weight of shame and disappointment crushed him from above as he clutched his bed sheets.
The back of his throat burned. He blinked back tears.
“But I— I don’t want to be. Can’t I hide it? Didn’t the Yiling Laozu take suppressants, I—“
“No,” Zewu-jun interrupted vehemently. The demand seemed to shock both of them. Xichen’s eyes widened and tears cascaded down Jingyi’s cheeks as his body reacted in an indescribably unfamiliar and weird way; like he had disappointed the most important person on earth, and was suddenly trying to figure out what to do to rectify the mistake.
It wasn’t until he could think again that he realized he had bared his neck to the Sect leader— in a show of submission.
It was then that reality hit him full force. He...really was an omega.
Disgust clouded his mind in a sudden spark of prominent self hatred. His mind buzzed with white noise as the derogatory word of omega, omega, omega repeated a shameful mantra in his mind.
Jingyi jumped when he felt a gentle hand over his own. He shivered and hated how he leaned into the touch.
“My apologies, Jingyi,” Zewu-Jun said softly, “Suppressants are dangerous, you know this. I...knew…someone who used them, and it did not end up well. I did not mean to lash out at you, okay?”
Despite the fact that Zewu-Jun spoke like he was talking to a child, his anxiety went down. He couldn't find it within himself to be annoyed, or even think about being annoyed.
Stupid biology.
“You are the first inner discipled omega that has presented here in…generations. The Lans are... ninety percent alphas. You’ve learnt that in class, no?”
Jingyi scoffed. It was true; Gusu Lan was known for producing many promising Alphas; on par with Lanling Jin and the Wen sect, before the Sunshot campaign. While Yunmeng Jiang, true to its easy going nature, produced many betas.
Even in the non-inner disciples, there were only about two studying omegas.
“Then why,” he said bitterly, “wasn’t I an Alpha?”
Zewu-Jun sighed, “you know I cannot explain that, Jingyi.”
“Ah, don’t look at me like that. Listen, I know you may feel like it is, but it really is not as big of a deal as you think it is. Omega or not, you are still a Gusu Lan disciple and will be treated with the utmost respect. Nothing major will change from now on, you’re still Lan Jingyi.”
But I’m an omega, Jingyi thought, everyone is going to look at me differently.
Instead of voicing his thoughts, he picked at a loose thread on the blanket.
“Now, here,” Xichen said, reaching into his Qiankun pouch. Jingyi looked on curiously as he pulled out a rectangular box.
It was simply decorated; a shiny wooden enclosure with a white trim on the side.
“You are an omega of Gusu Lan,” Jingyi swallowed the bile in his throat, “as your Sect Leader, I present to you the official collar of Gusu— it names your status as well as your family. But, more importantly, it’s protection.”
“I—“ Jingyi stuttered, tongue feeling too thick for his mouth. His jaw shut with an audible click, eyes darting around.
With shaking hands, he took the box from the man and opened it.
Inside, set beautifully against a silk pillow was a collar. It was a stunning white that had a lock in the back, and from the front hung the Cloud Recesses motif in spotless silver.
His fingers brushed the surface; it was leather. Smooth and soft.
Taking each end, he slowly lifted it up without making eye contact, wrapping it around his neck.
As he clicked it shut, he felt euphoric. Like he had just sealed his fate with his own hands, like he willingly stepped into a shackle that would hang him by the neck for all to see. With the brand of omega brandished above him.
“Don’t lose the key,” Zewu-Jun said, voice gentle, “now...Jingyi…”
“Huh?” He asked, only semi-comprehending.
“Will you allow me to scent you?”
Jingyi blinked, throat spasming as he brought himself back to the present.
“Scent...me?”
“Mhm,” Xichen confirmed, “If I scent you, other people will be able to smell my scent on you. It might fade with time, but it’ll never go away. When other people scent you, they’re able to tell who has before. It provides the omega comfort, and it gives the packmates reassurances when the omega is wearing their scent.”
Jingyi twiddled his fingers, “...okay.”
Xichen smiled, Jingyi tried to smile back.
Then, very gently, Zewu-Jun picked up his left wrist and gently rubbed his nose over it. Jingyi shivered, jumping, wondering why they felt so sensitive.
“These are your newly developed scent glands,” Lan Xichen explained as he moved to the other wrist,“you have some on your wrists and on either side of your neck. For scenting, most people will scent you on your wrists, and for the ones closest to you, the neck.”
When he was finished, Xichen placed both his wrists down on his lap. Jingyi felt disoriented— but in an oddly good way. Almost like the feeling he got after taking a relaxing bath.
Content, warm, soft. Like he was floating.
His chest vibrated some; and if he wasn’t as pliant and hazy as he was now, he would be mortified that he was purring.
“Say, Zewu-Jun,” Jingyi slurred as he was laid down by his Sect Leader’s gentle hands,“what do I smell like?”
“Peaches,” the man responded. His voice sounded far away, “ripe peaches in the middle of summer. Sweet.”
Jingyi blinked sleepily as he thought back to the woman and her peaches.
How funny the world was.
This fic has been converted for free using AOYeet!
This fic has been converted for free using AOYeet!