Cold Blooded

May Your Compass Always Point North

They got into the harbor with little struggle. Everyone played their part to perfection. Saya held Chongyun close and Ajax threw himself about and flopped onto more or less anything that could support his weight while muttering like a drunk. However, that might have just been how Ajax felt at the moment. Somehow after shanged out his clothes and hiding his bright hair in a cap, he didn't stand out like the fearsome harbinger with a thirst for blood.

Then again, Saya had noticed that he had seemed a bit different when he made his way across that bridge. He had smiled then, before he passed out. It had seemed so much more genuine than any other smile he had flashed throughout all their journeys.

They made it to the docks and Saya looked around for a ship that didn't seem too busy, but ready to depart soon. A boat about halfway down the dock with unmarked grey sails called out to her. Something about it was familiar.

Trusting her gut, Saya hauled Ajax and Chongyun over to the side of the ship and waited for a chance to get aboard. The second that she saw an opening, she ran. They got below deck and behind a few crates without anyone noticing.

Saya hadn't realized how tired she was until she was sitting behind those crates. The adrenaline that had been pumping through her veins for the past hours had finally run out. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

Chongyun sat beside her and Ajax was hidden in a different corner behind a few sacks of assorted goods. After about half an hour the ship started to move out into the sea. It was only then that Saya fell asleep to the swaying of the boat.

-<>-

Andrei looked out at the sea before him. He had been sailing it all his life, yet something felt different today. He ran his hand along his ship's smooth wood.

"What is it, old girl?" He muttered quietly to his ship. "What is so different about today?"

"Captain, we're ready to depart. Just give the word." Andrei turned around to find Zyrenia. He smiled at her and she returned the look. Though Zyrenia tended to come off a bit... rough to some people, she had been his first mate for almost two decades. Looking at her now, he knew there was no one else he would have wanted by his side through all that time.

"Aye," Andrei nodded and signaled to the crew. "Time to go, everyone!"

"Aye, aye, captain!"

The crew bustled around the deck and in the sails. They were out into the sea within minutes. This ship could be run with only five crew members, but it was nice to have a full ship again.

On this odd day, Andrei couldn't help but think back to that day five years ago. He had gotten a new crew that day. Everyone else had stayed in Snezhnaya, besides himself and Zyrenia.

He loved every member of his new crew, but he also missed the old one. He remembered how Fangqi had always been ready for a pint and a good laugh. Andrei also missed seeing those three teenagers running around the deck and playing cards in the cargo hold. Hisaya and Gisei had come together and had always been close. When Chongyun joined their crew for a few months, the others quickly welcomed him. How were those kids nowadays?

Before Andrei realized where he had gone, he found himself in the cargo hold. The supplies and cargo was piled about, but not in the way he liked it. The crew had never paid attention to his specifics besides how good of workers they were normally. Andrei sighed and began to pull the crates and sacks into an organized pattern.

That was when Andrei found the man in the hat. Hidden behind the sacks of produce was a man in a cap, curled up on himself. He was asleep and looked vaguely familiar, but Andrei couldn't place him. The only thing that he knew was that this man was a stowaway.

"Hey!" Andrei grabbed the man and pushed him up against a stack of crates. "What are you doing down here, buddy?"

The man was startled awake and kicked Andrei off him in an instance. The man rose up into a fighting stance and stared Andrei dead on. He was ready for a fight.

"I just need a quick ride," the man said with a smile. His words were the smallest bit slurred from being so quickly awoken. The man continued. "If I need to fight to cover the toll, I'll be happy to pay."

Then the man froze for a moment, a look of confusion crossed over his face. He scratched the back of his neck, and Andrei took that moment to attack.

He had the man down on the ground with his arms behind his back in an instant. The man's cap fell to the floor, revealing a head of bright ginger hair. The man turned his head and glared up at Andrei.

"Do you have any clue who I am?" The man hissed. "As a harbinger of the Tsaritsa, I demand that you unhand me."

"L-lord Tartaglai?!" Andrei stumbled back immediately, finally recognizing the man. "Wha- What are you doing sneaking into a ship? And why my ship?"

"To be perfectly honest, I needed a ride and your ship was the most convenient option."

"But why-" Andrei stopped. He shouldn't be questioning someone so much higher up the food chain. But... Why would someone with so much power need to sneak onto a ship?

"What's wrong...!?" Another head popped up behind a different stack of crates. Another stowaway?

"Morning, Saya." Lord Tartaglia tipped his head to the other stowaway. "I'm just having a quick chat with our dear captain to arrange our transport."

"Oh, okay..." The girl stowaway sleepily nodded her head and turned to look at Andrei. The moment their eyes locked, she jumped to her feet. "Captain?!"

"Saya?!"

Andrei starred in dumb wonder. After all these years, Saya was hiding on his ship behind a bunch of crates. With the eleventh harbinger, no less.

"Ow, Miss Saya!" A small voice whined from behind the crates. "Miss Saya, you're stepping on my hair!"

"Oh, Chongyun! I'm so, so sorry." Saya bent down and picked up a toddler with ice blue hair and striking blue eyes.

"Wait..." Andrei shook his head. "Did you just call him Chongyun?"

"Um," Saya glanced from the toddler, to Lord Tartaglia, to Andrei. "Well, yes. This- this is Chongyun."

"Oh, my archons..." Andrei took a step back and rubbed his hand over his face. "What in Teyvat happened in these five years?"

~author's note~

Hey everyone, thank you to anyone that has made it this far. We're almost back to Liyue! I hope that your still enjoying this story. Try to leave a vote or commit if you can :) Thank you again for reading.