WangXian Forever 7

Chapter 4 Solutions

Rumi nodded.

Hui Gai opened his arms and the little boy jumped into them. If he could have made himself vanish inside the older demon, he would have.

Wei Ying kissed the back of his head, rubbing his back softly.

"It's okay to be scared, Rumi. You can go with Hui Gai, we'll be right here. Okay?"

Rumi opened one amber eye fearfully, and nodded.

Hui Gai grinned, more to reassure the boy's parents than anything else,  and then he disappeared.

Wei Ying sat down next to Lan Zhan, feeling glum. Li XiWang wriggled into his lap, even as Lan Zhan pulled him closer.

"Hui Gai will make him feel better, father." She whispered.

"Yeah, I know...it's just whenever one of us feels down..." He tried to smile.

Wei Ying knew that Hui Gai would try to distract the little boy as much as he could, and only bring him back if Rumi wanted to come earlier, or just before they would head home.

In a way, it was good if Rumi wasn't here; his fear was paralysing. He would not have enjoyed this holiday at all, and Wei Ying wondered for the hundredth time, what had made him so terrified of water? Other demons had no trouble with the liquid, but Rumi hadn't touched the stuff, not even in the Nether world.

Hui Gai hadn't found anything either, or he would have mentioned something.

A hot bowl of congee was placed in his lap, under the flap of Lan Zhan's robe so it wouldn't burn him. Lan Zhan was blowing on a spoonful to feed to their daughter, when Wei Ying looked at him.

"Sorry..."

"No need. What was Wei Ying thinking about?"

"Rumi."

"Eat now, talk later."

Wei Ying obediently ate, concentrating on one spoon after another until his bowl was empty. Li XiWang picked up all three bowls and went to Honge.

Hongse smiled and patted the ground next to her.

"Let's wash these out."

"Okay." Li XiWang sat down next to her, ready to learn.

"Moisture is available everywhere, even in the air surrounding us." The red-clad woman said. "You can draw it out by concentrating. That's what we normally do...but here, we have water in abundance." She looked at the sea.

"What are you going to do?"

"Let's have some fun!" She winked.

Li XiWang clapped her hands in excitement.

Hongse drew on the energy around them and directed it towards the sea. They were sitting close enough to it so that little waves could come and caress the soles of their feet. Li XiWang was smiling, happy and relaxed as she watched the gifted older one.

Water plumed into the shape of an animal, four thick stumpy legs stood firmly, constantly in motion as it was made into the form of an elephant. It was a baby one, with big floppy ears, and it raised it's trunk to funnel water into their bowls to rinse them out. Hongse did that for all their washing up. Once the bowls were clean, she hollowed out the trunk so it could fill up with cold air and she dried the utensils in this way.

Li XiWang had been watching with an enraptured look on her face, making cow eyes at her aunt.

"That is so cool, auntie!"

From a distance, Zai Shu Xia watched her sister and her daughter as they played, a sad smile on her face. Her sister was a natural with kids, and right now, Zai Shu Xia was regretting the way she had treated Li XiWang more than anything.

Wei Ying was also watching his daughter, the way her smile lit up her whole face. He looked over to her parents, and caught the sad expression on her mother's face. To have someone lose trust in you was terribly easy, and gaining it once more after it'd been lost, was as difficult as climbing a mountain for a cripple. If Zai Shu Xia wanted to mend her relationship with her daughter, she was going to have to work for it.

Daden Yaonu and Daden De Long cast shadows across them as they approached.

"We are thinking of going to meet the rest of our family now. Would you like to come with us?"

Wei Ying brightened immediately, nodding.

"We just have to figure out how many of the oyster pearls we'll have to buy."

Hongse was nearing them and overheard that last part.

"No need. I can help you." She let go of Li XiWang's hand and with a wave of her hands, she created a bubble of oxygen around her head. "The outer layer sucks in air from the surrounding air or water, depending on where you are."

"That's just genius!!" Wei Ying exclaimed, making her blush.

"It's nothing..."

"Then let's go!" Wei Ying stood up immediately.

He held out his hand for Lan Zhan, who took it immediately and rose with ease.

They were all strong swimmers, so there was no need to worry.

"Ever since you returned Shui to the Jiaoren, peace has been restored upon the ocean floor. " Daden De Long said.

"I will call my father, he will wish to bless our families." Daden Yaonu added, looking at Tiaopi De Long.

The Great Phoenix had seven daughters, one for each of his feathers, which he had gifted to his wife. But his youngest daughter had died in a freak accident when she had tried to protect Tiaopi De Long from a secret attack by the Jiaoren*. The resulting chaos had led him to preventing any children being born to the other sea dragons until their family was once more whole again.

"Are you excited about going back in there?" Jin Ling asked SiZhui.

They were holding hands and watching the water as it ebbed and flowed.

"Yes." The sunlight caught the chocolate brown of his eyes, making them seem golden rather than his normal brown.

Jin Ling thought he had never looked more beautiful before. He leaned in to kiss him deeply, smiling at the tiniest moan.

Jiang Cheng slapped his back with more force than necessary and at the same time, Wei Ying did the same to his son, albeit gentler than his younger brother. Both older men put their arms around their children.

"Ready?" Wei Ying kissed the top of his head as SiZhui smiled back.

"Don't get into any trouble down there!" Jiang Cheng admonished as usual. "Or I'll break your legs!"

There was no threat behind the words though.

"You always say that...how long are you going to use the same old threat?" Jin Ling just managed to avoid what would have been a box to his ears.

"So impudent!" Jiang Cheng chased after him.

"I'm calling in some help." Wei Ying fished around in his sleeves until he found that tiny golden bell, the one that made no noise but that one person in the whole of creation would hear just fine.

In no time at all, they could hear the great flapping of huge wings, and a massive shape appeared on the horizon.

*****

Hui Gai watched Rumi play with an excited Klem, as Oge came to sit by him.

"What is it? You seem troubled." She whispered, looking over at both kids.

"The little boy is terrified of water." Hui Gai took her hand in his, playing with her fingers.

"Why? How do you know?" Her smooth voice helped to drain away the tension that Hui Gai had been holding onto.

Hui Gai explained everything, from the little boy's eating habits, to his pitiful state on the beach.

"You know, it might just be he's scared of the body of water. If you're not used to it, it can happen."

It was an offhand comment, but it sowed the germination of something that might be a cure. Hui Gai had a brilliant idea, but it would either be a failure or a success, both on an epic scale.

*Please refer to book 4.