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To Yae, Liyue is oddly carefree.
The lawyer that stands before her offers a warm hand, beckoning her into a friendly greeting. Yanfei’s smile reminds her of a frivolous child, one that has not witnessed the ache and pain of constant war. Yae has heard the turn of events that have led Liyue to be ruled by humans, free of the rule of an archon— and it’s of Morax at that, the God who valued contracts above all else. She stares down at the thick book that dangles by the side of Yanfei’s waist, a small giggle escaping her cherry blossom lips.
Liyue is indeed interesting.
Yanfei doesn’t react much to her giggle, but instead reaches her hand out further to grab onto Yae’s, her eyes now curving into a smile. “Yae Miko, the closest advisor to the Shogun Raiden, right?”
“That’s right,” Yae nods. “I think you’ve pretty much done background checks already, haven’t you?”
“Of course! We’re talking about establishing trade laws between Liyue and Inazuma, I have to know what I’m getting myself into,” Yanfei quips, nodding earnestly at the same time. Her pink hair floats in the direction of the sea breeze, reminding Yae of the bustle of the harbour.
Freedom is one word to describe Yanfei.
Yae continues to stare at the pink of Yanfei’s hair, before looking down at her own— they’re both exactly the same shade. But with Yanfei’s smile, her shade of pink is exceptionally beautiful. She wonders how Yanfei will look in a shrine maiden costume, immediately wanting to bring her back to Inazuma. She fakes a cough, feeling the heat in her cheeks. “The talks will begin tomorrow; shouldn’t you be busy preparing the contracts?”
This time, Yanfei giggles. “I have everything prepared already. It’s just a matter of the Kujou commission now, of whether Kujou Sara agrees or not.” Yanfei is still holding onto Yae’s hand, swinging it around slightly. “You do resemble me a little, and I can’t not help but want to bring you around Liyue Harbour.”
Then, with a wink, “I usually charge high rates for my time, you know. But I guess it’s going to be free for you.”
And before Yae realises what Yanfei is trying to imply, she’s immediately being dragged around.
-
Their first stop is Wanmin Restaurant, a piping hot plate of crystal shrimp dumplings and jade parcels before them. Steam rises, billowing. The chopsticks in Yae’s hand is a little too long, not entirely used to it— Liyue has a culture of sharing a meal together, and hence their chopsticks have to be long in order to reach out for dishes.
She frowns a little, remembering all the times where she — and many others — will eat alone at mealtime. Her thoughts are interrupted when Yanfei places a piece of crystal shrimp dumpling onto her empty plate, her other hand pointing at the food enthusiastically. “It’s one of my favourites, give it a try!”
Yae looks at her, a little stunned. She’s not used to this, this act of having a seat together with someone at the dining table. Yanfei’s invitation is warm, welcoming, with none of her guards up. “Oh! But be careful, the fillings can be really hot.” Yae can’t help but feel magnetised, and she grins in return. Her body somehow resonates with the bubbly girl that’s sitting beside her, completely drawn in. She readjusts the chopsticks in her hand — positioning it in a way where it’ll just feel like the length of the chopsticks in Inazuma — and picks up the special Liyue delicacy that sits on her plate. The skin is almost transparent, with a hint of pink from the shrimps that fill the insides.
It’s as if pink is the affinity that brings the two of them together.
Giving it a soft blow, she carefully takes a bite, not wanting to scald her tongue. It’s still too warm though, and she ends up sucking in air with her mouth wide open in hopes to cool the piping hot filling that she’s struggling to chew. Just when she manages to swallow it down, a blush fans across her face, thinking about how embarrassing that sight must have looked. The skin wasn’t too thick nor was it too thin, and the filling was delicious, but she can’t bring herself to say something, far too embarrassed. Yanfei, however, bursts out into laughter beside her, seeming not to mind at all.
“It’s good, isn’t it?” Yanfei chuckles, “Liyue dishes are mostly best eaten when piping hot!”
Yae remembers her first time eating Gyoza, and it was just exactly like this— except that she had been alone. And now to have Yanfei piling her plate with food, there’s a strange warmth she feels in her chest. It almost burns, just like how the first bite of the dumpling felt, but Yae finds that she likes it. Having been a figure of a high ranking position in terms of serving Ei, there is an image that she always had to maintain: an enigmatic priestess who only lives to serve the Archon of her nation.
But with Yanfei, she finds a different side of herself.
Yanfei is all smiles, but her gaze feels heavy on Yae— her heart is racing, and she can feel sweat sliding down her back as she gulps down her food nervously.
Yae has always been calm, collected, cool— always intact, cool. Cool, like: she is always familiar with her feelings. Cool, like: she cannot be penetrated. Always cutting, like a blade of ice— just like the Archon she serves.
And yet now, she sits here beside Yanfei, ripped out of her comfort zone where she can’t think clearly, where there is an unfamiliar but yet warm feeling that tingles in her stomach. It’s uncomfortable, but Yanfei’s smile throws all of her thoughts away, and instead burns into her the blaze of a sun, melting the ice blades that she has put around herself.
“How are you so bubbly?” Yae had meant to ask, but the words have been caught in her throat.
Yanfei, as if reading her mind, doesn’t really give her an answer, but rather plays with her words. Frivolous, like a child. “We have something called bubble tea here— it’s sweet, and always an instant cure for a bad day!”
But my day with you hasn’t been bad.
Yae only tilts her head in curiosity, wondering how bubbles can appear in tea. The green tea that she always drinks is normally bland, sometimes even bitter if she has left the tea leaves in for too long— she has never tasted any sweetness in her tea through her years of living. Yanfei just giggles, understanding her confusion. She doesn’t explain any further, though, and takes out her pouch so she can leave mora for the meal they just had. Yanfei’s pouch is a pastel pink, with delicate embroidery on the silk material.
Somehow it reminds Yae of the Sacred Sakura.
Yanfei gets up from her seat, warmly extending her hand towards Yae— “Shall we?”
Taking her hand, Yanfei holds it tight, and they stroll around the harbour. Yanfei takes her to many places, playfully putting up clothes beside her body whenever they pass by clothes stores, and there is a never ending stream of compliments; Yanfei will always fawn over Yae, telling her how good she’ll look in every article of clothing that catches Yanfei’s eyes. Yae’s heart only races faster and faster as Yanfei pulls her around, unsure if it’s from all the brisk walking, or because of the pink haired girl holding onto her hand who takes every chance to give her a blush-inducing compliment.
They finally stop in front of a drink stall, feeling the need to quench their thirst after waltzing through Liyue Harbour under the sun. Yae looks at the bags of clothings that Yanfei has placed on the ground, and then down at her priestess attire— How good will Yanfei look in them?
She remembers dressing up Aether, with Paimon giggling to her heart’s content on how he looks so extremely pretty, to the point where he can disguise as a shrine maiden without anyone figuring out he’s the infamous traveler.
Looking up and down at Yanfei’s figure, she has already decided that she would love to dress her up; except this time, it’s for her own view only— not a tourist trap like how she did with Aether, and a few other foreign merchants. She had asked Ganyu to drop by the shrine if she ever visits Inazuma, with the same intention of wanting to doll her old friend up, but this time it’s different.
Yae only wants Yanfei for herself.
She hears a ‘Cheese!’ before a sudden flash hits her eyes, and she sees Yanfei winking behind the Kamera, holding an odd-looking drink in front of it. It’s light brown in colour, with black colour balls filling a quarter of the cup from the bottom.
Her stomach does a double flip, and Yae doesn’t know how she will handle the two sweet treats— the mysterious drink that Yanfei is holding, and Yanfei herself. She doesn’t realise she has been staring until Yanfei gently raps against the table, slinking into the seat opposite her.
Yanfei saves her from the embarrassment, though. “Amazing, right? This is bubble tea! A nice, sweet drink to enjoy during the hot summers in Liyue, and with these boba balls—” She grins as she holds up the cup, and stirs the boba around for emphasis, showing Yae the swirl of the calorific topping, with a hint of brown sugar syrup following behind the trails of the boba being stirred around.
She sets the cup down in front of her, beaming proudly as she passes her a straw. Clinking her own cup with Yae’s, she chirps happily as she pokes a hole through the sealed top of the cup. “Enjoy!”
Yae stares at the drink for awhile, before copying Yanfei’s actions— she takes the sharpened end of the straw, poking it once, and then twice, before frowning as she finds that she’s unable to poke through the sealed plastic. She looks up at Yanfei who chuckles, taking Yae’s hand into hers and guides her into getting the straw through. Yae is unsure if it’s their Visions, but Yanfei’s hand is so warm that it sends a wave of electricity down her spine, jerking slightly at the sudden contact.
“There we go,” Yanfei says, the ends of her lips curling.
Yae coughs, clearing her throat. Taking a sip, she finds the sweetness just nice— it’s like Dango milk, except that she tastes a hint of oolong tea, and the boba is really reminiscent of Dango, just chewier. Yae doesn’t even have to say anything with Yanfei looking through her— “I know you’ll love it!”
Feeling a little self-conscious, Yae sits up a little straighter, crossing her legs.
Except that her leg brushes against Yanfei’s, and the blush on her cheeks deepens. Yae had always been in control of every thing; the Raiden Shogun that rules over Inazuma, or Ei, her archon , but now she finds herself stumbling and tripping over her racing heart as she watches Yanfei sigh delightfully with every sip of her drink.
Yae tries to breathe.
Yanfei looks up at her, smiling till her eyes curve into crescents.
Yae finds that she can’t breathe.
This is indeed a city of freedom: successful, bustling, clear skies— Yanfei.
“Say, how’d you think the trade law discussion will go on tomorrow?”
Yanfei rubs her chin in thought, before shrugging— “Even if it doesn’t go well, Lady Ningguang will not miss this opportunity. Inazuma is in need of silk, right?”
“Well, yeah,” Yae sighs, with the weight of the years of thundering storms she had to witness— the clear skies in Liyue Harbour still feel foreign to her. “I need Ei to open up. Not just for commerce reasons, but for… Inazuma. Our people.”
I hope to have more people like you too.
Yanfei sticks up her pinky finger, all smiles as she chirps, “That’s what I’m there for! I promise.”
Yae finds herself too stunned to respond, and only a few seconds later did she realise she is supposed to hook her pinky with Yanfei—
But the girl has already beaten her to it. Hooking their fingers together, Yanfei giggles. The wind blows again, a gentle breeze— it’s so gentle, just like the way Yanfei is slowly starting to intertwine their hands together.
“I promise, I really do.”
Yae looks up only to find that Yanfei’s eyes are focused on her— it’s lit with passion and determination, proof that she’s serious.
“Then… How much mora will that be?”
A grin forms on Yanfei’s face. “All you have to do is go on dates with me.”
Yae thinks of warm food, long chopsticks, bubble milk tea. She thinks of Yanfei enthusiastically bringing her to every part of Liyue Harbour— she truly enjoyed Liyue and Yanfei’s company. It’s nothing like whenever she spends time with Ganyu; her heart doesn’t keep pounding in her chest. It has only been a couple of hours since they’ve first met, but Yae finds herself being drawn in closer, magnetised.
Or attracted, as they say.
Seeing that Yae didn’t try to push her hand off, Yanfei continues to grip it tight, as if letting go will cost her her life. She starts running, pulling Yae together with her. “Come on! There are still so many places that I have yet to show you around!”
-
As they part, their hands reluctantly let go of the other. Their palms are sweaty from the long date they had in Liyue, but Yae doesn’t mind, the sweet memories she has of Yanfei are equally sticky— something she will hold in her heart for a long time, until they meet again. She smiles, removing her headpiece before fixing it carefully with extra care on Yanfei’s head.
Pressing a soft kiss on Yanfei’s lips, she whispers, their foreheads pressed against each other’s.
“Next time when you come to Inazuma, find me. We’ll meet before the Sacred Sakura, and then you can return me my headpiece. I’ll dress you up, and I know you will blossom even bigger, pink petals falling all over you.”
Yanfei giggles, and she kisses Yae back; this time even longer, and even deeper.
“I’ll take that as a verbal contract, Yae Miko.”
Yae smiles, “Pinky promise?”
“Yeah. Pinky promise.”