Ch3: The great outdoors is a five-star hotel

Author's Note; Just more interactions between the main duo. Inari's probably lying about something so who knows what that's about. Thanks for the reviews and constructive criticism.

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There were no personal qualms about attending to the sorrows of the dragon but it was a job best left for Barbatos. Anyway, I had already done my part by cleansing the corrupted blood the Abyss Order got from Dragonspire, but Lumine had other ideas that involved consoling Dvlain.

He thrashed his scaly tail as a dog might excitedly do. Lumine patted the Anemo dragon, it was a powerful creature but upon the gentle contact, he cried like a newborn.

Once anger is removed from the equation the only feeling left is sorrow and maybe even a little forgiveness. Nonetheless, loneliness is probably the most dreadful emotion those of a sentient mind can feel.

'Thank you stranger from the stars and fox.' Dvlain chirped out in short bursts of roars. A glorified parrot is what he was but I suppose the feathers added to his somewhat regal demeanor.

"No problem, we just happened to be in the area. Plus I'm certain a specific windbag bard would have shown up to give aid. Only a matter of time until Barbatos makes his presence known anyway." My arms were crossed in contemplation.

Lumine quirked a brow. "Interesting so you're able to interpret his growls."

"Yes, but it goes far beyond that. Since we're both elemental (although in Liyue the word would be illuminated) beasts, we speak the same primordial tongue that a few immortals left know."

"So you have another form so to speak, can I see it?" Her eyes were piqued with curiosity.

"Maybe another time, just not right now." More than a thousand years had passed and still, I was disoriented and uncomfortable with the prospect of having to walk on all fours.

The other Archons that I knew grieved over the death of beloved friends, but it was I that solely lamented over the loss of one's self.

Some people embrace what they become, others reject it or try to run. In the eye of everything, infinity, I was stuck at an impasse, and the rest of the world just continues.

"All hold your words to it like a promise." Lumine sounded like she'd get along with Morax, but it was the freedom of flight she had lost that somewhat reminded me of Barbatos. Yet then she could also be as cold as ice like the Tsaritsa.

Dvlain lowered his wings, it was a gesture he wanted us to get on.

"Up for a ride?" She simply nodded and like that one scene in Aladdin we boarded. My guess is that somewhere in the nation of Sumeru a real magic carpet existed.

It was fun soaring through the skies of Mondstadt on a dragon. Although the flowers in Lumine's would have been lost to the wind if not for the fact I grabbed them at the right moment.

To my surprise, it was one singular hairclip rather than two blooming entities of a plant. Carefully I tucked them within my messenger bag and we enjoyed the rest of the view.

Officially the region of freedom and its capital city had an interchangeable name of Mondstadt that was pretty stupid if you asked me. Anyway among the jagged hills were smaller villages and what I made out as Dawn Winery.

Perhaps it was a bonding experience, if not at least a pleasant memory to look back upon. Eventually, Dvlain dropped us off at the peak of Starnatch Cliff.

Sure he could have landed closer to the actual city of freedom but it was better not to make a scene long after the original crisis had been averted.

Lumine sent the dragon off with a wave and I was content to gaze off in the distance. My guess by the sound of crickets chirping it was around dusk fall.

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The wilds of Mondstadt had rolling hills and forests that extended far as the eyes could see. Compared to the other nations, it was more basic in geography but it was the simplicity that drew a person in.

A blazing fire crackled, I was no Pyro user but if lightning strikes wood it causes a spark. Lumine helped oxygenate the flames with her newly acquired Anemo element.

Although she could stand to use a little more practice because she nearly charred my haori jacket to ashes. That being said, I wasn't any better in that I almost overcooked some grilled fish.

Maybe it was an Electro Archon thing because there were times that I failed at cooking and it was one of those moments. Thus I went in search of more branches to add to the fire, and Lumine took over the meal making.

While an ordinary person would have a hard time seeing in the dark, the night vision that I had automatically kicked in. Sure I only had one good eye left to spare but my other senses easily overcompensated for that.

Animals such as wild boars and wolves rustled the nearby grass and leaves. One odd occurrence was apple cores scattered in a field everywhere, Barbatos had probably gouged his appetite on the fruit.

Given a few decades, the landscape might become a forest. "I'm back," I stated. There was a sizable amount of wood within my arms that I was prepared to add to the dying embers.

Lumine sat close to the warmth of the everglow while munching on the grilled fish. After a good hour of foraging, call me Pavlov's dog but the food looked salivating.

"How could you eat without me?" My tone of voice was meant to be teasing but my comment went ignored.

"This night and quiet out in the darkness is kinda beautiful." She stated. Ah so perhaps the conversation we were about to have was more geared to a serious direction.

"Music is something I've always appreciated more than nature's ambiance." I admitted, "helps to drown out the bad thoughts."

If only I had a guitar or even a shamisen. We could sing silly songs, tell ghost stories, and roast marshmallows beneath the stars.

Yet the more I thought about it the more I got lost in my head, my hands were no longer that of a musician. Rather they had old scars, the mark of a warrior, only another god made other immortals bleed.

Plus the only thing I played efficiently now was a flimsy flute the weight of a feather. For what it was worth it got the job done, and it was a keepsake crafted from scratch.

"Interesting, I'm the opposite." Lumine kept talking. "Is there a reason the moon doesn't look like a rabbit or a wolf, but an eye? I swear the longer I look, it's almost like it's blinking or maybe that's just the clouds."

The moment she mentioned the moon was the second I started to freeze up until my breathing evened out again. "Well, some scholars think the backdrop of this world is false. I can't confirm that truth because only the highest order of Celestia knows.

Also, Teyvat used to have three moons, for the three sisters of fate that once guided destiny. Now only one heavenly object watches the night."

Stare into the Abyss until only nothingness glares back.

Good, Lumine seemed to be satisfied with that information enough to let the topic die. It was late thus, subsequently the fire came to a halt.

Sleep began to weigh upon her expression, she unrolled a sleeping bag. Meanwhile, I played a tune that was reminiscent of a song of storms.

Yet then I too subsumed to the lull of drowsiness, my tails were used as a makeshift blanket and pillow. Fireflies flicked across the earth or what was maybe an island drifting through space.

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Voice Line Snippet

Good Night: "I'm not tired yet so I might as well entertain the stars by playing them a song."