đź’§ Ganyu x Neuvillette đź’§ Ice that Melts like the Tears of Yore
She had no idea how she had managed to find herself this far away from home. During her little expedition, she had not only crossed an entire region outside of Liyue, but also end up right on the border of yet another region. She considered backtracking and heading home, but that meant crossing the entire desert yet again, an expedition that she was completely unprepared for. The safest option would be for Ganyu to cross over to Fontaine and find her way to the path connecting to Liyue from there. The trip wouldn’t be a complete waste this way, as it could perhaps be a chance for her to gather some intel for Rex Lapis, that is, if he still harbored interest in foreign affairs.
Using her frostflake arrows, Ganyu constructed an ice bridge allowing her to safely cross the sea dividing Fontaine and Sumeru, though the natives gave her a most unusual look upon taking her first steps on solid land. Was it due to her being an interloper upon their society? Or was it her horns causing her to stand out like a sore thumb amongst the natives? The latter explanation wouldn’t make much sense to her, as Ganyu had already encountered other non-humans walking amongst the population and appearing to hold rather significant positions as officers.
Maybe, it was her involuntary shivering out of fear due to all eyes feeling like they were fixated on her. Maybe she should’ve taken the long way back, but Ganyu wasn’t up for a trek through Sumeru again quite yet.
It was too late for that anyways, as she took the elevator up to venture deeper into Fontaine. The region appeared rather well developed at first glance, so Ganyu was somewhat hopeful that the risk of becoming lost in the wilderness was far lower than the wilds of Sumeru.
Ganyu was mentally preparing herself to call for one of those aquabuses, but it seemed as if a stranger on the other side of the stream had done so already. On the bright side, this meant that she didn’t have to go through the trouble of calling one for herself, but it also meant an awkwardly silent ride with someone who in all likelihood would give her the most soul crushing stink eye a Fontaine resident possibly could. No matter how she looked at it, it felt like a lose-lose situation for her. Then again, the choices and events leading up to her arrival in Fontaine had been nothing but lose-lose.
The aquabus arrived, and Ganyu took a seat as far away from the guide as she possibly could. One other person, who must’ve been the one to have called for the aquabus, took a seat across from her and rested his cane beside him.
This very quickly became awfully inconvenient for Ganyu. She was captivated by this man’s noble appearance, drowning out the words of the guide with her panic-stricken internal monologue. His long white hair, stunning amethyst eyes, and towering height has Ganyu’s attention in a chokehold. His posture exhibited an authority that she cannot help but naturally respect, yet his crystalline eyes had an aura of softness and wisdom.
She knew that it was incredibly rude to stare, but Ganyu couldn’t take her eyes off of this man. She had to pry her gaze away somehow, as she could feel herself becoming flustered rather quickly just by looking at him.
Such was the life of generally being shy around people, and this man wasn’t helping her by being so…gorgeous. Something about him just drew Ganyu to him, giving her the urge to strike up a casual conversation.
In fact, it was if Ganyu saw someone she knew quite well in him. He had the exact same draconic look as Zhongli did in his eyes.
Who was she kidding? Ganyu, for the life of her, couldn’t even survive a conversation with a fellow adeptus half the time, let alone a dragon so elegant and dashing. She hid her face in her palms attempting to cover up her sheer embarrassment, though this only highlighted her painfully obvious turmoil.
"You aren’t from around here, are you?" the man said to her softly.
That was him speaking to me, wasn’t it? He couldn’t have been referring to anyone else, she thought.
"I harbor no ill intent," he continued. "You seem to be quite different from others that I have encountered, and perhaps also a little lost."
"M-maybe," Ganyu forced herself to say. "I got a little ahead of myself and came all the way here from Liyue."
"Liyue...it has been quite a while since I last communicated directly with a visitor from outside of Fontaine. What brings you here, may I inquire?"
"I... I don’t know. I made it through Sumeru, but I’m trying to take the path through Fontaine back to Liyue. I can turn back now and cross Sumeru again if my presence happens to be f-forbidden!"
The man shook his head. "Fear not, Furina may act as if she rules this land with an iron fist, but I will make sure that she does not act out of line to endanger your stay. In fact, I welcome you to Fontaine, as it has been quite some time since I have personally spoken to an adeptus."
"A...Adeptus? H-how did you know?"
"Those horns are a clear indicator of your bloodline, and my assumptions are simply confirmed by your Liyue heritage," he said with a soft chuckle.
Ganyu had a strange feeling that it was more than her horns that gave away who she really was. This man seemed able to discern something that others would normally not be able to perceive, horns aside, at first glance.
"...Teyvat is home to a multitude of different species, though. Why was adeptus your first guess and not, say, a mountain goat? Thats what everyone thought I was for the longest time..."
"I know precisely what I am looking at," he said, narrowing his eyes at her. It only makes sense that divine beings would recognize other divine beings. Does that mean that Ganyu’s hunch held some form of validity?
"S-Sir, are you perhaps a-"
Ganyu was cut off in the middle of her sentence, as the man put a finger to his lips to signal for her to be quiet.
So I was right, she thought, that he was indeed not just a mere human. We both must know that neither of us exactly belong these ranks, and are also perhaps a little self-conscious about this fact.
"Pray, forgive my discourtesy as I have yet to properly introduce myself," the man said. "I am Neuvillette, Fontaine’s chief justice and nothing more."
"I’m sorry, I should’ve introduced myself before I got a little too personal. I’m Ganyu, secretary of the Liyue Qixing."
Neuvillette held out his hand as an offering to exchange a shake with Ganyu, but she quickly pulled her hand close and averted her gaze. He was not, however, offended by her reaction. Neuvillette looked at Ganyu with understanding that she wasn’t quite ready for such a gesture just yet.
Their attention was diverted to the stopping of the aquabus, as they had reached the end of this line. Ganyu remained seated as Neuvillette grabbed his cane and stood up, but he did not walk off quite yet.
"After you," he said, directing his cane towards the steps.
Ganyu was still quite shocked from the amount of courtesy and respect he was treating an outsider like her with. On the surface, he seemed quite intimidating, but his demeanor was the exact opposite of that. Ganyu wanted to get away from him, not because she was scared per say, but because she felt a little too embarrassed to be in his presence. She quickly got out of her seat and stepped off of the aquabus, but dared not venture into the crowd before her. All of their eyes would be on her, and who knows how many strangers would snicker and sneer at her distinct appearance.
Neuvillette walked off of the aquabus and stood rather close to Ganyu. He felt even taller now that she was standing directly beside him, and she averted her gaze in order to not be reminded of this fact.
"Not one for crowds, I presume?" he asked.
Ganyu quicky shook her head.
"If you need a quiet place to reside in, the courthouse has been fairly empty as of late. The only nuisance that may be an issue is the archon and her discourteous attitude, though I suggest that you would be better off not listening to her elaborate shows of whining and complaining."
"So, you’re saying to simply disregard the nation’s literal archon. Thats..."
"She cannot bring any harm to you," Neuvillette reassured. "That would spell for major international conflicts."
"Still...it’s…no trouble really. I can take care of myself just fine."
"Not in your current state," he said while signaling for another line, "You are far too exhausted from your travels and your work. Allow me to invite you to stay with me for some time, as a gift from one nation’s divine being to another."
He wasn’t wrong about Ganyu’s lack of sleep, but she was still rather hesitant to accept the offer from him. There had to be some strings attached, right? Or maybe, this was some sort of ploy to drag Ganyu into something incredibly sinister.
Neuvillete had that same softness that she saw in Zhongli, which was nothing like the bloodthirsty gaze of Osial who had tried to sink the lands prior. Still, she was desperately trying to think of any excuse possible to not go with him, as she was having a rather difficult time dealing with just how dashing a Fontaine dragon apparently was.
Ganyu had two options. One was to get lost amongst the crowds and risk the entire region negatively perceiving her, or be almost completely alone with Neuvillette as her unfortunate partner.
She’s been through worse. Ganyu’s has even fought under Rex Lapis’s command, so how was allowing Neuvillette to care for her any different?
In fact, she could could think of many reasons, but she quickly tried to forced those thoughts out of her mind.
"Alright," she said with a sigh, "but only if you promise that I am not overstaying my welcome."
"Worry not, from Fontaine to Liyue, I welcome you to stay as long as you need."
Their ride to the courthouse was rather silent. Ganyu still refused to sit near Neuvillette, despite somehow acquainting herself with him rather quickly.
After the two of them had reached the end of the line, Ganyu stuck close to Neuvillette, though she was doing her best to focus on her surroundings rather than the beautiful man she was indirectly clinging onto. There was a lot of grand scenery to take in, as it was drastically different than what she was familiar with in Liyue or what she had encountered in Sumeru. To her relief, all eyes were on Neuvillette and not her. They did not look at him with disgust, but rather, with sheer awe. Neuvillette did not pay them any mind, not so much as a word or even a brief glance.
"They’re...all looking at you," Ganyu said. "Are they normally like this?"
"Don’t mind them. Fontaine’s residents have always looked at me with starstruck eyes, but I choose to pay them no attention."
"Oh...do they dislike you?"
"The opposite. I simply do not wish to engage in such conversation with them."
He doesn’t seem like he’s one for attention either, Ganyu thought. Maybe that’s why he was so quick to accept me.
Don’t get your hopes up. It’s probably just him showing basic courtesy to a fellow outcast.
Despite all of her worries, there was something oddly soothing about him. His familiarity, attitude, everything about him had a hold on Ganyu’s heart, though they had only just met by chance. There could always be more than meets the eye, but would a truly terrible man warn you of his own god? Ganyu was a complete outsider to Fontaine, and Neuvillette had so far been the only one to not turn a side eye to her rather unusual appearance.
Ganyu was feeling a bit too relaxed around him. Too many days of wandering around had taken a toll on her, and sleep was starting to overcome her. Neuvillette was quick to notice her dragging behind and struggling to keep up, so he slowed his pace down.
"You’re far more exhausted than I initially assumed," he said, putting his hand on her shoulder to steady her.
"My apologies. It’s been a long time since I last had enough free time to recuperate."
"If I may," he said, gently wrapping his arm around Ganyu, "I can see that you return to my office safely for some rest."
Ganyu was too tired to even be flustered by Neuvillette anymore. She welcomed the comfort that he brought her and the reassurance that he wouldn’t let even his own archon lay a finger on her. Being in Neuvillette’s arms was far safer at the moment than passing out in the middle of the crowd, so she allowed herself to shut her eyes and drift off to sleep.
Ganyu fell back in his arm, and Neuvillette caught her and used his other arm to help scoop her up. He rested her head gently against his shoulder, and Ganyu sleepily moved in closer.
Though the sky had been clear all afternoon, it began to drizzle ever so slightly. A few light tears had fallen from his eyes, though he could not find the strength to control them. How could he, when the adeptus that was now resting in his arms was so adorable? She had managed to touch his already soft heart, and Neuvillette was hoping that she would be willing to stay with her at least for a little while.
Neuvillette wasn’t going to force Ganyu to stay in Fontaine, though. In fact, he was fully aware that she might want to head back home as soon as she had recovered. Regardless of the path she decided to take, he would see to it that her wishes were respected.
The rain had begun to pick up slightly. In a spot out of the walkway, he sat Ganyu down gently on the grass so that he would be able to remove his coat. Then, he wrapped her in his coat to prevent her from waking up cold and soaked as a result of his tears.
Neuvillette wasn’t fully aware of how much he had been crying until a tear dripped onto Ganyu’s cheek. He looked up at the sky and had noticed that the sun had become completely obscured by rain clouds. The more he tried to hold back tears, the worse the rainfall had become, so Neuvillette gave into his emotions and allowed for them to pour out.
He wasn’t sure if he was ready to say goodbye to her so soon.
đź“ť Ganyu x Neuvillette đź“ťDifferent Definitions of Relaxing
Ganyu had been residing in Fontaine for quite some time now. With Morax no longer holding divine authority over Liyue, and Keqing doing a relatively good job keeping the nation under control herself, Ganyu had little to no assignments left for herself to attend to. Knowing there could never be a shortage of things that needed done, she became rather anxious without having a way to keep herself occupied.
The time she was spending in Fontaine with Neuvillette was supposed to be relaxing, but unfortunately, Ganyu spent more time worrying about all of the piled-up work that followed from the nation’s flooding and Neuvillette’s takeover. Anxious to be doing something to pass the time, she took her concerns up with Neuvillette, and knowing how hard it would be to break her of her old habits in a matter of a short time, he decided that it wouldn’t hurt to give her some of his work, if it at least kept her worries at bay.
He only intended for her to attend to a small, easier portion of his backlog, in order to give her a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment.
Their definition of “small portion” seem to differ, however.
After leaving her to work in peace for an afternoon, Neuvillette walked into his office to check up on Ganyu, who he had not heard from since he left her to work. He thought that perhaps, she might’ve dozed off, as she did have a tendency to do so quite frequently. When he opened the door, he was greeted with the sight of his desk being stacked with towers and towers of papers.
To his surprise, the towers were all stacked and sorted rather neatly. Official documents, requests from the residents of Fontaine, court records, and anything else that one could possibly think of had its own stack. Even documents meant for Neuvillette himself had their own place separate from the others.
As he was admiring the sheer amount of work she had accomplished, Ganyu’s little horns and purple eyes peaked up from behind the immense stacks of papers. She reached up to add a few more pieces on top of a stack, and her eyes went wide when she caught sight of Neuvillette.
“Oh! N-Neuvillette! I didn’t expect you to be back so soon,” she said.
“I am merely visiting to check up on you as you had expressed your anxiety in the recent past. Though, while I am impressed with the scope of the work you have completed, I remain rather worried about your well-being.”
“W-worried? You shouldn’t be…I am doing all of this of my own free will.”
“And your free will tends to drive you to exhaustion,” Neuvillette said, walking around the table stacked full of paper and standing beside Ganyu.
“Exhaustion? I told you to not be worried about me; this is what I do for a living,” she said, returning to shuffle through paperwork.
“For a living doesn’t necessarily mean for as long as you may live,” Neuvillette said, gently grabbing one of her wrists to stop her from digging further into a stack. “I realize you claim to find great comfort in your activities, but you must take the steps necessary to prevent yourself from becoming overwhelmed.”
“But…don’t you have a great deal of work to worry about yourself, Neuvillette?”
“That is true, however, I pace myself making sure to attend to higher priority documents before any other spare work, rather than tending to it all at once, like you seem to be attempting.”
“Don’t you want more free time, without the worry of a high workload? More time for you to just…relax?”
“Relax coming from you certainly is not something I would expect,” he said with a gentle laugh. “Neither of us would ever have a chance relax if we kept working at the rate at which you are currently at. Currently, I’d advise for you to forget about the rest that needs to be done, and allow for me tend to them.”
“But I promised you that I would relieve you of some of your burden.”
“Which you did, plenty. I merely wanted put your mind at ease while with a small amount of work to keep you distracted, until you felt satisfied and perhaps a free of your self-imposed burden. A little goes a long way, Ganyu, and I believe you have done more than enough.”
“E-enough? But there’s still more! Plenty more!”
“And that plenty more can wait,” Neuvillette assured Ganyu. “I believe you have done enough to allow me a least a few days of relaxation.”
“Only a few days? I’m…sorry I couldn’t do more for you…” Ganyu said, looking down at the unfinished paperwork in shame.
Neuvillette released the gentle grasp that he held on her wrist, allowing for Ganyu to place the papers that she still held down on the table. He slid his hand up her arm and rested it on her shoulder, gently rubbing it in an attempt to soothe Ganyu. She looked up to see him softly smiling, towering over her greatly, but still looking down at her fondly.
“A few days is more than enough for me, and I believe you have proven yourself to be quite capable, if that soothes your worries. I do advise you to rest now, lest you risk suffering further burnout.”
“I swear, Neuvillette, if you give me a bit more time I can cut down on even more-”
“I insist, what I want is for you to rest up.”
“And I insist on aiding you further, Neuvillete, so I’m not a dead weight who isn’t even from around here!”
“You need not worry about the weight of your presence, as the people and I always welcome you to visit with open arms. What’s far more worrisome is how you have been treating yourself lately, and so I insist on you stepping away from the stacks of my documents.”
Defeated, Ganyu rested her head on top of a small stack of papers that she had yet to sort through. Though she wanted to continue doing as much as she possibly could for Neuvillette, his calm, yet demanding tone had convinced her that perhaps, she should indeed take a rest. Truthfully, she had no energy left to move, but refused to admit it, even to Neuvillette. Besides, despite the amount of scrambling she found herself doing in an attempt to tend to Neuvillette’s overflow of work, she found sitting in his chair to be strangely calming, something that was rather dangerous in her tired state.
“But Neuvillette…” she said, rather sleepy. “Are you sure that this is okay?”
“I assure you, Ganyu, that you have done more for me than I could ever ask for,” he said, gently stroking her puffy hair.
After a few moments of gently stroking her hair, he looked down to see that she had dozed off. Though Neuvillette needed his seat to properly attend to his work, he could ultimately take anything of high priority away from the desk and work on it elsewhere in order to not disturb Ganyu. He looked through what Ganyu left unfinished, and decided that perhaps a day or two of waiting to attend to these documents wouldn’t bring harm to his schedule.
Now, he had to figure out what to do with the sleeping adeptus at his desk. He couldn’t just leave her in his office all alone. What if she woke herself up and continued working herself to death right from under his nose? Or if someone walked into his office in need, leaving her panicked and unknowing how to proceed?
He ultimately made the decision to leave Ganyu to rest in his chair. With a subconscious fear of her growing too cold from the influence of Hydro and her Cryo vision, he slid his coat off and gently draped it over Ganyu. The sheer size and weight of it almost completely engulfed her body, and Neuvillette had a feeling that in this state, she would not wake for quite some time.
Neuvillette then slid a book off of one of the shelves and quietly sat down, careful as to not disturb Ganyu as he waited for her to awaken.
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