Too distracted by my worries for the day, I wasn't paying attention when I left my room after getting dressed and nearly collided with another student. I dodged at the last second, and she did the same with far more tact and grace. After regaining my balance, I faced a stern Kujou Sara. Why was she hanging around Visionless House?

"Sorry about that," I said and stood taller under her piercing eyes. "I wasn't expecting you to be right in front of my door. Can I help you with something?"

Her already frowning lips dipped further. "You, help me? I was simply…in the area. I'm on my way back to my room after morning training."

I didn't believe her. There was no reason for Sara to be on this floor of the building—Electro House being four flights above. Giving her the benefit of the doubt, I assumed she was here to see someone else.

I cleared my throat to disperse the awkward air and turned on my heel to leave. "Okay, well, I'm heading off for breakfast."

"Since you're here, I might as well ask you a question," Sara said before I could take a single step. "Was the interview merely a ploy to gain an upper hand?"

Confused, I spun back around to ask, "Excuse me?"

"You and Kaeya Alberich approached me under the guise of hearing student feedback on the Grand Tournament. I have to say, the method of acquiring information on your competition was underhanded, but that's on me for not seeing through the tactic."

Sara's eyes narrowed as displeasure darkened her face. It was far too early in the morning for me to deal with this random subject, but I took a breath and sorted through her accusation. She was right—the reason for the interview wasn't actually what we'd claimed—but gaining an upper hand wasn't the truth either.

"It's not like that," I began to explain. "We really did want to learn about your experience last year."

"I find that hard to digest. Next, I bet you'll claim it's only a coincidence that last year's Champion is your brother. Word has spread quickly, Lumine. You're sorely mistaken if you believe I can be fooled any longer."

"This is about Aether?"

"Passing the Champion title down a family line—that's not how the system works. I'm only warning you because I sense you have a warrior's spirit. Nepotism won't get you anywhere."

"Nepotism?" I echoed dumbly as my brain caught up. Did she think I planned to use Aether as a crutch to become the next Champion? In addition to her misunderstanding with the interview, the timing of his reappearance somehow painted me in a bad light to her. "Sara, that wasn't at all what I had in mind."

Her criticizing glare lingered on me, and silence followed instead of a response. I almost expected her to challenge my honor in a duel right here and now, but then she finally said, "I've got my eye on you."

Then, Sara blinked for the first time in our conversation and stiffly brushed past me. I watched with mild bewilderment as she stalked down the hall without a second glance my way. It was only after she disappeared into the stairwell that I snapped out of the surprise encounter.

Part of me felt the need to follow Sara and really convince her that I had no cunning intentions. Her unshakeable will was clearly evident, so I let it go and hoped none of the other interviewees came to the same conclusion. If Sara knew about Aether and I being siblings, she probably wasn't the only one.

On my way to the dining hall, I noticed a different buzz of conversation whenever I walked past a group of students. Their voices lowered when I neared, and subtly pointed fingers were directed my way. Thankfully, none of them seemed to harbor the same agitation as Sara—open curiosity held their focus instead.

This couldn't have been avoided, I guessed. Aether was more of a celebrity than I thought, but the association between us would eventually become less of a hot topic. After all, I'd been here for one full semester and hadn't amazed the academy with brilliant perfection.

It was easy enough to tune them out while I was outside, but upon entering the dining hall, the familiar bumbling chatter hushed at several tables. I made a note of who was staring—mostly upperclassmen who I barely knew—and shrugged it off once again. Though, the Visionless table stole the majority of my attention.

A pang of guilt hit me as Ellin sharply turned away the moment our eyes met. I searched for Huffman next, hoping he could read the regret in my eyes, but Ellin sat in his line of sight. I couldn't blame her if it was on purpose, but she couldn't hold me off forever. I had to apologize, but breakfast would come first.

To save time, I bypassed my friends' table and directly entered the line to be served. Here, at least, people were too focused on reading today's menu to notice I stood with them.

"May I have a bottle of coconut milk?" I asked once my turn arrived. "And…a breakfast salad."

While the server prepared my order, I heard a voice chirp from behind me. "You have good taste."

I turned to see it was none other than Mona Megistus.

"Um, thanks?"

"Don't mention it." She hummed dismissively and pointed to the fresh pile of greens behind the glass barrier. "I'll have a breakfast salad as well. Say, why don't you join me for a meal? I don't believe we've had the opportunity to be acquaintanced before."

The server placed two salad plates and a bottle of coconut milk on the counter. I grabbed my portion and couldn't hide my hesitation when it came to eating with Mona. My friends would be wondering what happened, and one peek at to table made it clear that I was expected. Aether was there.

"I don't usually give such invitations, so you should be grateful," Mona continued to say.

Her sudden interest was not lost on me. "Is this because I'm Aether's sister?"

"So what if it is? I am simply curious about a certain phenomenon and wish to verify it."

"What phenomenon?"

"If you join me, I can perform a complimentary reading. It's fine if you want to pass, but I won't be offering a second time. My divinations are never wrong, by the way." A small smile played on her lips as she said so, and I couldn't ignore my interest.

Childe had told me all about Mona's fortune-telling capabilities before. Though he had been doubtful of her skills back then, I was never given a reason to question her. Learning about what fate had in store for me was an incredible opportunity. Why hadn't I thought to approach Mona before? She had an ego, and there was a chance she could refuse, but it'd be better if she thought I was indulging her curiosity rather than doing a favor for me.

Mona was already walking away, plate in hand, and I dutifully followed. Clearly, this wasn't her first time convincing people to bend to her will.

"I'm Astrologist Mona Megistus," she said after sliding into her seat opposite from me. There were a few other people sitting separately around the table, but none grouped around Mona like before.

"I'm Lumine, but you already knew that."

She dug into her salad before adding anything else. I slipped the coconut milk into my bag for later and also ate. It was a normal salad, but Mona seemed to really enjoy hers. Eventually, she set the fork down a patted a napkin at the corners of her lips.

"What is your date of birth?"

"The same as my brother," I replied as a test. If she was only interested in me because of Aether, I wanted to see just how knowledgeable she was about him.

Her eyebrows rose by an inch. "Twins, I see. I can see the resemblance. Anyway, good. That makes things easier for me—not that I can't take a challenge."

With that self-compliment, Mona pushed aside her salad plate and readied a pair of gloved hands in front of her. Like before, a glowing scryglass imbued with Hydro energy materialized and hovered above the table. I watched as she poked at the ring of astrological signs that bordered the outer circle. With each adjustment, a tiny star appeared in the center. By the time she finished, there were six stars total in a shape I didn't recognize.

She drew a line connecting each star, and the vague outline of a constellation took form. I analyzed it alongside her, despite not knowing a thing about the stars. There didn't seem to be anything particularly special about my constellation, but a tiny frown pinched Mona's features.

"What is it?" I asked. "Is my future bad?"

She held up a hand. "Shh. Fate cannot be classified as 'good' or 'bad'—those terms are entirely subjective. Don't say any more for the time being. I'm trying to focus."

Salad forgotten, I kept silent and waited for Mona to come to a conclusion. She tapped on her chin steadily before rearranging the image on the scryglass. It took another moment, but her new input yielded another constellation that didn't look much different. The only change was that it mirrored mine.

Then, she continued to switch back and forth between the constellations before dispelling the scryglass entirely. It evaporated into sparkling droplets of water.

"How disappointing," she murmured.

"What do you mean? Did you see something…unfortunate?"

"Nice try, but 'unfortunate' is no different from 'bad.'" Mona gave me a wry smile. "This is only the second time a case like this has confronted me. I cannot seem to read any predictions on your fate at all."

She was right—very disappointing. I slowly began to understand what Mona meant by subjectivity. Not knowing my fate was a relief in a way—it wasn't decided that Enjou would win, and the rest of my life would be doomed in the Abyss. Then again, it would be incredibly helpful to know if I had a future at all. Mona seemed just as disturbed as I was by this roadblock, though her murmurings were more centered around a lack of her own ability rather than me.

Before either of us could dwell on it much longer, a third salad plate softly clinked on the table. We both looked up to see Aether settling into the seat next to me.

"If it isn't the Great Astrologist Mona," he said with an easy smile. "Are you still perfecting the craft?"

Though she had hushed me when I interrupted, Mona didn't react negatively to his words. She simply lifted her chin with pride and popped a small tomato in her mouth.

"This has nothing to do with my talent. The both of you are anomalies," she said. "Welcome back, Viator."

I swiveled my head to look at him and voiced my confusion. "Viator?"

"My constellation name—according to Mona. What were the results of your divination?"

Aether had been quick to judge the situation. I gave a slight shrug, conveying the ambiguity as best as I could. "Undetermined. What's my constellation name?"

"Viatrix," Mona answered.

Viatrix. It had a nice ring to it.

"Wait, you couldn't see Aether's fate either?" I asked once the meaning of Mona's words registered. "Does that mean we don't have one?"

Mona simply tutted, "Everyone has a fate."

"Then…if you can't see it, could it be that our fate hasn't been decided?" Aether spoke carefully, as if not daring to hope. "Are our fates up to us to control?"

"Nonsense. Fate is called as such, for it cannot be changed, nor can it be reversed. It can only be but accepted," Mona cited. "To suggest otherwise is an insult to astrology."

She spoke with such certainty, it was hard not to believe her, but I didn't want to. Her frown had subsided to a small pout, and it was obvious that her inability to read our fates was bothering her. If I went around calling myself a great astrologist, I'd also be embarrassed if I failed to scry two fates.

"I guess we'll have to find our answers elsewhere," Aether sighed, though not upset. Instead of troubling himself over the fate of our lives, he continued to engage with Mona. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but was that a new scryglass I saw?"

"Oh, you noticed?" Mona's expression shifted to smug as she stabbed at her food. "It's the latest model. I was the first in line to purchase it, and there are only seven of its kind in all of Teyvat."

The two of them launched into a conversation about astrology apparatuses that I knew nothing about. I didn't mind being left out of the conversation—it gave me time to think about what Mona said and, more obviously, how good of a conversationalist Aether was. He didn't lie when he said socializing was a forte of his. Even someone as haughty as Mona spoke to Aether as though he was her equal. If Aether hadn't told me last night, I never would have guessed he was playing a part.

Though, the amicable mood didn't last for long. Right when I was beginning to understand the basics of astrology after picking up on hints from their conversation, a fourth salad plate joined the table. What were the odds of all of us choosing a salad today?

"Hey girlie, keeping our head in the clouds today?" Childe grinned, sitting next to Mona so he could face me directly.

Mona sniffed and jabbed her fork in Childe's face. "Because that insult is not worth expending my energy to reprimand, I will choose to ignore you."

"We were having a conversation," Aether said—a slight twitch in his smile gave away his irritation.

Childe lifted a finger to angle away the pointy end of Mona's fork. "The more the merrier, no?"

Aether deadpanned. "No."

"This one has no appreciation for astrology." Mona continued to threaten Childe with her utensil. "I go out of my way to perform a divination on his fate, and he calls my profession a sham. Can you believe it?"

"You're absolutely right. Who am I to challenge the stars?" Childe sighed.

Mona gaped at him. "What? You're agreeing with me?"

"The results of the divination were incomprehensible to me because I was limited to the present. Now that I've had some time to see how the future has played out, I must admit that the stars are wise beyond their years."

"Your phrasing…that's not exactly how the stars work," Mona said with a cringe. "Then again, I cannot expect you to fully understand the workings of my hydromancy after merely one revelation. This is progress. You may stay."

"I'm curious," Aether said. "What exactly was his divination?"

Mona gave her head a light shake. "I don't disclose that information to just anyone. If he gives permission, I can refresh my memory by performing another divination and enlighten you all."

"Go on, Aether. Ask for permission." Childe goaded Aether, and I resisted the urge to kick him from under the table. "Although, I personally don't feel like my fate is so private anymore."

He was looking at me now, and the weight of the attention made me blush. The affection in Childe's eyes lasted only for a moment before they shuttered with surprise. Aether had taken it upon himself to kick Childe.

Aether's smile tightened when he asked, "Mona, didn't you say your new scryglass can paint clearer divinations than your old one? Why not give it another go and see if there was something you missed when it comes to Tartaglia? You might discover that his fate isn't what he has in mind."

"That's not a bad idea." She nodded along and conjured the scryglass. "Pardon me, but privacy comes second to my own curiosities. I'll let you know if your fate is different by any measure."

Childe's nonchalance soured, and a staring contest ensued between him and my brother.

Honestly, I didn't know what either of them hoped to achieve with this. Mona was already confident in her divinations, so a new scryglass wouldn't affect much. I watched again as she fiddled with the apparatus and figured she just wanted to make the most out of an expensive purchase.

This was all a distraction.

If I was going to be distracted by something, I might as well make it count. Since everyone here was occupied with their own agenda, I mumbled a quick excuse to leave and got up before they could oppose.

Because breakfast was in full swing, no one at the Visionless table seemed to notice my approach until I had stopped in front of Ellin and Huffman. Their faces looked bored as Timaeus droned on about something related to alchemy, but they sharpened after noticing me.

Now that I had a full night of breathing in spirit borneol, there was no chance that the abyssal influence would affect me. Without the risk of me blowing up at Huffman like before, I could face him properly. He choked on a piece of toast before I could even open my mouth. Ellin gave me a dirty look.

"I'm sorry," I said plainly to test the waters.

Ellin crossed her arms, Huffman was still recovering, and Timaeus slowly shut his book. The three of them looked at each other, and Ellin was the most expressive. She clearly didn't want any of them to engage, but Timaeus broke free from the silence.

"Go on," he prodded.

I didn't have much interaction with Timaeus in the past, but we were on decent terms. Ellin might have told him all kinds of things about me, so I expected he would have some reservations. Still, I was relieved that he was willing to hear me out.

"Huffman, I shouldn't have attacked you the way I did. I don't have an excuse for it—" not one that he'd be able to understand… "—and it was completely uncalled for. I also shouldn't have allowed Diluc and Childe to pester you about the necklace. It was a matter between you and me, and I should have kept it between us."

Timaeus nudged a glass of water to a still-coughing Huffman. I waited for a reply after he took a gulp, but then his body jerked violently. Another fit of coughing ensued, but Huffman managed to speak through it.

"Went down the wrong pipe," he sputtered. "It's okay."

"The water?" I couldn't tell if he was referring to my apology.

"No—well, yes—also what you said. I…get it. I would be really mad at myself, too. We all make mistakes, and I'm not one to judge."

I smiled at him. "Thank you."

Ellin remained vigilant. "Really? That's all it takes?"

"Ellin, we were on good terms before," I said to her. "I need you to know that I never pretended around you—or anyone. I'm not trying to butter you up, and I'm not trying to claim that I wasn't a bad friend. I'm just being honest. You're upset that I've been distant and choose to spend my time with other people—some who are questionable to you—that's fine."

She made a noncommittal sound, and I took that as a sign to keep going.

"I should have told you ahead of time that I'd be busy, and not introducing you to my other friends was another oversight. You're also a first-year, so you understand how overwhelming it's been starting out at Celestia Academy. It's not an excuse, but I hope you understand that I didn't mean for such a big misunderstanding to happen."

"Cut Lumine some slack," Huffman whispered rather loudly. "She got attacked by rifthounds not too long ago, remember? You were so worried about—"

Ellin was quick to interrupt. "That's a pretty good apology. You ask for forgiveness, but do I even have a choice?"

"Of course, there's a choice, and it's fine even if you don't forgive me." I took a step back for emphasis. "No pressure."

Her wariness shifted to skepticism, and her next words held less of a bite. "Your brother is the Champion, and he just so happens to show up right when I take a stand against you. Seems like pressure to me."

I held in my frustration. Like the situation with Sara, Aether's reappearance suddenly wasn't all that amazing for me.

"Aether knows nothing about this," I assured her.

She opened her mouth to say more but then clamped it shut without making a sound. Instead of continuing the conversation, she simply crossed her arms and shot me a pointed look before her attention shifted to something behind me—or someone.

"Hey, what's up?" Aether, with his stellar timing, walked up to the table. "You must be first-years, too. Wait a minute…Timaeus, right?"

Timaeus had cracked his book open again, but he abandoned it for a second time and looked at Aether with wide eyes.

"You know who I am?"

Aether nodded. "Yeah, I've heard Professor Kreideprinz mention you on occasion."

"Really? Has he said anything about making me his next teaching assistant? I know Sucrose is still a third-year and won't be graduating just yet, but there's no harm in having two pairs of helping hands."

"Oh…" It was Aether's turn to be taken aback. "I don't know about that, but I can bring it up to the professor for you. Are you all Lumine's friends, too?"

He received a collection of responses all at once.

Timaeus, still excited about his chance to become a teaching assistant, didn't hesitate to say, "She's my dorm neighbor."

"Uh…" Huffman found a sudden interest in the remnants of his toast.

Ellin was curt. "We just know each other."

There wasn't much to go off of from that, so Aether looked at me as if to say 'What's their deal?' I didn't have it in me to explain the tense attempt at a heart-to-heart that he had just interrupted. Luckily, the surrounding tables shifted the attention as students ended their meals. Our first class of the day was about to begin.

"I've got to go," Ellin mumbled and was the first to escape. "Can't be late to horticulture."

Aether laughed at that, not taking note of her avoidance. "Professor Baizhu's still the same, huh? Good luck…"

She stopped short and assessed him before giving her name. "Ellin."

"Good luck getting there on time, Ellin. Don't let us hold you up any longer." Aether waved goodbye.

Despite wanting to flee just now, Ellin hesitated for a moment longer. Indecision broke through her stubborn mask when she looked from him to me.

"Lumine…I'll think about it. Bye."

And then she was gone.

"Did I interrupt something?" Aether asked the rest of us, clueless.

"Don't worry about it," I said and patted his shoulder to dismiss the thought. Except, in order to do so, I had to lift my hand slightly higher than necessary.

A gasp caught in my throat as I looked at Aether—really looked at him—and squinted at the extra height he had on me. A wave of dismay hit me as I saw the truth for myself. Aether really was the taller twin. This was unacceptable.

Letting my hand drop—I couldn't give him this opportunity to tease me further—I copied Ellin's excuse. "I also have class."

"Do you want to go together?" Huffman timidly asked.

We'd never walked to beginner's gliding together before, and I could tell Huffman was a bit nervous. His courage to ask was proof that he'd truly accepted my apology. This was an olive branch that I was more than happy to accept.

A weight lifted off my chest, and I said, "I'd like that."

Surely, Aether also had a class to attend, but he was in no rush. Instead, his attention focused entirely on Huffman, and I felt the weight return. Huffman, unbeknownst of his jeopardy, beamed with a smile.

Aether's friendliness turned stony. "What did you say your name was again?"

"Oh, I didn't introduce myself yet. I'm Huffman," said the doomed man.

"Another friend of yours?" Aether asked, casting me a sidelong glance.

Huffman carelessly answered in my stead. "Well, it's complicated."

Archons, that was the wrong thing to say.

I jumped in to save what I could. "It's so complicated that it'll take forever to explain. We don't want to be late for class. Huffman, if you value your life, let's go now."

Aether tried to stop us. "Wait—"

"Bye, Aether!"