Chapter Text
“Where did they go!?”
“Search the city! We can’t let them get away!!”
The couple hid behind several bamboo boxes, terrified of what would happen to them, especially their children.
“Baihe, we can’t hide here forever,” the man whispered, cradling his son in his arms.
The woman, Baihe, stared longingly at her children. Perhaps…
“Come, Haoyu.”
The couple quickly left their hiding spot as quietly as possible.
They arrived at the gates of Liyue Harbour.
“An old friend of mine is from Liyue Harbour, we’ll have to leave Ying at her doorstep.”
Haoyu widened his eyes.
“What about Kong? We’ll just leave Ying to live while the three of us die?”
“No.” Baihe stared into his eyes. “We both will meet our fate, these two have their whole life ahead of them. What a shame it’ll be if they die before they can see the world.”
“Do you mean…”
“We’ll both have to split up,” she sighed. “We’ll leave Kong under the care of the ‘Adepti’.”
Haoyu stayed silent before slowly nodding his head.
“Take Kong to them, I’ll take Ying to her. They’ll meet again one day.”
A moment of silence between them passed, before they headed to their destination separately.
Baihe searched around for a basket she could use to place her beloved daughter in.
Fortunately, an old bamboo basket was lying on the ground. She picked it up and slowly lowered Ying into the basket.
“Promise me you’ll reunite with your brother.” Baihe placed a kiss onto Ying’s forehead.
Baihe reached into her pouch and pulled out a roll of parchment and a quill.
“Ah, the ink stained the parchment,” Baihe sighed. “No matter, it’s not much.”
She quickly scribbled a note and placed it in the basket.
She slowly walked towards the house of her old friend and placed Ying there.
Ying slowly opened her eyes and watched as her mother hooked a pendant around Ying’s neck.
“This pendant will help you reunite with Kong. Mama and baba will watch over you and your brother.”
Perhaps Ying understood what was happening, as she started crying.
Tears flowed down Baihe’s face.
“Māmā ài nǐ.”
And with that, she left, prepared for her to reach the end of her life.
“Master!! We found Baihe!!”
“KILL HER!!!!!”
“You’ll be safe here, Kong,” Haoyu whispered, as he slowly set the basket down at the foot of the staircase.
He pulled out a piece of parchment which had writings on them and placed them in the basket.
“You’ll reunite with your sister one day, I know it.”
“Bàba ài nǐ.”
And with that, he left.
“HAOYU!!!!!”
An elegant black haired woman walked up the steps to her abode, followed by 2 young children: one long black haired girl with red ornaments in her hair and one short blue haired girl with black and red horns.
“Hm?”
She stared at the basket on the steps, then bent down to examine it.
“What is it, master?” the blue haired girl asked.
She picked the child up and read the parchment.
Dear Cloud Retainer,
This is my son, Kong. My wife and I were pursued and we had to split ways. I’m forced to leave Aether under your care, as I don’t think I can stay alive even a few moments longer. Please do take care of him, I’ll be in your debt, even above in Celestia.
Hm, foolish, Cloud Retainer thought. Abandoning one’s child is an unforgivable sin and one cannot “ascend” to Celestia just because one has passed.
She spared a glance at the sleeping blonde, before sighing.
Nevertheless, one shall take care of him, one shall fulfill your final wish.
“Come, Ganyu, Shenhe,” she commanded. “We must introduce Kong to the others.”
“Eh, who’s Kong?” the blue haired girl, Ganyu, asked curiously.
The black haired child, Shenhe, simply nodded.
They continued ascending the staircase, eventually entering the abode, meeting all the other “Adepti”.
“Goodness, what’s that crying?”
“Madame Ping, should we go investigate?” the purple haired girl asked.
“There’s no need to trouble you, child. I can investigate myself,” she laughed.
The purple haired girl nodded, then walked towards a dark blue haired girl cooking.
The light grayish blue haired woman, Ping, opened the front door to investigate, and found a blonde child crying in a basket.
“Oh dear…”
She bent down and picked her up, watching her with pity.
Her eyes then landed on an ink stained parchment in the basket. She shifted herself so she could hold the child while reading the note.
Dear Streetward Rambler,
Or should I say, Ping? I suppose you know who I am surely. This is my daughter, Ying. She had a twin brother named Kong, but my husband and I had parted ways so as to not get caught. I’m entrusting Ying to your care. Please, I beg you, take care of her. I don’t know how long it’ll be before they find me, but I’m using my last moments to write you this note.
Streetward Rambler stared at the parchment.
“I’ll fulfill your last wish, don’t you worry, Baihe.”
And with that, she retreated into the house, with Ying in her arms.
“I see,” a soothing deep voice said. “So, you found him at the steps of this very abode.”
“Indeed,” Cloud Retainer replied. “As the ‘Adepti’, we should care for him as our own just like Shenhe and Ganyu.”
“Barbatos, what do you think?”
“Gee, Morax,” Barbatos laughed. “It’s not very like you to ask for my opinion.”
Morax sighed.
“But.” Barbatos stared at the sleeping blonde. “I agree with Cloud Retainer.”
“Very well.” Morax turned to Cloud Retainer. “We shall care for him. I believe you are up to that task, Cloud Retainer?”
“One is more than capable of doing that.”
“We shall raise him as our own,” Morax announced.
“Who is she, Madame Ping?”
“Her name is Ying. She was left on our doorstep. She will be joining us from now on, so please do your best to make her feel welcomed."
Everyone nodded. Ping smiled softly at the sleeping blonde in her arms.
“Another one?” the green haired man hummed.
“Come now, Baizhu.” Ping grinned at him. “It’s my duty to offer a home to those who don’t or no longer have one.”
“You have a point there,” he chuckled.
“Hmph! Always taking in people who don’t have a home, I would be a fool to think it wasn’t for Guizhong!” the snake around Baizhu's shoulders hissed.
“Now, now, Changsheng.”
“Not to worry, Baizhu, it is indeed true after all.”
The full moon shone high above the skies, two shooting sky then flew across the sky.
Just at that moment, two twins awoke and were prepared to live completely different lives from the other. Both not knowing where their twin was, yet they did nothing to find the other. They were perfectly happy this way. Or so they thought.