Chapter Text
Qirin stares deeply into the pit of their campfire, watching the flames dance as the small pops and crackles of branches snap from the heat. “Your eyes are gonna burn if you keep staring like that.”
She looks up at the owner of the voice. He held his casual smile, but the Guardian noticed a glint of worry in his eyes. “Wukong,” she spoke in a hushed voice, glancing over at the boy fast asleep at her side. “I’m fine, just thinking.”
“Yeah, I can tell.” Qirin throws him a small glare, to which he chuckles in response. “It’s late. I’m supposed to be on watch, remember? Get some rest. You can think all you like tomorrow.”
“It doesn’t work like that.” She sighs, tilting her head to the sky, remembering the time Xuelin and Macaque were with her as they traveled across China. All those nights spent under the stars. Everything that could’ve been. Everything that’s gone. Her gaze shifts to the fire again as her thoughts suddenly drift to Liang, a son no longer in her arms.
A promise forged from desperation.
An unexpected bonk on her head startles the Guardian out of her thoughts. She looks up to find Monkey King standing beside her with a hand laid upon her head. “I forgot how quiet you can be.” She mumbles.
“I said sleep.” He sighs, and Qirin huffs at him, brushing his hand from her head as she moves to lie down on her side. It’s no use arguing with the monkey on a wink of sleep. After a while of restlessness, she finally falls into a rhythmic pattern of breathing. Wukong sits back down at his end of the fire, eyes trailing over her figure, gaze softening ever so slightly. It’s been months since that incident. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been that worried. Monkey King sighs to himself, shifting his attention from the woman to the charm in his hands as he fidgets with the small wooden palette.
Qirin, what’s bothering you?
Qirin shivers at the breeze, pulling the blanket closer to her chest. She looks down to see a red cloak draped over her, an emblem of the sun placed where the fabric clips together, making it obvious who it belongs to. The Guardian offered a thoughtful glance at the sleeping monkey as he lay on the floor across from her. She looks over to where Jianfeng is, or where he’s supposed to be. “Jianfeng?” Qirin calls out, unconcerned about her sleeping companion. “Jianfeng!” She pushes herself off the floor, expanding the radius of her magic, attempting to feel his energy. “He’s not here,” she whispers. The Guardian approaches Wukong, shaking the poor immortal aggressively. “Wukong, he’s gone. Jianfeng isn’t here!” She repeats, startling Monkey King awake.
“H-huh? What?”
Qirin releases him from her hold, beginning to pace around the campsite. “Jianfeng has disappeared.”
“Relax. He’s probably just gone to get us some food.” Wukong mumbles, waving her off as he rolls over, letting his laziness lull him back to sleep.
Qirin notices, marching over to the monkey with a furious look, shaking her companion once again. “Wukong, you better not shut those eyes!”
“Okay, okay, I’m up.”
Qirin sighs, letting him go. “I checked. He’s nowhere near us…” Suddenly remembering Wukong’s words from last night. “I thought you were supposed to be watching over us.” She accuses, earning a nervous chuckle from him as he stands up with a stretch.
“Yeah, well, you see… I kinda sort of fell asleep a few hours back. Jianfeng woke up while I was dozing off. He offered to take over.” Qirin frowns. “You should’ve woken me.”
Wukong’s brows furrow. “You needed sleep.” He speaks softly before giving the guardian a proud, confident look. “Besides, the kid is strong. He’s tougher than he seems.” Monkey King assures.
Qirin sighs in response. Jianfeng is strong, yes, but with the Celestial Council on their tail, is this the best time to part? She shifts her attention to the monkey, “Okay. Surely that boy has left something behind, anything we can use to track.” She walks over to where she last saw him. Jianfeng’s bags still sat undisturbed beside his makeshift bed. Must’ve been a sudden decision. Qirin begins sorting through his things, splaying them out on the floor.
“Wow. Invasion of privacy there, Qirin.” Wukong walks over to her.
“Shush, Monkey. I’m looking for something,” She continues to empty the bag. Once all its contents are out, the Guardian lets out a sigh of relief, letting a bright smile grace her features. “It’s not here.” She speaks, returning everything into the satchel before placing it over her shoulder.
“Uh. And that’s a good thing?” Monkey King lifts a brow as he watches her get up. To be completely honest, he has no idea what she’s looking for, but for something to be useful to us, don’t we need to have it?
Qirin looks up at him. “Remember when I gave you the charm? It’s a key to enter Ume Mountain, yes. But it has another purpose!” She beams, “It’s a locator! Much like a beacon,” the guardian exclaims. “Don’t know how this left my mind earlier.”
Wukong’s eyes widened, “I’ve been carrying around a tracking device?” He pulls out his charm on instinct, looking over the details of the palette. His eyes land on a small engraving in the charm's corner. He gives her a small frown as she pats his back.
“Pleased to know it never left your side, Monkey.” Qirin offers a wink with a cheeky smile. Before walking off in the direction she senses the charm, focusing on the palette itself as Wukong throws the rest of the bags over his shoulder, trailing after her.
Let’s just hope it wasn’t stolen.
Humming a small tune, Qirin trudges through the forest, the branches high above block the sun, letting only a few beams break its barrier. Her footsteps are light, almost as if they weren’t at all, completely in contrast to the Monkey behind her.
He can be quiet when he wants to be; unfortunately, that desire is not now. Her features fall as the crunching beside her grows evident. Surely, he’s toying with me. She thinks, having stopped humming a while ago. The Guardian sneaks a glance at him, only to find a relaxed smile on his face as he continues the melody of her tune. Qirin merely sighs, deciding to pay no mind to it as she instead hums along with him. Dusk now paints the sky in a soft glow of orange hue. Passing by the foot of a waterfall, Qirin sets up a small camp there. She looks at Wukong and smiles.
“Could you bring us some firewood?” Monkey King nods, placing the bags on the ground before wandering off into the forest. Once the monkey is out of sight, Qirin flops to the ground, manipulating the wind to break her fall. She brings her knees to her chest, resting her head on top of them.
With the Celestial Court after us, it won’t be long until they find Jianfeng. If they get to Jianfeng, no doubt they’ll use him to lure Wukong and me out. Which will work, unfortunately… Meaning, we have to reach that boy first. I’m sure it won’t be long until that enchantment I placed wears off, revealing his power to all of Heaven. If that happens, Nezha will be there in a matter of seconds. That’s a fight Jianfeng won’t win.
The sound of a distant screech fills her ears. It came from where Wukong walked off. The Guardian wastes no time as she blitzes through leaves and bushes, arriving at a lake where she watches Wukong fend off an indigo dragon. Qirin inspects it, observing the dragon from her spot in the shadows of the trees. Her eyes meet hues of dreams and wonder, the fall of a season. Wukong looks up at the beast with a bright smile. The dragon in question looks slightly frustrated at the immortal. “C’mon, try harder. Is that really all you can do?” He taunts, preparing himself to land yet another attack. But, instead of hitting the dragon, the monkey comes in contact with a barrier made by Qirin’s very own hand, one he is all too familiar with.
She appears between both beings, facing the monkey as she speaks. “He is no enemy.” The Guardian watches as he purses his lips, holding each other’s gaze before finally relenting. As he relaxes his posture, a small smile finds itself on Qirin’s features.
“Fine! I’ll just be here… collecting wood again. I guess.” Wukong sighs, poorly hiding his curiosity between the dragon and his friend. She smiles triumphantly, turning to the dragon, the barrier slowly disappearing as she flies up to meet the eyes of the beast. Her smile softens. A look of recognition crosses the dragon’s face.
“Are you hurt, old friend?” Qirin asks. The dragon shakes its head, changing its form with a cloud of smoke. Now, standing before her is a young man, streaks of autumn weave through his dark hair, as cobalt horns rest on his head, adorned in gold.
He looks up at Qirin, “My Lady?”
Qirin smiles, “Linqiu.”
Wukong spits out an apple he found while watching the interaction. “My Lady?!” He appeared quickly beside the Guardian as a shocked expression lay across his features. He places one hand on her shoulder. “Qirin, you’ve got a lot of explaining to do.” She gives him a nervous smile. “Of course, Monkey. As soon as we reach our little camp.”
They walk past him. Qirin glances back, stopping Wukong in his tracks. “Oh, and please get some more wood. We wouldn’t want the fire going out unexpectedly.”
Monkey King frowns, seeing a smirk fall upon the woman’s lips before she turns her head, disappearing into the forest. He rolls his eyes, going back to find the best pieces. “It’s always the wood. Next time, I’ll just bring her a whole tree.”
They reach the campsite, and Qirin splits from Linqiu’s side, preparing the fire. She offers a small smile to the man before patting the spot next to her. “Wukong will be back with the wood shortly. Come sit.” Linqiu follows Qirin’s direction with a nod, sitting down where the guardian had directed him. A moment of silence passes over them before Qirin speaks up. “So, how did you end up here? Last I checked, you were up there, with them.”
Linqiu sighs. “Love is both a strength and a weakness.” He sends her a small smile, to which Qirin returns with one of her own.
“Oh, I believe we both know that, Lin,” Qirin utters. “It was forbidden, was it not?”
“Yes,” He confesses. “But from what I can tell, yours is too.”
Qirin chuckles, “I wouldn’t say forbidden. However, it is looked down upon…” She shifts slightly, thinking of her next words. “Who cares. Heaven has no say in my status!” She huffs, earning a chuckle from her companion. A few minutes pass by before they perk up at the sound of footsteps nearing the camp.
“This enough wood for you, Qirin?” Wukong calls out, brushing past a few leaves as she stands from her lounging position. He drops the wood in front of her before decidedly going through their bags for some extra food.
The Guardian smiles, “Lovely, monkey. Perfect!” She sets up the branches in a specific way before turning to the Monkey King, a bright smile on her face as he munches down on some peaches. He offers one to Linqiu.
“Don’t worry, these aren’t the immortal ones.” The man raises a brow at him. Qirin’s face falls at the sight.
“Wukong, those were mine!” She pauses mid-sentence, looking at the peach in Lin’s hand. “Lin, you can eat.” She points back at the monkey, “You. However,” He finishes his last bite.
Wukong shrugs, “Sorry, Peach.”
He was not sorry at all.
Qirin glares at him in return, scoffing at his insincere apology. “Just light this damn fire.” The monkey gives her a cheeky smile as a small flame appears at the end of his fingertip. He points at the branches set up across from him and shoots the tiny flame into the wood, watching as the fire grows bigger among the sticks. Linqiu watches the interaction closely, raising the peach to his mouth as he takes a bite. The juice of the ripe fruit is all he can taste, glancing between Qirin and Wukong.