Always Lost And Never Found

The cool night air was a balm on his nerves. He hadn't realized how on edge he had felt inside the Conservatory’s party. It was their duty as the arbiter’s of the arts to host a celebration to honor the Spirits. But, with the spirit realm so close, Hwei’s magic had responded in kind, surging beneath his skin like wasps thrashing in a paper hive. It had been nearly impossible to fulfill his role as heir, greeting masked smears of yellow and green and levity and discontent, each guest adding to a swirling cacophony of color and emotion. But out here, it was quiet. Out here, it was only himself and Jhin. Despite the ever present guidance of his masters in his mind, he answered the question. "Here, we honor the Sparrow and the Snake."

A shadow flicked through the tree's when he spoke those names, but when he turned, there was nothing there. Perhaps he was being foolish. Perhaps he wasn't.

Jhin's pleased hum pulled his attention back to the actor. "I'm quite partial to that iteration myself," he acknowledged, continuing to study the garden. "Snakes are a versatile symbol."

His words soothed Hwei's anxiety, and he relaxed. But now he had questions of his own. “Although, I’m afraid I’m not familiar with the... Spirits you named.” Assurances aside, he did not feel like risking naming 'the Kindred' as he had called them. Not again. Not tonight.

"Mmmm." Jhin continued to study the garden, not looking at Hwei. "They are indeed a spirit of Death, found in some form throughout Valoran. They take many forms, a rose and a bee, a sparrow and a serpent.” He named the last with a graceful nod. “But a lamb and a wolf is one of the more common forms." He studied the trees above Hwei's shoulder, where the wind rustled the blossoms. "... It is said that in the start of civilization, there was a pale man with dark hair who would meet all things at the moment of their death. But, as people are want to do, they shunned him, not understanding the beauty of his art. And so this lonely man took an axe and split himself in two, so he would never be alone again." Jhin delivered this story with a neutral expression, nothing in his melodic voice giving away any emotion.

But Hwei could feel the rush of emotion Jhin felt at this story, a heady mix of longing and understanding resonating with each syllable. It piqued his interest.

"And so, one became two. The Lamb and the Wolf. They compliment each other- The Lamb offering a merciful death to those who accepted it, while the Wolf chases down those who would flee. They are separate, but never parted."

And so the strange mask Jhin had worn tonight finally made sense. It was of a white Lamb's face, its soft ears pulled back in an almost plaintive manner.

Jhin considered another point of the garden, studying it intently. Hwei didn't follow his gaze, afraid of what he would see. Afraid, yet thrilled, and unwilling to stop Jhin from speaking of these gods of Death so causally.

"...I had often considered myself alone in my purpose, Lukai Hwei," he murmured. "Cursed to present an art that no one would understand. But perhaps, this island will be the axe I use to cleave myself." He extracted a Spirit mask from the darkness of his cape. With a graceful bow, he offered it to Hwei. "Perhaps I have found my Wolf."

...

Hwei thought back to this night when he found the golden lotus trap amongst the grey ashes of Koyehn. He thought of it when he set out in his boat, leaving his island and his people behind. The Wolf will chase down those who flee.

...

"And everywhere Lamb went, Wolf was sure to follow."

----------------

Secretly, the prince had taken to escaping the bright canopy of the Seelie Court to explore the forbidden forest floor below. One evening, he came across a cobweb lined hollow— where a Winter Seelie toiled over frost gilt creations. The two artists talked through the night, debating and philosophizing over preservation, rot, and the consuming force of time. When the late morning sun filtered through the trees, the Prince realized he would be missed. He fled back to the canopy, returning to his dull courtly tasks. He went through the day even more distracted than usual, impatiently counting down the minutes until he could sneak away.

But he had been deceived, for his new acquaintance was not a Seelie frost fairy, but an Unseelie working hand, obsessed with preserving life and death alike in ice.

The young prince has since vanished, and it is unknown whether he left of his own accord, or was taken. But in one dark corner of the forest, the frost has taken a markedly iridescent hue.

/

I imagine that instead of a halo, Hwei’s wings can change color and position to indicate what spells he’s casting.

I based Jhin’s concept on his Dark Cosmic skinline! So 4 arms and 4 ‘legs’. I also imagine he’s a spiderfey, so doesn’t have wings of his own. He stole them, as much as his disguise as his mask. He keeps them attatched to his body with web and makes it look like the fuzzy back of a moth.

Wow was this a challenging piece. I love the idea of the romantic/mundane moments during the Koyehn era paralleling more angsty moments post reunion. Huge thanks to @chopshajen for helping me out with Jhin's anatomy. The human form is not my strong suit and this would not have turned out this well without their help.

While "no reposting" is true for all of my art pieces- given Twitter's more recent updates- ESPECIALLY no reposting or sharing on Twitter please. Same with Instagram- while Meta hasn't been as obnoxious as Twitter I still do not trust it.

I'm tickled by my thumbnail vs my final, I must admit. I can struggle with completing more complex pieces, and while the details evolved a lot over the course of the project, I’m glad I was able to stay true to my original idea!

So I know the daddy dom Jhin energy is pretty prevalent, but I headcanon that he’s not really attracted to/ aroused by people, mostly his art and situations. So this has left him quite inexperienced in such matters. Then he meets Hwei, gets a taste of understanding and connection, starts viewing him as his art, and hey, the idea of sex isn’t totally repellent like it normally is. But when things actually get to that point- he’s built up a persona of being a mentor and experienced and worldly which he is desperate to maintain. He just doesn’t realize how different Thinking is to Doing lol.

Collab with @chopshajen, they did the initial sketch, and then I went overboard with the rendering XD