Chapter Text
“Hey, Lumine,” Paimon says, breaking the comfortable silence the two companions were traveling in. “Isn’t that Albedo up there? Paimon wonders what he’s doing.”
Lumine looks up to where Paimon pointed, eyes finding familiar ash blonde hair. The man stood near the edge of the cliff with his back turned to the two of them. Hadn't Albedo said he had something to do, though? And they had just left his camp-- how did he get so far so quick? Something in her bristles.
“Should we go say hi to him? Maybe he needs help with something,” Paimon continues.
“I’ll go talk to him,” Lumine responds, eyes still trained on the man on the mountain top. “Go tell the other’s I’ll be a bit late.”
“Paimon doesn’t mind coming with you,” they say, pouting.
“I know but I don't want you catching a cold. Plus there’s probably food down there.”
Though she doesn't understand why, Lumine feels compelled to talk to Albedo alone. And if it's not the real Albedo? Well, that makes her want to talk to him more. She doesn’t know what she’ll say if it does turn out to be the imposter but she'd figure something out. But, the imposter already knows she can tell the difference between them, so what if it tries to attack? Albedo said it wants to kill her— that she threatens it’s plan. The thought, though unnerving, doesn't intimidate Lumine. She’s fought far tougher foes and come out victorious— there’s no reason for her to lose now, if it came to fighting.
“Oooh, Paimon bets there’s a real feast down there!!” They squealed excitedly, already beginning to float further from Lumine, who remained standing still. “Be careful out here by yourself, Lumine. If you’re not down in an hour, Paimon’s bringing Amber and Eula to find you.”
“Okay. Be safe, Paimon,” Lumine calls after the quickly retreating Paimon. She looks back to the mountain, expecting to see the man still standing there. To her surprise and dismay,, she's met by nothing but blinding white snow.
Lumine scans the nearby mountain tops but still doesn't see him. Confused, she quickly climbs the mountain, using a convenient path up the side. It was an arduous climb, taking almost all her stamina, but it was nothing she couldn't handle. Lumine reaches the top and stops, taking a break to catch her breath and scan the mountain top. She's glad to see that climbing the mountain had been a good choice, as she quickly spots Albedo. He was walking away from her direction, towards a cave she hadn’t ever noticed before. She quickly begins to follow him, jogging in an attempt to catch up with him. He steps into the cave before she can reach him. She stops at the cave mouth, hesitant to follow. Something in her gut tells her to be cautious.
“Albedo?” Lumine calls out, peeking her head cautiously into the dark, damp cave. “It’s me, Lumine.” She hears a scrape from somwhere nearby. A chill runs down her back as she turns towards the noise. Why was Albedo taking so long? Lumine's sure she'd seen him walk in here. Why had Albedo even come here?
Lumine takes a step into the cave. “Albedo?”
This time, she receives a response. “Ah, traveler,” comes a low, smooth voice from further into the cave. “I wasn’t expecting to see you so soon. Was the celebration not worth staying for?”
“I haven’t gone yet. Paimon saw you from the bottom of the mountain while we were walking— I wanted to talk to you.”
Lumine hears footsteps heading her way. She finds herself suddenly very nervous. Would she see the real Albedo? Or were her instincts correct-- would he turn out to be the imposter.
“Oh? Whatever about?” There Was a teasing note in his voice, as if he were amused she sought him out.
Lumine's worst suspicions are confirmed the second her eyes land on the man who appeared from the shadows— he was not Albedo.
Lumine swallows nervously. “I.. wanted to invite you to the celebration.” Her eyes flick down to the man’s throat, just for a second. Another chill runs through her-- he has no mark. He's definitely not the real Albedo. Yet, Lumine doesn’t feel unsafe. She hopes that won't change.
“How interesting. Doesn’t he normally decline social offers like these? What is the point of asking him?” The question sounded genuine but that wasn’t what caught Lumine off guard-- it was that he referred to Albedo. Surely, he- or it- knew that meant it was shedding its disguise? “You already know. It seems silly to try to pretend now,” the imposter says, as if reading her thoughts.
Lumine remains silent, watching the imposter with suspicion, for a minute. He simply stares back, equally as silent.
“Are you going to attack me?” she finally asks. She can feel her hand reaching towards her weapon, as if it has a mind of its own. His eyes narrow, zeroing in on her still sheathed blade. Lumine stops her hand, using all of her self control. Everything in her is screaming 'DANGER', her instincts telling her she must defend herself. But, she wills herself to stand still and empty-handed, waiting for a response. The imposter had no weapon brandished so she would leave hers holstered, as a show of good faith. It's not like she wouldn't be able to draw it in time, should she need to.
The imposter seems to think about her question before answering. “Not unless you give me a reason to.”
This confuses Lumine. Albedo had said the imposter would want to kill her. “Why not?”
“Do you want me to attack?” The imposter tilts its head in curiosity, studying the girl in front of him.
“No.”
“Then does it matter why?”
“..Yes.”
“Why?”
The question makes Lumine pause. Why does it matter? Why is she still standing here, still talking with this imposter as if he hadn’t tried to kill her and her friends? Why does she want to keep talking to him? "Well, I need to know if I should see you as an enemy or not," she says. It is true enough to not be a lie.
It's the imposter's turn to be silent. It remains silent for so long Lumine thinks he decided to ignore her. She's about to break the silence, to ask him if he was going to answer her question when he finally spoke. "I am not your enemy. For now."
"But you will be, eventually?" she asks, pushing for more.
"Only time will tell." He doesn't give her a chance to respond. Instead, he turns and walks back into the darkness.
"Hey! Wait, where are you going?" Lumine calls, hesitant to follow him. She can still hear his footsteps so she knows he hadn't traveled far.
Before she can call after him again, a fire roars to life several feet in front of her, illuminating the cave. It is perfectly symmetrical, as if someone had meticulously carved out a circle into the rock. Had the imposter, Subject Two, done this? Lumine takes a look around the room, impressed. To the right of the room sat a bed made of wood crates and what looked to be snowboar hide. It doesn't seem very comfortable but it has to be more comfortable than sleeping on the ground. A crate sits beside the bed, holding a lamp. In the middle of the room sits a medium sized round fire pit, made of stone, that housed a now blazing bonfire. There is also a frame connected to the stone, likely meant to hold a pot above the flame. To the left of the room is a table made of stone, accompanied by a matching stool. Lumine notices Albedo’s missing alchemy notes atop the table, stacked neatly beside a lamp, along with a few unopened crates under the table.
“Are you just going to stand there?” The imposter asks, drawing Lumine’s attention back to him.
She looks from him to the stone stool. It’s the only chair in the camp, making her hesitant to use it. However, when Subject Two didn’t move to claim the seat for himself, Lumine dragged it over to the fire pit. Letting her use the chair would be the least he could do after trying to kill her and her friends. She lays her sword across her lap as she sits, keeping one hand near the hilt— just in case she needs it.
“Is that necessary? I did say I’m not your enemy for now,” the other says, eyeing the sword on Lumine’s lap.”
“You did try to kill my friends and I a few days ago,” Lumine responds dryly.
Subject Two rolls his eyes. “Technically, you were attacked by a mutated whopperflower, not me. I wasn’t even there.”
“Who made the whopperflower, again?”
The man laughs though Lumine doesn’t understand what he found funny. “Okay, fair point.” He moves to the table, retrieving a crate from under it. It sets the crate beside the fire pit as well, sitting himself near Lumine. “Anyways, what is it you wish to discuss? I assume you followed me for a reason.”
Lumine pauses before answering, trying to put her thoughts into words. She knows she does want something from the being beside her— she just can't put her finger on what that something is. Was what Albedo had said true? Is Subject Two’s only goal replacing Albedo? Would it hurt others, including herself, to succeed? Does it have any other motivation, any other feelings? Could it even live a human life?
Finally, Lumine settles on an easy question. “Why are you here?”
“Here as in this cave? Or here as in Dragonspine?” it asks Lumine, teasing her. She rolls her eyes in response.
“In Dragonspine, obviously.”
“Subject One told you earlier, didn’t he?”
His words shock Lumine. “You were listening?”
“Of course. I need to keep my intel up to date, after all.”
Lumine thinks back to what Albedo had said. “Subject Two desires to replace Subject One and take the joy of his existence for himself,” Lumine repeats the words spoken earlier. “So, you copied Albedo and created Subject Three, your whopperflower, in an elaborate plan to replace him.”
“Yes.”
“It would have worked, had I not noticed the difference between the three of you.”
“Yes.”
“You need to kill me, for your plan to work?”
“Yes.”
Lumine thinks back to when Paimon pointed him out. Was it really a coincidence that he was there? She doesn’t think so. “You were waiting for a chance to kill me, when I saw you.” It’s more of a statement than a question.
“Yes.”
“Paimon ruined your chance though, didn’t she? When she pointed you out?”
“Yes. I lost the element of surprise.”
“Is that why you didn’t attack me, when I came up to you? I was alone, after all— it was the perfect chance.”
“Did you know it was me, when you sent your companion away? When you followed me in here?” He had asked his own question, in an attempt to avoid hers, much to Lumine’s annoyance.
“I had my suspicions,” she answers truthfully.
He looks at her, curiosity shining in his captivating blue eyes. “Did you want to be attacked?”
“No.”
“What were you hoping for, then?”
“I don’t know. I don’t think I was hoping for anything specific. I was just…” Lumine trails off, unsure of what it was that drove her to chase after him, of what drove her to ignore her instincts.
“Curious?”
“I suppose so.”
Subject Two doesn’t respond. Instead, he sits turned towards Lumine, studying her. It made her feel vulnerable. She doesn’t like that.
“Why do you want to replace Albedo?” Lumine asks, breaking the silence.
“I thought we already discussed this.”
“Yes, but I want to hear it from you. Surely Albedo doesn’t speak for you?” Lumine knows she played a dangerous game, bringing up a topic that could set the imposter off. However, she wants— no, needs — answers.
“He does not,” Subject Two says, annoyance slipping into his tone.
“Then why not tell me yourself?”
He sighs. “I want his life,” he says simply.
“Why is your only option replacing him? Can you not be your own person, have your own life?” Lumine asks, tilting her head in confusion. Subject Two goes silent again, eyes widening as he thinks about what Lumine said. It seemed like he’d never thought of that before. “Why become a copy of someone else when you could enjoy the experience of being human as yourself?”
Lumine and Subject Two remain silent after that, just studying each other. She’s unsure how long they remained like that— just two people trying to understand each other while the flames of a forgotten fire blazed on.
Subject Two is the first to hear them— voices, coming up the mountain. Lumine shoots to her feet, slipping her sword back on. She’d forgotten all about the Adventurer Guild’s celebration. Subject Two stands as well, though he stood much more defensive. He looks from the cave’s entrance to Lumine, who looks back at him.
“It must be my friends. I’ll go out to meet them.” Though she could let her friends find her, she prefers to keep Subject Two and the other separated for now. If her friends found him now, a fight could easily break out— that is the last thing Lumine wants.
Lumine walks towards the front of the cave, her heels clicking against the hard stone as she steps. She pauses at the entrance, turning back to look at the imposter. “Take tomorrow off from whatever it is you do.” She offers him a smile and leaves before he can respond.