Chapter Text
Fynn’s arrival the night before had not given him a chance to really take in the sights of Gandharva Ville to the fullest; he was able to observe, however, their brilliant use of bioluminescent flora along the path as streetlamps, which had him almost vibrating with excitement. The stalks of the glowing buds were well over seven feet tall; with ropes and stakes of wood bending the large yellow florets upside down so their warm, inviting light would illuminate the path as it moved further in the little village.
If his former senior’s amused smile was anything to go by, it was clear that Tighnari thought that this was something that Fynn would get very excited over. And he would have been: he would have loved to pick Tighnari’s brain about this fascinating plant he had yet to see had he been a couple of years younger. He would have reached out and traced the multiple stalks wrapped around embracing each other with delicate fingers and listened to the fox man talk the night away about that plant and any others that the Oni felt inclined to point out. They would have climbed up and relaxed in the canopy, sprawled out on one of the primordial tree’s massive branches, and let the rhythm of their conversation carry them through the night.
As it was, though, he was too tired and miserable from their travels and the events of the last few months to care much about much more than finding somewhere to sit down. His feet ached like he had crossed the entirety of Teyvat, his clothes were sweaty and smelled horrible, and the venom from bug bites on his arms and legs itched like fire beneath his skin. As Tighnari had led him through the rest of the village, Fynn struggled to keep his eyes open long enough to get a sense of what general direction everything was. He half listened as Tighnari droned on about where he would be staying, more concerned about whether his legs were going to give out beneath him before they reached their destination or not.
Finally, the two made their way to one of the larger cabins that appeared to be an office in addition to a living space. Tighnari had stopped outside the entrance and waited for Fynn to climb the last couple of stairs up to the cabin.
“What d’ya think? I’m usually the one that stays in here, but we have more residential cabins up in the tree above. I didn’t think you’d be able to safely fit inside one of them, so we went with this option for now; they’re a little tightly packed up there.” Tighnari motions for Fynn to enter, as he continues his ramble. “We can get a more permanent living situation set up soon; for now though you may get kicked out of this cabin if we need to treat anyone stupid enough to get seriously hurt out in the forest. I’m sure you understand.” Fynn nods somberly.
They had met plenty of people just on this trip alone who took no precautions when traveling through the forest, and through all their years of knowing each other, they had met countless people who had no clue how to take care of themselves when traveling in general. Part of Tighnari’s entire job at the moment was managing the medical treatment facility in Gandharva Ville and to his credit, he was brilliant at what he did. None of the other forest watchers had the capacity to heal and treat the illnesses that Tighnari saw every day. Whether it was herbal remedies or proper medicine, the fox man was prepared to heal and soothe most curable conditions and afflictions that were thrown at him. But that didn’t mean that it was easy to watch on as visitors and travelers did not heed any bit of advice that the Forest Ranger provided, and then were surprised by the consequences of not following the aforementioned advice.
As Tighnari continued his passionate speech about the stupidity of most people who entered the forest, Fynn decided to cut his losses and shuffled like a zombie to the bed. Without even taking a moment to bend down and untie his shoes, the exhausted ex-professor stumbled and collapsed onto the mattress with a rather undignified thunk; though there was not much dignity left to lose, considering the circumstances that this entire career change had stemmed from, the white-haired man thought as he relaxed into the soft bed. Tighnari watched, concerned at his friend’s unceremonious flop onto the little bed, and decided to save his complaints about some recent patients he’d dealt with for the next morning. The fox man approached the bed and draped a blanket over the Oni, whose boots hung off the edge of the too-small bed, snorting at how huge his friend was compared to the mattress before going off to wrap up his busy night.
Morning in the Avidya forest was nothing like at the laboratory. Far away were the claustrophobic, barren walls and bone-colored cabinets where samples and paperwork were taken and stored away in the void. The harsh lights that glared at the tired scientists as they moved mechanically through their routines, withering away like dying plants were but a distant, chilling thought. Instead, as Fynn stepped outside of his temporary cabin and blinked blearily, he was greeted by the sights and smells of nature at their finest.
The entirety of the Forest Rangers’ headquarters was built upon the curved trunk of the largest tree the Oni had ever encountered in his life. It seemed larger than life, as if it should no longer be a tree, but part of the hills themselves. Branches larger than tree trunks arched elegantly above the little village, gracefully twisting around and stretching their secondary branches high overhead as if reaching to touch the brilliant blue sky. The forest rangers had worked together to hang a couple of cabins up on the higher branches, and despite the weight of the buildings, the towering branches didn’t seem to bow or strain to hold them up.
Three main cabins along the winding road ran the length of the little town; each sturdily constructed either around or supported by the trunks of nearby trees. Each had windows facing the path and short, fenced porches that the angled thatch roofs kept shaded for most of the warmer parts of the day. Despite the cabins appearing relatively small and cone-shaped, they left plenty of space within to house the forest watchers and all the different types of equipment they used to run their base of operations. The cabins almost blended into their surroundings; their designs seemed to curve and flow with the elegant, twisting trees around them.
Massive leaves were covering the uppermost points of the roofs that mimicked the dense foliage of the trees above them, and according to Tighnari, all of the wood used in the construction of the sleek little cabins was locally and ethically sourced. To some, this little village might appear simple or lacking when compared to the luxurious and frivolous building styles used in Sumeru City or in other parts of the country. The Akademiya had an entire Darshan dedicated to designing elaborate and beautiful buildings that seemed to build up and up until their peaks grazed the sky and yet… There was something about the perfect harmony struck between the buildings and paths in Gandharva Ville with the forest it was tucked into, an equilibrium between nature and man.
Despite how small the cabin appeared on the outside, the inside was relatively spacious; there was a bed tucked against the wall to the left and a desk opposite to the entrance. The desk was covered in journals and notebooks filled with hand-drawn sketches of different species of plants and fungi that grew within the borders of the Avidya Forest, as well as detailed notes about each specimen studied and how to use many of them in medicines. The rug beneath the desk showed its age; the glorified rag looked like it had been dragged along the ground across the forest floor. What was once brilliant blue fabric was caked with layers of dirt and the edges were frayed and filled with holes. By this point it looked more dusty grey than blue. Next to the desk, two shelves that housed a wide assortment of medicinal herbs in various glass jars were hung on the walls.
Fynn had already eaten some food that his senior left stored in the cabin for him, and was dedicating this calm part of the morning to acclimating himself to his new home. Figuring that taking a walk though the woods would help him to clear his head after the travel and the chaos of his life, he found a path that looked like it got the most foot traffic and set off at a leisurely pace.
Warm sunlight peeked through the canopy of leaves high above Gandharva Ville, leaking down and painting the little village in soft, golden swatches of light. The canopy was relatively thin in this area, but that did nothing to deter the wildlife from thriving around the village. The hum of bug wings and the warbles of different birds harmonized with the rustling of leaves high overhead, serenading anyone who happened to be wandering through the woods. Fynn thought for a moment that he could hear the distinct chirps and whistles of Dusk birds somewhere, but it was unlikely that the elusive birds would be found so close to a humanoid settlement of any kind. That seemed to be a non-issue to the large glowing flowers that replenished one’s energy and refreshed mental fortitude just by being near them. They grew everywhere, flourishing in both shaded and bright, fully sunned areas on the forest floors.
While, of course, the biodiversity of the Avidya Forest had always floored Fynn, it was hard for the beauty of the forest itself to be overlooked. One could note that this particular region of the forest, which cradled Gandharva Ville, was indeed ancient. For the first time since he had become a full time researcher, Fynn was in his element and at peace.