Lantern Rite - Tumblr Posts
To Dream of Reality ~Lantern Rite ft. Ningguang~
"lantern rite, and festivities"
MASTERLIST ~~
You are not one to lucid dream.
Usually, your dreams are like those of a butterfly's-
Flying through the air, helpless to the winds that surround.
And yet, tonight, the world of your dreams is perfectly intact.
Lantern Rite in Liyue.
The golden lights, so warm in your eyes, floated around you, each lantern a wish sent off from someone, from someone's heart, from one of your beloved children of Teyvat.
The warmth from the lanterns, the sound of festival cheer, the smell of food…
It felt strangely like home.
A plate of freshly cooked skewers laid upon your lap as you sat on the harbor docks, your feet swinging gently off the pier.
This… was nice.
If only this was reality.
~~
Lantern Rite's main festivities had ended, the Concert bright and exciting. The remaining week was left to bask in the festival itself, in the musicals and operas, the food and lights and colors.
If the main stage was for tourists, the remaining festival was for the locals. Liyueans, with the streets cleared, were finally able to enjoy Lantern Rite as it was meant to be celebrated- to welcome the Moon in the New Year.
Most Lantern Rites after the Main Festivities were quiet, as was this one.
Until they appeared, in ethereal glory, asking for nothing but a snack.
The Creator had appeared many times before within Mond, and reportedly thrice within Liyue, consulting with the samurai from Inazuma, the strange man from Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, and the Vigilant Yaksha.
Only once had the Creator appeared for non-vision wielders, and only a brief meeting.
As the Tianquan of the Qixing, Ningguang wanted to welcome the Creator, but as they appeared in their mortal form, would it be rude to call attention to them?
Rumors had it that the Creator was gentle and calm, appearing mortal yet undeniably divine.
As she saw them swinging their legs off the docs, humming along to the songs of the harbor, she understood. Just how mortal that form was, just how mortal they appeared.
Rumors had it that the Creator had not fully descended, that their form was partially transparent, and that their form was like that of glass. Ningguang had faith in those rumors, but perhaps the truth has merely changed. Their hand firmly grasped the skewers, their face opaque as they turned around, eyes widening as the stood to bow.
"Hi, Ningguang!" Perhaps the rumors weren't true after all. Perhaps the words of the Creator were not that formal, not that... forced. Perhaps this was what Mond wished to keep secret, the informal, gentle speech of the True Divine.
"You know my name?"
"Of course! Lantern Rite is so pretty this year... I'm glad I get to experience it for real this time. As real as I can be, here."
As real as I can be, huh?
Ningguang looked at the Divine, wondering what thoughts ran through their mind.
"I wish I could stay." they said, eyes soft as their hand reached out towards the sky. "I wish I could keep d̴̡̝͉͇̰̬͍̭̊̃͂͑̃̂̚͜͜͝r̶̛͉͈̂̔́̒͐̈́̋̊̒́̀̕͝è̸̢̙̝̼͖̹͔͎̄́̂̋̐͑̆́͌̊̐̆̈́̽ä̵̢̳͖̖̺͙̦̹̙̙̣̼́͊͛m̷̛̳͇̹̰̰͍̗̮͇͇͈̣͕͗̄̓͂̆̋͛̀͘ͅi̶̟̟̭̩̗̝̼̬̭̜̯̳̝̎̾͜ͅǹ̶͓̳͔͉̰̊̋̿̆͌͐̉̉́̂́̄̕g̸̢͎̱̖̻̝͉̖̟̅̉̓̂̒ of this place. Living here n' all."
It's strange, Ningguang thought. How mortal their divine sounds. How utterly human a God appears.
Until their body became transparent.
and they uttered another few words.
"How I wish to grant the wishes of Teyvat. How I wish to assist this world, how I wish to return home at last."
Their body shimmers, becoming the same color as the Xiao Lanterns, light reflecting off the ocean waters as they vanish. Ningguang raced back to the Jade Chamber, summoning pen and paper to draft a letter. The Creator wished to return home to Teyvat, and Teyvat would welcome them with open arms.
To prevent those heart wrenching words from being spoken again, she'd guarentee it.
~~
You rarely lucid dream, and on the lucky nights where you do get to control your sleep-thoughts, the control slips away just as fast. You remember your dream, for once. The taste of Mora Meat and Grilled Ticker Fish remain fresh in your memories as you looked out the windows, at the harsh white-light of cities and electricity.
Nothing like the golden lanterns of wishes that Y̶͕͑́̎̚ǫ̸̛̛͔͖̪̱̥̦̭͕̎̾͊̿̄͠u̴̟̦͈̺̤̫̣̲̼̅̋̈́͆̀̋̇̕͝r̵̨̗͎͕̄̃̀͑͒̋̓̀͑̊̒̌̅͜͠ ̷̢͇̩̰͓̳͈̖̲̝̞̝̦̇̑́̈̈́̅̓̔̎̍͂́̏͝b̵̢̢̜̪̼̩̭̺͔͕̤͇̥͊́͘e̸͓̙͚̩͈̲̤̎̒͒̿̈́̓͆̇͑̃̂̈́́̕͝l̵̳̫̟͋̏̏̓̏̈́͛͂́̕͠ǒ̵͉͖̹̼͚̗v̸̦͎̳̮̩̻̅̐̉͋̄́͒͘ȇ̶̱͖̆̿̊̐̌̍̀̀́̾͛̈́͒ď̶̡͖̹̺͓͇̬͎͇̒̽̒͗̈́̿̽ ̷̥̫͙̱̣̏̈́̔͘c̶̢̛̦̦̼͍̥̬̻͇̣̰̗̗̟̑̄͗̓̒͗̎̾̎̂̾h̸̨̯̝̲̏͘͜͠ì̵̘̳̞͚̃̏͛́̕l̶͔̳͉̺̠͔̣̥̳͋̃̄̅̂̊d̶̯͚̹̣̲̗̬̗̟͚̞̼̿̑͛͊͝͝͝r̶͍̳̄e̸̪̞͔̘̔̽̽̀͒̚ṉ̷̗̺̱̊͐̾̓̓̈́̽̎̓̃̀͘ ̷̫̹͚͓͂̽̕ọ̶̯͎͎̑̎̎̍̈̈́̈́̐͐̋̅͌̕͠f̶̨̡̡̧̛̛̞̹̰̻̩̺̟̱̣̬͊̈ͅ ̵̨̣͒̃̑̈͊͛̄̃̋͜͝͝T̸̢̪̟̰̠̞̙̘̬͍͆̾̂̿̾͗͑̋̑̓͝͝͝é̵̡̖̰̝̳͍̲̤̰͖̫̎̋̈́̉̓͑͜ẏ̶̨̨̺̱̣̺͎̖̙̘͈̭̐̉͊̈͆̆͊͑͘͠ͅv̴̬̮̘͂͌̀́͋́͝a̶̪͚͚̟̻̼͉͌̐̆̃ţ̵̢̧͉̳̘̖̤̓̈́͒̽̔̑͌̆̀̍́̃͂̉ had scent up to the skies.
...huh?
When Gaming said "halt who goes there" I was ready to fight some hilichruls, I was not ready to see Moon Carver and Mountain Shaper dressed as treasure hunters
Help!!!!
Zhongli just said that an old friend has two fully grown daughters in the lantern rite event! I was so worried that hoyo was going to act as if they weren't family and only had a master disciple relationship!
god I love lantern rite
now I may actually have a chance of getting nahida
He's here for his yearly routine visit ladys, gentleman and more!
Happy Lantern Rite! ( ﾉ╹ヮ╹)ﾉ❁
And what are those ‘other ways’?? are they really that complicated
Yeah, okay, so I've made a few mistakes in my life But I never knew they'd force me to pay such a heavy price
𝑮𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒆𝒏 𝑳𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒊𝒍𝒌 𝑭𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒔
𝒁𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒊 𝒙 𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓
𝑵𝒐𝒕 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅
Loud chatter and music played in the background as you paced around, fingers twiddling with the edge of your sleeve as you waited for him.
He wasn't late, it's just that you were early. Maybe five minutes or so, but still early, and usually, it was him who was early and you who was late. But today was a special day, it was the lantern festival, and you had specially invited Zhongli to come and join you during this day of celebration and joy, as you wanted to share it with him.
You had put on your best attire - a traditional dress in the colours of scarlet red and golden. The fabric was mainly red, however golden streaks ran alongside the edges of it, and the gold adorned the scarlet colour with golden glaze lily flowers, all scattered across spacious parts.
Your sleeves were wide, and they covered your entire arm, up to your hands, they were covered in golden cascades that ended at a definite curved end by your fingers.
Your hair was let down, and adorned with a couple of decorative golden hair pins, as well as one golden, flowery comb.
To say you were overdressed would be a subjective statement. To some you looked simply gorgeous, embodying the image of a typical Liyue woman, to others you would look somewhat out of place - too rich for the harbour.
But what did that matter? All that your thoughts could run to was Zhongli.
You wondered how he was dressed, did he wear something special? Different compared to his usual work attire? What would he think of you?
You checked your watch, noting that it was almost time for him to be there. You put it away and slowly looked up, looking at the crowd of people around you, all carrying lanterns and enjoying snacks from the numerous food stalls scattered across the harbour.
You smiled, trying to imprint this image into your memory, as you did with every other lantern rite.
You breathed a content sigh, and looked around, your heart almost stopping as you spotted Zhongli standing beside you, a small content smile of his own gracing his lips.
"How long have you been standing there?" You asked, a big grin spreading itself across your cheeks as well, as you turned your body to face him.
You looked him over, cheeks reddening as you noticed his attire.
He himself was wearing traditional robes, boring the colours of amber and deep brown, which matched his usual look, but complimented his features stunningly. His hair was half down, some of it tied into a small bun at the back of his head,the longer untied strands sat loosely over his shoulders, now blending with the shorter strands, that had escaped his bun, together into one piece.
As you looked further down, you noticed one hand was behind his back.
"I wasn't standing here for long," he said, looking down at you through thick lashes, "But I noticed you were staring off into the distance and didn't want to interrupt you." He finished, smiling gently as he looked you over.
"You look beautiful, Y/n. Prettier than any glaze lily I've ever seen."
The blush on your face reddened to a shade darker, and you bit your lip, looking up at him in adoration, inhaling before you said, "You look amazing yourself, some would say you look like the statue of the Geo Archon himself." Your voice was quiet enough for him only to hear, and soft enough to pass as a whisper.
Zhongli's eyes widened, and an uncertain emotion swirled in his pupils before he blinked, and the look was gone. He thanked you and cleared his throat, asking for your hand.
"Since this is a special occasion, I brought you a gift," he said, bringing forth a bouquet of freshly picked flowers, "Liyue’s specialities. I do hope you'll enjoy them."
The bouquet was filled with every native flower to Liyue, sparkling with bright colours ranging from the baby pink of silk flowers, to the velvety blue of glaze lilies.
You were stunned, admiring the beautiful flowers that he had placed in your palms, their colours swindling brightly in the light of the numerous lanterns hanging above the two of you.
You looked up at your companion, smiling and blinking away a tear.
"Thank you Zhongli, these flowers are so beautiful," you said, bringing them closer to your face, enough for your nose to bury itself within them, "I will cherish them forever." You said as you pulled away, hanging onto the bouquet by one hand, the other sneaking through Zhongli's extended arm.
"Shall we?" He asked, subtly nodding his head towards the crowd of Liyue citizens who were all waiting at the harbour, their very own lanterns sat within their grasps, awaiting to ignite their deepest wishes into the sky.
You nodded at Zhongli, and walked along the people, admiring the vastly different lanterns, before you looked to Zhongli, who's gaze seemed to soften at the sight.
You smiled, and gripped lightly at his forearm, before turning your attention back to the festival before you.
The two of you walked hand in hand, tasting all the different local foods from vendors, standing to watch as people created their own fireworks - which would be displayed further into the evening - and watched again as bands played traditional music, as children ran past, their giggles and laughs erupting into the sky.
You looked at Zhongli once again, mouth barely opening before he beat you to speaking.
He leaned his head down, enough to be at eye-level to you, before his hand tucked some hair behind your ear, and he neared his lips to it, “Would you like me to buy us some lanterns? Joining in on the tradition would be wonderful.” He asked, his voice low and smooth like velvet, but still loud enough for you to hear.
As though he had cast a spell upon you, you found yourself unable to mutter out a single word of a response, and so, you opted to nod instead, eyes wide like a deers, cheeks rosy, mouth agape.
Zhongli laughed, and grabbed your free hand, intertwining your fingers before pulling you crit her into the crowds in search of a lantern seller.
Just a bit ahead, there was one vendor.
It was just your luck - they had two more lanterns left and looked as though they were about to close shop.
"Excuse me! Can we buy those?" You asked, breathing heavily as you rested the bouquet on the wooden table in front of the vendor. They were an older gentleman, who was maybe in his 60s, and he looked at the two of you surprised.
"You're just in time! I was about to close for today. Nobody wanted two lanterns as most people are in larger groups!" He shouted over the crowds, before turning to grab the two remaining lanterns. He then headed back to you and Zhongli, smiling softly at the two of you,
"Well aren't you a beautiful couple? Are you married?" He asked, passing over the lanterns.
Your face flushed a bright red, and you looked to Zhongli, who's eyes seemed to once again widen, his orbs swirling with an unknown emotion once again.
"N-no-," you started, but your companion interrupted you, "Yes. We are not married yet, but I plan on proposing soon." Zhongli said full of confidence, smiling down at the older man, before fishing some mora out of nowhere.
You looked from the grandpa to Zhongli, eyes wide as saucepans, mouth wide open in shock, heart pounding loudly against your ribcage.
He looked back to you, smiling gently, before giving the gentleman the money and taking your hand, his other holding onto the lanterns as you said your goodbyes and went to join the crowds.
"You plan on proposing to me?" You asked after a while of silence, looking up to him.
A light blush dusted over his cheeks, but other than that, nothing else gave away Zhongli's feelings.
"Oh look, they're about to let their lanterns out." Zhongli pointed out, skimming over your question before you could utter any other words. His hand tugged at yours, leading you through the crowd to reach near the wooden staircase.
"3.."
The people began chanting, raising their arms into the air,
"2.."
You and Zhongli did the same after lighting your lanterns, smiling, hips touching, hearts pounding,
"1.."
You looked to Zhongli, giggling in excitement as he looked back at you, a content smile on his face,
"Happy Lantern Rite!"
The crowds shouted, and hundreds of lanterns were let out into the starry night sky, their golden glow illuminating the night, painting it golden.
It was as though there was a new sun in the night sky.
Zhongli turned to you, eyes focused, smile soft, and hands reaching up to caress your cheeks.
"Happy lantern rite, Y/n." And with that, he pulled you in for a tender kiss, the warmth of his lips enveloping yours as people around cheered, wishing each other happiness and good fortune, but all that was drowned out by the sound of your heartbeat, and the happiness you felt as you melted into your new lovers touch.
be my lantern rite date pls lol
This was AN AWESOME lantern rite!!! (It took me 10 mins to take gamingwith blue leds on BUT I DID) and btw the statue of the geo yaksha looks so fucking dope
Lantern Rite finally ended. I was expecting a Zhongli and Neuvillette convo but this also makes sense.
Atleast Furina and Navia are there. My fave girls and their tea addiction 😔✨✨✨
Art collab with a good friend of mine,, they drew Venti while I drew Xiao !
This was supposed to be in time for the Lantern Rite festival, but it’s already over LOL
Venti grows increasingly frustrated with the alcohol ban so he just. takes away beidou’s wind. No more travel for you captain, good luck moving ur battle ship without WIND in ur sails
Since we have all agreed Kazuha and Venti don’t have the easiest time on Beidou’s boat, I decided to add one more pic to the gallery of their adventures on the ship
Gone with the wind 🍃
So….lantern rites float this year is definitely Menogias right?
Like
Look at THAT
Also this is our reminder Menogias name is “General Mind Monkey” so…look at that monkey tail
I am delulu, I just miss him a lot