II.
A Day Like This
It wasn't unusual for the Deaconess to wake up early in the morning and proceed to the Church to start her day with a prayer. What was quite strange, however, was the presence of the Cardinal of Daybreak near the altar of the Church.
He was simply standing all alone, seemingly deep in thought. The nuns were not in the Church yet, so it was only the two of them.
Barbara didn't want to disturb him, but as he turned around, she was eventually seen. He greeted her with a warm smile. "Good morning, Deaconess."
Barbara smiled back, and while his voice was soft, she heard him perfectly, as the Church was quiet. She then walked towards him. "Good morning, Cardinal. Is something the matter for you to visit the Church this early?" she asked.
Seamus Pegg simply chuckled, and shook his head. "Nothing of the sort dear, although I suppose I was intent on doing an inspection." He then told her. Barbara was surprised.
The Cardinal took notice of this, and laughed heartily. "It was a joke." He then said, and Barbara sighed in relief.
"Please don't joke like that…" she simply said. He then put a hand on her shoulder. "How are things, Barbara?" he asked, and as she looked, she saw not the kind eyes of the Seneschal, but of her father.
She easily found comfort. She smiled, and giggled a bit. "Nothing special, father. The Church is still tidy as always, people come here to pray and give their thanks, and well…I'm still everyone's idol, and so whenever I come out and sing, I make sure that I leave them with smiles on their faces." She told the man, and Seamus laughed.
"Such a hardworking girl. You remind me of your mother." He commented. While it was a genuine and seemingly harmless compliment, Barbara felt a sharp pang in her heart.
"I'm not as hardworking as Jean…" she softly spoke, but her father heard nonetheless. He sighed, and, as he removed her hat, pat her head gently. "My apologies, my dear." He apologized.
While she feels sad, she shrugged it off, and gave her father another sweet smile. "Its okay, father. I'm honestly embarrassed to know that you remind me of mother…" she spoke, as she looked flustered.
Seamus simply laughed, patting her head again. "Well then, I shan't keep you from your duties. Have a good day, Deaconess." He told her, putting her hat back. The Church doors then opened, and while the two of them expected the nuns to enter, a different face greeted them.
"T-Traveler!" exclaimed Barbara. The Cardinal looked surprised, yet also amused. "Oh, so you're the Traveler I've been hearing about." He commented.
Lumine was surprised as well. She never met the Cardinal, and she never thought she would be able to meet him now.
She smiled, and slightly bowed. "Good morning, Cardinal." She greeted.
"R-Right! Fath—Cardinal, this is Lumine, the Traveler. She's helped me and the citizens of Mondstadt numerous times, but most notable would be the time she bested Dvalin, whom we called Stormterror." Barbara then explained.
"Ah, our hero, then?" Seamus asked, and he laughed. He bowed down as well. "Then if I may, welcome to our beloved Mondstadt, esteemed Traveler. Apologies for my late greeting, it seems it was only today that we are able to finally meet." He said, and Lumine kept her smile.
"I am honored, Cardinal." She politely replied.
A few more pleasantries, and the Cardinal finally left the Church. As soon as the doors closed, Barbara sighed, and the Traveler then wrapped her arms around her stomach.
"You okay?" she asked, pecking her cheek. Barbara smiled. "I'm alright. Thank you, Lumine." She softly replied. She then turned around, burying her face at the crook of Lumine's neck. The Traveler giggled and embraced her.
"Can you hold me like this a little longer?" Barbara requested, and Lumine simply kissed her forehead. "For as long as you need, love." She sweetly replied.
Jean hurried over to Good Hunter, briskly walking yet almost on the verge of running. She was screaming internally, and her heart was both aflutter and rapidly beating. She also looked flustered.
Her hair fluttered along the cool breeze as she continued with her pace, until eventually she reached her destination. Sara was there to greet her, but the moment she looked at the Acting Grandmaster, she was stunned.
"Sara? What's wrong?" asked Jean, as she herself was gradually calming down. Sara was still not talking, which only prompted Jean to be even more concerned.
"Is everything alright?" she continued, and thankfully, Sara snapped out of it. "A-Ah, its nothing! Its just the first time I saw your hair down like this, Jean." She remarked.
The moment she pointed it out, Jean froze in place.
She forgot to tie her hair back once she rushed out of Headquarters, all because of what Lisa told her.
It seems she let her compliment float around in her head, enough for her to solely focus on it.
Sara somehow found it amusing that the acting Grandmaster just froze in place when she told her about it, and proceeded to make two cups of coffee.
Jean snapped out of it, and proceeded to tie her hair back to a ponytail.
She cleared her throat. "Sara, I forgot: Lisa drinks tea, not coffee. My apologies, but do continue. I shall eat breakfast here alone." She then told her, and Sara just continued on with her cooking and brewing.
Jean then took a seat at one of the chairs, and sighed. The day was only beginning and yet she seemed so…distraught.
'No, that's not quite the word…' she thought to herself. 'Flushed, maybe? Or flustered?' she continued.
Sara then placed two cups of coffee on her table, smiling. "The sandwich will be ready in a moment." She told her, and Jean nodded. "Thank you."
She reached for her pouch of Mora and already paid for the meal. Sara went back to make the sandwich.
"Or was I just caught off guard?" she softly spoke, as she took a sip of her coffee. She then nodded. "Indeed, I suppose that's what it was."
Jean brushed off what she felt earlier as simple embarrassment, even though at the back of her mind something was telling her that what she felt earlier is something entirely new.
Sara then went back to give her the sandwich. She smiled and gave her thanks. She thought of it no further, as the day has indeed only begun.
"Lisa? Are you still here?" called Jean, as she entered the library again. There were already a few Knights present inside, with a number of them still entering. In a few minutes or so, they would all go to their assigned posts and do their job for the day.
"My, missing me already Jean? The day has just begun~" the librarian sweetly replied, as she sipped from her cup of tea. Jean noticed that her table was neat. The papers and books were nowhere to be seen, probably already organized somewhere.
Jean merely sighed at what she said, although she felt a bit flustered. Normally she would brush off such comments, but after what happened earlier, the acting Grandmaster found it hard to even look at Lisa for long.
'What is wrong with me today?' she asked internally. "I apologize for storming off like that and eating breakfast in my own." She told Lisa, as she held up a paper bag. "I bought you a sandwich."
"How thoughtful~" Lisa replied as Jean gave her the bag. "I already had coffee earlier. Two cups…actually, which means I have to remove one coffee break in my schedule and replace it with something else." Jean then told her.
"Or you could just leave it as is. Free time, if you will." Lisa then replied, as she began eating the sandwich. "Mmm~ Sara really is amazing at cooking~" she remarked.
Jean looked at her, as if enlightened. She is aware of the concept of 'free time', of a specific time allotted for rest or indulging in whatever hobby to pass the time, however, as her schedule is always filled to the brim with work, she never has done any of that.
Until now. What Lisa told her was an 'eye-opener' for her, so to speak.
"I…suppose that is also an option." She managed to say, as she then pondered what to do. She looked around the library, and an idea came to her.
"Well then, I would like to make use of that free time now." She spoke, as she took a nearby stool and sat beside Lisa. "Oh my, what are you up to?" the librarian asked.
Jean then untied her ponytail again. She then looked at Lisa, who she noticed was suddenly blushing.
"Lisa?" she asked. The librarian simply turned, not wanting to gaze at her any further for a while.
Jean was confused, but somehow, she began feeling embarrassed too. She looked away as well. She cleared her throat.
"If its alright," she began, "I would like to be a librarian for an hour or two." She told her.
Lisa looked back at her, smiling. "My my, this is definitely a surprise." She commented.