dndkeg: I like the way you think. Amber and Yoimiya fighting over a certain someone lol.

Kaiser Spartan: Thank you for saying so!

Happy 1st anniversary Genshin. And thank you all for reading this little story!

"How do you spell his name again?"

"X-I-N-G-Q-I-U."

"Thanks! …Ok, and there. We. Go." A gloved hand then passed the piece of paper to the nearly woman behind a counter. The recipient of this letter heard a 'thank you' directed at her from the two voices, so she smiled politely and bowed back..

"Excellent. now that that's squared away here, we should only have one more stop to make. Again Amber, thanks for doing all this." Looking up, Aether was optimistic that they would have enough time to do everything they wanted to, it still looked mid-afternoon to his eyes.

"Hey, I agreed with you remember? Why wouldn't I help?"

The couple then proceeded to leave the bookshop via the bright red spiral staircase. Hand-in-hand, they walked underneath a nearby arch, turned left, and went up another flight of stairs, but not before they caught sight of some fishes swimming in the surrounding water.

Just before they reached the top though, Aether was struck by a feeling that he had been experiencing a lot today; the feeling of inefficiency. Indeed, he and Amber had actually swung by this area once before, but had went to Bubu Pharmacy instead to see a certain familiar zombie. But after delivering a different letter to her, the two had gone back to the main parts of Liyue instead of going to the upper level like they were now.

Honestly, this was because they were very scattered. Falling asleep together, however nice it had been, resulted in waking up late for both Outrider and ex-Honorary Knight alike. After cooking a quick breakfast, the two had dashed over to Liyue Harbor as quick as they could, arriving after noon. Unfortunately, after confirming with the people at the harbor that the Alcor (and Beidou, naturally) would be arriving by the evening from the Guyun Stone Forest, this left Aether with simply no time to try and see his friends from Liyue one last time.

Amber had picked up on this though, and was more than happy to help her boyfriend write a letter to each of them explaining what was happening. The messages were largely the same, only a few lines of difference from each one, but Aether still felt this was the right thing to do.

…But of course, writing them was one thing, delivering them was another thing entirely. In fact, to Aether, this really reinforced how different his circle of friends were between the two regions. In Mondstadt, the vast majority of people he knew were under the branch of either the Knights of Favonius or the Adventurer's Guild. There were few exceptions, like Diona and Razor (and even then, the wolf boy was willing to help out Bennett whenever) so he was able to find them all easily enough. But in Liyue? His friends were all over the place, with plenty of different jobs that occupied them. The director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, several adeptus, the aforementioned assistant at Bubu Pharmacy. Heck, he even knew the Tianquan herself (even though he wouldn't exactly call her a "friend"), which really shocked Amber.

"Why, hello dears." An elderly voice called out as soon as the trio reached the top of the stairs and went under another arch.

Amber didn't know who just said that, but Aether and Paimon did no problem. After all, it was none other than Madame Ping, bona-fide adepti and the creator of Aether's Serenitea Pot. Despite her age, she was a great ally, especially when Osial was threatening Liyue. But with that crisis past them, the old woman just spent her days enjoying the sights and sounds of the city.

"Madame Ping! Hi!" Paimon excitedly replied and waved.

"Ah, I see you've brought someone with you." Started the elder as Aether and Amber walked over. "It's nice to meet you, young lady."

"Hello! My name its Amber, Outrider of the Knights of Favonius." She bowed deeply, as this was their first time meeting.

Madam Ping wore a satisfied grin at this show of respect. "Oh,a Mondstadt Knight you say? Very impressive. Seeing such enthusiastic people like yourself…it brings a smile this old woman's face. If I may ask though, what brings the three of you around to my neck of the woods?"

Ignoring Paimon's smugness at not being left out from her headcount, Aether answered for them. "Well, we were hoping you could help us with something…" He pulled out a pair of letters and showed them off. "Letters for Yanfei and Xiao. If you could give these to them, I'd really appreciate it."

"Xiao and Yanfei you say?"

"That's right!" Paimon answered. "We've been all over Liyue already, but we haven't see her, so Paimon thinks she's probably away at the moment, working on another job. And as for Xiao…" The smiling fairy quickly gestured towards Aether and Amber. "Paimon thinks that this… wasn't quite what he meant when he said 'Call for me and I shall come'"

Laughing at the "Xiao voice" Paimon put on, a light shade of pink brushed against both of the couple's checks at the jape. Ever the astute one, Madame Ping noticed this and understood the true nature of their relationship, all without saying a word. This realization seemed to be all she needed, as Aether was promptly looking at an open hand, eager to accept the letters.

"Just like that?" He asked.

With a firm nod, "Don't worry, dear. Knowing Yanfei, she'll come to visit me again shortly. And as for Xiao…well, let's just say we adepti have many ways of contacting each other. I'll see him before long, you can believe that."

"Woah…" Paimon was in awe. "Thanks Madame Ping. You're always willing to help us out! First with the Serenitea Pot, and now with this!"

"Wait Paimon? What do you mean by that?" Amber questioned, resulting in Aether realizing something very important: he forgot to tell her who gave him the gift in the first place.

"Oh right, get this Amber! Madame Ping here actually made the Serenitea Pot all by herself!"

The archer was comically stunned at the revelation, evident by her facing the elder again and bowing much deeper this time. "Um, thank you very much ma'am! Your gift is a very nice place to go to, I love going there with Aether when I can."

Madam Ping herself looked a bit uncomfortable at the girl bowing before her, a rare sight. But she regained her signature composure soon enough and calmly corrected Paimon. "At ease child. Other adepti have their own versions of a pocket realm, and the Serenitea Pot is no exception. As your friend can tell you, Yanfei assisted us in providing the finishing touches."

Amber stood back up. "I understand…but still, thank you for giving him such a incredible gift."

With the conversation turned back to Aether, he realized that there was no further questions to ask, so the adventurer handed over the earlier messages they had written. But Madam Ping on the other hand wasn't quite done with her inquiry. "If I'm correct, you will be leaving Liyue shortly. I shall miss you in that case."

"What? How did you know?" Paimon was shocked. Unfortunately, Amber grew a barely perceivable frown at this part.

Sensing some feeling of sadness, she smiled back. "You were the ones who said you've been all over the city. If I may recommend somewhere to rest and enjoy yourselves, why don't you visit Wanmin Restaurant? I'm sure you've been there already, but their food is just delightful."

At the mention of one of the few Liyue places Amber recognized, she perked up with a new grin. "Oh yeah Wanmin! We went there when we visited last time." Not picking up on the soft relationship confirmation she just provided Madam Ping, she continued. "That's where…Xiangling works, wasn't it?"

Aether nodded, equally oblivious. "Yeah, I actually thought we might go there at some point anyway, so I didn't write a letter. We can just talk to her father if she's not there."

Paimon, ever excited about food, quickly agreed as well. "Yeah, Paimon is starving again, let's get something to eat!" Then, as if she suddenly remembered where she was, she turned back towards the adepti. "Thanks Madam Ping! See you again!'

Leaving Aether and Amber to quickly run after the fairy's movements. the elder laughed to herself as she instinctively drew her finger over the written messages. Seeing such a happy couple reminded her of her youth….those were the days…

-0-

"You know Paimon…I think we discovered your weakness. Er, when it comes to food I mean."

"Hey! Why are you saying that like Paimon has too many weaknesses to count?" She tried to continue a mini-rant, but was interrupted by a sudden burst of coughing. Automatically, Amber held out a cup of water for the tiny fairy to drink from, which she heartily did.

Aether chuckled a bit, it really felt like a pair of parents taking care of their kid. An embarrassing thought perhaps, which is precisely why he was just kept in his head. They had indeed taken up Madam Ping's offer and gone to Wanmim and ordered a late lunch there. Sadly while they talking to Xiangling (who was there helping much to their relief), Paimon got distracted by a whiff of "delicious food fitting for a gourmet like herself" and indulged in some extras. This wasn't necessarily a problem by itself…except for the fact that said meal was actually a plate of piping hot Jade Parcels, a popular dish of Liyue known for its' quality, but also the spiciness of one of it's prominent ingredients: the Jueyun chili peppers.

All of this is to say that after the trio left the restaurant, which included telling Xiangling about Aether's current plan of action, did Paimon start practically exhaling fire and smoke. Quickly they had gone to the area in between the docks, Adventurer's Guild, and the actual harbor part of town and took a rest. Of course Amber was happy to help for the actual retrieval of water for poor Paimon, but Aether was glancing at the sky again. Although still perfectly bright out, there were subtle shifts that told him that afternoon would give rise to evening sooner rather than later.

And for further proof of this, he only had to look towards the harbor and see a crowd of people begin to gather.

Hm? What are they-? That thought was halted when he looked out to the ocean as far as he possibly could. Squinting hard, Aether began to make out…a ship…approaching the harbor. It was then that he remembered what they had been told earlier that day: that Beidou was currently coming from the Guyun Stone Fore on the Alcor.

Looking back towards Amber and Paimon, he felt a frown of his own creep up on him, matching the expression on his girlfriend's face perfectly.

It was time. It was finally, finally, time to say goodbye.

"Hey Aether." Amber began, standing up after making sure Paimon had calmed down again. "Can I go inside the teapot again? I don't want to forget anything…."

The blonde nodded. He wasn't thinking about that actually, but it made sense. Who knows when he would be back? Anything she'd left behind in Aether's realm would stay there until his return. With that squared away, he gestured Amber to follow him under the big wooden structure just stood before the actual docks section. This way, no passerby would become concerned with the suddenly-disappearing archer.

After setting it down and giving Amber the all-clear to go inside, Aether felt the strange need to not look at the actual process of what was going on, despite his earlier wonders with Eula. Suppose it's just to keep the magic alive, hm. With a self-satisfied grin, he stepped out into the waning afternoon light and just waited.

In hindsight, maybe that was a mistake. As Paimon wasn't in a particularly chatty mood thanks to the 'chili episode', there was nothing for Aether to do but just stand out and try not to look at the ever-approaching ship. The gathering of people by the sea seemed to only grow larger, as more sailors arrived to move their own vessels out of the way, forcing him to find anything else to look at. But unfortunately for the man, what DID catch his eye was instead something that he had long since forgotten about.

At the base of one of the sides for the structure Aether was currently in front of…were a pair of missing person posters, facing the direction of the town, just to make sure anyonee would notice them.

A scowl overtook Aether's face as he looked at the one on the left:

"Looking for a missing young female. Has blonde hair, wears exotic clothes. Any information is greatly welcomed. If you have any information, please approach your nearest Millelith soldier, or report the matter directly to the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Thank you."

Yeah right. As if Lumine is just going to randomly show up in Liyue again. Honestly, there was a part of Aether's mind that told him it'd be best to just remove the posters, by himself or by getting in contact with Keqing, Ganyu, or Ningguang. After all, he knew where his sister was…with the Abyss, no doubt with the Herald by her side. There really was no reason to keep the papers up, he wasn't even planning to ask about putting up posters in Inazuma after all… but he just didn't have the heart to take them down here. It was naive, he knew, but if someone DID see Lumine in Liyue again…Aether shook his head. No. Impossible. Stop thinking about this.

To distract himself, he turned his attention to the poster directly adjacent to the Lumine one. His face still wore a frown, but it began to soften up somewhat due to the lack of familiarity with this individual. Similar to his own letters, the actual writing on the paper was very similar, just with the description of "young female" and "exotic clothes" replaced with "older male" and "Liyue or Mondstadt attire". The reason the description was so lacking had to do with no one seeing this individual…for more than four years.

Amber's grandfather. That who was on this poster. It took some convincing (and some lying about what really happened to the Grand Thief), but Aether was able to talk Ganyu into putting them up alongside his own when he was here last time to receive the teapot. But…Amber was right when she voiced her concerns about this plan. No one had contacted the Adventurer's Guild about any kind of lead…to say it was a bit demoralizing would be an understatement. Sometime since he had asked for permission, Aether had realized a critical misconception: Her grandfather disappeared from Mondstadt four years ago, but who knows if he had gone back to Liyue since? He could've left the place a decade ago for all the adventurer knew…

Aether looked at the horizon where the sun was going to disappear behind the water and whispered a familiar thought.

"Who are you…? Why did you just leave Mondstadt and your granddaughter behind? Do…you have any plans to return?"

Answers didn't come…but an erratic part of Aether's mind spewed out a possibility he hadn't considered. What if…he can't go back? If he's in Inazuma, then…!

He wanted to give the sudden thought more consideration, but there was a familiar sound behind him. "Hey Aether, I'm back!" Turning around, there was Amber with the teapot in hand. She noticed the atmosphere surrounding her had become a bit gloomy, "What's up here?"

A sudden dilemma hit him as he had to quickly choose whether to tell Amber what he just was thinking about her grandfather. There's no way she's considered that he went to Inazuma…should I mention it?

But would that bring nothing but false hope?

There was no actual evidence that her grandfather was there after all, he literally came up with the theory a minute ago. And now he was facing a situation with no 'right' answer. Aether didn't want to lie to his girlfriend, but he also didn't want to give her false expectations.

However he had no more time to think, for he saw her mouth begin to start moving, likely to make sure he was still all there. Nothing else for it…

"I was just thinking…what if your grandfather went to Inazuma? Could that be a possibility?"

As expected, both archer's and fairy's mouth fell open in a gape, vindicating Aether. She really didn't think of it huh? Amber silently sunk to the stone ground and scooted against the pillar, as Aether followed her movements, sitting right beside her. She looked hesitant to comment on his idea, so he went first.

"I'm sorry… I couldn't lie…"

"No, it's okay." She shook her head solemnly, but smiled at him through it. "Thank you for telling me. I guess…I just never thought about it. Every region you go to will be another chance for find him, huh?"

Aether nodded. Not even he was thinking that far ahead, but it was true in a way. If her grandfather was still alive and had settled down in Teyvat far away from Mondstadt…well, he would find him, no matter where it was.

Amber put her head in her knees. "I just…I want to know why he vanished. Even if I never actually see him again-"

But that thought alone was more enough for Aether to act. He got in front of Amber and put both his hands on her shoulders. The archer showed no signs of shrinking at his face being so close to hers and merely looked back directly into his eyes, hanging on his next words.

"Your grandfather…In a way, I actually feel bad for him. He missed his own granddaughter grow into the best Outrider in all of the Knights." He breathed out as a pink tinge grew on his cheeks. I can't promise I'll find him…but I certainly can promise that I'll try my hardest to look. Taking on requests seem to be my specialty after all." Smiling just a bit at the joke, Aether felt a wave of relief crash on him as Amber's lips curled upwards.

"…Thank you."

-0-

Liyue Harbor was as ever packed…but even more so today with the Alcor right on port. After all, their captain, the esteemed Beidou popular with everyone, was back. Male or female, young and old, it didn't matter, the port was swarmed. In addition, people were eager to find the mysterious outcast from Inazuma himself, Kaedehara Kazuha. Or try to anyway, but the young man was extremely proficient with hiding among the winds, fitting for one gifted with an Anemo vision. None of this, though, did anything to convince the Liyue mobs that trying to find him was maybe not the best idea, and were currently overtaking the harbor as a result.

All of this was leading to an unfortunate situation for Aether and Amber, still back on the steps to give themselves some breathing room. They wanted to have at least have one final moment together, but that was simply impossible with everybody here. Maybe they should go back up top-

"Clear the way! Move aside."

At that call, e sea of people was cleaved in two as the aforementioned captain confidently walked through the area. It took her only an instant to spot the blonde sitting down and start heading in his direction.

"There you are! Sorry for the wait." She chuckled. "Takes a while for the crew to find their way through this crowd. Oh, and who are you?"

That question was of course directed towards Amber, who bolted up from her seat and bowed deeply, clearly taken aback by the Electro-wielder's sheer presence.

"A-ah, my name is Amber, Outright for the Knights of Favonius. I came here with Aether to see him off on his journey to Inazuma."

Satisfied with that answer, Beidou turned back to him. "Well, you're certainly impressive, ain'tcha? Making friends with a Mondstadt Knight, eh?" But then she noticed the bitter smile across his face…and put the facts together. "Ohhh, I see how it is now. Very interesting indeed."

"And let me guess, you two want some time alone to talk before we set off." It was really a question, but Aether treated it as one.

"How did you know?"

Beidou crossed her arms. "This isn't the first time I've had to deal with this, and it won't be the last." Then, as if she knew exactly what the two were thinking, she suddenly shouted in a different direction entirely. "Hey! You two!"

Standing in from of a pile of lumber right across from the trio was a pair of men talking, being seemingly rooted to the ground. At Beidou's call however, they might as well have been lifelong crew mates instead, the way they instantly snapped to attention. The captain said something Aether didn't pay the most attention to, but he did hear words like "restocking" and "long journey". At the end, the two strangers walked (more like marched) up the steps, passing a stumped Aether, Amber and Paimon.

"There." Beidou pointed to a path in between the bundles of wood, which led to a small area beneath the stairs. "It's not much, but you should be able to say what you want there without anyone overhearing. Unless you want to be weird and go back to town again." With a smirk, she turned her back on them, not hearing any complaints.

Aether looked at the other two curiously. "Well, if Captain Beidou is offering…"

-0-

"Ooh Paimon feels so sneaky~ Hiding behind some rocks in plain sight…it really feels like a super secret operation!"

"Paimon, that's only because you're so small." It was actually Amber who giggled that out, earning a 'hmph' from the victim and a laugh from Aether.

"I mean, this isn't really that hidden…" The boy looked up at the stairs they had just come from. "But I do appreciate Beidou's efforts, there is something I have to tell…the both of you, actually."

Paimon wasn't expecting that all, she nearly stopped floating. What could Aether know that she didn't? But of course, Aether was given a warning, one that he knew he had to tell Amber about, even though it would undoubtedly make her worry more.

"Yesterday, when we were in Mondstadt, I ended up meeting Mona, Kaeya, and Rosaria at Angel's Share."

"Mona?" Amber asked. "The astrologist?"

"Yes, and she can read your destiny too. To make a long story short, she read mine…and…" He looked directly at the two. "Paimon, we need to be extremely careful in Inazuma."

"W-We do? Why?"

"She predicted that I will meet somebody that I already know…someone that tried to harm me before."

Paimon covered her mouth, but Amber didn't gasp and just returned his look of determination. There was no need to speak a name, they both knew who…or what they were each thinking of.

The only enemy that had managed to best both of them, albeit during separate battles: The Abyss Herald…and more broadly, Lumine.

There was a heavy silence in the air, completely removing any earlier sadness of the separation. Unsurprisingly though, it was Amber who asked a question, but it was one that Aether didn't see coming.

"Aether…are you still practicing your archery?"

O-Oh right, of course. The blonde remembered all the hours of frustration he had put in under Amber's tutelage. It had started to pay off, he felt, he now could hit stationary targets from a fair distance away. Of course, Aether was always going to be a swordsman at heart, but knowing a ranged skill could easily prove useful, especially in an unfamiliar land. "Yes, I am."

The archer's serious face broke into a small smile. "Good…if knowing the bow can help keep you safe, then…then I'll can't think of anything better to give."

"…Amber…you…"

Tears started to form in the corner, so she closed her eyes and grew a blinding smile. "Go then~ Go to Inazuma, find out everything you can about Lumine and the Abyss, and…and…"

Aether inhaled as he listened and held himself back for just a moment longer.

"Please…return to me safely…promise-"

No need for another word. Aether closed the distance between the two of them in a flash, putting an arm around her back. Feeling the ever-comforting warmth from her body, he paused for a second while she looked at him…and nodded ever so slightly.

"You really are…the best Outrider in the world."

The two leaned in equal measure, only stopping when they felt the familiar taste of each other's lips.

-0-

I met a strange outlander today.

"Paiiimooonnn! Take care of Aether!" Amber shouted over the sea, both hands waving above her head.

"Paimon will! You can bet on it!" Paimon bellowed back from the shrinking boat.

I was suspicious at first, but as it turns out, this outlander is both reliable and capable!

"Aether! I'll see you real soon, right?"

"You…you know it!" Wiping his eyes with his arm, Aether couldn't afford to let his vision blur now, he wanted to burn this view into his memory forever.

I believe in them all the way! Whatever Aether and Paimon set their mind to, they can achieve it!

"….ve you!"

"What?" Aether yelled. It was getting hard to hear over the waves… Paimon smirked.

…You two changed my life, showed me the world beyond Mondstadt. There were, and are, plenty of challenges to overcome, but I'm glad we experienced it together!

"I love you!"

Despite the moonlight's cool glow, Aether felt his face grow hot and an overwhelming urge to respond, not caring in the slightest about who was listening in.

"I love you too!"

Here's to many more adventures in the future!

-Amber

In the Serenitea Pot, in a certain bedroom, lay a passionate letter, it's contents just waiting to be read.

There is one final story with these two I plan to tell, but until then, thank you all once again!