i don't own genshin impact & its characters
i saw a clip of a drama about consort candidates undergone various tests & man suddenly i want emperor!zhongli x consort candidate!venti so bad
warning: ooc-ness, unbeta-ed
In Liyue, you're not advised to walk during the night. there are creatures lurking, ready to beckon you to disappear with the moon come the day. Such night wasn't any safer to the highest person in Liyue, for aside the creatures, living ones could have also aimed for the emperor's life. However zhongli set aside such fear, took his night walk as usual in his huge residence, leaving his guards unaware of the person they are supposed to protect had disappeared from his room. The garden during the night had a different allure to the day. The red silk flowers colored his way as if they were faint lanterns, his step was light and careful as he strode through the grasses, deeper to where his favorite flower -glaze lilies lie. His fixation on the beautiful moonlight was distracted upon sighting a lone one had uncurled its petal, followed by a soft melody invading his ears from where his pavilion was. Zhongli walked deeper, witnessing the flowers blooming one by one to reveal their beauty the closer he got to the sound, a sight he hadn't seen for a while.
On the step to the small pavilion, a figure was sitting with one of their legs extended while strumming a lyre and a bottle at their side. The awestruck immediately left the emperor's mind and he took no second to approach the intruder. "What are you doing here?" the singer stopped, languidly turning their head to him before smiling. "Good evening. Are you here to join me on this beautiful moonlight night?"
Zhongli held a grunt and loomed over the figure in authority. Upon noticing the foreign clothes with frills, he was quick to recall among those who had been presented before him, "aren't you the consort candidate from Mondstadt?" manner seemed to escape him as he interrogated the other instead of returning the greeting. The smell of alcohol tickled his nose and he didn't bother to hide his displeasure.
"That I am," it seemed said candidate didn't seem to even remember the face of the emperor they were supposed to serve as he followed with a question, "are you a guard? ehe~ I'm in trouble, aren't I?"
A guard? To mistake him that much when you could have taken a one look over and made a pretty clear judgement he was nowhere dressed like one. How drunk was this fellow?
Zhongli never received a report about the Mondstadt consort candidate, so at the very least he knew that he wasn't in the list to be considered and wasn't expecting the best behavior when he realized his identity. "Consort candidates aren't allowed to leave their premises, especially without permission and at this late...," he eyed the three empty bottles and one in the consort candidate's hand, "they are also forbidden to drink."
Far from feeling remorse, the man blinked at him before breaking into laughs. "Aww~ not allowed to wear cosmetics and dressing up, having to stitch embroidery to someone we never talk to, currying favor to someone who never cares about us and now we're not even allowed to consume things without permission? So~~ boring~~"
Zhongli exhaled a breath, "such regulation is necessary. Where could you get these? They are not supposed to be allowed in the premise."
"Hehe~ I have some tricks to snuck them in." Zhongli made a mental note to remind the maids to be more strict on their inspection.
He was about to speak another warning when a bottle was waved in front of him, a grin plastered on the candidate whose face seemed to glow... from the alcohol. "do you want some? It's Mondstadt's dandelion wine. I guarantee its taste."
Politely, he pushed the bottle away with his palm and sighed, "please return to your chamber." "Aww~ and miss such a beautiful night~? That'd be a waste!" maybe he needed to call the guards...
"I know!" As if struck by an eureka, the candidate moved his legs away and pat at the cemented floor beside him, "come sit with me, I'll play you a song!" Zhongli blinked. Did... did this man really not have any inkling who he was? Not only did he just offer him, the emperor, a bottle of touched wine, and now he invited him to sit on the floor?! Had this been in the day when he would have his guards at his side and the other with his attendees, the offenses could have ruined the Mondstadt royal family. He stared at the viridescent eyes which were still waiting for his reaction excitedly and the hand which cradled the lyre gently. He remembered the melody earlier and the beautiful glaze lilies among them.
The consort candidate of Mondstadt never made a name to his ears, maybe in the consort supervisor's list the name has long been dropped.
To his white with golden stitch Liyue night robe, the boy's Mondstadt clothes adorned with frills and ribbon was a stark contrast. His single white cecilia flower pinned on the light white shirt stood out among the blue glaze lilies. A slight smile creeped on his lips, covered by a thoughtful hand, "the night does seem to prevent me from sleeping, one song might be not bad. However, would you promise to return to your chamber after one song?"
"Is this the contract Liyue people most revered to?"
"As per my words earlier, it's a promise. Although I wouldn't mind if you treat it as a contract and I shall do as so."
"Then, I will sing you the best lullaby ever so you wouldn't want to get rid of me!"
A frown, "you don't want to accept the deal?"
"I'm not going until I finish my wine."
Once again, a sigh, "then, would you agree to the promise if I help you finish the wine?"
Then a grin, "now, we're talking!"
Although he already agreed, it didn't mean Zhongli wouldn't think twice about what he was about to do. It took him a few minutes, staring intently and contemplating at the cemented floor before he finally resigned and whisked his white robe to sit beside the man. When the other was about to open a new bottle, Zhongli quickly stopped the hand, earning a questioning look. "I will have what you have."
The candidate smiled, "Cautious, aren't we?"
He paid no heed as he took the bottle which had left to half and sipped on it. Zhongli wasn't a naive, being him, he couldn't be. While it was unthinkable to share a drink with a stranger, it'd be even dangerous to accept a stranger's invitation and drank from unsupervised one. At the very least and unless it was a slow-reacting poison with suicidal intention, then the leftover would have been better. The other didn't seem to take an offend though, opening a new bottle and downed on it quickly. Zhongli grimaced when he saw the other coughed so big in bliss. To think it was a behavior displayed by a consort candidate to the Liyue emperor... he could imagine how vexing the supervisor must have felt. The bottle was once again left to half and placed to his side, and the man was ready to open another. "I think it's good to be cautious."
Zhongli blinked an 'oh', interested.
"It'd be scary if you are suddenly poisoned out of nowhere, wouldn't it?"
"Have you... experienced it?" A foolish question. Despite the way he acted, the guy beside him was also of royal family, "my brother...," assassination attempts goes two ways with their status.
Zhongli opted not to say anything and took a sip of the drink in his hand.
Noticing their silence fell to an awkward mood, the candidate flipped his head and put a smile, "he survived though! Or else I wouldn't be here, would I?" Zhongli stumbled when the other slapped his back and almost wanted to pull his dagger to silent him.
"Oh, right, I promised you a song," with that, the candidate picked up his lyre and once again, the night was quiet to the melody from both instruments of strings and voice.
Zhongli hated to admit it, just like the glaze lilies who danced to it, he also couldn't help but nodded his head to the tunes. Strange when he wasn't even familiar to them.
What was left of the bottle was unfortunately not much and Zhongli emptied it by three to four sips, taking in another bottle which the other had gulped down before.
"Tasty, isn't it?"
To be honest, it wasn't the first time he tasted the wine. When the candidate was brought to the palace, the bottles were among of the presents gifted to him. On another occasion, he had also share the same drinks with envoys from Mondstadt. He decided to answer by emptying the next bottle.
"You don't seem to want to be the emperor's consort," he remarked.
"What made you think so?"
A brow raised to what the man dressed in and to the bottles scattered out in the open. "Ahaha~ well, it's not about what I want."
"Doesn't Mondstadt value one's freedom the most?"
"That's true," a finger flicked to his face... yet another offense, but Zhongli decided to turn a blind eye, feeling already tired to even correct the man, "however, in the end, us royal family still has a duty to carry." That was... unexpected. "I don't think my family would mind if I don't become a consort, but if no one from Mondstadt is sent as a candidate... wouldn't it be a high offense to our neighbor?"
He wanted to say that the idea of gathering candidates from all over the Teyvat wasn't his idea, it was the court, however he couldn't deny the fault still lies in their tradition and in the end, he was also one who had to abide to it. "My apologies."
"Why are you apologizing? Weird fellow." Zhongli grumbled to his drink, embarrassed. He forgot the other didn't recognize him.
Stretching his arms, the candidate threw himself on the floor (startling the Liyue man) and gazed at the sky, "but I don't regret coming here."
"..."
"The test is ridiculously exhausting and some of the maids are unnerving, but Liyue is beautiful!" When the boy rose excitedly, his messy twin braids swayed and the light gradation at the tip shone, "They have amazing instruments too! I can't stitch, but I love playing them!"
"Do you like music?"
"I don't really, but my twin would love to hear them and I can bring them home when I go back. Oh, and of course, the alcohol!"
"... you really like them, the alcohol."
"Yep! My favorite! Can't live without them! I still love dandelion the best, but what we have during the ceremony wasn't bad too! I wonder where I can buy them."
"If it's the fermented rice alcohol during the ceremony, those were specially presented before the emperor, I doubt you can easily find them in Liyue."
"Aww~~," the candidate sprawled on the floor in defeat.
"You spoke of returning home... did you not have the desire to pass the candidacy?"
"Uhm...," the boy played with his braid in thought, "I don't think someone like me is suitable, besides what's the point anyway?"
Honestly, even Zhongli shared the same thought but he decided to press on, "what do you mean?"
"The test is supposed to choose the bride for the emperor, the one who is supposed to rule with him together and live together for a long life, and yet, we have never met the emperor except that one time we announced our arrival separated by the screens. Without knowing what's each other thinking and how the other acts, how could two people marry and rule a country, let alone for years to their death?" The candidate scoffed.
The answer seemed to hit a nerve, "Mondstadt... people seems to be a romantic..."
"We are. Did you not know? Mondstadt is romantic city of pastorals." Spoken like a pride.
"Didn't you just speak that you still abide to your duty nevertheless?"
"The duty can still be upheld while sharing an understanding and affection with your partner of life," the reply delivered like a tune, making one wonder if the speaker thought of it seriously.
Zhongli's lips twitched, "Affection? And what if they get in the way of your decision?"
"That's where understanding helps."
"Isn't being considerate about each other's place and status, to carry themselves properly is also the part of understanding each other?" He didn't understand what got him so worked up.
"Understanding is when you know where your partner's heart truly lies, as they do yours."
Knowing where your heart truly lies? Would there be anyone able to do such feat? The words were incomprehensible. His mouth was ready to spout arguments to them, to scoff at the unrealistic conviction, but he thought better and instead raised a hand to cover his face tiredly, scattering the bottles when his hand awkwardly moved.
One of the empty bottles toppled over, creating a loud bump enough to break the silence. It was the sound of a clock hand signaling for them. "You promised to return after one song."
The other side must still have a lot to say, but he was grateful when the boy decided to gather his smuggles and raised from his spot, "good night...," he tilted his head to meet the green eyes offering an apologetic gaze, "my lord."
Zhongli broke from his thought to glare at the man who chuckled in response.
"It was hard to see it when you loom tall over me, but even I can see your crown shine by the moonlight from where I'm standing," in reflex, Zhongli touched his ever so-familiar protruding horns in his head, his symbol of regalia.
"I hope the benevolence from the emperor would overlook my previous offense," a single red rose was produced out of nowhere and offered with a wink. The amount of audicity the man had pulled over the few hours made Zhongli's head ache.
"Offenses," he corrected to the boy's wonder, "however, in light of you have shown me the lilies in full-bloom," the red rose -free of thorns, was now cradled carefully in his fingers, "I will accept this contract."
As wine bottles are corked, so too are my lips sealed.
A smile spread on the other as he shifted one leg behind and bowed slightly, "many thanks," one arm waved to the chest in salutation, "Well then, I will take my leave and bid you a good night, Emperor of Liyue."
Before him was not the consort candidate delegated from the neighboring country nor was the drunk who had shared a bottle of wine unceremoniously with him earlier, the boy was the royal prince of Mondstadt.
"Good night, prince Venti. I hope you know very well now not to violate the rules."
"Whatever violation you may mean, my lord." The figure disappeared quickly in hops, leaving behind a trails of laughters.
"where is the so called consort candidates tests drama?" i don't know! can you please write it for me? i want that too but my mind is not cooperating!
the meaning of rose is taken from the game. i don't know if it has to specifically be red, but noelle wears red rose & venti's personal maid (not assigned by liyue palace) is noelle in this au ehe
review is appreciated!