Ren
The world was a blurry mess of grey static.
Yet, Ren couldn't help but feel a sense of peace.
It was raining. Not the torrential, drowning storms of Liyue, but a steady downpour that belonged to a different life.
A different world.
Ren sat on the peeling wooden steps of the back porch, his legs dangling over the edge. He was ten years old again.
His knees were scabby, his sneakers were muddy, and his right cheek throbbed with a dull pulse where a playground gravel trap had introduced itself to his face.
"Hold still," a deep voice rumbled from above him. "If you keep flinching, I'm gonna tape your arm to your leg."
Ren froze, gritting his teeth. "I'm not flinching."
"Good."
Ray Carver sat on a rusted lawn chair behind him, leaning forward with a roll of gauze and a bottle of disinfectant.
He was a mountain of a man, broad-shouldered and heavy. But as Ray wrapped the gauze around Ren's scraped elbow, his touch was surprisingly gentle, even.
He finished the knot and sat back, the old chair groaning under his weight. He didn't say anything immediately. He just stared at Ren, his dark eyes unreadable, watching the rain hammer against the porch railing.
Ren shifted uncomfortably under the gaze. It wasn't an angry look. It wasn't disappointed, either.
"What is it, Dad?" Ren snapped, his childish voice cracking slightly. He touched his bruised cheek. "Is it bad? Is it gonna scar?"
Ray blinked, the heavy look vanishing behind a mask of amusement. "No. I was just surprised you aren't bawling your eyes out. Most boys your age would be screaming for their mom."
Ren bristled, his ego flaring up hotter than the scrape. "I don't cry over stupid stuff. It doesn't even hurt."
"Uh-huh," Ray chuckled. He reached out and ruffled Ren's hair. "Whatever you say, tough guy."
They sat in silence for a long time. The rain picked up, blurring the line of trees in the backyard into a watercolor smear of greens and greys.
The father and son sat in comfortable silence, enjoying the peaceful aura of their home.
"You're getting stronger, though," Ray said softly, almost to himself. "I can tell in that stupid way you walk now."
Ren lit up, completely ignoring the jab and focusing on the compliment. "Yeah! I've been training with Vader and Yoda. I can keep them manifested for 5 days straight now!"
At the mention of the dogs, Ray's small smile faltered.
"Yeah," Ray sighed, looking down at his own hands. "I noticed."
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, interlacing his fingers. The levity drained out of the air, replaced by something somber.
"I'm sorry, Ren."
Ren blinked, confused. "For what? The bandage is fine."
"Not for the bandage," Ray murmured. He looked out at the rain again, his eyes distant, seeing something far beyond the suburban backyard.
"I thought I left all the baggage at the door. I thought if I walked a different road, the mud from my past wouldn't stick to my boots."
He looked at Ren, his gaze dropping to the boy's shadow stretching out on the wet wood.
"I didn't expect the curse to follow me home," Ray said, his voice rough. "I didn't want you to have to carry that weight."
Ren opened his mouth to ask what he meant. He really hated it when Dad got really vague.
"Listen to me, Ren."
The authority in his voice shut Ren up instantly. He knew when his Dad was being serious.
"Because of what you have... your life isn't going to be easy. You're going to be angry. You're going to be bitter. You're going to lose things, and it's going to hurt."
Ray reached out, gripping Ren's shoulder.
"But I know you can take it. So fight. Whatever you believe in, whatever ideals you will hold in the future... embody them. Don't let the world tell you who you are. You fight for your beliefs until you can't stand up anymore. You take pride in that struggle. You hear me?"
Ren nodded slowly, wide-eyed. "Yeah. I hear you."
Ray's expression softened. The intensity broke, revealing a profound, weary sadness underneath.
"But Ren? One more thing."
Ray leaned in close, as if sharing a secret that had taken him a thousand years to learn.
"Don't do it alone."
"Huh?"
"Strength is good," Ray admitted, a ghost of a smirk touching his lips before fading. "Feeling above others is good. But in the end, it doesn't mean a damn thing if you have no one to share the view with."
He squeezed Ren's shoulder, a grounding weight against the storm.
"Surround yourself with people. Make friends and keep them close. "
Ray sat back, the creak of the chair signaling the end of the lesson. He closed his eyes, listening to the rain.
"Don't forget that," he whispered, his voice fading into the sound of the storm. "Be better than I was."
The drumming of the rain grew louder, heavier, until it wasn't rain anymore. It was the sound of wind rushing through mountain peaks.
The grey porch dissolved into white light.
/ — /
The sound of the rain faded, replaced by the gentle rustling of wind through maple leaves.
Ren blinked, his eyelids feeling heavy. He took a deep breath, expecting the stale air of his apartment or the damp ozone of the cave.
Instead, his lungs filled with a scent that bypassed his conscious brain and went straight to his stomach.
Rich, savory, and earthy. It smelled of slow-simmered pork, fresh bamboo shoots, and a blend of spices that made his mouth water instantly.
'Am I dead?' Ren thought, staring blankly at the canopy of golden leaves above him. 'Is this the afterlife? Did the Deer impale me, and now I'm in the Great Ramen Shop in the Sky?'
He sat up, bracing himself for the wave of pain that usually accompanied waking up after a fight.
Except there was nothing.
"Okay, definitely dead," Ren muttered, looking down.
He wasn't lying on the cold stone of the cave floor. He was sitting on a finely woven reed mat, placed carefully on a flat plateau of polished stone.
Around him, the peaks of Jueyun Karst pierced the clouds, islands of amber floating in a sea of mist.
He was at the summit.
"One observes you have finally decided to rejoin the realm of the living."
The voice was melodious, calm, and utterly terrifying.
Ren froze. He turned his head slowly.
A few meters away, sitting at a round stone table beneath the shade of a massive red maple, was a woman.
She was elegant in a way that made Ren feel painfully underdressed in his dusty tunic. She wore robes of teal, white, and black, cut in a style that looked both traditional and impossibly complex.
Her hair was swept up in an intricate arrangement, held in place by hairpins that looked suspiciously like crane feathers.
Perched on her nose was a pair of red-framed glasses, behind which sat eyes of piercing, bioluminescent blue.
She didn't even look up at him. She was busy tending to a small clay stove set on the table, stirring a pot that glowed with a faint, golden warmth.
'Who... wait.'
Then, he felt it.
She was suppressing it, keeping it tightly coiled within her, but the aura was unmistakable. It was the same crushing, ancient weight that had flattened him in the cave. It was the gravity of a mountain compressed into the shape of a human.
'The bird,' Ren realized, his stomach dropping through the floor. 'The giant, talking blue bird. That's her.'
He was sitting at a lunch table with a demigod.
The realization was almost enough to make him pass out again. The adrenaline that had vanished during his nap returned all at once, spiking his heart rate.
Ren's survival instincts, honed by years of paranoia and reading fantasy novels, offered him exactly one solution:
Play dead.
The blood drained from his face. His vision began to tunnel. He let his body go limp, his eyes rolling back into his head as he prepared to faint again.
Adepti wouldn't kill an unconscious person, right?
"If you lose consciousness again," the woman said, her voice cutting through the air without changing pitch or volume, "One shall interpret it as a rejection of One's hospitality."
Ren paused mid-sway, hovering at a forty-five-degree angle.
Cloud Retainer tapped the ladle against the side of the pot.
"And," she continued, her tone dry as a desert wind, "One generally disposes of unwanted guests by tossing them off the cliff edge. It is a long drop. One imagines the landing would be... untidy."
Ren snapped upright so fast his spine cracked.
"I'm awake!" Ren yelled, his eyes wide and unblinking. "I am fully conscious! Wide awake!"
Cloud Retainer finally looked up. Her gaze drifted over him, dissecting him layer by layer. She adjusted her glasses with a single, manicured finger.
"Hmph," she scoffed, a sound that conveyed a lifetime of judgment. "At least your hearing is functional. For a moment, One feared the pressure had liquefied your brain."
'She can't actually do that… Right?'
A part of Ren wanted to try his luck and try to run away. But he knew he wouldn't make it far before she sniped him out of existence.
She gestured to the empty stone stool across from her.
"Sit," she commanded. "The soup is ready. And you look like a twig that would snap in a gentle breeze. It is unpleasant to look at."
Ren didn't argue. He scrambled off the mat and marched to the stool, sitting down with obedience.
'Ok, Ren. You already trespassed into her home, just try not to piss her off even more.'
He looked at the bowl she placed in front of him. It was glowing. Literally glowing.
'Okay, 50/50 chance this is nectar of the gods, or it's going to turn me into a ferret,' Ren thought, picking up the spoon with a trembling hand.
He looked at Cloud Retainer. She was watching him, waiting.
Ren swallowed hard, lifted the spoon, and took a sip.
Ren closed his eyes, bracing for the burning sensation of Adeptal energy tearing through his esophagus.
He didn't expect his tongue to be hit with an explosion of flavor so complex and savory it nearly made him weep.
It rivaled Xiangling's cooking, velvety pork broth, infused with the crisp, earthy sweetness of fresh bamboo shoots and a hint of Jueyun Chili that provided a gentle aftertaste that he needed right now.
He didn't realize he was shoveling the food into his mouth until his spoon clinked loudly against the bottom of the bowl.
"Hmph," Cloud Retainer scoffed, but he was suspicious that it was to hide a satisfied smile at someone enjoying her cooking.
Ren lowered the spoon, wiping his mouth with his sleeve. He felt incredible. His reserves were capped, his stamina was full, and his brain felt sharper than it had in weeks.
"T-Thank you for the food, renowned Adeptus. It was delicious, I've never tasted anything like it."
"Naturally. You may know One as Cloud Retainer," Cloud Retainer said, adjusting her glasses. "One's culinary expertise is unrivaled in these mountains. Even Rex Lapis has praised One's cooking, though he insists on lecturing One about the texture of the pork every single time."
She waved a hand dismissively, as if brushing away the memory of the Geo Archon's food critiques. Then, she leaned forward, resting her elbows on the stone table.
The air temperature dropped ten degrees.
"Now that you are fed," she said, her voice losing all traces of previous kindness, "explain yourself."
Ren froze, the spoon hovering halfway to the table. "Explain... what, exactly?"
"Do not play the fool. It does not suit you."
Cloud Retainer narrowed her glowing blue eyes. "One speaks of the chaotic… filth you carry inside your soul."
She said "filth" like it was a slur, and it sure felt like one if the sheer disgust in her eyes was any clue.
"It is not elemental energy," she continued, her gaze boring into his chest. "Nor is it the remnants of deceased gods, but it is similar. It reeks of stagnation and malice. It is an affront to the purity of these mountains. Of Liyue as a whole."
Ren swallowed hard, his mind racing through a dozen ways to de-escalate before she decided to just kill him. "I-its not anything malicious! My people just possess this energy naturally!"
"Your people possess negative energy akin to deceased gods?" She raised an eyebrow, and Ren realized that it did sound far-fetched. "And then there is the matter of One's abode."
"One was enjoying a quiet afternoon when the mountain began to shake." She glared at him. "You turned a place of serenity into a demolition site. And for what? To wrestle with abominations of filth?"
Ren winced. "You were watching..."
"Yes," she stated flatly. "Had One not intervened, you would currently be a permanent fixture of the cave floor, impaled by roots. It was a display of incompetence so profound it was almost impressive."
Ren gripped the edge of the stone table. A part of him wanted to apologize, to kneel and beg for forgiveness, but something in him held him back.
"I didn't mean to cause such a disturbance," Ren said, trying to keep his voice steady. "I was attempting to master my technique. I can summon spirits known as shikigami, but to be able to control them, I must 'tame' them through a ritual."
"Ritual, you say?"
Ren nodded, meeting her gaze. "It's a hereditary technique passed down from my father… I think. B-but that's beside the point." Cloud Retainer raised a brow,
"I work as a humble delivery man," Ren said. "I use my Shikigami to assist me in delivering packages and cargo, and that's it. I'm not an enemy of Liyue."
Cloud Retainer stared at him. The silence stretched, filled only by the rustling of the maple leaves.
"You speak pretty words," she said finally, her voice cold. "But One has heard pretty words from liars before. Darkness is seductive, boy. It invites chaos. And you brought that chaos to One's doorstep."
She tapped a finger on the table.
"Who sent you?" she demanded suddenly. "Was it the Millelith? Are they seeking to usurp the Adepti? Or perhaps are you one of the Cryo Archon's pawns, the Fatui?"
"No one sent me!" Ren insisted, panic rising again. "I came here on my own! I just needed a place away from people so I wouldn't hurt anyone if the ritual went wrong!"
"And yet," Cloud Retainer stood up, looming over him, her shadow stretching long across the table, "you chose One's mountain and somehow bypassed One's wards."
She leaned down, her face inches from his. The pressure returned—not crushing this time, but sharp, like a knife against his throat.
"You are either a fool of astronomical proportions," she whispered, "or you are a spy with a very dangerous backing. Give One a reason not to evict you from this peak immediately."
/ — /
"D-Definitely the fool!" Ren quickly answered. "And I didn't break in. I didn't even know I was entering a domain until it was too late."
"Ignorance is not a defense," Cloud Retainer said coldly. "One's wards are designed to repel mortals with a sense of overwhelming dread long before they reach the summit. Yet you walked through them as if they were mist. Explain."
"I don't know how I did it!" Ren insisted, his hands trembling as he reached for the leather satchel at his hip. "I just walked! But I'm not an enemy. I have someone who vouches for me. Someone who gave me this for protection!"
He scrambled for the thick parchment, his fingers fumbling with the clasp. Cloud Retainer didn't move. She simply watched his frantic struggle with an expression of mild, disappointed boredom.
"Vouched for?" she echoed, the word dripping with skepticism. "And who, pray tell, would offer protection to a source of filth such as yourself? If you produce a talisman bought from a street peddler, One will be forced to vaporize you on principle."
"It's not a fake!"
Ren finally snagged the letter. He yanked it out and slammed it onto the stone table between them, panting.
"Here! Just look at the seal!"
Cloud Retainer didn't look surprised. In fact, her expression didn't change at all. She leaned in, her red-framed glasses catching the sunlight, and stared at the glowing blue stamp at the bottom of the document.
"One is aware," she said calmly. "One sensed the trace of that child's energy on you the moment you stepped into the cave. It is the only reason you are currently breathing air instead of ash."
She reached out, a single finger hovering over the seal.
"Designed to alert the Yaksha of a friendly presence. It carries the highest level of clearance... which explains your intrusion," she murmured, her eyes narrowing behind the lenses.
She looked up at Ren, a realization dawning in her gaze.
"So that is how you bypassed One's domain. The wards recognized the signature and mistakenly identified you as an authorized entity. That child accidentaly gave you a key to enter any Adepti's domain."
Ren blinked, stunned. "I... she did?"
He looked at the letter. Ganyu had given it to him so Xiao wouldn't spear him on sight. He had no idea it was basically an All-Access Pass to the home of any Adeptus.
"I did NOT know it could do that. I just thought it was so The Conqueror of Demons didn't impale me on sight." Ren said honestly.
"It is both," Cloud Retainer said, her voice turning dangerous. "The question is why she gave it to you. That child is kind. Too kind. She is easily swayed by sad stories and pathetic creatures."
The air around the table grew thin. The killing intent returned, sharper than before.
"Prove to One that you did not take advantage of her nature," Cloud Retainer hissed. "Did you trick her? Did you coerce a weary, overworked civil servant into granting you protection you do not deserve?"
Ren swallowed hard. He realized this wasn't a permit check anymore. It was a character witness trial.
"I didn't trick her," Ren said, forcing himself to meet those glowing blue eyes. "I was asking her for more information on my intention to meet with Xiao, and she gave me the Letter of Introduction to keep me safe."
He paused, then added the detail that felt most relevant to him—the only time they actually interacted like normal people.
"We talked about it while eating together at a restaurant. We've known each other for several months, and she has been keeping me company in my mandatory doctor visits."
"..."
"..."
Cloud Retainer blinked. The lethal sharpness in her eyes wavered, replaced by a flicker of confusion.
"Eating together… keeping you company… several months…" she repeated, the word sounding foreign in her mouth.
She looked up at Ren, and the atmosphere in the grove shifted so violently it gave Ren emotional whiplash. The killing intent evaporated, replaced instantly by a suffocating, laser-focused intensity that was somehow worse.
"Define 'eating together,'" she demanded, leaning across the table.
Ren recoiled, pressing his back against the invisible barrier of his own awkwardness. "Uh... sharing a meal?"
"Do not be facetious with One. I am asking about her," Cloud Retainer snapped. "Did she consume actual sustenance? Or did she simply order a plate of Qingxin flowers and nibble on the petals like a grazing goat? One has told her a thousand times that a half-adeptus cannot run a nation on medicinal herbs and morning dew!"
Ren stared at her, his brain stalled for a moment, unable to form words. His mind could not comprehend how the conversation shifted so drastically.
'Is this... is she serious?' But at least she stopped talking about wanting to kill him, so he'll take his chances.
"She... she ate real food. She had a big bowl of Prosperous Peace with the rice and the berries."
Cloud Retainer gasped. It was a genuine, delighted sound. She clasped her hands together against her chest, her eyes widening.
"Prosperous Peace..." she whispered, looking up at the maple leaves as if thanking the Archons. "She actually ordered a full meal? And she finished it?"
"Every bite," Ren nodded vigorously, sensing he had found the correct thing to talk about. "She even paid. She threatened to charge me compound interest if I tried to split the bill."
"Hmph! Excellent," Cloud Retainer beamed, a proud, smug smirk tugging at her lips. "One taught her the value of leverage. If you want to control the flow of a transaction, you must hold the debt. She was listening."
Ren sat there, stunned, watching the Adeptus preen.
"So," Ren ventured cautiously, "I'm... not a spy? And I didn't break in on purpose?"
"A spy? Don't be absurd," Cloud Retainer waved a hand dismissively. "A spy would have lied and said she ate a salad. Only someone who has actually dined with that child would know about her stubbornness regarding the check."
But then, the glasses flashed, and her gaze intensified once more. She leaned in again, the interrogation light swinging back on.
"Speaking of work," she dropped her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "Her sleep schedule. You see her in the harbor. Does she still remain at the Yujing Terrace until sunrise? Does she have dark circles? Is she sleeping on the floor again?"
Ren felt a cold sweat break out on his forehead. He needed to answer carefully. If he snitched too hard, Ganyu might kill him. If he lied, Cloud Retainer might kill him.
"I mean... she works hard," Ren equivocated, trying to be diplomatic. "She's very dedicated to the Qixing. But... yeah, she looks pretty tired sometimes. I think I've seen her nodding off while standing up."
Cloud Retainer's expression darkened. She let out a long, suffering sigh, shaking her head with the weight of centuries of parenting.
"Foolish child," she muttered. "One tells her to rest. But does she listen? No. She worries about 'tax codes' and 'zoning laws' while her constitution withers."
She fixed Ren with a sharp look, pointing a finger at his chest.
"You."
"Me?"
"You seem to have a surplus of free time if you are wandering around One's mountains blowing things up."
"I wouldn't call it a surplus—"
"If you are to continue associating with her," Cloud Retainer interrupted, ignoring him, "you will make yourself useful. You will ensure she takes breaks. You will ensure she eats something that isn't a flower. If One hears that she has fainted from exhaustion while you were nearby doing nothing... One will hold you personally responsible."
Ren swallowed. He had come here to tame a deer. He was leaving with a babysitting gig mandated by a god.
"Understood," Ren squeaked. "Make sure Ganyu eats. Got it."
"Good." Cloud Retainer sat back, looking satisfied. She adjusted her robes, regaining her composure as the elegant adeptus once more. "Now that we have established your utility, One supposes you may be permitted to descend the mountain without rapid acceleration due to gravity."
/ — /
He bowed low, a gesture of genuine respect.
"Thank you for the meal, Madam Cloud Retainer. It was one of the best I ever had."
"Flattery is a cheap currency," Cloud Retainer sniffed, though she didn't look displeased as she collected the empty bowl. "But at least you possess the manners to offer it. Unlike some mortals who simply consume and vanish."
She waved a hand toward the path leading down the mountain.
"You may depart. And regarding your... shikigami." She paused, eyeing his shadow. "If you require a space to discipline your unruly spirits, you may utilize the lower plateau. It is reinforced with ancient bedrock. Though One expects you to have the courtesy to not shatter it all."
Ren's eyes widened. She was actually giving him a training ground. But he quickly caught on to the bigger implication that was unspoken.
She would be giving him protection if things got out of hand.
"I... thank you! I won't break too much stuff. I promise."
"Go," she commanded, turning back to her stove. "Before One changes One's mind."
Ren didn't need to be told twice. He bowed again, turned, and began to walk down the winding stone path.
At first, his pace was measured—a respectful, dignified walk suitable for leaving the presence of a demigod.
But as he rounded the first bend and the pressure of her aura began to fade, his walk turned into a jog. The jog turned into a run. Within seconds, he was sprinting down the mountain path as the wind whipped through his hair, his shadow stretching out long and energetic behind him.
High above, standing at the edge of the cliff, Cloud Retainer watched the small figure hurtling down her mountain.
"He runs like a startled finch," she muttered, a mixture of irritation and amusement coloring her tone. "So much energy. So little grace."
She adjusted her glasses, the ghost of a smile touching her lips.
"Still... he is not entirely hopeless. He understands debt. He understands sustenance. And he seems to tolerate that child's nature without complaint."
She hummed thoughtfully, watching Ren disappear into the cloud layer.
"Perhaps Ganyu may finally find a suitable companion. But he is still rough around the edges. One shall have to devise a few more... trials to prove his worthiness."
Her gaze drifted to the north, toward the deeper, wilder peaks where another disciple resided.
"And then there is the other child," Cloud Retainer sighed, the sound echoing in the quiet grove.
"That child forgets how to speak to humans if One leaves her alone for too long. Perhaps this 'courier' could be of use there as well. If he can survive a conversation with One, surely he can survive a conversation with her."
She turned back to her stove, the water bubbling gently.
"Yes. A useful stray indeed."
***
Author Notes: Ok, this took way longer than I expected. My vocabulary isn't advanced enough to write Xianyun's speech well yet, so hopefully it isn't too odd.