AnthologyRE: https://blorbo.social/@apprendere/114990395931334385
Worked on this fic today :3
#Snippery for Ubiquitous Gaze, the fic in which Xie Lian is stuck inside his statues instead of dreaming when he sleeps. This bit is from Hua Cheng's stay in Mt. Tonglu.
Snip:
Often, he can hear the sculptor working. The sounds of the chisel only grows faster and more sure between visits.
Xie Lian dreams.
Helplessly, he tries to gasp, reflex fighting impossibility. He can see the cave's wall, smoothed and flattened, crude blood and pale ash sketching out a familiar scene. The ugly choice of material should be a harbinger of the bad luck following the events depicted. He can't think that though, not when it shows a young boy saving a falling child. The shang yuan festival.
Months pass before he sees it again, painted into a proper mural, fresh jagged characters still wet. A dark figure stands before it. The sculptor, painter, <i>artist</i>. This strange believer reaches out, and stops short of touching his painted face.
Xie Lian wishes this ghost would turn, though he doesn't know how he will react.
Would he laugh, to find Hong Hong'er still believed in him?
Would he cry, to find his last believer still wearing a nameless and faceless mask?
The ghost only tips its head to consider the mural. It returns to work, painting the child a blood red smudge.
... damn. I'm going to have to rate this mature for accidental voyeurism of angst filled frotting. It's more sad than titillating.
It's also only in outline notes format, otherwise I'd put a snippet here.
...
Actually, this stage is analogous to posting a sketch before the finished piece which I am fine with. So. Yeet.
[Hua Cheng stumbles into the cave, finds a statue that would hold a fresh flower in its outstretched hand, and presses his face into its palm. Xie Lian has to watch, seeing the obvious distress and desperation and not even inhabiting the statue Hua Cheng is seeking this pale echo of comfort from. Acciental voyeurism and guilt time! Hua Cheng presses his cheek into the unyielding touch, and sobs, his hands clench in the fabric of his robes, bunching it and tearing and there's nothing Xie Lian can do to help! One of Hua Cheng's hands drifts over his crotch, and is swiftly removed, nails lengthening to claws and piercing through the fabric of his sleeve. Uh oh though, something seems to break through Hua Cheng's desperation and he rips off that sleeve. Xie Lian thinks Hua Cheng is going to take care of the wound just inflicted, but Hua Cheng looks at it, and sees that the clawing missed the tattoo of Xie Lian's name and sinks onto the floor like his knees have gone out. Xie Lian can't read the writing, but Hua Cheng is tracing it and saying his name so it's pretty clear what it says, repeating it like a mantra, like it's the only thing keeping him here. Xie Lian is starting to find it hard to ignore that Hua Cheng's faith in him might be more than just faith. Hua Cheng smooths a hand over the tattoo and then grips at his wrist and grits his teeth. It's like a wave of pain rolls down his body starting at the face. Hua Cheng ends up writhing on the floor, shirt half ripped off, crying and very obviously trying not to touch himself, eventually pressing his face into the shoe of a statue and grinding his cock against the floor.] [Xie Lian remembers the land of the tender and almost wishes Hua Cheng would just work off whatever is driving him to this desperation. Except then Hua Cheng does come, sobbing out his title, and the desperation doesn't go away. This hurts Xie Lian's heart real bad.]
[It must be nearly morning by the time the pain fades and Hua Cheng is left limp on the floor. Xie Lian wants VERY MUCH to go pick up Hua Cheng and soothe whatever aches remain, hug him and hold him and make everything be okay again. Hua Cheng shouldn't suffer like that.]
[Hua Cheng stirs, rolls away from his mess. Xie Lian can see the glints of saliva and come both. Hua Cheng sits, his limbs all still limp in an awkward way. The scowl on his face is absolutely venomous, looking at the come that managed to drip out through his pants still drying on the floor.] [Hua Cheng's hands are curled into fists at either temple. "Can't even respect his image properly..." Hua Cheng adjusts his grip and pulls at his hair and, okay, Xie Lian doesn't know what to think about this evidence that Hua Cheng has a desire for him in that way, but to respect even just the image of a man who is no longer a god enough to hurt himself like this over it? Xie Lian would rather Hua Cheng make a statue as a deliberate fucktoy than suffer needlessly. It's not like it breaks his cultivation after all, for all that he inhabits a statue of himself every night, they aren't quite him.] [Xie Lian can tell Hua Cheng would feel even worse knowing Xie Lian had found this out.]