𝗜 𝗪𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗔 𝗚𝗢 𝗛𝗢𝗠𝗘 ✦ 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 [OLD]
𝗙𝗮𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲
"Ah, sir, you're here. The kites you asked for are finished." the old lady at the toy stand greeted as the group approached, "Would you like to take them now?"
"Yes. Thank you." Zhongli said as y/n finally managed to calm herself down.
"It's rare to see customers who want to buy this type of kite nowadays. In the early days, we used to get orders from people of all walks of life..." the woman was saying as y/n spaced out.
'Kaori likes kites... she's no longer a little girl but maybe she'd still like one...' y/n thought, 'Would she want pink or...?'
Y/n stopped, her heart sinking in her chest.
'Does she even like pink anymore...'
"Well, this is Mr. Zhongli from the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor so he's probably well-versed in all these walks of life." Paimon exclaimed, "We've talked about a whole bunch of things while traveling with him..."
"Fashion, economics, jewelry and jade pottery..." Aether listed, "Perfumes, flora and fauna..."
"He seems to know Liyue's favorite topics, money and government, really well, but he likes talking about less useful topics instead." Paimon continued.
"That's why we have y/n here." Aether reminded the pixie, snapping the h/c haired woman out of her daze.
"Huh? What?" she asked, puzzled.
"Well, that's because I prefer to share fun things with you." Zhongli chuckled before patting y/n's head, the young lady quickly becoming flustered once more, "But, I do tend to ramble. Y/n does a good job of making sure I stay on topic."
Y/n wheezed, "ʸᵉᵖ."
"Children's toys are very fun things, that's for sure. I enjoy watching the children at play as much as anyone else. But there is more to it than that." the woman droned on, "Finely crafted toys are well-loved by children. But this craft itself has been honed over thousands of years, and there is meaning behind that. I have made kites in Liyue for forty years, and I am intimately familiar with the forms passed down from my ancestors. The meaning of these seven kites is far from banal."
"Oh no..." y/n murmured as the kites were passed to her. She already knew what was going to happen.
"These are used in the Rite of Parting. The kites represent The Seven since, as you can see, there are Seven." y/n said before Zhongli could say anything.
"I took the liberty of coloring outside the lines when doing the insignia of the Anemo Archon." the woman explained as y/n's sanity continued to turn to dust, "As for the kite that honors the Geo Archon, one must follow the contract given right down to the last letter. These patterns are ancient, and you can also find them in the Golden House."
"Ah, Paimon's heard that name before!" Paimon began to say and Aether glared.
"Paimon! Hush!" he said sharply.
Y/n looked confused, "How do you guys know about the- ah... nevermind."
'Did I ever mention it? Or maybe I let something slip without realizing it...' y/n thought, feeling nervous, 'Maybe I should tell Ningguang. Especially with that Fatui boy snooping around.'
"The design of this kite displays a firm grasp on the cyclicality and eternity so dear to-" Zhongli stopped talking as soon as y/n gave him a stop-talking-we-don't-have-time-for-this look.
He looked a bit guilty as he gave y/n an apologetic look, "...my apologies."
"It's fine." y/n said with a shake of her head before looking at Aether and Paimon once more, "To put it simply, the designs on each kite represent each Archon's Divine Ideal. Eternity for Electro. Wisdom for Dendro. Justice for Hydro. War for Pyro. And... you get the point."
Zhongli nodded, giving y/n another pat on the head which was greatly appreciated, "These designs are masterfully done."
"Hehehe, the compliments of a learned man truly are pleasant." the old lady chuckled.
"Well then, Granny Shan, I shall take these back with me." Zhongli began then hesitated, "As for the payment..."
"As for the payment, he says!" Paimon said heavily with a little shake of her head.
"Well, allow me." a certain ginger chimed in from behind y/n who flinched, whirling around.
She looked at him with a shocked expression, 'When did he get here!??? I didn't even hear him! Is he human???'
Yeah, she was just deep in thought.
"Hey, it's Childe!" Paimon exclaimed while Aether narrowed his eyes at the Fatui dude.
"Did you come here to eavesdrop?" Aether questioned with a small frown.
"No, I was merely passing through." Childe replied which was absolute BULL.
Y/n could hear it in his voice, he'd planned this. He was trying to get information out of them.
'The Fatui really can't be trusted.' y/n thought wryly.
"I see Mr. Zhongli's the same as ever. When paying— well, when getting others to pay for him, he neither looks at the price tag nor his wallet." Childe laughed.
"Ain't that the truth." y/n said under her breath before speaking up, "He has the mentality of someone who has all the mora on the world. Or he can make mora."
"How has he not died of hunger yet?" Paimon wondered aloud and y/n shrugged.
"He can't." y/n said simply.
Bang, another shot fired.
"Not with me here. I'd prefer it if my co-workers didn't die of starvation." y/n finished with a smile.
"You're a generous one, aren't you?"
"You could say that. I'm capable of caring for myself so I taking care of another person isn't too much."
Aether and Paimon both looked amused, noticing that Zhongli may have been a teensy weensy bit jealous.
"...Childe, you are as fond of jokes as ever. Well then, since we've purchased our kites without incident, there's no need to take a break before moving to the next step in our preparations." Zhongli spoke up before y/n and Childe's conversation could proceed any further, "The Rite of Parting requires helping hands as well as materials. We should be able to find some people near the harbor."
Y/n was back in working mode again, "Got it! This shouldn't be difficult!"
"Oh, by the way, Traveler, take this bag of money." Childe said as he passed a bag of mora to Aether, "You probably won't want to let Zhongli do the bargaining, if you know what I mean. Otherwise, y/n might end up paying for everything. And we wouldn't want that."
"I wouldn't mind paying for it all if we had no other choice but thank you, Childe." y/n said with an itty bitty nod before glancing at Zhongli, "C'mon, we've got work to do."
While y/n walked off with Zhongli, Aether and Paimon following her like ducks, she picked up on something Childe was saying.
"Hmm... It seems I missed out on some interesting information." the ginger was murmuring, "...I suppose I'll just have to find a more opportune moment next time."
Y/n's expression darkened a little, 'As if I'm going to let you get information out of me. You may be charming but even I know when someone is putting up a facade.'
She suddenly stopped before sprinting back so she could stop in front of the stand again.
"I'd like a custom made kite please! Pink with this design and gray-!" y/n exclaimed before placing a paper in front of the little old lady.
She bowed with a, "I'll return with the payment when it is finished, thank you!"
Before the old lady could say anything else, she ran to catch up with the trio again. Unaware that Childe had heard her request.
(I've been taking a lot of pictures of the sky recently. It's oddly relaxing)
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