Chapter Text
As part of his wanderings to ensure the health of his nation the Archon of Geo, Rex Lapis, illustrious and mighty, was rarely at rest.
Ever there were problems in Teyvat, and even if the Archon War had ended millennia ago, he was ever vigilant. Be it Geovisharps breeding in large numbers or the ever-ubiquitous Hilichurls, never was he at rest, nor any Adeptus or warrior under contract with him.
The truth was, Liyue and nearly every nation had fallen far from what they could be... case in point, Dihua Marsh.
Once it was all verdant farmland that filled the shallow basin created by the mountains between Minlin, Dragonspine, and Wuwang Hill. The Guizhong Assembly that once supervised those lands had been a breadbasket from which grain flowed to the surrounding regions... but now it was mostly flooded, with just the small islands of what once had been hills poking out of what had been so verdant.
He remembered those times well...
There was but one place of note, in terms of civilisation, in all the marsh, Wangshu Inn. With its rocky pinnacle and large tree that wrapped around it, it was the only landmark and place of rest on the economically significant road that linked Stone Gate (and thus, Mondstadt, Chenyu Vale and Fontaine) with the rest of Liyue.
This is to say, that whilst its existence was not essential to the nation, the small Inn was a major organ in its health.
Thus it was that he dropped by to visit.
The Inn had grown in the last few generations, the latest scion of the family, Huai'an, had married Miss Verr Goldet, and she helped to run it well enough. They had long ensured that Xiao was well supplied for his needs in his eternal duties as an exterminator of demons, and he knew for sure that the pair had fingers in other pies.
Well, with the location of their inn, it was a given, wasn't it?
He bothered not with the lift; his feet had carried him a hundred-thousand miles in this life, what was a few hundred more?
"I wish for refreshment, and to inquire about goings on in the area," he explained to Verr Goldet upon arriving at the top. If she recognised him then she made no indication of such.
Instead, she simply bowed her head.
"Of course, sir. If you will move to the terrace, my husband shall soon be out with refreshments and conversation. Where are you headed to next?"
"I shall be leaving in a short while for Stone Gate."
"Would you like the guard service, with optional luggage transport, mosquito protection and refreshment services?" Goldet asked, a certain gleam to her eyes. Not greedy, no, she was egging him on, indicating that he should inquire further on this topic.
He hardly needed a guard service; was he not the Archon of Geo? Was he not he whom had imprisoned countless threats to this land?
But that was not the point.
"I would like to inquire about this... mosquito protection. I have heard that biting insects breed well in the marsh, how can this service protect from them?" he asked. For the longest time herbal charms had been the popular method, but as much as they could ward away the biting insects, they only worked so well.
"We have a new employee who can handle all of these things by herself. In the full service, she can carry up to five hundred kilograms of weight, provide unlimited freshwater and provide protection from insects. She is most capable."
In all of Liyue, he knew no such person.
Prodigious strength, yes.
The ability to create water from seemingly nowhere was a trifling matter for any possessing mastery over Hydro.
Even killing boundless clouds of insects was simple for many vision wielders.
But all of them?
Something was undoubtedly afoot. A rogue vision user who was not operating under contract? Perhaps a spy from an enemy nation, attempting to lay low as a common guard of some skill? It piqued his interest, and was something that he should look into whilst he had the opportunity.
Thus, he nodded.
"I shall pay for the full service to hire this person."
"Very well, sir. I shall have Xiao Douzi summoned at once, then."
"... Little Bean?" Zhongli questioned, raising a hand to cup his chin.
"Oh yes, we discovered her sleeping in a mung bean patch, she claims to come from some manner of far away land. She seemed awfully confused, but we took her in and it was truly a blessing!"
... Had Ganyu been sleeping in the marsh again? Not a few times he had chanced upon the half-Qilin taking a nap on one of the islands among the flowers... But no, Ganyu was not a hydro wielder, and whilst capable, she was not so strong as to routinely carry such weights as had been mentioned...
"And this 'Little Bean' can guarantee the services you mentioned?" he pressed.
"Oh yes, she and her friends are most capable."
"Very well."
Time passed, during which he enjoyed some refreshments on the terrace. Huai'an, ever with his finger on the pulse of gossip (if less so on the goings on of his business) spoke with him as he had desired.
Fortunately, it amounted merely to mundane things, and he was left to enjoy his tea.
In the distance, the great stone karst of Wuwang Hill was visible, it had been a long time since he last climbed to its top and delighted in the shallow pool that flowed from it... perhaps he would take the opportunity to do so during this visit? In ancient times, he had fought the Chi there.
Nowadays much of the area languished under fog and the influence of spirits, although Qingce Village at least prospered.
Indeed, the village was one of the several that supported greater Liyue; its nestled terraces provided much of the nation’s food came from that sheltered valley.
Often he had been concerned for its safety... It was a shame no Adeptus had ever made their abode atop the Karst and could watch over the small village...
"Sir, Xiao Douzi is here," came the voice of Verr Goldet.
He glanced over.
'Little Bean' was, unmistakably, a small child.
Dressed in clothes made of Silk Flower that looked two sizes too big and with long black hair put up in in the local manner, she was undeniably not of Liyue heritage. At the briefest glance, the Archon of Geo would speculate that she hailed from Fontaine or Mondstadt... further afield to Snezhnaya at a push. Behind her followed a number of slimes, small and one of each element. They bounced along in perfect synchronicity, and once the girl was standing beside Verr Goldet the slimes arranged themselves behind and around her, their small, mostly vacant eyes staring around them.
The girl looked up at him, and he was struck by the way she did so. It was not with the innocent curiosity, or even shyness of a child, no. She looked him up and down appraisingly as if looking for some manner of weakness or vulnerability, looking for flaws.
"Xiao Douzi, this here is Mr. Zhongli, he paid for all of the services," Goldet explained, placing a hand on the girl’s shoulder, which made her stiffen.
Xiao Douzi nodded, and gave a little traditional greeting. It was a little stiff; clearly it was something that was not natural to her yet.
"I am in your capable hands, Xiao Douzi," the Archon of Geo declared.
The way she looked up at him said a lot.
Upon making their descent to the base of the inn, the child at once set to work.
His limited luggage (mostly consisting of things taken from defeated foes, to be put to better use by others) was strapped safely onto an improvised harness, into which a large anemo Slime crawled. From there, the slime easily lifted the mass into the air.
Around this large slime a number of smaller anemo Slimes slowly orbited. He had only ever seen similar methods among the Hilichurls, who did not have pack animals of their own. Alongside the anemo slimes, there was a large slime of each element as well.
"Are you ready to go, sir?" Xiao Douzi asked, hands on her hips.
"Yes, let us go."
Surrounded by a phalanx of slimes, his luggage bringing up the rear, they began walking.
The cryo, pyro and hydro slimes fanned out ten or so metres ahead of them, keeping a perfectly set distance between them, apart from when they ran into obstacles. The dendro slime at once buried into the ground, rapidly digging its way around and going on ahead, evidently out the area. The Geo Slime remained especially close to himself and the girl, whilst the Electro Slime did the same, electricity sparking off it and zapping insects out of the air that grew too close.
He raised his brows upon seeing its effectiveness.
Meanwhile, the small anemo Slimes climbed into the air and floated far above their heads, and he watched idly as they did so. Their movements were constant, they kept pace with them but were looking out in all directions, focusing on the ground around them.
"I see... You make use of the smaller anemo slimes to keep a lookout, whilst the others move ahead to protect us?" he asked, once they had crossed the bridge.
"Yes..." a momentary pause. "If we run into a problem, then the dendro slime will create some small ones to distract and harass them until the others can get close.”
"Most ingenious, Xiao Douzi."
"... Taylor..." it was muttered under her breath.
"Hm?"
"My name is Taylor," the girl scowled heatedly. It was most certainly not a local name. "It is only the staff that insist on calling me 'Little Bean' as a nickname!" Despite her irritation, she pulled a most adorable face. "I wish they wouldn't... but they give me room and food, and I'm not from here..." she dropped it there, holding herself back.
"Where are you from, then?"
"... You wouldn't know it."
"Try me."
She rolled her eyes.
"Earth Bet."
"Alas, it seems I do not. It must be far across the sea... or another realm entirely."
She did not respond to the former, but with the latter she paused, glancing at him from the corner of her eye shrewdly. A moment of silence between them fell, before he asked further.
"Tell me more about your situation then, Taylor."
On a grassy island somewhere in Dihua Marsh, there was a cocogoat.
It was an unusual specimen of its race, for it was neither a goat, nor a coconut. It was actually a near five-thousand-year-old half-Qilin, and also an Adeptus.
Said Adeptus had fought and helped to make history, brought peace to the land alongside other eminences.
Mighty, adroit, and hard working, having studied under the great Cloud Retainer, she had walked the great land of Liyue from one end to another many times and performed many great deeds.
However...
"Zzzzz..."
She was also fast asleep among the flowers.
Alas, the Adeptus' situation was not to last, pleasant and even idyllic as it was.
Poke.
Ganyu blearily opened her eyes.
It was bright, the grass was warm and soft beneath her, and yet, a moment after returning to consciousness the sun itself was blocked out by a face. It took a moment for the Adeptus to sit up more fully, even as she was poked in the arm again.
"You shouldn't sleep here."
The speaker was a child, dark-haired and bossy.
After retracting her small finger, the girl crossed her arms and huffed at Ganyu with the sheer, unadulterated cheek that can only be conjured by a child that thinks it knows better.
As it was, Ganyu tried to answer, only to find herself yawning.
"Ah, I must have fallen asleep..." she realised aloud, and then she looked around. She was... oh. She was in Dihua Marsh. Wait, why was she here again? She been looking for Glaze Lilies... Once they had grown here so well, the air used to be rich with their beautiful smell... but now it was only Yujing terrace and Qingce village in which they grew abundantly, and in small, hidden parts of the marsh
Ah, for when there were fields of them, transforming the memories of the land into their fragrance.
Poke.
"Hey! Are you even listening!"
This time, the child poked her in the cheek with a sharp little finger.
"Huh!?"
"You! Why are you sleeping in a marsh!? Do you know how many insects and hill... Hilichurls are out here?" it was as if she was not used to saying the latter word, and as if to hone her point, the child pointed to a figure not far away at all.
Barely twenty metres away, a Lawachurl was frozen in place.
At its feet, a large hydro, cryo, electro and pyro slime all took turns attacking the gigantic figure, perfectly timing their attacks so that the application of the cryo element came but a fraction of a second after the hydro, the electricity after and then finally the pyro, creating a continuous cycle of freezing, superconduction and evaporation from which the mighty Hilichurl could not escape. A small distance away, a flying anemo slime and geo slime pelted the frozen, electrocuted and burning Lawachurl with small blasts of their own element.
It was by no means the swiftest method of slaying a foe, but it was damn effective.
"Huh, why are the slimes---"
"I told them to keep the big guy pinned down until I could wake you up," the child explained, and then after a few seconds, and as if remembering that the commanding of slimes was not a normal ability, she added; "they're under my control."
This child could control slimes?
That was strange, the half-Qilin had never heard of such a thing, but as Ganyu got to her feet proper and drew her bow, at once the child barely seemed concerned or ruffled by it all. It was only when cryo began to accumulate around her arrow that the child grew wary, moving away and hiding behind a large geo slime. The other slimes that had been attacking the Lawachurl all fled in the opposite direction as one, her arrow finished off the beast that had been frozen, electrocuted and burned for... well as long as it had taken the child to wake her up.
"... It took you only one arrow?"
"I have a lot of experience," she admitted, modestly. The child’s raised brow said a lot. "... What are you doing so far into the marsh? Did you get lost?" Ganyu asked, lowering herself just a little, and the child scowled at the question.
"I was just exploring! Don't treat me like some kid, I know my way around!" the little girl said, indignant. "Plus, I have my slimes! I could have killed that big Hilichurl without help you know!"
"Hmm..." Ganyu glanced back at the pudgy creatures. All of them had arranged themselves carefully around the girl in a ring, a few of them focused on her, others looking outwards. Above their heads, a trio of small anemo slimes floated lazily around in a circle, keeping watch.
And then...
The child’s stomach rumbled.
"Do you have any snacks?" Ganyu asked.
"I can go without; it will only take half a day to get back to Wangshu."
Half a day! A child her age should be eating far more frequently!
"I'll cook you something," she offered, and a faintly suspicious glance was her reward... accompanied by a much louder stomach growl. The child barely winced or flinched despite how the hunger pangs must be incredibly strong.
"I'm fine---"
"I insist."
It was surprisingly difficult to browbeat the child into accepting help and food... actually, Ganyu rather suspected that she would rather have snuck away in the time that she was setting up the Adepti Seeker's Stove and got to work making food. As it was, and in a manner, somewhat begrudging, the little girl sat on the grass beside the stove as Ganyu took the food from her pack.
Rice, lotus heads, carrots, berries.
The child frowned, watching closely each little step of the process... and during the course of her preparations, Ganyu made idle conversation.
It took just a little coaxing, but she learned a few facts.
The girl’s name was Taylor. She lived in Wangshu inn, as a 'guide, guard and porter' to travellers in the marsh (and Ganyu would be having stern words with Huai'an about the topic of child labour on the way back!) and strangely... she had no history behind that. Or at least, she was unwilling to reveal anything more about her life beyond such things, she occasionally made little comments about her life working for the inn, but nothing beyond that.
A few times during the cooking, when the girl thought Ganyu was not looking the girl would look around her, at the distant form of the inn rising in the distance, and the even far more distant form of Dragonspine beyond it.
There was a sort of longing there, all of a sudden...
Ganyu carefully put the small plate before the child, and when she did not respond, reached out and gently touched her shoulder.
She flinched, a nearby slime jumped forward aggressively, then paused.
"... What is it?" she asked, looking down at the meal.
"Ah, it's a variant of Universal Peace... my own actually, I call it 'Prosperous Peace'," Ganyu explained. "I put all my well-wishes for all that is lovely in this world into it, to say thank you for saving me---" in truth, she would have been fine, after millennia, Ganyu had developed the ability to wake from sleep at moments notice and a sixth sense for danger, but the child didn’t need to know that. "---the little flowers to the side are Qingxin and my favourites, they're good for your health."
"... It looks like a bunny... a rabbit, I mean."
It was just an observation, and yet when she said bunny the girl visibly kicked herself.
The little girl acted far too much like an adult, or a child pretending to be an adult. It was something that frankly made the millennia old Adeptus worry. Such an attitude in such a small child was something that she had hoped to never see again after the Archon War finally came to its deserved close...
"It's a Qilin," she explained, and when the child looked confused, elaborated. "A... illuminated beast of sorts, their fur is very soft, and they are benevolent..." just saying it made her smile to herself even as she began putting away the various cooking utensils she had unpacked.
Ganyu had forgotten to cook anything for herself, ironically. She had been so busy preparing food for her little saviour that she had never thought about herself, and would simply have to go without... as Taylor had been planning to. But an adult could go without a meal for a few hours, and she had plenty of flowers and carrots she could gnaw on along the way.
In silence, Taylor began to eat.
The first bite was tentative.
The second was more energetic.
The third was passionate as Taylor dug into the food with abandon, her use of the chopsticks was not incredible, but it was clear that she had plenty of experience with them as she brought up the plate and began to hungryly eat.
Frankly, it was the greatest compliment that could be paid to a chef.
In a blur, the food was devoured, and dutifully Ganyu put away the plate and chopsticks.
Once everything was packed away, they began to walk together in the direction of Wangshu proper.
The horde of slimes followed behind them, when they had to cross the water back to the main road, Ganyu and the slimes crossed over on a small bridge of ice created by the cryo slime whilst Taylor hopped on top of the hydro Slime, which zoomed along the surface of the water with ease.
It was a most efficient system… much easier than swimming it, that was for sure.
“Tell me, Taylor,” she asked, once they reached the shore. “Why didn’t you have anything to eat?”
“… Normally I have snacks, Yanxiao always makes things for me, normally Rice Buns and Lotus Flower Crisp’s before I go out… but he’s been learning from a visiting chef from Chenyu vale, and he made me some ‘Fine Tea, Full Moon’ recently,” the child explained, and then, after a moment, added; “… They were so nice I ate them all in one go.”
A moment's silence fell, and then the child looked away, evidently embarrassed.
Ganyu tried not to giggle at the admission.
“Well, whenever I pass Wangshu, I will call in and see if you are in, and if you are, I’ll make it again for you.”
“… That’d be nice…
Xiao, aka the Adeptus Alatus, sat patiently upon a tree branch.
The Conqueror of Demons was upon one of the highest points for miles around, Wangshu Inn.
The location had long been of great importance throughout history; in ancient times it had been a fortress that housed a great lord who ruled over the north of Guili plains on behalf of the God of Dust, Guizhong. In later times, it had been a watch tower and marked the furthest extent of the land of Sal Terrae, long before the fall of its God, Havria.
In recent centuries a great, gold-leafed tree had grown from the top of the stone spire, adding to the location's aesthetic, and providing abundant shade.
Below him, somebody emerged onto the top most terrace of the Inn.
“Hup!”
A child was clinging to the top of a large anemo Slime.
Normally, the Vigilant Yaksha would attempt to put down the elemental creature; this close to civilised people it would be a threat, and for centuries he had fought such beasts…
But he knew this particular Slime, and the child clinging to it.
The large, powder blue creature floated upwards until it landed on the broad, flat part of the branch nearby, at which point the child dismounted carefully. The anemo slime gave the child a small boop on the head once she had done so, before taking off again, descending to the roof of the inn below to wait for her.
“Xiao Douzi,” he greeted.
The child scowled in what she probably thought was a fearsome expression.
He ignored it.
“Here,” she presented a small, neatly wrapped box to him, which he accepted. This was their fourth meeting; the first time had been after she was introduced by the owner of the Inn, Huai’an, explaining that she would be bringing his meals in future whenever he came to stop by.
“Thanks,” he said, simply.
He opened the box to reveal the almond tofu inside.
Without pause Xiao began to eat, relishing in the food.
Ah, food was such a concern for mortals, but frankly almond tofu was the one thing that the Conqueror of Demons had ever developed a fondness for in terms of foodstuff.
And thus, he ate.
It was a pleasant enough evening; this high up there were few insects, not even the ubiquitous crickets whose song filled the air throughout Liyue.
Somewhere above them both, a bird sang a few notes to mark the end of the day from the safety of its nest.
Xiao Douzi stared out over the marsh, towards Wuwang Hill.
“… You ever had people you desperately want to see again, but never can?” the child asked suddenly, and he stilled, the piece of tofu momentarily forgotten. He set it carefully back in its small bowl, and looked up.
He did not bother to glance at the strange child that the Inn had taken on, instead he looked towards the sky and the setting sun beyond the mountains.
The heavens were a rich gold, moving into pink and reds.
Bosacius. Indarias. Bonanus. Menogias.
“... Every day.”
The child glanced at him, staring for a few seconds, before looking away.
“...”
"...”
"... I miss my home, I miss all the people I left behind. I never got to say goodbye to them."
Again, the comment came out of nowhere, normally the child would wait patiently to collect the box and bowl that held his almond tofu, and would then depart without too much said. The first time she had been suspicious of him, the last time she had sat beside him.
Never had she asked about him and his history, although considering the company he had seen her in recently, including Rex Lapis himself... Xiao rather suspected that she had worked out a few things about him.
Most people could not reach the top of Wangshu Inn as discreetly as he could, after all.
"... In thousands of years of life, I have made countless goodbyes, most of them long after the person died. Such is life."
Frankly, speaking with adults was easier than with children, so Xiao would simply treat her as one.
"I'll never see them again."
"No, you won't."
"... You don't mince words at all," it should sound reproaching, but it wasn't. Not with the way the girl delivered it.
"I am but a weapon that destroys evil; I am not human, and I don't make much of human emotions," he replied, simply, and bit into the last piece of tofu. Somewhere below them, somebody was playing a zither, the faint sound of its music reaching up to them. "But even if I have still lost people, I can still honour them. A bird call from afar, a song. That is how I do so."
"Hm..."
The child stared into the night with a troubled expression.
It was not his duty to parse through her thoughts, nor to understand them. So long as demons and monsters plagued Liyue, he was ever busy, in that way he had protected humans for millennia.
In this moment, he would offer what few words he would, and then he would leave her to think. Such was his way;
"Light an incense stick for them."
"Huh?"
"You have a room here, ask Goldet or Huai'an for incense sticks. Light one for each person you miss."
It was the extent of his advice, and one he followed when it came to his fellows, and for other departed friends... Pervases had always been fond of incense sticks in particular.
The girl nodded distractedly, and they concluded their time.
Xiao departed as the child rode back down on her pet Slime.
A golden man, finally brought down.
A woman in a hat with a gun.
A promise and regrets, dwelled upon in those moments, if she could do it all over again---
“---aylor!”
She struck out, her hand met a shoulder and her eyes flew open.
It was dark.
She was in a room; somebody was leering over her---
Her swarm, where was her swarm!
Her hand flew out again----
It was caught, somebody charged into the room, feet heavy against the wooden floorboard. Her eyes moved over, it was a man, Chinese or Asian and she recognised him from somewhere---
Huai’an.
The person holding her arm had soft brown hair and eyes, her skin was ever so soft and warm. It was only after a second, and with the benefit of Huai’an’s lantern, that she realised who it was that was kneeling beside the small bed in which she had just been having her nightmare.
“Taylor, do you recognise me?” the person holding her arm asked, voice calm and controlled.
“V-Verr Goldet.”
Curse this child’s voice, which sounded so frightened.
Curse this child’s body, which trembled fiercely under the blanket and made her eyes fill up with tears despite all the things she had seen and experienced.
Verr gently pulled her up, an arm came around Taylor’s back and wordlessly the woman manoeuvred to sit on the bed, placing Taylor on her lap.
“You can go to bed, it’s okay, I’m fine I don't need---” Taylor said, mumbling her words, but the woman ignored her, a hand came to her head and gently, coaxingly, brought her face into her shoulder.
She couldn’t help herself.
The dam gates opened, gracelessly she bawled and she hated and yet needed that emotional release so, so much.
Huai’an settled on the bed beside his wife, a comforting, large hand found Taylor's shoulder but he didn’t say anything. Neither of them did; it was the little tradition that had built up weeks and months since she found herself in this strange world, waking up in that mung bean patch to find them both standing there.
Whenever she had nightmares, whenever she woke up screaming and reliving it all, they would be there.
When she first arrived it was every night... then every other, and now it was only once or twice a week.
The pair asked no questions, but accepted no protest either.
It was like having parents again, like having her mother and father by her side… if they were both still with her now.
Where was her father, was he happy and healthy? Why couldn’t he have been here, why couldn’t her passenger have dragged him with her!
When she was all cried out, she just stayed there, all curled up.
“Get some sleep dear, I’ll stay,” Verr commanded her husband, who, with nothing more than a gentle pat on Taylor’s shoulder, departed. The Monstadt woman leaned against the wall, still with Taylor held close and began looking out the open window towards the moon hanging low over Dihua marsh, and which was still high in the night sky.
Together they stared out over the sleeping world.
In a pot beside the window facing Dragonspine, a number of incense sticks were all burned out.
For a few minutes nothing was said.
"It'll be six months soon," Taylor said softly.
"Um-Hmm..." a sound of agreement, coaxing her on.
"... I wonder when Ganyu or Mr. Zhongli will next come."
"Who can know? I noticed that little pot you've been growing on the top terrace though... Qingxin flowers?"
"Yeah... I asked Yanxiao about food I could try to make for Ganyu, and he mentioned Jade Fruit Soup," Taylor murmured.
The blue-haired narcoleptic with the horns was a regular enough visitor to the inn, always coming to visit Taylor, and slowly a strange cast of characters was building up in this new life of hers, but that didn't mean that they could replace the people she had left behind and lost.
"I am sure she would like that. Next time she visits to make you that dish you like, we'll have a party to mark six months," Goldet promised.
A nice party with Mr. Zhongli, Ganyu... maybe that little lavender haired girl and others... and that big crane that spoke very formally and shared embaressing stories about Ganyu.
"That'd be nice..."
Goldet stayed with her for an hour, long enough for the moon to have begun its descent, when she finally released Taylor.
"Sleep well, Taylor. Wake me up if you need me," Goldet asked, the fearsome boss of Wangshu said, in the darkness her gentle smile was barely visible, and then she left.
Taylor managed to sleep through all the way until morning, and upon doing so, refreshed the incense sticks beside the window sill.
She smiled just a little, even if it was bittersweet.