🇵‌🇺‌🇷‌🇪‌ 🇼‌🇦‌🇹‌🇪‌🇷‌ | Shenhe x Reader

Prologue

A/n: If it's your first time reading something by me I will sometimes provide visual representations of scenes that are a little harder to picture, so here's this (forgive my poor drawing skills).

..........

Nighttime fell over Luhua Pool, the stars and moon reflecting on the water's surface. It was still and calm, and it almost looked like one could have stepped right into the sky through it, like a portal.

The area was empty, except for a few cranes perched on the shoreline. If not for the chirping of some nearby crickets, it would have been completely silent.

Slowly, the temperature began to drop. It was gradual and would have been hard for anyone to notice, had they not been paying attention to it, but it was there. One of the cranes perked its head up, sensing a new presence.

The others, seeing it suddenly become alert, readied their wings in anticipation, prepared to fly to safety if needed.

Finally, the temperature of the air became stable, though still chilly, and a dim glow began to show somewhere on the lake near the pools. The glow became brighter before finally stabilizing and manifesting into the shape of a person. They were stood on the water and faced away from the pools, holding a small ghostly parasol in their arms.

Deciding the spirit posed no threat, the birds relaxed and went back to what they were doing. The ghost didn't even seem to have noticed them. Instead, they opened the parasol and slung it over their shoulder, beginning to dance.

Their movements were graceful and calm, matching up perfectly with the quiet stillness of the night. They danced atop the water, performing what seemed similar to ballet. Their only audience was made up of the stars, moon, and the fish below. Nevertheless, they seemed content.

Their dance brought them across the lake and all around the water's surface. They seemed to get lost in it as they moved, their reflection twirling around with them.

Finally, they ended up back in the center of the lake where they had started, outstretching a hand towards the water as they took a bow.

To their own surprise, some of it splashed up at them, and would have sprayed them in the face, had they not been a spirit. They froze mid-bow, blinking slowly as they looked down at the water, then their hand. Had they just manipulated the water?

Bending down, they knelt on the surface of the lake, looking down at the fish, who seemed just as confused as they had been, staring up at them. Not that fish really blinked anyway.

They reached their hand out again, bringing up some of the water in the form of a small bubble. It floated in their palm, and their eyes widened in shock at their newfound ability. Letting it drop back into the lake, they took a moment to decide what their next course of action would be.

"If I can possess the water, maybe I can have a body again," they whispered to themselves, "sort of..." Looking down at the fish, they suddenly frowned. "Don't look at me like that you guys, I'm not leaving you, even if it works." They gazed back up at the sky, trying to remember how they'd come to find the pools. "I felt so drawn here, I'm not going now."

After all, as a spirit with no memory of their life before death, they had nowhere else to go. They didn't know why they couldn't move on into the afterlife, why they were forced to continue existing in the mortal realm, a mere shell of whomever they used to be. They weren't even sure quite how they ended up in Liyue, just that it had happened.

Looking back at the water, they paused for a moment before leaning down, their forehead touching the surface. A red Medaka fish swam up to them, curious as they what they were doing. They smiled before finally merging themselves with the water, their ghostly form disappearing.

Instead, they now looked more like a particularly tall wave, unsure of how else to form themselves. The Medaka swam around in a circle, making them chuckle.

"I know, I'm excited too. I finally have a physical form!" While it wasn't quite what they'd expected when wishing to have a body again, they weren't about to complain, either. Possessing water was a surprisingly simple and easy solution.

Suddenly, they heard the sound of light footsteps drawing near and immediately ducked under water. Though, considering they were now made of water, it just looked like the large wave sitting on the surface had disappeared.

Once they were sure no one would be able to see them from the shoreline, they glanced up to see who was coming.

They knew better than to be seen by a mortal, as they tended to make a scene and cause trouble for spirits just trying to mind their business. To their surprise, a woman with white hair tied back in a long braid was standing at the edge of the lake. She looked beautiful, but what really caught the ghost's attention were her eyes.

They were grey and so beautiful. The spirit froze for a moment at the sight. They seemed to hold thousands of emotions she didn't let her face show, and they wanted to see each of them. Her eyes were like crystals, and they just couldn't stop looking at them. They drew them in like how they'd been drawn to Luhua Pool months ago.

She looked ethereal. Perhaps she was some kind of goddess, or even one of those Adepti they'd heard of?

They contemplated surfacing to try and talk to her, but somehow couldn't bring themselves to do so. She seemed familiar...Had they seen her somewhere before? Maybe in their old life?

As much as they wanted answers, they stayed still, not wanting to frighten her and make her leave any sooner than she had to. They weren't sure why, but they wanted her to stay a while longer.

Unfortunately, she only stuck by the pools for a few more moments before turning and continuing her walk. They frowned as she walked away, eventually disappearing from their sight completely.

Even after she was gone, they couldn't seem to get the image of her beautiful eyes out of their head.