(Around 10 am)
A certain secretary of the Liyue Qixing arrived at the Pokemon Studio.
"Hello, nice to meet you."
She greeted Frost, the store clerk, in a sleepy voice. Her droopy eyes and dark circles clearly showed that she had not gotten enough sleep in a while.
"I would like to buy all the volumes of 'The Nameless Phantom'."
"Please wait a moment."
Frost spoke as she used her telekinesis to bring 3 volumes of the aforementioned manga to the counter.
"That will be 12,000 mora."
While Ganyu was taking out her purse, the door at the back suddenly opened and Loki walked out.
"Ganyu, why don't you come inside the lounge and rest for a while? It looks like you could use it." He spoke.
Ganyu tilted her head and looked at him.
"You must be Mr. Loki. I am sorry but I have to refuse your kind gesture. I have a lot of work to complete."
"I insist." Loki walked forward and stood before her. "I was also planning on giving you a pokemon who could help with your work."
His words seemed to have caught her attention as her droopy eyes turned sharp, although for just a fraction of a second.
"A pokemon? But I never filled out the form." Her eyes reflected her curiosity.
"Well. Consider it a gift from me, to the kind hardworking secretary who have devoted her entire life for the betterment of Liyue."
Under his honest praise, Ganyu suddenly blushed. She easily relented and walked to the lounge with him.
Loki first guided her to an empty sofa.
"It will take a few minutes for me to get your pokemon. Until then, I recommend you relax on this sofa."
Ganyu didn't refuse his offer. Funnily enough, the moment she sat down on the sofa, she fell asleep. Before she could fall and hit something, Loki caught her and gently laid her on the sofa.
'Was she this tired?' He mused as he went upstairs.
When he returned a while later, he was accompanied by a small blue humanoid pokemon, a Kirlia.
This Kirlia was none other than the daughter of Voir. Her name was Lia.
As soon as they reached the lounge, the mother and daughter embraced each other and began to converse telepathically.
Loki looked at their interaction with a smile. Then he began to search for the sleeping Ganyu. He could not find her in the lounge. Curious, he turned to Joker, Magica and Dusk, who were playing Mario Cart together.
"Where is Ganyu? Did she leave?"
Joker suddenly made a smug grin while Magica began to giggle like an excited child. Dusk didn't show much reaction like always.
"I took her to your room. After all, we can't let a lady sleep on this crude sofa." Magica spoke with a glee, akin to a child who was successful in a prank.
Loki took a while to understand what she meant. He then sighed and sat down beside them. He silently picked up a joystick to join the game.
"Aren't you going to say something?" Joker asked with a disappointed voice.
"No." Loki spoke with a finality.
Joker didn't insist any further and focused on the game. This time, he was going to beat Loki once and for all. Dusk was being Dusk as he never took his eye away from the TV, fully focused on the game.
On the other hand, Magica had a large smile as she used her telekinesis to move her character. She was filled with anticipation of the near future where Ganyu confronts Loki.
_____
POV: Ganyu
Ganyu woke up in a soft bed. She wiped her eyes, still in a daze. 'I have not slept so comfortably in a while.'
It took a few seconds for her to be completely awake and her eyes instantly widened when she found herself in an unfamiliar bed. A premonition rose as she hurriedly checked her clothes. Finding nothing unusual, she breathed a sigh of relief and surveyed the unfamiliar room.
The room she was in was luxurious yet modest. The walls and floors were covered with marbles. The bed she slept on was soft and comfortable. A part of the wall was transparent glass and she could see the sea of Liyue and Guyun Stone Forest.
The rest of the room was empty. It seemed to be barely lived in.
She wondered how she could have appeared here. She remembered that she had come to the Pokemon Studio to buy a manga. Then the owner of the Studio invited her into the lounge, saying he wanted to give a pokemon to her. Her last memory was of his advice to rest on the sofa.
That was around morning. When she looked out the glass again, she saw the stars in the sky. The sun had already set.
'Did I sleep the entire day?' She wondered. Then she had another question.
'Am I still in the Pokemon Studio?'
She had never known that this building had glass as part of the wall. If it had, she and everyone else would have seen it.
Finding no end to her questions, she cautiously walked out of the door. She found herself in a hallway with three doors. The right direction had a staircase that led to the lower floor. The other was a dead end but she felt an unusual power when she focused in that direction.
She blinked her eyes and the unusual power disappeared like a momentary dream. Confused and alert, she chose to slowly walk down the stairs.
The stair led to the lounge. Ganyu immediately saw Loki playing a game with 2 pokemon. There was one of the store clerks on another sofa, and a pokemon who seemed to be her child, was sleeping on her lap.
Her anxiety disappeared and she approached Loki, fully intent on asking him a lot of questions.
"You are awake. Good morning or should I say, Good Night."
Loki spoke when she reached him. He placed the gadget in his hand on the sofa and looked at her with a smile. Ganyu ignored his greeting and looked at him with a piercing glare.
"How did I end up in that bed?"
"Don't look at me like that." Loki hurriedly raised his hands into the air. "I promise I didn't do anything. None of us did."
"You must have been really tired because as soon as you sat on the sofa, you fell asleep. Magica wanted you to sleep in a comfortable place so she took you to the bed."
He gestured towards the pokemon floating beside him. The pokemon then floated towards her and nodded her head.
"Loki is saying the truth. I was the one who carried you to the bed. Nothing happened."
Even though Magica wanted to tease Loki, she was not going to frame him with a lie.
Ganyu was silent for a while before breathing a sigh of relief. She chose to believe their words. They did not seem like people who would deceive someone to take advantage of them, right?
Seeing her relax considerably, Loki decided to ask her a question.
"By the way, how long has it been since you last slept?"
Ganyu took a while to respond. "It should be around a week. Since pokemon were introduced to Liyue, the workload has increased exponentially and I have not found any time to sleep properly."
"Do you not have any assistant? I doubt you would have to do all the work yourself."
"I do have. But I feel confident when I do those work myself."
"That sounds tiring." Loki cringed at her words.
"It is. But I like to work."
Hearing her straightforward answer, he was amazed at her diligence but also baffled by her idiocy.
"You and I both know that is not the truth. You work so much to fulfill the contract you made with Morax 3000 years ago."
Hearing his sudden remark, Ganyu was shocked. Her eyes widened in disbelief. She didn't expect Loki to know about her contract with Rex Lapis.
She hurriedly thought of an excuse as she didn't want to give away her real identity as a half-adeptus. What she feared the most was to be treated differently.
"I don't know how you know that information but you are still wrong. I honestly like to work, to see Liyue prosper."
Seeing her insistence to hide the truth, Loki shook his head and chose to speak directly.
"You know. You don't need to desperately try and fit in with the humans. Rather than restraining yourself to fit in with the world, you should change the world so that it will fit you."
Ganyu was once again surprised. No, she was utterly speechless and could not think properly.
"How-how did you know that?" She unconsciously blurted out these words that exposed her lie. It took a second for her to realize the mistake as she hurriedly spoke.
"I mean, what made you think that?"
Loki didn't expect her to try and hide so deeply. He sighed.
"I can understand the feeling of wanting to fit in with the rest of the world. But the way you are going, it will only lead to more solitude and loneliness. You will only burn yourself out at this rate."
Ganyu didn't respond. She thought about his words for a long time and finally chose to relent.
"Then what should I do?" She asked with a soft and unsure voice. Seeing her finally becoming honest, Loki smiled.
"First of all, you should stop living out a lie. You are a half-human and half-adeptus. Rather than leaning on one direction, you should embrace your real identity with confidence. Undoubtedly, you will stray further away from the human society, but those who still remain by your side have accepted you for who you are."
"You will find a place where you belong with those people. Isn't it simple? If you are not able to fit in this world, create a home just for you, where others will accept you for who you are, rather than a facade."
Ganyu listened to his words with a lost look in her eyes. She memorized each and every words and had an illusion of a light at the end of the tunnel.
"You can take all the time you need to think about your answer. But for now, let's start with our introductions. Then we can talk more about this topic later on."
Loki spoke with a small smile. Ganyu nodded her head a moment later and he began to introduce her to everyone in the lounge.
The last to be introduced was Lia.
"Her name is Lia. She is Voir's daughter. I was intending for her to be your pokemon."
[Nice to meet you, Ganyu.] Lia spoke in her mind. Her voice cheerful and eager.
"Nice to meet you as well." Ganyu greeted her with a smile. Then she turned to Voir.
"But is it really okay? She is your child."
[I can tell you are a kind and lovely person. I am sure you will treat my daughter well. Although I would be grateful if you didn't confine her in a pokeball. I want her to be free.]
Ganyu was speechless to hear that response. A mother was able to give away her child to a stranger she just met.
Was this the so called difference in culture?
Seeing her hesitation, Voir added. [It is just like how humans make their children independent once they come of age. My child has made her decision to follow you and I will support her decision. That is all.]
Ganyu had a look of realization as she nodded her head. She looked at Lia.
"Please take care of me, Lia." She spoke.
[Please take care of me as well, Ganyu.]
Lia floated before her eyes and touched their foreheads together. Ganyu suddenly felt a comfortable sensation flowing in her body. She felt like she understood Lia, and Lia understood her.
Both of then smiled. They then began to converse with each other through their telepathic connection.
A while later, when their conversations were finally over, Loki handed a pokedex to Ganyu.
"This is a pokedex. Lia can teach you how to use it."
"Thank you."
Ganyu slightly bowed in gratitude. Loki suddenly had a teasing look in his eyes as he spoke.
"Lia can also help you with your work. That way, you won't fall asleep at a stranger's place next time."
Hearing his teasing remark, Ganyu immediately flushed red with embarrassment.