Letting go of self-restraint 2 - All that is missing is a little one

Chapter 26

After Wen Ning made sure that Wei Wuxian was comfortable enough, he reassured the older boy that he would be back in a matter of minutes and went out. The Yunmeng Jiang sect disciple was alone again, now however, his loneliness was so much harder to bear after being reminded of what he had lost when he decided to run away. He was also still having doubts about Wen Ning, whether the younger boy would really come back for him and whether he would keep his promise of not telling anyone about his whereabouts.

Minutes passed and the Dafan Wen disciple was still not returning. Wei Wuxian's worries only grew and desperate sobs started coming out of his chest. After what seemed like hours to him, he heard rustling sounds from outside of the cave.

He tried to muffle his crying and unsheathed his sword. He wanted to get up and face whatever was coming standing up but he found out that he was unable to, he was too weak right now, only a trembling pregnant Omega and no longer the strong cultivator he once was. He cursed internally and remained seated, his weapon pointed towards the cave entrance, waiting for whatever would come inside.

The sounds outside stopped right before the cave entrance. Wei Wuxian was nervously listening for any sniffing, growling or groaning which would mean that the creature the disciples were night hunting had found him. He relaxed slightly when he heard no such thing. Instead, there was a quiet voice that made his heart nearly jump out of his chest: "Young Master Wei, it is me. I am coming in."

He thought he was discovered; until he realized it was Wen Ning coming back. He gave out a shaky sigh, he did not even notice that he was holding his breath at all. He heard steps echoing in the cave entrance and rustling of fabric and he could no longer keep himself collected; he burst out in relieved sobs.

The younger boy seemed startled by his reaction and quickly kneeled beside him, checking if everything was alright with a hand on his wrist. Wei Wuxian could not contain himself, he was so glad that Wen Ning came back as he promised that he lunched himself into the hands of his brother-in-law and cried on his chest, drenching both their clothes in the process, his hands clutching at the fabric of the Dafan Wen disciple's robes. The younger boy did not seem to mind and he gently returned his embrace, waiting for the distressed boy to calm down, whispering reassurances into his ear while gently patting his back.

"Young Master Wei, there is no need for you to be afraid. I came back just as I promised. I did not see anyone outside; I did not speak to anyone. No one aside for me knows you are here. You are safe. Take all the time you need, it is alright to cry. I have brought my donkey and my supplies. I can give you my spare clothes, they are warm; I also have a blanket, you are as cold as snow, we need to warm you up. I have food as well."

It took a long while for Wei Wuxian to calm down, he was extremely relieved that the younger boy came back for him and was now offering him help. He was still shivering, he did not know whether it was due to his distress or due to being cold but he wanted to get out of the damp and dark cave. There was sun and it was warmer than inside, he knew, he had been there just moments ago; he felt like he had not been outside ever since coming to the Burial Mounds. He had been too scared to be able to relax and enjoy the nice weather.

He stopped crying and managed to unclench his fists, releasing the younger boy. He took several breaths, daring his voice not to come out and whispered: "Wen Ning, take me out, please."

***

Wen Ning helped Wei Wuxian out of the cave and sat him comfortably, back against a tree, while placing his spare blanket over his still shivering body. He could see that the older boy was at the end of his rope, it was nothing short of a miracle that he had not yet broken down completely. The Yunmeng Jiang disciple even managed a small, tired smile and thanked him.

The younger boy's heart was breaking seeing his brother-in-law in such state, he was fighting tears when he went back to his donkey to fetch food. He took only a small portion, he knew that after a long starvation, the older boy would not be able to stomach too much.

He steeled himself to not cry and went back to his temporary charge. Wei Wuxian gladly accepted the bread and dried fish he was given and started eating, hungrily but not in a hurry. Wen Ning was closely observing him and deciding how to approach the subject of taking him back to Yiling and informing the others about his whereabouts. He did not want to upset the pregnant Omega but he could clearly see that the Yunmeng Jiang sect disciple could not survive long continuing like this.

Wei Wuxian sighed delightfully and put away the rest of the food, he only managed to eat a half of what he was given; the Dafan Wen disciple was alarmed, he hoped the older boy would be able to eat at least that much. It did not matter at the moment however, for now, he had to get him to safety, somewhere warm with good and nutritious food. And if at all possible, back to his bonded partner.

Surprisingly enough, it was Wei Wuxian who spoke first: "You know, Wen Ning, I am really glad you have found me. I did not know if I would be able to survive much longer here on my own. Could you perhaps spare some of your provisions? It was hard to get a good meal these past few days, I would really appreciate that. With some unknown beast going around, I do not want to go out of the cave for a while, I am in no condition to fight right now..."

Wen Ning startled: "Is there some dangerous beast lurking around these parts? I heard that the Burial Mounds was a pretty safe place, if it was not true, surely Jiang Cheng would not let me go on my own and would have insisted for me to stay in Lotus Pier instead... We should go hide back inside, Young Master Wei. You cannot use your spiritual energy and I am too weak of a cultivator to fight, we should call for help."

"Wait, you did not know there was a beast or a monster here? There are many disciples night hunting it at the moment..." Wei Wuxian looked baffled, as if he could not understand what the Dafan Wen doctor was implying. "Why did you come then? And Jiang Cheng is also here?"

Wen Ning saw that the Yunmeng Jiang sect disciple was genuinely confused: "Perhaps Young Master Wei believed that all the people who we dispatched to look for him were here only for a night hunt? Was that why he was so nervous and defensive? Was that why he had brought me in in the first place, to save me? I cannot believe he would think that; we are all here to look for him..."

He had to make it clear to the older boy, just how much everyone was worried for him, so he explained carefully: "Young Master Wei, there is no night hunt going on at the moment near here. The disciples you saw were in reality looking for you. We were extremely worried about you. And when Young Master Nie guessed where you have probably run off to, we all rushed to look for you together with a handful of trustworthy disciples that you were familiar with.

We thought you could be in danger; pregnant and nearly devoid of spiritual energy, you would have hardly been able to defend yourself should anything happen. We were afraid that you and the baby could be harmed. Especially Young Master Lan..." Wei Wuxian flinched noticeably at the mention of his husband but otherwise he listened without interrupting the other, seemingly in a state of utter shock and awe.

"...he was so worried about you that he collapsed while searching for you. Do not worry, he is alright now, Sect Leader Lan is keeping an eye on him. You are in a vulnerable stage of your pregnancy right now, you need to be exceedingly careful and you also need the proximity of your bonded partner and a healthy and peaceful environment. We all want to protect you and take care of you; we want to make sure that you will have a safe delivery and that you and the baby are going to be fine."