I have an explanation for this, hear me out. For now, please enjoy this very, very long overdue chapter.

4.1 notwithstanding that is...

Foreword: I apologize for the quality of this chapter. I fully admit it's not up to snuff with the rest but I hope it suffices for what comes next.

Disclaimer: Genshin Impact and its characters belong to Mi-hoyo and Hoyoverse; I own nothing.

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"I said no."

"And I'm saying yes. Who are you to tell me what I can and cannot do?" Furina insisted, folding her arms with a huff.

Aether groaned inwardly. Who would've thought the of all the things the hydro archon would become stubborn about was a blubberbeast. Granted it was Berrypuff but still.

"Arf!" said blubberbeast barked at him, floating contently by Furina's side. The archon hadn't let go of him since leaving the aquarium making a comical attempt at wrapping her arms around his bulbous form.

It was taking everything Aether had not to whip out his kamera and snap some quick shots of such a sight.

"You're not helping," Aether said sternly, feeling a pang of guilt watching the blubberbeast wither slightly. "Ok, let's break it down from the top. You want to keep Berrypuff as a pet?"

"I thought such a notion would be obvious," the god huffed at him, hugging the blubberbeast tighter with a rebellious look on her face. "Who's to tell me otherwise? You, Traveler? Must I remind you of the difference in our status?"

The blond's eyebrow twitched. Typical Furina sassiness. He'd been a little worried that the smiling, giggling girl playing with the sea creature earlier had switched places with the archon he'd become so familiar with at some point.

I still can't decide if I'm relieved or disappointed about that...

"Setting aside the fact you'd likely get away with it – somehow – how do you plan on taking care of him? Last I saw, the Palais doesn't have a large tank for him to swim in," Aether pointed out, putting his hands on his hips.

"And Paimon can't really imagine Berrypuff waddling around on land all that much… ok she can, but that's beside the point!" the little fairy girl exclaimed, shaking her head after a moment.

Furina blinked twice, processing this newfound instance with a quick glance to her new makeshift teddy bear. "That is true..." she admitted calmly before offering them a proud smile. "I'll just have to build him one!"

Aether gaped at the archon, blinking rapidly.

She couldn't be serious... No, she was serious!

"You're going to build one?" Paimon questioned, disbelief scrawled across her face.

Furina scoffed at the mere thought of such a thing. "Oh heavens no. I'll just commission some of the gardes to do it. They are always seeking my approval so they should take to this new endeavor with gusto! And if it's about food, then rest assured I'll have my personal chefs whipping up the finest fish for consumption. Grilled, flambéed, or raw, I shall ensure he'll never go hungry."

"That's not the-!" Aether tried to point out, but Furina wasn't through.

"And it should go without saying that wherever I go, he shall as well. Though I'll need to arrange for a throne of his own to be built alongside mine since having him in my lap would be… uncomfortable."

"Hehe, Paimon's already imagining what something like that would look like," the floating girl giggled. "The look on Neuvillette's face would be priceless."

Aaaand now I'm doing it, Aether thought, struggling to rein in his own amusement at the mental image. Would make court trials more interesting, that's for sure.

Even stranger, now Aether had the lingering image of Furina sneaking an otter of all things into the opera house shouting "Otter in the court!" or something along those lines...

Berrypuff suddenly barked excitedly, squirming in Furina's grasp until the archon was forced to let him go. "H-hey, what are you-?" Her voice trailed off, prompting Aether to follow her gaze.

Sure enough, Berrypuff was quickly swimming away in the direction of an even larger, glowing blubberbeast that gave its own excited barks.

"Oh, Paimon was wondering where that one was! Weird how it didn't come along with Berrypuff too, but it makes sense now."

"They can get… even bigger?" Furina questioned, eyes widening.

"Still want one as a pet?" Aether pressed, hoping that she might change her mind at last. After all, how could she possibly hope to take care of something that could grow to the size of a small house?

"Of course!" Furina shouted at him, startling him. Her gaze returned to the happy pair of blubberbeasts playing together, her eyes softening a bit at the sight. "But… wouldn't it be cruel to separate them?"

Aether gave her a sidelong glance, lifting an eyebrow at her. She was being oddly considerate all of a sudden, especially given her bout of rebelliousness from before. What's more, was that a tone of… loneliness he heard in her voice?

The full weight of that last bit hit him with as much force as a Lawachurl's punch.

Stupid. Of course she'd be lonely. Otherwise she wouldn't have been crying like that before.

"Taking them away might be," Aether said cautiously, not missing how the girl flinched next to him. "…but there's no reason you can't play with them together, is there?"

The god turned to him in shock as if she hadn't even considered the possibility – for all he knew, that might've been the case. The hydro archon had shown that she was quick to assume things both about others and even herself. But the wave of relief that washed across her face was enough to lighten his heart a bit. "Yes… Yes, of course. And they should be honored that their deity lowers herself to frolic with them."

"Frolic?" Aether parroted, letting his voice take on a teasing tone and hoping it wasn't too soon for that.

Given how the blue-haired god's cheeks puffed up at that remark, it wasn't. "Don't you start." Furina gave the pair one last look before she gave a sigh, turning in place to start swimming away. "Come Traveler, let us leave them be for now."

"Alright. Paimon!"

"Coming~!"

Aether made to start after Furina, only for something massive to literally bowl him out of the way.

"Arf, arf, arf!"

Aether recovered just in time to watch Berrypuff and his much larger friend swim up to the bewildered young archon, nuzzling her affectionately even as she ordered them to stop. They blissfully ignored her, gradually melting her yelps into giggles.

"T-Traveler help meee!" she whined in between bouts of laughter.

Instead, Aether just folded his arms and chuckled. "That'll teach you to leave without saying goodbye."

Beside him, Paimon mirrored him and nodded. "Lessons learned. Still, Paimon's really happy she and Berrypuff got along so well. She needs more friends in her life like that."

Friends.

His first instinct was to point out that she already had friends, but something kept his tongue. Sure, they were but were they still…?

Once again the question reared its ugly head:

What was Furina to him?

"Arf!"

"Bwah!"

Then he found himself on the receiving end of an assault of nuzzles from the Blubberbeasts along with a few affectionate licks; Paimon too, much to her ire.

"G-gah! Don't lick Paimon out of nowhere like that you guys! Give her some warning first!"

"Well, well, now isn't this a sorry sight?" Furina drawled, her previous flustered state since settled and replaced by one of her own amusement at their plight. "The mighty Traveler laid low by some mere beast. Oh how the people would talk were they to witness such a thing."

"This was your doing, wasn't it?" Aether grumbled, trying to shove the blubberbeast back.

"I claim no responsibility for the actions of my subjects," the god said with a smug smile. "That said, I shan't disprove of them."

This brat.

Berrypuff gave him one long final lick across the face before swimming away with its friend, giving a few barks in parting, leaving the trio alone once again.

"Well, what now?" Paimon asked before giving a gasp. "Wow! Is it already sunset?"

Aether blinked, looking around to find that the tint of their surroundings had shifted to a bright orange, indicating such. Just how long had they been underwater like this? "Time really flies when you're having fun, huh?"

The little girl nodded. "Mhm. Well, we should get Furina back up to the surface then. The gardes are probably throwing a fit wondering where she is by now."

"NO!"

Aether stilled, shooting a stunned look back at Furina who was glaring at the two of them. "Furina...?"

The archon seemed to realize her outburst and blinked, clearing her throat for a second before she went on more calmly. "I-I mean, where is the rush? There is no reason I cannot take my time with returning after all."

"But won't Neuvillette or Clorinde worry about you?" Paimon asked, putting her hands behind her back and cocking her head to the side.

Furina crossed her arms with a huff. "They are ones the subject to my whims, not the other way around. Now enough with such prattle. The night is still young after all and I grow bored."

"But! But we've done pretty much everything! What else is there?" Paimon complained, shrugging expressively.

Aether cupped his chin in thought, trying to think of something – anything that would ensure they wouldn't need to part so soon. After all, Furina was right but there was something else to her words, something unsaid.

But only now was he beginning to understand what it was.

Furina had proven to be much more adventurous than he initially thought, so what if…?

"How about a domain?"

Both Furina and Paimon turned him in shock though for different reasons; the archon's was of interest while Paimon practically launched herself into his face, beligerent.

"What?! Are you crazy!? We can't take her in there!"

"Why not?"

"Because… because…" the fairy girl stuttered, scrambling for an excuse. Other than the obvious unspoken one:

Because she'd slow us down.

While that might've been true when they first set out, having seen Furina in action, Aether knew that having her along wouldn't hamper them much. If anything, having someone else as backup would be much better than tackling one alone. Sure, he'd done it countless times before but backup was always welcome, even if it was from a sheltered archon.

"A domain, you say?" Furina stated, giving her own two mora. "Seems great minds do indeed think alike."

"Wait a second Furina! You want to do this too?!" Paimon exclaimed, flying over to the god.

"But of course. I've long since been fascinated with such realms. Is it so surprising that the whispers of my citizens have reached mine ears about such things?"

"Then how didn't you know about the treasure hoarders earlier?" Paimon deadpanned.

Furina coughed into her hand, blushing a bit at her blunder. "L-let's not dwell on such miniscule details, yes? I trust you know of one nearby?"

"Sure, there's not one far from here," Aether supplied, growing excited at the thought of running through one with Furina. "It's a bit tricky to traverse but nothing we can't handle."

However, instead of sharing his enthusiasm, Furina seemed to deflate that, her beaming smile replaced with a sullen look. "Oh… so you've already explored it. That won't do."

"Hold on, Paimon's confused. Why is that a deal breaker? We know where a domain is – well a lot of them actually, but that's beside the point! Why should whether it's explored or not matter?"

Like a child throwing a tantrum, Furina stomped her foot in place even though her foot hit nothing but air since they were still, you know, floating like they were. "It absolutely matters! Are we not adventurers? Shouldn't we be in search of new, unknown terrain rather than those already tread? Is that not the purpose of your guild?"

She thinks of herself as an adventurer already? Aether thought, surprised by the admission. He wasn't offended by the presumption even though probably anyone else worth their salt would've. Rather, he felt rather flattered that someone as proud as her had concluded such based on just a few encounters.

But that statement wasn't accurate, however.

All the more reason to find one, then.

"TIn that case... I think I might know where we can find one."

Paimon whirled on him, bewildered. "WHAT. What do you mean?! How come you know and Paimon doesn't!?"

But Furina was already shoving the fairy girl out of the way. "Oh? How fortunate, Traveler. I suppose you wouldn't mind the honor of leading me there, would you?" the god said, smiling at him in a way that left him both excited and nervous.

Even so, he mirrored it with as much confidence as he could muster. "By your leave, my lady."

Furina's blush came once more but instead of being left flustered, she merely swam up to him and held out her hand for him to take.

He didn't need any words from her by this point, and with their destination in mind, he started to swim away with Furina in tow, unconsciously tightening his hold on her hand.

He almost missed Paimon's yell after them when he felt Furina squeeze his hand back.

It was clear to him now – Furina didn't want this day to end so soon.

At this point, neither did he.

"Hey, where are you guys going?! Wait… HEY, don't leave Paimon behind!"

The God of Hydro was rapidly growing annoyed. Why? Because it was proving rather difficult to find the massive rune-sealed door that denoted the presence of a domain. The only solace was that the other two were having just as difficult of a time but that meant little to her.

Finding this domain was paramount to her right now even if she had to raise the depths. If she couldn't, then this excursion with the Traveler – with Aether, she corrected herself mentally – would come to a close and that simply would not do. There was still something she had to confirm even if the signs were clear as day.

No, that mattered little to Furina.

I have to hear it from him! I'll accept nothing but his capitulation!

"Hey, over here! Paimon might've found something!" the little fairy girl called out from nearby.

Furina's heart leapt up into throat as if planning to throw itself overboard, all but dashing her way over to where the Traveler's trusted companion was. But all she found was a massive boulder with eerie blue veins scrawled across its surface. "If this is some sort of jest it is in poor test," Furina chastised, unamused.

"It's not a joke! Aether knows too!" Paimon argued, turning to the Traveler for aid. "Quick, find an aberrant creature!"

"An aberrant what?" Furina demanded, shooting an expectant look after Aether but the blond was already swimming away.

"On it! Wait there Furina!"

"And just what am I supposed to be waiting for?!"

But the two of them were already going back and forth shouting various things about a creature of some sort all the while the archon floated there, crossing her arms petulantly.

Glaring out of the corner eye at the boulder, she did her best attempt at obliterating it with her gaze alone to no avail. The boulder didn't react, silent of course but she could somehow feel it mocking her.

She was about to pull out her blade to give it what for when Paimon suddenly exploded into a frenzy. "There, there! Aether get it!"

"I'm trying!" the blond called out from nearby, soon coming into view chasing something she honestly didn't expect.

A glowing blue crab… the same hue as that of Berrypuff's friend earlier.

Was that an aberrant?

Said crab was scuttling about, somehow managing to evade Aether's whip, something she'd seen him use to great effect earlier against some clockwork meka they'd run across.

"Come on Aether, get it already!"

The blond lashed out with the whip, the blueish-silver strand snaking its way toward the crab only for the crab to juke the whip, scuttling along its path once more. The blond gave chase, repeating the process with similar results.

This was obviously going nowhere.

Her irritation spiking, Furina began to swim over to cut off the scrambling creature. "That's beast holds the means to break this boulder, right!?"

"Yeah!"

"Then step aside and let me," Furina shouted back, cocking her fist back and lashing out in much the same way Aether had taught her to do. She'd done this a couple times already but this would be the first time she'd use it against another being.

The liquid lasso sprang forth from the tip of her finger tips, snaking its way to the crab that somehow still managed to avoid the strike.

But far from deterred, it only infuriated the god. There was no way she was about to let a crab of all things get in the way of all her plans!

"You will submit to me, creature, or I'll have you for supper!" she declared, giving chase to the crab. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Aether doing his best to corral the aberrant crab so either of them could capture it.

She also didn't miss the cocky little smirk he flashed her as he swam past her.

So, he wished to be trounced yet again? She'd gleefully oblige if so!

Soon enough her irritation turned to excitement, Furina utilizing all her prowess to impede Aether just as he did so to her but there was little malice. Any outsider would clearly be able to tell it was but a friendly contest between the two of them, evident by the smiles on their faces.

The crab on the other hand still fled for its dear life, as if it truly believed Furina's threat earlier. But all too soon its luck seemed to finally run out. The creature appeared to stumble on something, toppling over on its side, its legs wiggling madly in the air for any kind of purchase.

"I have you now!" Furina crowed, her strand slithering forth to constrict the crab. Within moments its form lit up in a muted blue flash, and like that Furina felt a swell of power surge through her entire being.

"Yeah, nice one Furina! Now hit that boulder!" Paimon instructed, pointing at the boulder.

"Oh, I'll do more than hit it," Furina growled with a devious smile, calling upon the power within her. As though being bathed in the holiest of waters, the power answered her and focused itself to her hand, her white glove glowing a bright blue. "Now break!"

With a wave of her hand, a massive torrent of water erupted from her palm and surged forth relentlessly, slamming into the boulder with concussive force. Dust shrouded the area for a moment before it cleared, revealing another passageway that led deeper in.

"And that is how it is done! Make sure to take notes, Traveler," Furina boasted, hands on her hips with a smug grin plastered across her face.

The blond smiled at her but before he could say anything, Paimon suddenly let out a blood-curdling shriek. "Waaaah, help me Aether!"

"Paimon...!" the blond cried out, swimming after her but it was too late.

The fairy girl was sucked through the passageway and out of sight.

Furina didn't hesitate; she dove in after the silver-haired girl, allowing the powerful ocean current to whisk her away. For a brief moment, it felt like the race Aether had challenged her to earlier in the day but far, far more intense. The current didn't allow any respite. Each pull threatened to throw her into the wall or worse, forcing her concentration to its limits.

She forced her eyes open, peering ahead for any sign of the fairy and was rewarded with a glimpse of silver and white. Furina willed herself to go faster, putting every ounce of energy into somehow increasing her speed.

Come on, come on, just a little closer! She pleaded, as if the current could hear her.

But the current refused to obey even the waters' sovereign, content with letting her struggle and claw her way towards her quarry. Paimon was still conscious and panicking, evident by her wails and shrieks.

Despite everything, Furina couldn't help but think wryly:

Goodness, her lungs are incredible…

Shaking the thought from her head, Furina made one last push to get closer to the screaming girl, finally managing to make it to her and grab the girl by the scruff of her neck. "Hold still, I've got you!"

There was a sudden shift in the current's force which sent the two of them careening into the side of a rock, nearly causing Furina to lose her grip on Paimon.

"F-Furina!" Paimon half sobbed/shrieked at her, clawing at her to keep from getting flung off.

"Stop your squirming, it's difficult to hold on to you as it is!"

Desperately attempting to keep the girl in her clutches, the archon searched for a way out of their predicament, but it was no use. The current was too strong and seemed intent on carrying them to who knows where. More than that, it was getting stronger with each passing second.

They were completely at the whim of the ocean now.

"AHHHH, Furina watch out!"

Furina turned just in time to see the face of a rocky outcropping, and darkness claimed her soon after but not before she heard the faint calling of her name.

I have an explanation for this - let's start with the most glaring.

Reason for lack of updates? COVID. It put me out of commission for two weeks and not only killed my appetite, but also any urge to write. I'm recovering but it's slow going.

Then 4.1 dropped and it... well I had plans to make this thing canon, but now I'm going to have to retcon both that statement and the story in general. So from here on out, this story will be its own thing with the plot I originally intended for it. Once the full quest is released (with my brat) then I'll make another proper canon-based story and I already have a prompt in mind. Several actually, but I'm keeping those to myself for the now.

Tl;dr - I got really sick and 4.1 essentially neutered the story I had in mind, but it's a minor setback.

Only thing I can promise you is that this story will be finished by the end of the year. With any luck and the muse gods favor, it shouldn't take no more than another month at best.