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rayneyroses · 1 year

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Fortune Preserver

Status: Commissioned and owned by @shuicheese. Thank you! ♥ Fandom: Genshin Impact Rating: General Audiences Characters: Xiao & Qiqi Labels: referenced death ao3: ❆

Description: The summer heat is unyielding and gives Qiqi quite a lot of trouble picking herbs in the mountains. Xiao finds her alone, unable to remember her purpose. He decides to accompany her on her journey to protect her from harm. But Qiqi is still troubled, since she must return before nightfall and the sun will set soon.

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮

Many people had died in the crossfire of battle as the yakshas fought the eternal remains of gods buried by time. Innocent bystanders who they meant to protect from the monsters fell victim to their endless altercations. What remained at the end of a victorious battle wasn’t sweet satisfaction but a bitter aftertaste in their mouths. There was no conciliation for the lives they took and for the damage they caused, so their karmic debt grew until it consumed them one by one.

Perhaps this guilt served as a convenient excuse for him to keep watch over the small figure in the distance. Whether it was due to his obligation to protect the people of Liyue or a silent desire to rectify one of thousands of wrongs, it didn’t matter. There was no use in debating these things with oneself.

Xiao’s piercing gaze oversaw the valley before him. Atop one of the many mountains that marked the landscape of Lisha, he stood to observe the Dunyu Ruins below. Usually, he tasked himself with watching the long road that went past Wangshu Inn and connected Mondstadt with Liyue Harbour. Today his battle had taken him to a different place. Otherwise, he would not have spotted the familiar girl searching for respite from the summer heat in the shade of a tree.

At first, he had acknowledged her presence, yet paid it no further mind. But as time passed, she didn’t move an inch from her spot in the grass, limbs stretched out in all directions and her eyes closed shut. Was she sleeping, or something more dire? His amber eyes were sharp, but he could not make out what was going on from over here.

He considered. Should he meddle? Perhaps not. She was probably sleeping.

More time passed. The girl had opened her eyes and was staring at the sky, unmoving. Her gaze held no purpose and seemed lifeless. Lost.

Xiao finally chose to cross the distance between them.

“You’ve been here for a while,” he spoke, summoning her attention, “and so have the Fatui that occupy the ruins nearby. It isn’t safe here.”

She tilted her head. Her pale eyes stared right through him.

“Safe… it’s not. Mh…” She sat up slowly. It took great effort for her to stretch her stiff limbs. “Here… where am I? I forgot.”

“These are the Dunyu Ruins, in Lisha,” he answered, then added, “in Liyue, the land of Geo. Do you remember why you’re here?”

She shook her head. After staring at him for a long moment she asked, “Who are you?”

The list of names people called him by was endless. But this one was the name that not only protected his identity, but also the one which he had grown most accustomed to.

“Call me Xiao. What’s your name?”

It was unnecessary to ask, but he did so anyway.

“…Qiqi. My name… it’s Qiqi.”

Qiqi got to her feet, moving as if her body was made out of wax. Her current state was far from optimal, but he found relief in the fact that she remembered her name. That explained the who and where, but they were still missing the why.

“Qiqi… perhaps you’re carrying something that we can use to determine why you’re here,” he suggested, though he was already coming up with a Plan B. If there was nothing that explained her purpose here, he was going to escort her back to Liyue Harbour. Personally, he preferred that option if only for the sake of her safety.

Qiqi looked down at her body and lay eyes on the bag she had discarded in the grass next to her… probably before she took a rest. By searching its contents, she found a familiar diary. She remembered touching the solid cover and opening the book to flip through its pages. But her search was aimless, and she soon held her head as it began spinning. Xiao waited for a while before he spoke.

“Do you need help?”

Qiqi looked up and grimaced. Giving her journal away meant handing away her guide to safety. At the same time, was it much use to her if she failed to find the page she needed? The writing felt like some foreign code to her right now.

With great hesitation, she finally handed him the book. Xiao accepted it with a nod and carefully scanned the pages. He noted that she had neat handwriting, and the notebook was kept tidy. There was an introduction with basic rules and information on Qiqi and people she seemed keen to remember. The middle part was on-going and meant for daily entries. He skipped ahead to check today’s date and found what he was looking for.

“It says here you are to gather a certain amount of Violetgrass during the day and return to Bubu Pharmacy at dusk,” he explained and handed over the book with the open page. Qiqi tried reading it again. This time, she was slowly able to make sense of the situation herself.

“I remember... I know where I have to go. The mountain between Dunyu Ruins and Lingju Pass… that's my next stop.”

Xiao nodded. “I’ll accompany you.”

“Why?” Qiqi asked, puzzled by the stranger’s kindness.

“The heat is daunting,” he explained, “and if you were to forget and lose consciousness again, it may prove fatal for your body.”

She considered her options. Had she lost consciousness? It was hard to tell. But her body felt like it was falling apart, and she wanted to return home as soon as possible.

“Mh... Qiqi’s still confused. Thank you for the help... but I have to keep all of the Violetgrass we find. Is that okay?”

“I have no use for them,” he agreed to her request. “Let’s go.”

Qiqi nodded and put her journal back into her bag. But right when she was about to take a step forward, the heat sent another pang of dizziness through her body. She held her head.

“It’s too hot…,” she uttered in despair. “I feel like I’m melting away. My body… my body. It’s going to rot.”

Qiqi was undead, he knew as much. Centuries back, she had been bestowed with a cryo vision when death was about to strike her down. He remembered this vividly and with much guilt. The cold of her vision was meant to protect her body from disintegrating and growing foul. But in her weakened state and the scorching heat, perhaps that wasn’t enough to preserve her.

“I will be right back.”

In the blink of an eye, Xiao disappeared. Qiqi stood there, puzzled. But since there was nothing else she could do, she waited as he had instructed.

He remembered seeing mist flowers grow nearby. Once he had found the plant, he knelt by the water turned to ice and plucked three of the corollas. The cold pierced his fingertips. Hopefully, this was going to work as he intended.

Just as quickly as he had vanished, Xiao returned with a gust of wind. It ruffled Qiqi’s clothes, and she pressed a hand to the talisman on her forehead until it subsided. Xiao offered her the flowers in his hands, and she stepped closer to accept them with great relief. The icy cold spread from her hands through her limbs, soothing her entire body. She sighed and held them to her chest while they rejuvenated her.

Xiao waited patiently while she calmed down, content he had managed to ease her pain at least momentarily. Once she was ready to move, she looked down at her clothes and her bag. If she was going to gather herbs, she needed her hands free. But she also wanted to keep the flowers as close as possible…

“Why don’t you tie them to your bag?”

Xiao’s question dragged her out of her slowed thoughts. She considered, then nodded.

“Should I do it?” he asked, and she nodded again. Qiqi handed the flowers over and Xiao tied their stems to the strap of her bag, careful so they wouldn’t tear. Once they were properly secured, he stepped back and let her examine his work. The cold was pleasantly numbing her body. In the burning heat, it would give her enough safety to continue her task.

“It’s good. Thank you… ah.” She paused and brought a finger to her lips as she thought. After a moment, she shook her head. “I forgot your name… sorry.”

It seemed the flowers wouldn’t fix her problem so easily. But he could tell her ability to speak and move had improved, so that meant progress.

“It’s alright. My name is Xiao. If you forget again, ask away. I won’t mind.”

Qiqi nodded her head in gratitude. Contrasting his stern appearance, the person in front of her was patient. Xiao… even if she had trouble remembering right now, it felt familiar. Perhaps she could read it up in her notebook later.

“Qiqi’s ready to go now. Can we leave?”

Xiao agreed silently and they started walking.

The pitter patter of frogs hopping alongside the shore and the gentle waves lapping at the rocks piercing the nearby stream were the only sound to be heard amidst their footsteps. They trod side by side until they reached the great golden-knot wood tree near three paths crossing. Above them, the sun bathed the world in its burning light, obstructed by only a few clouds. Many would have considered this a lovely day. Xiao remembered being told by Rex Lapis and the God of Wind that beauty lay in the eye of the beholder. He figured there were a lot more things in this world that were like that.

The fluttering of Cicin wings reached his ears. Qiqi reached for her sword while she determined the source of the noise, but Xiao was faster. Swift as the wind, he summoned his spear and hoisted himself into the air. They failed to put as much as a scratch on him. His weapon pierced their bodies effortlessly. The monsters’ trilling and cries faded into silence as they fizzled out before they returned to elemental dust.

“You’re protecting Qiqi…” she noted once he had returned to her side. “Thank you.”

Gratitude. He still wasn’t used to this feeling.

“It’s my duty to protect. Think nothing of it.” Xiao turned towards the path ahead, eager to continue. “Let’s go.”

A bit puzzled by his behaviour, she nodded her head. Right now, she didn’t quite get what was going on, but it was something to think about later.

She followed in his footsteps as he led the way. Step by step, her body adjusted. They snuck past Hilichurls and Fatui Agents. When they had to cross pools of water, Xiao grasped her hand to help her climb up rocks and riverbeds. Soon, they reached the side of the mountain that was easiest to scale. Despite the time pressure, she had to do a couple of stretches before she was ready to climb up where the herbs grew. While she exercised, Xiao kept a watchful eye on their surroundings. Thanks to his effort, she was able to finish quickly.

“The sun is about to set. You said you must return by nighttime, correct?”

“Yeah...” she replied with an underlying sense of anxiety. “That's the order I gave myself.”

“Then let's focus on our search for now.”

Qiqi harvested the few plants they found. She was careful to preserve the roots and used her cryo vision to cool the herbs without damaging them. It was necessary to ensure they would stay fresh and lively throughout her journey. But they found fewer herbs than anticipated... somebody must've come to pluck Violetgrass before the summer heat had overwhelmed Qiqi. As the sky turned shades of crimson and gold, her anguish grew. The exhaustion was clear on her face. She was running out of time. At first Xiao chose to stay focused on their task, keen to complete it - but it soon became clear that it was an impossible feat. Despite the impending failure however, Qiqi kept climbing and walking, driven to fulfil what she had asked of herself.

When the sun was threatening to touch upon the horizon, he could stay idle no longer.

“We are out of time. What we have gathered by now will have to suffice,” he declared.

“I can't. I can't... go against an order. I have to...” Qiqi muttered.

She reached out to hold her head, dazed. A Jiangshi like her was meant to act only upon orders given by the one who had awoken them. However, while her cryo vision and the adeptal power bestowed upon her body had given her strength, the reason for her survival had been her overpowering wish to live. She was a special case and so, she had to give orders to herself.

Xiao stopped and spoke.

“Can I look at your book one more time?”

Qiqi paused, uncertain of what to do. It conflicted with her mission. But as if guided by an unseen force, she managed to pull the journal from her bag and handed it to the adeptus. Xiao accepted it, acknowledging that it had taken a great deal of strength from her.

Golden eyes skimmed the pages as he flipped through them. When he found an entry that caught his attention, he read it carefully.

He had discovered what he was looking for but was uncertain how to proceed.

“If you want to help Qiqi give up on an order, you must hug her and show her she is loved. Only if you succeed will she be able to rest.”

After a moment of silence, Xiao returned the book with a nod. His gaze wandered across the sky, an uncertain Qiqi by his side. She turned and her feet carried her forward, pulled by invisible strings.

If she could cry, this was certainly one of the few times she felt most like doing so. The strain on her body and the lack of time clashed with her mission. There was no escaping it. It was a despair unseen to the naked eye. It sat deep in her chest and made her bones ache. A cold spread through her limbs that was nothing like the comforting ice she knew from her vision, or the mist flowers tied around her bag.

Suddenly, she was held back by her shoulder. At first, she tried to pull away. When it was no use, she turned around.

In her anguish, she had almost forgotten about Xiao’s presence. That made it even more confusing when he got to his knees and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug.

Xiao wasn't sure what he should do. As rarely as he had felt the embrace of another person, he knew how to give a hug. But the rest... he wasn’t certain. How did humans express love? Was it different because she was a special case? There were no further instructions in her journal. Throughout his life, he had heard of countless ways to express love too. But would it be genuine if it came from a stranger like him?

A memory flitted past his inner eye. There was one thing he knew… one thing that had helped him through his darkest times. Because he knew of nothing else to do, he decided to go with his instincts.

Xiao began to hum a song while he held Qiqi in his arms. The melody had saved him many years ago and was still ingrained in his mind. Whenever karmic debt threatened to devour him whole, his feet carried him out to the borders of Liyue to listen to the Dihua Flute. While the morning sun shed its first light upon the marsh, the weight on his body would ease. For just a little longer, he was allowed to escape his own madness.

The sun had set. While Xiao hummed his melody, the heat of the day gave way to the cool of the night. A lone tear slid down Qiqi's cheek. As it ran across her skin, the budding ice crystals inside glistened in the moonlight.

When the melody stopped, she noticed that she had wrapped her arms around him in return. Something inside her felt pleasantly warm. It was familiar… Perhaps it reminded her of home. Some memories could never be truly taken from her.

When Qiqi's grip on him eased up, he slowly let go of her.

“Are you able to move on?” He asked.

“Yeah... I think so.” The strange pull on her heartstrings had melted away with the rise of the moon. She regretted that she wasn't able to complete her task, but it was no longer tearing her up inside. Qiqi looked at Xiao and, for the first time, into his eyes.

“Thank you.”

She decided to write an entry about him in her notebook, so she wouldn’t forget.

╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯

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