Ardent's Day

Title: Ardent's Day
Fandom: Genshin Impact
Characters: Ardent, Wriothesley,
Pairing: N/A
Ratings: N/A
Warnings: N/A
Author Notes: N/A

Ardent sighed as he looked at the denizens of the Fortress. They were going about their everyday lives like nothing was happening. Just around the corner was a spooky holiday that he hadn’t celebrated in a long time. Feeling mirthful about it, he made his way from the Production Zone to the Administrative Area. He stopped in front of the Warden’s Office for a moment and stared at the door. Usually he had no issues trying to walk inside and rarely ever had one. There were the rare moments he got on Wriothesley’s bad side but those were few and far inbetween. Right now was a little different though, he wanted to ask Wriothesley something he only ever got to ask the previous Warden. After Wriothelsey became the new Warden, Ardent was just too busy to get around to make the arrangements himself and Sigewinne took over. However, she was looking after patients the last few days and hadn’t made the time for anything else.

With a sharp inhale and exhale, he continued his path. He opened the door, nodding at guards stationed on either side outside of it as he entered. Ardent paused again when he looked at the stairwell leading up into Wriothesely’s office. He could smell tea and something sweet. It took a second to try and figure out if Sylvia was in the room or not but he couldn’t smell her in the room. His senses weren’t as they used to be and he wasn’t entirely certain who was in the office until he heard something above him.

“Ardent, either get up here or leave.” Wriothesley’s voice carried over the silence.

Ardent surmised Sylvia wasn’t here. She was probably terrorizing someone else since he last saw her earlier this afternoon. Without missing a beat, Ardent just walked up the stairs. The scent of the tea was stronger as he made his way up to the top of the stairwell. At least Wriothesley learned about Ardent’s sensitive sense of smell and toned it down on the more… notable tea smells. This evening’s tea smelled like chamomile and some honey. Which meant he was in a good mood.

“What do you need, old man?” Wriothesley asked as he checked off some things on one of the stacks of paper he was reviewing.

“I wanted to ask about a get together we could throw for some of the inmates.” Ardent said.

“I thought Sigewinne was handling it.” Wriothesley replied as he put the paper face down onto another pile of papers next to him.

“She’s been busy and I was wondering if you weren’t too busy to help an old man out.” Ardent replied. “Can’t reach those hard to get places like I used to.” Wriothesley put his paper and pen down and deadpanned at the Fortress’ Guard Captain.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” He said and motioned to the paper with his hands.

“Oh we both know most of that’s been pre-approved by you yesterday and you’re using this to look busy.” Ardent said, crossing his arms. “I’ve seen you use this trick before, kid. Just think about it this way, we’ll have some fun getting to bond.”

“Get the guards to do it.” Wriothesley grumbled. “I have to get all of this done.”

“Lemme guess, a certain young lady has been accosting your time and you, being the gentleman you are of course, couldn’t really turn her down.” Ardent chuckled. “I just thought it’d be fun to do something together. You’ve been so preoccupied lately. Don’t tell me I need to trick you to join the Pankration Ring again.”

“That wasn’t a very nice thing to do.” The younger man frowned.

“Funny, you looked like you were enjoying yourself plenty.” Ardent laughed again. “Don’t remember you holding back any, either. Pretty sure the inmates here wouldn’t mind a round two.”

“More like round five.” Wriothesley clarified. “Can’t we settle on the draw we have?”

“Where’s the fun in that, kid?” Ardent shrugged. “Besides, I let you win last time. You being the Warden and all. There’s a reputation to uphold and if the Guard Captain bets you, that would diminish it a bit.”

“Just do whatever you’re up to, old man.” Wriothesley said, sounding a little exasperated. Maybe he was really stressed instead… He didn’t seem to want to play like he usually would whenever Ardent started poking him. Sensing he was near the line, Ardent opted to stop while he was ahead.

“All right, kid, I’ll leave you be.” He said. “But you’re coming to this shindig and I don’t want to hear any excuses. Otherwise, I’ll teach Sylvia about the other five ways to get in here that don’t involve a door. Just think what she could do with your tea collection…”

“Whatever, I’ll be there.” Wriothesley said, waving his hand. He really wasn’t in the mood. Ardent frowned slightly but knew how to get to him in another way.

“All right, I get it.” Ardent said, holding up his hands in defeat. “Take it easy. I’ll let Sigwinne know you’re working late again.” Ardent walked back down the stairway and left the office. He nodded at the guards as he walked past them and went on his way.

The next few days were busy for the guards. Aside from their usual daily activities, they were also coordinating with the inmates. Trying to make the place look festive and spooky. Some of them even got a few ideas to make some attractions. Something to make the experience more fun. Ardent helped out too and did what he could to assist. However, he was happier seeing everyone getting so into the role of wanting to do something spooky for one of the Fortress’ older traditions.

Ardent wasn’t lollygagging however, he was busy trying to help with one of the attractions. A haunted house. He was able to place the orders the inmates needed to make it spookier and enjoyable. After the orders came in, he made sure they got to the people that needed them. Meanwhile, he placed an order for some food. It had been a while since anyone in the Fortress had some decent looking food and drink to dine on. It was a special occasion after all.

He couldn’t remember where he heard the tradition to celebrate the spooky holiday at all. He was fairly certain it was a Mondstadt holiday from how it sounded. He chuckled a little at the thought. He could never seem to escape the city no matter how hard he tried. He made sure to remind the guards and inmates wanting to participate that they needed to dress up for the night. Something fun and spooky to lift everyone’s spirits. It’s a shame Sigewinne wasn’t able to help Ardent with the planning. She was still busy tending to the wounds people were getting from the Production Zone lately. Which he thought was strange, he was certain he made sure the Institute Researcher they hired to make sure the Production Zone wasn’t a hazardous workplace. He made a note to make a request about another Researcher to overlook the safety of the area again. For now, he was a little preoccupied with his current project.

“So, Captain, are you going to dress up?” One of the guards asked him.

“I mean I would but there wouldn’t be much of a point in me dressing up.” Ardent replied. He could joke about being a werewolf but not many people would believe him anyways. The few that did were the only ones to know he wasn’t really joking. It was always a hard explanation to give the more time went on.

“He’s gonna be a werewolf again.” Another guard laughed. Little did they know the truth of it.

“Would it be so terrible?” Ardent shrugged. “Everyone seems to like it every time we have these events.”

“It’s a shame the Warden won’t let you participate in the costume contests.” The first one frowned. “The fur you use for the costume makes it look so real.”

Ardent laughed with the other guards but was uneasy by it. This was supposed to be cheering him up but it was only bringing him down. He shook it off as best he could as he chatted with the other guards for a bit. Afterwards, he made his way to the Administration Zone and walked around to see the different decorations. The inmates were excitedly putting everything together with some of the guards and Fortress staff members. At least tomorrow was the day to celebrate. Ardent left the area to turn in for the night.

The next day, Ardent awoke to a slight surprise. He found a note from Sigewinne. He picked it up and read it. She had a surprise for him or something later and told him to drop by the clinic around dinner time. Well that piqued his interest. What could she be up to? He certainly would see what she was planning for later. He got ready for the day regardless and made his way towards the Administration Zone for something to eat.

The day pretty much went as it usually followed. The inmates were busy at work for most of the day. Some people were also making last minute additions to the attractions and fun for later tonight. Ardent was busy checking some of the security in the more obscure places in the Fortress. Wriothesley let him know after breakfast that it was “of utmost importance” and didn’t elaborate. So the guards he was instructing were working off just as much information as he had been.

“This is ridiculous.” Ardent grumbled as he parted ways from the guards. It was the late afternoon and the goosechase couldn’t have been less eventful. He was irritated from having to run around all the pipes leading around the Fortress. At least he was on his way back and he was going to enjoy whatever delight Sigewinne had planned.

“Sir, this is from the Warden.” A guard said as Ardent walked into the Administration Zone. He took the piece of paper from the guard and read it.

“Ardent, I need you to look into something else. There were some reports in the Pankration Ring about inmates getting rowdy.” Ardent groaned at the note and sighed. It was just one thing after another. He was really looking forward to whatever Sigewinne had planned too.

He made his way to his room and changed into his “costume”. He was glad he could shift his form at will now. At least there wasn’t as much to worry about scaring people anymore. He looked at his face in the mirror. He could never quite get used to his wolfish features – even after all these years later. He finished making the adornments to his costume – which was just his uniform with some more tears in it. He finished making his adjustments and left his room.

As he walked into the Administration Zone, he saw several inmates already in costume. He perked up a bit to see people were at least getting into the spirit. He smiled and nodded at them as he walked by and made his way towards the cafeteria. He might as well apologize to Sigewinne that he’d be unable to meet up with her. However, when he arrived, the only person there was Wolsey and the machine that gave out the daily welfare meals. Strange that no one was around.

“Wolsey, where’s Sigewinne?” He asked the chef.

“Oh, she told me to tell you she had to run an errand for The Duke.” Wolsey explained. “She also said she was really sorry for having to leave you hanging.”

“Oh…” Ardent murmured. He looked around again. “What happened to all the food the inmates ordered for tonight? I thought we agreed to place it all here since it’s the cafeteria anyways?”

“The Duke had some thoughts on that.” Wolsey replied, waving his hand. “I dunno what to tell you, Captain.” Strange events going on today and all surrounding Wriothesley… What was he up to?

Not having much of a choice for where he was going now, Ardent made his way towards the Pankration Ring. He took the elevator down and used the time to just think about what Wriothesley could be plotting. Usually he never went out of his way for grand gestures. Unless someone deserved it. Ardent thought about whether he rubbed Wriothesley the wrong way lately but he couldn’t think of anything. Then it hit him.. or rather a smell wafted towards him as the elevator doors opened. He could smell all sorts of food and sweets. He had an idea of what Wriothesley was up to but today was probably the worst day for him to have put it into action.

Ardent walked out of the elevator. He could hear the faint shushing of the people ahead of him trying to hide themselves. Their heart rates betrayed them a bit but it’s not like they all believed he was a werewolf. Only a few people knew of his secret anyways. As he walked in, he heard Wriothesley laughing from across the room.

“Oh that’s cheating, old man.” He laughed as he rested his arms on the metal bars of the fighting ring.

“Well in my defense, Wolsey kind of sold you all out.” Ardent said. “The food that everyone ordered wasn’t in the cafeteria.”

“I told you it was too obvious.” Sigewinne said as she looked up at Wriothesley.

“Well either way, old man, hope you enjoy the party tonight.” The Duke said as he leapt over the ring’s bars and walked towards him. “After all the bullshit I put you through today, hope you enjoy your birthday party.”

Ardent chuckled as Wriothesley walked towards one of the tables nearby to get some food. He looked around to see the other inmates walking around and noticed something about their costumes. They were all werewolves or some form of it. He just shook his head and looked at Wriothesley, who shrugged and nodded over to Sigewinne.

“Thanks, kid.” He said as he walked over to Sigewinne.