hypermoyashi

[ A preview from the second chapter of "It's who you are." This is actually from the first draft, and the second draft will be heavily edited, so watch out for the full edited chapter ^^ Also, other than some uncomfortable implications for the way omega are treated within this society, there should be no warnings for this chapter. Enjoy! ]

Xie Lian climbed into the cart, content to relax as it brought him to wherever the winds willed, but upon the noticing the faint, rhythmic sound of someone’s breath coming from the other side of the cart, he paused. He couldn’t help but notice how, instead of only hay and the dull sandalwood of the cart driver, he could also smell sweet maple and rain hanging in the air.

He peered around the side of the bale to spot the other hitchhiker, a young teenager clad entirely in red. The scent was similar to that ‘ghost groom,’ but not quite the same… even still, the boy was not as elaborately dressed, no adornments of silver to be seen anywhere on his person. He seemed younger than Xie Lian remembered his unexpected escort in the woods being, too, with a less defined jawline and slightly shorter stature. His hair was even pulled sloppily up to one side, messy and uncaring.

Sighing, Xie Lian fell back into his claimed spot. He would let it be, for now. Instead of paying the boy any more attention, he pulled out the scroll Ling Wen had given him to study, noting how the faint scent of moss still clung to it. It only took a few minutes of muttering to himself for that teenager to suddenly jump in with his own remarks on the scroll’s contents.

He was smart, that was for sure, and he knew more about the three realms and their politics than Xie Lian could ever hope to keep up with. Eventually, while listening to him speak, Xie Lian set aside the scroll entirely. It was… amicable, and pleasant, talking with that boy.

His name was San Lang.

Finally, after some time of absent chatter, Xie Lian tred into more tenuous territory to ask, “Where are your parents? Isn’t it a bit…”

...dangerous for a young omega to be traveling alone?

Xie Lian didn’t even finish the statement, wondering how patronizing it must sound, but his meaning was clear. Silence hung between them, and for a moment, Xie Lian worried he’d offended the young man. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry when San Lang burst into a bout of laughter.

“I ran away from home,” he said decidedly, “but I can take care of myself just fine, omega and all.”

From his clothes and self-assured manner, he was likely the son of a noble family, if one were to fully believe the surface. Omega, especially ones of noble blood, were often kept barred from society, so stories about particularly audacious ones running away to taste freedom for the first time weren’t uncommon. They very rarely ended well, though, and were meant to serve as cautionary tales. Xie Lian much prefered the few that concluded pleasantly.

“Ge ge doesn’t mind if an omega accompanies him for a while, do you?”

Making sure nothing happened to San Lang was his primary concern in accepting, but… the idea of not being alone was nice. Company—any company at all, however temporary—was a welcome reprieve from the hundreds of years of loneliness that Xie Lian collected over his long, long lifetime.

Smiling, Xie Lian replied, “Of course I don’t mind.”