inheritedpain | IC INBOX: PRISMATICA

a broom?? what's the point of flying a broom

why can't i just fly my sword like normal instead

but sure obviously we should try for the hardest one

[ a
p a use ]

you
i
sure
fine
if that's
sure
i guess

( uhhhhhhhhhh

hm )

flying on a sword is not normal where i'm from.
how do you sit on it without cutting your legs?

yeah?
brilliant.
well.
are you free during the week sometime?

what?

you stand on it, clearly?? why would i sit on a sword

uh
i mean
pretty much whenever

i have training with hanguang-jun and the juniors in the morning and i take fairy for a run after that but i don't
work or anything

so you know

whenever

is good

well.
because i'll knock you off.

( :) )

then possibly i can pick you up at your place?

Ha

i'd like to see you try

or try to stop it coming back to me when i wanted it anyway

are you saying i'm going to get to knock you off your broom harry

i'm liking the sound of this sport already

uh

i

sure

i live at my uncle's place

just
don't
i mean don't use the word date okay i really don't need them breathing down my neck more than they are

you're definitely free to try.
i'll have you know i'm a fairly good quidditch player, though.
i think you'll like the ball we're chasing.
it's golden, like you.
if you can catch it before me, i'll give it to you as a present.
how's that?
and if i catch it, i get something from you.

no worries, i know how it is.
no a-ling either, right?
why is that?

oh yeah?

fine you're on
i don't have a lot of gold here but

i'll give you a hair piece

not like you're going to win it anyway

ah
it's not bad or anything it's just
i mean
you're only really supposed to be that casual with
people you're really close with

but i just!! i figured it was easier!! you can't just call me "ling" that would sound ridiculous and i hate it when people call me rulan so

( well its gone smoothly so far might as well stir up the pot potter )

i would've settled for a kiss, actually.
it's better than gold.

you think your uncles would be upset if you were that casual with someone?

also you've told me about ten things i can call you, but rulan has never been one of them.
you must have dozens of titles.

[ o h.

agh fuck why was he blushing so hard again!!!

Okay. Okay. Okay. two could play this game!! He could be suave!! He could!!! ]]

oh really
who knew it would take so little to satisfy you

not
upset exactly
well maybe

they just worry about me and my chroma and stuff and it’s really embarrassing
little uncle tried to give me a talk on responsible behaviour and i nearly died

i love them but
they can be a lot sometimes
plus they’re also all way too young?? anyway that’s
complicated

oh
yeah
my courtesy name is jin rulan
that’s what everyone is supposed to call me as an adult
but they gave me the worst most girly name ever

are you really so surprised?

now that i think about it, i imagine it's probably absolutely horrible to be specifically here with anyone you call family.
what with all the
implications?
talk about awkward.

it sounds complicated.
maybe you'll tell me about it sometime.

i don't think jin rulan sounds girly.
is it that bad?

yeah a little considering how easily you got the first one

it's not horrible
at all
i mean it's embarrassing but

look it's a really long story and it's really complicated so if you actually are interested i'll tell you later
but i don't see me rambling about my family tree as being that fascinating anyway

it

it means 'orchid-like'
that's pretty damn girly

completely different, don't you think?
if the first one was necessary and the second one is by choice, the second one is much more important, right?

i'd be happy to listen to you talk about anything.
your world is so different from mine, i find all that you say quite fascinating.

ahhhhhhhh i see. yeah.
at least it's only feminine and not hideous.

and beating me at a game i’ve never played is the best method huh?

what if i win and want to kiss you anyway

[ ... yeah he sure did just type that. he scrubbed at his beet red face. IT’S FINE, JUST ACT COOL.

then he just stares at the rest for a long few seconds. when had anyone thought his opinions on anything were fascinating?? ]

fine we can exchange stories and magic next time

i get teased enough without my name giving extra incentive

it's certainly a method. best is a bit of a stretch.
feel free to kiss me anytime you'd like, though.
:)

why would anyone tease you?

( he knows the whole orphan bit is quite a lot of fodder for idiot bullies who don't know the extent of their terror — but harry always found that ron and hermione were almost more subject to teasing than he was, from ron's poor family, and hermione's bloodline. the worst harry really got was scarface and — well. jin ling has a handsome, perfect face, not a blemish in sight. )

they must have a death wish.
you're downright deadly when you're bothered.

[ d-dammit he’s being out smoothed at every angle and making himself flustered

what’s the cool way to respond to that?? and what the hell did :) mean?? ]

fine maybe i will

i don’t know but everyone does
mostly about my manners or
how loud i talk or
all the things i should have learned from my parents but didn’t

sizhui is pretty much the only one back home who doesn’t but we still managed to fight anyway
we don’t fight here though
but he’s also not the same one from back home
do you remember when i said everything is stupidly complicated
welcome to my life right now

anyway the point is people bully me because they’re jealous and stupid and think i should act a certain way

also that’s one of the nicest things someone has said to me and if anyone bothers you i can be deadly then too!!

i feel very inspired by this maybe.

not the same one?
that does sounds complicated.
you can join my world if you like.
as far as i can tell, it's only me here.

i'm glad you don't let it get to you.
or i'd have to go be deadly as well.

mostly i was bullied for my scar, but that went steeply downhill the older we got and the darker the world seemed.
there's plenty more to be miffed about than how loud you talk, if you ask me.

if you're the only one from your world then maybe you should join mine instead?? that way you don't have to be alone??

but yeah there's
technically there's another version of my world, basically
the people are the same but
we remember different things and some things are very different

there's another
me
here
technically

and sizhui is from his world, so he's... technically the other jin ling's. not mine. but my sizhui isn't here so
whatever
i don't care it doesn't matter

though i'd like to see you deadly sometime

maybe we should duel???

and what
why would they bully you for your scar

it's hot?? since when are scars something to bully people over

"oh yes, you're right, i survived something that could have gravely wounded me, how shameful"

well i meant so you could avoid the complications of your world.
but sure, i'll join.
a-harry? :)

you weren't lying about it being complicated.
wow
does sizhui feel that way about you as well?

we might be a bit unmatched in a sword fight, but i'll have a go.
that'll be another wager.

( but. oh. hot. hot? no one in seventeen years of life has ever called harry potter hot before.

he is Blushing. )

thanks.
it's not really that grand. i got it when i was a baby.
most people are actually quite scared of me, for that.
come meet up with me and i'll tell you all about what an outcast i am.

( a pinged location attached — clear fields and open skies, a little outside the general city. )

[ What the fuck. "A-Harry" was so fucking cute, what the fuck. But -- ]

it's complicated and frustrating but i wouldn't give any of them up
even if sometimes i feel like i want to

that's
cute

but doesn't work
it only works with one syllable so

a-ry i guess

what does your name actually mean
i could probably figure out what characters it would be, back home.

well we can duel with magic and talismans too, if you want
or we can have an archery contest??

you survived something that gave you that kind of scar as a baby and people bully you on it?

okay that's definitely jealousy then because that's the kind of thing that back home people would be like
he must be reincarnated from a really powerful cultivator

does that mean you're super strong, or something?

i'm on my way
i'll bring fairy

cute and hot, huh?

it means power or ruler.
it's a little intense, honestly.

as soon as i learn how to shoot an arrow, i'll be sure to beat you.

not exactly.
i'll see you and fairy soon.
⚡

( the strength was in his mother, not in him, but it's really not the time to mention all that. there's quidditch to be had, and rule number one of quidditch is to leave all your childhood trauma behind you once you step to the court.

or, in this case — a muddy grassland. they're not playing real quidditch so harry didn't take any time to set up the hoops proper for scoring points, instead just standing in a barren path, broomstick in one hand, the golden snitch in his other.

his thumb rubs over the inscription like a lifeline, like a memory. everything here is temporary, harry potter. don't forget.

but then he sees jin ling and fairy on the course towards him, and he promptly does in fact forget whatever angst was currently rushing through his head. raising up a hand in greeting, he smiles at the two of them, shaking the snitch with a dramatic flair. )

Good to see you, A-Ling. Here's what's on the line. ( the snitch unfurls its golden wings, slow for the moment, as if showing off its own beauty. ) Like it? Of course, it'll be much faster when it's up in the air, but — I think it should give us a good challenge. What do you say? ( he hands it over to jin ling to inspect, while he in turns goes to inspect the lovely puppy dog at his side. ) Hello to you too, Fairy. Good to see you safe and sound.

yeah yeah whatever i meant the name was cute

that does sound a little intense but
i mean

a-ri would work

it means sun

and the sun is pretty powerful so you know what i'm gonna go with it

well i guess i'm giving you archery lessons later then

see you soon

[ He showed up a little while later, looking smug but happy, Fairy wagging her tailing excitedly at his side. He couldn't help the slightly pleased blush at the name - he was going to get used to that eventually, he swears - and grinned a little. ]

Good to see you to, Harry. [ He'll roll out 'A-Ri' when it won't make him go as red as a lobster, maybe. The grin faltered a little bit when he saw the snitch, his eye brows raising. ]

Wow, you weren't kidding. It's... are you sure you could part with something like that? That seems like the kind of thing I'd be threatened with being disowned over. [ Not like that's a hugely high bar. ] But if you're sure, then yeah, of course I'm in.

[ Fairy, on the other hand, who is always very in touch with Jin Ling's emotions at all times, knows that it's very okay to be excited to see Harry, and immediately pushes her nose into Harry's hands as Jin Ling carefully turns the snitch over in his fingers.

It really was gorgeous. ]

So just how fast can this thing move, anyway?

[ He's ready to find out. ]

( he gives a helpless shrug, giving the best girl all the good chin scritches. )

Sure. I have a bunch of weird magic items. ( straightening up, he grins. ) And that's just assuming you'll win.

( honestly, harry has no idea what to expect, but either way this goes is a win for him — either he wins and gets a kiss, or he loses and gets rid of something that feels bittersweet in the palm of his hand. and probably a kiss anyway. at jin ling's prompting, he takes the snitch back, waving a hand in front of it so its wings start buzzing so fast they're nearly invisible. instinctive to the sound of the snitch, harry mounts his broom. he flashes a playful, boyish look to jin ling. )

Get ready to find out.

( harry does, of course, wait for him to board his sword. it's a little like sword surfing, or something — it's not something he ever would've expected, but he knows much better than to underestimate anything. winding his arm back, he tosses the snitch in front of them, and —

he's off, following after it rapidfire. he catches the upperhand just from experience, from knowing how to locate the snitch despite how hard it is to see with plain eyes, speeding off on the broomstick sirius black gave him so long ago. jin ling catches up, which is a surprise — even more surprising? he slams into harry almost immediately, with the clear intent of knocking him off his broom.

he'll have to tell him later that that's playing dirty. but for now.

it winds his course, but he straightens up, suddenly more intent to knock jin ling off his sword than to actually win the competition. it goes like that, two boys spiraling around each other in the sky, bumping elbows and hips and chests whenever they get the chance, and laughing boisterously all the while. harry gets a good few swings at jin ling that do actually knock him off — but jin ling's sword is like a magnet, always there to catch him before he gets too far.

the upside of riding on a sword is that when they're neck and neck, his reach is farther, closer to the snitch. they tumble back down, following each other and the erratic path of the snitch, watching it nosedive into the ground, sharing glances at each other as if waiting for the other to chicken out first. except ... well, neither of them do, probably just because the other one doesn't. it ends up with both of them throwing themselves forward to get that last bit of distance towards the snitch, hitting each other and winding up in a pile of limbs and mud on the ground.

harry has the wind knocked out of him — exertion, laughing, and the pain from falling. he can't make up heads or tails, but he opens his palms and finds them empty, finds himself sitting on top of jin ling who also is empty handed.

he's about to scramble back for his broomstick, when fairy comes trotting up, ever the good girl, a golden, buzzing snitch trapped in her mouth.

after about two seconds, )

That — ha, that doesn't count!

[ The broom is fast - way faster than Jin Ling was expecting - and Harry's gone so quickly that actually yells out "cheater!" in his wake.

He was told, going into this, that knocking people off brooms was part of the game, and he's determined not to lose. He has a hard time actually following sight of the snitch for a while, but he has no trouble following Harry - so focuses on him instead, trying to do his best to get the boy to the ground. He starts to catch sight of the snitch more regularly - especially after it whizzes by his head one of the times that he plummets to the ground before he can get his sword back under him.

He's elated and estatic and having an amazing time just forgetting everything but the sheer physical exertion of trying to catch this ridiculous thing and use every excuse he can to slam into Harry in the meantime.

He's no chicken, and there's no way he's going to back out of their frantic dive - barely pulling up at the very end just to keep his sword from burying itself in the mud. Of course, that just means he ends up in the mud with harry on top of him, choking back a wheezing laugh as he tries to get his breath back.

He blinks up at the boy above him for half a second as Harry clearly searches for the snitch. Jin Ling is too distracted to do the same, a faint tint of pink rising to his cheeks at their relative positions. He should probably try moving, but--

He tilts his head backwards at the exclamation, following Harry's eye line, and gazing upside down as Fairy trots up to them with the snitch in her mouth. Jin Ling grins, smug and wide. ]

Good girl! What a good girl, Fairy!

[ He looked back up at Harry with just the smuggest look in the world. ]

Looks like you lost, Harry. [ He reached back, without taking his eyes off the other boy, and felt Fairy obediently press the snitch into his palm. He pulled it back and held it up. ]

I win.

( he is actually aghast for a moment, completely stunned. the absolute smugness on jin ling's face is unparalleled.

it's annoying that that's attractive on him too.

harry eyes the snitch for a second before jolting forward, trying to steal it from his hand. jin ling's reflexes are catlike though, and move his hand back instinctively. )

Doesn't count. No way does that count.

( he's just going to keep trying to steal it from jin ling, which winds them into a bit of a rough and tumble through the mud, rolling each other around, fighting each other off with boyish, gangly limbs.

eventually harry catches his wrist, which ceases the movement. all of a sudden, everything is oddly electric — jin ling parallel to the ground, harry trapped beneath him, the hand on his making sure neither of them are going anywhere fast. harry's breath catches again, although this time it's for an entirely different reason. closeness, intimacy. he forgets about the snitch once again, and instead uses his hold to tug jin ling back in, leaning up at the same time to draw their mouths together. )

[ Jin Ling hasn't laughed so hard in a while, twisting and writhing to keep his prize out of Harry's reach, elbows and knees and sharp hips jabbing each other as they tumbled. He's covered in mud - he can feel it - and uncharacteristically really can't bring himself to care at all. It's probably in his hair, too, but all his attention is just on keeping Harry's hand from his, trying to get the boy pinned under him so he can arch back out of his reach, and--

The fingers close around his wrist and the world suddenly skids to a halt. He's still grinning, breathing too hard, but it's as if the air is suddenly thicker, and there's a current of electricity running between them.

He doesn't even try to resist the tug - doesn't even bother holding onto the snitch as Harry's lips meet his. It tumbles down to the ground, Fairy happily snapping it up again as all of Jin Ling's attention is suddenly and completely focused elsewhere.

The familiar warm beat of moonlacing in his blood makes his pulse spike as he leans down, pressing Harry back into the mud as he deepens the kiss, his eyes sliding shut. ]

IC INBOX: PRISMATICA

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