A Worthy Replacement

Chapter 63 - Clearwater Jade

i thought alexei could use more screentime, so i hope you all enjoy this chapter with him :)

after your quick catch-up with scaramouche, you set off to fontaine.

what helped is that alexei had traveled to fontaine to meet up with you so the two of you could go together under the guise of being "escorted". after all, you were still a harbinger and must be treated with the utmost respect.

the two of you decided to travel through chenyu vale, although it was a little bit of a round-about way to get there, but traveling all the way through the desert and taking another boat to reach the main port didn't seem to be an amazing option.

and besides, why not see more of liyue? you hadn't seen chenyu vale before.

one thing you realized was how lush it was. it had the typical high liyue mountains and plateaus, but it had a lot of rivers and beautiful scenery. 

"i knew this was the right route to take," alexei said next to you, looking around as the two of you walked together through the pathways of the valley. "this place is gorgeous!"

"agreed," you replied, your eyes catching the turtles with some type of jade that grew on their backs.

alexei noticed your gaze on the turtles and chuckled. "your interest has been piqued?"

"... i haven't seen these types of animals before," you admitted. "and those stones... it isn't noctilucous jade or cor lapis."

"they're clearwater jade, a local specialty here in liyue. the crystals sometimes form on the turtles' backs since they move so slowly and weld with their shell, or they grow near the water."

"i see."

"i could get one for you if you want."

"... wouldn't that hurt the turtle," you asked, a little confused. "i thought you said it was welded to the shell..."

"all they'll feel is some light pressure," alexei assured you, walking over to a turtle - who was seemingly asleep - before taking his blade out.

you looked away, unable to watch in case the turtle would get hurt, and then you heard a few clinks and footsteps afterward. when you turned back to alexei, he held out a large chunk of the jade.

"here."

you looked at him suspiciously before you took it. "..."

"look, i didn't hurt it," he sighed, confirming what happened. "all i did was push my knife underneath the jade and flick up. it popped off of its back."

"if you say so," you muttered, looking at the jade in your hand. "... it's beautiful."

"i agree. i think these jades are some of my favorites," alexei smiled at you.

"i can see why you think that," you said, then handed it back to alexei. "why don't you keep this then?"

"nonsense," he replied, gently pushing your hand away. "i can always get more. i don't know when you'll be here, so just keep it as a gift."

you huffed and shoved the jade back at alexei, "alexei, don't make me order-"

"order me?" he chuckled, gently catching your wrist in a firm grip. his hand wasn't tight, but it was commanding enough yet gentle. "with all due respect, my lady, i'm giving you a gift."

"and i'm saying i don't want it," you retorted. "just accept it."

in all seriousness, you could probably rip your hand out of his grip, but that'd hurt him and you didn't want to injure him.

"just keep it," he sighed in mock annoyance, swiftly letting go of your wrist before taking the jade in his other hand and placing it inside your suit pocket. "i insist. if i ever want to, i can come back here."

"but you never know," you replied. "what if you never get sent back here?"

"can't you just send me back," alexei replied teasingly. "you're a harbinger, no? and my harbinger to be exact. just send me back here for a 'mission' and i'll bring back jade as a repayment. deal?"

"all you'd do is slack off," you rolled your eyes under your mask, pinching the bridge of your masked nose in annoyance. "... are you really implying that i'd be so easy to bribe?"

"maybe just a bit," he snickered. "and i never said it was bribery. think of it as an exchange. a trade, if you will."

you snorted and took the jade out of your pocket, shoving it in his hands. "enough of this. keep it. it's an order."

"you're so stubborn," he exclaimed. "i don't want it!"

"well what the hell do you want me to do with it? glue it back on the turtle?"

"no!"

both of you groaned in frustration before wordlessly continuing to walk, both of you knowing that arguing was futile. it didn't help that alexei was stubborn, especially when the two of you were alone.

your ranks didn't matter when alone in each other's presence. in fact, it mostly served as banter material more than anything. to alexei, you were still the same Y/N, even if he knew that certain aspects of you had changed during your transition to being brighella. he still treated you as the same fatui agent that he befriended.

you still had some lingering coldness, and your ruthlessness was still present when you were on the battlefield. even after the seal had broken and you had explained it to him, there were still mannerisms that you had temporarily "adopted" that still stuck with you. alexei hadn't pointed it out to you, since he never saw it as a bad thing.

after all, change was necessary in a place as cruel as the fatui. he couldn't exactly say that he was the exact same from the moment he started in to now.

"... why don't we just split the damn thing in half," he spoke again.

"no."

"at least try to make a compromise," he retorted, running a hand through his dark hair.

"follow my orders."

"i'm older than you," he glared at you, no hint of true malice behind his eyes.

"and i'm your boss."

he groaned, "shut the actual hell up."

"you're lucky you're not dead yet," you snapped, your voice playfully harsh.

the two of you settled into a comfortable silence, alexei indirectly admitting defeat as he moved his gloved hand in his pocket, holding the jade in a tender grasp.

but, with the sun beginning to set as the two of you boarded a boat to fontaine, the mist parting, and the opulent greenery, he wouldn't change a thing. he was here with you, and he was content with that.