Note: We continue a gentle look at the (slightly AU) lives of Keqing and Ganyu. Following Vignette 5.
Holding Hands
This was the sixth time they had gone out together. Keqing thought that, when Ganyu had originally accepted her offer, the half-qirin would soon grow tired of her meticulous surveying of the lands and leave her alone. But according to Ganyu, that was farthest from the case; both Ningguang *and* the *Rex Lapis* had encouraged her to do so for very different reasons. The former simply wanted to encourage the two of them to work together more harmoniously; whereas the Archon wished for Ganyu to meet the adept side of her family, and understand that Liyue was for more than the citizens of the city.
It quickly turned out that Ganyu was not only an excellent companion, being descendant from them meant that she could introduce Keqing to the adepti themselves, actively assisting in the mission to understand the lands of Liyue. By the third trip, their cooperation was so smooth that the rest of the team, translators, guards, and officials were fundamentally unnecessary. Instead, Ningguang withdrew the manpower, using it to take over some secretariat work, giving Keqing and Ganyu more days to explore the vastness of Liyue's interior.
Between their conversations during travel, and Keqing's own further exposure to the adepti across the entire region, the lavender-haired girl had developed a slow understanding of the ecosystem beyond the simple argicultural biology. While adepti, and indeed the *Rex Lapis*, should not dictate to the world simply based on their own views, their knowledge should be valued. Indeed, to Keqing, the vast store of wisdom should be taken advantage of to create a truly prosperous society that rewards citizens for their careful analysis instead of blind faith.
Ganyu, in turn, was also influenced by their travels. More and more often, Keqing would catch the qirin gaze into the lands with a more analytical eye rather than the initial wistfulness. By the time of this sixth trip, she and Ganyu had become fast friends; not only had the two women fought through camp after camp hilichurls, they had worked together to solve many of the problems faced by the local towns, farmers and miners.
Now, sitting on an un-named ledge to the south of the Qingxu Pool, the pair summarizing the latest trip. The Abyss Order seemed to be much more active recently, and there was greater need to keep peace in the lands far from the city. Together, they had drafted a plan that would couple development with security, starting from the Harbour itself and slowly pushing deeper into the continent. To accomplish this, their greatest strength were the Qixing themselves, Ganyu was convinced that the plan would prompt investments from all major families in Liyue, including the esteemed Ningguang herself.
From Keqing's perspective, she was not focused on the plan itself, she knew that her family would invest, instead, her entire attention was on her partner. Ganyu had grown on her over the past year, the two had an almost infinite things to talk about, both from Keqing's perspective, trying to understand the growth and history of Liyue, and Ganyu's almost unending curiosity on what it means to be human. Now, as she watched the half-qirin smile in excitement at their plan, she could not resist.
She reached out and took Ganyu's hand in her own.