There was a smile on Furina's face as she sat at Cafe Lutece, waiting for Aether to return with her tea and cakes.

She would have been lying to herself if she said she wasn't nervous about the prospect of venturing into the city. The only times she left her house was to go shopping when she was running out of supplies and she would feel miserable afterwards. Going out for any other reason didn't appeal to her. No one would want to see her after the trial.

She didn't want to ruin anyone else's day. As a result she'd just stay home.

But she thought maybe being with friends would help her. Aether and Paimon were well regarded after all they had done for Fontaine so maybe she didn't have to worry.

Despite feeling nervous about going out, a part of her had also been looking forward to the day. Furina had had a wonderful time visiting them yesterday.

She had eventually joined Aether at his home for dinner along with Paimon once she decided she was too hungry to continue telling stories about the furnishings they had amassed. When Furina had asked what if anything they had gathered from Fontaine, Paimon explained that they had picked up a few blueprints but they were open to suggestions of how best to put them together rather than have them strewn around.

It was a matter of seconds after they entered the mansion when Paimon couldn't contain her excitement about the smell of Sticky Honey Roast, clearly a favourite. Though Aether apologised, saying he wasn't sure of her particular tastes outside of desserts, Furina was happy to try something different. He'd also said he was still refining his recreations of Fontainian cuisine as being locked up in the Fortress of Meropide had brought all cooking endeavours to a halt for an extended period.

Even though she struggled to finish it, she enjoyed the meal and was more than happy to hear more tales of their adventures. Hearing about the journeys, so many different people and the festivals and celebrations of other nations were all so fascinating to her. In all her years, she had never left Fontaine and only caught wind of events from meetings with diplomats and through reading the Steambird.

It would have been nice to go somewhere where she might not have been recognised as the Hydro Archon and feel like she was free just once.

Aether seemed to catch on to what she had been thinking and was quick to remind her that she could so what she wanted now. That caught her off guard and had her tripping over her words trying to explain herself.

She eventually decided she would return to her apartment after Aether offered her to stay in one of the guest rooms. As comfortable as she was feeling around them, her face had turned bright red and she repeatedly declined saying that she had to tidy up at home. Aether didn't seem too disappointed but she felt like she saved some face by saying she'd be happy to stay another time.

Barely a beat passed when she caught on to what she had said and she made a quick exit.

In the morning, Furina wrote a note to leave for Clorinde while she waited for Aether and Paimon to arrive. She didn't expect Clorinde to arrive before they did considering they had told her they had a commission lined up that they knew for a fact wouldn't take long.

When they eventually arrived, Aether suggested going to Cafe Lutece so they could have some idea of what she wanted to do.

On the way, she intended to keep her head down to avoid drawing attention to herself. It had never worked before but it was easier than looking straight ahead and pretending she didn't see anyone. After deceiving everyone for so long, they had to hate her.

So why did she feel like she was mistaken?

She had responded to something Aether had said and noticed people walking by. They might have taken a glance at her with Aether but there was no one staring at her, judging her. She was being seen like any other citizen of Fontaine. Maybe not exactly like the average citizen considering her previous role but there was no contempt as she expected and it was surely too soon for them to have gotten over her centuries of lies.

She dreaded every time she left her apartment but what she was seeing now spoke for itself. She could only ask herself if there really was anyone who truly hated her.

"Anything you have in mind for today?" Aether asked, returning with their order.

Furina smiled to herself. She'd see how the day went first.

She hummed at the question. The same thing had been asked yesterday and she hadn't actually thought any more about it. There wasn't much she had in mind to buy but maybe she could take a look at some new clothes. Paimon's suggestion of finding something to liven up her home also sounded tempting. While she would never compare her home to the Palais, it could still do with some decoration to truly make it her own. It might also serve as some inspiration for Fontainian furnishings in Aether's teapot.

For now though, she was content to enjoy her tea and cakes. It wasn't quite time for lunch but she could always make time for them.

"A few things. Though since we're in no rush, we can enjoy tea time for a while." Furina took one of the slices of cake. "So how was the commission this morning?"

There was no immediate response which she wasn't quite sure what to make of. Neither of them looked like they knew how to explain. It was Paimon who finally came up with something.

"Have you seen the article about the Phantom Blubberbeast in the Steambird recently?"

Furina raised an eyebrow. She hadn't read The Steambird for a while. The thought of reading articles about her abdication was enough of a deterrent. She hoped the time had passed to still be writing articles about her.

Still, this new article sounded odd.

"No, I haven't."

Aether sighed. "We met someone who brought it to our attention. It sounded a little strange but we were told if we helped out, it would improve the Gardemek's recognition systems. Basically a group of thieves apparently got away with their crime by disguising themselves with Blubberbeast costumes which meant the Gardemek's didn't see them as thieves."

"Go on…" Furina tilted her head and frowned. While she wasn't certain of the exact technology behind the Gardemeks, she knew they could tell the difference between people and the local wildlife.

"We were told our help would go to funding an algorithm that would let the Gardemek's tell the difference between people and animals. Turns out it was just a short story someone sent in and we all went along with it as if it was real. It wasn't even in the new section as it happens," he concluded with a chuckle.

Furina thought herself lucky that she hadn't been eating at the time. She covered her mouth to try to contain her laughter.

"Hey, you didn't hear what we were told!" Paimon argued. "It was really convincing a-and there was a lot of Mora on offer. Plus the reputation of blubberbeasts was at stake!"

"And you never thought to question such a glaring oversight in Fontaine's security? You could have asked the next person you came across and they would have disproved it." While Furina was able to keep herself from bursting out laughing, a large grin had spread across her face. Aether at least could see the humour in it. "Well, I should hope that this doesn't affect your reputation. Were you at least compensated for your work?"

"In the end it all turned out fine," Aether shrugged. "We didn't get the Mora but we got a prototype for a Kamera lens Charlotte was interested in." He reached into his pocket and held up the lens in question.

"Oh, you've picked up a Kamera in your travels?"

"Yep, a long time ago." Having recovered from the previous embarrassment, Paimon put her hands on her hips looking proud of herself. "We make a great team. Aether's got a good eye for stuff and Paimon gets great vantage points by floating."

"May I see some of your pictures?" Furina asked. Aether agreed and rummaged through his bag for the album they kept their pictures in. He handed her a large

After being handed the album, Furina was immediately impressed by a shot of Mondstadt CIty.

"My, these are good," she commented. She didn't miss the smug satisfaction that both of them showed at the praise.

Furina continued looking through their pictures amazed at the contents. She didn't mind if she heard the same stories from the day before. From landmarks, to food and gatherings with friends of every nation they had been to so far, Furina wanted to know more about it all. She quickly lost track of how many pictures she had asked about. The snowy mountains, underground ruins, sprawling deserts and so much more. She could have listened to the stories about each of them for hours.

A part of her wanted to ask if she could join them on one of their commissions outside the city in the hopes of exploring somewhere new for herself but she felt she shouldn't. The memories all sounded pleasant but work for the Guild wasn't without its hardships. There were undoubtedly many times where they wouldn't come back for days and there was no telling what manner of hostile creature could be lurking in unexplored territory. She couldn't fight and she had no experience as an adventurer. She knew she would just slow them down.

Just seeing the pictures would be enough for her for now.

"They're wonderful pictures." Furina handed the album back. She had long since finished her tea and realised if she wanted to do anything else today, she should stop there. "There's plenty more for you to see in Fontaine as well."

"Well, being in prison for eating a cake intended for you really ate into time we could have spent exploring," Aether joked.

"It wasn't all bad, the cake was really good after all," Paimon rubbed her stomach remembering the taste.

"Hmph, well at least someone got to enjoy it. If it were up to me, I'd have drawn some connection to your supposed misdeeds in the other nations." Furina huffed and crossed her arms. "Honestly, why would Neuvillette choose that of all things to convict you of? Perhaps it was his idea of a joke."

"I'm more surprised that law exists in the first place," Aether admitted.

"Paimon's not. You weren't the one accused of being a flying object."

Furina looked between the two as they went on to discuss other obscure laws that Neuvillette had apparently told them about. While inconvenient at the time, they could look back at the events and laugh. She then noticed they were all done with their tea break and gathered their plates into one place.

"Anyway, since we all seem to be finished, shall we be off? I'd like to do some shopping and perhaps inspiration will strike us along the way."

Shopping was far more enjoyable than she imagined it being. Interacting with others still felt somewhat awkward but with Aether and Paimon with her it was definitely more manageable than she thought. Once Furina got over the initial uncertainty of how to respond when being noticed, people even seemed pleasantly surprised to see her.

That had cheered her up significantly which led to more purchases.

Aether had offered to pay since taking her shopping was meant to make up for not telling her how the Realm Dispatch worked but she insisted she was happy to pay for everything herself. As she had barely bought anything beyond food since moving in to her apartment, she could afford to spend a little more and perhaps come up with a budget for herself another time. Paimon looked notably relieved at that, despairing for their food situation when Furina's new clothes and trinkets tended to be on the pricier side. They could repay her by carrying things for her, she offered.

While deciding what to do next, Furina stopped suddenly when she caught sight of a poster that looked vaguely familiar. It was advertising an upcoming opera. Curious, she approached to get a better look at it, oblivious to Aether and Paimon's questions.

The scene depicted was well known to her though the opera itself was going by a different name. 'Violetta', was its title, named after the lead of one of her favourite operas, 'La traviata'. She wasn't surprised to see another take on a classic.

A wistful smile crossed her face. She recalled seeing the first production of it some centuries ago under that name and being brought to tears by it. There was initially shock from both the audience and actors who weren't sure how to interpret their archon crying after a performance.

She'd admitted to being moved to tears, adding that it simply showed how proud she was of her people and the cast should take pride in their performance. She'd said that she'd be paying a close eye to how others would interpret the story in future even suggesting that she would be interested in performing in a future production of 'La traviata' herself.

For almost all of her known favourite operas, those brave or confident enough would approach her offering the lead role. Should they have not only met her standards - which she thought to be reasonable - but also the standards that she believed the story deserved as well, she would agree to perform. Many an offer had been turned down if she saw they were only trying to get her involved to boost their own reputation. It didn't matter how much Mora they threw into the production if there was no heart behind it.

Almost every offer she received would be for the lead role. She understood why but there were a number of occasions where she wanted to try something new or a different part spoke to her more. There had even been times where, after watching a rehearsal, she'd ask why they needed her when the actor they used to read the lines intended for her was already perfect for the role.

Smiling fondly at the poster, she was sure the opera would be successful. Since she felt she would likely enjoy it, going to see it herself sounded like a good idea.

The memory of being in it herself was bittersweet. Performing was something she felt she truly enjoyed but the thought of going back on stage after her role as archon had come to an end filled her with unease. How could she play another role now that she was finally free from having to pretend she wasn't?

"Furina?"

Aether must have noticed the shift in her demeanour. She brought herself out of her thoughts, shaking her head and sighing.

"I'm fine. I'm not upset, it's just…" She looked back up at the poster. "I've always loved this opera. Everyone knew how much I enjoyed it so they would always try to impress me with a new spin on it or invite me to perform. I was happy to take part provided everything was to my standards, of course."

"Wow, must be a really good one then," Paimon inspected it more closely.

"We heard that pretty much any time you appeared on stage was more or less its own festival," Aether recalled.

Furina nodded.

"I looked forward to those times," she mused, a look of fondness and longing in her eyes. "I was just remembering what it was like to perform on stage. It was the closest I got to taking a break from being a god, where I could lose myself in a role, if only for a little while."

She sighed again.

"I miss performing but after everything that's happened… I don't know if I can go back to it."

As much as she loved performing, retiring from the stage was for the best. She would still consider going to the Opera Epiclese if a particular performance struck her fancy but her time as Fontaine's brightest star had come to an end.

Furina nearly jumped when Aether put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"It's okay if you feel that way," he said. "You're free to choose your own path now and there's plenty you can do to express yourself without being on stage yourself if you're still passionate about performing. There'll be something out there for you where you can just be Furina."

Furina could only stare at him as she took in his words. He had done so much already and truly wanted what was best for her. Fully appreciating everything he was doing for her, she gave a warm smile. One of these days, she would find something she could do for him in return.

"Thank you," she said, turning away from the poster. "I think that's enough shopping for today. The apartment's not far away so let's take these back."

She took one of her bags from Paimon, who claimed she barely had the strength to carry anything anymore, and they made their way back to the apartment building. They brought everything up to her home where she found a note left by Clorinde. She'd hoped that Furina was enjoying herself and said she'd come by again tomorrow provided Furina was available.

Setting down all the things she had bought, Aether and Paimon offering to help her unpack. Furina spent no small effort in arguing they had done enough for her today and she would sort everything out later.

"Well, if you're sure," he conceded.

"It's fine. I'm a little tired so I'd like to take a rest," Furina trailed off.

She fidgeted with her hands, trying to ignore the heat rising in her cheeks. "I want to thank you for today. It was nice just walking around with someone again. I'm sure you have better things to do than take me shopping but I appreciate it all the same."

"Hey, it's no trouble at all," Aether replied, chuckling. "Besides, it was fun and I don't mind making time to just hang out on occasion. You looked interested at our pictures earlier so maybe you can show us more of what Fontaine has to offer. We'll be around in Fontaine a while longer so just let us know if you're around and we can make a day of it."

"Yeah and if you can't find us, you can leave a message with Katheryne at the Guild," Paimon added. "We're always stopping by so we'll get back to you pretty quick."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Once they had said their goodbyes and Furina was left by herself once more, she made her way over to her bed to lie down for a while. She let herself flop on to the bed, a wide grin on her face and feeling a warmth in her chest.

She hoped Clorinde would be able to put up with her excitement at reliving her day.

AN: Just Furina having a nice time with Aether (and Paimon).

As I've never actually seen any operas, I had a look through Furina's constellations since their names all come from lines of some big ones. The one I used here is her C6. Apparently 'La traviata' was originally called 'Violetta' so that's where I got the in-universe's remake title from!