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Hu Tao and Mona had been dating for a year.
Being a vampire, Tao knew that she would live eternally, and one day have to part with Mona. She didn’t mind. She’d simply treasure the time she had with Mona. Or at least, that’s what she used to think.
Mona was a witch, an astrologist, you could say. She loved Hu Tao - treasured her - more than anything else in the world. So, when Hu Tao came to her with a certain request, how could she refuse?
“Mona, would it be possible to change my lifespan? So that I do not live forever. I want to live with you, so I have to die with you too.”
At first, Mona didn’t listen. It would be selfish of her to cut down Hu Tao’s lifespan so that it would fit her own. However, after her girlfriend insisted time and time again, she eventually gave in.
Mona only knew one spell on how to do this, and it would go as follows;
If Mona died, the rest of her lifespan would be added onto Hu Taos. Therefore, if Mona died of age, Hu Tao would die of age at the same time, and thus they would die happily together. This was the agreement.
However, the same worked vice versa. If Hu Tao were to somehow die, then her eternal lifespan would be added onto Mona’s.
Of course, that was not a worry for either of them - they were safe together, happy - nothing would hurt them, other than their aging.
And so, over the next few years, they slowly forgot about the spell. They grew closer.
Three years later, Hu Tao got down on one knee and pledged her life to Mona’s.
Mona vividly remembered that day, and always would.
It was a sunny July day when Hu Tao had invited Mona on a date to Mt. Aocang. It wasn’t unnatural for Hu Tao to want to go on dates with Mona, and so Mona didn’t suspect anything.
The stars had lit up the sky like Xiao Lanterns, reflecting off the lake and accentuating Hu Tao’s pale features. She had looked beautiful that night - adorned in a crimson dress, her scarlet eyes soft and bright. She always seemed to hold a star-like quality, shining and drawing all eyes to her. At first, it had made Mona jealous - how she knew everyone, was friends with everyone, was loved by everyone.
Though, with time, she knew that Hu Tao loved her alone.
That night, Mona was still unsuspecting. They had sat under the stars, talking about nothing in particular, when between a kiss Hu Tao had fumbled onto one knee and said these words;
“I love you more than anything else in this world. I would give anything to be with you forever. I pledge my life to yours and will be there with you as long as the stars shine.”
It was possibly the most romantic thing Mona had ever been told. She had been starstruck, her head spinning, and didn’t even realize her feet were moving until her arms were around Hu Tao, happy tears soaking the other’s shoulder.
“I love you. I love you, I love you.”
And it was true. Mona loved Hu Tao. Mona could talk about the love she held for Hu Tao for the rest of her life.
However, their happiness did not last forever. For, “all good things must come to an end”.
On a stormy November evening, fights broke out between the Fatui and the rest of the nations. The lands became ensnared with fighting and war.
That night seemed to last longer than any other in the couple’s life.
They hid in their house, trapped in a shaky embrace as they comforted one another, convincing themselves, “everything will be fine”, as they listened as people screamed outside. The Fatui Harbinger, Scaramouche, had left his mark in Liyue along with Tartaglia.
Oh, but how wrong this was.
They’d shudder in the biting winds, the chaos in the lands sending their minds into spinning disarray.
However, their love couldn’t be ruined. And so, that night they fled. Mona took Hu Tao’s hand, dragging her to her feet, and ran, ran as fast as she could.
They sprinted for what seemed like hours, ignoring the fighting behind them, ignoring the world around them, the only thing on their minds each other.
After they finally stopped running, hiding in a cramped cave southwest of Liyue Harbour, they cried.
They cried for what seemed like hours, their only company one another, unspoken words between them. They trusted one another deeply, they believed they would get through this.
However, on the dawn of the next day, a burst of maniacal laughter slowly drew near, waking their restless sleep. Hu Tao’s breath had caught in her throat, her hand tightening around Mona’s. Panic rose in Mona’s chest, but Hu Tao shot her a reassuring glance.
“Trust me. I will keep us safe, you safe, no matter what.”
She uttered these words to Mona, before standing and disappearing outside the cave, despite Mona’s protests.
There was no way the source of the laughter had not heard their words, Mona’s voice slowly rising into a shout as she insisted on her fiancé not leaving her.
Please. Please don’t leave me. You’re all I have left. Please. Please.
“Hu Tao, you are perfect just the way you are. It’s one of the reasons I am so… invested in you.”
Hu Tao had giggled, raising on her tip-toes so she was eye-to-eye with Mona. She reached up to pat her head. “You’re very sweet, Miss. Mona Megistus. You are a star. Mon etoile. Someday, I know you will change the world. At least, I’d like to see you try!”
…
“Someone… Help me… My chest, I can’t breathe, I- N-No…”
Mona’s heart felt as though it had stopped. She couldn’t breathe properly.
She saw two of everything.
Her hands, stained crimson, vision blurred, she held the bloodied, beaten body of the one girl she had loved, the one person she cared about, the one, singular, the only person left that had mattered.
She felt a hand rest over hers, a choked sob leaving Mona’s throat.
“Mon etoile… don’t cry. Please.”
Hu Tao smiled weakly up at her, crimson eyes rapidly losing their light. She pressed her cold hand against Mona’s wet cheek.
“Don’t leave me. Tao. Tao, please. Tao.”
Mona begged, tears flowing like a river, her fingers stained red, as if it mattered at that moment.
“You can still smile without me, mon etoile. I know you can. I love you, mon etoile, I always will. I will be there… with you… for as long as… the stars shine.”
Hu Tao’s body went slack against Mona’s, her blood warm and fingers cold. Her eyes lost their spark.
Gone.
She was gone.
No.
No. No.
No, no, no, no, no.
Mona didn’t realize she was yelling the words until her throat was so sore, it felt as though needles were scraping against it, yet, the pain had nothing against the pain in her chest. She couldn’t stop crying, the tears flowing and flowing without a clear end.
Bile rose in Mona’s throat. She found herself vomiting, sickness overtaking her, her emotions a mess, the only thing clear in her head was pain.
Eventually, exhaustion overtook her, and she passed out, still clutching her fiancé’s corpse.
The mere thought made her feel even more ill.
“Once upon a time, there lives a lady.”
“Lived.”
“Who lost her heart.
So she ate others'.”
“I never lost it. I have always been cursed with it.”
“Then take mine.”
“Yours?”
“Do you love me? I think you do.”
“…”
“Do you know how long I have traveled to find you?
How far I've searched?
And now you're here.
Finally.
My heart yearns for you.
I love you.”
Mona felt strong arms shake her awake.
“Mona?”
She opened her eyes and was hit with a strange sadness that crushed her. She was dazed for a moment. Why was she so sad? And then she remembered... Hu Tao was gone.
She was gone.
"Mona? How are you feeling?" Keqing sat by her bed, a hand in hers. Mona didn't realize she had been holding on to it tightly in her fitful sleep. She broke from her grasp and clutched her knees. "Mona?"
She remained silent.
"I came to check on you. You went into shock and lost consciousness... I can only imagine... how hard it must've been for you to see her- like that..." Her words echoed in her brain, yet she did not register much of the meaning. Mona still refused to speak and Keqing fidgeted with her glove. "The wake will take place as soon as possible, Mona. I just wanted to let you know that she is being taken care of."
Mona was tired. She always had a fear of losing Hu Tao. A nagging notion in the back of her head. Mona didn't want to hear it. She didn't want to deal with anyone, right now. All she wanted to do was wallow in her loneliness.
...To curl up in the hole that Hu Tao had left behind and sleep.
Keqing cleared her throat. “There hasn’t been any fighting recently. The Fatui has stopped their attack, as for what they wanted? Who knows.” Keqing glanced away, “I guess you want to be left alone. I… I’m sorry.”
Keqing shot a last pitying look at Mona, before scurrying away.
Pity.
Mona couldn’t help but pity herself as well. “It’ll be okay, mon etoile,” she whispered to herself, though her words shook, and she once again broke into tears, her face red and stained wet.
“Hurt” wasn’t exactly the word anymore. She was now filled with a numbness, one of which consumed her, and made her feel ill again.
She missed Hu Tao. She wanted a hug. Not from Keqing. From Tao. Her Tao. She missed her so, so badly. Where was her lover? Her fiancé? Their wedding was due only a month from that day. They had planned it all out. All those discussions about their future, the way they’d own eight cats and two dogs, live in a small cottage off the edge of Mondstadt, travel the world.
All of that crumbled before Mona’s eyes. Yet, no tears came. No matter how hard she tried, no tears came.
This is what it feels like to lose everything. She could still hear the fluttering of a lonely butterfly’s wings over the sound of soft laughter from the girl who was now gone. A trail of golden dust, now lifted into the wind, dancing with the breeze.
Mona knew she would never sleep comfortably again. She knew the ghost of the girl she had loved would haunt her dreams. Whether she would wake up in a cold sweat from a nightmare of holding her dying body, or her mind would go numb from the memory of their first meetings, she would never be rid of Hu Tao.
She wondered if she wanted to be rid of her in the first place.
A sudden realization hit Mona, one that knocked the air out of her and made her sit up straight.
The spell.
Hu Tao was a vampire, and so she lived eternally. And now, she had died, her lifespan being placed in Mona’s hands.
Mona was cursed with immortality.
A violin started a hurried tune in the background.
This was not what she wanted. This was not what she needed. She wanted to sleep. She needed to run. She needed to stop panicking. She needed to forget.
No.
She wanted to forget.
Need is a strong word, too strong.
She needed Hu Tao.
She wanted to forget.
Two complete opposites, the thoughts clashed in her mind, and when she came to, she found her face once again stained wet, her breath caught in her throat, her chest in pain.
Panic. Pure, unmistakable panic.
Her mind relayed memories she wanted to forget.
“Mona, I love you, you know that?” A sweet smile played on Hu Tao’s lips, as she stared up at the girl. Her brunette locks rested atop Mona’s lap, as Mona laughed a little.
“Of course, my love. I’d be stupid if I didn’t know that.” She ran a hand through Tao’s hair.
“Mon etoile, I promise to be with you, always-”
And the scene changed. Brunette locks still rested atop Mona’s lap, yet this time streaked with ruby and scarlet, staining Mona’s fingers.
“Mon etoile.”
The violin continued on.
“Mon etoile, I love you.”
“Don’t leave me.”
White noise.
A flash of a blade.
Blood.
Dull eyes.
No light.
Where? Where had she gone? The memory slipped out of Mona’s fingers. She ran after it, sprinted, yet as she outstretched her palm it vanished before her.
Blood rose from the ground around her, she drowned in the sticky crimson, she felt nothing.
Numb.
Bile rose in her throat.
When was the last time she had eaten? Two days ago? Three days ago?
The violin played on.
Stop.
She placed her fingers on the strings. At the ring of the first few notes, it became clear that this song was something special.
Here was a little girl, fingers soft and delicate against the strings, playing the violin as if she owned it. There were times she’d miss a note or two, but that didn’t matter. She played the song to make someone smile, and it touched everyone present. Her musical skill was far beyond her years. Her fingers caressed the strings as if she was making a flower crown, carefully weaving the petals. She knew the correct way to tie the leaves so they wouldn't tear as all smart little girls did. As the violin sang under her hands, Hu Tao seemed to disappear right in front of the audience's eyes. She was just a vision, after all, somebody leading them down to a dream. A dream of a garden, the springtime, the shade of a tree on a windy day. The couples in the audience tightened their grip on the hands of their partners. Some closed their eyes and let the music saturate their soul. Sweet memories of youth. First love. The yawn of a newborn.
Mona's eyes shone as she stared at Hu Tao. Her heart was captured by this image of her. A young girl swaying her head to the music, smiling as the notes poured out of her. She couldn't take her eyes away from Hu Tao’s glowing face. Was this happiness? Was this love? She looked like she was in love. And she was, wasn't she? In her innocence, she was still in love with life. In love with her family, with her pets, in love with every new discovery. She was full of hope. It was a bittersweet feeling for Mona. A happy teardrop rolled down her cheek. She wanted to warm herself in that hope if she could.
Just let me stay in this lie, she begged, for one second more.
The violin stopped.
Her eyes sprung open.
It was 3 am. Who knew how many days had passed since the incident? Had she eaten since then, drunk anything since then? Not that it mattered.
The memory of Hu Tao playing the violin stained her mind, an image she couldn’t rid herself of.
Her mind had turned to autopilot, standing now with a purpose, a cause, and she walked. She moved. She walked downstairs, her stomach empty along with her mind.
It was still a blur. That she couldn’t deny. The grief was still fresh, seeming to wrap around her heart, squeezing it hard, as if trying to milk her of any happiness she may have had remaining.
She shook her head, a weak attempt to clear her head, obviously failed.
She couldn’t let her thoughts consume her.
A sigh slipped past her lips, rain beating against the window, as if the world was mocking her. She ran a hand through her now-greasy hair, it wasn’t as if she had the opportunity to shower within the last few days.
She stood blankly in the kitchen, nearly forgetting why she had gone there, before taking a shaky, deep breath, and opening the fridge. The sight of food confused her, made her feel sick again - before she focused herself.
Food. All she needed was to make food. A sandwich. A glass of water.
And so, with slow, shaky steps, she fixed herself a glass of water and sat. She sat down and she sipped the water. It didn’t taste of anything. Cardboard, perhaps. Or cotton wool. It felt as if her brain had been stuffed full of cotton wool, unable to process or think. Take two.
She stood up, and opened the fridge, staring at the food as if waiting for it to vanish before her eyes.
She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.
Think. What would Tao want?
Tao would want you to be happy and healthy.
The thought pained her, yet she reached into the fridge and prepared a meal.
She sat down and ate it, one small bite at a time.
She forced the food down. It tasted like poison, the only flavor in the food a bitter jab that remained stuck in her mouth, no matter how many glasses of water she poured down.
After what must have been hours of sitting on that kitchen table, staring at nothing, a hand had appeared on her shoulder.
“Mona.”
A soft voice, sweet yet firm, an undertone of formality to it. Keqing.
“Mona, it’s good that you’re up…” she trailed off.
“Mm… Good morning, Keqing,” Mona said in reply, though her voice was weak, nearly broken. It hurt to talk, the words scraping at her throat, and another wave of nausea passed over her.
“How are you… feeling?” Keqing asked gently. Mona winced at her tone. She pitied her. Mona hated the feeling, the feeling of being pitied, being treated as less than Keqing.
It wasn’t as if that wasn’t true, however; Keqing and Ganyu were happy together, Keqing had protected Ganyu, kept her safe. What could Mona say about herself?
“Alright.”
“Oh.”
Neither of them had much to say, and they stood in awkward silence.
“I’m going out to see Ganyu,” Keqing said eventually. “Stay safe.”
Mona only nodded absentmindedly, and Keqing gave her another odd glance, before walking outside, closing the door behind her.
Mona slumped down against the table.
How, she thought, would she ever get over this? She was now stuck with an eternal life, and nothing to do with it.
She sucked in a sharp breath, and the image of Tao and that violin reappeared in her mind. The last ghost of her lover.
What would she do now?
There was no future with eight cats and two dogs. No cottage on the outskirts of Mondstadt. No reason left to live, she had thought.
And so, she returned to her bed, and once again simply lay there, eyes closed, hair spreading around her like a dark halo.
And so, she returned to the realm of dreams, and once again, a brunette appeared before her.
Yet, this time, it felt… different.
She could see a field, dotted with black roses, and in the middle, there sat Hu Tao, a violin in hands. Dismal chords filled the green-and-black field, an enchanting melody that drew you in, made Mona step towards her past lover.
Hu Tao watched as Mona slowly approached, the violin never pausing, until Mona stood directly before the other, and the song slowed to a halt.
“Tao.”
“In a year, perhaps two, the roses from this field will have withered,” Hu Tao murmured, her violin vanishing into gold sparks, as she picked a fresh, thorny, dark rose, “come, Mona, shan’t we appreciate them while they’re still fresh?” She outstretched her hand, and Mona took it reluctantly, scared of what would happen next, scared of another nightmare.
Their hands still fit one another perfectly.
“A hand will never forget the shape of its lover’s.” Hu Tao whispered, as if reading Mona’s mind. Mona’s eyes snapped up to meet hers. “This is my realm. Where I have come to rest.” She pulled Mona to the floor, and they sat on a blanket of moss and roses. “I hope, at the very least, you will plant the prettiest flowers over my grave.”
Mona’s mouth went dry. “Don’t say that. Please. Let me stay with you here. I don’t want to go back.” She felt tears prickle her eyes again.
Hu Tao leaned forward, kissing the tears from her face, an affectionate gesture to be shared between lovers. “You know, I will never leave you, for as long as the stars shine, mon etoile. I promised you. I will be there in every note you play, in every word you scribe, in every battle you fight. I will guard you with my life, and I shall love you forever.”
“Tao-” This felt too much like a final goodbye. Mona didn’t want this. Mona couldn’t let Tao leave her. Not now. She still needed her.
“You can see this, in your mind, a field of black roses. The place where those whose stories have finished shall lay. One day, when your time has come, you will join me here too. And I will wait for you patiently, I will wait every day, for you, mon etoile.”
“I love you,” Mona whispered. “I love you, I love you.”
“I love you too, mon etoile,” and Hu Tao wrapped her arms around Mona, and this time she was the one to cry. “I love you,” and she repeated those words until they were forever imprinted in Mona’s mind.
“Thank you,” Mona uttered, the words carried by the breeze. There was so much more she had to say, so much more she could offer Tao, so many sweet words, so many praises and kisses she could give, yet, thank you would suffice.
And in that moment, Hu Tao’s laugh had never been clearer.
“Of course, mon etoile.”
Years passed as the sun rose and the moon went down. The stars would shine bright every night, a gentle reminder to Mona of Tao’s love to her.
She wondered if Tao’s roses had wilted, yet.
She hadn’t seen Hu Tao again since that night. No matter how she tried to conjure her lover up, she never appeared to her.
Mona wondered sometimes if Tao had left her. If she had imagined that night, as a source of comfort.
But, in reality, she knew that Tao wouldn’t lie to her. Tao was waiting for her, as she promised.
Life changed around her. Due to Tao’s eternal lifespan being handed to Mona, she watched as everyone around her died. Keqing, Ganyu, Scara, everyone, slowly disappeared, taken by time.
It was lonely. Yet, she always found comfort in the notion that Hu Tao would be there with her soon.
And so, one day, when the stars shone brighter than ever before, a brightly-haired scientist appeared before her, and finally laid her to rest.
That night, as she bled, she stared at the sky, at the golden lights dotting the dark sheet, she felt something she hadn’t in a long time.
Content.
Hu Tao. Tao. I’m coming.
And with that, a smile tugged at her lips, and she drifted into eternal sleep. She couldn’t help but wonder if they’d put her grave next to Taos.
Mona awoke in a bed of calla lilies.
The distant sound of violin music drifted into the breeze, floating to Mona, the notes dancing around her.
She pushed herself up. The first thing she noticed was that her hair was undone, cascading out behind her like a dark waterfall.
A beautiful sight was laid out before her. Tao, her violin beneath her chin, playing a familiar tune, the same tune as last time she had been to this place.
She noticed that the flowers had changed, from black roses to a mix of both roses and calla lilies. Tao’s hair flew out behind her, her outfit the same crimson dress that matched her eyes that she had worn when she proposed to Mona.
It made Mona’s chest flutter.
Everything about the situation seemed so unreal.
It had been years since she had last seen Tao, decades, centuries, even, perhaps. She’d lost track of time.
Yet, now, before her stood the one person she had lived so long for.
Hu Tao.
And the violin slowed to a halt, as Tao met Mona’s eyes. Red met purple, and there was no other word to describe the emotions that exploded inside of the pair, than love.
And it was true, wasn’t it? Through life, through death, they were in love. That was something that would never change.
“Tao,” Mona whispered.
“Mon etoile,” Hu Tao smiled, a soft, sweet tug of her lips, “I told you I’d wait for you, didn’t I?”
And thus, the pair tangoed, tangoed for all eternity, in a field of black roses and calla lilies, unspoken words and hope, love and wonder, life and death.