Speaking of birthday's, it's Amber's. Nice.
As soon as Aether and Paimon emerged from headquarters, they began formulating a plan about how to get to Dawn Winery in the quickest way possible. Taking a glimpse of the sky to confirm that it was still mid-morning only expedited their talk. The roads were the most obvious option, of course, but was that too slow? Aether scrunched up his hair, there was another way, he was sure of it… Fortunately for him, he was with Paimon. Whatever his partner lacked in raw brainpower, she more than made up for it with recollection.
"Why don't we glide to Wolvendom? Like we did before?"
Those words brought a strong memory back…after all, it where he had decided to tell Amber about seeing Lumine at Stormterror's Lair that one time. Of course…it's been a while since then, I forgot I used to do that… It could have been interesting for him to think about that fateful night more in-depth, but Aether knew that time was limited. If they missed running into Amber at Dawn Winery, even more of this final day would go to waste. Going to Wolvendom, splitting off just before Boreas' den, and gliding down to the building was their best option.
"Paimon, you're a genius!" Impressed, Aether broke into a sprint, surprising the two nearby guards who tried to ask what was wrong, but quickly faded out of earshot. Meanwhile, a proud grin overtook his companion's face for an instant at the compliment before it disappeared along with the fairy herself in order to keep pace. He ran towards the Knight training area, where a certain female was as always practicing her sword slashes against some wooden dummies. She perked up when she saw Aether come in her direction, but her expectations were promptly dashed.
"Ah, Honorary Knight! Can you help me destroy-" she began.
"Sorry Ellin!" His hand reached for a part of the wall, which he successfully vaulted himself over onto the grassy field below. "Just keep practiciiiiing~" echoed his voice, fading into the winds as he ran up the cliffside, looking for the proper height for travel across the lake.
-0-
"So how we should we bust in?! Charge in through the front or the side?"
"Front of course."
"Oooh, bold of you! Paimon agrees, plus Amber is sure to love it!"
Somehow I doubt that, plus I'm sure Diluc would burn me to a crisp before I took two steps. Aether grimaced for a moment before realizing that he was losing focus on the sky around him. Even though the glide from the outside of Wolvendom to Dawn Winery was a quick trip, that was no excuse to smash into a tree, or worse, a person. Eager to avoid becoming another footnote in the Gliding Handbook about a foolish crash, Aether didn't talk until he touched ground once more.
Dawn Winery stood as impressive as ever, with the usual suspects in their usual places doing their usual routine of tending to the wine-making processes. In the field, near the barrels, beside the building itself…the only out-of-place thing, was of course, Aether. Still, he wasn't a stranger to this area of Mondstadt, as anyone would learn with a wave that both he and Paimon gave to Tunner, a veteran worker of the winery.
"Think she's in there?"
"Unless we missed her, of course…Suppose the best thing to do is ask though." Aether reasoned, to which Paimon nodded back and volunteered by flying over to a nearby person.
"Excuse me? Sir?" Unbeknownst to either of the pair, the person she had unceremoniously chose to talk to was Ernest, manager of the whole warehouse. But that was neither here nor there for the two of them. "Did you see a girl go into Dawn Winery with red bunny ears?"
Paimon, that's a ribbon. Aether cracked a smile at that short description though, because the large man seemed to understand what she meant. It was quite funny to him that Amber could be identified so easily, just mention the red ribbon and that was really all that was necessary.
"Ah yes…Amber, I believe is her name? Yes, she did go inside, saying that she needed to see Master Diluc or some such. It's been a while since this happened, so I assume she's still talking to him.
"Great, thanks!" With an energetic wave, Paimon turned and went back to the adventurer. "So what now? Should we go inside too?"
She wasn't expecting a shake of his head at that question, especially considering their earlier joke about charging through the door, but that's just what Aether gave. "No, she's doing her job. Let's just wait out here for her to come out." His vision fell upon a nearby bench, its' back to the edge of the stone 'wall' that separated the outer area of the winery from the actual fields. Sitting down, he made sure to keep one eye on the front door while hoping that Amber wouldn't exit through the second-floor side door of the building, although he couldn't imagine why she would.
Some time passed, the sun slowly rose up near its highest point. To everyone else in the vicinity, this was nothing more than another beautiful sunny day like any other, one that would no doubt be free from any rain or lightning. Even Aether found himself appreciating the tranquility of Mondstadt on his final morning. He had no idea what the conditions at Inazuma were like, but considering Kazuma had warned him about 'perpetual storms', that didn't exactly inspire confidence that he would get another day like this. So he shifted his senses, instead of watching the door, he yawned and put his head back while his ears made sure they didn't miss anything.
The two maids gossiping…winds gently blowing through the crops…the warmth from the sun. …Wait a second, is this what Kazuha feels like when he's writing poetry? Aether chuckled to himself as he closed his eyes, let his senses take over and the minutes go by…
That's when he heard it. A cracking, grunting heave of a door slowly opening. It was an ugly signal, a harsh reminder of what was about to happen…even though those two words would never be used to describe the person emerging from the building.
"Oh hey there Aether!"
As expected, she had spotted him instantaneously. Opening his eyes with a natural smile, he and Paimon both got up from the bench and walked (or floated) to the archer, skipping over an annoying section of grass right in the middle of the path. At this distance, Aether could clearly hear the adjacent pair of maids talk to one another, but he blocked them out and focused on the girl before him.
"Surprised?" He was trying his best to remain perfectly calm for the upcoming news, but talking with Amber always seemed to bring his emotions out.
Not suspecting anything, she easily replied. "I sure am~ Jean just sent me out here to talk to Diluc about something weird that's going on."
You mean that you stole Jean's task to lighten her load. He thought as his smile transformed into a tiny smirk. But this provided a chance for him to get down to business. "Yeah, Jean actually told me you were over here, so I ran as quick as I could."
He could feel his girlfriend's expression shift from simple joy to slight curiosity, backed up by her grin getting smaller. "Hm? Do you have something to tell me then?" Bullseye.
"Yes I do. Can you come with me for a second?" He stuck out an open hand to her, and after a second of internal deliberation, she took it. Aether noticed that the two maids get struck into silence at this action, but he held back the urge to look in their direction as he proceeded to go around the building. Even with him seldom coming to Dawn Winery, he knew that there were some seats in the back. It was a good of a place as any.
Aether remembered what he told himself way back when talking about Lumine. Just calm down, don't make it a bigger deal than it is…Easy to say, not that easy to do. He felt his occupied hand get a little sweaty, which was probably grossing Amber out. …But in response, her grip tightened around him, like she knew how he nervous he was getting. Providing a small amount of relief for Aether at this, he rounded the corner and saw a perfect setting. A table for three right in front of them with no one else anywhere near.
Taking the seats for themselves, Amber looked and gestured for him to start talking. Normally Paimon did most of this for the adventurer, but the fairy knew that it was Aether himself who needed to say this. It occurred to him that he could have used some time on the bench earlier to work out what precisely to say, but it was too late for that.
Now was time to talk.
"This morning,….before I met with Jean, Katheryne told me….that I can go to Inazuma now."
With just a simple sentence, the news was dropped…but an issue arose. As badly as Aether wanted to see his girlfriend's reaction, he…just…couldn't crane his neck high enough. As if his body was mocking him, his vision stopped at her chin, hiding her eyes out of his line of sight. In addition to this, there was a ominous silence permeating throughout the area that completely engulfed the trio.
…How did she take it? She's… not about to run away or anything right…? He wanted to believe that, the two had spent weeks talking about this after all. But the suddenness of the news was going to hurt no matter-
"Aether." At the call of his name out of the corner of his eye, he saw her hand fly up and grip his forearm. As if her touch thawed his head, he finally looked up into her eyes. Just for a second though, because the next moment Amber yanked on him with enough sudden force to pull him off the chair, making him stand up . Before he could properly react, she stood up as well and wrapped both of her arms around him in a tight embrace. "Gotcha again!"
"W-What the-? …Wait, what do you mean? Did you know what I was going to say?"
Sitting back down, she elaborated. "Oh come on Aether. I'm not the smartest Knight in the city, but I can pick up on your mood by now. You sitting on the bench with nothing to do, only to take me by the hand where no one can overhear us talk? It had to be about either Inazuma or Lumine, and given everything I know, it was only a matter of time…"
Despite her attempts to cut through the serious nature of their chat, Aether noticed that her smile faded a bit at her last thought. Rejoining her on the seats, his nerves disappeared as he began to speak. "Sorry, it's just that…well…today is the last day for us…I don't want to have Beidou and Kazuha wait. They're already putting themselves at risk just by taking me over there."
Amber slowly nodded along. A few weeks ago, Aether had told her all about the pair in question when he went on one of his many trips to Liyue, so nothing he was saying was surprising. After all, the Crux weren't some band of random pirates, they were such a well-organized fleet that even the people of Mondstadt had heard about their tales. If Aether was going to go to Inazuma with the captain of the Crux, he couldn't hesitate.
"So…I'm guessing you leave today?"
Aether looked back at Paimon and the two of them nodded in unison. "That's the plan. Be at Liyue Harbor by the end of tomorrow night. I'm sorry for doing this so suddenly, but-"
"Don't…don't apologize." Amber took a hand to her chest and exhaled. It's really happening, isn't it? Seeing her silence, Aether couldn't say anything, but he could at least show some form of comfort. Wordlessly, the Honorary Knight scooted the chair closer and put his hand on top of her other one lying across the table. For a few more minutes, nobody moved.
…
Although no one was saying anything, Aether's mind was operating in a flurry.
Why do I have to do this again? He already said goodbye to Amber once when they went to Liyue, but back then his feelings for her weren't what they where now, she was 'just' a friend when that happened. This led to more ugliness, thinking of what the future could hold for them. Inazuma wasn't the final place he was going to travel to…Fontaine, Sumeru, Natian, Snezhnaya…they all awaited him too. Would he really have to have this exact same conversation four more times at least?
Not only that, but this whole line of thought was reminding him of what Amber had said before they had officially started going out, mainly because it was exactly what she feared back then, why it would be much easier for both of them to remain as friends. Even with all of that though….I don't regret it. They had both accepted this reality, complete with him promising to always come back to her, no matter what might happen or how far away he'd go.
And this was one promise Aether absolutely wouldn't break. He learned his lesson about failing to do so before…
With his determination renewed, the silence was finally broken when Amber opened her eyes again. "I'm happy for you." Her smile here was much smaller than the grin earlier at the entrance, and yet this one conveyed a lot more. Aether didn't have to ask what she meant, but he couldn't help it.
"Happy?"
"Yes…you can finally go to Inazuma, just like you always wanted. You'll get some answers about what's going on with your sister and Khaenri'ah too, I just know it. You'll no doubt see some awesome sights and meet some wonderful new people…new friends to help you out…and…and…"
He couldn't take this anymore, not as it was getting harder for her to talk of all the things he would do without her. Aether quickly pulled Amber in for another hug which was instantly reciprocated.
"Do you remember my promise to you?" he softly asked, almost in a whisper. She responded with a quick nod despite her face still being racked with sadness. "Good…and I do have a bit of good news, courtesy of the Acting Grandmaster herself."
Now that really got her attention as she broke away from Aether and gave a puzzling look. "From Jean?"
"Yeah. She said…that she'll work to give us some more time together." He nodded to himself, careful to avoid promising something that Jean didn't say.
To his mild surprise, Amber didn't pipe up with worry about what would happen to Mondstadt with this extra time. Instead she fell silent again, thinking about how much Jean could grant. Eventually a small smile crept across her face as she spoke. "Well, I guess we'd better go back and see for ourselves~"
Relieved that she was smiling again, Aether looked back at the strangely patient Paimon, still floating there with a happy look of her own. After telling her that it was time to head back, he turned towards Amber…right in time to receive a kiss on the cheek.
Aether's face glowed as red as the 'bunny ears'.
-0-
"You know, I forgot just how far Mondstadt is from Dawn Winery." Aether relaxed as he felt the familiar touch of the stone bridge.
"Yup! There are some Knights that patrol the routes there every day, Springvale included." Amber nodded in time with her footsteps as they approached the main entrance. They had decided she would report to Jean and the two would then spend the rest of the day together in town. I wonder…did Klee find Bennett? How did that exchange go? Aether went silent as Paimon began excitedly regaling Amber the story about what route they took to get to the winery, with special mention of how she was told she's a "genius". Given her ability to extend tales past their needed time, they had entered the city, walked up the main steps, and waited around by the fountain for the fairy to finish. Just as the two were about to separate-
"Ooh, Mr. Honorary Knight is back! Amber and Paimon too!" A familiar energetic voice broke the quiet atmosphere. At this, the trio looked at each other in confusion and shrugged, it wasn't coming from any of them. There was something else Aether saw looking back though…or didn't see in this case. Sara and Blanche, the respective shopkeepers of Good Hunter and the General Goods, had seemingly vanished. They were just there, I would have noticed-
Pausing him from the upper level, Klee jumped on the railing and smiled at the Honorary Knight and Outrider, the latter of whom was particularly confused over what was going on.
"Klee! What are you doing? Aren't you supposed to be in solitary confinement?"
"Mr. Honorary Knight let me out~"
Oops… Dragging him back to what was going on, Aether rubbed his neck and quickly looked away from Amber's shocked face. The archer turned to face him in response, not letting him slink off. "Why would you do that?"
Aether had to sigh and mumble his stalling. "I'll tell you in a second…" With the bought time, he looked back up towards where the Spark Knight stood. Klee, really. What are you doing?"
The child in question pondered again that day for a moment before another smile overtook it. "Klee has a present for you!" With that, she took off her backpack and started digging into its' contents, in apparent search for something. It didn't take too long her to find it, and pulling it out revealed the item to be…a slightly bigger than normal Jumpty-Dumpty. She promptly held it proudly overhead, almost as if showing it off to the Ameno Archon himself, in a way that looked like she was about to toss it down.
Naturally this sent Paimon into a panic. "KLEE. don't blow us up!"
But then the bomb-user shifted her hand placement on the explosive, from her typical way of throwing to cupping it from the bottom side, like someone had just plopped an unexpected present into her outstretched hands. Then she proceeded to toss her 'gift', not down to the trio, but instead as high as she possibly could.
In those few seconds the Jumpty-Dumpty was airborne, Aether thought he saw something else…from a yet higher level, was that a burst of blue light? However he didn't have much time to think about it, because suddenly that light burst forward and slammed into the bomb at the apex of its' trip in the sky.
That's an Electro arrow- The sudden burst of smoke interrupted the adventurer's thoughts, complete with a painting of the sky above Klee's head in bright red and purple. It was a sight you don't see everyday, an explosion within Mondstadt's walls (as normally it happens around the lakes), but seconds later the particles dissipated and order was restored.
"That was Klee's present! Did you like it?" She still stood on the railing, face full of pure glee while asking the question. Relieved that the child hadn't lost her mind after all, Paimon exhaled and nervously laughed.
"So it was a farewell gift…Paimon was worried for a second there. But, wait…what was with that light that suddenly appeared?"
Just as Aether was about to explain what he saw, another familiar voice suddenly rang out.
"Ha! My, how quickly you forget about the Prinzessin der Verurteilung! Rejoice then, for she appears before you once again!"
Paimon's eyes went wide. It had been a while, but there was absolutely no mistaking the person that would go by that title, and so proudly too. Sure enough, from two levels up some flowing blonde hair appeared in full view. Without waiting, she jumped down from her position, skipped the area where Klee was, and finished her entrance by slamming her bow on the ground in front of the fountain.
"Fischl!" All three of them yelled in unison. Aether then continued "You're here too?"
"Through the tremendous power of my All-Seeing Eye, I was able to perceive a future where the noble adventurer left the region of tempest without his beloved compatriots seeing him off. Eager to prevent such a thing from transpiring, the Prinzessin der Verurteilung and her partner sought to gather everyone that has connected with you throughout these turbulent months."
"What she means," A black raven blipped into existence by her shoulder. "Is that Bennett and her told all of your friends that you're leaving Mondstadt and asked them to gather here."
Realizing what exactly was going on, Amber smiled while Aether shrunk a bit. "H-How did you know about this?"
"I can answer that." A cool voice coming from behind everyone said, surprising Aether as he didn't sense anyone nearby. They spun around and were greeted by none of than the Calvary Captain himself, Kaeya. Amused by the expressions of his three guests, he explained. "The walls of Mondstadt may protect us from outside dangers, but inside there's no containing how fast rumors fly. Especially when the person responsible for such stories happens to be an certain…infamous girl." At this he winked at Klee, still on the railing above who smiled right back.
"And with that said, enjoy yourself Aether." He let out a high pitched whistle at the finish, attracting everybody's attention. And it really meant everybody. In response to this sound, it was if a spell had been broken. A cavalcade of familiar faces appeared around every nearby corner of Mondstadt that there was.
Firstly Aether looked right at the alchemy table and saw an embarrassed Sucrose, Blanche and Timaeus himself walk around into view. From behind Klee on the second level Noelle and Barbara made themselves known (the blonde instantly assumed that they were there to guarantee Klee's safety from the earlier explosion). Where Fischl once stood appeared Bennett and Razor, both smiling down at the familiar faces. On the left emerged Mona and Sara, the former of whom had a slightly intense stare at the restaurant owner, most likely hoping for some discounted food.
"Aether look!" Amber tugged on his shoulder and directed his attention towards the Main Street behind Kaeya. The side door of Cat's Tail opened and out stepped the bartender Diona, Lisa, Marjorie, Rosaria…and in a true surprise, Eula, one of Amber's close friends.
An instant passed while everyone jostled around for proper position. Meanwhile Aether just stood there impressed and a little taken aback. "They…all came, huh?" A red blur appeared across his face as Paimon and Amber grew wide smiles, as if to say 'Of course they did.'
"It seems we're missing some people…" Kaeya, the apparent spokesperson of the group, went. "But nonetheless everyone, I hope you have a relaxing rest of the day."