RANJI AND RUHIG

(rather soon after Lumine fixed Stormterror)

Lutsen

"Sir Kaeya. Good morning. "

"Sir Lutsen. What was it we were supposed to be working on today? Because if it's nothing important, then I say we go to the tavern~ Surely Jean wouldn't mind if we took a day off. After all, now that the Stormterror debacle has been dealt with, I say we've earned it!"

Kaeya and Lutsen had become friends in the years spent dealing with the storms and panicking Mondstadt folk. Their jobs were highly different, but it hadn't stopped them from finding time to get to know each other between shifts. They had spent time sparring in the cool mornings before the sun got unbearably warm.

Today they were supposed to be exterminating hilichurl camps close by the city, which Kaeya undoubtedly knew. The two of them just had a different plan. Master Jean had expressed wanting to meet Lumine, so they were off to find her. Kaeya had mentioned that she was friends with Venti, so they assumed that the both of them would be hanging out somewhere together. Their first assumption would be the courtyard by the Barbatos statue. Venti often performed there, despite his unique dislike of the… decoration. It was well known that he was the only native person in all of Mondstadt to have something against the statue. Everyone else loved it.

Though, of course, there were always the rumors that Venti wasn't actually Mondstatian. It would explain the dislike of the statue. Many visitors from the other nations scorned their unseen god. They called him lazy and judged the people of Mondstadt for their faith in the Anemo Archon. These disgusted visitors often revised their opinions as soon as the nearest festival rolled around, it was hard to dispute the magic of Mondstadt when you were drunk out of your mind.

;

Sure to expectation, Venti was exactly where they had assumed he would be. What was not expected was that he wasn't the one performing. The young woman, Lumine, was singing. It was a beautiful song, though Lutsen didn't understand the lyrics. It was in a language he had never heard before. As Lumine sang, the air around her seemed to shine. Kaeya's eye widened and a grin spread across his face. He began to whisper along with her words. The language was elegant, and the words blurred together as he sang.

They approached the duo, and Lumine turned to Kaeya with a smile. It was obvious that she was very fond of him, and Kaeya was certainly being clear with his emotions for once. Kaeya was beaming, and he went right in for a hug when he got to Lumine. A hug that she returned just as enthusiastically. Lumine started telling Kaeya about someone called Ranji. Apparently, she was now nine years old and the most adorable thing ever. Oh, and she missed Kaeya and wanted to visit Mondstadt.

And Lutsen suddenly realised that the Captain had more family than just Diluc. (We're halfway theeere! Aaaahaahhh! We'll make it sweaaaeer! Halfway done chapter mark! XD) He had never heard of another Ragnivindr sibling, but they were a rather mysterious family. That, or Ranji was from wherever Kaeya was from. But how would he know who she was? Kaeya hadn't left Mondstadt in years. He turned back to the conversation.

"-everything she does is so certain, every decision is fully thought over before it's executed. She's a wonderful team leader, all the other children follow her around like ducklings in a row. It's the cutest thing. She misses you Kaeya."

It was a relief to see that Venti looked just as confused as Lutsen felt. Apparently even close friends of Kaeya didn't know he had a sister. It made him wonder what kind of relationship the captain had with Lumine. How close did you have to be to be privy to the secrets of his family?

Lumine suddenly turned to look at Lutsen. "I am so sorry, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Lumine, from Sternenlicht. And you are?" She was soft spoken and polite, but that was normal. What wasn't normal was that she said she was from a mythological city! HOW COULD YOU BE FROM A MYTHOLOGICAL CITY?! Was Kaeya from a mythological city? Lutsen realized he hadn't answered yet.

"I'm, uuhhh, Lutsen Morgen. From Springvale. What brings you here Miss Lumine?" When in doubt, be polite. That was what his mother taught him. And his mother had lived a highly successful life, it was best to listen to her. Whenever anyone did the opposite of what his mother said, it never worked out for them.

"It's nice to meet you Lutsen! I'm here looking for my brother! He has long blond hair and wears exotic clothes? He's probably got a little flying companion following him around?"

This woman was crazy. Possibly even more so than Kaeya. (Maybe it was natural for everyone in the city they came from?) At least he knew what was plausible to exist and what wasn't. Little flying people were not real. There was simply no room in the world for such nonsense. Perhaps the loss of her brother had caused her to go wacky. It wasn't the first time he had seen it.

They would have to put up notices. Missing person posters. There wasn't much else they could do for her, but after she had helped with Stormterror, they owed her to help how they could.

"If you could describe your brother, Miss Lumine, Outrider Amber will be able to help you put up some posters. I'm afraid there isn't much else we can do for you. Are you in need of lodging and/or work?" This kind of problem wasn't part of Lutsen's job, but he couldn't imagine if little Ruhig was taken or lost. His little sister was the light of his life. He couldn't imagine living without her. Even the short distance between Mondstadt and Springvale made visiting much harder.

So while this wasn't exactly his job, he couldn't help but feel as if it would be a horror not to help.

-;-

*I'm using the meaning calm for ruhig