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The storm arrives without warning.
One moment, the sun is shining brightly overhead in a cloudless sky. The next moment, the wind picks up, the sky has completely darkened and the heavens open up. Faint crashes of thunder rumble in the distance.
Chongyun doesn’t fret, though; he simply packs away his parasol and continues walking. After all, this can only mean that he’s headed in the right direction.
A couple of days ago, he’d gotten word of strange activity near Stone Gate, and deemed it worthy of investigation. For reasons unknown, the area was stricken by sudden, violent thunderstorms, windstorms, and other calamities. Surely this could only be the work of an extremely powerful evil spirit!
With that thought in mind, Chongyun had left to track the lead, anticipation thrumming in his veins. This demon was sure to be far stronger than anything he had ever been enlisted to deal with, possibly even strong enough that it wouldn’t flee at Chongyun’s mere presence. Perhaps he might finally be able to put all his training to good use and banish this spirit for good.
Now, though, he feels that something is amiss. Despite the great amount of power such a spirit is sure to possess, he hasn’t sensed so much as a trace of its presence this entire time.
A strange sound in the distance causes Chongyun to tense. Over the howling winds, the pouring rain, and the roaring thunder, he swears he hears someone cry out. A call for help? An anguished wail? Perhaps the spirit had simply concealed its presence and waited until the storm to strike.
In that case, there’s no time to lose! Chongyun runs off in the direction of the voice, a talisman in one hand and his greatsword in the other, ready to fend off the evil spirit that’s been terrorizing the innocent civilians of this area—
“Wait!”
The sound of a voice calling out has Chongyun stumbling to a stop, barely managing to keep himself from slipping in the mud. He scans the area frantically but spots no signs of demonic activity. Instead, he finds himself face-to-face with another boy.
“It must be my lucky day,” the stranger says cheerfully as though he hadn’t nearly become intimately acquainted with the tip of Chongyun’s greatsword seconds earlier. “I thought I heard someone approaching, but it was hard to tell over the rain, and even then, it could’ve been a monster running over to attack me!”
Right, it wasn’t a monster running over to attack him, it was Chongyun running over to attack him. “Uh, right…”
The stranger is undeterred by Chongyun’s lack of enthusiasm, though Chongyun can’t tell whether he’s completely oblivious or simply does not care. “With my luck, it usually is!” He laughs a little. “I’m Bennett, by the way.” The stranger—Bennett—offers a hand out for Chongyun to shake.
Chongyun does his best to tuck his claymore away as subtly as one possibly can, which is to say, not very, before returning the gesture. “Chongyun.”
“I’m also not a monster, in case you were wondering.”
As it so happens, Chongyun had been wondering. For all he knew, the spirit could have taken on a human form to lull him into a false sense of security, though that possibility is becoming more unlikely by the second. “Thank you for letting me know.”
“Anytime! Hey, so if you’re not a monster here to, like, kill me or something, what are you doing out here in this storm?”
“I could ask you the same question,” Chongyun says warily, grateful that Bennett seems to have overlooked the large sword. “Not many people would willingly run around in weather like this.”
Bennett laughs good-naturedly, clapping Chongyun on the back hard enough that he nearly falls over. “Maybe so, but I’m not about to let a little rain get in the way of an adventure!”
This is what qualifies as ‘a little rain’? Chongyun is almost afraid to ask what kind of storms Bennett has gotten caught up in. “So you’re an adventurer then?”
Bennett grins. “Yup! I’m kinda running solo right now, but one day, Benny’s Adventure Team will be the greatest adventure team in all of Mondstadt—no, in all of Teyvat!”
Chongyun’s attention catches on that last part. “You’re from Mondstadt? What brings you all the way out to Liyue?”
Bennett looks just as surprised as Chongyun feels. “Liyue?” He frowns, his expression turning thoughtful. “That explains why the mountains looked so different,” he mutters.
Now it’s Chongyun’s turn to frown. “I take it this wasn’t a planned visit, then?”
“Not exactly,” Bennett admits sheepishly, rubbing at the back of his neck. “But I’m used to things not going according to plan, so it’s fine! I’m just glad the tornado dropped me here and not in the middle of a hilichurl camp this time!”
Chongyun blinks. “The what.”
“Probably not my preferred method of travel, I’ve gotta say, but us adventurers can’t afford to be picky with how we get around,” Bennett continues as though getting swept away by a tornado is something that just happens from time to time. “Besides, it’s actually kinda fun once you get used to it!”
Chongyun decides he’s not going to think too hard about the implication that Bennett gets carried away by tornadoes on a semi-regular basis.
“I’ll, uh, take your word for it.”
Before Bennett can reply, a bolt of lightning strikes the ground right next to where they’re both standing. Chongyun flinches, feeling every hair on his body standing on end. Bennett, on the other hand, doesn’t bat an eye. Instead, he laughs. Laughs!
“Man, now that was close!”
“Too close,” Chongyun mutters, a little disgruntled.
“Maybe today really is my lucky day, after all!”
“You consider almost getting struck by lightning lucky?”
“Of course I do! Usually it doesn’t miss.”
“Are you sure you’ll be okay getting back to Mondstadt?”
“Yeah, probably!”
When it becomes clear that he isn’t going to elaborate, Chongyun prompts Bennett to continue. “‘Probably’?”
Bennett nods enthusiastically. “Once this storm passes, it’ll be easier for me to figure out how to get back.”
Figure out how to—?
“You don’t even know how you’re going to get back?”
“Well, I’m hoping that I’ll walk back this time instead of flying through the air, but the weather can be so unpredictable—”
“No, no, I meant—do you know which way you’re going?”
“Not really, but that doesn’t matter, does it? Like one of my dads always says, ‘it’s not about the destination, but about the journey’!”
If that’s supposed to be a reassurance, it isn’t a very good one. “I can accompany you there if you’d like? I know the area pretty well, so I can at least make sure you’re headed in the right direction,” Chongyun offers.
“Really? That would be great! I’ve already been around for a couple days so I’m pretty sure I’ve been going the wrong way.”
“Of course, it’s no trouble at all,” Chongyun responds automatically, then pauses as Bennett’s words properly register. “Wait, how long did you say you’ve been here?”
“A couple days? Somewhere around there.”
A couple of days… Is it just coincidence that the reports of strange weather began coming in around the same time?
“I see… Was the weather already like this when you arrived?”
Bennett hums thoughtfully. “Well, once the tornado passed, it was nice. Really nice, actually. I even thought to myself, ‘Wow! The weather’s great today!’ And then it started raining, like, five seconds later.” He shakes his head. “I almost got hit by lightning four times, then actually got hit by lightning two times, so I decided to wait until it cleared up before trying to find my way back.”
“How long did that take?”
“It cleared up as soon as I sat down!”
Of course it did. The pieces are beginning to come together, and Chongyun isn’t sure how he feels about the picture they’re forming. “Does this sort of thing, uh, happen often?”
“Oh, all the time! With my luck, even the most harmless adventures can become an absolute nightmare. Either the weather is bad, or I fall into some sort of trap, or I get chased down by a bunch of hilichurls, or my food’s no good, or, uh…I’m out of examples, but there’s always something that goes wrong.”
Chongyun’s head is spinning. “So you’re saying that…your luck is what’s been causing all the abrupt shifts in the weather?”
Bennett nods. “Probably. It wouldn’t be the first time.”
“I see…” Chongyun tilts his head up towards the sky, allowing the rain to run down his face. “So I was wrong again.” He sighs, taking a few steps past Bennett and gesturing for him to follow. “We should get moving. If we go now, we’ll be able to make it to Mondstadt before nightfall.”
“Oh! Uh, yeah, good call!” Bennett starts walking, but lingers a few steps behind. “I’ll stay back here, just in case. If I walk too close, you might get hit by lightning too.”
The two of them walk in silence, save for the rain and the occasional crash of thunder. Chongyun counts his breaths in time with his steps, trying to quell the rising discomfort in his chest.
This is nothing new. He’s used to returning from expeditions empty-handed, but even so, he just can’t help the swell of disappointment that comes with yet another missed opportunity.
“Hey, are you alright?” Bennett’s voice pulls him out of his thoughts. “You seem kinda down about something.”
“I’m—” Chongyun’s voice cracks, and he swallows past the lump in his throat before trying again. “I’ll be fine.”
Bennett hums, not sounding very convinced. “You said something earlier about being wrong. If you don’t mind me asking, what were you wrong about?”
Chongyun takes a shaky breath. At this point, there’s no harm in explaining his reasons for being here. “The reason I came here was to investigate, and hopefully eliminate, whatever was causing the sudden shifts in the weather,” he starts.
“Uh…” Bennett suddenly looks extremely worried. “Eliminate?”
“Yes, in the event that an evil spirit had been responsible for all this strange activity, I would have dealt with it myself. It is my duty as an exorcist to purge the world of evil spirits, and bring good fortune and peace of mind to people in the process,” Chongyun explains. “However, I haven’t sensed any malicious intent from you or anything else in the area, nor any other indicator that an evil spirit is present, so there is no need for me to draw my blade.”
Bennett visibly deflates. “Oh, thank The Sevens!”
“Mm. All I can do now is escort you back to Mondstadt. That should be sufficient in solving the issue with the weather.”
Bennett gives Chongyun a contemplative look, searching for something in his expression. “That’s a good thing, isn’t it?”
“Of course it is. Why wouldn’t it be?”
“I don’t know, you just… sound a little disappointed.”
Chongyun crosses his arms, curling in on himself. “I feel like I haven’t really… done anything.”
“Well, sure you have! You found me out here, and now you’re helping me get back to Mondstadt. That’s something, isn’t it?”
“That’s not exactly what I mean. I’ve… never actually seen any evil spirits,” Chongyun admits quietly. “I was born with an excess of positive energy, which means my presence repels evil for miles. Evil spirits always flee long before I can exorcise them properly. I thought this time I might have that chance, but I was wrong.”
“But you’re still getting the job done, aren’t you?”
“Sure, but…” Chongyun sighs. “It’s not the right way to do things. I’m not accomplishing anything through my own efforts.”
“Y’know, there was something you said a moment ago about bringing good fortune and peace of mind to people.”
Chongyun’s not sure what Bennett is trying to get at. “Right…”
“Maybe it’s not how you want to do it, but every time you chase away those evil spirits, every time you choose to help someone, you’re the one giving those people peace of mind. And you’ve brought me a little bit of good luck today, which is more than I can say about most days. You chose to accompany me. You did that.”
Chongyun frowns. “But that’s such a small thing.”
“With luck like mine, I’ve learned to take small wins wherever I can. Even tiny victories are something to be celebrated.”
Maybe Bennett has a point. It might be small, but he was still able to make people’s lives a little easier. The thought eases the lingering disappointment in the back of his mind. “That’s true.”
Bennett grins, bumping their shoulders together. “Small wins?”
Chongyun can’t help but grin back. “Small wins,” he agrees.
---
“That was the smoothest trip I’ve had in a while!” Bennett says cheerfully. “I didn’t get hit by any falling trees, or attacked by monsters—” he ducks as a bird swipes at his head, “—or swept up by the wind, and I only got hit by lightning once! We didn’t even make any wrong turns! You really are like a good luck charm!”
Chongyun’s face warms at the compliment. “I was just doing what anyone would’ve done.”
“You’d be surprised. Most people don’t stick around once they find out how unlucky I am.”
“Really…”
“I don’t blame them, of course! Not everyone can put up with things going wrong all the time.”
Chongyun feels a little prickle in his heart, and he’s pulling out the protective amulet he’d worked on for days before he realizes it.
“Here, it’s for protection. I’m not sure how much it’ll help you, but it’s supposed to repel negative energy.”
“You’re really giving this to me? Are you sure?”
“I can always carve another one.”
Bennett crushes him in a hug that’s as tight as it is soggy. Chongyun tentatively returns the embrace, patting Bennett on the back a couple of times.
“Come over to Mondstadt sometime,” Bennett mumbles into his shoulder. He sounds like he might be tearing up. “I’ll show you around, as long as you don’t mind things inevitably going wrong.”
The idea sounds nicer than Chongyun expects. “I’ll look forward to that, then.”
As Chongyun begins the trek back to the harbour, he feels oddly relaxed. Even though this wasn’t the outcome he had in mind, even though he didn’t get to see a spirit and exorcise it like he had hoped, he doesn’t feel all that torn up about it.
He might not have gotten to see an evil spirit, but instead he was fortunate enough to meet somebody interesting, somebody he thinks he might be able to call a friend.
And that sounds like a victory worth celebrating.