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Xingqiu had always been fond of his pen pal from the neighboring country. He would write letters, send them off to Mondstadt, and receive one in return a few days later. It was certainly more convenient than having to mail it off to the adventurer’s guild and just hope it found its way to Varka’s expedition team to be read by their expert cartographer.
It started as an accident– the wrong address was put on a letter sent to Dawn Winery for business, and it found itself in Mika’s hands. He sent a return letter to the Feiyun Commerce Guild to question them about the letter, and thus the letter-bound friendship of these two young men began.
Recent talk amongst Liyuen citizens and the whispers sent by Barbatos on the wind, however, have been about that upcoming poetry event. Right on the border of Mondstadt and Liyue, where the north wind consistently withers at the monstrous mountains slicing between the nations. Held at Stone Gate, a romantic and scenic location… The perfect spot to be inspired for poems galore! The moment he heard of the event, Xingqiu decided he would attend it. It was everything he loved, so he had no reason to be against it.
Over in Mondstadt, preparations for the event had already begun. The knights sent their best to the venue, hoping to maintain good relations with Liyue. Of these individuals, Mika was sent.
They hadn’t noticed one another at first. They’d never seen each other's faces, and thus neither of them particularly stood out to the other. As part of the festivities, each of the participants put a poem they’d written up on a lightpost for others to read. Mika wandered around the venue, glancing up at the various poems, skimming over each of them to try and take in their meaning and value. He paused when he saw one of them– that handwriting… So terrible, yet so distinctly recognizable. He blinked a few times, as if trying to convince himself he was just imagining things. But upon a closer look, he knew there was no doubt about it. His pen pal was somewhere at this very event.
Mika found himself looking around nervously. He scrambled trying to figure out who it could possibly be, and what they would think of him. What if it was one of the judges- or that guy who keeps eating the popsicles? Though come to think of it, that other blue-haired boy he’d talked to earlier reminded him a bit of how his friend wrote…
Speaking of that blue-haired guy, he was walking over to him right this very second.
“Wow, it would seem you’ve taken quite a fancy to my poem.” He spoke, voice light and smooth. Mika couldn’t help but notice how pretty he was.
“O-Oh, um… It’s phrased… q-quite well..!” Mika muttered in return, not quite knowing what to say. Could he really just ask if this guy was his pen pal? What if he had literally no idea what he was talking about? Oh, the embarrassment.
Silence spread between the two for a few moments before that blue-haired boy spoke up again. “Why thank you! I am quite the weaver of verses, you see.” He smiled.
“Ha..haha… yeah…” Mika simply looked away, awkwardness hijacking his brain for a few seconds. “Your, um… handwriting is familiar… Are you, um… Xingqiu, by chance?”
Xingqiu’s eyes widened for a second, before a smile spread back onto his face. “Correct! You must be Mika, then?”
Mika nodded, blinking a bit before returning a smile of his own.
“Ah, what luck that my dear pen pal would be such a good help in setting up this wonderful event! And adorable, at that.” The words left Xingqiu’s mouth so effortlessly that Mika was genuinely startled.
Mika flushed and looked away, scratching the back of his neck shyly. “Ah, um, i-it’s really… nothing.” He mumbled. “I…It’s nice to finally meet you in person, though!”
Xingqiu noticed how Mika didn’t quite respond to his compliment. He found it cute, honestly, and Xingqiu had almost forgotten how smooth he could really be since Chongyun had gotten all but used to his casual teases and flirts.
“It’s nice to meet you as well, Mika.” He mused. “Have you been enjoying the Gala?”
Mika nodded again. It had been fun so far, he reminisced, but he couldn’t help but feel a little bit more excited knowing that the person he had been communicating with across the continent was here too.
“It’s been a lot of fun… The activities really get me thinking.” He mentioned, a small smile making its way back onto his face.
“Yes, exactly!” Xingqiu exclaimed in response. “It’s lovely to be surrounded by such inspiring scenery, and to have these fun prompts and activities… Do you write poetry much in your free time?”
“Oh, no, I’ve never been much of a poet…” Mika replied.
Xingqiu suddenly shook his head and crossed his arms. “Nonsense! That poem of yours Hu Tao read earlier was amazing. Never doubt your abilities, it is the fastest way to doubt other parts of yourself.” He spoke as if pulling from a well of wisdom and experience, which made Mika actually really consider his words.
“That… makes sense,” Mika commented, though he still retained that embarrassed blush. “B-But it’s okay to accept your weaknesses too…”
“Hm…” Xingqiu seemed to consider his words for a moment. “That makes sense too. Perhaps the key is a balance of both?”
As he spoke, a small smirk found its way onto Xingqiu’s face. He crossed one leg over the other yet didn’t lean on anything, a perfect display of elegance that Mika almost couldn’t look at. One arm rested across his chest, with the other one’s elbow on top of that arm, his hand by his face. Mika looked down, not responding other than a small nod.
Their conversation was about to continue, though the sound of the judges announcing the next event cut them off. A team event? Xingqiu thought it would be a wonderful opportunity to get to know his pen pal a bit better, assuming they were assigned to the same team. He listened close, hearing the first team get listed off… And when he didn’t hear his or Mika’s names, he couldn’t help but smile. He glanced over at the cartographer, still standing by the lightpost his poem had been put on, and smiled a bit. He waited patiently for the other team to be called, even though he already knew exactly who would be in it.
“Oh, and we’re on the same team. Perfect, isn’t it?” Xingqiu smiled.
“Mhm… W-We’ll get to talk more, I hope… We’re taking an inspiration walk, right?” Mika tilted his head before turning it to look out at the marsh not far away. He looked back at Xingqiu. “You know Liyue pretty well, don’t you? …W-Where would you want to go?”
“Hm…” Xingqiu mused, tapping his chin with his pointer finger. “We could wander the marsh. It’s gorgeous past sunset, with all of the fireflies dancing around. Perfect for an awe-inspiring poem.”
“That sounds nice.” Mika agreed. “So… are we going now?”
“Why not?” Xingqiu responded with yet another smile.
Departing from the venue, the two found themselves standing in the marsh together. The sun was setting dramatically, painting a hypnotizing gallery of colors across the sky. It was occasionally interrupted by a pillar of a mountain or the leaves of Wangshu Inn swaying in the steady breeze flowing from Mondstadt. Despite the fact Mika had passed through Liyue before, and Xingqiu had seen the sight countless times, it was still breathtaking.
“Do you feel inspired yet?” Xingqiu asked, voice mildly teasing.
“A bit..” Mika admitted.
“Just wait until you see it at night. Should we start a fire to stay warm while we wait for the stars to arrive?” Xingqiu suggested
Mika nodded approvingly. “That sounds like a good idea. I’ll go look for firewood.”
Minutes passed, and Mika gathered nearby firewood, bringing it back to where Xingqiu was standing, admiring the view and reciting verses in his head. They’d put the fire out in an hour or so when the sun finally set, but it was a bit chilly out, so it could do no harm. Moments later, and the two were sitting side by side in front of a warm fire, still gazing out into the sunset.
They hadn’t had the chance to have a very in-depth conversation yet, and Mika hoped that they would be able to now. He moved a little closer to Xingqiu and tried desperately to think of a conversation topic.
“So, um… How’s your work been…?” He couldn’t seem to think of anything else.
“Boring, as ever.” Xingqiu made a sound that was somewhere between a sigh and a laugh. He crossed his legs. “And you?”
“I’m going back to Nod Krai soon, to rejoin the expedition.” Mika shrugged.
“Aw man, really?” Xingqiu frowned at the news. “I suppose that means you’ll have to wait longer for my letters, then! I mean really, must it be such a hassle to send a letter to your team through the adventurer’s guild?”
Mika laughed. “I didn’t know how annoying it was…”
“That’s besides the point,” Xingqiu suddenly corrected. “I meant to ask how you were faring now.”
Mika just smiled. “I’ve been having to revise a lot of maps up north…” He mumbled. “Apparently there were… quite a few incidents while I was away.”
“I’m sure it feels warm down here, even now.” Xingqiu laughed.
Mika’s brain kicked into gear, immediately more concerned with the geography of their surroundings. “Ah… Actually, it’s pretty cold because of how low the marsh is compared to the surrounding mountains, and the fact that we’re near dragonspine…”
“Oh, so you’re cold?” A smirk suddenly appeared on Xingqiu’s face as a sly idea weaseled its way into his brain.
“Mmh.. A bit, why..?” Mika tilted his head.
“Stay here, I know just what will warm your heart!” Xingqiu exclaimed, suddenly standing up and running off. He knew of some Jueyun Chilis that grew not too far from here, and considering his dear friend Chongyun’s reaction to the spicy foods… he could only help but wonder how his Mondstadian pen pal would react.
Xingqiu came back a little while later, arms full of the spicy delights. The light of the sun was starting to dwindle, mostly replaced by the campfire that Mika had stayed beside. Xingqiu tried his hardest to keep that smirk off of his face– even if he knew damn well that Mika knew what the chilis were, he would still try to innocently sell the idea of trying them as much as he could.
“These are delicious,” He commented, holding one out to Mika. “And they’ll warm you right up, really! Go on, try one.”
Mika hesitated, looking up at Xingqiu with a glance that could only be described as mildly pathetic and incredibly resigned. “Um… Xingqiu, are you sure..?” He asked quietly, though he took the chili nonetheless.
“Yes, I’m positive.” Xingqiu responded, unable to bite back his smile.
With a resigned sigh and the smallest hint of a chuckle, Mika took a bite out of the chili he was handed. He’d heard the Deacon and Deaconess talk about Jueyun Chilis- how much they loved them because of how spicy they were- but he didn’t expect them to be this spicy!
Mika’s face immediately reddened as he coughed a bit. “Oh- Archons, what the hell…” He mumbled, very much embarrassed at his pathetically low spice tolerance.
Xingqiu burst out laughing. “Oh, your reaction is priceless!” He exclaimed through fits of cheerful barks of laughter. “I expected your spice tolerance to be low, but this is outrageous!” He smirked again, another evil idea coming to his mind.
“Really, it’s adorable, my little white boy!” Xingqiu exclaimed.
Somehow, Mika’s face just got even redder.