run away
The two maids of the lunar lady rushed to their mistress. Clothing her immediately and rushing towards a mirror by the forest outside the palace. They followed her through and passed into her closet, covering the mirror with her clothes and shoes. Pretending to work, Ningguang calmed herself before anticipating her father’s footsteps outside the door. Analyzing the fate of the world and her future as she was supposed to, she welcomed her father into her room. The night was filled with starlight, and so were her scry and materials. Nothing was out of the ordinary. Nothing was out of place.
“Father, can I help you with anything?” Ningguang asked.
“I had a terrible dream, my daughter. I was wondering if you could help me release my worries to the wind.”
It was unnervingly gentle. His outbursts were horrifying, but more so if he was like a kind father. All Ningguang could remember about her father was a sudden shift in his attitude after her mother’s alleged death. Clutching in his hands were shards of glass and the reflection of the toddler looking for someone to cradle her to sleep.
“Of course…”
Governing the dreamscape and the messages of fate became her inherited duty. As soon as she came of age, she took on managing Teyvat’s dreams. Distributing horrors and euphoric moments for a fragment of their lives.
“I’m sorry if I trouble you so much, my dearest child.” it sent a chill down her spine.
Was her father always this kind and gentle? If so, why would he only show it to her and not everyone around her? The dreams that haunt him became the nightmare everyone lived. Baishi and Baiwen stood behind Ningguang and prepared her medication. Not long after, her hands were stained with corrupted fragments and reached just before her shoulders. Her breathing grew sparse, and she felt nauseated. Her world spun, and she struggled to stand.
Her father held her cheek and kissed her forehead. “I’m sorry I have to do this every time I get a nightmare. However, I am thankful you’re willing to help me, my dearest moonlight.” Truly, the lunar princess was just like her mother. “Baishi, Baiwen, I trust that you would be able to take care of her.”
He could not bear to witness his nightmares plague his daughter, but it was the only way for her to remember her mother. The Lunar Emperor’s footsteps grew less and less while Ningguang’s condition worsened.
“How inconsiderate!” Baishi exclaimed. “What kind of father leaves their child with such horrors?”
“My lady, I believe we should seek the help of the Yaksha just as before. If not, you’d suffer greatly!” Baiwen carried the lunar princess to her bed and wiped her sweat off her skin. “I believe the great Morax would forgive us for asking for so much.”
Ningguang held Baiwen and pulled herself up. “No…” She bit her lip and grunted the moment she felt the treatment poured over her arm. “Fuck… I can’t let the mortals feel this much agony. I can’t let anyone, not even the gods of the earth, feel this much anguish and grief.”
Her maids’ concern grew as they remembered their third companion, left to rot in the mortal realm. Hidden from the truth of what their lady has become.
“But is there such a need to suffer too much just to remember?” Baishi asked. “My lady, I beg of you, just let us call the Yaksha.”
“I refuse!” Ningguang yelled as she was held down by both of her maids. “I can’t let them suffer the way I do. This is my burden to carry as the moonlit heiress. Now stop stalling and release me from this pain!”
The fragments of her father’s nightmares tore through her skin and stained it red like her eyes. After emptying a bottle, they began to disappear, but the cuts remained open and fresh. If reminding herself of how her father loved her mother harmed her so much, she would let it until it would kill her. Just to remember what her mother looked like, Ningguang would suffer greatly for a brief glimpse of her face. Does love turn someone into an unrecognizable beast? How come she has yet to turn into one?
As her breathing stabilized, her maids bandaged her arms. Her bed sheets were stained with her blood, sweat, and potions. That night, she requested to let herself breathe and waited until her maids were outside. As quietly as she could, she sobbed and cried. Tears rolled down her face and cheeks like a child. She has grown, but her soul still remains. If only she could be as free as her friend. If only she could have the freedom to love and be loved. If only she could stay by Yelan’s side, maybe then she could teach the yearning lunar princess how to live.
Ningguang wiped her tears and combed her hair. Reminding herself of what her mother had done before tragically disappearing. With each stroke, she is reminded, through fresh cuts and healing wounds, how much pain it would be if Yelan were to disappear like before. So she combs herself, calming her mind and heart with the same brush her mother used on her.
“I wonder… How would Banxiao react if she knew how much the lady suffers?” Baishi asked.
“If she knew, she’d be executed trying to find a way to save her.” Baiwen said holding Baishi’s hand.
“Unlike her, we’re just cowards…”
“Baishi, I believe we’re worse than that.”
Ningguang fixed her hair and dusted herself off. Pulling a box from the bottom of her bed, she took out a pearl she found in the grass after Yelan came one fateful evening. It had been years upon years before she had last seen her. She clutched the pearl to her chest and asked the same question she always had since she left. The pearl slipped through her fingers, rolling to the closet door.
Behind it is the portal she takes whenever she needed to take a glimpse of Yelan’s performance at night. When traveling is too risky, she watches her through the mirror, hoping she was by her side. That night, Ningguang prepared herself for the next oceanic exhibition games. If she cannot find the strength to go to Yelan’s side, she’ll just have to lure her to her side. She called her maids, who waited behind the door, to continue her treatment. Thankfully, her father sleeps deep and never wakes from sunrise to sundown.
Holding the mirror by the edge of the sky island, Baishi stepped into the portal and left out the other by the cliff. The closet door locked, hiding the shattered mirror Ningguang and Baiwen escaped from. The sun rose and bathed them with warm sunlight.
Ningguang held her maids’ hands. “So this is what freedom feels like…”
Barbatos truly is the god of freedom, for the wind that graced the three was a sign of their liberation. Now then, where could Banxiao have gone?
“My lady, just a moment…” Baishi said. “We have to shatter your last mirror…”
Ningguang handed Baiwen the pocket mirror she had in her pouch and watched as the heel of her maid shattered it to pieces. If freedom meant losing the only method of her ever returning to the moon, then let it shatter. I’d rather swallow every fragment of this mirror whole than return. Ningguang thought as she walked away from the cliff they emerged from. Anticipating what lies ahead in her new journey as a wandering maiden.