Lan Zhan opened his arms immediately.

Li XiWang, sometimes older than her mere ten years, was more in tune with Wei Ying and yet he had always felt closer to her because of this, because there was one more person in the world who loved his Wei Ying too.

SiZhui, Li XiWang and Rumi, even Shui to some extent...all were his children, their children because of the beautiful man sleeping next to them right now.

And as their father, he wanted to ease her worry too.

"He's tired." Lan Zhan told her gently.

She hugged him closer, her thin arms wrapping around his neck, her body trembling. Lan Zhan tried to soothe her by rubbing circles on her back...and feeling inadequate. Wei Ying was so much better at this than himself he always felt, despite Wei Ying's assurances that he was a good father. But he knew he was doing his best, so Lan Zhan put his doubts aside and spoke softly, loud enough that Rumi could hear as well but not enough to wake the sleeping man.

One hand stretched out and Lan Zhan smiled when Rumi took it willingly.

"Sometimes we have to be strong for the ones we love." He tried again because it didn't seem like what he wanted to get across. "It is alright to be scared."

She relaxed immediately and he could feel that. Point one to himself.

Rumi squeezed his hand back, as if he knew how difficult this was for Lan Zhan. Those purple eyes were searching, wide and intuitive.

Lan Zhan shuffled closer and Rumi was able to rest his head on Lan Zhan’s knee. He kept a hold on his hand too.

"Can you sense anything out of the ordinary in your father?" Lan Zhan asked her.

Maybe this was a task more suitable for Bai Hua, the Healer of the Heavens.

"I checked his pulse and his meridians, father. But I couldn't tell if anything was wrong with him." She admitted, her burgundy eyes big with worry.

"It might be nothing more than exhaustion." Lan Zhan replied.

"But you don't believe that, do you?" She asked, her face full of innocence.

"I am...not sure what to think." He said instead, opting for the truth.

Children could sense lying more clearly than some adults, and even if it hadn't been against his nature and the rules of the Lan Clan, Lan Zhan did not want to lie to his children.

"Maybe there might be something in our library about him." Li XiWang suggested, her brow furrowed with worry, trying to think of another possible solution to what might be the problem.

"I too, would be happy to return. Perhaps being in Cloud Recesses will make him better. Even the healers may have a diagnosis which we do not." Lan Zhan realised that just talking to them, in a way that simplified this situation, was making him feel so much better too.

This was the meaning of family, to be able to lean on one another and face problems together. It wasn’t a burden if it could be shared.

"I have books with me, father." Li XiWang was going to show him, but he stopped her.

"Tomorrow, Little Rabbit. Tomorrow. Now it is time to rest."

She nodded and reached up to kiss his cheek.

Rumi kissed his knee and turned over to sleep, too.

Lan Zhan lay down next to Wei Ying, their children between them, and fell asleep thinking how lucky he was.

**************

Wei Ying woke up carefully.

It was a slower process these days, for lots of reasons, but mostly because he didn't want to wake anyone up unintentionally. Before he had even opened his eyes, he had felt the warmth of Rumi burrowing into his chest.

But, if they were all still asleep, then that was good because he had been wanting to self diagnose his body and he couldn’t do that when Lan Zhan was awake. Not only because Lan Zhan would probably take over - he smiled at that thought, but more that he didn't want to worry him.

He had seen his little girl steal glances at him, reaching for his hand to try and reassure both him and herself, and the secretive looks that weren't so secret, shared by Hui Gai and Lan Zhan, and he was fully aware that his condition, whatever it was, was worrying them all.

And the last thing he wanted to do was be a source for more tension.

So he opened his eyes, internally sighing with relief when Lan Zhan’s eyes remained closed, his chest evenly moving up and down with his breathing. The children were thankfully heavy sleepers and Rumi only stirred when Wei Ying sat up, but he quickly placed his still-warm pillow next to him, and Rumi snuggled up to that instead.

Wei Ying looked at his family and his eyes filled with grateful tears.

There was so much love present here, between all of them.

And so much concern for his well-being.

Which might be something he could help with.

So he sat straighter, cross-legged and concentrating. He closed his eyes and began to meditate, first on his breathing, and then turned the search inwards.

He extended his consciousness towards his heart first, searching, searching...for anything out of place, anything which did not belong there. Then, finding nothing unusual, he spread out his intuition outwards to reach along his nerve-endings, to see if anything was there, and then finally, he searched through his meridians which remained unblocked.

When he finally opened his eyes, a pair of gleaming red eyes were staring back him, also filled with concern.

Did you find anything? Hui Gai asked through their mental connection.

Wei Ying shook his head.

Could it be like a virus? Maybe flushed out with more rest?

Wei Ying answered back in the same way.

No, I could not sense any foreign matter. Even I do not know what this is.

Let's see...symptoms include feeling tired...and? Hui Gai was next to him in a flash, his fingers gently resting on his wrist.

There were times like this, that Wei Ying was reminded of how powerful his friend was, and how spontaneous, and how worthy he was of trust and love, regardless.

No, it is I who am honoured to have you as my friend. Hui Gai looked deeply into his eyes, and let go of his wrist, instead wrapping his arm around Wei Ying's shoulders.

"I can't tell what it is." Wei Ying whispered, for the first time, allowing himself to sag against his friend.

"It might not be anything." Hui Gai whispered back, too conscious of the sleeping bodies.

But he was glad that Wei Ying was finally addressing his health instead of hiding behind false bravado and brushing it off like it didn't matter. And healing or feeling better came in sorts of shapes and forms...

"I know...but at the same time...I can feel something." Wei Ying allowed himself to relax now.

"Like what?" Hui Gai asked, curiously.

Wei Ying shook his head miserably.

"I wish I could tell. I've never felt this way before...wait...there was one time. But it can't be the same thing, it cannot be."

"You need to tell him." Hui Gai said softly.

Wei Ying turned to look at him, and Hui Gai winked and jerked his head towards a now awake Lan Zhan. Then he vanished.

Wei Ying smiled softly at his husband.

Lan Zhan sat up and held his arms out, to which Wei Ying responded by planting himself in his lap.

They kissed sweetly, a good morning greeting that they had missed so much.

But Lan Zhan wasn't letting him off that easily.

"Wei Ying was saying?"

Wei Ying was currently draped all over him, and feeling quite relaxed. But he knew Hui Gai was right; part of Lan Zhan’s anxiousness was a direct result of Wei Ying's inability to talk about himself.

Especially regarding his health.

So he sighed and took a deep breath, readying himself for the ensuing conversation.

"How much did you hear?" Wei Ying asked him, his lips lingering on his strong jaw.

"Wei Ying was saying how he had felt like this once before. When?" Lan Zhan could be quite clinical when he wanted to be.

And if it didn't concern himself, Wei Ying loved that about him, his analytical mind.

"Before...First life. When...when they threw me into the Burial Mounds."

Lan Zhan tried not to gasp but his air was stolen nonetheless. He held Wei Ying tighter, as if anyone would come and snatch him away at any moment.

"My love, sweetheart...that's why...that's why I didn't want to tell you." Wei Ying closed his eyes, content to let Lan Zhan hold him. "But you see, my love...I didn't have my core back then. That was why the exhaustion was so bad." He tried not to think about that time.

The nightmares when they came, were bad enough to attack him when he was unaware, but to willingly relive that time...it was better not to.

"So now...because you do have a core, a strong one at that, plus you are immortal now...so it can't be that." Lan Zhan finished for him.

"Exactly." Wei Ying mumbled, giving up the fight to stay awake now.

Besides, Lan Zhan was so nice and comfortable...all the time.

It was so much easier to just let himself go and slip into the blessed oblivion of sleep.

Lan Zhan, knowing he was sleeping now, kissed the top of his head, refusing to let go of him.

True, they couldn't find anything wrong with his Wei Ying...but the persistent feeling that Wei Ying was slipping through his fingers like water...it wouldn't go away.

Lan Zhan tried to calm himself by listening to his even breaths as he slept, and the constant sound of his heart beating, and for the first time ever, he prayed to the Gods.