Chapter Text
Spread across the unkempt sheets of her bed, a well rested Qingque is woken up only by the orange rays of sunlight piercing through the gaps in her curtains. She stretches her legs and rolls softly to her side as she wakes up, reaching for her phone.
My alarm’s in 15 minutes… Ehh, could’ve been worse…
Qingque hardly had a use for her alarm since moving into her apartment, the sun always did her job for her, whether she wanted to or not. She leans up against her headrest to take in her surroundings. She glances at the decently sized bedroom window, and the ray of light it always casted directly over where her head rested. Qingque wonders why her apartment specifically had to get so much sun in the mornings, or why she hadn’t moved her bed from its spot to avoid the issue entirely.
I guess there’s something convenient about it, even if it’s a pain on days off… Qingque accepts after not caring to think about it further.
Her eyes drift downwards assessing the state of her bed. Her sheets were heavily displaced, like usual, and her large fish shaped pillow that she slept with had fallen onto the floor as she woke up. Qingque loved how her faint sky blue sheets gave off the appearance of an ocean that she peacefully rested in. She supposes the fish pillow is extra fitting, on top of representing her love of celestial jade.
Welp… Time to get a move on! She tells herself before letting out a final prolonged stretch and pulling herself out of bed, slipping her feet into her sparrow shaped slippers and shuffling towards her kitchen.
After making herself something easy, she uses her extra time to take an extra long shower, waking her up more and allowing her to more properly condition her hair. Qingque reckons she needed it. Braids with pigtails is a more taxing hairstyle than most people process in her eyes, but she can't complain, she loved how it looked. She felt like a well furbished bird nest, waiting for a tired bird to come roost after a long day of foraging.
…
She hopes that never actually happens though.
After finishing up with her hair, she slipped into her usual outfit and fastened her sparrow hair accessory to finish the look, before stuffing her phone into her handbag and leaving the front door of her apartment.
She turns around before locking her door, taking in the sight of her cramped yet cozy apartment. Qingque can’t really complain about its size, getting an apartment this close to the Exalting Sanctum for the price she paid was remarkable. What she could complain about was the flight of stairs she’s had to climb down every day. She hopes the landlord gets the elevator fixed one day, although Qingque knows he probably won't until a literal paraplegic becomes one of his tenants. Qingque can’t complain though, the stairs probably helped keep her in shape considering how much lounging around all day she does.
By now Qingque was wide awake, making her way towards the nearest port so she can catch the next starskiff over to the Divination Commission. Qingque laments how nice it must be to own a personal starskiff, not that it’d ever be affordable on her budget, and not that she’d use it that much anyways. Would she even know where to go if she had one? Her life was relatively self contained, she hardly knew of many cool places to go visit.
Qingque reckons she doesn’t mind all that much, and drops the thought, pulling out her jade abacus to play a round of celestial jade while she waits for her starskiff to arrive.
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After painstakingly pacing herself through another stack of paperwork, she glances at the clock before groaning and dropping her head back onto her desk.
Only 1pm?!? I'm never getting out of here…
Qingque’s shift officially ends at 5pm, she knows she isn't going to work for another two dual-hours, but Qingque knows that her boss knows that too.
The thought deflates her, her boss has always been one step ahead of her recently, regardless of where she sneaks off to. Exalting Sanctum? Alchemy Commision? Starskiff Haven? She even finds her in the Artisanship Commission. Why would she even think to check there? She at least hopes her fascination with the construction of Celestial Jade tables has remained secret, she reckons it's a bit embarrassing.
Regardless, that wasn't going to stop Qingque from attempting to sneak out of work, she just hates that her boss knows that.
Why is the Master Diviner so concerned over someone like me anyways? I'm the lowest ranked worker in the whole commission!
Qingque grumbles to herself, out of personal annoyance, but also a slight sense of guilt. She wishes that the person who always dragged her back wasn't one of the most important people in the Luofu.
Ah well, that's not gonna stop me!
Qingque brushes off her mental stalling and files away her uncompleted paperwork before leaving the library and sneaking her way out of the commission.
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Qingque's whims brought her to Aurum Alley today; she felt like she had the disposable income to treat herself to a drink and a couple snacks. Above all else though, she was still really tired, hoping to offset it with a warm comforting tea.
Might not hurt to get some milk candy too, in case Master Diviner shows up, teehee.
Qingque can't help but chuckle at the thought, her boss’ sweet tooth was so blatant and easy to exploit, one of her few safeguards against her boss’ wrath. She makes sure to pick up the milk candy first, before taking a seat at Du’s Teahouse.
Qingque admired the small groups of people commuting through the alley, soaking in the sounds of cargo ships offloading at the nearby dock. When her tea arrived, she took a hearty sip, savouring its flavour profile in the core of her body.
An oolong tea blend with added peach flavouring and a hint of citrus. A complex flavour profile that was engaging yet not overwhelming to the senses. More importantly for Qingque in that moment, it was very warm and filling, giving her the immediate sense of rejuvenation she was hoping for.
She soaked in her surroundings once more before calmly lifting herself from her chair and continuing her shopping spree. Qingque considered it lucky that the alley's shops weren't against food from other businesses, their long history in the alley must've forged a sort of comradery between them all.
She found herself seated at the food stall the dragon lady always found herself praising. For a good reason! Qingque reckons, the food here is really good. For a moment longer, Qingque absorbed the serenity of the environment around her, before an all too familiar force was placed on her shoulder.
“I hope you had your fun Qingque, it's time to head back to the Divination Commission, I can always assign you more work if you really have nothing better to do.”
Fu Xuan’s voice was unwavering yet monotone, she had dragged Qingque back to the commission so many times by now, it was all too familiar an interaction for her to feel any sort of outrage or surprise. Despite this, she always made sure to leave no room for Qingque to refute her, not that she would dare refute anything to her boss' face.
“S-Sorry master divi-” was all she could softly mutter before the stall’s owner came to serve their table.
“Here's your berrypheasant skewers Miss Qingque, And hello Master Diviner! it's an honour as always, shall I get you the usual?”
Qingque watched Fu Xuan's face freeze up at the sudden complication, the surprise and slight embarrassment of the situation manifesting as beads of sweat along the side of her face. Qingque audibly chuckles at the sight, placing her arm over her mouth in a half hearted attempt to hide it from her superior.
Eventually, Qingque spares the three of them from Fu Xuan's stagnation. “The usual’s fine, add it to my tab Auntie.”
“Sure thing, won't be too long.” She exclaims before retreating to her stall, reserving any judgement she may or may not have had for their interaction. The bewilderment on Fu Xuan's face had now manifested into an agape mouth which Fu Xuan hastily hid with her hands.
“Why would you order food for me now?!? We got a job to get back to!” Fu Xuan's voice was soft yet aggressive, her simultaneous shock and frustration with the situation projecting through her voice.
The situation was now dawning onto Qingque as well. Why was I so willing to cover for the Master Diviner of all people? She's probably rich!
Not to mention that Fu Xuan was right, She's probably got so much work to do, I’m so fired…
“I-I was trying to save you some face, you froze up for a while,,,” Qingque nervously muttered out, doing nothing to stop her severe guilt and nervousness from creeping onto her expression.
By all means, Fu Xuan probably had the right to tear into her, but instead, her actions shocked Qingque and probably Fu Xuan herself.
“I understand, thank you Qingque. And thank you for covering for me as well.” Fu Xuan said calmly before sitting down opposite her and letting out a large exhale. She wore a soft smile in an attempt to show her genuinity, but only served to clutter her brian further.
What?!?
Is she just being polite? Am I being toyed with? How could she not be upset at me right now? I'm her lowest ranking worker, I'm taking her time again, why is she being so friendly to me in *this* situation of all things?
Fu Xuan notes Qingque's continued hesitancy and dawns a more standard unamused expression. “I'm not that scary, am I?”
Resisting the urge to be honest and getting killed by her boss, Qingque tries to be honest through her fear. “I'm sorry…if you're not upset at me I'll take your word for it, I just…”
“I'm not. I promise.” The master diviner replies bluntly.
“Alright then, I'm gonna need a bit to adjust, but I believe you, sorry…”
“Hmm, that's alright, it's only fair.” Fu Xuan shifts her chair closer to their table, maintaining her straight posture flush with the chair. “You don't have to say sorry to me so often, again, it really is fine.”
Qingque can't help but question that logic, not over the self loathing in her system.
“It's fine? I don't really know how you could say that to me of all people, I drag you out of work basically every day now.”
Qingque's voice grows quieter as she finishes her sentence. She wants to plead to Fu Xuan, "I'm sorry, please don't fire me…”, but her words no longer come out of her mouth.
Fu Xuan closes her eyes and pauses, thinking about her response.
“This isn't the Qingque I know. Your confidence is normally unwavering. If your headspace is this poor, I'm here for you.”
The way Fu Xuan took on such a gentle and genuine voice really snapped Qingque back to normal. Partially because she was right, she hadn't been feeling the best this past month, but also because she didn't want to take Fu Xuan's generosity for granted.
The way Fu Xuan leaned forward onto the table, placing her hand onto Qingque's arm, staring at her with genuine care reflecting in her golden eyes. Qingque couldn't help but blush at the appreciation she was receiving, she loved seeing a more tender side to the Master Diviner.
Qingque pulls herself off the table and straightens herself up, wearing a fragile but genuine smile on her face. “I'm a bit better now, thank you Master Diviner. Sorry I forced that vulnerability out of you.”
Fu Xuan was visibly relieved at the librarian's mood improvement, adjusting back to a normal seating position. “I didn't say anything I didn't believe, I care about all my employees,” Fu Xuan shifts back to her usual unamused tone “even the ones that I gotta drag back to work.”
Qingque finds a newfound comfort in her boss' regular tone of voice. “Hehe, thank you Master Diviner.” Her smile and posture had mostly regained its usual confidence to the delight of them both. They both enjoyed their newfound comfort before Qingque let things get too awkward.
“You can feel free to have some skewers by the way, I'm sure your food's going to be a while.”
“If you insist, although I'm definitely going to split the bill with you then, it's only fair.”
“Alright then, it's a deal!”
“Qingque, don't let your tea get too cold.”
“O-oh yeah, good call!” Qingque had completely forgotten about the tea, the real reason she was here in the first place. Remembering the tea reminded her about something else she'd also bought.
“Here!” She thrust a small ornate box to the center of the table, a box the both of them were all too familiar with, and opened it revealing the sparrow shaped milk candies inside.
“Oh wow. So you bought my bribe while you were out too?” Fu Xuan lets off a faint but knowing smirk.
“Was it really that obvious a bribe?”
“It is when you keep using it.”
“It keeps working though!” Qingque says with a mischievous grin on her face.
Fu Xuan lets off a small shrug, “what can I say, they're good” Fu Xuan laments before popping one into her mouth.
“You sure do love your sweets. I bet whatever drink you ordered is loaded with sugar.”
Fu Xuan lets off a soft yet revealing stutter, all but confirming Qingque's suspicion. “I'd never be that predictable…”
“One Startaro Bubble Tea and a side of tuskpir wraps!” Tall Auntie slides the order in front of Fu Xuan. Qingque suppresses a laugh,
“Yep, the sugariest thing on the menu…”
Fu Xuan couldn’t help but let off a soft blush, she played right into Qingque's words and she couldn't deny it. A nod and a soft thank you was all she could mutter to Tall Auntie before she left their table.
Manifesting her confidence back, Fu Xuan pierces through Qingque's soul with her glare, “Another word out of you and I'll personally throw your body off the edge of the Luofu.”
A serious Fu Xuan will never not shake Qingque to her core, even over such a hyperbolic threat. “U-understood!”
…
“You think they'd let you get away with that?”
“...With murdering you?”
“Mhm!”
“Definitely not. I’d hope not.”
“Hmph…Lucky me!”
Fu Xuan can't help but smile as she shakes her head. “Lucky you…”
“You'd hope I'm lucky with all the Celestial Jade I play.” Qingque grows a toothy grin on her face.
“If only you put half the effort you put into Celestial Jade into your work.”
“Celestial Jade is like my baby! kinda literally in a sense, it's different you know?”
Fu Xuan smirks, “That is true, you're perhaps the only person actually qualified to say something that ridiculous.”
Qingque chuckles in response, “You know, you're one of the few people who knows I'm behind modern Celestial Jade, I reckon the only other people who'd know are the people I commissioned in the Artisanship Commission. It's worth it though, the tiles they create are beautiful. Not even my close friends know, it's sooooooo tempting to say something but I haven't yet. I know my friends would wanna make a content farm out of me anyways, not worth it!”
When Qingque finishes rambling she notices Fu Xuan leaning forward on the tables, her arms propping her head, captivated by Qingque's sudden burst of passion. Qingque is equally captivated by this, shocked that the Master Diviner finds so much interest in her hobby.
“Does that imply your friends do content creation?”
“Yeah you could say that, do you remember…sigh, ”Little Gui” from when we were possessed by heliobi?” Qingque really hates that pseudonym, she feels embarrassment every time she's forced to acknowledge it.
Fu Xuan remained leaned forward. “Oh yeah, her. She seemed nice, I was watching her when the possessions were still happening. I still do occasionally, it's a good time filler, she seems like she'd be tiring to be friends with, although I obviously don't know her.”
“It can be, but it's really not that bad, I thrive in a little bit of chaos.” Qingque smirks. “Beats the surface level interactions you get from people at work.”
Fu Xuan's expression goes monotone. “People go to work to go to work, not make small talk.”
Qingue adds a soft whininess to her articulation, “Come on, I'm a person too I wanna be treated like one! Also you can't deny it, you're enjoying this at least a little bit.”
Fu Xuan pauses for a second, “I suppose you're right, it's only fair to resent such a sterile workplace... I think such a working environment helps me, but I'm sure most people would agree with you.”
“I can't blame you for how you feel, some people can be too much!”
Fu Xuan chuckles to herself. “The current cauldron master is so flirty with me, I think it psyches me out a little.” Fu Xuan hesitantly admits as she knowingly adds to the gossip.
Qingque holds herself back from cutting her off, practically slamming her fist into the table at how hard Fu Xuan's gripe has struck a chord with her. “Every time I deliver her a paper or request some medicine she calls me her ‘cute little sparrow' with that stupid knowing smile on her face! She's such a bully!”
…
“Sigh… she's lucky I'm such a raging lesbian.” Qingque mutters with zero hesitation.
Fu Xuan reflexively covers her mouth, partially out of shock and partially out of amusement at Qingque's statement.
“She is… very pretty indeed.”
Qingque jolts up at the sudden realisation, “you also like women Master Diviner?”
Fu Xuan’s ears turn pink at the realisation of what she just revealed, “You would probably call me a lesbian, yes.” she says as her legs softly kick under the table.
“You’re so real for that Master Diviner. You get me.”
“I do. I do.” Fu Xuan mutters, avoiding eye contact with Qingque's enthusiasm while holding a reserved smile on her face.
Both coworkers go silent after their interaction, enjoying their food as well as the liveliness of the alley around them. Qingque finds herself surprised with how much she is enjoying her time with Fu Xuan.
Qingque's social life doesn't extend far past time spent with her game buddies or with Guinafen, Sushang, and whoever else they drag along with them. She's grateful she has the friends she does, Aeons knows what she'd do without them, but Qingque rarely found herself in calmer social situations, the kind where she could immerse herself in the environment around her, have small talk that was so casual yet genuine.
The dread she felt upon her arrival has all but faded. 2 hours ago Qingque would've never felt this way about her boss, but she would be lying to herself if she didn't admit she was loving their time hanging out. If only she knew how Fu Xuan felt back.
A sudden question comes to the forefront of Qingque's mind, one she can't help but ask.
“I'm happy you're not, but…” Qingque hesitates, but the thought is already out of her mouth.
“...why aren't you upset at me right now?”
Fu Xuan slightly tilts her head to the side. “About what?”
“I drag you away from work every day, why'd you even humour a proper conversation with me?”
Fu Xuan stares blankly before mellowing into a soft smile. “I account for my daily break to bring you back, the truth is, I probably wouldn't give myself a proper break otherwise.” Fu Xuan pauses for a moment, struggling to articulate her thoughts and decide what she should say to the person whom her daily breaks concern.
“I can't be angry at this anymore, because I know deep down I probably need this. Taking proper breaks is hard when there's always so much to do and I know I could be working… The excuse is nice.”
She stops before letting herself get too emotional. Fu Xuan draws back her arms and straightens her posture, reserved yet formal as she always is. Qingque feels a surge of different emotions slap her in the face all at once.
Concern for Fu Xuan's wellbeing, validation that she wasn't being such a nuisance to her, happiness that she was this open to her in the first place. All her thoughts, her feelings, her newfound care for her boss manifests in a warm smile and an arm extended out for her reluctant boss.
What am I doing? I don't even really know how she's feeling, this has gotta come off so mockingly. Why aren't I saying anything?
Qingque's mind can't help but flood itself with doubt, but for Fu Xuan, actions speak louder than words as she grabs her hand back with a newfound cheeriness.
“I'm not usually like this. Thank you Qingque… sorry about that.”
“Hey, you might have forgotten but I was quite the mess too when we started talking. If I can be vulnerable, so can you.” Qingque's voice was soft and to the point, Fu Xuan can't help but reciprocate with a soft tone of her own.
“Hmm, alright then, thank you.”
After a moment, their hands separate as Qingque continues, “I don't know what kind of work you have to deal with Master Diviner, but you should probably take some *real* breaks that aren't chasing me around.”
Fu Xuan silently shakes her head, “You misunderstand, I don't really know where you go when you sneak out. I have a few guesses, as I'm sure you can imagine, but I like using the opportunity to walk around the Luofu.
Fu Xuan's voice once again grows solemn as she breaks eye contact with Qingque, “I think even if I wasn't using the excuse of finding you, I would choose to keep doing it. I like immersing myself in the place that I've given up so much to protect.
Qingque's face softens as she takes in the passion and honesty from Fu Xuan's words. This however, doesn't stop her from giving a snarky reply.
“So you're saying skip out on work more often? Got it boss!”
“That is by no means an approval of your behaviour Qingque…”
Qingque's knowing smirk remains, unwavering in the face of her boss' stern reply.
Teasing the Master Diviner like this is way too fun.
“...I certainly won't be indulging you like this ever again.”
The smirk on Qingque's face was gone. She doesn't understand why, but hearing these words upset her more than any workplace related threat ever had.
‘Ok…’ is all she manages to mutter out before Fu Xuan takes her silence as an opportunity to wrap things up. “I think it's time we get back to the Divination Commission Qingque.” It was as if a switch had flipped within Fu Xuan's brain reminding her that she was slacking with her coworker on company time.
Qingque silently nods, unafraid to say anything else as they split the payment for their food and begin exiting the alley together.
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Both girls were silent on their way back to the Divination Commission, the departure from their flourishing conversation before was harrowing to Qingque.
I should've known this was how she felt, all I've done is waste her time.
Why would she ever want to get close to someone like me?
The thoughts she had on their way back were more akin to berates at her character.
Seemingly noticing this, a previously reserved Fu Xuan let out her hand behind her, encouraging Qingque to grab on with a soft welcoming smile, not too dissimilar from Qingque's gesture from earlier.
Qingque accepts. The sudden contact washes away all her insecurities as the two of them approach the commission, only a couple minutes away.
Qingque doesn't know how her boss feels about her, or why Fu Xuan made her feel so much calmer. All she knows is that this can't be the last she sees of this side of Fu Xuan.
The side of Fu Xuan that was comforting enough to chatter with, caring enough to calm her down, honest enough to be open about uncomfortable topics.
She no longer wanted to view Fu Xuan as her overbearing boss. Qingque taps on Fu Xuan's shoulder as she prepares to utter a sentence she never thought she could say.
“Master Diviner, would you want to do something together again, you know… outside of work.”
The smile on Fu Xuan's face was wide and earnest, as if she was begging for Qingque to say those exact words to her.
“I’d love to Qingque, would you want to do something this weekend?”
Recovering from the trauma of willingly giving up her free time, Qingque replies with an earnest nod. “Do you have a pen and paper Master Diviner?”
Fu Xuan nods as she hands Qingque a small notepad with a pen clipped into the next empty page. Without a word, Qingque writes down her phone number and hands the notebook back.
Fu Xuan opens the notebook, her face going pink as she realises what Qingque wrote for her. “I'll be in touch, Qingque.”
The two of them have long since autopiloted through the commission's doors, now approaching Fu Xuan's office, skipping past the library where Qingque works. By now there were mere minutes of Qingque's shift left anyways.
“I still have a couple hours of work I need to do before I can feel good going home. Don't worry, it won't be too long.” Qingque can't help but feel touched at how her worry for Fu Xuan's schedule is being kept in mind.
“I understand, thank you for today… I'll be seeing you tomorrow, and this weekend I suppose.” Qingque chuckles sheepishly.
…
“Qingque?”
“Yes?”
“At work, I'm the Master Diviner, but outside of it, I'd like to be Fu Xuan to you. Is that okay?”
“Of course! Mast- er sorry, I mean Fu Xuan. I'll get used to it, I promise.”
Fu Xuan smiles before waving to Qingque as the office door closes, leaving Qingque alone as she goes to exit the commission once more.
The sunset flush with the lights emitted by divination matrices was a sight to behold, Qingque made sure to fully appreciate it, seeing as how she never stayed as late as her job's actual departure time.
Qingque was overzealous that her boss seemed equally as enthusiastic about hanging out again. Nothing could get her mood down, not even the fact that she didn't actually get to play any Celestial Jade today.
Maybe such a beautiful sky was the stars telling her that she made the right choice, a well respected and very plastered Guinafen once told her that you miss every shot you don't take.
Qingque's life didn't let her take many shots, she was happy that when life presented her with one, she took it without hesitation.
Anything to feel as happy again as she did today.