jikan_rpg | January catch-all

"I can do spicy. My mom made sure I tried all kinds of food growing up and I like spicy food."

Feeling that hand accepting of his touch made him smile and he gave it a little squeeze. Wanyin was a man he loved to spend time with he found. And get affection from. Sure they'd only just started to get to know each other but that was okay. This was really nice.

"By the way, you should always give Will things that keep him really warm. He doesn't do well in the cold."

At the mention of needing things to keep really warm, his gaze slides back over to Will. A few things come to mind about keeping warm and of course, not all of them were... chaste. But he smiles and nods.

"Will would like another blanket then. Because Riley and the animals are still not enough?"

No worries, Wanyin. Not a single idea Will had was chaste either!

A slow smile spread over his face and nestled in closer against Jiang Cheng's side. "If my new blanket is you, I'll accept."

"I'm usually Will's blanket until the morning when he wakes me up," he said as the water was brought over to them, taking his and sipping at it while his thumb stroked over Wanyin's hand.

"But I don't mind being a sandwich between two very attractive men. So you can sign me up for this."

Cheng didn't dare drink water for fear he would choke. These two were so bold! He likes it. He isn't sure that he should like it, though. He could feel his face heat up and they hadn't even started eating!

"Both of you are shameless," he resorted to, flustering just a little. Part of him wondered what they would do when they found the fur on his back. And it startled himself some. He thought when and not if. "You don't have enough blankets and must resort to using each other. Very resourceful."

Truly, Jiang Cheng was too cute! Will smiled at him and nodded in agreement with Riley. They were definitely a shameless pair, that's for sure. And though they teased, they respect Wanyin's boundaries. They're not going to be too put out if he doesn't want to fall into bed with them immediately after one date.

"Body heat is best for keeping warm. And I'm always cold! I'm very much a summer creature. Does it get very cold where you come from?"

"We actually have loooots of blankets. So we burrow under them then cling to each other so Will can stay warm. We are definitely shameless though. I don't think I've ever felt shame the way people like to describe the most."

Riley grinned at him. And then he realized something very important that had nothing to do with their conversation. "Oh! Let me know when you need your hand by the way. You should be able to eat and drink freely!"

"Sometimes it snows but it doesn't stay. The lakes are too warm. But more inland, it can. My lands are warmer than colder. If it's cold enough to frost, the waterways can ice over, but nothing is ever thick enough compared to here. Boats just crush through it and it looks like very thin crystal."

At Riley's reminder, Cheng smiles a bit, squeezing his hand. "Thank you. That's very thoughtful." But their meals hadn't arrived so he was content to have his hand held. "How do you hold morals if you don't feel shame?" Wuxian was fairly shameless but even he had morals. These two were pretty free in their opinions and feelings and he was curious to know how they managed to get through the day like that. Some times, he felt like he was screwing everything up all the time, all at once.

Will cocked his head and blinked at the question. "What does being a kind person have to do with shame? Do you only behave decently because you'd be ashamed not to? I don't understand..."

He pouted a little trying to think of it. It made sense, he guessed. his time with humans have taught him that honor, recognition, and, yes, shame are great motivators in a lot of people and even societies as a whole. But such things rely on a panopticonic community of people spying on and judging each other.

"I really don't understand."

"...I was taught what was good and bad. And I can see it. So I do the good things and avoid the bad as best I can. I don't need shame to do the right thing."

Much like Will the younger Fae also truly did not understand the question.

Cheng frowned. Not that he was upset that they didn't comprehend, but he wasn't certain he could explain it, either. Why was he brought up the way he had been?

"It's filial. The actions of the child reflect the actions of the parent. We must honor our parents in all things and never destroy what they have blessed us with. Our very actions will determine their worth."

Discussing his culture helped him examine it. Did he believe everything about it? There was one time he would follow blindly. Now, he's not so sure.

"If we are not good, modest, help our lessers, then we insult our parents and ultimately our ancestors. They will not have a peaceful afterlife. They will not bless the living, nor protect us from things we cannot or are not aware of."

"That sounds like fear." Will immediately clamped a hand over his mouth. he hadn't meant it to sound so blunt. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! It's just... Most Fae don't even know who their parents are. And if they do, they really don't care because it's not like they raise us. The thought of being another person's... trophy... That you have to do well to make someone else look good or feel good or else something bad will happen to your family... That's like a scare tactic, right?"

Riley listened to them both and he could see both of their points. They weren't wrong or right really. It was just the products of how they were raised. He considered it quietly for a moment.

"A lot of the things our parents teach us might come from fear of what our futures are but they also come from a place of care and tradition. It might not be a culture we understand but ours is just as foreign to Wanyin."

Riley took a sip of his water. "Filial piety. The service of the younger generation to their elders. But each culture has a different way of having the next generation honor that. You were taught one way, Wanyin. Will, you were taught another. I was taught a third. But are any of the three of them the right way? Or just a way? I think that you have to find the way that works for you to be a good person. To carry their memories and lessons with you as you change and grow and adapt to an ever changing world."

He gave a bit of a shrug and smiled. "Maybe it's a little naive. But I think that we learn the ways to be filial the best by learning from those who are different from us. To find out what will stand the tests of time to honor the generations before and what will fade with time."

He knew what Will was getting at and Cheng couldn't disagree. He frowned more, but this time out of concern and the troubling revelation he had when speaking with these two. "You're... not wrong, Will," he admitted quietly, taking the Fae's hand into his own. "That's how my people grew up. It's generations old. I don't know if anyone from my time would think differently. And it's not uncommon to pit one against another to drive them to improve."

Riley added in his own words and once again, Cheng was amazed by the wisdom these people held. How could someone think that these people were children just because they had a different viewpoint on the world? "I don't think it's naive at all," Cheng concluded, braving a small nuzzle into the blond's hair. In public! Of all places!

But as time went on, the food arrived and Cheng decided that maybe the mood needed to be lightened. "There's one thing I have learned that did not stand up to time: uncut hair. But that is strange as well. We are not allowed to cut our hair, but we, as men, can shave our face."

It was definitely an interesting topic to discuss. And, honestly, it gave Will some insight on both Cheng and Riley. Honestly, he couldn't think of anything he wouldn't be willing to talk about with them. He accepted Cheng's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"Well thank goodness for that," Will declared with a bright smile. "Your face is far too handsome to be concealed." Though, Cheng would probably rock a beard in all honesty.

"You know I don't think I could grow facial hair even if I wanted to." Just thinking about how his own face was always so smooth. He didn't even own shaving supplies because it wasn't a part of grooming he ever had to look into.

"You really aren't allowed to cut your hair because it would dishonor your family?"

He couldn't help the flush to his cheeks at Will's commentary. He hoped he would never get jaded by the compliments these two were free to give. "That's correct. It is a deep disrespect to the parents and ancestors if it is cut. It is also a sign of virility. To cut one's hair is to become a Hun or barbarian with no laws, no humility and no sense of righteousness."

He said that part as if he were reciting it from a school master. "The Buddhist Monks, however, give up their worldly possessions, their ties to family and anything that would be deemed a barrier between them and enlightenment. So they are not looked down upon when their hair is shorn."

The next thing Riley said had Cheng surprised. "No? But you can grow hair on your head. No where else?" It sounded very strange to him! But then again, hearing he could not cut the hair on his head but it was okay to shave his face was probably just as strange to them, too."

What an unusual tradition! Not that he was complaining. Jiang Cheng was very attractive with his long hair. He'd be just as attractive with it short, though. But if it was an insult to his ancestors, well, Will wasn't going to suggest it. Knowing what it means to Jiang Cheng and his culture, it would just be rude to bring up such a thing.

"I don't have to shave either," he added with a thoughtful little pout. "I don't really have any body hair at all..." It wasn't something he paid much attention to, really. Most of his partners had more body hair than he did, but that was just how it was.

"But can you wear your hair up? Like in a tail or something? That's not a slight to your ancestors, is it?"

"I think it might be because we're Fae. I've never seen a Fae who was very hairy." Well, maybe the lower class Fae who were more being of nature than anything else. But he'd never seen them so what he'd said was still the truth.

Freeing Cheng's hand now, he encouraged him to try the food.

"I think you'd look really handsome with a messy bun too. You have very nice hair."

"I can wear it up," Cheng confirmed. "In fact, the various sects have certain ways to dress up their hair. The Nie sect is well known for their braiding-the more complex, the more noble one is. Jiang sect has braids as well, but not as elaborate as the Nie. We also have guans-ornamental head pieces. It will show rank and status so villagers don't really have them. At most, hardened leather pieces as a guan suit them fine."

And there's another blush as his hair was complimented on. He might just pass out and die from all this praise he keeps getting! But then he looks at the dishes and then at the utensils offered. The dipping sauce was on top of the noodles along with whatever meat was included. Nothing was separate?

"We don't use sticks for the noodles?"

He listened with eager eyes, quietly ooh-ing at the distinctions Cheng made. His world sounds fascinating -- odd to Will, but fascinating at the same time. Was the time and place WIll came from much different? Just because it was less openly stratified, a lot of what he's describing still exists. You could tell a person's status in some situations by what they wore (a business owner a three-piece suit versus his manager in a shirt and tie versus the workers in street clothes, &c). Many people followed their family's guidance over their own hopes and dreams so as not to let them down. No, what Cheng is describing wasn't strange at all, just not someone everyone did.

Will shook his head at the question. "You use a fork and spoon. Or you can cut the noodles," something his tone and the scrunch of his nose said he didn't think was okay. "You take one in each hand and mix everything together," he demonstrated with his meal, mixing the noodles up with the sauce so they were coated entirely. Because he had a dish with a long noodle, he could show Cheng how to use the spoon to help wrap the noodles around the fork. And once done? He held the first bite out to Cheng.

"Ahh~"

"Maybe you can braid my hair sometime. I mean, I know I'm not clan or anything. I wouldn't be disrespectful enough to assume that. I just think it would be nice."

Riley sat back after that so he could watch Will teach the man how to use a fork with noodles. It was a very different experience, that was for sure. So while they were distracted, he secretly waved to a waiter to ask for chopsticks. Then he went back to watch the two handsome men that he was with as if he hadn't done anything at all.

"It can take a little getting used to when you're not used to it but I think you'll pick up on it!"

Riley was truly adorable. "I can braid your hair. I learned well with A-jie. It is not a trade secret." Though it did bring up interesting thoughts-since stylized hair was so culturally ingrained, would it be disrespectful for someone to wear their hair like one group even though they weren't a part of it? "I find it endearing that you would want to show the style of Jiang clan. That makes it special." Like...sharing chopsticks!

And then the topic whiplash he accepted with no complaint. He was used to it with Wuxian's antics. "They cut the noodles?" SACRILIGOUS. Cutting one's noodles was... it was almost like cutting one's life short! In the tradition of longevity noodles, it was especially true. But then the morsel was offered and Cheng opened his mouth to try it. And then he had to quickly hold his hand under his chin because the dipping sauce was dripping. A few moments of chewing and Cheng nodded his approval, swallowing before speaking. "It is different! The sauce is-hmmm--acidic? But tangy. and there's other herbs I'm not familiar with-garlic I can tell."

Ah, Riley would look so cute with braids. Will sighed happily at the mental image. And that Jiang Cheng would be the one doing it? That meant a lot because of what it meant to him. He really was just as sweet as Will thought when they first met under all his prickles. Cheng just needed people who are patient enough to dig beneath the surface.

"It's a tomato-based sauce; that's where the acidity and tanginess come from. A lot of food from this region uses basil and oregano in their spices."

The waiter came by to hand Riley something and he nodded his thanks. Then he set the chopsticks next to Cheng. So that way if he wanted to switch to something he was more familiar with then he'd be able to do so. After all there was no reason to step on the man's pride. He should have the chance to try something new and have the chance to decide on his own he wanted to use what he knew. No need to have someone tell him to give up!

"Tomatoes are fruit that are used commonly like vegetables because they're more savory than sweet. They have a lot of acidity in them too so they work well for dishes like this that often have lots of noodles in them."

January catch-all

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