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 Posted: Tue Dec 09, 2025 8:03 pm
Powering up in the afternoon always felt kinda funny, but……well. It had proven necessary for Kaifeng today.
He’d needed access to his signet ring, specifically so he could send a pair of matching notes to Lex Wysten and Lilitu Hi’skaryota: Hey, friends! It’s gifting season on Earth, and I know you two can take care of yourselves? But I have some nice things for you regardless. ‘Tis the season and all. ❤️ It’ll be nice to see you if you’re home when I come by (powered down!), but if not, I’ll try to put the bags somewhere safe and hidden for you. All the best, Liánlí/Kaifeng of Saturn.
Really, putting the gifts for them together hadn’t taken much effort. Most of them involved food of some kind or another. A lot of snacks that would hopefully keep for a week or two (and while Liánlí didn’t cherish the thought of how Lex and Lilitu’s place didn’t have the power turned on, he did have the thought that at least the weather made keeping things cold easier). Some of the supplies like shampoo and toothpaste that were probably harder to come by when you were a pair of long-surviving space senshi making your own way on Earth, without living at some human’s place. A couple of the tied-together fleece blankets (Liánlí had found one with a pattern of wolves and crescent moons, plus another with a pattern of bunnies and strawberries; they had simply felt Too Perfect).
And the best thing, in Liánlí’s opinion: a couple containers designed to help keep the heat from getting out, with an assortment of bao, some steamed and some pan-fried. The green container had the vegetarian ones for Lilitu, while the blue container had meat-filled buns for Lex.
(Admittedly, part of the reason why putting these things together hadn’t felt like work was named Heibing. Things……had been tense there, since helping Dagon-jiejie clear the Chaos off her world, and weren’t yet getting better, not least because Heibing seemed determined to prove that he could be more stubborn than Liánlí, even when it was blatantly to his own detriment.)
But on the bus ride across town to Lex and Lilitu’s place, then the walk the rest of the way from the bus stop, Liánlí tried to banish those thoughts from his mind. His currently troublesome housemate wasn’t here (when Liánlí had left, Heibing had been in the downstairs bath-tub with “Love In A Bottle” off Hazbin Hotel playing as if in very specific defiance of Liánlí’s request that Heibing sort his ******** life out). By the time he made it up the front steps at Lex and Lilitu’s place and knocked on the door, Liánlí had his normal sunshiny smile and attitude back on.
Things with Heibing would either get figured out or they wouldn’t. For now, Liánlí just hoped he’d get to see some other friends and make their days nicer.In the past few days since he and Lex had talked about Mauritz’s urn, Lilitu had tried to keep his chin up? But every night, when they’d tried to find a Saturn Knight who could help them, it felt like the odds had been ruthlessly stacked against them. There hadn’t been any out there, at least none who’d come across Arcalís and Madriu’s path. Most of the day, since he’d woken up, Lilitu had been curled up in one of the armchairs by the fireplace, with his back turned to Mauritz’s urn (still resting over by the wall, beneath the window) and trying not to feel too miserable and frustrated about the whole process.
So wrapped up in his own emotions, Lilitu almost missed the note that popped in sometime in the early afternoon. He’d needed to read it three times before the message had really sunk in. A friend was coming over, and whatever Liánlí was bringing with him, that didn’t matter nearly as much as one specific thing about him. When he powered up, Liánlí was a Knight of Saturn.
It felt like a miracle that Lilitu hadn’t started crying in relief.
It felt like an even bigger miracle that, when Liánlí knocked on the door, Lilitu was ready to jump out of his chair and open the door.
“Hey, come on in,” he said, stepping aside. As Liánlí worked out of his shoes, Lilitu called out, “Lex! Liánlí’s here, like he said he’d be.”
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Posted: Tue Dec 09, 2025 8:35 pm
It had seemed like a miracle falling into their hands, to Lex, when Liánlí's letters had arrived. Days of searching fruitlessly, hoping to find someone who could take Mauritz;s urn, any Saturn Wonder that held graves and would let them be rid of the damned thing.
(He did want it done right, for Lilitu's sake, to give him proper rest from the duty he had carried for so long. But that hadn't stopped the increasing frustration that no solution seemed manifest, until one did.)
Liánlí-Kaifeng was coming to visit, and he had exactly the type of Wonder they needed. On top, he was bringing gifts, and while Lex knew it would create an obligation to give back, he did appreciate anything that could be brought, given their difficulty in accessing resources for themselves.
He wasn't so prideful as to resist help when it was given, and it was doubly necessary. Especially today; Lilitu had been so subdued all day, just curled up by the fireplace, and Lex felt more than a little helpless to distract him from his turmoil.
Liánlí's visit, then, was a multifaceted gift.
He'd been settled in the kitchen with a book, enjoying the sunlight through the window as he tried to pick his way through the written English that he was still learning, when he heard the knock and then Lilitu calling him. He slid his bookmark into place, came around into the living room, and greeted Liánlí with a warm smile.
"Good to see you," he said. "And thank you, for everything you've brought."
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Posted: Tue Dec 09, 2025 11:27 pm
“Yes, thank you,” Lilitu agreed with a smile as he got the door closed behind them.
The bags Liánlí had with him looked less like the over-decorated, sparkly paper bags that Lilitu had seen people in town carrying around to parties. On the contrary, most of them seemed like sturdy canvas, the sort that Lex and Lilitu could easily take out to get more supplies of their own, when they had the cash for it. Two of them seemed maybe a bit too large to comfortably carry out shopping, but they still seemed sturdy—yet, when Liánlí held each of them out, one for Lilitu and one for Lex, Lilitu found his quite light.
Looking inside, Lilitu immediately understood why: the bag only contained a blanket. Curious, Lilitu eased it out where he could see it better. Two layers were held together by rows of little fabric strips tied up in each other. On the bottom, the fabric was heavier, sturdier, and people (though still quite light). On top, a plane of soft pink was decorated with a pattern of stylized rabbits (some white and some black), and the plump red fruits that people on Earth called strawberries. Lilitu’s expression wilted into a mix of confusion and gratitude as the bag drifted to the floor.
Maybe it wasn’t as personal a gift as Lex might have come up with, but it was still, very clearly, something chosen for Lilitu specifically.
“Really, Liánlí,” he said with a small smile. “Thank you. For all of this.”Part of Liánlí wanted to insist that thanks weren’t necessary—but on one hand, that felt like it might’ve been a rejection of the courtesy from Lex. Moreover, on the other hand, it was a really nice change of pace from dealing with Sailor “how dare you express concern about me being drunk in the middle of a battle with a Chaos infection, eat my middle finger” and the really abrupt shift from stone-cold sobriety to drinking whatever he could get his hands on. (That Heibing hadn’t started trying to drink mouthwash or vanilla extract just because they technically contained alcohol sometimes felt like a moderate miracle.)
“Of course, guys,” he said, smiling right back at both of them. “You guys are friends, and……like I said, it’s giving season? Which is, like……” He made a noncommittal sound, tilting his hand back and forth. “It all starts with this one religion’s holiday, but then they sort of stole it from a bunch of other religious traditions that existed before most people in Western Europe were all in on Jesus. There are other folks in town who could explain the history way better, if you ever wanted to hear it? Historians and people who are actually Christian, instead of Buddhists who just had to grow up around a bunch of Christians? But it’s sort of like……”
Shrugging, Liánlí gave them another easy smile. “I don’t have to follow their religion to like the idea of a whole time of year for sharing, community, and looking out for people, y’know?”“Still, holiday season or not……” Gently, Lilitu put his rabbits-and-strawberries blanket on the back of the chair where he’d been sitting. As he rejoined Lex and Liánlí, he edged closer to Lex, both so Lex could see him smiling more easily and feel him relaxing, and because standing with him felt……stronger, to Lilitu. A strength that he needed for the request he had. “It’s so generous, and kind, and……”
Taking a deep breath, Lilitu reached for one of Lex’s hands. “I’d really like to give back to you and yours—”“Oh, hey, no, that’s not how it works,” Liánlí said. “They’re gifts. You don’t have to pay them back. Pay it forward if you want but—”“No, it’s more……” Lilitu nibbled on his lip. He could ask for this. “I hate to ask a favor when you’re already being so generous? But we—and I, especially, need help with something else? From a Knight of Saturn?”“………Oh.” Liánlí blinked for a long moment, first at Lilitu, and then at Lex. “That……was unexpected? But yeah, of course. It’d be my honor.” Maybe a smile wasn’t exactly the best way of conveying how seriously Liánlí took being asked for help in his capacity as Kaifeng? But on the other hand, maybe it would help put Lilitu’s mind at ease. He seemed more than a little bit stressed out about what he wanted to ask—and being entrusted with the remains and souls of the dead buried at Kaifeng didn’t mean Liánlí had no duties to the people who survived them. “How can I help?”
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Posted: Tue Dec 09, 2025 11:41 pm
Honestly, Lex appreciated the pure practicality of Liánlí's gifts. Sturdy bags they could use for shopping (and dodging the "bag tax" that Lex had discovered was sometimes charged--five cents for a flimsy plastic bag, honestly, given the price of everything else on Earth, it really was outrageous, and he gathered that it had something to do with the bags being bad for the environment, but--well, the point was, these were much better) and within--Lilitu's blanket was charming, and Lex found that in his bag was another one--soft, and warm-feeling, two layers of fabric--the bottom a simple cream, the top light purple, decorated with little gray wolves and yellow crescent moons.
"A traditional gift-giving festival or not," there had been something like that on Madriu, and Lex vividly remembered the first year he had grabbed Lilitu and snuck both of them home in order to experience the Festival of Lights, and the decorations he'd started to see around town reminded him, in a way, of that atmosphere, "you still took the time out to think of us, specifically. And these are fine, useful things. You deserve our appreciation." He wasn't ready to lay his out, just yet, but only because he thought it might go well in the little bed-nest they'd been making for themselves. He'd been considering doing some modifications to the bed itself, putting curtains around it and really creating a space they could safetly nest in, but that was a lot of work and would require specialized supplies--and Lilitu's cooperation.
Perhaps he would find a time to celebrate where it would feel right.
When Lilitu came over, Lex reached out to take his hand and squeeze it gently. It was no wonder that it was hard to make their request, given that Liánlí had already gone out of his way for them, but....dancing around it wouldn't make it any easier.
"Kaifeng is a graveyard, yes?" He asked. He knew the answer, but it would make for a fair connecting point. "We have...remains that ought to be interred." He nodded in the direction of Mauritz's urn, a slightly bitter smile on his face.
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Posted: Wed Dec 10, 2025 1:57 am
“Oh, it is, yeah!” Maybe lighting up over an ancient graveyard wasn’t the most normal thing among humans. But, well, most humans hadn’t been tasked with stewardship of Kaifeng the Wonder and all the dead buried in those fields. Most humans didn’t have an entire magical cemetery that depended on them to care for it, and they didn’t have the special privilege of knowing how wonderful such a place could be. “The fields of Kaifeng, a last resting place for criminals, outcasts, exiles, undesirables, and anyone else whom somebody wants to disappear.”
Following Lex’s nod, Liánlí looked over at a decently sized urn that sat over by the wall. He softened, as he turned back to Lex and Lilitu. “Does that sound about right for……whoever’s remains those are?”“Mauritz,” Lilitu said softly, squeezing Lex’s hand to remind himself that Lex was here, and they would never need to be parted again. “His name was Mauritz Yurak. After the Chaos came to my world, and our numbers slowly dwindled? He was the last one left before I wound up alone. He……”
His breath hitched. His ears shifted, pinning themselves back. But Lilitu could do this. Could explain everything. He needed to do that.
A sigh to let out some of the long pent-up tension.
Then, Lilitu continued: “Mauritz was my lover. For many years. And he wasn’t always…… We did have good times together? Or at least I thought we did? He had the capability for…… I mean, he could be soft. He could be nice. He knew how to behave with others………but he often chose not to do any of those things.” Shoulders hunching, Lilitu angled himself more toward Lex. “When Mauritz didn’t feel like behaving himself, he could be cruel, harsh, demanding, possessive, selfish. But he wasn’t always that way. And at one point, he’d used several of those traits to advocate for his people’s interests in our Senate. He didn’t ignore or dismiss the needs of the Madriuan people who lived in his district either, so early on, listening to him speak, I thought……”
Another squeeze of Lex’s hand. “I thought ‘He’s so passionate, and maybe I can get him behind my cause of ending our people’s colonization of Madriu. And liberating the Madriuan people, so they can have sovereignty over themselves and their own world, the way things should be.’ And Mauritz did get behind that cause, but……”“But……it felt sometimes like he was only doing it to keep you on his side?” Liánlí was only hazarding a guess, and some part of him really didn’t want Lilitu to confirm that he was right. The thought of using Lilitu’s passionate desire to liberate Lex’s people in order to tug on Lilitu’s heartstrings, to keep him on-side even as Mauritz mistreated him and took that loyalty for granted.……
Seriously and soberly, Liánlí nodded. “I’d be honored to take your garbage man’s remains up to Kaifeng and see him buried there. And, uh.” Since neither Lex nor Lilitu had unpacked the bag with the bao in it, Liánlí grabbed it up, and took out the blue container and the green, each one labeled with a post-it note that had one of the other men’s names. “If you two have the time? I don’t have to get home yet. You guys can eat some of these while they’re still mostly warm, and Lilitu can go over any Arcalian rites or rituals you’ll need me to perform while laying Mauritz’s ashes to rest?”Around the corners of his vision, Lilitu noticed things starting to go a bit blurry. Tearing up, then—but at least it was only from relief, as so much of the tension left him. He nodded, leaning against Lex’s shoulder. “……Thank you, Liánlí. I’d appreciate that, yes.”
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