the moon rises over antarctica

[reedsea]

[ the thing about visiting the Xianzhou Luofu is that it's not quite home, but it was once home. it's like returning the place that you grew up after you grew up and moved away, something distant and wondrous all the same, both foreign and familiar. due to circumstances, Dan Heng never got to experience the Luofu while he was growing up post-rebirth, so whenever he steps foot on it, it always feels a bit wistful in a way he can't explain.

that is to say that he does like going, even if he's recognized from time to time, being able to experience something that he was unable to experience when he was younger strikes a certain chord. this time his visit is framed by strings of lanterns in the dim night air. the atmosphere is lively, full of bustling people and various smells of street food.

Dan Heng is content to watch the people mill about: a group of children playing hide and seek past their bedtime, a young man making a gallant attempt at flirting with a woman at one of the food stalls, and a group of foxians chattering away as they pass through, trying to decide on what their next nightly activity should be.

he let Caelus decide on what to get to eat, settling down at an out-of-the-way corner seat of Du's Teahouse. it's a nice night for a date — that is what this was, right? a Festival Date. Himeko gave him a look when they told her where they were going, holding her hand to her cheek as if she were going to comment about how fast they were growing up. instead she gave them a stipend for a night like a big sister making sure her little brother (or brothers, he wonders) would have a good time. she looked happy, though, in a way that Dan Heng didn't think he'd make her look happy.

for a moment his mind wanders as he watches a lantern sway a bit, and he thinks about visiting the Scalegorge Waterscape sometime later, both for a moment of quiet, and because it felt appropriate.

then Boss Du brings the tea. ]

Thank you.

[ he looks down at the two cups.

er, "tea" might be a better word for it. ]

Comments

[receptacles]

[ As dense as Caelus tends to come off on most days, there are ways in which he's often a bit more socially adroit than Dan Heng is. Case in point: he was fully aware of all of the emotional reasons that Himeko smiled at them and gave them an allowance for the night. The other members of the Express crew have noticed by now just how much Caelus puts Dan Heng at ease, and how much they like being around each other, but none have approached Dan Heng with their teasing because it doesn't quite seem that Dan Heng himself has realized that he's fallen into the role of Caelus's boyfriend.

Caelus gets the brunt of it, though. Snarky texts from March about when their next date is; meaningfully worded, cautious notes of encouragement from Welt. The Luofu festival should be a good opportunity for you two to spend some time together. Why don't you take Dan Heng to one of your favorite places?

Easy enough. Caelus's favorite place on the Luofu is Aurum Alley by far, where he knows every shopkeeper by name and can talk his way into freebies at every stall. He only scored a discount at Du's Teahouse, though, since old Du charges exorbitant prices for what is secretly the best booze on the Luofu. But it's tea, of course. Legally, he has to insist that it's tea.

Caelus has been ignoring the tea, though. He's unfolded a beautiful gift box full of mooncakes in gorgeously individually wrapped settings and has been working on cutting one into bite-sized pieces appropriate for the miniature fork included with the box. Sure, maybe his motions are detracting from the beautiful harvest moon overhead, but does it matter? ]

Dan Heng, look, look. I got us mooncakes.

[ At last, he extracts a wedge of delicious cake, glossy with oils and a luscious yellow yolk at its core. He holds one hand beneath it to catch any crumbs — there usually aren't any — and holds it out to Dan Heng across the table, on a beeline for his pretty mouth. ]

Say "ah."

[reedsea]

[ Caelus comes back into his range of vision, proudly displaying a decorative box full of seasonal desserts. Dan Heng wonders where he got it, or how far he had to go to get it, but contemplating the whole thing leaves him a bit at a loss: was this is all for him? it's difficult to fathom, especially at first, and his eyebrows knit as if he's trying to parse out what to do about the whole thing.

but Caelus is holding up a cake, something specifically that he brought for him.

how could he deny him? ]

Is that for me?

[ okay, that was a little bit awkward, obviously it's for him. Dan Heng looks at Caelus, then looks at the cake, then looks at Caelus again as if it's crossed his mind that Caelus may shove the cake somewhere else that's not his mouth.

then he opens his mouth.

two seconds after his mouth is open he follows up with an ah. ]

[receptacles]

[ Is that a good ah or a bad ah? It's hard to say; Dan Heng usually likes pure, unadulterated flavors, which is a nice way of saying that Dan Heng doesn't really season his food, so it's possible that he doesn't really like the mooncakes. On the other hand, Dan Heng is often quite prideful when it comes to any aspect of Xianzhou culture, and one would be hard-pressed to find someone on the Xianzhou who dislikes mooncakes. ]

Do you like it?

[ Caelus asks in a way that has his eyes shining with anticipation. If he were a dog, it would no doubt be clear from his tail and his ears how excited he is for Dan Heng's (hopefully positive) reaction. He takes the opportunity to pop a bit of mooncake into his mouth himself; sure enough, at least to his tongue, it's mildly sweet and delicious. ]

[reedsea]

[ (when you're made of this much water, salt becomes the enemy, ok.)

Caelus has become quite good at putting things in his mouth – he manages the right size bite, a good mixture of the texture of the spongy cake to the filling, and has the trajectory down between his fingers. for a moment, Dan Heng chews, less considering the cake itself and weighing the texture on his tongue.

it is good. it's not too sweet, and the egg giving it a tad of custard that comes after. ]

...

It's good.

[ before Caelus can toss the piece of mooncake in his mouth, Dan Heng (thanks to his Vidyadharan reflexes) snags it before he can make it close. instead, he gives Caelus the same treatment he just gave him, holding it out for his partner to take from his fingers. ]

These are a seasonal food, so I haven't had them before.

[ he admits, thoughtfully. ]

[receptacles]

[ Salt... the enemy...

Dan Heng liked it! This is good! Relief seems to waft out of Caelus in waves, and he doesn't hesitate as he leans forward to take a bite of mooncake all on his own. It's springy and more chewy than he thought it would be; pleasured, with a smile tinting the corners of his lips, Caelus chews like a hamster, then swallows it down. ]

Oh, yeah, you wouldn't have, huh? Since you were...

[ In jail for most of your life is not a sentence that Caelus is going to say out loud. It makes him mad to think about it — mad and sad in equal measure — but he papers things over with his own usual cheer and bluster, abruptly leaning forward to plant a mooncake-flavored kiss on his boyfriend's mouth. ]

Well! We'll just have to eat all the seasonal foods we can while we're here! [ A sunshine grin. ] And every other holiday, too — we'll come back!

[reedsea]

[ in jail, yes, listening to the waters rush around him just outside of his reach, being nonconsensually experimented on to become some amalgamation of who he is and who he was. some say that it's odd for him to be so nostalgic for the place he was born, but he can't help to be drawn to it.

perhaps it's because he has a home, and in every step he takes rediscovering himself, Caelus takes that step with him. it's nice to think about as he watches his boyfriend nibble like a dumb hamster with cheeks full of cake.

then a kiss, brimming with affection, as if this were normal. just a normal date. they were two boys on a normal date – no stellarons or past lives, no Aeons with intricate chess games, just the two of them under strings of lanterns. it is difficult in these moments not to feel a swell in his chest, stirring inside of him, breaking free of the jail of his own ribs. it's rare for him to feel it and not be down right after by guilt. ]

You'll come with me?

[ he asks, because he's unsure of this reality he's living in. there are these big feelings he has that he's never quite sure how to express. ]

I didn't think you'd enjoy it as much as you are.

[receptacles]

[ There are crowds around them, throngs of people, some Foxians and some not, some obvious tourists and others obvious locals. None of them pay the two boys flirting with each other in a corner any mind; at best, there are a few sidelong glances and admiring stares (they're both way more attractive than average — Dan Heng because of his lineage perhaps, Caelus because his body is technically artificial). All in all, though, it's a nice atmosphere for a date. For once, Dan Heng can be a normal young man from the Luofu, and his boyfriend's a hamster with cheeks full of cake. ]

Yeah? [ He says, half-muffled over another slightly gummy mouthful of mooncake. ] Well... I won't lie, yeah, I kinda thought the Luofu was boring at first.

[ But, you know, sweet cakes make everything a lot better... is one way that Caelus could finish that sentence. He chooses, instead, to properly swallow, and lean in for another kiss again. Just because he can get one, and just because Dan Heng's mouth looks so kissable under the simulated starlight. ]

But then I got to know everyone here, and it's like — there's a lot of stuff going on below the surface, you know? Everyone has so many feelings. Maybe too many feelings, 'cause they're all so long-lived. And Aurum Alley's my favorite place on the Luofu now... I feel like I own it, too. [ He did... Dan Heng's probably heard some variation of this story... quite a lot to get tourists flocking back to Aurum Alley, it seems. He flashes a smile. ] I'm the king of Aurum Alley!

[ As bubbly and animated as Caelus is, he only puffs himself up for a moment. Then he smiles and settles down. ]

...So, you know. Now we can say it's my home, too.

[reedsea]

[ a spaceship full of immortals is bound to move slow moving in some ways, as when life stretches out for so long, it's filled with mundane stretches of days – years. compared to the other places that they've been, this kind of peace can be boring,

he sits for a moment, brimming with some feelings that he didn't think would stir again, thoughts of the Astral Express being his home – the Luofu, too, being his home – and somehow being caught between them. he's not, though, he's where he needs to be.

(there are implications of other things here, that somehow Caelus has become home, but those thoughts won't cross his mind for a bit, yet, but it's there.)

then his hamster-cheeked boyfriend announces he's the king of Aurum Alley, and while it's certainly true to some extent, they get a little crowd of onlookers who glance over at the two of them. when Caelus deflates, they disperse, as if it were a passing amusement.

Dan Heng looks a bit exasperated, but amused. usually people are looking at him for different reasons. ]

I heard it was on the brink when you came across it. I don't remember much about it, nor have I ever been here. It's nice to know that it didn't disappear between then and now, and that I can enjoy it.

[ absently, he picks up the tea to take a sip and

his brows suddenly knit at the taste. ]

This is tea?

[receptacles]

[ Ah, yes.

He's been waiting for this.

It was worth it just to see Dan Heng's expression. Doing his absolute best not to snicker, Caelus puts on his very best serious lawyer face and launches into a very rehearsed defense which Boss Du has taught him a hundred times before: ]

Legally, it's tea. According to the regulations issued by the Realm-Keeping Commission, Du's Teahouse only sells tea.

[ Legally, it's tea should tell Dan Heng enough about the situation at hand already, but Caelus decides to take it a step further and really sell it. ]

It is combustible, flammable tea, and drinking too much of it may be harmful to your health, so it can only be sold to adults. But it has a unique flavor profile, appreciated by the Luofu's most discerning customers.

[ Caelus says that in a serious voice, with his very best serious face, and all the hustle and bustle of Aurum Alley walking past the two of them. What a beautiful night to tell your boyfriend a pack of lies! ]

So, it's tea.

[reedsea]

[ legally, it's tea Caleus says, with an impressive confidence. which means, certainly, that it's "tea," in the sense that there were probably tea leaves and (mumble mumble) other plants (mumble) used its brewing. there were some particularly strict, and occasionally overbearing, legalities on the Luofu, and any discerning business owner who had been around the block long enough, could learn how to avoid said legalities through loopholes.

this sounds like a loophole, but a loophole that Caelus is rather proud of.

on top of that, this tea is uniquely from Aurum Alley, which means that he's meant to experience this, right?

it's tea he hears Caelus say again as he holds it back to his lips, taking a second sip. the second time he tastes it, it goes down easier than the first. there's a complex taste profile that follows the wiff of burning alcohol, slightly bitter, slightly floral – not to his taste, but it's interesting. ]

Well, I suppose that makes us both discerning customers. It's ... interesting, better the second time ...

[ and oddly, even tastier the third, considering the longer sip he takes after that. ]

... Maybe I'll have another one. It is the autumn festival, after all.

[receptacles]

[ There's something endearing about watching Dan Heng imbibe "tea" — tentatively at first, and then with greater confidence, like a hardened veteran of booze. Ah, right, he should've known — alcohol actually does suit Dan Heng's palate, insofar as that the Vidyadhara tends to avoid oily, fatty, overly spicy types of things.

But guess what's clean, fresh-tasting, and doesn't cloy the mouth...? The "tea" from Du's Teahouse, of course!

Caelus cracks a smile as he goes to refill Dan Heng's glass, carefully setting it aflame (the fire isn't dangerous) with a special Xianzhou trick that Du taught him. One odd consistency about Caelus is this: no matter what adventures he gets into across all the stars, he does seem to trend toward being a drinksmith of some sort... ]

Oooh, Dan Heng's a heavy drinker...

[ A tea drinker, of course. But, hmm... maybe he should try to get Dan Heng out to the Party Car more often, once they're back on the Express. Shush's drinks might not be tailored to Dan Heng's preferences, but Caelus is pretty sure he can design a few cocktails that will suit his boyfriend's tastes.

In an uncharacteristically gallant moment, Caelus lowers his voice a little, steady and reassuring in a way that his usual madcap energy normally never is. ]

Cut loose for once, you deserve it. I'll carry you home if I have to.

[reedsea]

[ there is an aspect of it that is refreshing, with earthy undertones that do make it quite suitable to his palette. ever since Caelus boarded the Astral Express, he's been getting better at this, hasn't he? Dan Heng has to wonder if it's something specific to him, or if there's something about Caelus that's simply good at reading the tastes of others. perhaps a little of both.

the third sip goes down smoothly, so smoothly, in fact, that it makes his head swim. there's a rush from his chest to his ears, almost turning him pink from the neck up, but something he stills by swallowing hard until it barely brushes his cheeks. ]

Erm ...

[ he straightens his voice, clearing the air. it almost seems like his first desperate attempt of the night to keep himself together. ]

I'm sure that won't be necessary.

[ it might be necessary. usually Dan Heng finds ways to be unassuming, but Caelus seems intent to find a few of these more reckless habits of his kinda fun, and in little rebellious ways, it also makes him feel a bit more reckless. well, in a sort of boyish way that he never got to be. ]

Did you want some too? You don't have to serve me if you want to join me.

[ despite Caelus seeming at home doing it, with the easy way he sets his drink aflame.

the siren call of the "tea" catches him again, and he drums his fingers against the cup, as if his discipline was trying to kick in against the sudden heady rush of non-soberness. ]

[receptacles]

[ Is Dan Heng having a hard time keeping himself together already? Caelus is resolved to make it worse and worse. He thinks it'd be terribly cute, honestly, for Dan Heng to go through his rebellious, reckless phase now; he never got to have one, after all, and Caelus likes the idea of being there to supervise some of Dan Heng's wild firsts.

He already took a few, anyway. ]

Maybe I want to serve you. [ He flashes a cheeky, flirtatious grin. ] Master Dan Heng...

[ Despite the teasing tone, it seems like Caelus is being sensible today. Still with the same practiced grace, he pours a second helping of "tea" into his own cup, then sets the teapot down. Those clever fingers of his, accented by his fingerless gloves, pick up his cup by the rim and offer it to Dan Heng's.

Toasting teacups is surely not traditional, but they both know what the "tea" they're drinking really is, and isn't it beautiful, to drink beneath the moon? How many of Dan Heng's previous incarnations were able to do this with a lover?

Caelus is not fool enough, not romantic enough, to believe in every lifetime. But this lifetime. This much is enough, for one foolish romantic aboard the Astral Express. ]

Cheers.

[reedsea]

[ look, Dan Heng has buttoned himself up for so long, that he has to get used to unwinding. Caelus makes it easier, having gently pulled at his own guarded exterior until the Dan Heng underneath came to the surface. even a few months ago he might not have agreed to this, as the baggage and the consequences seemed too much for him. yet, because of Caelus, he's here now.

it is something to celebrate, even if he finds the means of celebration questionable, it's easy to get caught up in easy smiles and stupid words.

he raises his glass to click it against Caelus', something from the Astral Express (they have toasted Himeko's coffee before, but for a different reason) to add to the tradition of "tea." ]

Serve me?

[ he seems to find the idea kind of amusing in his light (for now) intoxication. ]

What would you do? As my servant, I could ask you to add more detailed descriptions to the data bank, you're getting concise.

[receptacles]

[ As always, Caelus the cat plays with Dan Heng the yarn ball until he's loose and unwound and, usually, sprawled out in Caelus's big bed aboard the Express. Caelus the cat seems very smug and pleased with himself indeed as he tips his head back and chugs some of his "tea" — he likes the effects of the tea more than the tea itself, and while it burns pleasantly as it goes down his throat, it's with no ill effects, and he'll feel pleasantly buzzed in a few moments.

Though, as he's waiting for it to go down... He tilts his head in quizzical confusion. ]

Huh? Wait...

[ ...Getting concise? is that a bad thing? Is his beloved Dan Heng accusing him of... being lazy?! ]

I thought concise was a good thing. You want me to be more descriptive?