Chapter 1: Fate
A/N: Don't own Genshin or Naruto.
Imagined this one day and then just wrote.
I don't know nearly enough about Genshin Lore, and I can't find anything about thaumaturgy and magic and stuff. Genshin_Lore is pretty helpful but it's also theories.
Chapter 1
There was a story that Yelan was told when she was younger.
There were three planes of existence in Teyvat. Humanity and all its sentient lifeforms occupied the earth, the mountains, the plains, and the seas. The gods of Teyvat kept jurisdiction of their direct powers, ensuring that the lifeforms of the earth survived. Finally, the powers of Celestia looked down from the heavens as beings that wanted only the best for the entirety of Teyvat.
Yelan came to the conclusion that she was shunned by all three.
Celestia had not given her the boon of a Vision, despite how ambitious and trying she had been. No amount of effort on her part had resulted in any changes in her elemental affinities like a miracle.
The gods had not saved her clan nor her village in the wilderness of Liyue. The entirety of her clan of thaumaturges was destroyed, laid to waste in ashes as buildings that once soared far above her with texts that lined entire walls were now nothing more than smoldering remains.
And humanity...Yelan looked at the two rocks that she had erected near two tall sandbearer trees that had managed to survive the disaster that had befallen her home. Her parents rushed her out of their home and then ran back into the grand library of their village in an attempt to save texts that had lasted generations. Their choice had left her bereft of a mother and father. When the fire had quelled and the heat had died down enough, she began her search.
After exploring the rubble, she had only found two bracelets that her father and mother had worn, each on their right wrist. Not even their ashes survived the tragedy of her home.
The only thing she had to thank Morax for was the fact that Mora was practically indestructible. She knew enough about Mora's value; it may not have been a lesson she was taught from her clan, but every person in Teyvat understood the value of Mora and was taught it through practical lessons. There was definitely enough to run the village, and she did her best to grab was she thought was enough and hide the rest.
The ten-year-old Yelan held back her tears as she turned away from the shoddy tombstones. She had paid her respects and grieved today long enough. The fire had struck in the night the day before, and it was already deep into the evening. Her stomach grumbled, and she looked south to where Liyue Harbor would be.
Hefting the bag meant to carry books, Yelan took a long look at her ruined home and her parents' tombstones. Then she turned and began to walk towards Liyue's grand hills and mountaintops.
Even if it was more dangerous to travel at night, Yelan was still a thaumaturge in training. Monsters and aggressive animals weren't too difficult to hide from. However, this brought up a separate problem.
Dodging hilichurls and the scaled creatures that Yelan identified as vishaps, she realized that she didn't have a map, had never been to Liyue's harbor, and hardly traveled outside of the range of her clan's village. She didn't know where she was really going other than south since Liyue and Wangshu Inn were the primary hubs, and the Militeth were more prevalent in more populated areas.
Going off the trails would keep her alive, but it would slow her trek immensely. What could have taken her two weeks of traveling on foot to reach Liyue harbor would instead take her months if she kept at this pace.
Yelan set down her bag silently and took a peek at the road through some foliage, allowing some moonlight to hit her eyes and face.
There was smoke a couple hundred meters away, which implied a fire. She couldn't see a tower from her angle over the hill; she'd have to walk to the top to ascertain if it was a camp of hilichurls or humans. Both were not good prospects. There were plenty of robbers and thieves in Liyue. She'd heard plenty of tales of how people that weren't careful enough had lost their life savings on their move to Liyue's large, stone city.
She shivered, holding in a sneeze. Rubbing her bare arms, she cursed as the night chill set in on her body. She was still high on the mountain, and Liyue's nights were cold. With no jacket or outer layer, she'd freeze. She didn't have a sleeping bag, and there was no way she was building a fire to tell every living being in the area that there was a person here. People may travel from the countryside to the city all the time, but she wasn't willing to risk the odds. After all, a defenseless child with a bag full of Mora could just be tempting enough for generally good people to sin.
Once more, she lifted the bag, straining and sweating despite the cold, scuffing her shoes through grass in an attempt to find shelter.
An hour later, Yelan stood before a cave. The mouth of the entrance was large enough for her to easily step into, and the roof jutted past the entrance. If it rained, no water would enter the cavity of rock.
She wiped her forehead with the back of her hand and silently walked up, peering over the edge on her stomach once she was close enough. The moonlight barely reached inside, but it was just enough. The cave was empty, which no large pathways inside for anything or anybody to hide.
Yelan rushed inside as her tired legs would take her, dropped her bag, and then leaned back against the stone wall. The back of her head thumped against the wall weakly, and she closed her eyes to rest. Food would have to wait.
When she awoke, her stomach was gripping tightly. She instinctively placed a hand over her gut.
Empty.
She stared at the bag beside her.
Full. But useless right now.
She'd have to find food soon. She leaned forward and pressed on a leg and immediately wobbled back down. Looking down at the cave's floor, Yelan squeezed her eyes shut as shivers traveled across her body. Ignoring all of this, she forced herself on her feet and picked up the bag of Mora, which felt even heavier today as it set on her shoulders.
She took her first steps into a new day, the sun barely over the mountains from her vantage point, and exited the cave. The last remaining bits of the night's cold were melting away and soon, the morning dew on the grass would evaporate as well.
Her head bobbled as she turned around to give her surroundings a cursory glance but found nothing to eat. She cursed again.
There was no way she could set a trap. She was physically too weak right now to fight a boar, and she didn't even know how to dress and cook one. The best she could do was find fruits.
In her desperation, her ears picked up a sound. It was like an attractive whisper, humming in the background but right in her ear. She zoned in on the noise and walked.
Fifteen minutes later, the sound was much louder. There was waterfall nearly thirty feet that was crashing on the body of water below that extended in to a river, echoing through the large plain. Somehow, she had lucked out and there was nobody else around.
Yelan splashed her face, delighting in the cool sensation, and then cringing a moment later when her body shuddered again. She sat down and drank from the river, basking in the sun and in Liyue's nature for a minute. She spotted a few fish and even some fruits on both sides of the river.
The fruit was a yellow berry that hung on the leaves of a low growing plant. She plucked one free from its branch and popped it into her mouth. Flavors burst, and her stomach demanded more as soon as she swallowed the edible delight.
Nearly six handfuls of washed fruits later, Yelan sat down again, far more satisfied and replenished. She let out a grateful sigh and looked to her left, where the river underneath the waterfall lazily moved to the south. How she'd wish to just lie in the water and let it take her all the way to the city. She doubted that it even reached that far.
But I could follow it.
Making up her mind, she grabbed a few more handfuls of berries and shoved them in her pockets and walked away from the river. Not too far, only a couple hundred meters away. Far enough that she wouldn't run into camps and resting thieves and people, but also not too far so that she'd lose sight of it and accidentally give up a prime resource for survival.
She took breaks throughout the day, sitting by the river after ensuring her safety and relative emptiness of her surroundings. She'd drink, eat more fruits, and then continue her travel. Her mood brightened, despite the cold most likely setting in, as the possibility of her reaching Liyue, or at least some populated town or city, seemed doable. And the day grew warmer.
Before she knew it, it was nearing night again, and the chill began to spread across the land. She felt a drop of water, and alarms began to ring in her head.
Shelter!
Yelan rushed under a tree, finding temporary refuge as a downpour suddenly came in, crashing against the ground. She could hardly see past the deluge, so great was the rush of water from the sky.
The tree was large with many leaves and branches, but a few drops would still get through, dripping against her hair or arms. Initially, every one made her jolt, but as she slowly became wetter, it was hardly noticeable. Instead, the sinking feeling of sickness became the primary thought as she sneezed relentlessly.
At least I don't have to worry about anybody hearing me out in this weather.
She lifted her head languidly. A fire and some actual food would be nice. Boar meat. Grilled fish. Anything, really. Yelan caught herself salivating and shook the thoughts away, instead trying to focus on what she would do next.
Finding some real shelter and finding a way to get dry would be the first step. After that, some sleep was in good order.
She nodded to herself, too tired to really make a detailed plan. Honestly, those two would keep her alive, and staying alive to keep her clan's lineage going was enough in this moment.
The rain had stopped when Yelan pried open her eyes from her sleep. Immediately, there were two issues she noticed. One, she found her body exceedingly difficult to control, most likely from exhaustion. Secondly, her nose was running, and her mind felt like mud after a rain.
Well, at least she'd sit up properly and get a proper stock of her situation and self. A quick check, and she ascertained that she was most certainly sick. Her skin was sensitive to the touch, and the hair on her skin was permanently standing on end. She had come down with a heavy cold, and the fact that she was traveling and pushing her body with far less sustenance than she was used to actively halting her recovery and in fact, worsening her condition.
She pressed her hands against the bark of the tree, using it as a stable crutch and standing again. She looked in dread at the Mora bag and let out a sigh that sounded far too congested. It glinted like shining stars in the moonlight. Unfortunately, it was definitely not worth its weight currently. Honestly, half of her was saying that it would be better to just leave it, but another part whispered that she could purposely run into a group and trade it for food to survive or even safe passage to a town. Whether or not they'd follow through with the trade was one thing, considering how easy she would be to take advantage of, and then there was the other possibility that she would accidentally run into monsters instead of humans. If that happened, her clan's lineage would end with her.
Yelan stiffened and pulled the bag up once more and pushed herself off the tree, moving forward to try and find a place to sleep the rest of the night and escape the biting temperature of the Liyue plains.
A few days had passed. Through sheer tenacity and unwillingness to let down her fallen clan, she kept going. She used a walking stick she found at an abandoned camp. The tent and a journal were left behind, but both were practically in tatters. Somehow, the stick had been caught inside the tent and remained in good enough condition.
What happened to the -
She cut off her thoughts there and focused on each step instead.
Left.
Right.
Left.
Right.
Left.
Right.
And on and on, and another day went by. The sun went over the mountains, and the moon was rising over the other side of the sky. Once again, she'd have to find shelter and a way to survive the night.
She had failed to figure out how to make any traps for wild boars, and the fish were far too agile for her in the water. Her current diet had been water and fruits, and the occasional mint and variety of fruits she found on trees. Otherwise, she only had berries.
Originally, she had been frustrated at her failure to find something that had more sustenance, but as the days had gone and the sun and moon had set beyond the curtains of the world, Yelan had slowly lost her sense of emotions. Her blue hair had become matted with dirt. What was once sleek shoulder length locks were now tussled and twisted like vines. Cheeks pale and skin devoid of a healthy hue, her mind had slowly succumbed like her body, and she only trudged on to grasp onto life.
I just need to live.
She stuck a hand into a pocket and popped another berry into her mouth. Refreshing, but it only made her craving for meat all the greater. Her head felt cloudy and the brain fog increasingly dampened her mood.
In a sudden burst of anger, she shut her eyes and shook her head with a growl. Her stick slipped on the ground, and she fell over heavily, the Mora worsening her fall. She dropped like a sack, thudding against the ground. Her legs felt like it was still moving, despite how still she was.
Left...
Right...
Even now, she knew she had to get up and move. But she felt...so comfortable. It was so nice to lay here and just rest. Maybe...maybe for just a few minutes, and then she'd get up and walk again.
Just a few more minutes...
Yelan started to cry, the tears falling sideways down her face. She wouldn't get up if she didn't get up now. She had to move, and it had to be right now. Her mind was already starting to haze and lull her to sleep, and her body was shutting down. Her sickness, which had been ailing her early on, was now horribly aggressive five days later.
She coughed and tried to push herself so that her chest wasn't on the ground any more, but her arms slipped and she crashed against the ground. Groaning, her eyes slowly shut as she kept trying to get up, each attempt frailer and weaker than the last.
Yelan closed her eyes, trying to stop crying to retain water.
And fell asleep.
Warmth.
She tried opening her eyes, and her mouth warbled out a sound at the pain that flashed in the back of her head.
She did the next best thing. Her fingers curled, and her feet shook at her command. Good, she was still able to move. Shuffling again, she realized that she was on her back and that there was a layer of something on top of her.
A blanket?
The sound of crackling and sizzles -
Her eyes flashed open and she sat up, ignoring her body's screams at her harsh treatment of it. To her right, there was a fire.
And next to it, there was a person stoking it with a stick.
Spiky blond hair, and bright blue eyes that glowed in the light of the low fire. A youthful face, she bet he couldn't have been older than twenty. He wore a red coat with black stripes that followed the hem and down the length of his arms, ending with black gloves made with white fur at the wrists. His pants were similarly designed, tucking into his black boots.
He sat calmly on a rock, his cheek resting against a palm, as he continued to occasionally poke at the pile of wood. Above the campfire were four fish pierced through with sharp wooden picks that were held in place by carefully balanced sticks. Then he turned to look at her, ocean blue eyes meeting striking emerald green.
"Hey."
Yelan didn't stir. She stared at the man in front of her. When he didn't break her gaze, she eventually broke eye contact, darting to look for her bag. It was on her right, just an arm's reach away and set further aside from the fire.
A sigh escaped her, and a small piece of hope returned to her chest. That was quickly replaced when she noticed that even that exhale was difficult, and breathing was becoming a chore.
"You're exhausted," the man said. She turned to regard him once more. He had already turned away, his left cheek once again resting against his palm with his elbow propped on his knee. "And sick. You should lay back and close your eyes for a bit more. The fish will be ready in three minutes."
Yelan wasn't sure what to say, so she said nothing and decided to follow the man's instructions. She was suspicious, but she wasn't dead, had not been robbed, and was clearly not in a monster's camp. At least, from what she could tell. And he was right. She was exhausted and sick.
When she awoke again, her body was even more reluctant to stir from her slumber. Shoving aside her discomfort, Yelan opened her eyes and caught the man with an extended arm already retreating back. Clearly, he had shaken her awake.
"The fish is ready. Let's eat." Then he picked up one of the fish and began to eat, the crispy outer layer crunching as he dug his teeth in. That sound awoke something in Yelan, and she leaned forward toward the fire and grabbed one of the three remaining sticks with a fish stuck on it. It was much heavier than she had anticipated and she nearly dropped it, but she caught herself and balanced the large piece and brought it to her mouth.
Grilled fish was amazing. As her teeth broke through the skin, the juices of the meat gushed out and rushed against her taste buds. She hardly chewed before taking another bite, her stomach's craving receding and growing at the same time.
With an appetite that she never had before, she put down the finished stick and reached out for another before stopping herself. She looked at the man, who raised an eyebrow.
"Help yourself."
That was all she needed to hear, and she greedily grabbed another stick and felt the satisfaction of biting into another hot, grilled fish.
With a full stomach, she dropped the second stick and sighed. It was far more than she was used to eating, but she wasn't sure where her next meal was going to come from, or if she'd have another meal. If the man in front of her was lying about his relatively welcoming gesture and took advantage of her, she was sure to die soon if left alone after the night and with no Mora.
With no medicine on her and no medicinal knowledge, she wouldn't be able to handle her sickness if it got any worse. And even at its current state, she was struggling to perform simple movements. She hated to admit it, but she really needed this man to be like one of those kind souls in the tales she used to hear and read about.
"How are you feeling?" he asked after he set aside the sticks he had used to for the fish near his own pack, which looked far more prepared and full than hers.
"Better," she said. "Full," she added, and he smiled and nodded. Nothing about the gesture and motion seemed fabricated.
"That's good. Well, my name's Naruto. What's yours?"
No one knew who she was anymore. Perhaps in City of Contracts where all things are held in books and recorded, there would be something on her family and village. But that was hundreds of kilometers away.
Finding no reason to hide it, she spoke. "Yelan." Naruto smiled wider in what seemed like satisfaction, white teeth showing in the glow of fire and moonlight. She looked down at the fire, warily looking at the heat source. That same thing had taken away everything from her, and here she was, figuratively saved next to one. How odd Fate was.
"Alright," the blond man said. He grabbed his bag and removed the roll on top of the pack, unfurling a sleeping bag. Yelan brought the blanket that had been wrapped around her shoulder since she had awoken a bit closer to her body. It kept away the frigid cold. She really did not want to return it, not after having to deal with the nights without anything but her clothes and the occasional cave and tree to take shelter under. "Don't worry, I'm not taking that from you."
She raised her eyebrows. He hadn't even glanced at her, and he said the exact words that would calm her the most.
"Are you a reader of minds?" she asked. Do those even exist? If there were thaumaturges and Vision wielders, why not people that could read the thoughts of others?
The blond chuckled, still setting up his sleeping arrangement, and shook his head. "No. I just had a feeling that's what you were thinking about. It's quite easy to guess. Now, go to sleep. We can talk about why you're traveling towards Liyue on your own with only Mora in the morning."
"How'd you know I was traveling to Liyue?" The man waited until he was set inside of his sleeping bag and looked at her, amusement clear as the moon.
"You may have been skin and bones, but you still leave footprints." She couldn't help but frown at his teasing. Yelan turned away and laid down on the ground, which was a mixture of grass and dirt underneath another blanket, and shut her eyes.
For the first time in over a week, she didn't wake up to her body aching and her mind refusing her wishes.
Yelan opened her eyes to the sun high over the mountains in the distance. She could still hear the river nearby when she focused, and her shoulders relaxed. Already, her sickness felt like it was regressing from a good night's sleep with food and plenty of warmth shielding her from the cold. She was still fairly under the weather, but given a few more days with plenty of rest and food, she was sure that she'd be plenty fine.
Taking in a deep breath, Yelan let go of the blanket. The heat of the day was already upon the earth, so it wouldn't be necessary until night. Looking around, the fire had been put out, foliage and dirt tossed over where the wood had crackled just a few hours before. Naruto's pack was just a few meters away, the sleeping bag rolled up and clipped on top. Otherwise, there was no sign of the blond.
"Looking for me?"
Yelan would have jumped to her feet and turned, if she were able. She twisted her body and turned her head so that she was now looking up at the blond walking towards camp with more fish. He had taken off the coat, revealing the orange and white high collared shirt that was made of durable material. One that wouldn't rip like her pants when she accidentally got it caught against a piece on the side of a cliff.
"How'd you catch those? Aren't they fast?" When he raised his eyebrows again, she could already tell that it was one of his default responses to questions he found amusing.
"These" Naruto waved the fish that were pierced through with the same wooden picks. "Naw, they aren't that fast. And I didn't really catch them. I threw these picks at them in the water."
Yelan gave him a blank stare, then the fish in his hands. The fish were struck from the tail to its head in an almost perfect evenness, whether it was determined by height or width.
"I can show you if you'd like. After lunch." Naruto looked up at the sky. "Or breakfast, depending on the perspective."
Yelan shifted uncomfortably, not wanting to leave her bag by itself at camp.
"I think I'd rather stay here. But if there's a boar that comes by, can you stab that and cook it for dinner?" She had meant it mostly as a joke, and Naruto belted out a laugh. She was glad enough that he was still here and had not abandoned her in the night, despite her still lingering suspicions on his trustworthiness.
"Sure, sure. For now, drink some water and let me get started on the food." He passed her a cup that had been attached to a cylindrical object. Then he clicked something, and water poured out of the object and into the cup, which he handed to her when it was full. She thanked him, to which he nodded, and then began to start up another fire.
"Are you not worried about..." Yelan didn't finish, unsure if she wished to say it out loud. She had heard that speaking of evil would bring about evil and misfortune. Thinking about the hilichurl camps, the monsters, and thieves and robbers of Liyue, on the other hand, would not change those thoughts to reality.
Naruto shook his head, his spiky bangs shaking from side to side. She idly wondered if anybody had hair as spiky as his. Never had she seen something so unique.
"I did a quick round this morning. Nothing nearby or already cleared out." That would explain why he was so calm about leaving the camp unattended.
The last of the logs were assembled in a pile, and without warning, a fire burst to life. She started.
"You have a Pyro Vision?!" she couldn't help but sound excited. Vision users were a rarity. Chosen people of Celestia and the gods above. The creeping feeling of envy was drowned out by her current eager interest and curiosity. That dimmed immediately when he gave her a shake in the negative. "So...you know Pyromancy?" Similar to thaumaturgy or another magic that a clan or invested group would practice and know.
"Something like that." When he didn't explain any further, she left it be and let him cook.
Something like that? So not quite like the Tianheng with their Cryo techniques, but something similar. Teyvat has so much more than I realized.
She had been taught that beyond a Vision or intense training with magic or thaumaturgy, there was no way to control the elements. The books were wrong. She'd have to update...
Right, she was here because her entire village had burned to the ground with no other survivors and books. It was only because her parents had grabbed her and taken her farther away than anybody else had thought reasonable that she had survived. She had seen others run out of their homes and the library with their children and family, but they had been deemed safe once out of the immediate vicinity of the flames.
That night...the blazes had burst brighter and harder without warning, as if controlled by nature's wrath. It caught onto the forest and foliage and trapping everybody in a ring of dancing flames. And then the screams started -
"So..." The blond broke her out of her thoughts. "What's the giant bag for and why Liyue?"
Yelan looked down at the small fire that Naruto had started. Controlled, subdued, almost subservient, as if doing what its master commanded of it. Even still, she saw the horrible memories in the campfire.
"To find home."
"A home?"
"Yeah. I want to find home."
The man didn't say anything afterwards, and she didn't feel like continuing the conversation. The fish was done, and breakfast - or lunch - was a silent affair. Naruto walked away with the picks in the direction of the river and came back with them clean and his face wet.
He sat himself down near her. Not too close, but closer than he had been the night before and during the meal. The mountains...were they always so pointed and separate?
"Tell you what - and this is only if you're okay with it. I'm actually headed to Liyue. I don't mind waiting a couple days for you to be fully healthy, and then we'll head out." She snapped her neck, analyzing him. His expression remained neutral, his lips tucked upwards just a bit.
Hope stirred inside of her. She could get away from that village that had burned, and escape to the City of Contracts. Not like those times when she would run away a little further than what her parent's allowed for her free time.
No, she was already far beyond that. Liyue Harbor...it could be her new home.
Even with all the worries and doubts that whispered in her heart and mind, saying that this man could be dangerous and would one day bare his fangs...
"Okay." That was all she said. She looked away, back to where the campfire had been.
Naruto smiled.
"Okay."
End.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed! Leave a review if you got ideas or just liked the story!
Not sure where I'm going with this, but I want to keep it with short chapters and random snippets. If you have ideas, let me know!
Also, this isn't really edited. Just wrote and chugged along, so if there are errors, I apologize. I might scan through this later.
Got laid off, so got plenty of time in my hand. Tech market, woo!