"Yes! There it is, I can finally see it!"

Mona squealed with excitement. Finally, the constellation she'd been looking for for so long had decided to show itself. Just to make sure she wasn't dreaming, the astrologist snuck another glance through the telescope. Yup, six twinkling dots that she'd never noticed before were now visible in Teyvat's night sky. Discreet stars, she might add. They never seemed to be willingly found, and only revealed themselves through the lens of a high-end telescope. Which she just happened to possess.

Well, no matter the efforts and lengths she'd had to go to for this. Her long endeavor was finally coming to an end, and her erudite spirit was extremely eager to get to work. An astrologist's work was tedious, but every step of the way was a pleasure to her, no matter how thorny the path could get.

Summoning her scryglass into her hands, Mona attempted to divine the results. "As I thought, it inexplicably took up an empty spot near Polaris. Does this mean the holder is meant to travel North? So far, that's all I can piece together from its position alone, but maybe..."

"Maybe it's just hiding behind Polaris because it's a bit shy." a voice behind her chuckled.

Aether's smug face appeared above her in the small trapdoor frame, his golden hair bathing in the moonlight. Truly a free soul, that one. Him and his flying companion could be pretty much anywhere at any given time, but he always made sure to drop by whenever his travels took him to Mondstadt. Though he had a very peculiar sense of humor, she still appreciated his company. He jumped down into the attic, carrying a basket in one hand and controlling his fall with the other.

The astrologist coughed in her fist, praying to the high heavens that he did not notice her happy dance just now. "Mhm, so you managed to find me. I honestly thought you'd be too tired to bother with stargazing at this hour... Where's Paimon?"

"Probably on my bed at the Knights' dorm - you know how she is, always entering snore mode when she's full. I don't tire easily myself, but I didn't expect you to get back to work so soon after our little vacation." He scanned the room from top to bottom, feeling a wooden beam's structure. "You must be really smitten with the stars if you're willing to sleep inside a windmill just to get a better view of them."

A old and dusty windmill, but that was better than going to Starsnatch Cliff in the middle of the night while carrying her heavy equipment. With the keeper's approval of course, she had turned the storage attic into a temporary study. It couldn't hold a candle to anything the Sumeru Akademiya had, or even her old master's laboratory, but she made it work.

"Well, it is my destiny, after all..." Mona listlessly replied as she adjusted her scryglass. "And besides, the stars wait for no one. Each night has a slightly different astral array from the previous one – and tonight's should be very promising, if my predictions are correct."

"I see. Whose constellation caught your eye tonight, Great Astrologist?"

The Traveler leaned over her shoulder to take a closer look, but she dismissed her scryglass in a panic before he could see anything.

She swivelled around to face him. "A-And for what reason do you seek your master at this hour? If it's to drag me into another one of your adventures, I'm afraid I would have to decline..."

Not this master nonsense again. "I figured you might get hungry up there, so I made dinner for two." He jammed a finger at his basket over which was draped a blanket to keep their food warm. "You fine with hotpot? I forgot to buy a salad, so I threw in some extra chunks of meat as compensation. Overall I'm pretty proud of how it turned out."

"Adding more meat to make up for the lack of a salad... you certainly have a sense of nutrition of your very own." She smiled in faux disappointment, trying her best to ignore the enticing smell of slow-cooked beef. "Sure, we'll eat later. I'm actually pretty glad you came, I can take this opportunity to teach you more about constellations – and why they aren't sentient."

Aether shrugged. "Guess I should prepare myself to get schooled, then. Which one were you looking at just now?"

Just as he went to take a look through her telescope, she whisked it away, holding it close to her chest. He raised a puzzled brow at her sudden change in behavior, for the second time now. If the astrologist could see her own face, she would find that the word 'guilty' was metaphorically written on her forehead.

"Oh, I- I forgot, actually! Silly me." Mona nervously laughed while slowly putting down the heavy ocular device. "I've just been observing constellations at random before you arrived, nothing to see here."

Her behavior was making this whole stargazing thing seem even more suspicous. She simply gave him an apologetic wave and resummoned the Hydro pool. A bit of starward shuffling later, she found the inverted maple leaf – and excuse – she'd been looking for.

"Maybe I should take a look at Acer Palmatum, yes. Kazuha is an interesting and somewhat unpredictable individual, I've been wondering how the stars would affect his journey as a wanderer."

She kept awkwardly playing around with her scryglass for effect, but Aether's attention had already been caught by the scribbled notes sitting on her makeshift desk – a pile of dusty flour crates. Astral maps, a few expensive-looking devices, and a official letter, bearing the broken seal of the Court of Fontaine. After making sure it wasn't anything too personal, he found with surprise that her work had caught up to her.

He couldn't help but wince at the incredibly tight deadline. "You've really been swamped with work, huh. Looks like the Steambird wants to bring back its divination column sooner rather than later."

The astrologist shrugged, finally getting some breathing room. "Well we were gone for nearly a month, and I didn't have any columns planned in advance. I'd rather write them at my own pace now that I'm back, but the Steambird pays good Mora when I send them in time. Thankfully, there are still some people who're willing to find out about their fate." He noticed a slight shift in her mood, as her gaze went somber. "As for the others, they keep sending these very nice letters to me. You won't find them, they've already burned."

The Traveler ran a hand through his blond hair. So that's what's been on her mind this whole time. In all of this summery whirlwind, he'd suddenly realized just how heavy Mona's burden was. She had been carefully studying the stars for years, divining with her hydromancy, all for the sake of her passion. And yet, it all kept blowing up in her face. Yes, fate was an elusive and fascinating subject, but so vast that mortal hearts often failed to understand it, and some outright rejected it.

Astrologists certainly do not choose an easy path to walk down. To think that some people-

"You're worrying about me again, aren't you?"

Aether snapped out of his thoughts, Mona's fingers dancing in front of his face. She'd interrupted her divination without him noticing, and was now staring him down, her face a few inches away from his.

"I- no, not at all." He looked away. "I was just thinking about how great our summer adventure had been, and how it helped me understand you better."

She offered him a blank stare. "Aether, just because I can't read your fate doesn't mean I can't read your face. You're pitying me, it's obvious. Astrologists have no need for pity, how many times have I told you that?"

"I didn't mean to offend Lady Megistus' precious pride, I promise I won't listen to your troubles next time." he retorted with a hint of irony. "Why won't you understand that I can care without looking down on you? Isn't that what friends do?"

"That's not what I said, I- ugh, this argument is pointless. Look at me." She held his chin up, making sure her eyes lined up with his as she spoke. "All of this transpired ages ago, I'm okay now. I'm doing what I love without a care in the world, and that's what I'll keep on doing for the rest of my life, regardless of what others say. They can keep wasting their ink if they want to, I'm over that."

Aether grabbed her wrist. "I know you chose this destiny, and I'm glad you're feeling better about it. But you shouldn't have to deal with this mess in the first place, you know that, right? You have friends, you have me, and yet it took a whole mirage for us to learn about what you were going through!"
He shook his head, feeling a tinge of regret. "The next time you're doubting yourself or if you ever feel like there's something you can't do, don't just keep it to yourself, okay? The people around you are there for a reason, so rely on them while you still can – trust me, I learned that the hard way."

"…"

He stared into her crystalline orbs and could swear they became hazy for a brief moment. The astrologist let out a small laugh, as she was the first one to look away this time. Mona mulled over his words a little as her gaze flew out the window and into the starry expanse above, finding comfort amidst the endless constellations. A single shooting star crossed her field of view akin to a mischievous wink from the universe itself.

"Can I have my hand back now?" she smiled.

When and how did his fingers wind up wrapped around hers? The Traveler let go of her hand like it was piping hot, all the while fumbling a string of apologies.

She turned away from him, her large witch hat concealing her expression. "Honestly, for a supposedly obedient disciple, you're a handful." she murmured. "Thank you for caring."

An idea made its way into her brain. Good or not, she would decide later. In all fairness, he did deserve a proof of trust of some kind, and she needed to stop hiding it from him. Maybe he'd stop underestimating the Great Astrologist if he learned that she too, cared. Maybe the way he sees her would change too.

Hopefully.

"Do you really want to see me for who I truly am, Aether? No more secrets?" she cryptically asked. "Because I'm about to reveal something big, something you won't ever see in a mirage. Something only I can show you."

The blond sensed the mischief coming from a mile away, but still decided to bite. "Yeah, I think I'd love that."

"Then allow me."

The genius astrologist took her scryglass out for a spin, moving the astral projection around until her constellation of choice appeared. Aether felt compelled to step forward, as if entranced by the six dots that appeared in the pool. She deftly waved a finger around the edge, and the stars began to connect one by one, slowly forming the full constellation. He held his breath, as the azure lines depicted something no other sage or astrologist had ever witnessed.

The face of a young man wielding a sword.

Mona tilted her head, feeling slightly smug. "Can you tell me who that is?"

"That's me... I mean, that's Viator. I've seen it countless times before, and yet it looks so beautiful tonight." He gently caressed the water's surface, the sound of soft raindrops echoing around as the constellation seemed to react to his touch. It gave off a faint glow, and he suddenly realized what she had achieved.

"You were trying to locate it when I arrived. And you succeeded."

"Correct." The astrologist patted her student's shoulder. "Now I have a way to try and read your fate even when you're not around. It's not a complete victory - that's for when I actually manage to read it - but it's a huge step towards my goal, and it's still worth celebrating."

"Astrology is its own reward, that's why we don't divine for profit."

Now that she looked at his face, she fully understood her old master's statement. She would work hard to earn the right to see that smile, every single day if possible. This lovely blond fool was well worth it. And not just because he's from another world. Her motives ran way deeper than that.

"Speaking of celebrations... hotpot isn't the only thing I've brought tonight."

The Mondstadt Cathedral's bells rang midnight, and she finally realized why he'd come to keep her company so late into the night. The Traveler grabbed a box out of the basket he'd brought with him, which revealed a tiny star-shaped charm within. He brought it closer to her twinkling eyes, as the little ornament shone in the moonlight. And once he saw her mouth agape, he too realized it was worth the trouble.

He sheepishly smiled. "I wanted to say it first, before anyone else could give you a gift. Starsilver is not as shiny as I'd hoped, but at least it has some connection to space - I think? Happy birthday, Mona. May the stars always watch over you in the coming year."

"I- how did you even- Surprising me like that should be considered a crime." she cooed.

Aether ran a gentle hand through her hair, smiling even more as he felt it sink softly into the violet sea. "I plead guilty then. Now please wish upon a star for your birthday, mostly because I didn't bring candles."

Her shoulders relaxed as she took her present from his free hand. "Well, I certainly earned it... Honestly, the things I do for you, finding a world-hopping constellation for your sake..."

"My sake? Admit it, you just wanted to know all about me." he laughed. "And besides, just showing me Viator doesn't really qualify as exposing your true self."

"Isn't it obvious?"

"Huh?"

Where the church's bells still going off, or was it just her heart? No matter. The astrologist leaned closer to the Traveler's reddish face as a gust of wind blew her lantern, the only source of light in the room. But they could both see clearly, for countless stars illuminated the two of them. It was almost as if the night sky wanted to witness this moment and inched closer to the earth, closer to them.

Like a star deviating from its course, her lips moved up to his ear, and she whispered:

"I am the one who will decipher you, my mysterious Traveler."


Ever since Summertime Odyssey, I feel like Mona's grown on me a lot. And well, the timing couldn't have been more perfect, with her birthday in the same month. Writing this one-shot was fluid, I only edited some parts twice and I'm pretty happy with the result. Aether x Mona is a pretty underrated ship too, so I hope this can somewhat ease the drought for some fans. Also wow, that birthday letter was immaculate. (I know my inner Ask-Me-For-Directions Arnold is happy).

Happy Birthday to the prettiest astrologist around, even though you robbed me of Kazuha I still love your sass, your class, and your... hat.