The Littlest Nie Heir

[fanoperator]

Huaisang's desperate.

His brother's murderer seems to grow more powerful and prosperous with every passing year, and Huaisang has no proof, no progress, and no real defenses against the possibility of his own murder. All he can do is keep acting clueless, and even that defense has meant that his sect grows weaker and poorer as time goes on.

History had never been one of Huaisang's passions, but in reviewing old documents about the construction of Qinghe, he found some records that referenced even older documents. They claimed that more than two hundred years ago, while the deeper cellars and storage chambers had been built into the mountain, some of the Nie ancestors had bound a spirit to protect a weapon of great power. But the spirit would only allow its power to be used by someone worthy, and more than one generation had tried to use the spirit only to find themselves deemed unworthy, until the cavern where the spirit lived had been bricked up entirely.

Huaisang wasn't clear on why they needed to brick the spirit's cavern up like that, since it wasn't doing anything (it seemed like the whole problem was that it kept refusing to do anything), and he also couldn't imagine that there was any chance that he (the disappointment of his sect) would succeed at a measurement where his ancestors had failed. But maybe the spirit just really didn't like unyielding muscle-bound swordmen. Huaisang could be remarkably persuasive. And anyway, now he was curious.

The location of the spirit's cavern was quite straightforward, off a certain storage chamber, so it only took a pair of workmen a couple of hours to open the wall.

Huaisang went in alone, dismissing the workmen and telling his attendant to wait outside. He trusted his attendants, and knew that Toutong would worry, but if there was something dangerous in here, Huaisang didn't want anyone else put at risk for his curiosity. He'd learned that lesson once before.

The chamber was a simple round cave, with an intricate carved pattern on the floor made up of sigils that Huaisang didn't recognize. At the center was a short pillar with a little jade statuette.

Huaisang strode up to it, only a little bit wary, and picked up the statuette. It was solid jade, heavy in his hand and larger than both his fists together (not that he had particularly large hands). "Tiangou," he murmured, recognizing the stylized carving as representative of a monstrous dog-spirit. He tapped the little statuette on its nose, wondering why the eyes had been painted with some old and flaking red-brown paint.

Comments

[canisinferis]

There's no way to tell how reliable the demon will be when issued orders in times of stress, but for now, the light praise and simple beckoning are easily successful. Huaisang hardly has to gesture before the demon downs the rest of his drink, stuffs one more piece of food into his maw, and hops up to follow.

As he leans against the railing at his keeper's side, his ears are attentively perked, focus honed in on each locale that is pointed out to him. Absorbing the information without distraction. It's a good sign that he is in fact capable of falling into "work mode," like a well-trained hound should be able to do. However, the question remains whether or not he will do so whenever his keeper asks.

[fanoperator]

Not long after, Huaisang's attendant returns, his worried look only slightly easing when he sees Huaisang unharmed. He knows very well that keeping Huaisang alive and mostly out of trouble will continue to be a full-time job. Which is only a little more complicated with the addition of some kind of dog demon. "Sect Leader."

Huaisang smiles as he turns, taking in Toutong's expression at a glance to know that his task is done and there's no new emergency to worry about.

"All right, come on Dieke," Huaisang murmurs, turning and following Toutong up some more stairs. After the rest and food, he can manage a few more flights without complaint, since they're at least already most of the way up. Near the highest levels of the palace, there's a pleasant little hall set apart from the rest, on a high rocky ledge that juts out from the mountainside with a short stair leading up to it. Isolated enough from the rest, Huaisang notes, that a fire wouldn't quickly jump, and it's set on pure rock rather than amidst trees like some of the other halls. The doors are open and a fire is lit, cozy inside with a balcony wrapping around to gaze out across the windy mountainside. The hall is one large room, with sliding doors that close off certain areas to provide privacy as desired, and a sizable bed with red and brown silks.

"Very nice," Huaisang comments approvingly, with a nod to Toutong. "Do you like it, Dieke?"

[canisinferis]

"--Oh! For me?" The possibility hadn't crossed his mind until that question. He'd just been grinning to himself and gazing around in simple admiration, so it had taken a hanging moment or two for him to realize what Huaisang was actually asking.

This place is meant for him?

Before Huaisang can actually answer, the demon is already moving forward, flame-flickering down into the shape of the Hound to better explore the room with. Nose to the ground and tail wagging with excitement, he lopes into the space to happily smell everything.

[fanoperator]

"Yes. We did agree on me spoiling you, after all. A being and bodyguard as exceptional as you are should certainly have an exceptional room."

He lets Dieke explore for a bit, watching him for a moment and then wandering to the back of the room, where the door opens out onto the steep rocky slope of the mountain. There's a pool there, where the hot spring water arises from the ground. There are several hot springs that pop up around the mountain. The main pool steams heavily, but it's diverted to several smaller pools, one near Dieke's new residence, and another channel that Huaisang's pretty sure leads directly to his own private hot spring pool. The water's still hot when it gets there, so he knows better than to touch the steaming water in the main pool.

"There's a hot spring back here," he comments to Dieke, not expecting him to finish his exploring just yet but wanting him to know it's included. "Part of it is very hot."

[canisinferis]

Sounding something like a happy pony, the demon's footsteps gallop across the room until he's bounding out to join Huaisang. Tail wagging with excitement, he approaches the nearest pool first, happily breathing in the warmth and tang of minerals in the air.

Water is not exactly his favorite thing in the world, but steamy baths are an exception. Submerging in something like that would feel a lot less like he's being extinguished than it normally would.

Then, at the warning about the main pool, the Hound's ears perk up. He glances back at his keeper for a moment... before giving him the open-jawed, tongue-lolling, canine version of a grin. A moment later, he's loping off to check out that main pool, and can already tell that it feels a little more like Home, even from here.

[fanoperator]

Huaisang strolls after him, though he keeps his distance from the main pool, not wanting to risk so much as getting splashed by the scorching hot water. It's nice to watch Dieke's joy, though, since he's far less intimidating when he's having fun. Especially when that fun isn't quite so alarmingly targeted at Huaisang as the sniffing earlier. He's also glad that his new hound does seem to like the hot springs, since Huaisang was a little bit concerned about how difficult it might be to get him to bathe.

"Go on and wash up a bit," Huaisang encourages. "I'll bring you a cake of soap, and then we'll get you some fresh clothes." He nods to Toutong to take care of the latter, though he goes himself back to the hall to pick up some soap and a rag, bringing them to set down as near as he dares to get to the edge of the main pool. The main pool is almost entirely naturally, which means that it's very deep and not especially wide, disappearing into twists and turns of the cave far below, though the water pressure streaming upward would make exploration difficult or impossible.

[canisinferis]

It's almost as if the water is roiling up from Hell itself, so the demon gets much more playful than he normally would in any body of water. Paddling around, diving under the surface, just having fun splashing all by himself while Huaisang steps away.

When Huaisang returns, the hound hauls himself out of the water so he can meet him halfway and curiously sniff the cake of soap. Heat and steam rolls off the hound's fur in the open air, and Huaisang is lucky that he doesn't shake himself off and cover the man with splatters of scalding water.

[fanoperator]

"It's soap. You know what soap is, right?" Huaisang regards him a little warily, worried about getting burnt or scalded from touching him. "We'll get you some new clothes once you're cleaned up."

The demon clothes he was wearing aren't unattractive, but Huaisang does find them very strange and thinks it will be better if he fits in as much as possible.

Sorry I was gone from this for so long!

[canisinferis]

The demon can't exactly answer while in this form, so in a flicker of light and heat, he's shaped like a man again. Skin still steaming from the hot spring, he's crouched there to look at the cake of soap, wearing a funny grin on his face.

"--Of course I know what soap is. I've just never used it before, you know? I've never needed to."

He picks up the soap with such curiosity. Holding it and turning it in his hands, looking at it as if it's a complete novelty.

[fanoperator]

Huaisang blushes as the demon changes back into human form, crouched down over the soap like that. He unfurls his fan again to hide his blush, though he at least doesn't retreat any further. "You just ... rub it over your skin to slough off any dirt and oils that have accumulated. There's a different process for washing the hair on your head, but we can go into that later. I can help you with that part."

He's more than happy to wash and play with hair. Washing other parts of Dieke, however, is an intimidating prospect.

[canisinferis]

His grin widens when he catches hints of that blush and the suggestion that Huaisang help him with washing his hair. It's a sneaking, playful expression. He's trying to keep it from looking like he's about to pounce on him and eat him up, but that's always been difficult for him.

"I have another way of getting clean, but this sounds kinda fun."

[fanoperator]

"Does the other way involve cleansing by fire? Because I suppose that would work, but I'd rather you didn't get soot on your new clothes." Huaisang bites at his lower lip, not sure what to insist on or encourage, since he doesn't think Dieke is all that dirty, necessarily, he'd just wanted to show him the pools. "Go on and try it."

[canisinferis]

Luckily, he's easy to convince. It's not that he has a great love for his blazing fire baths; it's just how he has always done it... and water baths have never been appealing, with his dislike of water in general.

But this sounds fun. Using soap for the first time, while splashing around in a pool that reminds him of Hell, is more like play than anything else. So, carrying the soap like he's got a new toy, he scampers back to the scalding pool.

He'll move to a pool more suited to someone who doesn't want to boil to death if it comes time for Huaisang to play with his hair, but he'll hang out in his favorite pool until then.

He does just as he'd seen humans do in the past, lathering up and methodically washing off, looking simply delighted as he does so.

[fanoperator]

Huaisang supervises with a smile, keeping his smiles and blushes coyly hidden behind his fan for the most part, but still enjoying his new pet's enthusiasm and the handsome strength of his form. He's entertaining, and Huaisang is drawn to him despite his fear.

An attendant returns with the new clothes, which are black with silver trim, and then politely withdraws again.

Once Dieke seems to have finished, Huaisang nods at the towel set out for him. "Come and dry off, and then I'll help you dress."

[canisinferis]

As much as the demon loves knowing that there's someone halfway-hiding behind a fan while watching him bathe, he knows it's got to come to an end at some point.

When he hauls himself out of the pool again, he goes to start shaking the water out of his hair like an animal before he notices the towel. Then, he'll properly pick the thing up and dry himself off in the way that a good human-shaped thing should, though he does start heading in Huaisang's direction while he's still rubbing the towel over his hair.

"Oh, good. It's been ages since I've worn anything like what you guys wear around here. I wouldn't know where to start."

[fanoperator]

Huaisang blushes as he gets closer to the handsome naked man, cheeks flaming, but he picks up the first item, a loose pair of trousers, and hands them over, showing him how to tie them at the side to secure them. Then there's an undershirt, which overlaps across the front and again ties on one side. Then a simple robe with long silver sleeves, a second more elaborate black robe that goes over that, showing a flash of the silver under-robe at the collar and ends of the sleeves, and finally a wide belt that ties around his waist.

"There," Huaisang says, once everything is secured in place. He gives his demon a smile, looking him over and admiring the results. "You look very handsome. And the style of this shows that you're higher-ranking, so people will for the most part not interfere with you moving around the palace complex. And, distinctive as you are, I'm sure word will spread quickly enough about who you are and what your position is at my side."