Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was an extremely slow day. Your fruit stand wasn't all in the glory, there were others, in more convenient places. Your mother spends her days to help gather and grow stuff for you. Sure, there were some better days than other, but an average of 5 people come a day, at best. This meant too much free time for you during work days. It'd be better to close up early today, no one was coming anyways.

As you were packing your stuff and about to basket the fruits, a person comes by. He's silent, draped in blue, black, and white. Gold accents adorned him, what caught your eye was his feather. He didn't appear to be from around here, and he took an interest in your stand. So, you pretended like you weren't just about to close.

"Hi sir! Coming from afar I see?" You speak up, pulling from the depths of your soul a genuine smile to see a person actually stop at your stand.

"No." He says. Dang, this was awkward. He just stood there, not bearing any emotion as his pupils swished from side to side, inspecting the fruits.

"A-Ah. I see." You can feel a sweat drop form on your face. His breaths were slow, all his focus on looking at what might even slightly interest him. Actually, his breaths were a bit too slow. Odd, at least.

It took a few more minutes of awkward silence from the both of you. Actually, the air around him wasn't awkward at all, unlike yours. As if he couldn't care less. Finally, he picked up a pomegranate. It was perfectly ripe, would be sweet inside too! He was lucky.

"I'll take this. How much?" He questions, his eyes slowly lidding as he felt in his pockets for mora.

"Just 20 Mora, sir! The pomegranate is in season! Seems like you picked up a good one too!" You exclaimed, happy not for you, but for your stand actually picking up someone today. He huffed a bit, grabbing the golden coins and handing off to you. You attempted to thank him, but he didn't really care. He just left. God, this was an embarrassing exchange.

It's time to pack up now. It was on the brink of getting dark, not like your shop is popular during the night anyways. If anyone was even awake during those ungodly hours. At the very least you made today.

Honestly, you were happy you even made something today. 

Maybe 20 minutes have gone by. Everything's covered, your stuff is packed and ready to go home. Step after step, barely anyone out after dark. You lived somewhat near the Akademiya. You've always dreamed of going there, being able to be grouped up with the smarties. Your mother really wanted to see you get in before her time passes, also. But, you're not really good at anything. Hell, you only had one person come by today. Your life is mundane, dull, boring. Like everyone else. You sighed, thinking about your past memories. Something broke you out of that trance, you heard a sweet child's voice. You looked around, seeing a child halfway up the steps to the school. It was late, what was a young girl like her doing out here? 

You mentally rerouted your walk back home to account for the girl, thinking of asking her if she's alright. You're stopped by a familiar voice, not to you, but to her. You're a good distance away, so you decided to listen in. 

"What'd you think of the fruit stand I recommended you, Wanderer?" She softly spoke. Her voice wasn't powerful at all, but sweet and easy to listen to. You mentally dub her the 'Mandarin'. 

"It was small. Away from everyone and everything. What's so special about it?" The boy spoke up. His voice was harsher, slightly raspy. You quickly recognize the tone from the weird guy earlier. A slight tangy, sour ping formed in your heart hearing him rudely speak the truth about your stand. You just felt inclined to listen in more, but wanted to get home quickly. 

Finally, you can rest. You tried not to let the comment from earlier bother you, but it did. You slept uneasily that night. 

-

A 'ding!' wakes you up. Out of instinct, you already know it was from your mother baking in the kitchen. You quickly get changed out of your pajamas, into a more casual wear. 

"Mother! Goodmorning!" You smiled, taking a seat at the dining table. Well, it was more of a table for everything, as it was kind of the only actual table in the house. You guys couldn't really afford fancy stuff. 

"Goodmorning dear. Would you like to try some of this pie I made?" She questioned you. Your mother was growing old, each year of your life whilst growing up equalling to another year closer to death for her. It brought slight tears to your eyes thinking about it, so you tried not to. 

"Yes, please." She handed a piece to you, the slightest ever, "koff" coming from her whilst moving. It hurt your heart a bit to hear that, a sign her body wasn't going to be in good shape anytime soon. You thanked her, gratefully eating it with the fork she had also provided you along with the plate. 

Despite the pie being made with such sweet fruits and the sugar added into it, it still had a slightly sour aftertaste. It was bitter and tangy, yet somehow had the ability to dance sweetly on your tastebuds with each flavorful bite. A family recipe passed down for generations. Your mother had learned it from her mother, who learned it from hers and so on and so forth. It was always a delight to taste it, for you and others. 

"I made extra, you can sell some at your stand?" She offered to you. Of course you gladly took it, covering it with a paper plate to not allow any heat or animals to come out of it. Maybe this will make more money for the both of you today. Hopefully. 

The scent of the pie being carried in your bag was just delightful. It was so enticing and inviting, almost begging for you to eat it there. You had to stay faithful to your stand, you need the money. You placed it down carefully on a wooden space on your stand. People gathered up quickly just from the smell alone. There was enough for everyone and 2 leftovers. You hummed, satisfied at your earnings today. You had to give your mother a hug once you get home. 

"That smells nice,  what is it?" A voice questioned your way. It sounded familiar. You looked up, recognizing the eccentric attire. That tiny, harsh little 'ping'  beat in your heart again, recalling how he spoke about your stand. 

"It's a pie my dear mother made, would you like a piece?" You asked him with a faux smile on your face. You took notice of the way his eyes just ever so slightly darkened at the mention of your mother. He scoffed, asking how much a piece will be. You told him it'll be on the house, and he questions the reliability of that. 

"I don't need you asking me for a favor later. Just take 30 mora." He didn't give you a chance to argue before just dropping the coins to you. You handed him a slice, confused at his rudeness. He took a bite in front of you, and you watched the way his eyes lightened up from the taste. He looked so much, nicer. 

He chewed fast, as if trying to swallow the taste down to keep forever. A small 'wow' left his mouth, before turning back to you. 

"It's not sweet." He stated. It was blunt, but doesn't have that harsh undertone to it as his previous words. 

"It's an old family recipe." You happily replied, taking a liking to his new fondness to this pie. 

"Is that your final slice?" He asked, and you knew he wanted more. So, you gave it to him. He told you how, "I can't take this if it's your final piece." But you assured him it's alright. 'I have more at home.' You lied, you just wanted to make a customer happy. 

Before he left, he asked if you'll sell the pie again. 'Maybe on the weekends, if you really like it that much.' He didn't reply, but walked away. A delighted sigh left your mouth hearing his interest. Hours pass by, and it's time to close up your shop. You shoo away a few fruit flies before covering you stand with a tarp, securing it to the ground with wood. You head home, passing by a conversation after dark once again.

"It's not as bad as I thought." He stated, talking to that small child again, same as the other day. She let out a light chuckle, before her eyes wavered to you. She had given you a tiny wave, and this was the time you were able to grasp her features. She slightly let out a green glow around her, acting as a light in the night. She was dressed in white and green, her skin color as pale as the moon. You could only wonder what kind of expression you were making, since she was signaling you to calm down. It was Lesser Lord Kusanali, our Archon of Sumeru. She tapped the wanderer by his hips, showing him you were there. His face was sharp, as if he was glaring at you. Quickly, you left and covered your face. You can feel the heat rising up to your face from being noticed by your archon.

Multiple weekends pass by, and the short wanderer has become a regular. Every Saturday without fail, he manages to snag the first place in line, grabbing himself 3 slices. Sometimes he buys more, sometimes less. Overtime, he's grown friendly to you. Well, the version of 'friendly' you consider based on your first impression of him. He doesn't make small talk, but does say 'please' and 'thank you'. 

You've been able to learn the family recipe quickly, sharing warm memories with your mother. With this, you've learned to start making an extra 3 slices, saving them aside for a certain regular. You've grown accustomed to the way his face glows whenever he manages to scoop up slices, as if he's a kid receiving a gift. It was weirdly, adorable, in a way. You took clear notice of his delicate features. He had long eyelashes, no scratches anywhere on his face, no flaws that you can count (physically, that might be.) and honestly, looked like he'd been carved by a god themself. 

One weekend, many months after your first meeting with him, he doesn't appear. All the slices sell without him, but luckily, you saved up those 3 slices just for him. It's closing time, the darkness of the night slowly engulfing the city. You pack up for the day, taking your usual route home. There's few lights illuminating the streets, usually placed on top of benches. It created a calming atmosphere, reminding you of oranges. Or generally, anything citrus. They're known to be relaxing, you collected. 

You hear the quiet sniffles of someone. You looked around, seeing a familiar person on a bench. He had his palms pressed to his head, covering his expression. You can only make out the slightest of sobbing from him. You took a seat next to him, holding your bag. His gaze broke away from his hands, looking over to you. 

"What do you want?" He asked. Although, to you, it didn't really sound like a question. More like something telling you to 'go away.' 

"I- uhm.. Didn't see you today?" Truthfully, you weren't the best at comforting someone, let alone yourself. But you wanted to try. 

You watched as he looked away from you, drying his tears. He didn't respond, but let you sit there. 

"I saved some for you." You told him, handing him a bag with the slices. 

He looked in, his eyes widening as he realized. You watched his mouth open, then close, then open again. He was deciding what to say.

"Why?" Is all he said. You wish you could read his mind right now. 

"I've been making an extra 3 slices every weekend for you, you know that right?" 

Now he looks surprised at you. 

"You- Didn't? Why do you think I manage to have enough for your demands?" You chuckled, looking down to your feet swinging absentmindedly. He just turns his head away from you, so you can no longer read his emotions. 

He mumbles something ever so softly, the most weightless you've heard his voice ever. You don't quite hear it, so you lean in a bit more. 

"thank you." he says. You welcome him with a joyful, light smile. He brings a piece up to his mouth, watching as you tell him how you have to leave and get back home, otherwise your mother will be worried. 

His eyes slightly tear up a bit from the mention of mother, but he doesn't falter physically. You wave a goodbye to him, not looking back as you unlock your front door. 

Chapter Text

A good night's rest for you. This time, you dreamt about the blue golden boy. It was a slightly pleasant dream, albeit sort of, tasteless. It just consisted of days where he would come to the stand to ask for the pie. It left you with a fuzzy feeling inside. 

You yawned deeply, barely recalling the dream at all, it was as blurry as a childhood memory at this point. It was a Sunday, your (only) work day off. You didn't rush to get ready, but rather took your time. Your mother was out, busy with her work, so you had the house alone to yourself. Soon, you just left the house alone by itself. You brought your bag, a regular brown crossbody. For it being that, it's rather spacious, you thought. 

You made your way down to the Grand Bazaar, checking on your own stand before deciding to explore for stuff. You didn't really carry a lot of mora today, but it was better than nothing. There weren't a ton of shops open on Sundays, but enough so it's still shoppable. It was nice to just browse around, seeing what people have up for sale. You were looking at a stand's items, and then you heard a child-like voice, the Mandarin. 

"Come, Wanderer! We should see what they have." She smiled, looking up and back at the taller boy. You could only familiarize him as the regular. You instantly turned away from their view, something embarrassing about being seen by one of your customers on not-a-work day. 

The boy scoffed, just to be pulled by forward by the archon's hand. "It's not like there's ever anything interesting down here. It's pointless." He scowled, obviously not enjoying to be out in public. 

You did your best to ignore the two. You feared how awkward you'll be in front of your archon. It wasn't easy when every other stand would be all excited, telling them anything they want is on the house and Nahida insisting to pay anyways. 

You couldn't avoid them any longer, or more specifically, her. She noticed you, waving the Wanderer off to another stand as she walked towards you. You bowed nervously, feeling the need to heavily respect your god. 

"It's fine! Please get up." She stated, and you did exactly that. 

"How has it been?" She asked you, her smile as bright and yet pale as her skin, as the moon. It almost blinded you to see. 

"I-I'm fine, Lesser Lord! Did you need anything..?" You stammered, trying to keep your cool. 

"Please, call me Nahida!" She laughed, and you tried to look everywhere but her. "I just wanted to show my gratitude! The Wanderer really loves your pies. He wakes up super early to line up, you know!" Too much info. For you, and him apparently. He didn't seem to enjoy being vulnerable, as he was right by the tiny god's side in an instant once he heard his name. 

"Ahaha.. Is that right?" You chuckled, not out of joy although. Your anxiety heightens, you just wanted to enjoy today. The boy's stare is.. Harsh, to say the least. To both you and Nahida. 

He clicked his tongue before speaking. "You don't need to tell them every single thing about me. Just leave it at that." He joined in. His words were rude, spoken with the force of the Fatui, and yet soft enough for it not to be so scary. The Lesser Lord laughed again. 

"No need, you really need to socialize more!" She pouted, now looking up at him with her hands on her hips. It reminded you of your own mother, in a way. It was endearing. Although, internally, you were shouting at how he can defy an archon. 

The tiny yet overly chatty god kept on talking, not taking any cues to just 'please go away, this is more than enough embarrassment for me..'. She asked questions about your stand, your fruit and pie, about the Wanderer, how he's been to you, and your aspirations. The strange boy was more than silent, only tuning into the conversation when he felt like it. Oh, you could tell when he wasn't listening and was. His emotions were very.. showed by him. He didn't care to hide it, you thought. 

"I'd really like to enroll in the Akademiya.. Growing into an Amurta scholar would set me for life..!" Your eyes lit up, rambling on and on about being able to do the thing you love most. Nahida listened intently, but for once- It was hard to notice whether or not the Wanderer, (is that really his name? It's strange) was listening. He seemed to be both, listening yet not at the same time. 

"I'll put in a good word for you, please, feel free to come visit anytime!" She was gleeful, happy to make a friend with someone she (maybe even he?) trusted. You felt tears well in your eyes, this was all too good to be true. You bowed once again as she stated she had to go, thanking her endlessly for everything. This was a miracle come true. 

It's the next week, on Friday. You woke up extra early today, mentally preparing yourself for the difficult and tiresome adventure you're going to have to complete. You were ready in just minutes, ramping yourself up to shake off your nerves. You walked in the morning to the Akademiya, the sun barely being born once again to the sky. You felt lucky your home was somewhat near the school, now. You made sure to tell your mother all about the exchange. 

You took in a deep, DEEP breath before knocking on the door to the Sanctuary of Surasthana. Honestly, you hoped for the friendly Lesser Lord, only to be greeted with a door half-open and a terribly tired voice. You can't even make out who it might be now. 

"U-Uhm... Is.. Nahida-?" You were cut off by the other person speaking. "No. She's asleep. What do you need at this hour?" They questioned, and you felt any anxiety you pushed down bubble back up your throat. 

"I wanted to.. give her and.. that boy.. these pie pieces..?" You stammered, refusing eye contact with the eyes you can't even see. He put an arm out, and you detected the familiar white and blue sleeves. You felt the ever-so-tiniest smile creep on your face, knowing it wasn't some kind of extra scary stranger. 

Once he takes the pies, the door was just left slightly open. You turned around, not really knowing what to do anymore from this point forward. You heard a voice call out for you, so you turned back and saw the Wanderer, half body out the door, holding a bag of mora. He doesn't say anything, but just persists you to take it only with his eyes. So you do, otherwise- you feel like he might murder you. 

This talk(?) ends, and you left not really feeling different from before, but you felt the corners of your lips were rising up. 

It's a new day, another week after your encounter with the Lesser Lord. You're at home, the night after your work at the stand. You decided to check your mailbox, and notice a letter addressed to your name. Your mother was out again, so you're left by yourself to read it. 

'To the person this letter is meant to be with-' 

"What an odd greeting." You said, just thinking outloud. 

'It would be in our greatest honor if you were to bring pies every Sunday for the Wanderer.

In the event you're not familiar with this name, it would be the boy you refer to as, "the short, blue and white and black, adorned in gold accents.".

This letter is met with great intentions, and we'll be paying you 1000 Mora per month if you agree-'

Your reading ended there. The mora was more than enough for you to stop. It was from Nahida, and who were you to refuse?

You quickly skimmed the rest of the writing, to find out if there was anything else important. Not really, or what you deemed as nonimportant. You couldn't wait to let your mother know, she'd be ecstatic. As for you, everything felt like a dream. It was just, way too good to be true.

When you woke up this morning, you felt a dire sense of dread wash over you. You don't know from what, but your body was giving you a warning for the events coming up today. It was nauseating, and you really felt like throwing up. You noticed your mailbox was open, so you checked inside. Another letter, for you. The giddy feeling from yesterday's letter replaced your dread, and you decided to rip it open there and read. 

You were, so, so wrong.

The contents this letter contained stated how the Akademiya essentially didn't deem you fit for their studies. False motivation sprinkled here and there, telling you that if you try hard enough you'll be let in- But that's the problem. You've been trying your best. A literal god recommended you, and yet you still didn't get in. This was enough for you. Both you and your mom's dreams, broken, just like that. You had to wake up eventually, right?

You couldn't make it to your stand today, to work, to anything. You laid in bed, the letter right next to you as you just cried. How can you look Nahida and your mother in the eye? You're a disappointment.

You stopped, breaking out of your spiral when your ears catch wind of something.

There's a knock at the door.