Chapter Text
In the skies above Teyvat, over 2,000 years ago...
KABOOM!
The sound of two powerful beams of magic exploding upon contact resonated through the clouds. The sky was separated in two sides, making it almost impossible to tell what its original color was:
One side was filled with shades of pinks and blues, filled with twinkling stars falling through the air like snowflakes. At the front of this army was what looked like a woman wearing rosy pink and white clothes, bearing long white hair with a rosy crown on her head and a star-shaped clip in her hair. Her long cloak glittered with the patterns of the stars.
The lady, who was somehow floating in the air, narrowed her dark blue eyes, which bore the patterns of her cloak. “I won't let you hurt more people than this.”
She was glaring at the woman on the side of the sky which was blazing reds and oranges. The woman floating across from her also had long white hair, and she had yellow eyes like the sun. She wore a white outfit and her hands to her elbows were darkened. Her coat also had starry sky patterns, only dark red.
It was a faceoff.
“As though you would understand.” The second woman sneered. “As the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles, the arrogation of mankind and the hatred of beastkind ends now!” She attacked with an exploding red cube with one wave of her hand, which her opponent was quick to dodge.
The two forces clashed, and the fight was so powerful it could be seen from miles away. This went on all day and all night, when the faceoff ended.
In the midst of their clash, the first lady threw her opponent into a pillar, causing it to shatter and stun the enemy, before a star-shaped portal opened behind her shocked foe.
“I did not wish to do this... But you leave me no choice!” Raising her hands, the prevailing god prepared to cast a powerful spell. As she chanted, the enemy goddess quickly started weakening, losing power in seconds.
“I cast this spell out to protect, while upon your deeds you shall reflect! You failed this world to overwhelm, and are cast into the Abyssal realm!” With that, the portal started pulling the red goddess in despite its victim's resistance.
Halfway through the portal, the red lady noticed chains and shackles appeared on her wrists and body. She growled at the caster. “If I cannot rule this world... Neither will YOU!” With the last of her power, the woman fired a blast as she was pulled into the portal, which closed as the blast made contact with the intended target.
BOOM!
2,000 years later...
The land of Teyvat. A world full of hardworking people who inhabited this land ruled by the Seven Archons, gods that protected the Seven Elements and the Nation that represented it.
Mondstadt, the Nation of Freedom was home to the Anemo Archon, Barbatos. Liyue, the Nation of Contracts was ruled by the Geo Archon, Morax. Inazuma, the Nation of Eternity was led by Baal, the Electro Archon. Sumeru, the Nation of Wisdom, was protected by the God of Wisdom, the Dendro Archon. Natlan, the Nation of War, was the home of the Pyro Archon, Mirata. Fontaine, the Nation of Justice, was protected by the Goddess of Justice, the Hydro Archon. The Nation of Love, Snezhnaya, was the land of the Cryo Archon, the Tsaritsa. Beyond Teyvat was an 8th region ruled only by humans, Khaenri'ah.
But that didn't mean the wildest areas of Teyvat were empty. Not even close. Teyvat was home of humans and incredible creatures known as illuminated beasts.
Illuminated beasts were different from ordinary animals, for they were said to have unique magical properties. Some could be no larger than a grown person's hand. Others were said to be as big as the biggest tree in the world.
There were many mysteries behind these creatures that shared this world with humans. However, they were rarely seen with humans at all, making them all the more strange to us. Why might these creatures avoid humans?
Because humans tend to subjugate them.
Indeed, though these two races were both part of the land of Teyvat they shared, these two sides saw one another as enemies, and fought over many things. Either land or food, they hardly got along. Even though both humans and illuminated beasts could receive Visions, blessings from the divine that allowed them to manipulate the Elements, they still fought.
Many humans like to make livings off capturing, enslaving, and selling illuminated beasts, and some even resort to hunting them. Illuminated beasts in return see humans as something to be avoided. If confrontation is unavoidable, humans are known to fall prey to these powerful beings.
But that is where our story begins.
One day, a young man was leaving the Inn stationed in Dihua Marsh, Liyue. It was a beautiful day, despite the soggy rain that had kept the man at the inn all night. He was headed back to Liyue Harbor to sell some merchandise that he had made out of the flowers and various nature items he found in the marsh.
As he was passing through Guili Plains, he suddenly heard the sounds of a call nearby. “Huh? What could that be?” Curious, the young man followed the sound. After walking down a steep hill, his eyes widened at the sight before him.
A beautiful illuminated beast stood among the grass and rocks, calling out. It was slightly taller than him with fluffy white fur covering its body and red horns curved gracefully over its head. Its red hooves were the same color as its horns, and it had pretty purple eyes.
The man pulled out a book he had purchased from Wanwen Bookhouse the other day, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”, and searched the pages until he found an illustration of the creature he saw standing before him.
The creature was a Qilin, an illuminated beast said to drink only spring water and eat only whole grain. And the man didn't have to look at the Qilin too hard to realize that it was in despair. The Qilin was caught in a hunter's net trap and calling out for help.
The man knew the Qilin was no human, but he couldn't leave it this way. He put the book away and took out a pocketknife. Since the Qilin had not yet noticed him, he slowly approached.
SNAP! He stepped on a twig, getting its attention.
The second the Qilin saw the knife in his hand, the Qilin panicked, yanking at the netting trapping it in place, crying out. Still, the man slowly approached it, holding out his free hand. He only stopped walking when he was close enough to cut the rope.
“It's okay, I won't hurt you.” The Qilin stopped trying to tug away. Deciding to let the creature decide, the man kept his hand held out toward it, looking away. Slowly, the Qilin pressed its nose into his open palm. The man looked up. When he readied his pocketknife, it didn't move.
“That's it. Just stay still, and I'll get you out of this.” He bent down and began to saw through the ropes with the knife. After cutting enough of the netting, he helped get the Qilin untangled. That was when it finally spoke, revealing its gender. “Thank you, young man.” It said in a female voice.
“It's nothing.” He told her. “But that was a kind thing of you to do. Any other human would've just walked away and left me.” The Qilin told him. “I couldn't bear it in me to do that. So I helped you. You seemed like you were in trouble.” The man told her.
With the netting off, he saw the natural beauty of the Qilin and couldn't look away. “Take this as a token of my gratitude.” The Qilin held out a glaze lily in her mouth. “Do what you wish with it. I heard you humans sell them for high prices, as they are very rare.”
The man accepted it. Though he was in desperate need of money, he felt the flower was more like a gift and didn't want to sell it. “Thank you.” With that, the two parted ways and the man continued on the road.
That wasn't the last time they saw each other, however. When the cruel man who had set that trap discovered who set his prey free, the poor man was almost killed for his kindness. The Qilin however, repaid this kindness by saving his life in return.
The two continued to see each other after that. Their friendship soon blossomed into mutual love for one another and eventually, when the man had earned enough of a living, made a home far away from human and illuminated beast settlements for him and his one and only: The Qilin.
And born from this love was a daughter. A young girl named Ganyu, who took after her parents in every way. She had her mother's beauty, bearing pretty blue hair, purple eyes, and graceful red horns. She was also just as kind and gentle as her father.
All was peaceful between this small family... Until one day.
The hunter that had set the trap the Qilin had fallen into in the first place was still vengeful towards the loss of his prey. So when he tracked down where the family were hiding, he attacked them late one night. Fire was everywhere, and the two were surrounded by henchmen with baby Ganyu in the father's arms.
Wishing to save her daughter, the Qilin mother turned to the father. “Take Ganyu and run away.” “What about you?” The man asked. “I will stay here and hold the line.” The man shook his head in protest. “I can't let you do that! They'll kill you!”
“Mama!” The baby Ganyu cried, reaching out toward her mother, who leaned down to nuzzle her. “It'll be okay, little one. Mama needs to go.” Her gaze turned to him. “Think of Ganyu. There is no future for her if she stays here. Even if I die, I make my choice to die, so that our Ganyu might live.”
The man looked into her eyes and saw she was firm on her decision. Though he knew this would be the last time he would get to see her, he had to save his daughter. With one last kiss, he fled the scene while the Qilin fought the men off.
The man and the Qilin were cruelly separated, and the man fled back to his old home: Liyue Harbor. There, he was forced to raise his daughter secretly, for a populated harbor was no place for a hybrid between a human and an illuminated beast.
This went well for the next several years, the father encouraging Ganyu to never go outside without something to hide her growing horns. But it all fell out when Ganyu was ten years old.
One evening, Ganyu was picking silk flowers and glaze lilies in the gardens to take home with her. She tied the flowers together with a ribbon, and they looked like a bouquet. “Father will love them!” She giggled, skipping through the moonlight with her hair and veil flowing behind her.
Little did she know that the same suspicious man was following her, recognizing her wintery-blue hair. She was humming a tune her father would sing to her on weekends when he was off work. She knew it so well.
When she got home, she slipped through the open doorway and into a dimly-lit house. “Daddy! I'm home!” She called out, closing and locking the door behind her. He turned to her. “Ganyu! How did your stroll go?” “Great! No one saw me, and I brought back these pretty flowers from the gardens!”
She presented the bouquet to him, and he smiled, taking the flowers. “I love them, Ganyu. But you need to remember, those gardens belong to the Qixing. They might not appreciate you picking their flowers without permission. Next time, try the flowers growing just outside the city.”
“Okay, Daddy.” She submitted. Suddenly, the sound of someone forcing open the lock on the door was heard. “Who's that?” Ganyu asked, hugging her father. “I'm not sure. Ganyu, stay in here and don't come out!” He put his daughter in a closet and slammed the door shut.
Behind the door, Ganyu heard the sound of the front door being knocked down and the sounds of a fight going on in her living room. Before she could crack open the door for a look, as she was a curious child, a table slammed into the closet door, forcing it shut and trapping her in.
It was some time before it was quiet again. When Ganyu heard the sound of retreating steps and an unfamiliar man's voice saying “Let's go, she must be here somewhere!” she used all her strength to move the table by forcing open the door to the closet.
Her house was a mess, and her only light source was the moonlight shining at the window because the lantern had been knocked onto the floor in the scuffle. As Ganyu wandered through the house looking for her father, her feet made a squelching noise under her shoes.
It was thankful her Qilin genes gave her better night vision than regular humans. So when she looked down she could make out a puddle of dark liquid leaving a trail on the floor she just happened to step on. As she didn't know what it was, she followed it around her broken furniture to the source.
“Daddy!” She ran over and tried to shake him awake. His body was unmoving, a knife wound deep in his back where the “liquid” had come from. Her bouquet of glaze lilies and silk flowers were stained with it, and the ribbon had come undone, scattering the flowers on the floor.
She tried to wake him again, unaware that nothing she did would change the state her father was in. “Daddy? Daddy, wake up! Wake up Daddy, we have to leave before the bad man comes back! DADDY!” Despite her efforts, Ganyu's eyes filled with tears as the feeling her daddy wouldn't get up again sunk in.
“DADDY!” She screamed out again before breaking down into sobs over the body. Poor Ganyu was devastated. Suddenly, she became aware of the men that had followed her home were returning, having heard her screams.
With a gasp, Ganyu stood up and fled the house as fast as her little legs could carry her. She tried to speed up further despite her vision blurred by tears when she heard the men behind her exclaim “There it is, the little cursed brat!” “Get her!” and storm after her.
Ganyu was tired after a few minutes of sprinting, but she didn't dare to stop despite knowing it was only a matter of time before her body gave up. She was still so scared and saddened over her father. She was so upset she still couldn't see where she was going and bumped into someone.
“GAAAAH! Don't hurt me, please!” She panicked as soon as she made contact with the ground. She also didn't remember she had taken her veil off when she got home, exposing her horns. “Are you okay, little one?” A female voice asked, and Ganyu dared to look up.
A young woman was standing above her wearing a graceful golden dress and high-heeled shoes, a Geo Vision at her side and a dragon running down her leg. She had intense red eyes and a hair pin running through her long white hair, which was faded to black at the tip.
The lady looked down at the terrified Ganyu with curiosity rather than horror, and Ganyu didn't dare to move as the lady bent down and ran her gloved fingers through Ganyu's hair, stroking her horns in the gentle way her father would to coax her to sleep.
Despite the situation, Ganyu couldn't help but giggle at the touch on her horns. “Teeheehee! That tickles!” She laughed. The lady was fascinated. “You... Are not fully human now, are you?” The little girl's eyes widened. “Huh? How do you know that?” She asked.
Before she could answer, the two are interrupted by the same men. “There's the brat!” Before Ganyu could so much as scream, she felt herself getting lifted off the ground by the lady, who was using a Geo gem she had summoned as a light. “Am I interrupting something?”
They were stunned. “Lady Ningguang! What are you doing here?” “I was out on a stroll, only to have this frightened little girl run into me. You are aware that slave trades are illegal in Liyue, am I right?” She held Ganyu firmly in one hand, and held her other one out to control her magic.
“Pfft! That kid isn't human! Stop talking like she is human! That girl needs to be exterminated immediately, she doesn't belong here!” He argued. “Really? That's odd. This girl seems to be acting more human than all of you combined.” Ningguang's eyes narrowed in anger.
Ganyu's arms curled firmly around Ningguang's neck. Seeing this, the leader shouted “That's it! I don't care if you're the Tianquan! Shoot the girl already!” As the arrows went flying, Ningguang waved her open arm and cast another spell. “Jade Screen!”
In response, the Jade Screen appeared and blocked the arrows. Ningguang then cast a second spell, she lifted herself into the air, Ganyu still in her arms, and sent a flurry of sparkling stones flying toward the men like missiles. “Starshatter!”
Seeing they were no match for a Vision bearer, the men finally gave up and fled... Only to be stabbed by rocks on their way out. Ningguang was back on her feet and looked down to question the little girl. “Where are your mother and father, little one?”
Ganyu started sobbing again. “M-Mommy died when I was a baby, Daddy told me. B-but Daddy... Those bad guys followed me home! Daddy won't wake up, he's not even moving! I dunno what to do!”
Ningguang realized that the poor girl's father was dead by these men's hands. Seeing as there was no one else willing to take in a hybrid of a human and an illuminated beast, she decided there was no other option.
“Very well then. What is your name, little one?” “Ganyu, miss.” The girl answered. “I am Ningguang. I'll take you someplace safe, alright?” Ganyu nodded and Ningguang started toward Yuhai Pavillion. Thankfully, their walk was uninterrupted.
While Ganyu was fed and cared for, Ningguang discussed allowing Ganyu to live in the city under the protection of the Qixing. Ganyu couldn't hear the conversation, but she knew they were talking about her, and it made her shiver as she ate the meal provided for her.
When Ningguang and the rest of the Qixing came back out, Ningguang bent down to Ganyu. “Miss Ganyu, would you mind forming a contract with the Qixing?” Ganyu was surprised. “A... Contract? Is it difficult?” “No, not really.” Ningguang answered.
“The deal is that we will allow you to stay in Liyue and will protect you. But in return, you must never let anyone else in Liyue know about your identity, as it will cause quite a stir. Are these terms to your liking?”
Ganyu considered it, as her father had taught her to consider her choices carefully. What choice did she have though? “Okay. I agree.” Ningguang smiled. “Thank you, Ganyu. We'll do our best to make you feel at home here.”
With that, Ganyu continued to live with the Qixing, safe from those trying to hurt her.
And now, 8 years later...