As Fragile As Spider - Silk | Jeanlisa [DISCONTINUED]

Chapter 3 - Explore

I have always been curious about the thought of romance

And you ignited the feeling of love in my heart

If only you could spare me a second chance

My only wish is to see you once more

For you made me feel adored

"Good enough for now," thinks Jean. "Miss Jean! It's time for tea, please come!" shouts a voice, and the speed at which the Knight stows her things away is impressive. Quickly donning a clean outfit, she makes her way down the stairs gracefully, making sure to keep her gait as perfect and as poised as it could possibly be.

Due to the fact that she HAD to have tea with her mother every single day, no questions asked.

She steps smartly towards the room, where her mother is seated. "Jean," says Frederica simply, gesturing at the seat right across her at the long table, full of various snacks and variations of tea. The Anemo wielder takes a seat, demurely so as to not annoy her mother. One of the maids walks towards her, asking her what kind of tea she wanted. "Chamomile, please," replies Jean. She's felt quite anxious for most of the day and wanted a calming drink to help with that. The maid then bows before pouring her a cup of Chamomile, and Jean says her thanks.

"Jean, your instructor informed me that you were off today. Why is that?" states Frederica, glaring at her daughter. "I was merely a bit tired, and I suppose anxious too," responds Jean, trying to keep her voice steady. "Why were you tired then? Did you not sleep at exactly 10 last night? What made you anxious this time, Jean? Remember, you are the face of the Gunnhildr Clan. In merely a couple years, you will be the person looking after the entirety of Mondstadt. Do not mess up, else people will not see you as a reliable person," rambles Frederica. "Your incompetence is utterly disgusting sometimes," adds Frederica, scoffing. "When I was a young girl-"

Jean can't handle anymore of her mother's commanding nature, so she leaves the table, two scones in hand as she runs back to her bedroom. "Jean? Jean!" yells Frederica, shouting at her daughter to return, but the Knight doesn't want to deal with her mother any longer and so ignores her.

She rushes into her room, locking the door yet again as she sits on her chair, breathing shallowly. "God, she's so horrible sometimes," mutters Jean. She spends the rest of her time writing more poems and reading some of the books that were expected to be finished in one week by her mother, left on her bookshelf. She then pulls out the scroll that was left on her table every day and wrote down what she did at every hour of the day that she was awake. Certain things would be omitted, of course, such as her poetry from when she returned home before her mother, but it was mostly accurate to her day to day life.

Later on, the Knight decides to go to bed early, and she really didn't want to deal with her mother anymore, so she unlocks her door quietly before getting into bed with her favorite stuffed toy. Whilst they may be seen as something for children, the Knight found a world of comfort in having someone - albeit not a living, breathing human being - to sleep with her, and she nestles up close with her stuffed tortoise as she falls 'asleep.'

About an hour later, her mother comes into the room and notices her daughter is asleep. Frederica sighs, before glancing at Jean, the moonlight shining on her face through the open window. "I hope you'll be better tomorrow, Jean," says Frederica, as she leaves, shutting the door. Jean lies in bed, breathing as normally and awaits till the grand clock in the living room struck 12. The second she hears it, she knows everyone has fallen asleep - both the maids and her mother.

Using her strength, she pries open the large window, and the cool night air whips around her, immediately making her feel at peace. She sits at the windowsill, feet dangling outside the window as she gazes at the starry sky. The night is a gorgeous sight to look at, what with the twinkling stars scattered across the glorious sky and the night painted various shades of blue, purple and black. It was a relieving sight, and Jean did this almost every night as a way of relieving herself of the day's stress.

The cool breeze tickled her skin, and she thanks Barbados for all his service to Mondstadt as strands of her hair fly in front of her face and she tucks the strands behind her ear, thinking about her day. Usually, her days were alright at best, but having met Lisa had greatly improved how well her day had gone.

She giggles at the thought of how pretty Lisa was - what with her short honey brown hair, shimmering green eyes and adorable smile. There was no confirmation that the Knight would ever meet Lisa again, yet she had never been so quick to write a poem about a girl she had just met.

She starts to swirl Anemo in her palm, her fingers lightly glowing in a light, teal color. A hazy sphere of Anemo forms in her hand, before she lightly blows at it and it dissipates into the air like a Dandelion. The blonde smiles at this little action.

She spends a couple more minutes there, just thinking about her day before clambering back into her bedroom, gently shutting the window. She gets back into bed, her breathing having returned to normal after getting some time alone to herself. She falls asleep for real this time, dreaming of meeting Lisa.

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The weeks pass by, and over time, Jean begins to explore her sexuality a bit more, and Diluc starts to fall deeper and deeper in love with the Lionfang Knight. Throughout her life, he's always supportive of all her endeavors as her best friend, of course. He knew she preferred women, of course, but surely he still had a chance with her, right?