Work Text:
"How do you like my necklace, baobei?"
Shen Wei lifts his eyes and freezes, as if he has just stumbled and fallen into a memory. The shame is even stronger than the wind in the Great Wild, and he can suddenly feel both all around him.
"I remembered where I left it," Zhao Yunlan explains and puts his hand on his chest, not horrified, fond. "And it was still there, waiting for me. Youchu teeth and your hair are as durable as I hoped they would be."
"Why—" Shen Wei starts, not sure what exactly he wants to ask. Why would Zhao Yunlan take the trouble to retrieve something that would be better left forgotten? Why would he want it back at all? Why is he touching it like it's a treasure?
"Thank you, Xiao Wei. And I'm sorry I was too immature to appreciate it," Zhao Yunlan says, earnest. "It must have taken a lot of work to represent all thirty-six mountains. A lot of heart."
"You remember?" Shen Wei asks, startled. He wasn't sure if Kunlun had even understood the intention behind it, too focused on the what to pay attention to the why. Shen Wei almost winces but— Was Kunlun wrong?
Zhao Yunlan takes his hand and presses it to his chest too, steady heartbeat under the necklace's rough edges. Shen Wei feels younger in this memory he has fallen into — lost, a bit foolish. He doesn't miss how new and confusing the little Ghost King's world used to be; only the fierceness of his love feels as familiar as ever.
"I remember everything," Zhao Yunlan squeezes Shen Wei's hand and muses with a grin, "Should I wear it to work? To cherish my Xiao Wei's gift and to strike fear into the hearts of evildoers? Practical!"