Chapter Text
Unsurprisingly, Klee’s child mind couldn’t comprehend she had nearly died. Instead, she hyper fixated on that her intrepid adventures had earned her a Vision. Her first solo project, the very first bomb she ever made, was blessed by the gods. She was destined for greatness and, had Alice permitted it, Klee would have set off a barrage of bombs throughout the countryside. Evidently, she had learned nothing.
For the following few months, Albedo and Alice stayed close by. Albedo made meals, Alice played with her, and the three of them engaged in small, safe experiments like making lava lamps and growing stalagmites. Klee absorbed the extra attention like a sponge and soon was pushing boundaries asking Albedo to play dress up.
Albedo returned home from a Captains meeting with an armload of paperwork. He barely got his foot in the door before Alice bounded towards him, a basket in hand. “Ah, ah, ah! Stop right there and turn around; we’re having a picnic.”
Giggling, Klee slipped past him to bunny hop down the porch steps.
After a moment of consideration, Albedo shrugged. He had been wrapped up with knightly duties lately; he could spare the time for them. Dropping off the papers on the dining table, he asked, “Do you need me to make anything?”
“Nope! I whipped up enough food that even a bottomless dragon would be satisfied! This time I get to treat you to a meal. So come on, let’s not waste any more daylight. We’re off to Windrise!”
“Windrise, Windrise,” echoed Klee running down the street, her arms out to the side as if about to take flight.
Shaking his head, Albedo followed. He just hoped Alice didn’t add poisonous flounder to the meal again.
The journey took much longer than it should have been thanks to Klee’s distractibility. She practiced somersaulting, stopped for every sparkly rock, and lobbed a bomb at any bird not wary enough. Alice seemed unhurried and unbothered; she only intervened when Albedo cited the possibility of starting a grass fire.
“Leave the birds alone, hon. We have enough fowl meat for the picnic already.”
“That’s your objection?” cried Albedo.
Klee, in fact, did not stop trying to bomb the birds until Albedo said he’d confiscate all her incendiary devices. Afterwards the trek was much quieter.
As they crested a gentle hill, Albedo came to a stop. Alice continued ahead, humming a bard tune. Klee had scampered off somewhere off the trail. He soaked in the view. The wind rippled the grass, making dandelions dance and their seeds float in the air. The massive Windrise tree spread out its branches far and wide, as if a sentient being guarding the land. It felt as the valley had remained the same for an eon and would continue to be far in the future.
Albedo closed his eyes. When traveling with Rhinedottir, an alchemic formula was always rattling around his mind and tension and fatigue underlined his every move. But here his mind was empty. There was no expectation for this trip, save making a nice memory. Feeling a lightness in his chest, Albedo pressed a hand to his heart. How peaceful this was.
How decadent it was.
“Ahh! I can’t do it!”
Klee sat on the ground off the path, trying to weave dandelion stems together. Pouting, she tossed the broken stems away. Albedo turned back and squatted down. “What are you doing?”
“Making flower crowns, but Klee can’t get it.”
He picked up a dandelion with its stem split clean in two. “How do you fashion them?”
“You don’t know? Here, I’ll show you.” Despite her struggling to demonstrate, Albedo inferred the process. He sat down and soon had nearly finished an entire crown.
Knees to her chest, Klee watched his deft fingers. “Wow, you’re so good at this! You’re a master!”
“This is only my first, so I could hardly call myself such.”
“What, really? You never made one before? Not even for your friends?”
“No. I never had any friends before.” Albedo paused, lowering the flower crown. He lost himself in the memories. “Come to think of it, there’s a lot of things I’ve never done before I met you. Finger painting, reading fairy tales before bed, celebrating birthdays…”
Eyes wide, Klee went quiet. After leaping to her feet, Klee stared at him with intense red eyes. “Anything else? I’ll do—” She coughed a few times, face going red. Months had passed since the fire, but she still had a frequent, nasty cough. Klee wiped her mouth—she hadn’t bothered to cover it—before nodding. “I’ll do it with you, big brother.”
Lips parted, Albedo gazed at her. Even after everything he’d done, Klee looked upon him with nothing but the purest of intentions. Heart swelling, he cupped her face. “I’d like that. I’ll let you know if I think of something.”
Klee nodded again with finality. Smiling, she placed a hand on his shoulder. “Gimme a piggyback ride.”
“No.”
“Please? Pleeeeease?”
Sighing, Albedo rolled his eyes. “Let me finish these crowns first.”
“Yay!”
Once he was done, Klee placed them atop their heads then launched herself onto his back. Holding onto her tight, Albedo walked down the trail to catch up to Alice. She was still humming to herself and swinging the picnic with abandon.
“Mama, Mama!” called Klee, waving a third flower crown.
“Yes, darling—” She turned just in time for Klee to place the crown on top of her mage’s hat.
“This is for you, Aunt Alice,” smiled Albedo.
Alice’s mouth hung open. Her eyes darted to Albedo, then took in the sight of him carrying Klee and their matching flower crowns. Eyes welling with tears, she swallowed hard. Throat tight, Alice tried to say, “thank you,” but it came out as a rasp.
Nodding, Albedo hefted Klee up higher before setting down the path. Alice stayed in place, watching them go.
“Call me mom!”
Albedo continued walking forward, choosing not to reply. Hands in the air, Klee swayed side to side, singing the same song her mother was moments earlier. The wind blew through the vale, billowing their hair and tickling his face. He smiled.
Aunt wasn’t quite a mother, but it was close enough. And close enough was good enough for now.
Albedo was thrilled to see Alice had packed radish veggie soup but dismayed that it had been thickened with slime concentrate. Frowning, he eyed the spread of dishes across the checkered blanket. What other “delightful” experiments did Alice have in store? Jaw clenched, Albedo dissected every dish before taking a bite out of anything.
They sat in the cool shade beneath the massive oak tree. Across from him Klee sat on a tree root and practically picked off the bones of her bass while Alice bit into a sunsettia. Eyes closed, she tilted her head back, the wind billowing her white blond hair. Patchy sunlight peeked through the branches. Catching his eye, Alice exhaled. She ducked her head. “I’m sorry, Albedo.”
He blinked. “For what?”
“Pushing you to call me your mother.” She gazed over the flowery plains to the city of Mondstadt in the distance. Its windmills turned. The sun set Cider Lake sparkling. “Looking back on our first meeting, I was overenthusiastic. I’ve been smothering you, haven’t I? I’m sorry, I should have given you some breathing space and let you explore Mondstadt at your own pace.”
Albedo opened and closed his mouth, unsure of what to say. Rhinedottir had never, ever admitted fault to anything. “Uh, mm…”
Klee reached for an early dessert when Alice drew her in for a tight side hug. “Though despite the long road, I’m so grateful it’s all worked out! Don’t think for a second I haven’t been watching how hard you’ve been working as Captain and being a part of this family. You’ve come such a long way, and I’m proud of you.”
Flushing, Albedo looked away. Yes, it’s been nice, but… He looked behind him to see the icy Dragonspine mountain. I have to return to experimenting. It had been over a year since he had completed any serious research, let alone making progress on discovering the truth of this world. Albedo was an alchemist. A scientist. And his curiosity in studying the world could never be quenched. Using Rhinedottir’s base on Dragonspine as his own, he could work in solitude. But whenever I tire, I can always return to Mondstadt.
Sighing, Alice looked down, her brim casting her face in shadow. Her smile became grim. “It’s because you’ve been doing such a stellar job that I know I can trust you.”
Albedo went cold. The wind blew through him, chilling him further. “What do you mean?”
Alice lifted her head, meeting his gaze. “I’m leaving.”
Eyes wide, Alice whipped around. “What do you mean you’re moving to Dragonspine?”
For the rest of the picnic, Albedo plastered on a smile for Klee’s benefit but could barely meet Alice’s gaze, his mind reeling at the revelation. Once evening approached, they returned home. Klee, fast asleep upstairs, remained ignorant of how long Alice intended to leave and the tension between her and Albedo. Just when Alice was about to climb the stairs, Albedo sprang the news on her.
He stood by the living room fireplace, keeping a couch and the coffee table between them. The family photos of the three of them on the mantle were obscured by shadow. The flickering candlelight and shadows creeping up the walls gave a tense, uncertain atmosphere. “I’ll be moving to Dragonspine within the week. There I can operate in peace without distraction. ”
Alice sidestepped Klee’s toys as she approached, fiery gaze trained on him. “And Varka gave his stamp of approval on this? Jean did?”
Hand on a hip, Albedo tossed the other hand in the air. “Yes, I’ve made all the necessary arrangements to be able to work remotely. These past few months I’ve proven my abilities and resourcefulness as captain. And to be frank, the other captains were all too happy to have the outlander captain as far away from the city operations as possible.”
Alice threw a hand out, gesturing to a landscape painting of Mondstadt he had created. “You were just beginning to settle in! How could you throw—”
Albedo evenly met her gaze. His face remained as impassive as stone.
Exhaling, she held her head. Gaze unfocused, she mumbled to herself. “Can’t stop you… Who would watch Klee? Could ask Jean and Kaeya. Lisa, too, but…” Closing her eyes, Alice grimaced. “Oh, how could this have…”
Shrugging, Albedo crossed his arms. “I must admit, this was an outcome I hadn’t foreseen. You’ve left for a few weeks here and there before, but now you don’t know when you’ll return? Could be months or years? I couldn’t even venture a reason as to why you’d leave, especially with all the evidence of your love for Mondstadt and Klee.” Memories of family dinners, fish blasting, and celebrating Ludi Harpastum replayed in his mind. Albedo swallowed hard before raising his chin. “I’m concerned for Klee, but you need not spare a thought for me. I’ve been left on my own before, and it is of no consequence to be alone again.”
Alice clutched the front of her robes, her face twisting. “Albedo… you know how much this pains me. I wouldn’t dream of leaving for so long unless I had any other choice. And I promise—do you hear me—I promise I’ll return to visit. And I’ll be using my magic to watch over you two in the meantime. You won’t be alone.”
Jaw set, Albedo looked away. “It makes no difference to me. I just…” He could remember the chilly rain that had fallen the day Rhinedottir left, how the rain seeped through his robes, chilling his skin. How he reread her note over and over again, searching for any clue where she’d gone. “I just want to know why.”
Sighing, Alice fell against the couch’s arm. The grandfather’s clock ticking pierced the silence. At this hour, they were likely the only two still awake on the entire street. Her quiet voice carried in the room. “Teyvat’s borders have grown fragile. I am one of the few people, if not the only person, who can reinforce them.”
“Teyvat’s borders? Borders between Teyvat and… other worlds?” Albedo’s mind churned, making connections at light speed. He and Rhinedottir had occasionally chanced upon objects which had alien properties never encountered before. They were subjects that had piqued Rhinedottir’s curiosity greatly, but she always refused to elaborate on their origins. But to study the very borders between worlds…!
Eyes flashing, Albedo stepped forward. “Take me with you.”
“What?! No. No, absolutely not. What must be done is too close to forbidden knowledge, and you know what that does to a person.”
There wasn’t a more tragic example of the consequences of forbidden knowledge than King Deshret’s fate. His desire to defy the gods with forbidden knowledge drove him mad, unleashed withering in Sumeru, and plagued his people with the sickness Eleazar.
Albedo shook his head. “In studying other worlds, I could discover the truth of this world. It’s why Master sent me to you.”
“There’s no way that’s why—well, maybe. But it’s not worth risking your life for!”
Albedo balled his fists. “This is my life, my purpose for existing.”
“It doesn’t have to be!”
Eyes wide, Albedo stilled. Never had Alice raised her voice before. Quieter, she repeated, “It doesn’t have to be.” Gaze imploring, Alice held a hand out to him. “I have shown you another way. Which do you want?”
Looking away, Albedo crossed his arms. “My only want is to serve Master. My only need is to find the truth of this world.”
Voice as soft as a silk, Alice brushed her fingers across his cheek. “And I want you to live a happy life in that world as any mother would. Wouldn’t Rhine want the same?”
“I…” Rhinedottir had attended tea parties to catch up with her “sisters.” In the final note she left she called Alice a friend. “I don’t know.”
Eyes closed, Alice drew in a deep breath. She set her hands on her hips. “How about this? An alchemist systematically researches every possibility before crossing them off, right? If you truly exhaust every other means of discovering the truth of the world, then we can have another conversation about you joining me.”
Jaw working, Albedo looked down. “You can be honest. It would be another conversation where you say no, because I’m not good enough and never will be.”
“Hey.” Alice leaned down to his height to be eye level and lifted his chin with a hand. This close, Albedo could see every gold and brown fleck in her smouldering red eyes. “You clear out your ears and imprint this in the deepest recesses of your mind. No matter what happens, where you go, or what you do, you will always be good enough for me. You are my son. And I have loved and worried and prayed for you for centuries as I’ve heard about you from Rhine. I am so incredibly blessed you came to my doorstep and that you’re a part of my and Klee’s lives.”
Albedo’s breath hitched as if he’d been shot in the chest by an arrow. He opened his mouth but couldn’t speak. Before he could fully process her words, Alice hugged him tight. The smell of gunpowder and cecilias enveloped him. Body moving of its own accord, Albedo seized her back. Closing his eyes, he soaked in her warmth, not knowing when he might see her again.
No matter how many times he reflected on this moment, Albedo couldn’t tell if he wanted or needed this hug.
A couple of weeks later Albedo was finishing up the last of packing. He pushed back moving to Dragonspine a week to allow Klee some time to adjust to Alice’s departure before he left as well. She spent the days aimlessly wandering the house and streets, as if Alice would somehow magically appear before her.
Albedo stepped around crates he shoved in the corner the first night he stayed. This guest bedroom had served as storage before he arrived, and Klee’s toys and Alice’s alien knickknacks filled the crates beyond the rim. So many stacks of his Khaneri’ah books filled the space that there was barely any room to walk. Thankfully, his alchemy traveler’s bag was bottomless. Grunting, he lifted one stack of books after another into it.
A heaviness bore down on Albedo as he packed, weighing down his frown, shoulders, and gaze. A sigh preceded any heavier exertion. Albedo wiped the sweat off his forehead before turning to face the room. Only a couple more books, alchemic tools, and other odds and ends left. His desk lay buried under piles of papers. He idly spread them out with a hand. There were Klee’s drawings she foisted off to him, extra pamphlets for the medical classes he taught at the cathedral, and pictures from the day Alice shoved a camera in his face while he was working.
A deep ache ran though Albedo’s body. Pressing a hand to his chest, he chanted mantras he used whenever Rhinedottir had been angry with him. Feel nothing, think nothing, be nothing. He was a synthetic being—his feelings didn’t even match the breadth or depth of a human’s emotion so there was no need to dwell on them.
A memory enveloped him: Alice cupping his face after the fire, gazing at him with eyes that glowed like warm embers. “I will never abandon you.”
Lump in his throat, Albedo stepped back from the desk. He bumped into a pile of books that had a vial on it. It shattered, spilling green ooze on the floorboards.
Albedo huffed. He summoned a rag from his traveler’s bag and knelt down, scrubbing the floor with more force than necessary. Feel nothing, think nothing, be noth—
The door burst open. In the doorway stood Klee, her hair a rat’s nest and bow on her red dress askew. She clutched a white bunny-eared toy to her chest—Dodoco, a toy Alice had given her before leaving.
Klee zeroed in his bag on the quilted bed. The words burst out of her like a blast. “No! You’re still leaving? Why?”
Albedo sighed. He had explained many times over the past two weeks to give her as much warning as possible, but nothing satisfied her. This time he settled for the simplest reason. “Because I’m searching for my mother.”
Jaw quivering, Klee clutched Dodoco in a chokehold. Her voice shook. “Help me find mine.”
Exhaling, Albedo knelt down on a knee and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Your mother has traveled before, but she always has come back. She will this time; this trip is just a little longer than most. Do you remember what she said about your bunny toy? That it’s your friend to confide in, so you’ll never be lonely.”
“I don’t want a toy; I want Mommy! I want you to stay!” She glared at Albedo with a laser intensity.
It became so quiet, they could hear the grandfather clock downstairs ticking. Pipes rattled.
Albedo took a breath. “Klee… I can’t—”
“Nobody loves me!” Rubbing her eyes, Klee slammed the door in his face before running down the hall.
Sighing, Albedo closed his eyes. Listened to the grandfather clock ticking down the seconds. In the quiet, Albedo tried to convince himself this is what he wanted.
Moments after she stormed out, Albedo followed her outside. They didn’t need a repeat disaster of Klee causing explosions after an argument. She likely was heading to the main gate to wait for Alice like she often did the past couple of weeks. However, he spied Klee and Kaeya talking on the street corner. Knowing Kaeya would watch over her—and how Klee probably didn’t want to see Albedo right now—he returned to packing. By the time he finished and had left the house again, it had started raining.
Steel clouds roiled across the sky like a stormy sea. The haze of rain dulled the color of red-roofed houses and storefronts to a gray. Given the poor weather, all the usual children had been ushered inside, leaving only adults with business about. Heads down, men drew their cloaks tighter while women brandished their umbrellas as they walked past. They crushed worms underfoot in their hurry.
Pulling up the hood of his alchemy uniform, Albedo headed towards Favonius HQ. Kaeya would have taken Klee there for a safe space to talk. Hopefully she had calmed enough to return home with Albedo. Her bedtime was fast approaching, and she had yet to have dinner.
The usual bustling hub of the city had dwindled into near desertion. The fountain had swollen with rain, fouling the air with the smell of dirty water. Crying, a soaked stray cat took shelter under an awning. Albedo tossed the cat a scrap of bread from his bag as he scanned the area.
“Albedo!”
Holding her oversized cap to her head, Klee ran up to him. She heaved for breath. “I can’t… I can’t find Dodoco!”
Frowning, Albedo set his hands on his knees, coming down more to her level. “Weren’t you just with Kaeya? Has he seen it?”
“Um, uh…” Looking away, Klee wiped her nose with the heel of her hand. “No, he hasn’t. I’ve asked everyone, and no one has seen her. You gotta help me find her!”
Albedo furrowed his brows. When she’d left, Klee practically had a death grip on it. Not to mention, Albedo had only needed thirty more minutes to pack and another quarter hour to find her here; it couldn’t have been gone for long.
Albedo sighed. He straightened and offered a hand to her.
“You can’t leave until you find Dodoco! I won’t let—” Klee paused upon seeing the proffered hand. Swallowing her words, Klee sullenly accepted it and fell into step beside him.
They walked the path from the house to Favonius HQ three times but still hadn't located Dodoco. Jaw set, Albedo studied the roadsides for any sign of the white bunny, but saw only litter. Through her wet bangs, Klee scanned the area and whined when she didn’t see anything. “We’ll never find her.”
Squeezing her hand, Albedo looked around one more time. The number of people had thinned even more as they searched, but one woman was snatching forgotten laundry off a line. “Excuse me,” he called before heading over. “Have you seen a white bunny toy around here?”
The woman barked a laugh. Deep lines marred her face and calloused hands showed a lifetime of hard work. She barely spared him a glance. “No, and in this rain who knows where it ended up or what state it’s in. It could have been dropped in mud or trampled on. Maybe another whelp fancied it and took it home. Go buy another one.”
“But I need the one Mommy gave to me. She said if I hugged it, I wouldn’t be alone anymore. Please, have you seen it?”
Shaking her head, the woman muttered something about a spoiled brat before grabbing her bucket of wet clothes and slamming the front door closed.
Stunned, Klee blinked at the shut door, rain running down her face. Albedo laid a hand on her shoulder. “Come on, let’s ask someone else.”
After backtracking, they saw a pair of patrolling knights. As they walked one cursed as they told a tale and the other laughed loudly. If there was anyone else, Albedo would have approached them, but with no better option, he said, “Greetings.”
They turned. Seeing Albedo, the knight’s scowl at being interrupted morphed to a grin as if expecting to be entertained. “Oh, look, it’s the outlander captain.”
Klee hid behind his leg while Albedo explained, “We’re looking for a toy from her mother that she lost. It’s a small and fuzzy white rabbit. Have you seen anything resembling it?”
The other knight smirked. “What, your voodoo magic can’t solve your every problem? I didn’t realize the massive budget you swindled from us would be wasted on things like this.”
“Really? Because I would have bet mora on it.”
Laughing, the two walked away and returned to talking about crude tales at the bar.
Albedo watched them leave, his heart sinking. They must have been knights he had wronged or insulted in the past.
Alice’s words echoed in his mind. “There are points in everyone’s lives when you’ll need help. And if you’ve been helping others all along, then they’ll be happy to lend a hand in moments like these. You won’t find yourself alone.”
Such treatment is justified then, I suppose, thought Albedo.
Clutching his hand, Klee pressed her small form into him. She stared up at him with wide, expectant eyes.
Smiling, Albedo squeezed her hand. “We’ll keep looking. If we broaden the search area, perhaps we’ll find something.”
Not long after they started combing the side streets, Klee lagged behind. Her tired, plodding steps couldn’t match Albedo’s longer strides. It took him a second to realize she had released his hand and stopped walking. He glanced back.
Klee stood under a streetlamp, her newsboy cap deflated against her head. Rain plastered her bangs to her face, shielding her eyes from view. Shoulders drooped and arms hanging, she looked like a shell of herself. “Carry me.”
Really? Shaking away the thought, Albedo crouched down, offering his back to ride piggyback.
“No.” Crossing her arms, Klee turned her body away.
Standing up, he asked, “Then what are you asking for?”
She didn’t budge. Rain made a soft cush sound as it hit against puddles on the pavement. After a long moment, Klee raised her arms. He picked her up and carried her against his chest. Klee was getting too old to be carried like this, nor had Albedo ever seen Alice carry her, but he didn’t say a word.
As he troughed through the roads, he listened to the staccato pinging of rain off the rooftop tiles. He breathed in the smell of dirty water. The rain felt slick against his face.
Albedo soaked in the warmth of Klee’s body. She trembled in his arms. Sniffing, Klee hugged his neck and buried her cold nose against his skin.
The memory of Rhinedottir scoffed at him. “The noblest pursuit in life is one of knowledge. Every other matter is a waste of time.”
Albedo’s heavy footsteps echoed in the abandoned street. Drenched to the skin, this child he held was the only source of warmth. He clutched Klee to himself. No. No, it isn’t.
When she began shivering harder, Albedo came to a stop. “Klee, I think we should call it a day. Let’s head back and—”
Gripping his coat, Klee lifted her head to come face to face with him. “You can’t! We can’t go back, and you can’t leave. Go find Dodoco. You’ll find her!”
Frowning, Albedo narrowed his eyes. “You’ll find her” not “You have to find her”? A coincidence or unconsciously deliberate distinction… He froze, remembering how little time had passed before Dodoco had been lost. How Klee avoided eye contact when asked if Kaeya had seen it.
Albedo closed his eyes. This child… He changed his grip on Klee from an embrace to a hold and changed direction towards the city gate. Klee struggled a bit, but, upon realizing where they were headed, she shrunk into him, the fight going out from her.
At the city entrance, only a couple of intrepid storekeepers sold wares under awnings. The blacksmith swung his hammer, the ringing sounding like a lone, ominous gong. The few citizens spared them no second glance as they headed home.
Albedo set Klee on the ground. “Go get it.”
“But I don’t know where—”
“Go, Klee,” he said, soft but firm.
Sighing, she turned around and ran to a bush just beyond the portcullis gate. Like a dog with its tail tucked between its legs, Klee returned with a slightly dirty Dodoco toy in hand. After arguing with Albedo, she must have only talked with Kaeya briefly before heading towards the city’s entrance. There she had the idea of hiding Dodoco then doubled back to the house to find Albedo. All just so she could have one more afternoon with him.
Eyes on the pavement, Klee swallowed hard. “Are you mad at Klee?”
Not caring about mud or puddles, Albedo knelt down to her level. She looked as pale as a ghost, making her red nose and puffy eyes all the more prominent. He cupped a rosy cheek. “No. No, I’m not.”
“I…” Like an overfilled cup, tears slid down her face. She sucked in a shaky breath. “I miss Mommy…”
Albedo pressed her head into his chest, enveloping her in a hug. “I miss them, too.”
Sniffing, Klee clung to him with all the force her little body could muster. He felt her every shuddering breath. Eyes closed, Albedo pressed a hand to her back. They held each other for a long time just listening to the rainfall.
Opening his eyes, Albedo gazed out the main to glimpse Dragonspine’s peak in the distance. Master gave me a final task, but, really I… I just want to see her again.
And if he ever wanted to find her, he had to leave, too.
The view from Dragonspine wasn’t quite as nice as Albedo thought it would be. In the month since his departure from Mondstadt, he had carved out a small campsite for himself. Albedo tried to locate Rhinedottir’s old base, but it had long since been buried in snow. Already theories and diagrams had covered his bulletin board. A mess of alchemic devices say on the tables, in crates, or stuck out at odd angles from sitting in the snow.
Albedo stood at the entrance of the campsite, gazing out over the mountainside. A sharp cliff a few yards from his feet descended into a valley of snow. A loose board of a rickety bridge creaked in the wind. Hilichurl tracks ran across the snow. Arching over the valley rose the rib cage of the dragon Durin, a corrupted beast that brought death to Mondstadt before meeting its end here. And with its passing cursed the mountain to an eternal winter.
Just beyond the ribcage, Albedo could glimpse rolling hills of green and Mondstadt’s trademark castle walls and windmills.
Behind him, a bubbling over vial whined like a teakettle. Exhaling, Albedo turned back to the table and turned the burner down. “Focus. The time for distractions passed a while ago.” Talking to himself had become a bad habit of his.
Quill in hand, Albedo jotted down observations on the vial’s color. Experimenting here there were no sounds of bustling street outside the window, nor Sucrose or Timaeus pestering him for help or Jean bursting in with an assignment. Alice didn’t bring a helping of food that could feed three people or Klee begging him to play. Just the biting, cold wind, howling like a lone wolf at the moon.
Something wet hit his cheek. Snow. Blinking, Albedo glanced up to see flakes floating their way down. He caught a gorgeous, crisp snowflake, but after only a moment it melted in his hand. Albedo sighed. Perhaps one day a traveler would stop by and his life would change. But for now…
“It’s lonely here.”