Chapter Text
If someone asked the general population of Mondstadt to say the first thing that came to mind about Lisa Minci, Librarian of the Knights of Favonius, there would be two likely answers. They would either say that she was lazy, or -in case of being on the receiving end of her wrath for not returning the borrowed books on time- terrifying.
Lisa was well aware of her reputation, but she did nothing to prevent it. Why would she, she had less books to hunt down since people were afraid of the repercussions. As for being lazy, it was just one facet of the truth. She was simply efficient with her work, leaving her plenty of time to take naps or for afternoon tea, pleasures that made the witch’s life more bearable.
Yet nothing was comparable to the joy and happiness that Jean Gunnhildr brought into her life. Lisa never believed in love at first sight, but the Acting Grand Master had her attention ever since their first meeting.
She would never admit it outright, but it had hardly taken any time for her to fall completely for the Dandelion Knight. Kind, gentle, chivalrous, and beautiful, it was impossible to dislike Jean.
Lisa kept her feelings to herself at first, content with simply staying by Jean’s side and helping where she could. After all, it's not like she had any chance for Jean’s affections against the likes of Diluc Ragnvindr, not even with her past achievements. Unlike Lisa, he was a childhood friend and a nobleman of high esteem from a clan as prestigious as Jean’s.
It took Jean fainting in her office from stress and overwork in Lisa’s presence to give the librarian the nudge she needed. She stayed by the knight’s side the whole time, and her relieved smile framed by happy tears was the first thing Jean saw upon regaining consciousness.
Lisa couldn’t hold it in and finally confessed -after giving her darling knight a piece of her mind for not taking care of herself, of course-, mentally prepared for the inevitable rejection. However, to Lisa’s utter disbelief, Jean reciprocated her feelings. Hers, and not anyone else’s.
Lisa would still call that day one of the happiest in her life despite the incident that started it.
As a general rule, life was always about ups and downs, and their relationship was no exception. Their love for each other was never in question, but the Acting Grand Master’s workaholic nature and self-sacrificing tendencies tested their bond time and time again.
It was the very reason Lisa was sitting alone at a secluded table at the Good Hunter. Her knight in shining armor was late for their date. Again.
‘I’ve been waiting for at least half an hour already. Damn it, Jean, you promised…!’
A fresh wave of stinging pain brought Lisa back from her thoughts. She had to bite back a small hiss as she looked down at her gloved hands with a frown. Clenching her fingers provided only temporary relief, but she would take it.
The witch gave a silent ‘thank you’ to the craftsman who came up with the special textile her gloves were made of. If not for them, she wouldn’t hear the end of the questions aimed at the electro-infused scars covering her hands from fingertips to wrist. She could almost see them glowing with violet light as they usually did on her bad days.
The ache in her hands was ever-present, ranging from a dull throb on good days to searing pain on really bad ones, but still better than the original affliction of her curse.
When the pain was almost unbearable, Lisa had to take the day off lest she would snap the head off anyone unlucky enough to get close to her, or break down in tears.
Today it was past the threshold of what she could normally handle, but the thought of her date with Jean made her power through.
“Maybe I should have stayed at home…” She muttered, taking a sip from her tea and sighed.
This was the hidden facet of her life very few in existence were aware of. Lisa didn’t like talking about her days in the Akademiya of Sumeru, shrugging the topic off after making clear of her disdain at her fellow researchers who went mad in search for the truth.
The real reason was that she almost became one of them. She went too far, and paid a terrible price when she touched a forbidden tome: A curse that amplified her powers, but in turn ate away at her lifespan at a steady rate. Based on her estimation, she would live a life barely half as long as those of her peers in the best case, should the curse run its full course.
However, Lisa wasn’t the most accomplished graduate of the Akademiya in the past two hundred years for nothing. It took time and insurmountable effort, but in the end she succeeded in weakening the curse.
It no longer devoured her longevity, but sapped her spirit, dooming her to permanent exhaustion. Luckily for Lisa, the fatigue was easy enough to alleviate with her frequent naps in the library. If people called her lazy because of it, they were free to do so.
She didn’t even blame them for those comments, it’s not like they were aware of her circumstances. And as long as she did her job as impeccably as always, there were no complaints from the knights.
Still, not even Lisa could prepare for every variable. The chronic pain in her hands for the rest of her life was definitely not part of her calculations. Even though Visions were granted to people to fuel their ambitions, Lisa should have known everything had its limits.
She had to push way past her own, channeling power beyond her means to deal with the curse, and this was the price she had paid for it. Far from pleasant, but had Lisa known in advance, she would have chosen the same course regardless.
Taking all this into consideration, no one would wonder why Lisa would opt for a quiet, easy life if they knew everything. She had more than earned her peace, after all.
The thing was, only she knew the full truth, no one else.
Still, as much as she wanted to keep her ailment a complete secret, Lisa was not above bowing her head to dedicated healers like the Deaconess of the Church of Favonius, in case they could alleviate her pain when even her own potions had failed.
She didn’t tell Barbara everything either, but the healer was aware of the condition of her hands, chronic pain and all. Lisa was worried at first, but the deaconess was quite similar to Jean -not that big of a surprise since she was the Acting Grand Master’s little sister- and she swore to keep her silence on the matter.
Her curse and pain were among the topics the witch didn’t discuss with Jean just yet. The scars on her hands were impossible to hide in private, but she explained them away as a result of an old experiment gone wrong. Not truly a lie, just an omission. Lisa knew that this wasn’t fair to her lover, but she was afraid. Afraid of how Jean would react.
The Acting Grand Master was always busy and returned home late -if she did at all-, exhausted to the bone despite Lisa’s best efforts to make her take breaks or go to bed at a proper time.
Lisa didn’t want to stress Jean out even more, not when there was nothing to be done. The fatigue was easily handled with her naps in the library, the pain she simply had to endure with the help of her potions and the poultice Barbara prescribed for her.
But knowing Jean, she would go all out to find a nonexisting solution on top of her already heavy workload, running herself to the ground even more. No, Lisa couldn’t allow that to happen.
Thinking of the Dandelion Knight and her schedule again, the witch glanced up at the sun and frowned. Jean was more than an hour late. Her fingers twitched, a flicker of electro jumping between them.
“I guess there is no point in me waiting any longer, is there?” Lisa muttered to herself with furrowed brows.
She really wanted to give Jean the benefit of doubt, but she should have known better. This wasn’t the first time their date got rescheduled, after all. What a bitter thought to swallow, as if the pain alone wasn’t bad enough for today.
“Sara dear, I’m sorry, but it will be takeaway in the end.” Lisa sighed as she signaled to the waitress.
“No problem, I’ll get it ready in a moment.” Came the reply, and soon enough the vegetable soup was packed and Sara handed it over.
“It’s on the house today.” She added while gently squeezing Lisa’s shoulder, earning a small smile -the first since the witch arrived- in return.
“Thank you, cutie. Compliments to the chef in advance, I’m sure it is wonderful as always.” The librarian added with a wink and turned away.
It didn’t take long for Lisa to arrive at the headquarters of the knights. The guards wisely let her in without comment despite her late return from her break, unwilling to meet her gaze. The witch adjusted her hat and took a deep breath before walking inside.
A couple of steps and she was standing before the door to the Acting Grand Master’s office. She didn’t even knock, just opened it and entered. Jean was sitting at her desk, framed by stacks of paperwork, too caught up in whatever she was reading to even notice the witch’s arrival.
Any concern about the well-being of her lover fled from Lisa’s mind for the moment, replaced by disappointment, bitterness and a touch of anger. She would hardly expect Jean to show up if she was dealing with something urgent, had fallen asleep, or -Archons help her- got injured… but she was apparently doing paperwork all this time. Lisa could barely keep herself from letting out a scathing remark.
“I hope I’m not interrupting anything too important, darling.” The witch smiled as she sauntered up to Jean’s desk, but her tone was cold enough to freeze even a cryo user in place.
It was a wonder Jean didn’t get a whiplash with how quickly she looked up with wide eyes, the report about a big hilichurl camp all but forgotten.
“I know you’re always busy, dear, but Mondstadt won’t collapse if you take a well deserved break… and actually arrive for our date, you know.” Lisa spoke again, taking advantage of her lover’s surprise.
“Lisa! I thought we would only meet at…” Jean’s mouth snapped shut as she glanced at the clock then back to the witch with a horrified look.
“I’m so sorry! There were so many reports, and I-I lost track of time.” It was the truth, but that didn’t make Jean feel any less guilty.
The librarian’s frown deepened but she said nothing, the air around her thickening with electricity.
Jean jumped to her feet and was at her beloved’s side instantly, hands reaching out beseechingly to hold Lisa’s own. In truth, she wanted to kiss the frown away, but she was unsure if Lisa would allow it right now. At least she didn’t pull away from her, thank Barbatos for small mercies.
“And you still brought lunch for me…?” Jean whispered with a sad smile at the sight of the package in Lisa’s hand. “I don’t deserve you, my heart.”
“Someone has to ensure the Acting Grand Master won’t collapse again in her office due to skipping meals. Since I was already at the Good Hunter, it was simple enough to arrange.” Lisa’s tone wasn’t as frigid anymore, but she didn’t hide her displeasure either.
“I know I have no right to ask anything of you after making such a blunder, but would you still be willing to spend your lunch with me?” The knight inquired with hunched shoulders, gesturing at the couch with a pleading look in her eyes.
Try as she might, Lisa couldn’t stay furious at Jean for long. She was still upset, but the genuine remorse in her partner’s voice and her doleful expression quelled most of her anger. She exhaled slowly and nodded.
“Though you didn’t quite earn my forgiveness yet, I’m willing to make an exception, this one time. Just for you, my darling Jean.” Lisa’s smile was small, but genuine.
Jean couldn’t help a relieved sigh. She leaned in for a sweet kiss -a promise of more later- before taking the container from Lisa and led her to their seats. Maybe she could salvage today’s date after all.
The pair barely made themselves comfortable when the door was banged open by an out-of-breath Miles.
“A-Acting Grand Master, it’s an emergency! One of our knights spotted a group of Treasure Hoarders at the Whispering Woods!” He panted, freezing in place when he noticed the setting he barged into.
“A-Apologies for the interruption, M-Miss Lisa.” He stuttered, fighting the urge to hide behind the door from the glare she sent his way.
Jean felt horrible. She had already made an enormous mistake by missing her date with Lisa, yet her beloved was kind enough to offer an olive branch and still eat with her, only to be interrupted again.
She didn’t want to leave, but as the Dandelion Knight and Acting Grand Master, she also had a duty to the people of Mondstadt.
“Thank you, Miles. You can go, I will handle it.”
He saluted and was all too happy to leave the office in haste.
“Lisa, I-”
“Go.”
Jean felt her heart shatter at the sight of the love of her life looking at the ground, at how those lovely green eyes dimmed even as Lisa stood and walked to the windows with her back to Jean.
‘For Mondstadt, as always.’ The motto of her family never weighed so heavily on Jean before than at this moment. The knight opened her mouth, but Lisa beat her to it by lifting a hand for silence.
“I understand. Just go… and make sure to eat something after you return.”
Jean’s chest constricted further at her beloved’s defeated tone. She could only nod, rambling out useless apologies before heading out with hunched shoulders. Without receiving a good luck kiss from Lisa for the first time since they got together. The witch didn’t even turn around to watch her go.
Even a few minutes later, when Jean was leading a pair of knights past the city walls, her thoughts were still focused on her beloved librarian .
Lisa had every right to feel hurt and disappointed. Jean may have fulfilled her duties as a knight, but failed Lisa -again- as her partner. She should have paid more attention and made sure to arrive in time for their date. Even should have bought a bouquet of cecilias to show how much she loved and appreciated Lisa.
Yet, Jean only succeeded in messing everything up instead.
‘I will make this up to you, Lisa. I swear it…!’
Her resolve hardened, the Dandelion Knight increased the pace so she could return as soon as possible. She had a lot to do if she wanted to earn her beloved’s forgiveness.