Chapter Text
Keqing was embarrassed over how nervous she was to see Ganyu again. She passed out as soon as she got home that night, but her fretting began the moment she woke up. Her memories of the previous night lingered like one of Ying’er’s perfumes, following her around as she went through her morning routine. She choked down her breakfast into her roiling stomach and ran out the door, nearly tripping over her front step. Awkward situation aside, she would rather die than be late to work.
But how could she look Ganyu in the face after everything that had happened? She’d shown half a dozen unsightly sides of herself to her, allowed herself to debase the office of the Yuheng with her unrestrained desires. If she looked into those dichromatic eyes, wouldn’t she only see the reflection of her own shame?
Keqing did not see Ganyu on her way to work, nor when she entered the Yuehai Pavilion. Their shifts started at the same time, and the general secretary was just as unlikely as the Yuheng to show up late. At first Keqing assumed she had simply missed Ganyu being sent on an errand, or perhaps she was busy rooting through filing cabinets in the records room. One hour passed, then two, and as the third hour of the morning shift ended, it was clear to Keqing that something was off. She made excuses to walk by Ganyu’s desk to look for, if not Ganyu herself, signs that the woman had arrived, but to no avail.
Was Ganyu avoiding her? Was Keqing just being paranoid? As nervous as she was to see her again, not seeing her was even more unsettling. She’d worried herself to the point of a stomach ache before she worked up the nerve to ask Yaoyao where Ganyu was, only to be told that it was the general secretary’s day off.
Ganyu could’ve told me that, Keqing thought. But then again, why would she? It’s not like Ganyu was the one who’d embarrassed herself. Well, offering to finger her superior was a bit out there, but Keqing wouldn’t have known what to do in that situation either. At least she didn’t have to unpack that suitcase right now.
Having resolved that anxiety, Keqing buried herself in her work. By closing time, she had made up for her illicit break the previous night as well as her distracted morning hours. Never one to turn away a chance to get ahead, she stayed after hours anyway. Paperwork didn’t do itself, and paperwork was all that Keqing did that night.
Which is to say, she entirely forgot about her embarrassing moment with Ganyu. She was sharply reminded of it when she showed up at the office the next morning and Ganyu held open the door for her.
“Good morning, Lady Keqing,” Ganyu said, chill as her cryo Vision, smiling serenely. She was fresh-faced with rosy cheeks; she must have had a good night’s sleep after her day off.
“G-good m-m-morning.” Keqing cleared her throat. “How was your day off?”
“Rather soothing. Thanks for asking.” Ganyu looked at her expectantly. Was she going to ask— “Um, are you going to go inside?”
Keqing flushed furiously. “Of course I am!” She power-walked into the pavilion and headed to her office, ignoring the cheery giggles coming from behind her.
How is that woman so calm after what she did with me the other night? she wondered once she was behind her desk again. Is it one of those adeptal arts?
Not that Keqing really wanted Ganyu to react poorly to seeing her, but wasn’t it weirder for her to act like nothing had happened? Was this just an everyday thing for her? She clearly had known what she was doing that night...
Keqing slapped her hands to her cheeks and glared at the paperwork on her desk. No point in worrying about what was going on in Ganyu’s head when there was paperwork to do. She buried herself in land survey reports and building permits.
She only resurfaced when she came across a report she couldn’t complete without cross-referencing a few old files. Files that could be most easily found by the Qixing’s general secretary.
Keqing let out a long sigh. Stalling out of reluctance to see Ganyu again wouldn’t get her paperwork done any faster, and that’s what really mattered. The Liyue taxpayers weren’t giving her a salary to act like a flustered schoolgirl too embarrassed to talk to her crush. There was no reason she couldn’t be professional about this.
After taking a little too long gathering up her papers, Keqing slipped out of her office and headed toward Ganyu’s. Her journey stalled when she heard the secretaries gossiping around the corner. At the mention of Ganyu’s name, she hugged the wall and listened in.
“Thank Rex Lapis that Ms. Ganyu is back,” Baishi said. “She was only gone a day, but I was getting war flashbacks to her sabbatical.” She made a disgruntled noise.
“Her workload is amazing,” Baixiao replied. “How does she get it all done and have enough time to take a nap every afternoon?”
“She brought me a cup of tea this morning when she handed off some paperwork,” Baiwen said. “She takes such good care of us.”
“I’d like to be taken care of by Ms. Ganyu.” The purr in Baixiao’s voice infuriated Keqing.
Baishi sniffed. “I still prefer Lady Ningguang.”
“We know,” Baiwen said. “Everybody knows.”
That was enough of that. Keqing stepped around the corner and stomped—walked down the hallway. “If you have enough time for gossip, you should be working,” she spat as she passed the secretaries. They apologized and scattered like a flock of birds, and Keqing almost felt bad about it.
She couldn’t help but wonder if Ganyu had fooled around with any of them before. Probably not, given their wistful tones and Baishi’s single-minded obsession with the Tianquan. But would Ganyu sleep around with other co-workers of theirs?
It was none of her business. Keqing was just curious, that’s all. She continued walking to Ganyu’s office, knocking on the door frame with her knuckles and waiting for the general secretary to invite her into her office before entering.
Ganyu’s office was small, appearing much smaller than it was for all the piles of paperwork taking up so much room. Anyone who worked as hard as her deserved as large and luxurious as possible, a Jade Chamber at least. But Keqing knew that Ganyu would refuse if offered a larger working space, as it hadn’t gotten in the way of her work so far. She wondered if Ganyu had been working in the same tiny office for thousands of years. Maybe she’d ask sometime when they were off the clock.
Ganyu herself was scrawling away at a file; looking a little closer, she was managing the work schedules of the other employees. While she was already looking closely, Keqing let her eyes wander over Ganyu. The woman’s face was relaxed, not like the Yuheng, who had been told that her face scrunched up when she was concentrating. Her baby blue hair cascaded down her front in two waterfalls that framed her chest—not that Keqing was staring at her chest, but there were only so many places to look when most of her was hidden behind the desk. Light glinted off Ganyu’s sleek horns, drawing attention to her unearthly, adeptal nature. Her purple-orange eyes concentrated on the task before her with an easy-going determination that Keqing not only admired but coveted for herself. There was no way around it; Ganyu was gorgeous.
“Oh, Lady Keqing.” Ganyu smiled. “Is there something you need? Or are you just visiting?”
The room suddenly felt hotter. Keqing cleared her throat. “I need to check some files before I can finish this report.” She showed Ganyu a slip of paper with the relevant files listed.
“Just a moment.” Ganyu rifled through a stack of papers on her desk for a minute, finessing the files out from the middle of the stack and handing them to Keqing. “Good thing you came when you did. You caught them just before they went to the archive.”
Keqing very consciously avoided touching Ganyu’s hand as she accepted the files. “As if that would hold me back. It simply would have taken me a few minutes longer to find.” Or an hour or two.
“Indeed, but I know how impatient you can be.”
Keqing froze. Was Ganyu alluding to her giving in to her sexual frustrations at work the other night instead of waiting to get home first? Probably not. If it were Ningguang, sure. That woman wouldn’t have let a single chance for a double entendre pass her by; the Tianquan would never let one of the Qixing forget if they fucked at the office. Keqing was just reading too deeply into things, that’s all. “You don’t need to worry about me.”
“Don’t I?” Ganyu giggled. “It’s my job to take care of you so you can do your work without distractions.”
Keqing knew that by “you,” Ganyu meant the Qixing in general, and “without distractions” meant without menial tasks getting in the way of more important work. But it still feels like she’s fucking with me.
If Ganyu were deliberately reminding Keqing of her indiscretions... might there be a chance of another encounter? Keqing... wouldn’t object to that. She imagined the stacks of paperwork swept off of Ganyu’s desk and replaced with herself, lying on her back with her legs around Ganyu’s waist. A qilin—even a half-qilin—had no predatory urges, but hunger sparked in this fantasy Ganyu’s eyes as she lowered herself onto Keqing and touched her lips to—
“Is there anything else I can help you with?”
Keqing came back to reality. “No, that’ll be all,” she said, ignoring the tension building between her legs.
“Remember to bring the files back to me by the end of the day.”
“It won’t even take that long.” Keqing moved slowly and deliberately to resist her urge to sprint out of the Ganyu’s office.
She returned to her own workstation, tossed the files on her desk, and slumped in her seat. What was that? It wasn’t bad enough that she had already done unscrupulous things at her workplace, now she was contemplating doing it again!? Worse yet, she’d imagined making a mess of Ganyu’s paperwork, which was beyond inconsiderate no matter the reason. The only antidote to such thoughts was to bury them in work thoughts, and so she did.
Keqing somehow survived long enough to make it to her lunch break. She needed the fresh air from her trip to the Wanmin Restaurant to get food. On a whim, she headed to Ganyu’s office when she returned to the Yuehai Pavilion. She needed to face her problem head-on. Ganyu was her co-worker , nothing more. No need to be nervous over her. Rather than hide from her out of embarrassment, she was going to spend time with Ganyu until she could be normal around her again. Something about immersion therapy.
That was the idea anyway. Keqing found herself stuck at the “knock on the door” stage, one hand held limply in the air, the other holding her lunch. It’s not like she’s going to tell me to go away, she told herself. Worst case scenario is that she already had her lunch. She took a deep breath and finally knocked.
“Come in!” Ganyu’s voice was cheery enough to encourage Keqing to actually enter the office instead of running away.
“Would you, um, like to eat lunch together? If you’re not busy.” She wanted to smack her forehead.
Ganyu seemed surprised for a moment, then smiled. “Of course. I was just about to start eating.” With a flourish of her pen, she finished up the form she was working on. “Please, take a seat. Did you get lonely from eating your lunch alone too many times?”
“Something like that.” Keqing sheepishly sat down on the stool on her side of the desk, placing her lunch in front of her.
Ganyu sniffed the air. “Are those vegetarian shrimp balls?” That adeptus nose never failed.
“I, um, wanted to try something different.” In truth, Keqing’s motives were exclusively ulterior. Whatever she told herself when she ordered them, she picked a vegetarian option just in case something happened between them again. If they became intimately close to one another, would it not ruin the moment if Ganyu could smell or traces of shrimp on her breath? She wouldn’t want the taste of her mouth to offend Ganyu if their lips were to meet...
“Thank you for being considerate of my delicate senses, if that was your concern.” Ganyu giggled and starting digging into her own lunch, a rather large salad. That woman sure could eat.
Keqing used her chopsticks to pick up a vegetarian shrimp ball from her takeout box. Could she even call it a shrimp ball though? Xiangling assured her that the fried tofu was a fair substitute for seafood, but she would have to taste it to believe it.
She popped the “shrimp” ball into her mouth. Then another. And another. She shouldn’t have doubted her favourite chef’s words; the vegetarian shrimp balls were delicious. The taste wasn’t the same, but the crispy outside and moist inside felt identical. If she couldn’t eat another golden shrimp ball again for the rest of her life, the vegetarian option wouldn’t be so bad of an alternative.
“They must be good,” Ganyu said, stifling a giggle.
Keqing blushed, dropping a fourth morsel on its way to her mouth. “They’re about as close as you can get to the genuine article,” she replied. “Do you want to try one?”
“Yes, please. I’m interested in learning more about your tastes.”
Keqing’s hand shook slightly as she picked up a vegetarian shrimp ball with her chopsticks and held it out for Ganyu. She expected her to push her salad bowl out for her to drop it into, but instead Ganyu leaned forward and ate the “shrimp” ball directly from the chopsticks. The kind of thing you’d see happen between a lovey-dovey couple in public with no sense of self-awareness.
“It’s delicious,” Ganyu said after she swallowed. “I can see why you like them.”
“Y-yeah.” Keqing retracted the chopsticks, staring at the ends of them. Had any of her saliva been on them when they were in Ganyu’s mouth? Was any of Ganyu’s saliva still on the chopsticks? If she put them back in her mouth without cleaning them, wouldn’t it be... Why am I getting flustered over a stupid indirect kiss? Keqing thought. Am I some perverted schoolgirl in a Yae Publishing House light novel!?
“It’s so nice to have company during lunch,” Ganyu said. “I’m flattered that you’d give up potential work time to spend it with me.”
“We could do this more often,” Keqing replied. “If you’re not too busy.” As if she weren’t the one with the toxic work habits.
Ganyu smiled. Was there a hint of a blush on her cheeks? “I’d like that.”
Once she finished her salad, she stretched her arms over her head and yawned. Adorable. “It’s almost time for my nap.”
“I still can’t understand how you can get all that work done and still have time for a nap every day.”
Ganyu chuckled as she made an open space on her desk. “I’ve had a few thousand years to figure out how to manage my time.”
Ugh, why did that sound so hot?
“Maybe you should try taking a nap during the day as well,” she added as her eyelids began to droop.
Keqing imagined snuggling up to Ganyu under a shared blanket, and her temperature shot up several degrees.
“Don’t overwork yourself.” Ganyu rested her head on her folded arms and fell asleep at her desk.
“Anyone who didn’t know better would think you’re the one who’s exhausting herself.” Keqing smiled. She spotted a folded blanket in the corner of the office; she retrieved the blanket and threw it around Ganyu’s shoulders. The Qixing couldn’t afford for their general secretary to catch a cold.
Keqing couldn’t resist sneaking a glance at Ganyu’s sleeping face. A good portion of her face was hidden by her arms, but there was no mistaking her relaxed expression. She looked so peaceful that Keqing wanted to pinch those chubby cheeks out of envy. But she wouldn’t mind seeing that face more often. Maybe they should eat lunch together again regularly.
I can do this, Keqing told herself as she went back to her work. She could act normal around the co-worker who caught her masturbating. Everything was going back to normal. As long as she could stifle certain thoughts gnawing at her mind.
Simply put, she couldn’t help but wonder if something might happen between her and Ganyu again. She had never thought about this kind of thing before. Not just about Ganyu, about anybody. Of course she thought Ganyu was pretty—anyone could see that—but Keqing had never considered herself the kind of person who was shallow enough to have her head turned by beauty. Diligence and efficiency, on the other hand, were hot as fuck, and Ganyu had that in spades. But the general secretary’s attributes had never weighed so heavily on her mind before today.
It was as if Ganyu had flipped a switch when she fingered her. Keqing couldn’t stop thinking about sex. Specifically, sex with Ganyu. Was this her life now? She didn’t need this kind of distraction. It would soon pass. At least, that’s what she told herself.
Keqing’s regular shift ended, but the call of the unfinished paperwork on her desk was irresistible, and she was once again working overtime. She needed the extra work to clear her head. After two hours, she allowed herself a short break to stretch a little and shake out the stiffness accumulating in her body.
It was getting late, but she could squeeze out at least another hour of work. She just needed a cup of tea to keep her going.
Someone walked up to her office door. There was a tentative knock on the door frame. “Lady Keqing, may I enter?”
Ganyu. Keqing’s pulse quickened. She settled back into her seat, as if she hadn’t been taking a break. “Of course. Please, come in.”
The door slid open, revealing the face that had been haunting Keqing for hours, and almost as beautiful was the tray with a teapot balanced on one hand. Ganyu closed the door behind herself and came over to the desk. “I realized that you were still at the office and figured you could probably use some tea.”
“You should’ve led with that,” Keqing joked. “Feel free to barge in whenever you’re bringing tea.”
Ganyu smiled as she set the tray on the table. “Last time I entered your office without permission, I embarrassed you. This time I made sure to ask, just in case.”
It was the first time either of them had even alluded to what happened between them that night. “You were expecting me to... you thought that I was...”
“I wasn’t expecting it, but you have been acting a little odd today.” Ganyu poured her a cup of tea and slid it across the desk to her. “I couldn’t help but wonder if you were still pent-up, like you were the other night.”
The steam rising from the hot tea had nothing on that coming off of Keqing. “Oh, I’m sorry that I’m not just acting like normal after my coworker...” she lowered her voice to a whisper, “ fingered me at the office.”
“Is it really that remarkable an occurrence?” Ganyu poured herself a cup of tea and took a sip. “Should I take that to mean that you’re not acting that way because of sexual frustration? That you don’t need someone to relieve that kind of frustration for you?”
“Th-that makes it sound like you would... do the same thing as the other night if I asked.”
“Perhaps.” Perhaps it was a trick of the light—or the low amount of it—but Ganyu’s eyes appeared darker, her pupils dilated.
There’s no way she’s being serious, right? But if she wasn’t... “Did you just come here to tease me?”
“No. There’s another reason I’m here.” Ganyu set her cup down and began walking around the desk.
Heat flooded Keqing’s entire body in anticipation of... exactly what, she didn’t know. Or didn’t want to admit.
“I believe there’s something you owe me.”
Ganyu leaned over her shoulder. Her hand reached down past Keqing’s chest, drawing level with the desk—and grabbed a stack of files, the ones Keqing had borrowed earlier that day.
“You didn’t bring these files back to me.”
She had been so concerned with thinking about Ganyu—and concentrating on not thinking about her—that she had forgotten all about the files. So in a way, it was Ganyu’s fault. “You are so doing this on purpose!”
“Doing what on purpose?” Ganyu sat down at a chair in front of the desk and sipped her tea. “I was just doing my job, Lady Keqing.”
“Lady Keqing” rolled her eyes. “You don’t have to call me ‘Lady’ when it’s just us around, you know.” Especially if she was going to be teasing the esteemed Yuheng.
“I couldn’t! It would be improper to refer to you so informally at work, even when we’re alone.”
“You didn’t have a problem calling me ‘sweetie’ last time we were alone.”
Ganyu choked on her tea. She covered her mouth and coughed. “I did that in the heat of the moment.”
Was it wrong for Keqing to enjoy catching her on the wrong foot? She decided it was not. “No need to be shy. You also f-fingered me in the heat of the moment.” She wished she could’ve delivered those words without stumbling over her own tongue.
“Indeed.” Ganyu was quiet for a moment, dwelling on her teacup. “For the record, I don’t usually do that kind of thing with co-workers.”
That admission relieved Keqing and that annoyed her. “Me neither, though I guess it’s fitting that I’d lose my virginity in my office.” If Liyue’s rumour-mongers caught wind of this, she’d never hear the end of it.
Ganyu’s eyes lit up, the corner of her smile rising just a little. “That was your first time? A beautiful woman like you?”
“What does being beautiful have to do with it!?” Ganyu thinks I’m beautiful? Keqing cleared her throat. “I mean, looks don’t mean much in the romance department for people who are too busy to meet other people. Who was I supposed to hook up with before, Ningguang?”
“You mean you don’t have a thing for older women?”
Keqing couldn’t tell if Ganyu was being genuine or mercilessly teasing her. “I don’t have a type, but if I did, you and Ningguang wouldn’t be it. You’re gorgeous or whatever, but don’t get a big head over it.”
She expected Ganyu to get offended by her words—harsher than she’d meant them to come across—or at least for her to be surprised, but Ganyu only giggled. “I’m flattered that you find me gorgeous.”
“That’s the part you focused on!?” Was she a coquette or an airhead!?
Keqing watched as Ganyu’s elegant fingers closed around the teacup’s handle and raise it to her mouth. “My philosophy in life is to make the most of what I’m given.”
“Ah, the fabled wisdom of the adepti.” And what could Keqing make of this situation? She didn’t plan on being teased by Ganyu for the rest of her life. It would suit her right if Keqing called her bluff next time she joked about continuing what they’d started the other night. That would wipe that annoying yet cute grin off her face. Unless Ganyu actually followed through... “Ganyu, is there any chance—”
Ganyu stiffened, then set her tea cup back on the desk. “Did you hear that? I think someone’s here.”
“It’s not like I was going to suggest we do anything anyway!” Not that she was going to admit, anyway. “Wait, you mean someone who shouldn’t be here?” Nobody was supposed to be here this late, Ganyu and Keqing excepted.
Keqing listened closely. There were sounds of one—no, at least two people moving around inside the building: heavy footsteps and crashing into furniture. The pavilion didn’t hire anyone graceless enough to make this much noise at night, and burglars wouldn’t be this noisy either. In any case, it merited investigation.
“I’ll go check.” Sword in hand, Keqing headed for the door.
A gloved hand closed around her wrist. “We should go together.”
Keqing nodded, ignoring the rush she felt at Ganyu’s touch.
The pair left the Yuheng’s office and tiptoed through the halls toward the source of the noises. If it came down to a fight, Keqing was prepared to bring one. More importantly, she’d protect Ganyu, who for some reason wasn’t carrying a weapon.
The intruders had stopped bumping around into furniture, though they were far from silent. It sounded like they were arguing, which meant they would be too distracted to realize they were about to be ambushed. Keqing raised her sword, readying herself to round the corner...
“Wait.”
Keqing found herself pressed against the wall, her back flush against the wood panelling. Ganyu’s arms bracketed her, keeping her from moving. Their chests touched, keeping her from thinking. “We should listen in,” Ganyu whispered, facing away from her, toward the direction of the intruders.
“R-right.” She’s too close! If Ganyu turned her head toward her, they’d basically be kissing. Were she put in this position in any other context, Keqing would have assumed she was being come unto. And she just might have let Ganyu do whatever she wanted... Keqing desperately tried to pay attention to the situation at hand.
The intruders weren’t even trying to be quiet. “I’m telling you, I’m fine,” one of them said through laboured breaths.
“Really? Because I’ve seen beached whales have an easier time moving than you.” The second intruder sounded concerned despite her annoyance.
“It’s hard to lean on someone’s shoulder when they’re as intoxicated as you.”
“Babe, you’ve seen me drunk. This is nothing.”
Are they... flirting? Who broke into a place like the Yuehai Pavilion and wasted time flirting?
“That bandage will suffice for now, but you should get that checked in the morning,” the second voice said.
“When did you become such a mother hen?” The first voice scoffed. “I can’t believe a Fatui Skirmisher almost took me out.”
“You’re lucky I happened to pass by when you were limping back here. Imagine the scandal if the Tianquan was found in a ditch.” The second voice let out a hearty laugh.
“The Tianquan!?” Keqing gasped. She hadn’t recognized Ningguang’s strained voice at the time. Was that related to the injury she’d apparently sustained?
“That must be Beidou with her,” Ganyu said.
Keqing recognized that obnoxious laugh. “But why is she with Ningguang? Wasn’t Ningguang supposed to be on a business trip? Why are they flirting!?”
“We should leave them to their own devices.” Ganyu grabbed Keqing’s wrist again, urging her with a gentle pull. “
“No, I want answers.” The Tianquan shouldn’t have brought that damn pirate back to the pavilion under any circumstances. It would only cause problems. However, Keqing could hold that over Ningguang’s head the next time she got annoying. How she could exploit this situation, Keqing didn’t know; her brain was short-circuiting at the wet smacking sounds of two pairs of lips coming together. “Are they making out right now!?”
“As I said, we should leave them alone.”
From this distance it was impossible not to notice that Ganyu was blushing, and Keqing was reminded that she was as physically close to her as possible. “I’ll leave when you stop pinning me to the wall,” she whispered.
Ganyu hopped away from her like a frightened rabbit. “Yes, of course. My apologies.”
How can you get so flustered over basically nothing and also offer to get people off without blinking? Keqing shook her head. “Let’s get out of here.”
For what felt like the hundredth time that day, the Yuheng fled to her office, this time with Ganyu in tow.
“What was all that about!?” Keqing dropped into her chair with a huff. “Ningguang has a lot of explaining to do.” For so many things, least of all her ruining the mood between herself and Ganyu.
“I’m sure the Tianquan will explain her injury to us tomorrow,” Ganyu said. “As for her situation with Beidou... perhaps you’d rather not know. You’ve been distracted enough tonight, so I’ll get out of your hair. I’ll leave the teapot here in case you want more, and I’ll pick it up first thing in the morning.”
Keqing watched her get up and go to the door, unsure of whether or not she wanted Ganyu to stay and even less sure of what she could say to get her to. “Yes. Well, um, thanks for the tea. And your company.”
“Anytime, Keqing.” Ganyu left the office with a cryptic smile on her lips.
You only drop the honorific when you’re leaving? Keqing couldn’t believe this woman. Nor could she handle the fact that she was getting teased by Ganyu of all people. It wasn’t fair. She fingers me once and then she acts all high and mighty with me? As if Keqing would put up with that for much longer. She needed a way to get back on equal footing with her, to affect Ganyu as much as the damn sexy half-adeptus had done to her. But to achieve the same impact, she would need to do something like what Ganyu had done for her the other night.
Keqing decided she would return the favour.