Have you ever felt that emotion when listening to a specific song for the first time? The type of feeling that makes you imagine the texture of spring daisies on your fingertips and fleeting winds wiping across your face? It makes you feel free and an inexplicable amount of happiness - one you're certain you had never felt before. And perhaps blame it on the rough upbringing; but Mondstadt felt the way those songs sound.
The nation of freedom was everything you could imagine, nothing less and everything more. It was something from deep into your dreams and desires, fantasies of a place that you had wished your family had been born into instead of the cool blues of Snezhnaya.
If you looked hard enough, gripping the wooden railing of the boat in pure excitement as the ship neared land, you could picture Melina running through the long blades of grass with a wide smile and a flowing white sundress adorning her figure.
And finally, unable to control your body and eagerness to get off the ship you were on, you hopped out the instant the wooden ship touched the wooden dock of the city of Mondstadt - ignoring the cries of crewmen as you ran past guards and workers. Entering the tall stone walls of Mondstadt was a surreal experience, one that had you feeling like a kid on their sugar rush tendencies.
You didn't hold back when your legs ached to run. Feet tapping the ground and excess fabric of your shirt flying around with your frantic movements as you raced down streets and skipped up flights of stairs. People laughed and shop owners marvelled at the sight of the foreigner on their streets - the clothing on your body leaning more towards the style of Liyue than anywhere else. But goodness, running away like that wasn't a good idea, was it?
"Stop right there!" - you jinxed it - "you! Pirate! Move any more and we'll be forced to detain you under the laws of the knights of favonius!"
The guard that ran up behind you was tall and well built despite being on the larger side. A sword rested in his hand and pointed at you as if you were any more dangerous than his blade. For a moment, you didn't understand; why were you being detained? You did nothing wrong after all. But you were an outsider to them - for all they knew, you entered Mondstadt illegally like you did Liyue.
You raised your hands in defence. "Ah! Wait! I come as part of the trade ship from Liyue!"
"With captain Beidou?"
"Yes! Her!"
He furrowed his brows, hesitating for a moment. "Can I see a form of identification and certificate of approval to enter Mondstadt under business rules?"
You froze, body frigid. "Uh... what?"
Just when you were certain you were about to be reprimanded, a hand settled itself on your shoulder - light and cold but confident and gentle. "Actually, there's no need to worry here Harris. They're a part of the crew."
"Huh..?" The man stopped, taking a step back and lowering his sword. You took that moment to turn and look at the owner of the gentle voice behind you. "I see... well then, I'll be returning to my duty."
The woman behind you stood tall and confident, bright blonde hair tied back into a pony tail held together by an adorable dark blue bow. Her skin was sun kissed and eyes so blue you swear they matched the colour of the bright blue sky behind her. She smiled as her eyes came into contact with yours. "Sorry about that, Mondstadt guards are trained to make sure no one is allowed into the city that could cause any havoc or danger. Don't hold it against them."
"I won't." You reassured, uncertain of just what to say to such a gentle looking person. "It just came off like a spook, I wasn't aware I needed to carry around identification."
She laughed, joyful and amused. "You don't. It's just because they weren't aware of who you were. Perhaps the running around is what caused them to suspect you." She mused, teasingly and smugly.
Your face burned in embarrassment. Was it that weird to run around? You were only curious about the city after all - it would be natural as it was your first time visiting. "I'll keep that in mind. Thank you...?"
"Oh! Jean, acting grand master of the knights of favonius." She stretched out her hand towards you.
You slowly wrapped your own with hers, shaking it softly with a smile. "Y/n. Cant say I have any interesting titles other than a runaway."
"A runaway, huh?" She laughed. Perhaps she didn't understand how serious you were with that name. "Suits you."
"Does it now?"
"Well you sure like to run." She noted. "I was at the dock to greet your team, but you bolted right past me as soon as the ship reached the dock."
"Oh... I apologise, I was excited to see your city." First impressions were definitely not your thing - not with shenhe, Ningguang, Zhongli and not with Jean. It made you physically cringe at the memories.
Jean grinned, patting your shoulder before leading you back towards the dock. "I don't blame you; Mondstadt is a very beautiful city. Why don't we go get you signed in and I can give you a personal tour of our city?"
A personal tour didn't sound half bad, especially if it was by such a beautiful woman. But would that be right? Last time you trusted a beautiful woman you had to deal with the consequences of spending a night with beidou...
But looking at Jean, you felt safe. For a moment you wanted to feel safe, so you nodded and walked back towards the dock with her.
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Back at the docks, a line of crewmen waited as three guards tended to each individual member - writing down important information and running through anything they needed, offering guides and carriage trips to those who needed the services. Jean tapped your shoulder and silently waved you over to a crate with a clip board on top.
"So here in Mondstadt you're able to stay at our five star hostel ran by the knights of favonius - there's supplementary breakfast every morning but you're going to have to get your own lunch and dinner. However, we can call up good hunter - the best ranking restaurant in the city - and have them deliver meals to you. You can request a guide and carriages for long distance travels but any other services will come with a fee."
You listened to the girl, often internally cursing yourself for letting your eyes wander over her - god, you were just trying to escape a pretty girl, why were you now falling interest in another one? But she was pretty, was that so bad?
"Does that make sense?" She asked, looking up at you through her lashes with an innocent smile that made your heart do back flips.
Lord, they'd be the death of you. "Yeah, understood."
"Good." She clicked her pencil against the paper - sliding it out of the clip and handing it to you. "Then here's your slip. Don't lose it, it will give you all the identification you need to get our free services. Now; if you can wait here I'll just go help others get signed up and we can go on that tour we spoke about, sounds good?"
"Sounds perfect." You gulped, pulling on the hem of your shirt as she chuckled and walked away.
Under Mondstadt sun you felt so hot, either the warm weather or the feeling of cool blue eyes that couldn't help but wander over to you when she didn't have a crew member to help. Completely distracting you from the scolding burning crimson eyes across the dock.
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Those Willing to Drown | Beiguang x GN! Reader
Fanfiction"Someone will remember us, I say, even in another time."
