Temptress

Chapter 2

Indigo and Tartaglia still in silence got on the boat together. With Snezhaya's technology they should be at liyue's dock in the morning and then she will make the treck up to mond. The boat was small there was a drivers seat even though it was self driving a bed and a sofa. Their bags where placed in the corner. Indigo suddenly realised she hadn't packed any clothes. They were cleaned by the maids giving to her on the daily - never being stored in her room. She sighed. The only thing she had on was her long white dress from the ball. She sat down at the end of the sofa and brought her legs up to her chest and tried to sleep. 

I watched her sleep in her tight white dress. Her eyes fluttering every so often when her neck rolls. I turned away from her so my back was to her and undressed in to my night attire. I put her hand around my neck and stood her up and carried her bridal style towards the bed. I layed her down carefully and pulled the quilt her over her resting body. I turned to leave but she swiftly grabbed my wrist and pulled me on to the bed. I wasnt sure if she was awake or not, but as her grip loosened I tried to leave but yet again she pulled me back towards her. I have in a crawled into bed next to her. I kept a distance between us, but she still had a grip on my wrist. Her gentle breathing sung me to sleep. 

The morning neared and the dim light of sun rise shone through the cracks of the windows. Indigo stretched out and her hand knocked a face. She suddenly sat up. Confused about whose bed she was in, she sat up and remembered what had happened last night. Her face flushed a crimson red. She was in fact awake when he carried her into bed albeit a little drunk but she knew what  was happening. Still in her ball gown she stood up and sat by the window. They had arrived at liyue harbour. Indigo didn't have the guts to wake Ajax so she sat and waited. She gazed at him as he slept, he looked so peaceful. His chest slowly rising and falling and he inhaled and exhaled. She started to hum a soft song she thought of while trapped in her room in the blistering cold. ( song - asleep - the smiths) 

She felt guilty when she felt lust towards him. He was a horrible a man. So many lives had been taken by his hands. Scars covered his chest from people who didn't go peacefully. 'In this world that's how it is, you have to kill to survive' He had once told her as she lay half awake on his lap. His hand gently stroking and brushing through her long hair. She reminisced on those times with saddened heart, she wished it was simple like it was back then. A grunt from the waking male across the boat brought her back to reality. 

Now standing on liyue harbour Ajax was digging in his bag for something. 'Here' He said, presenting her with a dead vision and a sheathed sword. She quickly took the vision and it lit up to its normal light blue state. The cryo snowflake sat prominently in the middle of the vision. Though when going to mondstadt she didn't want to bring any extra attention to her self than necessary ( though that would be difficult in a dress like hers.). Dropping it to the floor with the sword she pulled the ribbon out of her hair and tied it to her thigh she picked the vision and the sheathed sword up and attached them to the ribbon. She dropped her skirt back down and it the items weren't noticeable at all. Her lightly curled hair now fell to about the centre of her back but that was a problem she would deal with later. 

Ajax and Indigo started walking towards mond, the air almost seemed to stop as a certain someone caught her eye. 

It was morax himself after all these years he still wondered through liyue. She turned her head and caught his gaze, he was just as perplexed to see her. Once ajax had caught on he grabbed her wrist and pulled her away 'Don't do anything stupid or I will have to kill you' He whispered into her ear. His warm breath tickling her neck. They continued walking until the got to the top of liyue. The rite of parting was nearing and the preparations were being put up. Ajax turned to face her and said, 'The tsaritsa wants me to stay here in liyue for some separate work. You are going to have to work alone. I have been instructed to tell you all we know about the Anmeo Archon. He likes to drink a lot, his favourite bar is the angles share run by Diluc Raginvindr who has a personal hatrid towards the fatui. If he doesn't drink there he will be at the cats tail, Run by a girl called diona. If he isnt in either of those places the other places he might be is The big tree in windrise, on his own statue in mond or at stormterrors lair' She nodded taking in everything he said, fear filled her body as she realised how important this is. Her life is on the line. 

She had set off to mond a few hours ago and she was now at wangshu inn. Her stomach rumbled lightly as she realised how  hungry she was. She made her way up the inn as she recalled there being a restaurant here. She walked up and ordered some golden shrimp balls, and found a place to sit on the balcony. She sat there thinking about what she was doing to in mond. It had been hundreds of years since she had been there. She remembers their wine, the grapes the wine was made from was rather bitter but when adding dandelion in and mixing it with a pestle and mortar and grinding the seeds into the wine, the bitterness of the grapes is entirely over powered by a sweetness like sugar. 

She was awoken from her thoughts by a rough tap on her shoulder, she turned around expecting to receive her food instead she was greeted with a short green haired boy, with marks along his arms similar to an archons. 'Follow me' He said. His voice was rough and quiet. Noting the anemo vision that hung around his waist. She nodded and followed him. She clung to the sword through her dress just encase. He lead her up some stairs and into a room. Puzzled and intrigued she entered the room and there sat morax himself. Had he followed her here? Who was the boy that lead her here? 

'No,' She said quietly 'I'm putting you in too much danger by being here you must leave.' She spoke gently, but meant every word. She noticed a book and a pen on the bedside table of the room. She walked over and started to write '' They're watching I can't tell you anything'' She put the pen down and slid the book over to him. He read it carefully noticing her shaky writing and looked back up at her with a perplexed look. 'I must go' she said. She started walking towards the door but the green haired man stood in front of the door and pulled out his polearm, blocking her exit. 'Move' She said sternly unsheathing her own sword. 'Stop' Morax called out from  behind her. 'Xaio stand guard outside nobody goes in or out until I say so.' She had never seen him so stern. It scared her. How badly did the archon war change him.' The boy nodded and left the room. 

He faced her and walked closer and started to speak again, 'You expect me to let you go after all these years? The last I heard was that you were taking over Sumeru and then you disappeared, you never returned my letters, Then hundreds of years later you turn up in liyue with a harbinger and ignore me?' There was a tone grief in his voice. She sighed lightly. He cared for her, he always had and she did reciprocate his feelings, that was exactly the reason she couldn't drag him into this. She pondered on what to say, she couldn't lie to him she had never been able to. She was about to speak when he completely took her by surprise and grabbed her by the waist and pulled her in for a tender hug. She melted into his chest like butter on a hot slice of bread and cried, cried her eyes out until she couldn't get any more tears out. He pulled away from her, his hands still connected behind her waist. She looked up at him with wet red eyes. 'I can't tell you anything, they'd take me back if I did, I don't want that.' She said shakily. Her answers confused him more but he left it be. 

Letting go of her, he walked over to the wall and sunk down to the floor, she followed and sat next to him, her knees up to her chin. She let her head fall on to his shoulder. Breaking the silence Morax asked 'Where are you headed?' 'Mondstadt' She softly replied. He laughed, 'You're going all that way in that dress.' Half awake she smiled into his shoulder. 'I'll find you some spare clothes, that are better suited for travelling.' He said starting to get up. 'No, stay' She said half lidded grabbing his wrist. He smiled and sat back down placing one arm around her she softly slipped into a comfortable sleep.