Chapter Twenty

If Acting Grand Master Jean ever decided to remodel the Knights of Favonius Headquarters, Noelle was most definitely advocating for the gently swinging tree house style of Gandharva Ville. She was enchanted by the leafy dwellings.

Clasping her hands together, she sighed wistfully as they walked carefully through the Forest Ranger village. "Don't they look so peaceful?"

Kaeya raised a skeptical eyebrow. "I suppose… until you realize how thin the support rope is."

Albedo added, "And the fact that normal citizens without Visions have no way of reaching them."

Thoughtfully Diluc considered the nearest swaying house. "Perhaps… but that does make it highly defensible." His eyes brightened slightly at the thought, and Noelle was encouraged. If Diluc liked the idea, perhaps she had a shot at convincing Master Jean.

After a moment, Albedo nodded. "You are indeed correct. If the dwelling was assembled under your direct supervision and you were able to verify the load-bearing capabilities of the hanging apparatus, as well as the structural soundness of the house itself when stressed, it could potentially be a very secure and defensive location."

"That, um… that sounds lovely!" Noelle chirped. She had a vague idea of what Albedo had just said, but when he started to devolve into technical details, only Sucrose had any hope of following his brilliant mind.

The alchemist blinking, then held his hand to his mouth in thought. Carefully he said, "If you built it yourself, you would know how strong it is." He looked inordinately pleased with himself for the concise explanation.

Kaeya chuckled. "Has Klee been asking you for more understandable sentences, Albedo?"

Albedo nodded. His accent gave his words a slightly more pronounced drawl as he said, "Most of the time Klee struggles to follow the conversations of adults, but I think Lisa has been hinting to her that my language can get overly technical at times." He didn't seem bothered by the possibility.

A Forest Ranger approached the group. "Hello there! You look like you're new in town!"

"Yes, we are!" Noelle offered a graceful curtsy, and added, "Noelle, Maid of the Knights of Favonius, at your service!"

The man looked a little taken aback, but he grinned at them. "Nice to meet you! I'm Amir. I take care of the rescue dogs."

With that single statement, he captured the complete attention of the entire team.

"Rescue dogs?"

"Of course! We keep them on hand to search for unwary visitors who get lost in the rainforest. They're smart, gentle, and very friendly! Want to come meet them?"

That was all he had to say.

When they reached the edge of the village and saw the dogs tumbling and roughhousing, Amir flushed slightly. "I-I'm sorry, they haven't been out on a run yet today, so they still have plenty of energy. They're well-trained, though! Don't worry, they won't jump up on you."

Noelle was too busy cooing over the adorable animals. "Oh, may I pet them?"

"Of course! We work hard to make sure our dogs interact well with strangers, so it's good for them to be around new people. It's an important aspect of their job, after all." Amir stepped back, his hands on his hips proudly. He kept a careful eye on his charges, though, ready to jump in at a moment's notice.

Each member of the group reacted differently to the dogs. Albedo hung back and whipped out his sketchbook, his charcoal pencil flying across the paper as he drew. Kaeya watched for a moment, then tackled the most energetic dog, playfully wrestling it with shouts of laughter.

Noelle had her arms wrapped around one of the huskies when she noticed the way Diluc was eyeing the nearest dog. His arms were crossed, and Noelle felt a flash of pity. She stood quickly and stepped closer to him. "Master Diluc, it's all right to feel uneasy around dogs. Not everyone is comfortable with them, you know."

His brows shot up, and he blinked at her. "I'm not afraid of them."

Hastily Noelle backtracked. "Erm, I didn't say you were. I just meant that—"

Diluc interrupted her by crouching down next to the husky she'd been hugging. With expert hands, he rubbed right behind the dog's ears, prompting a low groan of delight from the animal. It leaned into his knee, bright eyes begging for more. He obliged by running a gloved hand lightly across its head. He glanced up at Noelle's bewildered face. "I was just considering buying a few more dogs for the Dawn Winery." His eyes softened as he continued stroking the dog, whose tail was thumping gleefully against the dirt path. "Sometimes I feel that animals are easier to handle than people." He stood up and dusted himself off, still with a slight smile on his face.

When the tall redhead strode off to talk to Amir, Noelle remarked to Kaeya with astonishment, "I didn't know that Master Diluc had a soft spot for animals!"

Kaeya pushed his wrestling partner away for a moment and just scratched under the dog's chin. He glanced up at Noelle and said mildly, "You haven't noticed how much he dotes on that falcon of his? It's the only time I see him smile these days." The slight hint of regret in his voice was lost on Noelle.

She clasped her hands under her chin. "How adorable!"

The Cavalry Captain blinked (or winked, she wasn't sure which). "That's adorable? You know I smile far more than our dramatically moody leader, right?"

She chuckled. "I know. It's just sweet that he opens up so much to his animals." One of the dogs barked endearingly for her attention, and she lost her train of thought. "Do you think the Honorary Knight would consider it a wise use of Mora if we bought a dog for the team?"

Kaeya gave the idea some serious thought, then shook his head with a sigh. "Probably not, more's the pity. Oh, I have an idea! We could write a group letter explaining the benefits of a dog as a pet, and why we should have one to take with us! So we can pet it! Lots of petting!"

Noelle nodded so hard she nearly gave herself a headache. "Yes! There's not enough appreciation for dogs in Teyvat!"

Kaeya huffed dramatically. "You can say that again! Lumine was just complaining to me the other day about how hard it is to pet dogs in Teyvat. Clearly, there is something majorly wrong with our society when you can't even pet the dogs."

No one could disagree with that statement.