I can't believe that I've started another fic for these boys already. I have a rough idea of where this is going, but I'm still feeling some things out. Don't be surprised if the title changes. I'm not entirely sure about this one.
Also, I'm sorry. Also, I do not own Genshin Impact.
All of Mondstadt was burning. Whatever wasn't made of stone lit the night sky like the rising sun as it was consumed by flames. Citizens screamed, ran, or hid as they tried desperately to escape from the force that had conquered them from within. The Fatui coup had been as swift as it had been unexpected. As the guards changed at midnight, the Snezhnayan agents had hatched their plan. By morning, power in Mondstadt had changed hands. Its monuments lay in ruins. Its people mourned. And its once great house Ragnvindr-from which all of Mondstadt's greatest rulers and warriors had descended in the last 500 years-had been exterminated.
In the days and weeks and months that followed, as the conquered people picked up the pieces of their lives under the rule of a new queen, rumor began to spread of a survivor. As the years passed, the citizens of Mondstadt prayed and the Tsaritsa hunted for the prince that had escaped.
Wanmin Restaurant was the busiest it had been all year, and with good reason. The dry season in Liyue was ending. A storm had blown over the harbor, ushering in with it the beginning of the rainy spring and summer months. Soon, fresh new crops would make their way into the cities and towns in the backs of farmers' carts. Everyone would eat well again. Everyone would have a full coin purse again. To celebrate, the Qixing had decreed that the city of Liyue Harbor would have a festival. It was an opportunity for its people to relax after a long season of belt-tightening, but also a chance to stimulate the economy.
Delun, a waiter at Wanmin Restaurant, stood transfixed by the joyous chaos of it all. He had lived in Liyue Harbor for three years and had worked at the restaurant for nearly that entire time, yet he had never seen so many bodies packed in and around the small building. Before they had opened for the day, the owner, Chef Mao, had ordered Delun and the other staff to put out extra tables and erect awnings and tents in the alleyway, doubling the amount of space for the popular restaurant. Even so, they had run out of chairs, and a line stretched out of the door and to the end of the block as hungry festival-goers waited for their turn to eat. Inside the restaurant, the wait staff had to pick their way through narrow paths between the extra tables, carefully balancing trays loaded with food and drink over the heads of their patrons while also avoiding the occasional bump from those customers that chose to stand at the bar. The scene reminded Delun of another time in his life, now long passed, when he had attended another celebration, though at the time, he had been the guest rather than the staff.
"Delun!" The waiter startled as Chef Mao barked his name from behind the bar, which looked directly into the kitchen. "Get your head out of the clouds and see to the tables in the alley! I don't pay you to daydream!"
"Ah, y-yes, sorry, sir!" Delun gave a small bow as he snatched a stack of menus from the bar. "Right away. It won't happen again, sir."
Chef Mao didn't respond, too focused on the cooking food before him, though Delun did catch the apologetic look that his daughter, Xiangling, shot him from behind her own sizzling wok. Delun winced out a nervous smile in response before hurrying for the door.
After being in the accumulated heat of all the patrons, staff, and kitchen fires, the cool spring air outside of Wanmin Restaurant was almost as relieving as a bath after a long day. Delun took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment, before he walked around the side of the building to the alleyway. Even being outside, the sheer number of customers raised the temperature in the cramped space by several degrees. Delun sighed. It was going to be a long night.
He moved quickly from table to table, handing out menus and scribbling drink orders on a small pad in his pocket. The ambient light from the street lamps grew dimmer as Delun moved further into the alley. Luckily, he and his coworkers had put candles on each table, which made up for some of the darkness. But when he'd reached the back corner, Delun found that the lone patron at the table had put all but one of the candles at his table out.
"Welcome to Wanmin Restaurant. I apologize for the delay," said Delun, placing a menu in front of the man.
The man didn't move, though Delun could see a blue eye studying him carefully from beneath long lashes. His gaze was penetrating and it took all of the waiter's strength not to squirm.
"Will any others be joining you this evening?" Delun asked. "I can leave some extra menus. Or, if you'd prefer to order your dri-"
"It'll just be me," the man finally responded. He leaned forward, revealing tanned skin, teal hair, and the most unusual cat-like eyes...eye-one of them was covered by an eyepatch-Delun had ever seen. "Unless you'd like to dine with me, that is."
As much as he tried to school his expression, Delun couldn't help but to frown slightly at the suggestion. "I'm sorry. I don't think my employer would agree to that."
The man leaned back, shadows falling over his face once again. "What a shame. It's not often that one finds someone that looks quite like you here in Liyue."
"Oh, uh…" Delun cleared his throat awkwardly. "Can...er, do you know what you'd like to drink?"
"Does this restaurant carry the wine Death After Noon?"
Delun's heart skipped a beat. He hadn't heard that brand name in years. "Um...that...that's from Mondstadt, right?"
The man's lips curled into a sly smile. "You've got it. I'm very impressed that a simple waiter from Liyue Harbor knows it. What's your name?"
Delun tightened his grip around the menus, his palms beginning to sweat. "Delun. So, about that drink ord-"
"Delun." The man practically purred as he tried out his name. "Very nice. Tell me, Delun, where did you come by those fascinating red eyes of yours?"
"My...eyes?"
The man hummed. "M'hmm. They're quite unusual, especially for someone from Liyue."
"Oh, um, well, apparently my grandmother on my mother's side is from Mondstadt," Delun explained with a nervous laugh. "Or so I was told. It isn't really anything that special."
"I see," said the man with a disappointed sigh. "How mundane. And here I was hoping for a much more exciting story. What a shame."
"I apologize." Delun gave him a small bow, his long black hair falling over one shoulder. "I hope that the service the rest of the evening will make up for this. Um, about your drink order. I'm afraid we don't have anything from Mondstadt this time of year, but there is a nice bottle of rice wine that I can offer you."
"Very well," said the man with another sigh. He reached out and pulled the menu from the table, allowing Delun a glimpse at the sword that hung from his hip. "Make sure to hurry back this time, Delun. I've really enjoyed getting to know you."
"Of course." Delun bowed again and walked stiffly away.
He nearly tripped, bumping into a patron waiting in line, as he made his way out of the alley and back into the restaurant. Delun mumbled an apology as he rushed inside, dropping the remaining menus on the bar. Xiangling might have called out to him over the din of conversation and cooking food, but Delun didn't hear her. Instead, he made for the storage room behind the kitchen with singular focus, closing the door behind him. The room was cool, dark, and quiet. Delun breathed a sigh of relief and slid down the wood of the door until he was sitting on the cold stone ground. He could still hear his heart pounding in his ears and his stomach was in knots. He pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes-the very same eyes the man had just commented on. The thought of him made Delun's chest tighten.
"Shit…" he swore under his breath. What the hell is a Khaenri'ahn-an armed Khaenri'ahn-doing in Liyue Harbor?
It was nothing. Just a coincidence. It had to be. There was no way that the man had been there for him. There was no way he could have known. Not after all these years. Not after he had…
Delun swore again and stood, pacing a few circles in the cramped space before going to the back wall where the extra cooking pots and pans were stored. Their polished metal surfaces gleamed in the dim light, providing him with a distorted view of his reflection. Delun leaned in close and pulled back the dark bangs that fell across his forehead, squinting to see in the low light. He cursed again. At a glance, his hair appeared as black as the calligraphy ink he used to dye it, but closer inspection revealed roots that matched the fiery red of his eyes. He suddenly felt sick.
He let out a shaky breath and backed away from the pans. As loathe as he was to admit it, he needed to leave. Otherwise, he risked discovery.
Without a second thought, Delun turned and pulled open the door, the noise of the restaurant blasting his ears in the brief moment it took him to move from the storage room to the back door. He paused for a moment, sparing a glance over his shoulder at the place where he had met so many friends in the last three years, before pushing through the door and stepping into the cool spring night.
Delun wound his way quickly and quietly through the crowded streets of Liyue Harbor until he reached the doorway, crammed between two shops, that led to his apartment. He circled the block twice to ensure that he lost any tails before threading his key into the lock and pushing the door open. The narrow stairwell was as dark and dusty as he had left it. Delun hurried up them and rushed into his apartment, shutting the door behind him.
His one-room apartment was blissfully empty and silent. Delun took a moment to catch his breath, painfully aware of the sweat that dripped from his neck and rolled down his spine under his uniform. Then he moved to his bed, pulling a bag out from under it and throwing it on top of the thin mattress. He tried his best not to think about everything he was about to leave behind. Aside from his friends and the job that had kept him occupied and sane over the last three years, it had been nearly impossible to find a Mondstadt-style bed this far into Liyue. But it would be impossible to carry such a thing with him. Instead, Delun packed his bag with clothing fit for travel in a variety of conditions, dried fruit and meat, and basic toiletries. Once all of those were secured, he moved to his desk, which sat under his only window, and pulled open its single drawer. Inside it were several pieces of parchment, a quill, and a single block of ink. Delun pulled all of these out and shoved them in his bag, moving back to the drawer when he was done. Then he bent, feeling under the drawer until his index finger found a small hole. He pushed his finger tip through it until he felt the latch, letting out a breath as the false bottom in the drawer popped loose. Reaching back into the top of the drawer, he pulled out the wooden panel and set it to the side.
The relics of his past gleamed in the light of the single candle he had lit upon his entry. Delun stared down at the objects, his whole body feeling heavy at the mere sight of them. It seemed like a lifetime had passed since they had last been of any use, but try as he might, he couldn't bring himself to dispose of them. Reaching down, he picked up the precious items, holding them in his cupped hands: a pocket-sized oil painting depicting his lost family and a golden ring bearing a once royal but now hunted crest. Delun sighed and pocketed them.
He looked around as he stood, running through a mental checklist of everything he would need for his travels. He hadn't forgotten anything, though he would need to think of a new name. "Delun" had been spoiled. Even if the Khaenri'ahn he had encountered at Wanmin Restaurant hadn't made the connection, he couldn't risk it. He had hoped that going this far into Liyue would be enough, but apparently he had been wrong. Maybe I should go to Inazuma…
As he recalled, there was a ship bound for the island nation in the harbor. If he hurried, he could make it before it left. He searched his memory for suitable Inazumese names as he walked back over to his bag, checking its contents before closing the flap. One name stood out from the books he had read as a child.
"Akira...Your name is Akira," he muttered to himself, bending to retrieve a small purse of money from beneath his mattress. Unfortunately, he didn't hear the door creak open until it was too late.
"That's funny. I thought you said your name was Delun."
Delun spun toward the owner of the voice, throwing up his arms in time to block the small knife that had been aimed at his head. The blade struck his right forearm, slicing easily through the pale skin before clattering to the floor at his feet. Before he could react, the intruder sprang, colliding with him and knocking him backwards onto his bed. In a matter of seconds, Delun found himself pinned on the thin mattress by the Khaenri'ahn man from the restaurant, his wrists trapped beneath his attacker's knees and the sword pressed against his throat.
"You never did bring me that rice wine, Delun," sneered the man, leaning in close. His hot breath burned his captive's ear as he brought his lips close to its shell. Delun could feel his attacker smile as he whispered, "Or should I call you 'Your Highness,' Prince Diluc Ragnvindr?"
Delun...Diluc's eyes widened and he struggled, helpless under the weight and the blade of the other man. The Khaenri'ahn fighter pulled back and sneered, his single visible blue eye sparkling with glee.
"The new queen of Mondstadt has been looking for you, Prince Diluc," said the man. "I think it's time I took you home."
There's chapter one! What did you think? I'm working really hard to make time to write amidst all the other things. Your words serve as great motivation and encouragement. Please feel free to review!