Chapter Text
“Are you two a couple?”
The shopkeeper smiles warmly, completely unaware of the absolute shock and disgust distorting Lumine and the Wanderer's faces. What. How would anyone assume they're a couple? Do they even look remotely like one? Lumine's mind is spiralling into confusion. How did the shopkeeper come to such a bold assumption? If they aren't stuck together on a task Nahida assigned them, they will in fact be the furthest they can possibly be from one another. (Okay, that is an exaggeration. But still.)
"WHAT- No just no, I'll have you know that I don't even like the traveller, I- I hate her okay!" The Wanderer's face is red from indignation. "The blasphemy- t-to assume such things!" For once, Lumine finds herself agreeing with the guy wearing a big hat.
"And I hate you too", Lumine says matter-of-factly. The Wanderer's face turns even more red (if that is possible), and he splutters, "I- But- I-" Lumine tilts her head questionably, "What? Is there anything wrong with what I said? You said you hated me, so is there anything so wrong with me hating you too? In fact, isn't it nicer to have your negative feelings be reciprocated?"
Seriously, Lumine sometimes really doesn't get the Wanderer. One moment, he's spewing negative things about her and when she expresses the same feelings towards him, he acts as if it's something wrong?!
"Well- I- never mind..." The Wanderer turned away from Lumine, tilting his hat to cover his flushed face, seemingly very flustered. Ever since Nahida shared her story in which Scaramouche was represented by a kitten, Lumine just can't stop seeing the similarities between him and cats. She can picture him right now with two cat ears drooping down in a sad little pout, a fluffy tail swishing on the ground. That will be so cuteee, and if she is to be honest, sometimes the Wanderer was kinda cut- WAIT. WHAT.
Nonononononono he isn't cute what was she thinking?!
They're enemies.
He hates her.
She hates him.
Yes. She hates him.
She hates him.
She hates him.
Breathe in, breathe out.
Everything's okay. You hate him.
So I made a list so I’d never forget all the things I hate about you.
- You’re selfish:
It was pouring, the sky taken over by ominous grey clouds, the rain pelting the ground heavily, torrents of water rushing down the pathways. Lumine glanced wistfully out at the dark rainy world from inside the Adventurer's Guild, a sigh escaping her lips, as Paimon disappears into her pocket dimension, leaving Lumine all alone.
Well, not quite all alone. The Wanderer stood just outside the Adventurer's Guild, waiting for her so they could start on Nahida's assignment, his big hat shielding his body from the downpour, the water spilling down his hat creating a wall of water around him, making the already unapproachable person seem even more unapproachable.
Oh. His big hat.
"Are you done yet?" The Wanderer's snarky voice broke the monotony of the sound of rain. He was inside the Adventurer's Guild now, water dripping off his hat and sandals, seeping into the polished wooden floor.
She sidled closer to him, trying to subtly squirm under the ridiculous huge hat he always insists on wearing. "What are you doing?" He sharply said, looking down at her with the usual disdain. "Well...it is raining outside...so I thought maybe I could use your hat as an umbrella?" Lumine looked up at him, putting on her best pleading puppy-eye face.
"Oh Archons, don't put on the pathetic begging act, I know you way too well to buy this shit. Since you act so tough all the time, you could certainly withstand some rain!" He stormed off, his face oddly tinted red.
The fucking selfish bitch. Would it hurt him so much to share his hat with her? It's not like his very big hat was small, it could certainly accommodate both of them! He was working with her, for Celestia's sake, he should at least show some sympathy to his accomplice! Lumine seethed with rage as she trudged on the road, following the small figure of the Wanderer off in the distance, mud sloshing up the pathways and all over her pretty white boots. He was so going to get it later from her.
Although, the next day when she was down on a cold (all because of the wanderer obviously), he did seem somewhat concerned and took care of her, but he was grumbling the whole time about having to do it only because they were working together, and he couldn't make further progress on the tasks without her anyway.
- You’re jaded:
It was another one of those days where Lumine received the commission to jump on mushrooms. A weird request, but certainly not something she'd complain about. It was really fun to bounce on the mushrooms, to enjoy such childish delight and take a break from the woes and complications of the adult world (and how aether just won't show up) for a while.
As Lumine and Paimon turned to walk to the patch of mushrooms, a spring in their step (yes Paimon is somehow skipping while floating) Lumine realises with a slight drop of her heart that the Wanderer was with her. The breaker of good moods. Who was watching their excited actions very sceptically. Lumine sighed.
As the huge mushrooms came into view though, Lumine made it a point to turn to the Wanderer, lips stretched tightly in a forced smile, "Do you want to join in?"
"Fuck no, why would I ever bounce on mushrooms?" He spat out the last few words like they were the most disgusting things on Earth. "That's such a childish thing to do, why the hell is that even a commission? Who commissions other people to bounce on mushrooms?"
His words grated against Lumine's thinning nerves, but she forced herself to turn away, lips still uncomfortably stretched in an illusion of a smile. Even Paimon knew better than to argue with the Wanderer at this point, but she still threw a silent little tantrum over the insulting things the Wanderer said. It was best to ignore him, letting the venom in his words fizzle away, otherwise they'd just worsen everyone's moods and Lumine wasn't even in a good mood in the first place.
Lumine left the Wanderer behind as she and Paimon start to jump on the mushrooms, hoping the rhythmic motions would calm her nerves and soothe her soul. But as soon as she started jumping, she felt a stare burning into her. She didn't need to look back to know that it was the Wanderer, his hateful indigo eyes burning with contempt. WHY he just had to observe her jumping whilst silently mocking her with his expression, she had absolutely no idea. It was enough already that he was spewing insults about jumping on mushrooms, but to ruin the other person's mood further? Just because you're a fucking downer that doesn't know how to enjoy yourself, doesn't mean you have to ensure other people can't enjoy themselves either. What. The. Fuck. If you had to stare, at least do it with a nicer expression? A more neutral one???
To be honest, that was kind of the Wanderer's default expression. But Lumine was sick of it. So fucking sick of it.
It was all his fault that the bouncing on mushrooms did nothing to calm her, and Paimon was left looking quizzically at Lumine as she practically stormed out of the place.
Although towards the end of the jump, she saw an Aranara beside the Wanderer. And she could have sworn that the Wanderer had cracked a small smile momentarily. Just a flash. But it was rather pleasant, she supposed.
- The dumbest guy I have met:
The wind ruffled Lumine's hair, the grasses around the path swaying peacefully in the wind. She enjoyed the cool shade provided by the clouds covering the bright sun. It was perfect weather, with enough clouds to block out the merciless light and heat of the sun, but not too much for the lands to become dark and gloomy, or have a great chance of incoming rain.
It would have been a great day for going out to relax, perhaps a picnic, especially one with her friends, if not for Nahida's task assigned to her and the Wanderer. It's rather a simple task, but Lumine didn't enjoy the presence of a certain somebody, who was just a few steps behind her. He always had to ruin her day, like he's making it a point to dampen everyone's moods just because he's in a horrible mood all the time. But whatever. At least he wasn't in her way of her goals anymore, like back when she had to fight him. He's just a particularly annoying nuisance.
“Move outta the way,” Two Fatui shoved her aside roughly as she blinked up in surprise. Ah, she must have been too preoccupied with her thoughts to notice she was walking into the Fatui, she was sent to keep an eye on the Wanderer. As for why Paimon and the Wanderer weren’t aware of where they were going...she had no idea.
It’s a good thing she’s wearing a disguise so the Fatui can’t recognise her. The disguise is really simple, but it does the trick because most of the Fatui soldiers are very dim-witted. The brain cells must have all gone to the higher-ranking officials, such as the Harbingers. And for some reason, whilst her appearance was so well-known, Paimon, her companion always by her side, is someone everyone tends to forget. (although Lumine thinks that if you are to remember one companion, shouldn’t you remember the other as well? Especially since if Paimon is somewhere, then the Traveller can’t be far off.)
“Hey, shorties, you better move out of our way before we do something. Don’t you know that we’re the Fatui, of much higher importance, than you random stragglers? Also your hat looks stupid.” While one of the Fatui is speaking, the other raises his gigantic purple club menacingly.
Lumine took the Wanderer’s hand, starting to pull him away to make their swift escape, but he wrenched his hand out of her grip. “Excuse me?” The Wanderer raises his head to address the Fatui, his face set in a chillingly icy mask, his eyes narrowed, with his lips tugging up in a sadistic smile. “What are you doing? Let’s go! Our assignment is to observe them, stop being so aggravated by their words!” Lumine hissed under her breath so only the Wanderer could hear, and grabbed his arm tightly, prepared to drag him away.
He shook her off his arm as he continued, “I find it funny how you assume your measly Fatui soldier position guarantees that you’re above everyone else, when you’re just insignificant insects.” The air considerably chilled and tensed at his last words.
Lumine mentally face-palmed herself. How is the Wanderer so foolishly dumb? So reckless and easily triggered?
“You wanna fight? Your mistake.” The Fatui snarled as he lifted his gun, the other Fatui lifting up his club, and then charging at the Wanderer.
The Wanderer turned to meet them, his lips letting loose a chuckle, as he rushed into the fight. Lumine moved towards the sidelines, watching the explosions of elemental energy, of the bright teal of Anemo, the neon purple of Electro, and the icy blue of Cryo as they lit up the battlefield. As much as she enjoyed fighting, she wasn’t supposed to be fighting, and this problem was created by the Wanderer so he might as well resolve it himself.
Just as the Wanderer was about to strike the finishing blow to the two Fatui, a lot more Fatui rushed out from all around them. Just as she and Nahida suspected. There was a huge bunch of Fatui in this area of Sumeru for some particular reason. Which was exactly why a particular person shouldn’t have started this stupid fight.
Seeing how the Wanderer was getting overwhelmed with Fatui, Lumine sighed as her sword materialised in her hand, and she stormed into the fight.
“I didn’t need your help. I could have managed perfectly fine by myself, you know.” The Wanderer frowned at her, crossing his arms. “I helped you get the job done faster at least. Anyway, that’s not the problem here. The problem here is that you started a fight when you know very well we shouldn’t be. How are we supposed to observe them now?”
“We could always question them.” “But the Fatui will know now that we’re onto them.” “Well, we either finish them off after questioning them or we threaten them not to speak a word. They have such a one-track mind, I doubt they are smart enough to even think of betraying us, much less how to do it without risking their lives.”
Lumine let out a loud, audible sigh. “Fine then. But when we report this to Nahida, you’re taking full responsibility for the turn of events.”
The Wanderer didn’t look bothered at all, as he continued staring down at the heaps of Fatui tied together on the ground, still unconscious.
It was completely unnecessary to start a fight and now they have the chance of their plan being leaked. Great. All because of his stupid actions.
- Talk a big game ‘til you’re naked:
The moon hung in the sky, tree branches partially blocking its ethereal light, the sky dotted with twinkling stars and swirls of faint clouds. The streets were lined with lamps that shone in a warm inviting yellow, instead of the cold white that is the moon.
Lumine casually walked into a tavern,,planning to rest there for a while, although she wasn’t going to get any drinks. She didn’t have time to dilly-dally around being drunk and hungover. The Wanderer and Paimon trailed into the tavern behind her, taking seats on either side of her.
A drunken man stumbling about bumped into the Wanderer’s chair. “Heyyyy you have a weird hat. Why aren’t you drinking? Go get a glassss.” He let out something in between a chuckle and a giggle at the end, slurring his words. His face had tints of pink and he was obviously very very drunk.
The Wanderer ignored him. Lumine thought that he was in a good mood that day. Otherwise, he might have gone and said something about how insignificant dross certainly could not dictate his actions.
“Heyyy, you too scared to drink? Goody-two-shoes being all sober.” He and the rest of his also very drunk friends sniggered loudly, some raising their glasses for another long drink, the reflection of the tavern light glinting on the surface of the glasses.
The Wanderer’s eye twitched. “Oh shut up, I can totally drink and I’ll definitely outdrink you!” He finally relented, and snapped. “I’m already very drunk, outdrinking me isn’t much of a challenge, why not try outdrinking all of us?” The guy drawled, ending his sentence with a little giggly hiccup. His friends voiced great support for the idea, goading the Wanderer on.
Lumine sighed (how many times has she been doing this) and quietly warned the Wanderer, “You know we have things to accomplish tomorrow and it’s best you don’t do it with a hangover. You don’t have much time to waste getting drunk here anyway.” As always, her advice fell to deaf ears.
The Wanderer went and got a glass of sake. Her poor wallet will be suffering today, or she could always ask Nahida if she could cover for the expenses, since he’s in HER charge.
“If you pass out, I’m not carrying you back.” Lumine added one last note of warning but the Wanderer was already chugging down the contents of the glass. It’s going to be a long night. Paimon had already disappeared into her interdimensional void, wanting to retire for the night and also not wishing to sit here in boredom.
The Wanderer is on his fourth glass already. Lumine must admit, his performance is pretty impressive so far. He was just continuously pouring the drinks into his mouth, a little drink dripping down his mouth. He didn’t bother to wipe it off and instead continued drinking with a kind of frenzy. A quarter of the guy and his friends’ table has given up, passed out, or is close to passing out, while the Wanderer’s face is just slightly tinted pink.
It was in the middle of the night when the guy and his friends had all passed out, with the Wanderer the triumphant winner. Or the not-really-triumphant-winner that’s almost passed out on the table, completely oblivious to his surroundings and mumbling under his breath.
Sighing, Lumine hauled him up and slinging his arm across her shoulder, started bringing him back to meet up with Nahida. And if his sandals are being roughly dragged across the floor, well, that’s not her fault. At least she didn’t actually leave him there.
His goddamn arrogance though. Now not only has he ruined his night and sleep, he’s ruined hers too. And he’s going to be a pain to deal with tomorrow when he’s definitely going to have a hangover. And 50% chance his hangover will be so bad, he won’t be able to do anything the whole day. Setting their schedule back a day. Sure, Lumine isn’t exactly on tight time, but it’s best to remain on schedule.
And as though just to add on to Lumine’s problems, the Wanderer pukes on top of her. WHAT THE FUCK. FUCK HIS FUCKING ARROGANCE. If he wants to be arrogant and shit, she isn’t really going to stop him, because it’s HIS life, his problems, but to get HER into his problems is just FUCK NO.
Nahida stared on with bemusement as Lumine forcefully dragged the Wanderer back, and dumped him there with her, his clothes slightly torn, dirt and puke all over him.
Only 6 seconds and I had to fake it:
Lumine absolutely hated how she always had to put on a sweet smile, and lie through her teeth about her and the Wanderer's relationship. "Oh, we work really well together. Lesser Lord Kusanali, as wise as she is, naturally made an excellent decision in pairing the both of us together." Like hell.
And she had to say that disgustingly sweet thing to EVERYONE. The Lesser Lord Kusanali herself, her friends, the Sumeru people that she encounters. Just to keep up her reputation and to ensure it doesn't hinder any of her work, be it something she has to work with the Wanderer on, or not.
Paimon is the only one who she can vent her frustrations to, and the only one who understands her pain and anguish. Her dear partner serves more purpose than just being an emergency food it seems. Though she suspects Nahida knows of the true dynamic of her and the Wanderer's relationship, being the Archon of Wisdom and all, she doesn't bring it up. (wisely so)
When she sees the Wanderer's lips curving up in a smirk from all her sickly sweet words about their partnership, she can barely hold herself back from punching his shitty asshole face in, much less continue the charade of "oh what great friends we are".
But she still has to. Ughhhhh.
- You’re toxic:
The warm sun shone down, engulfing everything in a blanket of soothing golden warmth, giving everything a cheerful aura. Lumine never enjoyed the sun much, preferring the reserved yet kind moon but after her separation from her twin, she came to prefer the sun instead. The sun reminded her of Aether, of his bright cheerfulness, his sunny personality that attracted everyone to him. She was the moon that silently stayed in the shadow of his light, the reserved and more distant twin. They worked so well together, as sun and moon, yang and yin, extrovert and introvert, two sides of a whole.
Aether would have been much better fit in her role as the traveller. He was always much better at communicating with people, so helpful and cheerful, like the bright rays of the sun.
And yet she was thrust into his role, just as he was thrust into one that made him more cold and reserved. It pained her to see her other half become someone almost unrecognisable. He always could be really passionate, and deeply empathetic and caring of the people around him, but now his fiery passion has turned into icy cold anger. Truly makes her wonder just what exactly changed him so much.
The sun and moon, now forced into the other’s positions. Why this switch had to happen, is something Lumine doesn’t quite know either. If...if it was her that was in Aether’s position...then at least Aether’s sunshine would be preserved, even if she had to sacrifice some of her personality, Aether would be a much better fit as a Traveller...and she couldn’t bear seeing him like this.
It’s why the sun now brings such nostalgia and fondness back to her. She misses Aether so much. Without her other half, she cannot be whole. The nostalgia and fondness also brings along a wave of sorrow and bittersweetness, which she sometimes just wants to drown in, to let herself be buried under the torrents of memories.
“Lumineeeeeee! Are you even listening to Paimon? Paimon was saying you should put this in the soup!”
Paimon’s shrill voice broke Lumine out of her thoughts. “Sorry Paimon, I...I got reminded of something. Yeah, I think it’ll taste much better with some of those mushrooms in it!”
Lumine blinks down at the soup she was stirring. It was now mixed together so well...just how long had she spent with her head up in the clouds? She scatters some little chopped bits of mushrooms in, and continues stirring. The fragrance of the soup wafts through the air, triggering a loud grumble from Paimon’s stomach.
Lumine giggled, as the Wanderer sitting a log nearby, rolled his eyes. Lumine’s just glad he doesn’t give a biting remark.
Lumine hands out the steaming hot bowls of soup and the plates of Tricolour Dango, before proceeding to sit down on a log (not the Wanderer’s one) and digging into her food.
“Ooooh, Lumine, you’ve really outdone yourself this time! This is so good! What special method did you do to make it so yummy?” Paimon squealed excitedly. Sounds of loud slurps were heard as Paimon gobbled up her soup greedily like a ravenous wolf.
The Wanderer said almost exasperatedly, "Seriously, can you just stop being such a loud nuisance? You seem to make it a point to do everything as noisily as possible."
"H-HEY!"
He continued on, ignoring Paimon's outburst, "And Traveller, don't let your ego rise too high, the little gremlin was just spouting sugar-coated nonsense. Or maybe her tastes just aren't refined enough. The soup is too salty, and there are too many mushrooms, they're just so annoying at this point..." And he continued on criticising her soup. Lumine just zoned out. His long lecture was not worth her memory storage.
"Though, I must say, the soup is fine compared to this atrocity of a dessert", the Wanderer rambled on. He wasn't done yet?! "It's so sweet, it's a sin. Such sugar-drenched things don't have a place in this world. They're so fucking sweet-"
"Anyway, Paimon, as to why my cooking today is so good, it's all because of my fond memories of my dear brother. Even if he's now gone to the dark side, I still dearly love him and miss him. My eternal love for my brother must have shown in my cooking." Lumine interjected the Wanderer, promptly ignoring him in the process, in an attempt to shut him up. She wasn't going to spend the rest of her lunch listening to his stupid words.
"No wonder these dishes suck. Sentimentality is so weak, terribly so in the art of cooking, where precision is key. Your mushy words make me want to throw up, I can't imagine how much these poor dishes suffered at your hand."
He never fucking stops, does he?
"Stop saying these things when you aren't even doing anything to contribute besides just helping out with the tasks Nahida assigned. And here I am going out my way to cook food for you! Like you aren't sentimental. The other time I found you crying over that doll-" Lumine snapped. She's had enough of tolerating his shitty nonsense. And how dare he make fun of her sisterly love for her brother.
"Well at least I can clearly see the reality, instead of going all around Teyvat trying to find someone who doesn't want to be found and obviously is a lost case! Your brother's minions attack you every day, do you think he still feels anything for you? You can leave Teyvat whenever you want, why not just give up and leave, instead of staying around playing the hero. Or are you just doing this to fulfill your fucking hero complex? Besides I don't need to eat, you should know that."
He. Has. Gone. Too. Fucking. Far. "Okay, FIRST OF ALL, I cooked food for you TO BE NICE. Why is it that you just have to treat me so fucking mean when I'm just trying to be nice?! And secondly, is it so bad to help out with Teyvat? It's good to build connections to find my brother, and I've made lots of friends here anyway. What is it that you have against people just being fucking nice?! And, lastly, NEVER bring up my brother like this. At least I still have the hope that I can find my brother, unlike miserable you!" Lumine breathed in and out deeply. She was so fucking close to giving him a piece of her mind.
"Still stuck on your pathetic illusions, aren't you? Come to terms with reality, please. And does this mean you're just using everyone in Teyvat? Come on, don't lie, I know you still keep a distance between yourself and your so-called friends, since you're going to abandon them at the end anyway. How ironic, the 'heroic' and 'kind' Traveller selfishly using everyone in Teyvat just so she can find her villain brother, one who has long since broken ties with her, one who terrorises Teyvat, the ruler of all Abyss monsters?"
"YOU-" Lumine's sword materialised in her hand in sparks of light. That sadistic smirk that she hates with a burning passion appears on his fucking face, looking as though he welcomed a fight. What the fuck is wrong with him?! Taking in a deep breath, she turned away before she could slit his throat, briskly walking away, dragging Paimon, who was about to lunge at the Wanderer herself, along with her. She needed some time away from him to calm down. She wouldn't have minded a whole eternity away from his asshole face.
HOW DARE HE. SHE KNEW HE HAD A SHARP TONGUE BUT TO BE SO FUCKING TOXIC?! CAN'T HE TELL THAT THIS IS A SORE SPOT FOR HER AND JUST SHUT UP?! OR IS HE DOING THIS BECAUSE HE KNOWS HOW EASILY WORKED UP SHE'LL BE OVER THIS?! HE'S LITERALLY WORKING WITH HER, WHY ANGER HIS GODDAMN COLLEAGUE?! SHE'S SO FED UP WITH HIM.
- Can't trust you:
Faint wisps of wind drifted through her hair, weakly ruffling it. The grasses swayed so little, it was almost negligent. The weather was rather average, a normal sunny Sumeru day.
"Have you found any of it yet?" Lumine panted, as she trekked through the tall grasses, their tips tickling her legs. "No, Paimon hasn't found any. Maybe he's found some?" Paimon looked hopefully into the distance.
"He should have found some. After all this is a huge area, and if we can't find it on our side, it's most likely on his side." Lumine answered. "Why are you still here then? Let's go meet him! The sooner we can finish this task and go get dinner, the better!" Paimon immediately starts rushing towards their agreed meeting point. "Oi, don't just fly off so fast, you glutton!" Lumine teasingly shouted after her, as she ran behind Paimon.
The Wanderer was already there, sitting lazily on a large smooth rock, looking as though he had all the time in the world. Lumine knew he'd finish this quickly. He could float, for Celestia's sake. Oh, if she still had her wings. She'd be so much more efficient, and she'd get to feel the rushing wind along her wings, the power of the mighty wind, all for her to control and use to her advantage. Lumine sighed fondly in remembrance.
"Oh, you two are finally here. I finished going over my section ages ago, how'd you take so long?" He asked with some sense of wonder, though Lumine could see the hints of a smirk peaking through his innocent disguise. "How did you take such little time!" Paimon, however, didn't see the signs and reacted just as he planned for her to. "Oh, I don't know, maybe I'm just so much better than you two?" The Wanderer was just flexing his skills.
"Anyways, did you find any of the Padisarah?" Lumine cut in, stopping the both of them before their "conversation" erupted into another one of their arguments. "Nope", he yawns, "seems like that flower is rather hard to find."
"WHY do you seem so sleepy and unfocused? Take this more seriously won't you!" Paimon frowned, crossing her arms. Lumine quietly chided her, "Now's not the time to bring this up." As much as she agreed with Paimon, they can't keep having arguments. It was not only terrible for everyone's moods, but also really affected their productivity. She'd rather be completing her tasks than shooting harsh remarks at the Wanderer. As irritating as he is sometimes.
Lumine sighed, "Well, that can't quite be, since this area is known to be full of those flowers. We ought to have found them. Well, let's just walk through this place again, but this time without splitting up. We must have missed the Padisarahs."
As they strolled through the wildflowers, the walking motion calming her, Lumine couldn't help but relax, her muscles and nerves loosening themselves from tension and anxiety. After so long of being stuck with the bitchy Wanderer, it seemed she could even relax when she's with him. As long as he's not being annoying of course.
After more than an hour of walking around, Lumine spotted something glinting in the distance, the bright reflection of the sun's rays almost blinding her eyes, so much so that she had to shield her eyes and squint really hard just to make out what's in front of her. It...appears to be a...pond?
"Whoa! Paimon can hardly see anything! What is that?!" Paimon cried out, her hands covering her eyes. The Wanderer merely scoffed at them and continued walking, although he did subtly tilt his hat downwards.
Lumine squinted even harder, her eyes practically a straight line at this point, and made out a field of bluish-purple flowers surrounding the pond, making quite the scenic background, if not for the blinding sun. Was bluish-purple not the colour of Padisarahs though?
As the things in the distance came into view, she saw that it was indeed a pond surrounding by fields of Padisarahs, just a paradise of purple stretching on for miles, all assortments of insects buzzing around, the warm rays of the sun framing the flowers in a warm inviting halo. The Padisarah’s stigmas and anthers swayed gently around in the wind, creating a sort of flowing patch of purple, with a layer of green underneath, the green fading to purple at some parts.
"Hey, Wanderer, isn't this in the section you were supposed to go over? There's no way you could have missed such a huge patch of Padisarah!" Lumine asked with an accusatory tone.
"Oh, yeah, I did lie. It was fun making you two walk around pointlessly." The Wanderer laughs mockingly.
Oh, Barbatos. She can hardly believe this guy sometimes. Like, what the fuck?
"You do realise that you're inconveniencing yourself too right? Don't you want to get this quickly over with, to not see the very 'annoying' two of us anymore?" Lumine said exasperatedly. "Eh, well you two may be really busy but all I have to do is play Nahida's little assistant. No matter how fast I finish my tasks, I'd still be doing the same thing. Might as well have some fun along the way." The Wanderer shrugged, indifferent to her words.
"You know, for someone who seemingly values honesty a lot, you're not quite honest either. Also, you're barely doing anything, and you're even causing problems. Do I have to tell Nahida to change the deal she made with you to something less preferable for you?" Sure, the Wanderer can actually be really cooperative sometimes, but he's also really annoying other times. His whole personality is annoying.
"This is just a small little thing that doesn't affect much of anything at all. You know I can be useful when I decide to be. Besides, don't you think that the stroll helped you unwind?" A knowing smirk lingered on the Wanderer's lips as he stared right at her.
Lumine sighed. She really couldn't trust him, could she? Yes, he can work rather well (...when he wants to) but he's not always trustworthy. It's not just these little things, there's always the risk that one day he would betray them. After all, hasn't he switched between many sides before? There's truly no telling what the puppet once longing only to belong would do. And his personality in itself just doesn't give her the comfort and safety for her to trust him. Obviously.
- You still got mommy issues:
Lightning arced down the sky in a brilliant show of blinding lights, as the first few drops of rain fell down in a light pitter-patter, gradually growing bigger and louder. Puddles of water started pooling on the floor, their surface a reflection of the night sky's inky darkness.
Booming thunder resounded in the pitch black night, nothing seen but everything heard, a symphony of sounds, of the moaning of the wind, the loud pitter-patters of rain, the ear-splitting thunders, occasionally punctuated with a sudden flash of light, of visibility, and then reducing to stifling darkness once more.
The wind whips her hair, sending it into a fluttering frenzy, as Lumine stuck her head out of the sliding glass panels to look at the porch, and the lone figure sitting there, staring at the rain, and getting a little drenched in the process.
His face was tear-stained, a rivulet of tears running down his face. Despite him always having treated her so shitty, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.
The purple lightning flashing in the nights certainly does give a feeling of Inazuma, and more so Raiden Shogun, what with the purple Electro colour, the gloomy ominous clouds and all.
The Wanderer must be getting sentimental over his “mother” again. She saw that he had taken out that golden arrow-feather plume, now was gripping it tightly, hands shaking slightly as a tear trailed slowly down his face.
She is suddenly brought back to- somehow thought of how she- how she was like that too. Sometimes, under the blanket of the night sky dotted with tiny sparkling stars, she’d stare at the Viatrix constellations and cry, holding the Inteyvat flowers in her hand. Paimon would already be in her pocket dimension. It would be just her and the beautiful wilderness around her. Which just makes her feel all the more alone, separated from the rest of the world, light years away from it.
She shook her head, shaking away the pain that was resonating in her heart.
Now’s not the time to feel so sympathetic for the Wanderer. He had gotten distracted by his lingering feelings so many times and she’s gotten sick of treading on eggshells around him. Everytime she brought up Raiden or even Inazuma, his face contorted into one on the brink of tears and Lumine just had to refrain from saying those things around him. It’s gotten annoying, how soft he is and how he makes his mummy issues everyone’s issues. No one’s going to have a peaceful time when he’s riled up by such sensitive topics.
Lumine just cannot fucking stand tolerating his sensitive feelings and treating him with such special treatment anymore. Always pasting on a sickeningly forced smile and smoothly changing the subjects. He ought to face his problems realistically and get over his goddamn issues, or at least not burden everyone with them. So many people have gone through trauma and shit, and at least they're over it. Sure, he's been through a lot of sick things, but he's also lived 500 years and should have some maturity from those years of experience. Perhaps she'd have been able to tolerate and understand it, if his personality wasn't so unlikeable.
Maybe Aether would have understood better and tolerated it much better, even helping out with the pain but she, unfortunately, isn’t Aether. And she cannot take it much longer.
Seeing the Wanderer stare pathetically out at the miserable outside, she reluctantly softened and asked, "Wanderer? Are you okay?"
"I-" He started and paused, fingers trailing up his cheeks and wiping away the tear tracks on his porcelain white skin. He looks down at his wet fingers in some sort of wonder and surprise. Did he not know that he was crying? He must have been buried really deep under his emotions.
Just that moment, the thunder crackled and boomed loudly. The Wanderer flinched hard, his hands shaking even more, and momentarily he looked like a frightened little kitty, shivering wildly, damp fur sticking out weirdly.
Something deep inside Lumine relented, and making up her mind, she firmly gripped the Wanderer's smooth wrists and dragged him back inside. "You're coming with me to sleep. You're not staying out there in the rain anymore." If he was going to break down and shit over his relationship with his mother, he should at least not do it out there with the cold rain and the depressing atmosphere. Best if he didn't even break down at all. It would only cause complications for her. And as a decent person, she's not that cruel to just leave him out there alone, wallowing in misery and contempt of the world.
2 months of your bullshit I can’t undo.
1. I hate the fact that you made me lo- HOLD ON. WHAT-
WHAT THE FUCK.
NO SHE DOESN'T LO- NO.
"What the hell happened to you? Zoned out again? Stop doing it, it's annoying." A harsh voice breaks her out of her shocked reverie.
"No, I wasn't zoning out, just thinking-" Upon seeing the person of her affectio-no- right in front of her, Lumine can't help feeling flustered, thankfully turning away in time to hide the blush growing on her cheeks.
WHEN THE FUCK DID SHE ACT LIKE THIS?
"You're acting weird. Ughh don't tell me you're sick again," The Wanderer sighs. Is he concerned about her?
"It was such a pain taking care of you last time." He crossed his arms, looking at her as though she's such a burden. (no it's him that's a burden of course)
So he doesn't care about her? Or does he?
Nahida did once say that the Wanderer is very contrary, and that he often means the opposite of what he says, it's just that he's too embarrassed to say his true feelings out loud. Paimon would call that a "tsundere", some word apparently from Inazuman light novels.
LUMINE, WHAT IS THIS. WHEN DID YOU SOUND LIKE SUCH A STUPID HOPEFUL LOVESICK GIRL.
YOU DON'T LIKE HIM.
YOU'RE ENEMIES.
"Errrrr Lumi?" As Lumine grapples with unfamiliar emotions tangling together and wriggling uncomfortably around in her heart, Paimon inquisitively questions her dear friend's mental state, as the shopkeeper and the Wanderer watches on in puzzlement.
YOU'RE ENEMIES.
YOU DON'T LOVE HIM.