Sodalite Alchemist

Zandik's mum was one of the desert people and managed to roll into the Akademiya despite ostracism (part of it is the moon pact that came from half serious, impulsive prayer, that also states it's power allows the woman to overcome the obstacles and have her dream life, but she will give the most precious fruit of her work to the Moon), very brave and intelligent woman who wanted to learn medicine and then return to the desert to help her people. Her only mistake was forgetting about her prayer to the Moon and taking the whole credit as her ambitions grew with each success she achieved. In this arrangement, during Akademiya years she met her husband who was a fellow student from the rainforest, also a brilliant mind who was more than good for her. He agreed to live among desert people with her, believing that love is enough to overcome his own bias against desert folks in general and the bias of... well, his wife's family and the community that treated him like opressor's agent and her like a traitor to a certain level. Yet, she had so many practical knowledge, resources and contacts, that locals weren't actively trying to expat anyone. 

Both young scholars were working a lot to better the life of the community and as the time passed, they conceived. They couldn't wait to meet their baby and teach it all they knew. When the day of Zandik's birth arrived, his father was present. He actively supported his wife with the assistance of local midwives and he witnessed the birth of a child that... wasn't looking like him or any of his ancestors. The child had only it's mother's face, and then almost white hair, very pale skin, small sharp teeth and awful red eyes. He couldn't identify any familiar trait that could prove that this scary looking abomination  was... His son. The new mother went pale as she saw her kid,  she immidiately remembered her moon prayer made long before all of this started. The moon picked the child as the prize of the deal. She tried to explain that she never betrayed the man she loved, but he couldn't believe her.

The first person who felt resentment towards Zandik was his own father. By the village's tradition he had to be the one who picks newborn's name – so he did, choosing a literal curse. Then, he publically disowned the baby and left his former love behind, humiliating both. No one knew where he went, as the Scholar was never seen again in the rainforest part of Sumeru either. 

Zandik's mom decided to do everything she could so the father's curse could be stopped from coming true and she really tried to rebrand the intention of the name from "heretic" to "reformer". Zandik had some borderline morbid behaviors and curiosity since he became conscious, he was also impulsive at times, other kids rarely wanted to play with him (mostly by lowkey bullying as they were told the rumors that Zandik was unloved by his dad since day 1) – but he surpassed his age in learning capabilities. He also loved his mum and was responsive to the way she tried to regulate his temper with no anger, but with reason.

Unfortunately, the mother died during one of outbreaks of severe illness she catched too. Her protection from father's curse died too – with every good thing that went extremely bad later. 

This story already connects Zandik to the Moon motifs (+ gives assumption why he realized the Moon is relevant to change the course of fate), explains the root of his predestined fate to be hated as extremely strong paternal curse and also opens possibility that after getting chased away from the village – Akademiya took him under their protection as someone recognized their old friend's little son in the hungry beaten up boy wandering alone somewhere in the wilderness.

This version also creates inverted mirror situation to Scara's story, what is used in the game's narrative too – one boy disowned from birth by mum, the other disowned by dad on the same stage of life. 

Thus, his greatest dream came true. Ambitious and arrogant, he stole the power that allowed him to possess knowledge of everything that happened in the world. He could view it as a whole with the utmost objectivity – both the planet of his origin and everything that the gods had hidden behind the veil of the false sky: the sun, the organic moon, the stars and other planets. All of those wonders were within his reach. Truthfully, Teyvat was nothing compared to the universe that was open to him. The heretical, self-proclaimed moon god – he drifted around his home planet inside a self-made sanctuary, a spherical barge that he used to traverse space-time to be beyond the reach of the human limitations he despised. He no longer needed his mirrors to keep up with everything, and his only job was to gather and process information. Suspended in his orbit, he could aid or hinder the elements, competing with the previous moon and providing the people of Teyvat with a lifeline in case the gods destroyed their beloved satellite. A perfect plan, indeed… The Doctor mocked the demonic deities, stealing the power over the tides and ebbs, over sleep and vegetation, over the course of the months and the cycles of birth. If they ever arried to face him, he was ready to fight. He – a man whose ascent into space orbit had been accompanied by terrifying anomalies.

The common folks fell to their knees in terror, feeling the cold gaze of the all-knowing blue eye upon them. They could not shoot the moon down, but they could try to tame it.