Sorry for the language in the picture above, I just could not resist the angry Master Lan.

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When Master Lan called on him to answer a question, he answered it with a word for word answer from the book. He didn't care about the looks he might have received from the other students. He just kept reading the scroll until he finished it, and then placed it aside and lifted the next. By every table there were always ten scrolls every day. You were to pick them up from the left, read them and then place them on the right so over night, they can be replaced with new ones on the left.

As they were to have an hour a day that they were to sit there reading a scroll that Master Lan told them to. Wei Ying just kept reading until Master Lan walked up to his desk and called on him.

'Why are you not reading the scroll I called to be read Wei WuXian? What right do you have ...' Master Lan let everyone hear his dislike of this boy only to stop when, without looking up at him, Wei WuXian reached out his right hand and picked up the scroll everyone else was reading.

'Finished.'

'I do not believe you.' He stopped dead as when he opened the scroll, Wei WuXian began to say what was on the scroll, word for word ... in an almost dead voice. He let Wei WuXian continue for a few minutes until he slammed the scroll onto the desk and stalked away. 'Everyone read!'

Lan XiChen had been watching his uncle and knew yet again he was just picking on Wei WuXian so he could show him up in class. On the other hand, he had been watching Wei WuXian also and knew he had already read the scroll. Why was his uncle picking on a single student in such a way? For most of the time Wei WuXian was the only student he called on to answer questions and not once did the young man falter. However at the same time, Wei WuXian seemed .... Empty.

That evening, XiChen sat with his uncle while WangJi was off meditating.

'Uncle, why are you picking on Wei WuXian so much?'

'I am not. I am just keeping order.'

'No. I've watched you since he has been here and .... What is it about him that you rile against so much?' He only just stopped himself using the word bullying as to bully someone is against their rules ... but still ...

'If he is so quiet in class ... he is up to something and I will never permit that to happen.'

'He is not up to anything. That poor young man is in pain for some reason.'

'He is just acting. I have been told that he has been seen running around during the night and drinking inside the Cloud Recesses. I refuse to stop until he is stopped.'

'That man does not come out of his room unless ...'

'Stop.' Master Lan slammed his tea cup onto the table, small drops of tea splashing over the table. 'He has been seen doing so ... but by the time I arrive, he is long gone, scurried back to his room like a thief. When I catch him myself, he will be expelled and told to never return.'

'Who is telling you this?'

'Never mind. I trust him.'

'Not WangJi, surely?'

'He has nothing to do with that student and never will.' He rose from the table and went to walk from the room.

'Uncle, I will not allow even you to break the no bullying rule. You are skirting that rule way too close for some reason and I will protect him.'

'You dare talk to you uncle like this. I am in charge of punishments and if he is to cross my path while breaking a rule, I will be the one to decree his punishment.'

'Just so you know ... I will never permit unwarranted punishment.'

'I never do anything unwarranted.'

'Before Wei WuXian arrived ... I would have agreed with you whole heartedly. But .... recently I worry about how far you will go. I will have WangJi check on Wei WuXian now and then as I am very worried about him.'

'No. WangJi is not to be bothered with that troublemaker.' Master Lan stormed from the room and sort out his other nephew. 'WangJi.'

Lan Zhan almost jumped at the sound of his uncle voice. 'Hmm.' He didn't open his eyes or rise to his feet. Before their last private meeting, he would have instantly risen to his feet and greeted his uncle ... but not now.

'You are keeping away?'

'Hmn.'

'Yet you are still talking to him?'

'After lessons ... I make sure he has been listening as he is always reading. I question him on everything.'

'And?'

'He never misses a question before returning to his room.'

'How do you know he returns to his room, are you following him?'

'Jiang Cheng told me, he follows him every evening.' He sat with his eyes closed, legs crossed ... and his heart aching. Even though he wanted to talk to Wei Ying about other things, he didn't dare to any more. He was not as stupid as others thought, he knew what happened to cause this utter change in Wei Ying ... and he hated it. 'Do not worry uncle, I have not broken the private rule you made up for me.' He suddenly dove into his meditation. Those were not mistaken words, he knew this rule was something his uncle had made up just for him and no other. With this rule he realised his world hade become cold, lonely and colourless. He was back in the dark without Wei Ying to bring his sunshine every day.

'Remember my words WangJi, one problem and I act.' Master Lan didn't receive an answer so he just turned and walked away.

Lan Zhan stayed where he was for over an hour until another voice, much gentler, spoke to him.

'WangJi.'

'Hm.' He didn't look at his brother.

'Is there a problem you want to talk about with me?' he almost stepped backwards as his baby brother's golden eyes looked at him with anger filling them. 'WangJi?'

'Nothing.' Lan Zhan quickly closed his eyes so he could calm down. His uncle had already informed him so he didn't really need his own brother to remind him ... to remind him of the consequences of acting poorly.

'Is this something to do with Wei WuXian ... are you not friends with him?'

'No.' Lan Zhan gritted his teeth. 'Not friends.'

Each evening, as soon as class ended, Wei Ying would leave the classroom only to be stopped by Lan Zhan and questioned about the days lesson.

The first time this had happened, Wei Ying's heart began to fly .... Only to fall to the ground yet again at the sound of Lan Zhan's voice and the ice in his eyes. Wei Ying lowered his head and looked at the ground between them and did not look up again. To him, it felt like someone had opened him up, removed every internal organ, sewn him closed and told him to keep living like that.

He never expected anything kind from him again. He knew he had done something to destroy their personal future ever happening and now they would both live their lives alone ... to never love anyone ... ever.

Nothing made sense any more.

Nothing was pretty.

Nothing was colourful.

Nothing was good.

Nothing tasted good.

Nothing was fun.

Dark.

Cold.

Alone.

From that moment on, he didn't look anyone in the eyes.

From that moment on ......... he gave up all hope of being with Lan Zhan.

From that day, when the questioning ended, he would race back and sit at his desk and write down things he remembered, then he would try to sort each piece of paper into the correct order but they all happened so long ago, it was difficult to remember what order they happened in. He used an empty scroll to draw long lines, one for each sect involved, then placed small X for each event. Time and again he tried to remember but there were things that he just didn't know because he had not been there.

His only mission left was to work out where the best places to attack would be to stop certain things from happening.

Since he was so busy with this outside of class, he only left his room to retrieve his food morning and evening and to attend the required classes, answering each and every question to the letter written in the books or scrolls. He gave no more or no less that what was in the book. His heart was too busy shying away from the internal pain to even begin to notice anything happening around him. Those little X's on the paper were not lining up as he needed them too so he could choose a single place to attack.

One day when a stray petal floated onto his desk during class and landed in the middle of the scroll he was reading, he just sat there looking at it for a few moments before picking it up and placing it into the black ink and used the brush to push it under the surface so he was not able to see it as what it used to represent to him.

Now that petal was as dark as his world felt to him.

For the weeks that followed, his heart never stopped hurting.

He never talked outside of answering questions, and only the bare minimum words were used.

He never left his room other than lessons and collecting his meals.

He closed himself off from everyone.

He closed himself off from everything.

Not too long after, on the way back to his room, Wei Ying was cornered by Lan XiChen.

'Is there something you require Sect Leader Lan?' he looked at the floor between them.

'Yes. Please tell me what is wrong?'

'Nothing.'

'Wei WuXian, I can tell something is very ...'

'Have I broken a rule Sect Leader Lan?'

It surprised XiChen that hearing Wei Ying talk like this actually hurt him. 'Of course not.'

'Then please excuse me.' He bowed then hurried to his room and locked the door.

The truth was, now that Wei Ying looked no one in the eyes it was just that bit easier to deal with the pain. He never stopped walking when he heard his name called and didn't even think of going into town for something to drink ... with or without his friends. When ever the juniors asked if he wanted to go into town for some fun ... he just walked past with a shake of his head.

There was only one reason he spoke outside of class ... HanGuang-Jun quizzing him on the days lesson. He never missed a day to quiz about the lesson and how much Wei Ying had retained and every day he did this, it hurt that bit more.

This questioning showed Wei Ying just how little Lan Zhan thought of him. as if he didn't trust him to know anything at all and just wanted to show him up.