Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Be eager to help those in need, do one good deed a day and reflect on oneself three times a day, and ultimately become a hero worthy of legend. Sushang had incorporated this goal into herself from as far back as she could remember, being in awe of the tales of Cloud Knights that seemed to be larger than life when recited to her. She wanted to be just like them, and being from a military family, she had found herself naturally aligned that path already. While there were many difficulties along the way, she had found herself well on her way to her dream. It was slow, steady progress, every day for as long as she could hope to keep going. She didn’t care much for the daily pleasures that many indulged in, fine to uphold her aspirations as a guiding light for her future.

That all changed when she met her.

For the first time in her life, if only for a moment, she forgot about her aspirations and thought only of the now.

 

Sushang walked through the streets of Aurum Alley. Recently, she had heard, its prosperity was quite diminished from how it was in the past, but she upheld hope that it would be restored to its former glory. Regardless, this area was within her patrol, so she had gotten semi-familiar with its sights and streets. Though… this task was harder than Sushang would like to admit. Today was no different than any other: patrol the streets, help the citizens, and stop any criminals she may happen upon.

“Well, who’s ready for the next act? Huh~!? I can’t hear you~” A boisterous voice sounded out from around the corner. And a familiar one too… Sushang hoped she was just hearing things…

Picking up the pace, the Cloud Knight rounded the corner to be hit with just the sight she had suspected and perhaps dreaded. That damn redhead, happy as can be, out in the middle of a public area threatening the safety of the Luofu’s citizens by throwing around explosives and fire. That kind of stuff would be hard to get a permit for, but without one, Sushang couldn’t just let it be. She had already dealt with this woman once before in Starskiff Haven, she knew her tricks, she was confident in her ability to apprehend her this time.

The street performer turned out over the crowd with a grin before spotting an incoming figure wherein she frowned for just a moment before returning to her usual enthusiasm. “Sorry guys! Just forgot I had somewhere to be~!” A surge of ‘boo’s and ‘aww’s sounded out among the crowd as the redhead began to stuff her instruments of performance away in a bag she kept by her feet. “I know, I know, you’re all sad. Don’t worry though, I’ll be streaming plenty online, so you’ll all get your dose of Guinevere~ Make sure to look up Little Gui on your devices and hit that subscribe button~!” She dismounted the stage and began to walk at a brisk pace towards a nearby alley. Perhaps unfortunately for her, appeasing the crowd made plenty of time for Sushang to catch up to her.

“Hey!” The Cloud Knight called as Guinevere made her way into the alley. She was trying her best to catch up without running, but the outworlder had her beat in the speedwalking department. “I need to talk with you!”

“Ah, hello there, Miss Cloud Knight~” The streamer called, almost teasingly. It was seriously starting to get to Sushang’s skin, but running after someone who was just walking away from her felt wrong… Especially considering her crime wasn’t that serious in the first place. “You just missed my show… Maybe you could stay next time? You never know, you might like it~?”

“Ahem!” Sushang cleared her throat. “Are you aware that you are breaking multiple laws with your ‘performances’?! First off, obstruction of the flow of traffic. Secondly, I don’t care how good you think you are with pyrotechnics, they are endangering citizens. Thirdly, I’m almost positive you don’t have a license for this sort of thing. Hell, I don’t even know if there is a license for whatever the hell you’re doing.”

“Fam, let’s get some things straight.” The performer turned around, and began to walk backwards as she spoke with Sushang. It was downright impressive how she managed to avoid obstacles, all the while continuing to move at a faster pace. “One: There are plenty of streets around, and besides, it's not like you need to take another path to get around my shows. They don’t cover the whole damn thing, I wish I was that popular. Two: Do you really think I would ever put on an act if it could hurt my fans? No! Never! The only one at any risk is me, and I’m pretty damn good if I do say so myself. Three: You don’t need a permit to just have fun in public! Not my fault so many people come to watch~”

Sushang had enough. Sure, some of her points were valid, some of them weren’t, but if there was anything illegal here it was the blatant disregard for the authority of a Cloud Knight. She lunged forward with a burst of energy, grabbing Guinevere’s right arm with her left. She latched on fairly high, near the shoulder, and she couldn’t help herself but dwell on how muscular the seemingly demure woman actually was. She spent perhaps too long just holding her hand there before speaking up. “Y-You need– Um. You need to stop. And. I have the authority to arrest you, you know!”

“W-Wow, Miss…” Guinevere responded, her shift in tone utterly confusing the already flustered Cloud Knight. “Shouldn’t you ask a girl out to dinner before feeling her up, right?”

“W-What–?!” Sushang blushed in a second. Did she perhaps grab the wrong spot? Was she holding on too much? Did the performer really mistake her intentions? “I…” Sushang let go, feeling uncomfortable restricting the woman any longer. “I d-don’t mean for any misunderstandings!! I was just trying to restrain you… um…”

Guinevere burst into a fit of laughter, making Sushang more and more unsure of the situation. “Oh, aeons. You really are cute, you know.” She snickered a little bit more between her words. “And easy. Really easy. Bye for now, Miss Cloud Knight!”

Guinevere lunged to the side and began to book it down one of the nearby alleyways. Sushang, in her confusion, took a few solid seconds to process what had just happened. By the time she had sprung to action, it was already too late, the street performer was long gone.

Sushang cursed, something she was never the type to do. The next time she saw this woman, she would make sure to take her in.

Sushang had awkwardly looked up her ‘nemesis’ on a social media platform, finding “LittleGuiGuinevere'' quite easily. It wasn’t that big of an account, but it looked like it was rapidly growing. She couldn’t see why people liked her so much, holding onto this opinion after watching one of her stream archives. And then another. And then another. And then another... She wouldn’t say she cared about the content at all, but the woman herself intrigued her for a reason she couldn’t quite place. Sushang couldn’t stop looking at her beautiful hair or staring at the way she presented herself, the sheer courage the woman presented was something she could never hope to have herself. On top of that, her face was so… enticing, it drew her in, she could get lost in those eyes… She had to stop herself from watching any more.

In the meantime, she had received a letter from her parents that she couldn’t quite get out of her head. In it, her parents had given her advice for making friends, and Sushang was hit with a startling realization. She didn’t have any friends. Of course she had peers in the Cloud Knights, but they never got too close. Outside of that, she had been too focused on her ambitions to make any friends. However, one piece of advice stuck out to her: “Consider if they’re good or bad”. In her mind, she had been thinking of people in terms of those who needed to be saved, and those who were dangerous. It felt kind of dumb that she barely took the time to consider who these people actually were as people.

Shoving that all into the back of her mind, a few days later Sushang had come up with the perfect trap. A new stream had popped up, and Sushang had clicked on it in an instant (purely out of a need to arrest this woman, of course). Noticing from the background that she seemed to be in Exalting Sanctum, which was quite near her regular beat, she managed to track down where the woman was performing and arrive there before the steam had ended. She was almost too late, however, due to her struggles with memorizing the layout of the Luofu. She then waited for the stream to end and followed the woman for a bit afterwards. ‘Little Gui’ as the streamer called herself, seemed to be having the time of her life as she walked through the streets of Exalting Sanctum. Every new sight and store made stars shine in the woman’s eyes, sometimes getting so giddy she would need to shake herself to get the energy out.

It made Sushang think. Was she really so bad?

Despite the choice anxiety, Guinevere had eventually decided upon a place to get dinner for the night. A food stall with outside seating near the outskirts of the delve. Not too many people were around at this time of night, so apprehending her wouldn’t make too much of an incident. Still, as she approached the woman who was eagerly slurping up her noodles, Sushang could feel the words she had prepared falling out of her throat.

“Hmm?” The performer looked up from her meal. She smiled immediately when she saw Sushang, which was deeply confusing to the Cloud Knight. “Ohh! Miss Cloud Knight! We keep running into each other… it must be fate, don’tcha think~?”

“F-Fate…?” Sushang blushed again. This woman sure had a way of making sure that she never anticipated her next step.

“Nah, I’m just kidding.” Guinevere lazily shook her hand a few times in front of her face. “Shoulda seen the look on your face though… ahhh priceless.” She giggled, but Sushang didn’t find it very funny. “Why don’t you have a seat? Dinner’s on me~”

“Uhm…” Sushang moved forward, sitting down opposite of the woman she thought she was here to arrest. She couldn’t fathom why she was listening to this girl’s request, but she couldn’t get herself to stop. “I’m good. I… don’t take bribes.”

“Pfft—!” Guinevere spit out a few noodles. “Oh you’re really funny, Miss. I could get used to hanging out with you.” Turning to the owner of the stall, she briefly yelled. “Another medium noodle! Not spicy though, dunno if this girl can take it.” Sushang opened her mouth to rebuke, she swore she just said she didn’t want anything, but it was too late to do anything. “So, Miss, what’s your name? Can’t just keep callin’ ya ‘Miss Cloud Knight’ can I?”

“I’m here to arrest you.” Sushang said flatly. She couldn’t keep letting this girl boss her around, she had a job to do here. Still, she felt no real sense of anger at the other woman, and she felt worse and worse at the prospect of arresting her.

“Man you are no fun! Girl, when was the last time you had a night on the town? No work, just fun?” The performer asked, seeming genuinely interested before Sushang’s startled expression changed her own. “Erm… forget that… A-Anyways the polite thing to do is introduce yourself first, right? I’m Guinevere, though you can call me Little Gui if you want.”

“I’m sorry to break it to you, but I’m not going to be calling you ‘Little Gui’, Miss Gui– Guine… Guin… Guinever… Guinef..” Sushang was bright red as the food stall owner came out and placed her noodles in front of her, she took this as a sign to just quit while she was ahead. “Uuugh it’s hard, okay! I struggle with outsider names… not that I’m great at this language either…”

“Aww dats okay.” Guinevere slurped up her noodles from across the table, everytime she did so she seemed more pleased with herself. “I’m still trying my best to get a grasp on how to say everything here. Just takes talking, talking, and more talking! And if there’s one thing I’m good at, it’s talking!” Sushang laughed, a small, but genuine laugh. Guinevere lit up at the sight of this. “Hey, what do you say you make up a Xianzhou name for me! Might make things easier for everyone.”

“Make up a Xianzhou name…?” Sushang paused for a second. In just a few minutes, this woman had flipped her entire view on her. Thinking back to her parents' letter, she couldn’t help but admit that Guin… Erm… Little Gui… seemed like a good person. Sure, she didn’t have a total obedience for the law, but she wasn’t hurting anyone, was she? In fact, she was spreading a lot of entertainment and joy… something Sushang had failed to realize was missing from her own life. Above all else, the Cloud Knight just couldn’t seem to get the woman out of her mind. “I g-guess I could? Might take me a little bit though…” Sushang started to dive into her bowl of noodles, wanting to distract herself from the enticing face of Little Gui. Her eyes were even more hypnotizing in person.

“Eh, that’s fine.” Guinevere smiled; Her smile was the worst part. It felt so real, so genuine, so appetizing… Sushang wondered if the girl had happened upon a curio that drew people to her or if she was really just that special. “You’ll have plenty of time to think of one while I’m in jail, right? Don’t worry– I’m done running… You can take me in after this, I just hope the bowl of ramen makes you a bit more lenient.” She then spoke a bit under her breath, “Fuck… it really is a bribe isn’t it…”

“Huh?!” Sushang stood up, not expecting that response at all. She didn’t want to arrest Little Gui anymore, she felt like she couldn’t. Although, she had on multiple occasions shared her desire to do so, and she scrambled for an excuse. “I… I can’t.”

“Huh?” Guinevere looked up to her with an expression akin to a puppy dog begging for food. “W-Why not? Isn’t that why you’re here?”

“I know, I know…” Sushang sat back down, looking to the side to once again avoid locking eyes with the streamer. “It’s just… you’re a newcomer to the Luofu, right?”

“Yepyep. Just got here a few months ago, why?”

“Well…” Sushang started to dig into the side of her arm with her nails. “The thing is… I am too.” Guinevere tilted her head, but the Cloud Knight continued. “You see… I’m originally from the Yaoqing. I only just arrived here a little while back, maybe even after you. Sure I’m familiar with Xianzhou culture to an extent, but it's so so different from where I’m from. And I’m sure for an outsider like you it’s turned up to 11. Maybe it’s not the most legal thing to say…” Sushang raised a hand to her head and scratched her hair a bit. “But… your work isn’t hurting anyone. Hell, it’s bringing much needed enjoyment to our boring lives. So… I… I guess I can turn the other way. You seem like a good person, I want to honor that.”

“Huh… Didn’t expect that, Miss Cloud Knight…” Guinevere looked genuinely shocked, before her face shifted into that oh-so familiar smile. The one that kept drawing the sheepish Cloud Knight in. “You keep on surprising me! Hah! I haven’t met a single soul here half as interesting as you, irl or on the net. I’ll definitely have to keep an eye on you.” The streamer finished up the last of her noodles before grabbing a napkin from the table and a pen from her pocket. Sushang watched with confusion and awe as the performer seemingly moved the paper and pen in and out of reality in an act that she knew was just sleight of hand. In the end, Guinevere was left with just the pen, which she deposited quickly into her pocket.

“G-Good job!” Sushang couldn’t help but cheer at the random performance. “But… what's the occasion?”

“Check your clothes!” Guinevere called as she started to make her way from the table and into the night.

Sushang looked down, finding a piece of something lodged between the folds of her clothing near her chest. It was the napkin, but she didn’t even have a clue on how the performer got it stuck in there without her realizing. She pulled it out quickly and turned to face the retreating Guinevere, seeking more context. “What is this?”

“My phone number!” Guinevere called. Sushang started to blush but her thoughts were broken by the woman speaking up again. “Don’t get too excited though~ You have to tell me my new name somehow, right?” She chuckled a bit, the woman’s laugh was contagious. “Goodnight, Miss Cloud Knight!”

“Um!” Sushang stood up rapidly from her seat, trying to get the fleeing woman’s attention one more time for the night. “Sushang! M-My name is Sushang!”

“Sushang, huh?” The streamer paused in her tracks and turned to face her new friend. “I’ll remember that!”

Sushang paused, still staring off into the distance long after Guinevere had escaped out of view. There was something so... unique about her. Everything she did seemed so impulsive, so brash, so dangerous, like a firecracker set off in the dark. Yet one could get so lost in watching her as the woman's every action seemed to cause sparks to fly all around her, and those who saw it couldn't help but be drawn in. Sushang, in her confusion, had missed the firecracker for the sparks, though in just a few meetings with the woman her perspective turned on its head. Maybe just maybe, for just a moment it didn't matter if she became a legendary hero. It didn't matter as long as she could stare in awe at the bits of fire shooting off brightly in the night.

Sushang: Guinaifen.

☆LittleGui☆: whos this

Sushang: Um, it’s Sushang… The Cloud Knight, remember?

☆LittleGui☆: ohhhhhh, Sushang! my man! whats a guinaifen?

Sushang: Your new name.

Sushang: “Gui”, wood. “Nai”, to exist. “Fen”, fragment.

Sushang: If you don’t like it I can always try a new one! I’m not very good at this whole thing… I just wanted to make something that sounds nice but also keeps the Gui thing.

Sushang: You know, like Little Gui. Wouldn’t work if you didn’t have that in your name anymore right?

☆LittleGui☆: omg

☆LittleGui☆: i think you might be a genius, Miss Cloud Knight!

☆LittleGui☆: *Sushang

☆LittleGui☆: anyways it sounds great

☆LittleGui☆: im using it

☆LittleGui☆: no take backsies

Sushang: ?

Chapter Text

“Phew!” Guinaifen shouted with exuberance, raising her hands into the air as if to reach the sky. “That. Was. Awesome!!”

“I want to die…” Sushang muttered following close behind. She had just been roped into one of Little Gui’s street performances, as to which she was less than willing to participate in. In fact, that hadn’t been the plan at all. She just happened upon one of the newly coined Guinaifen’s performances, and instead of trying to arrest the girl this time, she was happy to join in the crowd. Unfortunately, when the performer noticed the sheepish Cloud Knight at the gathering, her eyes lit up at once and she basically dragged Sushang up onto stage with her. Guinaifen did some sort of slab performance thing, where she put Sushang underneath a heavy slab and then broke it with a giant hammer. Despite spending more attention on making sure the camera angle was good for the stream than on the girl pleading to be let go, the trick ended up working flawlessly and Sushang was able to escape without injuries. Physical injuries at least, it scared the hell out of her. She was starting to wonder why she had decided that Guinaifen was a ‘good’ person.

“Aww c’mon you did great!” Guinaifen wrapped her hand around her friend and squeezed her into her side. She had never met anyone in the Xianzhou with such an utter disregard for personal space before, but she couldn’t get too mad at Little Gui for it. “I mean like. This shit is gonna get views~ Maybe I should put you in more of my stuff Shangshang? Cute girl, bit of a scaredy cat, but you’ve got that huge sword, right? People eat that shit up.”

“I think I’m good for the next ehh…” Sushang brought up her hand and shook it a bit. “200 years? Come back after that and maybe we could try again…” She sighed, despite her annoyance she was still following the girl because she was asked to after the stream. “Wait, what was it that you just called me?”

“Shangshang?” Guinaifen grinned. She began to walk faster as they approached their mystery destination. Sushang tried her best to pick up the pace, she never could figure out how Little Gui could speedwalk that fast. “I think it fits you, it’s super duper cute!”

“I’m a Cloud Knight! I’m not supposed to be cute, Little Gui, I’m supposed to be cool.” Sushang rolled her eyes. “You’re devaluing my cool.”

“What about those chickens you like though? Are they not supposed to be cute?” Guinaifen asked. She had an annoying habit of asking questions that Sushang couldn’t tell whether they came from genuine curiosity or if she was just making fun of her.

“That’s…” Sushang frowned, crossing her arms and facing the other direction from her excitable friend. “That’s different…”

“Really though, it’s not just about cuteness. I mean like, it’s nice to have people to stream with, you know? There’s only so much you can rely on audience volunteers for, that limits the kinda shit you can do by a lot.” Guinaifen turned over and smiled at her friend. “Have a pal who’s willing to run up there with you? Then you can do your best work. I haven’t really had that before, that’s why today is different.”

“I think we need to work on your definition of ‘willing’.” Sushang scoffed. However… something didn’t seem quite right to her about the last thing the performer said. “Why haven’t you been able to convince any of your other friends to do shows with you?”

“Ahahahha!” Guinaifen stopped in her tracks and started laughing. Sushang was really confused as to what part of her statement was so funny. “Oh well you see… that would require me to have friends…”

“No way. Uh uh.” Sushang stopped as well and turned back towards Guinaifen. “There's no way. Someone as personable as you, been here for months, and I’m your first friend? You’re messing with me.”

“Sure I’ve got acquaintances here and there, and well, family… but I’ve never been able to make any real deal friends here. Where the hell do you get the idea that I’m, whaddya call it? ‘Personable’?” The streamer giggled a bit before continuing on their journey. Sushang was quick to follow. “Besides, you’ve been here about as long as I have and guess what! We both don’t have friends. Whoopty freakin' do!”

“Well it’s different between me and you… You’re so… so energetic. So enticing. You draw people in, you keep their attention on you, that’s how you’ve gained so many fans online right? I can’t believe a person as enthralling as Little Gui doesn't have friends.” Sushang pouted. “Me on the other hand? I’m as boring as paperwork. Sure I have a ‘cool sword’ or whatever but I’m just a regular old Cloud Knight. I want to be something, but I’m not there yet. And I spend so much of my effort trying to get there that it actually alienates me from making connections with people.”

“You know, you and me actually have a lot more in common than you might think.” Guinaifen offered. Sushang didn’t agree with that statement at all, you’d be hard pressed to find someone more different than her, but she decided to hear her out regardless. “I’m the same way. I have something I wanna be, this idea of ‘successful’ I have in my mind. I put all my energy into chasing that goal, no one ever gets to be too close to me. You’re right, people are enticed by ‘Little Gui’, people love ‘Little Gui’, but no one wants to be friends with Guinevere. Who the hell is Guinevere?”

“Hey! I want to be friends with Guinef… Guinev… Urgh… Guinaifen. I am friends with Guinaifen. Despite whatever torment you put me through… it’s fun. I haven’t thought about fun in quite awhile, now I look forward to it. Would you look at that?”

“Pretty amazing, huh?” Guinaifen beamed. “Turned a boring by the books Cloud Knight into a fun loving renegade.” She brought a hand up to her eye and sniffed as to wipe away a faux-tear. “I’m so proud.”

“Just because you rope me into your antics doesn’t mean I’m a renegade or whatever you want to call me.” Sushang crossed her arms, trying her best to seem tough. “You know I am still a Cloud Knight. You do anything illegal and I'm not going to let it slide again.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever.” Guinaifen stopped and Sushang did the same. They had come up to a building that Sushang was only vaguely familiar with. “Anyways, here’s the next bribe!” The performer did a very obvious fake cough. “I-I mean, the gift I have for you keeping up with my bullshit today. I’m taking you to an immersia~”

“No way… I thought I knew what this building was…” Sushang stood staring up at the structure infront of her. “I actually haven’t seen an immersia on the Luofu yet, I wonder if they’re any different than those on the Yaoqing?”

“Maybe?” Guinaifen was content looking at the sight of Sushang staring at the building, the girl hadn’t even noticed. “They’re a fair bit different than regular films though. A lot more…” The streamer chuckled, seeming amused by her own incoming comment. “Immersive.”

Sushang glanced over at her friend with a slightly irked expression. “Go figure…” The two of them took a second to laugh, before returning to the matter at hand. “Anyways, what kind of immersia is it? Or have you not picked anything out yet? P-Please don’t say horror, please don’t say horror, please don’t say horror…”

“Aww,” Guinaifen started. “Had I known that you would be so terrified I would have made sure to pick a horror immersia~”

Sushang scoffed. “Remind me to never go see one with you again.”

“Puhlease, I was just teasing.” The streamer fished around in her bag for a second before pulling out two tickets that were already slightly crumpled up. “Here we go! These are for some romance flick. Dunno what it’s about, just that it’s popular. Thought it might be up your alley.”

Sushang raised an eyebrow as her friend handed the ticket over, but she was already learning that making an objection was just playing into her scheme. She didn’t really have anything else to do for the day, and she supposed that watching an immersia with Little Gui probably wasn’t the worst thing she could do with her time.

“I c-can’t believe it!!” Sushang bawled, hanging onto Guinaifen’s arm for support as they walked out of the building. She brought her other arm up to her face to wipe the tears off with her sleeve, but more kept coming. “Why– I don’t… AAAAAAAAAAAAAa…”

“Calm down, Shangshang…” Guinaifen nervously brought her hand to the girl's head and patted it a few times. She herself wasn’t overly moved, but she could understand where the other girl was coming from. Had she known she would be able to get her to react like this, she wouldn’t have chosen a horror immerisa even if she knew it would scare her. It was more fun this way. “It’s just an immersia.”

“I know… I know but…” Sushang had to take frequent breaks between her words to sniff. She felt her current demeanor was awfully unbecoming of a Cloud Knight, but she couldn’t help but be moved. “Why couldn’t they be together! They were in love… It’s so unfair…”

The immersia the two of them had just experienced was a romance between an Xianzhou native and an outworlder. The man was a low level worker in the realm keeping commission, and the woman was a business correspondent whose company wanted to make connections in the Xianzhou. Their paths should have never crossed, but just by accident the two of them ended up meeting, and then very quickly falling in love. The immersia speeds through their relationship, full of happy moments all the way up until the end. However, being a short-life species, the woman passes on long before the man has even begun to think of being stricken by mara, and he has to deal with the pain for the rest of his life. The message of the work is to appreciate the impacts people have made on you, even when they are gone, but it’s still quite sad.

“I thought it was just alright.” Guinaifen immediately noticed Sushang shooting her a frown, but she continued. “Maybe for the first time you see one like it, it's moving, but it was kinda a basic premise. They didn’t do anything to spice it up, make it unique from other stuff, so it didn’t hit as hard for me.”

“Oh yeah?” Sushang questioned through sniffles. “If it was so bad, how would you spice it up?”

“Well like, a big point is that it was kind of a forbidden love, right?” Guinaifen stopped to lean against a nearby wall to focus on their conversation.

Sushang paused, taking a moment to wipe the last drops of tears that were still present on her face. “Well yeah. I mean, it’s not totally forbidden, but… There’s kinda an unspoken rule among the Xianzhou. You shouldn’t fall in love with short-life species, because then they’ll die long before you and you’ll spend the rest of your life missing them.”

“Right, right.” Guinaifen smirked. “Well anyways, I think that shits always boring when it’s just a regular ass couple. If, for example, they made it two chicks instead? Then I’m in.”

“You want a love story about… chickens?”

“Pfft–!” The streamer laughed loudly. “No, dummy, I mean two women.”

“A romance with t-two girls?” Sushang suddenly blushed, but she didn’t know why the thought was making her so flustered.

“Something wrong with that?” Guinaifen raised an eyebrow. “What, is it still so sheltered where you’re from or…?”

“No!!” The Cloud Knight nervously blurted out. “I-I mean, t-there’s nothing wrong with it! Nothing at all… I just… well… M-My family’s very traditional and I haven’t met anyone who’s…well…” She grabbed her arm with her opposite hand and started to dig her nails into it. “Like that… before.”

“Ohhhhh.” Guinaifen walked over and ruffled through Sushang’s hair again. It normally annoyed her whenever people got into her personal space like that, but Sushang never felt bothered when Little Gui did it for some reason. “Well, now you have.”

“Huh…?”

Sushang’s mind was still putting the pieces together, but she was briefly interrupted by Guinaifen checking her phone and then making an exclamation. “Ah! So sorry, gotta get home! There’s something I can’t be late for. Bye bye, Shangshang!”

“Oh! Um, until next time!” Sushang called out quickly as Guinaifen made quick pace in returning to wherever she was staying on the Luofu. Left to her own devices again, her mind returned to processing the comment that Little Gui made before leaving. When it finally clicked that she was talking about herself, Sushang reddened once again. She made a mental note to apologize to Little Gui the next time they met, she had said something really offensive, hadn’t she…

As she herself made her own way home for the night, she couldn’t get her mind off the movie, as well as the enigmatic woman who saw it with her. Before this point, she hadn’t really even made the connection that she was a long-life species and that Guinaifen was not. While she had openly stated the taboo about being in love with an outworlder, there was another less strong but ever present unspoken rule. Being friends with short-life species was fine, people did it all the time, but you should never get too attached, even platonically. In due time, they would be gone, and you’ll have to live with that loss in your heart for far too long. However, despite the advice, Sushang felt herself more and more drawn in towards the enthusiastic performer with each passing day. She didn’t know how much she could keep herself away.

☆LittleGui☆: thx for seeing the immersia with me o(≧▽≦)o

☆LittleGui☆: oh and for helping in the performance!1!! ur definitely going to be in these more

☆LittleGui☆: sorry not sorry

Sushang: Oh, it was nothing. The immersia was very good.

Sushang: Why exactly do you think you can convince me to be a part of your performances again though?

☆LittleGui☆: cuz

☆LittleGui☆ has posted a link

☆LittleGui☆: check this shit out

☆LittleGui☆: ur famous <3

Sushang: I’m sorry, how many people watched that?!

☆LittleGui☆: ikr. fame is overwhelming. you’ll get used to it

Sushang: There’s no way!! Knowing the clip got seen by that many people makes me want to do it less… Do you have any sense of embarrassment??

☆LittleGui☆: as far as ik not rlly

☆LittleGui☆: :p

Sushang: Ugh… Maybe one more time… I do owe you for being so rude.

☆LittleGui☆: huh? for wat

☆LittleGui☆: ur a very nice person shangshang…

☆LittleGui☆: except for that time u tried to arrest me but in my grace i have forgiven u <3

Sushang: For when I said that I hadn’t met anyone who um… you know. It came out wrong and I feel bad. I want you to know I don’t think anything less of you for it!! I’m happy you can be proud of who you are.

☆LittleGui☆: she loves me!! (つ≧▽≦)つ

☆LittleGui☆: but i didn’t take any insult by it

☆LittleGui☆: it was cute to see u flustered anyways

☆LittleGui☆: oh shoot my thing is starting

☆LittleGui☆: bye bye shangshang!! ps u type like a parent lmao

Sushang: How else am I supposed to do it…? I can hardly understand what you’re saying half the time. The least I can do is make myself understandable.

Sushang: Also how do you make those little faces? They’re cute.

Sushang: ?

Sushang: (>o v o) >

Chapter Text

The weeks passed by a lot slower than they usually did for Sushang. A common phrase of outworld origin stated that “time flies faster when you’re having fun”, but she had found it to be quite the opposite. She had been living her whole life with her eyes set on the future, the things she did were much the same from day to day in her duties as a Cloud Knight, so they seemed to blur together and speed past her before she could even notice. Yet, upon meeting Guinaifen, everything slowed down. Everyday there would be new things to experience, new thoughts in her head, new streams to watch, new performances to be roped into, new places to go and new things to do with her friend. Guinaifen had begun to take up more and more of her free-time, even bleeding into her work time as well. She tried her very best to avoid slacking on her duties, but when she got a message from Little Gui she was hard pressed to say no. In the past she had spent a lot of her free time that wasn’t spent training on writing letters to her family; She had nothing else to do really, and the process was quite time consuming for someone who wasn’t so literarily inclined. Now that she was preoccupied, she was writing to them less and less, but they were more than happy to receive fewer letters when they could see how thrilled she was spending time with her friend. Sushang wished they stopped inquiring to her about courtship so much though…

Over the last month or so, she began to do a lot of weird activities with Little Gui. It was always her suggestion, whether it be something for a stream or something fun for just the two of them. Or something that Sushang thought was just something fun for the two of them but was actually being streamed… That last one happened more frequently than she’d like. Still, Sushang had never been this happy before in her life; Every single time Little Gui asked to hang out with her, she could feel a burning sensation in her chest that she couldn’t quite place. She had heard about how people often need a large group of friends to be happy, and while more might be nice, she could never get bored with the one she had. At first, Sushang was quite apprehensive about showing up on stream. She was more than willing to assist with production, but being center stage in front of who knows how many viewers was always embarrassing. Especially if Little Gui was doing something bizarre… Which she almost always was… Eventually though, she had been coerced on stream enough that some of the viewers began asking for her back. Or at least that’s what Little Gui told her, but she suspected that she might have just been using that as an excuse to get her on stream more. Regardless, when Little Gui pleaded with her with those puppy-diting eyes… She had to relent.

Her life was on an upward swing, or at least she liked to see it that way. If she could just manage everything just a little bit better, she knew that she could make great strides in her friendship and in her career. And then…

Everything around her fell apart.

Sushang hadn’t been clued in on all the problems on the Luofu right now. It was clear for some time that there was definitely something going on, but the higher ups never told her what exactly. Now? She was sent out to Cloudford, a place she could barely find her way around, and managed to lose the rest of her squad. It was in this place she was greeted with the unfortunate reality of the mara-struck; Her comrades from the Cloud Knights being taken over by the abundance and attacking her as well as anyone else. Sushang had no idea what was causing this, or what to do, but she tried her best to do her job at the very least.

Despite the difficulty of the situation, she was doing what she could. She ran into two civilians whom she promised to protect, as was her duty. They both seemed more than capable of taking care of themselves, but she wasn’t one to discriminate with her protections. She would see to it that the two of them were delivered to a safeguarded area onboard the Luofu if it was the last thing she did. Which, considering the circumstances, it might be.

The Cloud Knight was currently running through her thoughts in the moment of rest afforded to the three of them onboard a starskiff that she believed was heading towards the Artisanship Commission. Not the best destination, but it was a start. More importantly, it was a break– something she badly needed. Up until now, she was too preoccupied to be worried, but her break afforded her the opportunity to notice that she still hadn’t received a single response to the frantic messages she sent to Little Gui. It was likely that the other woman was completely fine, most of the Luofu seemed to be, but things were getting worse by the minute and the lack of communication just made it all worse. She stared at the screen of her phone, knowing there wasn’t anything she could do but she was gripping it as tight as she could regardless.

“Aaaaaaaaaugh!” Sushang cried as she shut off her phone and stored it in her clothes. It wasn’t of any use staring at no incoming messages for an hour. As she looked up from herself, Sushang noticed two pairs of eyes staring at her with concern… In her stress, it looked like she had forgotten about the two other people sitting with her in the starskiff.

“Are you quite alright, Miss Sushang?” The mild mannered one with blonde hair spoke up first. Sushang recalled that his name was Luosha? Or something like that… He introduced himself as a merchant and was carrying with him a very peculiar ‘package’. She wasn’t sure exactly what it was, but the man said something about something that held a corpse after death in some cultures…? Oddly creepy, but he seemed like a good enough person, and his healing abilities were a boon in combat.

“I… uh…” Sushang gulped. The embarrassment of yelling like that out of nowhere was just setting into her. It was also doubly embarrassing for the merchant to have remembered her name when she could barely parse his… “Yeah, I’m totally fine. Just needed to let out some pent up stress. Now I’m ready to roll!”

“You shouldn’t lie to yourself.” The black haired man offered, putting up one of his hands with the suggestion. “It’s not healthy.” Sushang was almost positive that the man had introduced himself at some point along their escapades, but she couldn’t for the life of her remember. So she had gone on calling him ‘silent but deadly’. He had shown himself to be worthy of the name too, and Sushang thought it was almost funny how she might have ended up guarding the two civilians in the least need of protection in all of the Luofu.

“I…” Sushang pouted. “You don’t know me, how do you suppose I’m not doing fine? Because I’m act–”

“He’s right, you know.” The blonde stated, cutting off Sushang’s pitiable attempt at defending herself. She had to relent at this point, it was obvious to anyone that she was pretty damn worried. Not that there was anything she could do about it.

“In case you’re curious,” Silent but deadly started. “It’s your body language. Some people are good at hiding it, but most reveal quite a lot about their current mood simply through the way they move their body.”

“Geez…” Sushang sighed, these people could probably read her for days. “Should I start calling you ‘insightful but deadly’ now?”

The man just shrugged, and neither of her guests seemed to be anywhere near moved enough to laugh at her joke. And here Sushang thought she was raising the mood… Despite her being the most obvious case, even she could tell that they all had something weighing on their minds. The merchant spoke up before long, breaking the awkward silence. “How about you talk about what’s bothering you? It's the foremost important step in feeling better.”

“Uhh…” The Cloud Knight fiddled with her fingers. “I’m sure we all have a lot going through our minds right now… I don’t want to weigh you two down with my problems.”

“Nonsense.” Luosha replied with a gentle smile… No– Luocha! That was it. “We quite literally have nothing better to do. The skiff is still a ways off from the dock, no? The alternative is dying from boredom I suppose.”

“So you’re just using me to fill the time, huh?” Sushang looked up. She half expected one of them to reply in a hurry, but was quick to realize that she wasn’t accompanied by the most talkative people in the universe. Perhaps she was just used to hanging out with one of them regularly…“I guess that’s not really a bad thing. The truth is… I’m worried.”

The Cloud Knight paused again, this time even more sure that her audience would be more active participants, however, that was not the case. Sushang really ought to have learned that she had a tough crowd by now… After a second of silence, Luocha raised an eyebrow as if to say ‘go on’, and Sushang took it as an indication that she was better off continuing until she was done. “It’s a friend of mine… A close friend! W-We haven’t known each other all that long but she’s been someone I’ve relied on a lot recently and… Well she’s just great and…” Sushang trailed off as she realized she was getting off topic. She cleared her throat briefly before continuing. “It’s just. I-I haven’t been able to get in contact with her at all for hours and hours now and I can’t help but be worried… She’s probably fine and I’m just being a worrywart but when I think about what might happen if one of those things attacked her… I just freeze up. I know, I know, it’s dumb, there are bigger issues going on, but I just want to make sure she’s okay.”

“There’s a few friends of mine I’m worried about as well,” The dark haired man spoke up after a second of silence. “I’ve also been experiencing problems trying to message them. It’s likely a widespread problem, so you shouldn’t think it means anything has happened to your friend. Besides, my companions… tend to get into a lot of trouble, which is partially what leads me to be concerned. Do you have any reason to suspect that your friend would be somewhere dangerous?”

Sushang paused, this guy sure knew how to speak up when he had something to say at least. She should probably just be grateful to be getting the advice. “She is one of the biggest troublemakers I know… but I sure hope she’s not around anywhere dangerous. She’s staying near Exalting Sanctum last time I checked, and I don’t think that she’d be the kind to stray too far considering the crisis.” Sushang had a sinking feeling that Little Gui might be the kind to see the events as a good streaming opportunity, but she couldn’t be that stupid, could she?

“That’s a heavily populated area. Outlying regions like Cloudford, or more valuable areas like commission delves are more likely to be attacked.” The man replied quickly. He seemed to know a lot about the Luofu, but she would let it slide for now. “Large residential sectors are going to be given significantly stronger protections, not to mention there's little value to be gained from holding a residential delve as opposed to a more strategically viable one. It would be foolish to try and attack them– Head on, at least.”

“There you have it, Miss Sushang.” Luocha responded pleasantly after the other man finished talking. “Mister Dan Heng has some good points. Our worries remind ourselves of the people we are close to, but to get too worked up in one’s own concerns is a recipe for distraction. It is often worthless to be so focused on them when there is little we can do. I believe our situation requires each of us to be at the best of our abilities. Rest assured, your friend will be alright.”

The both of them did have solid advice, and Sushang tried to take it to heart. Guinaifen was a reckless person, yet she was also someone with a love of life. She seriously doubted that she’d just throw it away by trying to get a few more views. The Cloud Knight was fairly confident that she was fine and well, however… the sinking feeling in her chest just wouldn’t go away. After all this time she had finally managed to make a friend, and a good one too. If something happened to her, Sushang didn’t know what she would do with herself. She tried to get the thoughts out of her mind as the starskiff slowed down in its approach to the next delve. “Ah, looks like we're here. Thanks for the advice you two, it really helped. Now it’s my turn, I’ll make sure to get you folks to safety.” Her companions both gave her silent replies as they readied to head off the ship, but before that happened Sushang remembered she had one more thing to say as she got the attention of the man she now knew to be called Dan Heng. “Oh! I wanted to say, I hope your friends will be alright too.”

“They will be,” Dan Heng stated as he made his way off of the starskiff. “Always are in the end.”

Sushang was exhausted. The events of the last few hours still weighed on her, and she hadn’t even had a moment to rest. Even after arriving at their destination, there were still plenty of trials awaiting them before they could get themselves to safety– They even ran into a ten-lord’s judge! After all that headache, she was able to safely bring the civilians under her protection to a secured zone in the Alchemy Commission. A successful mission– despite the hiccups along the way… However, after all this time, she could finally focus on getting a hold of Little Gui and making sure she was alright.

The thoughts were racing through her head as she pulled at her phone and called Guinaifen for roughly the 10th time in the past 12 hours or so. Despite constantly telling herself it wasn’t something that would happen, she was still worried that somehow Little Gui was out streaming in some far flung delve without any protection, and that she might have been ambushed by mara-struck there. As the phone rang, Sushang could feel her heart drop, and then rapidly rise up as the call was answered.

“Little Gui?! Are you alright?! Are you okay? Where are you?! Do you need me to come over? I’ve been worried sick!” Sushang yelled into her phone, alerting a few odd gazes from strangers in the Alchemy Commission. They could stare at her all they wanted though, she was worried.

A second or so passed with no response, before Sushang could hear a drawn out yawn be carried through the call. “Sorry ‘bout that bestie… What’s up? Why’re you all worked up…?”

“What’s up? What’s up?!” Sushang squeezed her phone in her hand, almost wanting to crush it. “The hell do you mean what’s up?! I haven’t been able to get a hold of you for like– for like a day!!”

“Huh…? Oh– So sorry, Shangshang…” Another yawn came through the phone. “I’ve been staying up a lot recently cuz streams an’ stuff and gosh I had nothing planned yesterday so I just kinda slept the whole thing. I literally just woke up, lol. Why are you so concerned though, you’re acting like the world's ending.”

“It might as well be!! Have you not been paying attention to what’s going on?!” Sushang frowned, shaking her phone up and down in her hand slightly. “There’s like a big– um… well… look I don’t really understand it but there’s something about a tree and… It’s bad news, okay? Alright just… don’t go anywhere, you got it? I’m going to report to my supervisor and then I’ll be right over. Make sure to send me your location.”

“Huh? Shangshang, I’m fine, trust me. You don’t need to come over here, I’ll be al–”

“I said I’m coming, got that?” Sushang repeated, hoping that her friend would just acquiesce at this point. She didn’t have it in her to explain how she needed to see Little Gui right now, how she needed to make sure she was alright. She didn’t have it in her to explain to herself why she had those feelings, why she was so concerned, but that didn’t matter right now. She needed to see her, for just a second, because maybe it would make the blades digging at her heart go away.

“I appreciate the thought but if something important is going on shouldn’t you be–” Sushang hung up the phone without taking any time to think about it. She knew that her priority was to her friend right now. More than anything else. But if she tried to explain that to Guinaifen then she would have to face those uncomfortable thoughts. It was something she couldn’t do.

Pocketting her phone, Sushang ran off towards the other end of the commission. She had somewhere to be.

☆LittleGui☆ has shared their location

☆LittleGui☆: i did some digging

☆LittleGui☆: i know that there’s been some stuff going on for a little while now but man it really got bad in the past day or so huh

☆LittleGui☆: im sorry for worrying you

☆LittleGui☆: you sound really really tired and i dont want to insinuate that you havent been doing your job

☆LittleGui☆: youve done enough, you deserve a break for going through all that

☆LittleGui☆: and if that break is hanging out with me <3 who am i to say no

☆LittleGui☆: srsly tho shangshang take care of yourself

Sushang: Thank you… I’ve just had rough day and I was really worried. Sorry about yelling at you it was very uncalled for. I’m on my way over right now.

☆LittleGui☆: nono it’s all good! trust me i do not hold it against you at all

☆LittleGui☆: in fact i am very honored you were thinking of me

☆LittleGui☆: as a gift for your service miss cloud knight

☆LittleGui☆ has uploaded an image

☆LittleGui☆: got a movie and popcorn ready <3

☆LittleGui☆: my place is a mess tho fair warning (⁄ ⁄>⁄ ▽ ⁄<⁄ ⁄)

Sushang: Popcorn?

Sushang: ?

☆LittleGui☆: girl.

Chapter Text

“I’m here, I’m here!” A voice called from behind Sushang, seeming almost too exacerbated in its panting. “Hope I’m not too late~”

The brown haired girl turned her attention from her phone to look over her shoulder, staring at a familiar orange mop (and the girl to which it belonged) approaching her at a laborious pace. She smiled instantly; In her mind she had made up a whole speech that she planned to unload on Little Gui when she finally arrived, reprimanding her for being late, but when faced with her friend her frustration faded away all too quickly.

“Ah!” Sushang spun around in one swift motion, jaunting up a bit to meet Guinaifen halfway, if not to just save her clearly exhausted friend the trouble. “You… Alright? You look like you just got done with a round of my ma’s training.”

“‘M fine!” Guinaifen replied enthusiastically before her hands dropped to rest on her knees as she panted in an attempt to get some energy back. “Just, gimme a sec, I’ll be back to 100% in no time…”

“Uh huh.” Sushang’s face morphed into an odd mix of concern, scowl, and amusement, representing itself as an odd shift of her mouth with one raised eyebrow. “You want to tell me what happened? You’re pretty late as is…”

“Bwugh, I’m sorry, I know…” Guinaifen replied back between pants, slowly seeming to regenerate more of her energy. “Do you want the long version, or the short version? Both of them are high quality btw. LilGui doesn’t skimp out~”

Sushang, ignoring the fact her friend just said ‘btw’ out loud, let out a deep yet familiar sigh. “What could have possibly happened in the last hour that there needs to be a long and short version? Can’t I just have, I don’t know, a regular version?”

Guinaifen giggled. It was clear to Sushang that she was just being messed with again, but, like always, she didn’t have a way around it. “Nah, I only have the two of them. Which one do you want?”

Sushang rolled her eyes. “Umm, the long version?” It couldn’t be that long, could it…? Perhaps too long for their incoming dinner reservation at least, so Sushang made the decision to start making their way towards the restaurant just in case. Little Gui seemed to have regained enough energy to follow her.

“A-he-hem!” Guinaifen cleared her throat in an exaggerated manner. “For this tale, we must travel back around two decades and many lightyears away to a little known planet by the name of–”

“Short version, please.”

“Blegh~” The streamer stuck out her tongue. “You’re no fun… Whatever, for this tale we must travel back one hour and a few kilometers to my humble apartment complex. Tucked away in–”

“I’ve been there, Gui. You don’t need to yap on about it, can you just tell me why you were late?” Sushang pleaded, though a slight chuckle escaped her mouth which proved she was having her fun as well.

“B-But…” Guinaifen started with a faux-stammer. Sushang turned around to face her and was caught with the sight of the grown woman pressing the tips of her fingers together and making the biggest eyes she could. It was adorable if not pathetic, but perhaps that's what she loved liked about Little Gui as a whole. “I thought you loved storytelling, Shangshang? You’re always going on about it…”

“I like it when professionals do it!” Sushang rolled her eyes again, but this time more obvious to the attention of her friend.

“A-Am I not a professional…” Guinaifen pleaded even harder.

“You are, Little Gui, but not at everything. No one is.” Sushang reached forward and patted her companion twice quickly on the head. “Now c’mon, we’re going to miss the dinner you set the reservation for. You can continue the story but please make it quick.”

“Geez, I thought you were gonna love it, you know?” Guinaifen muttered as she began hurrying after her already active friend. “Ugh, whatever, fine. After the stream today I laid down to rest for a second and before I knew it I passed out. Then I woke up– saw the time– panicked– and tried to get here as soon as I could. Forgot to text you in all the rush, sorry about that. There, happy?”

“You sure you’re alright?” Sushang’s voice dropped, giving off a different impression than the joking air that had previously enveloped the two of them. “I know I hammer you about your sleep schedule but, you really looked out of it today.”

“I’m fine, Shangshang. Seriously.” Guinaifen laughed in an attempt to lighten the mood. “I may not live the healthiest life but I promise I’m not about to drop dead any time soon. How would you know if I was out of it though?”

“Because I watch your streams?” Sushang replied like it was nothing. Yet at the same time, something Little Gui said just then began to stick out in her mind…

“Aww, sometimes I forget that my little Shangshang is a big fan~” Guinaifen sing-songed with a grin on her face. “It makes my day whenever you show up in the chat though, you should talk more! I promise if you said something today I woulda been way more in it.”

“You always point me out…” Sushang returned to making her way to their destination, desperate to hide the blush on her face. “It’s embarrassing! People recognize me from whenever you drag me on, then they start asking questions… I can’t deal with that stuff the way you do…”

“Aww,” Guinaifen sped up her steps to catch up with the Cloud Knight and threw an arm around her neck. “I’ll make an influencer out of you yet, young lady~”

“Please don’t try…” Sushang pleaded. She found solace in a beep on her navigation app that told her their restaurant of choice was just out of reach. “Anyways, looks like we almost made it, I was afraid we’d be late.”

“Shoot, we almost are–!” Guinaifen blurted out after looking down at her phone. She pulled her arm away from Sushang and began to bolt her way towards the restaurant in an impromptu sprint. “I’ll go make sure we have our spot!”

Sushang just smiled as she watched her friend rush past to try and make it there as quickly as possible. She wondered where the person who she just saw almost collapsed from exhaustion always got her energy from, but it was one of those things that made Guinaifen Guinaifen, wasn’t it? As she made her way towards the restaurant without much hurry, the absence of her noisy companion gave the thoughts that had slipped into her mind time to simmer. The smile on her face soon dropped.

“Drop dead anytime soon”... The words echoed in her mind whether she liked it or not. They didn’t give Sushang any comfort. It was likely Guinaifen would live a long and happy life by her own standards. Yet, for Sushang, the lifetime of short-life species didn’t count for much. By the time Guinaifen was gone, she would still be young for Xianzhou. There would be so much of her own life that she had yet to live, that she would have to live without her. Even if she lived another hundred years, Guinaifen would pass away far, far too soon.

Sushang pushed the thoughts out of her mind for the time being. She didn’t need them, she would enjoy the time she had with the person who made it worth living.

“So,” Sushang started, trying to keep her voice clear while gorging on the meal in front of her. She had already gotten to know the Luofu’s cuisine quite well during her time in Aurum Alley, yet Guinaifen had taken her to a place that was unfamiliar to the Cloud Knight. A mid-sized restaurant almost entirely surrounded by others of a similar nature. The delve around them seemed to be quite populous, which would explain the variety of culinary options. It was hard to tell what kind of food they served at first glance as she struggled to read the characters on the restaurant’s name, but she was never too much of a picky eater anyways. Once the two of them got seated next to each other in a booth on the far end of the restaurant, Sushang let Little Gui order for her after some indecisiveness at the menu. The food was delicious, however, and made her gain a bit more trust for her friend's taste in eateries at least. Forcing another bite of her meal down her throat, Sushang continued her line of speech. “What’s the occasion?”

“Hmm?” Guinaifen looked up at her friend with a mouthful of food that she didn’t seem too inclined to finish before she started talking. “Thfere’s no… mmph–” She struggled a bit with the food in her mouth, deciding to finish it with a large slurp. “Mmm–! Anyways, like I was saying, there’s no occasion.”

“No occasion?” Sushang tilted her head. “You mean to tell me you got a reservation for us at this fancy restaurant because, what, you felt like it?” As the words left in her mouth it began to set in that didn’t seem too far fetched for her friend to have done this on a whim.

“C’mon, can’t I treat my bestie to dinner every now and then?” Guinaifen responded with her customary bright smile and goofy laugh. After giggling for a second, to which Sushang thought might mean she was hiding something, the streamer looked around the restaurant for a few seconds, and then returned her gaze to her friend. “Plus, this place isn’t all that fancy, is it?”

“Oh, come on, Little Gui! This place is totally fancy! I’m out of my element here…”

“Nah,” Guinaifen smirked as she returned to her dish. “Can’t be that gaudy of a place, we're in casual clothes.”

“And everyone else isn’t!” Sushang pouted, realizing she had raised her voice maybe a little too much. “It’s embarrassing…” Knowing Little Gui like she did, there was no point in arguing any further about this. Sushang decided to focus on enjoying the food with her friend, and to ignore the creeping feeling that she didn’t belong.

After about a minute of silence, which was the most you were going to get with Guinaifen, said girl spoke up again between bites. “How’s that stuff you’re helping out with going? It’s taking up all my Shangshang’s time…” She added the last part wistfully.

“You mean with Aurum Alley?” Sushang perked up. “It’s going great! W-Well it could be going better, but… I’m not worried, we’re going to show those IPC goons who’s boss! As a Cloud Knight, I can’t sit idly by while people are being harassed by those who think they’re so much better. And you don’t have to be so dramatic, Little Gui, I’m still spending just as much time with you.”

“Hmph!” Guinaifen shook her head. “I’m so proud of you, Shangshang. I knew you’d go down as a legend in… what is it you’re doing again… shipping dock logistics management…?”

“Well, it’s actually the Trailblazer who’s handling all that stuff… You know, you’d probably actually like her.” Sushang pouted. “But you don’t have to make it sound so boring! It’s the people working together to win out over the corporation, telling those who want to take over everything and turn it around for profit that they have no right! If that’s not righteous then I don’t know what is.”

“I’m glad you’ve found something you’re passionate about, I’m serious.” Guinaifen smiled. Even just that simple smile caused a bit of blush to fade in over the Cloud Knight’s face.

“It’s funny, I don’t think I would have without you, in a way.” Sushang admitted, staring into her reflection in a cup of soy sauce rather than face Little Gui directly. “I’ve learned to slow down and take things day by day, because of someone I know who lives every one like it’s her last. Old me would have seen stuff like helping out with the merchant guild as a step along the way. As my good deed for the day, as something that builds up to me someday becoming a legend. However, now I see it as something I want to do. Not for my life… I’m not really cut out for this stuff… but I’ve committed myself to helping out and I’m going to see it through to the end. Because I want to help these people, I want to see their dream of a revived Aurum Alley come to fruition. If I can do that, I can become someone I can be proud of…” The reflection was too dark for Sushang to see the blush deepening her face, but she felt the heat. “M-Maybe even become someone you can be proud of too.”

“Aww, Sushang…” Guinaifen moved herself over and pulled Sushang into a embrace from the side, causing the already blushing girl to be even more flushed. “I’m already proud of you.” She added before separating.

“Thanks…” Sushang forced herself to look up at her friend to show the girl a warm smile she felt she deserved.

They returned to small talk as they finished up their food for the night, laughing about this or that around the goings on of their daily lives. The meal was delicious to the end, but almost equally expensive as well. Sushang objected as Guinaifen paid for it all, but the other woman insisted that it was her treat. Not willing to put up more of a fight, Sushang and her wallet were very thankful that they didn’t have to bear the brunt of the cost. Leaving the restaurant, she was surprised by how late it was, having lost track of time during their conversations over dinner. Before she could comment on this, Guinaifen grabbed her arm and began dragging her down a nearby path.

“W-Wait! Little Gui!” Sushang exclaimed. Her feet struggled to find placement in the dark as she was pulled away. “Where are you taking me?”

“You’ll see in a second,” Guinaifen called back with a grin. “There’s someplace I want to show you!”

Sushang didn’t exactly feel comfortable running on a full stomach, but she did her best to keep up with her friend. Luckily, they didn’t have to go far, and after about a minute of jaunting through a backstreet the two of them found their way to an impressive clearing. In the center of the clearing was a massive water fountain, eloquently crafted and prominently displayed. A myriad of waterspouts sprayed from every which angle creating a dazzling display. It was beautiful in the night, with a spattering of faint lights around the plaza which added to the effect but still kept the place dimmer than the streets around it. There were a few benches around each side of the fountain, and several pieces of greenery that added life to the scene. There was no one else around right now, but she imagined it was quite active during the day.

“Whoah…” Sushang muttered out at the sight. “It’s amazing… You don’t see too many places like this on the Luofu.”

“Right?” Guinaifen enthusiastically replied. “When I first happened upon this place I was awestruck too.” The streamer then darted off to inspect a nearby bench, then quickly moved on to look at another on the other side of the fountain. During this time, she had somehow moved from holding onto Sushang’s arm to having interlocked her own fingers with her friend’s. The Cloud Knight was startled to realize this, but didn’t complain as she awkwardly followed the other woman around the clearing.

“Aha–!” Guinaifen exclaimed after inspecting a particular bench, seeming to notice a certain mark on the armrest on one of the sides. “We can take a seat here.” She sat down on the side opposite to the carving and patted the empty space to entice her friend into resting next to her. As she complied, Sushang turned over to look at the mark that was now on her side of the bench. A crudely drawn “G”.

“Mind telling me what this is all about, Little Gui? Drag a girl out to a random bench and she’s bound to have some questions.”

“This is where I spent my first night aboard the Luofu.” The streamer replied simply. “Or one of the first nights… Anyways, it’s important. I think.”

“H-Huh?” Sushang exclaimed, almost standing herself up from where she was seated. “Are you talking about this bench?”

“Yep!” Guinaifen laughed. “It wasn’t too long ago honestly, not too long before I started doing my street performances. I had barely any money, but I managed to luck my way into some. Maybe enough for a night or two in a hotel plus some cheap food. Although… I found myself salivating outside that restaurant, the same one we went to today. It was a slow day, and I was able to find a spot without a reservation. Without thinking, I enjoyed the best meal I had in years– Then the terror set in when I saw the bill… Well let’s just say little Guinevere didn’t have a place to stay that night anymore. I ended up wandering around for a bit until I found this place, and I thought ‘eh, good enough’. So I stayed on this very bench for the night, not exactly the most comfortable sleep I’ve ever had...”

“I see…” The words left Sushang’s mouth, but she wished she had more to say. She wasn’t rich by any means, but every single night of her life she had a place to sleep comfortably. It had never dawned on her that it was a privilege. “I’m sorry you had to go through that…”

“Huh? You’re misunderstanding the story, Shangshang.” Guinaifen giggled. “Sure, it was cold and far from comfortable, but the whole night I had the brightest smile on my face. Staring up at the sky above me… I felt so alive. That day I promised myself that I would live every single day of my life. That it didn’t matter if I was sleeping on a bench as long as it meant that I was living my life to the fullest. Coming back here with a job that I love, and a person I know I can truly trust, I’m so glad I spent that night shivering on this bench.”

“Tsh, you’re the only person I know who could have slept out in the cold and said it was a good thing.” Sushang leaned her head over onto Guinaifen’s shoulder. “Maybe it doesn’t sound like the worst idea in the world…”

“Sushang, I…” Guinaifen fiddled with her fingers a bit. “I lied, I have an occasion for all this. There’s… something I’d like to ask of you.”

Sushang felt her face getting hot. There was no way that she meant to ask her to… No! Not at all, they were just friends. Sure, Little Gui had taken her out to dinner, held her hand, and confided in her but… That was all stuff best friends could do, right? Her heart started to beat faster by the second. “W-What is it?”

“Do you want to be my sworn sister?”

Sushang’s heart slowed down. Instead of feeling flustered, the young woman was left more confused than anything. She picked her head up from Guinaifen’s shoulder and turned to face her friend with a raised eyebrow. “What?”

“Oh. Umm…” It was hard to see in the dim lighting but Guinaifen was quite flushed as her friend looked on in perplexion. “How to explain… Well it’s more common where I’m from I guess…” She took a deep breath in, and slowly let it out. “On the planet where I grew up, it’s a practice where two women who have a close bond with each other swear to each other. That their friendship will continue till death, their lives are bound together by their bond… I-It sounds a lot more embarrassing when you say it out like that but– Agh! Sushang, you mean a lot to me, okay? I know it might sound silly, yet I think I’m willing to make that promise with you. What do you say?”

Friendship until death. Lives bound together. The thoughts swirled around in Sushang’s mind. Of course Guinaifen meant a lot to her as well, but when she thought of making this promise… a sense of dread began to build up. How could Guinaifen possibly hold up her end of the bargain. Hundreds of years from now when Sushang is stricken by mara, her friend won't be there by her side. What’s the point of binding yourself to someone if you know they're going to be gone. That you’ll have to live on without them with a broken bond. There was no point, no matter how much she wanted to accept.

“I… can’t.”

“O-Oh! Ahaha…” Guinaifen nervously chuckled. “You know what, the whole thing is silly anyways, sorry for bringing something like that up… I’m be glad to keep being your bestie as is, Shangshang.”

“Wait! I didn’t mean to say it so definitively, it just slipped out.” Sushang retroactively covered her mouth. “I understand that it’s important to you and I… I care a lot about you too, Guinaifen. I don’t know how I feel about being ‘sworn sisters’ with you, it's just… I’ll give it some thought, okay?”

“I see!” Guinaifen laughed with much more energy this time. “If you don't indulge me in that, will you at least sit by my side for a few more minutes? I’m still enjoying the view.”

“Of course.”

After a minute of silence by each other’s side, their fingers still entwined, the young outworlder asked one more thing of her Xianzhou friend. “Could I ask for you to lean on me again? It felt nice…”

Sushang hummed an affirmation and gently laid her head on Guinaifen’s shoulder once more. She felt so comfortable that she could easily fall asleep in the cold. “Don’t expect me to do stuff like this all the time, okay?”

“I won’t…” The firecracker replied, staring off into the night.

Sushang: Why am I in your apartment?

☆LittleGui☆: gm !!

☆LittleGui☆: you passed out last night

☆LittleGui☆: it was honestly rlly cute.

☆LittleGui☆: i just took u home cuz like idk im not abt to head to the cloud knight hq and be like hello i have a passed out girl

☆LittleGui☆: so i slept on the couch u got the bed

☆LittleGui☆: ty for keeping my plushies company tonight <3

Sushang: Ah, I’m so sorry for making you have to deal with me. I guess I was more tired than I thought.

Sushang: Your bed is very comfortable though...

☆LittleGui☆: aww dw abt it, was my pleasure

Sushang: Better question, where are you? I’ve looked all around the apartment.

☆LittleGui☆: getting groceries… poor little gui doesn’t have enough food for 2 ppls breakfasts

☆LittleGui☆: ill be home soon take care (≧◡≦) ♡

Sushang: Can you get some popcorn?

☆LittleGui☆: you’re becoming an addict…

Sushang: (/● v ●)/