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My goodness, dear, you weren’t kidding, Lisa thought. You really are a lightweight.
A mere halfway through her second glass of wine, Jean looked more relaxed than at any time Lisa could recall.
Jean’s head rested heavily in her palm, elbow propped on their table outside the tavern. Her eyes, not quite fully open, gazed over Mondstadt as the day began its descent into orange and purple. Lisa picked this tavern for its location on the city’s second level, below the cathedral. She knew Jean would appreciate the view, just as she knew — even if the Acting Grand Master would never admit it — that Jean would appreciate a moment to unwind after a hectic series of weeks.
But then Jean yawned, stretched and leant back in her chair. “You were right, Lisa,” she said, quietly. “This is nice.”
Mildly lubricated as she was, Jean missed the astonishment this admission brought to Lisa’s face. She could not, however, miss Lisa bursting into polite applause after taking a few moments to recover. “My dear, I’m so impressed! You’re finally taking my advice to heart!”
Jean scoffed. “Yes, yes… what was your principle, again? ‘The Necessity of Occasional Selfishness?’”
“Precisely,” Lisa nodded, pleased with her student’s recall. “As much as you might like to believe otherwise, you are not a machine. Humans, flawed as they are, experience desire without practical purpose from time to time. Those desires must be satisfied for the sake of your health.”
“Hah.” Jean chuckled, fingers toying with the stem of her wine glass. “As I believe I’ve pointed out — several times — the operative word you seem to ignore is ‘occasional.’ You must be the healthiest librarian in Teyvat by now.”
Lisa tutted, chin dropping into her hand. “Oh dear. I suppose I was mistaken. You are machine after all, darling. That skull of yours is thicker than a ruin grader's armour.”
Jean broke into giggles as her eyes returned to the view, and Lisa’s heart gave a little leap. Seeing her friend like this, so at ease, so willing to relax a little… what a heady mix of pleasure and relief it brought on.
For all her gloating, however, Lisa knew this change wasn’t her doing. The credit belonged to another.
“You know…” Lisa purred, “it would be rude to hoard this pleasant little activity to ourselves. We should invite others along. I’m sure a certain astrologer would appreciate the chance to unwind, hmm?”
Jean’s eyes widened ever so slightly. The flush on her cheeks, brought on by the wine, deepened a touch. Her eyes turned down, studying nothing in particular, and a smile began to grow on her lips.
Ah. I may have given her ideas…
Sure enough, Jean swiftly downed the rest of her wine and stood from the table. “Apologies, Lisa, but you’ll have to excuse me. Thank you again for your invitation, this was lovely.”
Lisa pouted at her friend. “You’re very welcome, for all the good it did me. You have a more important engagement?”
“Not quite.” Jean waved over her shoulder as she strolled away. “I’m simply putting your philosophy into practice.”
As her friend disappeared into the crowd, Lisa gave a pleased, quiet sigh. Another satisfied little leap.
It was something of an irony, Mona thought, as she packed her field observation kit. An astrologer studies for years, perfects her craft and attains incredible powers of foresight. Then, a woman enters her life whose every action is as easy to predict as that of a cuckoo clock.
Early on, Mona found herself scrying Jean’s day first thing in the morning. Outside of joint projects, time spent together was scarce. There was danger in observing the fate of one so close to Mona herself, but she was careful. She considered it worth the risk. She simply had to know when she would see Jean again.
Mona grumbled as she hauled the kit over her shoulder. It had not taken her long to realise Jean was a creature of habit.
Jean’s days were planned out — and carried out — as meticulously as she was able. Time assigned for every task, and time found, always, for Mona. Jean was as generous as she could be. If those blocks of time tended to fall around the same places each week, well, that was understandable. Convenient, even. Much easier for Mona to plan her own work, as well as for Jean.
So, Mona knew Jean would not appear before her door tonight, no matter how much she might wish for it. Fate is fate, after all. It cannot be changed.
No substantial understanding of fate was required for this insight. Mona had not bothered scrying Jean's day for some time. No need. By now, Mona knew Jean's timetable, as Jean knew hers, and she would never dare surprise Mona with a spur of the moment visit, lest she risk interfering with Mona’s work. The thought would find no purchase in her sweet little head. She was ever so predictable, ever so reliable, always so damnably considerate above all else-
Stop. Mona came to a halt, right before her door. She realised she’d started stomping around her apartment. She took a moment to breathe out, to cease this ugly line of thought.
”Haaauuugh…”
She was being unfair.
Mona loved Jean with all her heart, just as Jean was. How could she not? Jean was an angelic absurdity. Mona could scarcely believe such a woman could exist outside ancient folklore. Her strength, her compassion, her dedication to her people…
Yet, to Mona, she grew only more incredible once she spied the chains wrapped around Jean’s neck. Keen voices that whispered of her inadequacy, that denied her any satisfaction. Bottomless voids that were unimpressed with achievements worthy of a demigod. Prods and spears that drove her to trade further good for others with the ruination of her own, finite life.
An aching, lonely heart that considered itself unworthy of what it deserved most.
To simply emerge from bed while these forces tore at your soul would be an achievement worthy of bard’s song. How Jean did all that she did, day after day, was a truth Mona might never uncover. And this impossible woman had chosen her. Mona's tiny heart ached at the thought. She was certain the truth behind that twist of fate would forever remain a mystery.
She sighed as she affixed her hat to her head. Her gallant, dashing knight's reliability was a strength. She had made herself Mona’s foundation, an utterly reliable beacon unlike any she had ever known. For the first time in her life, Mona felt secure. She felt loved. She felt a sense of home.
Still... she should try to be easy on herself. For better or worse, her profession had scrubbed a fair amount of surprise from her life. Perhaps it was no great sin, especially for her, to occasionally yearn for the unexpected.
As she opened the door—
"J-Jean!" Mona yelped. Her knight stood in her threshold, masking the evening sun.
“I… wasn’t expecting you," Mona stammered out. How is she here?! Where did my foresight fail? "I was just about to… to set out for…”
The sentence spluttered to a halt, forgotten. Something was off.
Jean was staring at Mona. Not looking, staring, yet her eyes were the tiniest bit unfocussed. There was a pretty flush to her cheeks. She held herself a little taller, chin a smidge higher, yet she seemed the slightest bit unsteady.
Her smile, though. Jean’s smile captured Mona’s attention. It grew slowly, lazily as Jean continued to stare at the smaller woman. It bore none of her usual shyness. If anything, Mona would describe it as somewhat… wolfish.
“...Jean?” Mona felt herself shrink before this unfamiliar version of her knight. “Are you alright?”
Jean’s eyes shifted up. Slowly, her hand moved over Mona’s head. A soft gasp escaped her lips as she felt Jean gently tug her hat away. She watched as Jean hung it back on its hook. Her every motion was so deliberate, almost like she was concentrating.
Jean’s eyes returned to Mona. She felt a hand come to rest on her shoulder. The touch was light, but the warmth from Jean’s palm sank through Mona’s skin and began to pool in her stomach. Jean’s other hand slid along Mona’s shoulder blade and under the strap of her observation kit. She lifted it from Mona’s shoulder and again, slowly, deliberately, set it down by the door. “J-Jean, what are you…”
Jean stepped forward. Her hand trailed down Mona’s side, curling around her waist. Mona felt her lungs shudder as Jean’s other hand cupped her face, thumb tickling the fuzz on her cheek. Her eyes, slightly hooded, a touch unfocussed, saw only Mona. Her eyes, her closeness… Mona’s head felt heavy on her neck, yet somehow filled with air. “Jean, I…” she whispered, “I…”
A hand to the small of her back. Another to the base of her skull, fingers threading through hair. She drew Mona in and kissed her.
Like everything in this unexpected visit, Jean seemed determined to take her time. She moved slowly, deliberately. As she drew Mona’s lower lip through her teeth, Mona tasted dandelion wine. As she pitched Mona back, her grip firm, Mona felt her legs dissolve. She hooked her arms around Jean’s neck before she melted completely.
At some point, Jean drew back. Her calm, lazy expression stood against Mona’s, wide eyed and breathless.
“I realised… I could see you, whenever I wanted,” Jean murmured. “And then I wanted to.”
Mona’s heart thundered. “You… wanted to see me? Just like that?”
“Tch.” Jean averted her eyes. Finally, that familiar shyness reemerged. Her pretty flush spread as she worked her lower lip between her teeth. Mona felt the heavens crackle behind her eyes as Jean teased the star on Mona’s choker, rubbing it between thumb and forefinger. “Well…”
Her eyes met Mona’s again. “I wanted to do more than see you.”
Jean stepped around Mona, heading for the bedroom. She trailed a hand across Mona's chest, along her collarbone and down her arm. As she reached Mona’s hand, she hooked a finger loosely around Mona’s pinkie and gave it the smallest tug. A gentle, silent request.
Mona took Jean’s hand. Leant on it, really, as she followed along. She was concerned she might black out.
She crawled from sleep. Her head felt like it'd shrunk. Someone had wrapped a giant rubber band around her temples.
Ah. Right. End-of-week drinks. Lisa picked out a bottle of wine. Jean had a glass. Had another. She’d been talking about… about…
The sheets were scratchy. Mattress a little lumpy. Mona’s bed.
Jean’s eyes snapped open. On the bed, next to her, a lady stared down at her. She was bare as a newborn, her elbow on a pillow, propping up her head.
The Grand Astrologer, Mona Megistus, bore the most incredibly amused, self-satisfied grin Jean had ever seen.
“I cannot lie to you, my lioness,” Mona began, her eyes dropping away. She fiddled with the bedsheets, idly winding them around her finger. “I have spent this morning reflecting on my title, unsure if I own any legitimate claim to the honorific ‘Grand’ astrologer.”
Her eyes met Jean’s through dark lashes. They sparkled with mischief. “My aptitude for scrying must be quite inadequate, for I saw not the faintest hint of how badly you needed to see me last night.”
Someone pulled that band around Jean's head tight.
She reached back, yanked the pillow from below her head and flung it over her face with a dull thump. A pained, muffled groan emerged. “…Archons, m’sorry…”
“Hmph! You should be.” Mona was all haughty, mock displeasure. “The planet Setis was due to cross Rota Calamitas last night, for the first time in several months. Thanks to you, I missed the observation window entirely!”
“Uh…” Jean’s arms dropped from the pillow and flopped to the bed. “That sounds, um… important. My deepest apologies, Mona. I should know better than to interrupt your...
She trailed off as Mona lifted the pillow from Jean’s burning face. Mona leant in and set a slow, gentle kiss upon her lips. To her great satisfaction, she felt the tension in Jean’s muscles fade beneath her.
With a deep, contented sigh, Mona flopped onto Jean’s shoulder. She ran a hand along her knight’s face, guiding it around to face hers. “My love, I’m thrilled you wanted to see me. It was a sublime surprise.” Mona giggled. “I grant you permission to elude my foresight at any time. I’ve never felt such contentment over a professional failure.”
Another groan morphed into a husky chuckle. Jean turned to the ceiling and clapped a hand over her eyes as the laugh subsided. “I’m relieved to hear it."
After a moment, Jean huffed out another chuckle. "It’s strangely satisfying for me, as well,” she said, turning back to Mona. A shy smirk appeared on her lips. “I had no idea I was capable of thwarting the other-worldly abilities of a Grand Astrologer.”
Mona tut-tutted her knight, waggling a finger over her nose. “Be not so hasty in declaring victory, my shrewd lioness. My powers have not abandoned me quite yet. This very morning, I communed with Setis herself…”
Mona rolled on top of Jean. She planted her palms either side of Jean’s head, propping herself up. A veil of raven hair sealed the world away.
“…and she has revealed precisely how you shall make amends for my missed appointment.”