Chapter 13 - Beginning of a Storm

Deep into the night, with the moon shining down upon the surface of Inazuma, heavy clouds swirled into existence in between. Bright purple lightning flashed amidst the clouds which steadily covered the sky until they blocked the view of the moon and darkened the lands and seas. Winds whipped up into a frenzy and pulled the storm clouds to surround the islands of Inazuma. 

A deep rumbling roared through the skies. Houses shook. Many eyes opened from rest only to witness bright flashes illuminating the night.

Within the Grand Narukami Shrine, the powerful rumble of thunder shook the main shrine enough to awake Ivan from his deep slumber. His eyes fluttered open, but stared hazily at the ceiling. Bright light flashed through the window and blinded him.

Pulling the blanket over his head, Ivan groaned and rolled over. Unfortunately, the constant roar of thunder shook the building to the point that he could no longer sleep. Eyes bloodshot, he pulled the blanket back off his head and stared at the ceiling.

Finally remembering where he was again, he yawned, rested an arm above his eyes to shield them from the flashes of lightning outside, and grumbled, "C'mon, miss Raiden Shogun. You're ruining my beauty sleep."

Almost to chide him for complaining about an Archon, heavy rain started pounding against the shrine's outer walls.

'Hm. There haven't been any storms like this since I arrived here. I guess the Vision Hunt and Sakoku decrees have started in earnest, if those documents Yae Miko gave me are anything to go by.'

Wondering if he could still travel freely since the decrees seemed to have just begun, Ivan pinched the bridge of his nose. Since he was wide awake at this point, he figured he might as well walk outside and watch the storm from under the veranda in front of the shrine. 

Blanket wrapped tightly around him due to the nighttime chill, Ivan slowly meandered out into the main room. In the darkness, he walked carefully so as not to trip on anything unexpected. He tripped on the blanket, unfortunately.

After the addition of a red mark on his forehead, he eventually reached the front door. A flash of light greeted him the moment he slid it open. Once his eyes adjusted to the constant flashes of lightning arcing across the sky through the heavy rain, he noticed a pair of purple eyes looking at him from nearby. 

"I see you were also unable to sleep," Yae Miko greeted him with a small nod before turning to look at the storm again.

"Yeah," Ivan replied while waddling over to stand next to the woman. 

Once next to her, Ivan briefly observed her side profile. Instead of her normal shrine maiden attire, she wore a modest red and white sleeping robe. Her purple eyes stared at the storm in a solemn manner. After a few seconds, though, she turned her head to face him.

"See something you like?" She jokingly inquired. Her lips curled into a playful smirk, but it lacked its usual coyness as though her heart was not currently in it.

Still looking into the woman's eyes, Ivan remained silent for a few moments. He observed her without changing his expression. She truly was a beautiful woman, but as somebody well-versed in loss and hardship, he could sense the well-veiled torment beneath her visage. Of course, with her being who she was, Ivan did not think she felt much anguish at the moment, but there was still a hint of mild lament or something similar. 

Yae Miko blinked and wondered if the young man had taken her words seriously. Ah, she really was a bad woman to lead such a young man astray so easily. Well, many things were on her mind, so she was just trying to amuse herself a little. Ivan's next few words caught her slightly off guard.

"Are you bothered by this storm?" He asked.

"Not particularly."

"Mhm… Well, things aren't always perfect, but they'll get better in the future."

Pausing briefly, Yae Miko stared blankly at him. Then, she said, "The confidence you have in that statement is quite ironic when coming from a cursed man who has likely experienced very few good things during his life."

"Fair, but even though I haven't had a great life, there's been some good things in it."

One of those good things was standing right in front of him in the flesh, though most of his time spent with her was through a screen. Perhaps it would be seen as sad by some, but spending his time exploring Teyvat as the Traveler often served as a method of avoiding unfortunate accidents wrought by his bad luck. He found it unfortunate that he could not instantly become close friends with all of the characters in this world who he encountered along that pixelated journey. He hoped that he had plenty of time and opportunity to do so now, though. Then, raising his eyes, he observed the lightning and rain. 

"I've at least learned to look forward to the good things while making the best of the bad. All I could really do, I guess."

"I apologize," Yae Miko said, joining him in looking at the storm again. "It was rude of me to say such a thing about you."

Ivan shrugged since he did not really know what else to say at that point.

The two watched the storm in silence for a few minutes. Thunder rumbled the wooden boards beneath their feet every few seconds. Splashes of raindrops occasionally dampened their faces after smacking the wood.

"Got any chairs?"

Yae Miko's lips curled up slightly in response. So much for a serious atmosphere.

"What is that look for? Storms are very relaxing, but sitting is more comfortable than standing."

"If you so wish, then we can grab some chairs from the main room where I treated your curse."

*****

Upon waking up in the morning, Ivan tiredly blinked his eyes several times until his vision was no longer blurry. Nearby, he heard the trickle of water and the chirping of birds. Looking out from under the shrine's veranda, he recalled watching the storm the previous night. Now that the sun was rising behind the clouds on the horizon, it almost felt like a dream. The thick storm clouds floating in the distance that flashed with purple lightning proved otherwise, though.

Stretching out his arms, Ivan groaned, "Ugh. My back hurts…"

To keep his mind off the soreness caused by falling asleep on an uncomfortable wooden chair, he opened his constellation icons and started scrolling through everything. The action reminded him of using his phone in the morning but with less brain rot. 

At some point, he found himself back on his Curses screen. He really wished it was just called a Constellation screen, but he figured there might be a reason for it that he would discover later. However, while looking at the image that served as his version of a constellation, he raised a brow upon seeing a few words in the corner.

'Constellations had names? Hm, yeah, I guess that was something in the game, but I never really paid much attention to it. What does Qui Caelum Sequitur mean, anyway? Is that Latin or something?'

Shrugging, he closed his constellation. Since he didn't know what it meant, nor did he have the means to find out, he decided not to care about it for the time being. Instead, he yawned and stretched.

"Good morning, Mister Bad Luck," A playful voice greeted him from nearby.

Turning his head, Ivan blinked in surprise upon seeing Yae Miko still dressed in her sleeping robe and seated in a chair a meter or so away from him. 

"Did you stay out here all night, too?" He wondered aloud.

Patting a book in her lap, Yae Miko shook her head and answered, "I briefly went inside to grab this after you fell asleep, so no, I did not stay out here all night."

"Uh-huh. Technicality, then."

Yae Miko only smiled lightly in response.

Looking back at the horizon of which he could see plenty from the top of Mount Yougou, Ivan rubbed his chin. He wondered if Beidou was in port at Ritou and if she would be able to give him a ride to Liyue so that he could start collecting more materials to remove his curses.

"If you are thinking about what to do, I have some errands that need doing," Yae Miko commented as though having guessed his mind.

"Well, I might be up for whatever it is, but I'm wondering whether The Crux is in port at the moment since they could probably take me out of Inazuma to collect materials."

"Captain Beidou's ship? They do dock over in Ritou to trade from time to time. I am afraid I will have to depend on them for copies of new books in the near future. I do not believe they are in port at the moment, though, but considering when last they came here, it should be soon."

"Good to know. What kind of errand do you want me to run, then?"

"How proficient are you at reading and writing?"

Although he could not really read the language of Teyvat, he knew that his system-like Constellation could translate for him. As such, he answered, "Proficient, I guess? Why do you ask?"

"Well, I happen to be in charge of a Publishing House, you see. And, there happens to be an inordinate amount of paperwork from time to time."

Hopping to his feet, Ivan grumbled, "I think I'll just go fight the Maguu Kenki instead for a more pleasant death."