Clawing at the bark of the tree near the residence, Mimi waits for an answer. Night has fallen on Cloud Recesses. With Dumplin and Chen tucked up in their beds and Mameki keeping watch, Mimi decides to take a turn around Cloud Recesses. It had been a while since she could wander the grounds by herself. The message she had engraved in the tree fades and moves up the branches, emerging from the top in a flutter of leaves.
Slinking into the shadows, Mimi appears in the library. Flicking her tails, Mimi searches the shelves. There must be a volume here with all the Gusu clan rules. Would she have to force Chen to help her do rubbings of the Wall of Discipline? Suddenly a sound from the front of the room catches her attention. Could it be someone else who is sneaking in past curfew? Mimi sits in the shadows, her coloring perfect camouflage.
Peeking around the shelves to the library's front, Mimi sees the clan leader opening the door and treading in. Did he see somehow sense her in the library? But that is impossible; the clan leader carries a small lantern. He places it carefully near the desk and sits down. Perhaps he is unable to sleep, either? From her vantage point, she can watch him easily without being seen. He is wearing a light sleeping robe atop another set of light blue robes. As she watches. He fingers the collection of papers on the desk. Resting his hands over his face as if in prayer. Mimi smooths over her fur and squeezes her tails together into one. Wondering how she will be received, Mimi trots out of the shelves and quietly stands in front of the desk. She barks twice and happily chases her own tail as the clan leader slowly raises his head.
"Well, hello Firefly, do you mind if I call you Firefly?"
In her fox form, Mimi runs around the desk and puts a paw on his knee. He happily scratches the top of her head.
"Where have you been? I have missed you," he scratches under her chin, and Mimi can't help but nudge her head into his hand.
She wonders if he talks to all animals like this or if it is just her. Mimi wriggles her tail, careful not to upset his pile of papers.
"I can't sleep, Firefly," Lan Xichen says softly. It was not a complaint, she realizes. It was a statement of fact.
Whining, Mimi settles her head on his knee. He sits quietly and touches the forehead band. His eyes were practically glowing.
Without warning, the clan leader picks her up and sets her in his lap, "How would you like to come with me?"
Curious, Mimi nods. He scoops her up like you would a large cat. A large cat the size of a Doberman. Mimi wriggles in discomfort as the clan leader cradles her like a child with one arm. How had she not realized how strong he is? He stands, picks up the lantern, and moves to the door. Looking down at the ground, Mimi freezes, realizing she is over six feet off the ground. Lan Xichen pushes the door open with his foot. Put me down, put me down, put me down, Mimi thinks as he gently carts her away from the Library Pavilion. This is not dignified; Mimi thinks, looking up at the clan leader who smiles down at her like a child with a small animal. He carries her towards another pavilion and uses his foot to open the sliding door, and Mimi feels herself shift worryingly towards the ground.
He carefully sets the lantern to the side, and to Mimi's relief, gently sets her down on the floor. Without feeling the danger of potential injury, Mimi curiously sniffs around the room. She could smell old paint and dust. She realizes that they were standing at the entrance of a makeshift classroom. A couple of desks spread around the room, and some easels were neatly stacked along the wall.
"I have some crackers here in my pocket if you would like," the clan leader says softly, putting his handkerchief down on the floor and then placing the crackers on top.
Mimi sniffs the crackers and turns her nose up at the sight of the lint clinging to a couple of the crackers. Lighting a couple more lanterns Lan Xichen runs his hand over a large canvas that looked like it had been collecting dust for a long time.
Intrigued, Mimi ventures closer to the canvases. She had seen the faintest glimpses of the clan leader's artwork through the windows of his quarters. But it was one thing to be a peeping tom looking through the blinds and another to see the actual work.
"I've decided to clear the studio," Lan Xichen offers in explanation, looking down at her with a smile, "it has been a long time since I have had reason even to step in here."
Why did he sound sad? Mimi rubs against his legs like a cat before padding back to the canvases. Perhaps he had more artwork hidden in there. She paws at the stack of canvases before her delicate nose picks up on the smell of paint. Looking over, she sees the clan leader uncapping paint, bringing the tube up to his nose before tossing it into a bin. When was the last time he had been in here, she wonders?
Humming to himself, he systematically sorts through the box of paints until a small pile of colors is set aside. He quickly puts up a wooden easel and sets a dusty canvas on to it if he deliberates something. Curious, Mimi hops on to a desk nearby and decides to watch. What would be more interesting than to watch the artist at work? As if caressing a lover, he washes the dusty canvas with a washcloth and pulls up a stool.
"I haven't painted anything in two years," he murmurs to her or maybe to himself, she doesn't know.
Barking at him encouragingly, she curls up on to the desk and waits expectantly. Lan Xichen smiles at her as if he had momentarily forgotten her presence. Chuckling to himself, he stares out the window, his eyes many years away. As if in a trance, he removes the caps and squeezes the paint out onto a makeshift palette. She watches curiously as he uses a broad brush to coat the canvas's entire top with white paint. Mimi had never even seen her wife pick up a paintbrush before. The strong scent of the oil paints is in the air. After covering the canvas, the clan leader seems almost content to watch the paint dry before picking up a second brush and dips it into the yellow color. Hesitating for a moment, he dabs at the canvas.
Having nodded off at one-point, Mimi awakes to someone scratching her ears. She flinches a little before realizing it is the clan leader gently rubbing his hand over her fur with paint-stained fingers. Waking up fully, she looks out the window and realizes it is probably sometime close to midnight. That is when her eyes fall on the canvas. The clan leader has captured the image of a stately building with yellow flags waving freely in the wind. Mimi winces at the painstaking detail it must have taken to paint every single step of the building's grandiose stairway and delicate arches.
The clan leader pulls her on to his lap and regards his work unhappily, "I couldn't get Carp Tower out of my head tonight."
Easily reaching his chin, Mimi nuzzles her nose against it and lets out a little whine. He gently brushes his hands through her soft fur.
"I used to be close to someone there," he explains, wrapping his arms around her, seeking comfort from the soft animal, "but he's gone now. They both are."
Sensing this, Mimi licks his cheek, bringing her tail up and around her. She presses her massive head to his chest and nuzzles against him. I am here, she tries to say, I know how you feel. It hurts now, and I understand. She allows him to grip her like a lifeline. When several minutes have passed, he gently puts her back on the desk and surveys the painting. Before she can stop him, he takes the water he used to clean the brushes and dumps it over the canvas. Effectively smearing his fine work.
"It shouldn't matter anymore," he remarks, tiredly cleaning the mess.
Mimi subtly dries the easel and parts of the floor to make it easier for him. She knew of painters that were so unsatisfied with their work that they destroyed their canvases and sometimes parts of themselves, but she had never seen it firsthand. Had someone hurt him so savagely that he could not bear to even look at his own painting? Well, there was nothing she could do about it now except try to help and hope for the best.
"I am sure you must be eager to return to your mistress," he says, and Mimi's thoughts are momentarily scrambled as he interrupts her thoughts.
He shuffles across the room, and slides open the door for her to leave if she so chose. But Mimi simply stretches and tucks herself into a ball, preferring to watch from behind her tail. A small smile graces his features, and he strokes the top of her head and scratches the thick fur at her neck.
"You are a strange thing, but I greatly appreciate your company."