"—see them tomorrow. Hopefully, I can figure out more about what they plan." As it sounded like the meeting was coming to an end, Xiao thought it'd be best to take his leave before anyone could come out of the room. Retracing his steps, Xiao exited the home as quietly as he came in.

He quickly got off the streets, jumping away into the darkness of the night. The Yaksha waited to head straight back to the hotel though. Instead, he looked for a place to collect his thoughts and understand what was actually going on. He soon found a place to roost and ruminate. Finding that place on one of the waterways above the city (with little worry of being seen as the aquabuses were closed for the night), Xiao's mind worked to make sense of all he overheard in Lyney's home.

Firstly, Xiao had particular thoughts of Lyney revealing their plot to rescue Aether from captivity. However, those thoughts seemed unjustified after hearing what Aether has been getting into here in Fontaine. Lyney's group was all in it for their own interests, of course, but those interests were for Aether's happiness with Lady Furina and "the prophecy." He naturally wondered what they meant but was more interested in the former reasoning for this counter-group being formed. He heard Fontaine occasionally being called a nation of love albeit much less commonly as the Nation of Justice and Hydro but it seemed fitting the Traveller would find love here, wouldn't it? 'But for it to be the Archon herself…' Xiao mused as he glanced up at the Palais Mermonia. That was where he was supposed to be according to Lyney's group— in the upper floors with Lady Furina. His second line of thoughts was mainly about the supposed relationship but if it was ultimately true, Xiao was happy for Aether.

His third thought though is what to do next. He knew he should inform Yelan and the others of the leak but… what would happen after that? There was no doubt things would quickly turn if their group learned of Lyney's shadowy schemes; whether that turn is for the worse or the better is the big question making Xiao hesitate. Soon though, he figured there was a way to decide his next course of action— he needed to confirm that Lyney's group was telling the truth about Aether's relationship with Lady Furina. His eyes cast back towards the Palais with hardened focus.

It was a breeze getting there; no guards patrolled the roofs so Xiao quickly reached the top of the administrative building/residence of Fontaine's Archon. On the way up, he noticed an open window that should lead into Furina's home; after leaning over the edge of the roof, he soon located the window he saw earlier and quickly scaled down the wall and quietly landed on the exterior sill. He had planned to sneak in again but that plan quickly went into the bin as soon as he saw the room was occupied. Xiao immediately stepped out of view and hugged the wall as closely as possible; there was enough overhang for him to stay on and the height didn't bother him so it was just a waiting game at this point. After a few seconds, however, he realised something— 'That wasn't a guard…'

Xiao carefully leaned his head in to take another peek; he saw that the room was a study and the person was, in fact, Lady Furina herself. He had seen enough photos of her recently to recognise that hair. She fortunately was facing away from the window and engrossed in a thick book with a withered cover. 'Exactly what I was looking for.' He deliberated on sneaking inside as he planned but settled on just waiting outside and listening in. Lady Furina also didn't look like she was leaving any time soon so better not to risk himself any further.

Minutes ticked by and Lady Furina would continue reading in near complete silence. Xiao would occasionally hear mumbling from her but they were too low for him to piece together. He'd also peek in from time to time to make sure she was actually still there and hadn't quietly left. After what seemed like hours, finally…

—knock knock

"Come in." Xiao heard the door creak open followed by soft footsteps on the wooden floor. And then— "I thought you'd just head to bed without me."

"I had the feeling you'd get tired of working all alone." The eavesdropping Yaksha's eye widened upon hearing Aether's voice. The soft-spoken and caring tone was not something Xiao's never heard from the Traveller before; they shared a few moments where he had that sort of tone but to hear it in such a private moment made Xiao feel terrible for intruding.

Aether and Furina continued talking for a little longer culminating with the latter throwing a mini-tantrum because Aether didn't want to carry her to bed. By that point, Xiao had already gotten his answer for what he should do next. He disappeared into the night again, this time intending to meet up with Yelan and the others. He soon reached the hotel and, after picking out the right room, knocked on the window. Yelan let him in and asked for the results of his investigation. The seed of doubt— the part of him that wanted to resume the mission and get Aether out of Fontaine —reared its ugly head, making him pause in his answer. Xiao beat back that doubt and answered, "It was meaningless. Charlotte was just interviewing that magician for an article."

The night passed silently and the dusk broke on the city of Hydro again. In the Palais Mermonia, the staff changed over as they usually did and one of the housekeepers entered the master bedroom to wake her mistress. It used to be one of the most difficult tasks in the entirety of Fontaine as Lady Furina was a notoriously heavy sleeper. Thanks to the recent change in the power structure, however, they could mostly leave that task to the unofficial master of the Palais.

"Lady Furina, Master Aether, it's morning. Time to get up," the housekeeper politely roused them awake. Usually, Aether would wake up with no issue and excuse her while he tries to get Furina out of bed. This time though, to the housekeeper's total shock, Lady Furina woke up first without putting up a fuss.

"Good morning, Lefeuvre," she yawned her greeting but didn't get up yet. "What's the agenda for today?"

"You've only a visitor today, milady. Sir Jean-Claude Beaubois will be arriving in the afternoon. There are no trials scheduled at the opera house today."

Furina hummed in acknowledgement before dismissing the housekeeper and telling them to return once breakfast was ready. They bowed and left the room, leaving the still-drowsy Archon to nestle back into her previous position. "A day off, huh…" She muttered to herself. It wasn't exactly a full day off since she had to entertain another (usually) pompous guest but that was for later. She wasn't sure if Aether needed to be cooped up in one of their rooms as they forgot to outline the regulation for when she has visitors and not him but they could deal with that later. For now, she wanted to stay in bed and snuggle with Aether. She carefully flipped on the stop and stared at his sleeping face, listening to his soft snoring.

"You're actually awake, aren't you?" She poked him in the cheek, causing him to let out a low grumble. "It's not typical of you to try sleeping in like this."

"I'm tired," Aether simply stated as he pulled her closer. Furina didn't have a single problem with that but she was still curious. It was not her place to say if someone should be tired or not but Aether spent most of yesterday (and the past week) stuck indoors. Writing that many letters shouldn't have been that tiring, could it? Maybe that's why Neuvillette was so willing to throw Aether under the carriage if that was what he had to do nearly every day. That also reminded her that they should get one of the Palais workers to send Aether's letter— express delivery, naturally. "…forget…"

"Huh? Did you say something, Aether?"

"I feel like I'm forgetting something," he muttered but shrugged it off. If he forgot, then it probably wasn't important.

A couple of hours later, once the Palais was open to the public, a quartet consisting of Keqing, Kaeya, Ayaka, and Cyno entered the administrative building to carry out their next plan. Following the latter's suggestion, they thought to look into case files hoping to find someone who might be willing to be their man on the inside. The others, meanwhile, would be off doing solo investigations in the city.

"Recent cases are still confidential but you may read up on what we've already made public," the helpful Melusine receptionist told them when asked. She instructed them to find a table and wait while she retrieved the files they wanted.

As it was still early, it was easy for the group to claim a table for themselves where they discussed in hushed tones. "I meant to ask earlier but once we settled on someone, how exactly are we meant to contact them?" Ayaka asked to which Keqing answered.

"That's what Yelan is looking into. Unfortunately, it's not easy to visit the Fortress of Meropide."

"Not unless you're sentenced there of course," Kaeya helpfully added. "Speaking of which… forgive me if I'm wrong but wasn't a Fatui Harbinger sent there a few months ago?"

"That's correct. The Eleventh of the Harbingers, Tartaglia was found guilty of a series of disappearances dating back decades. It caused quite a stir from what I heard," Cyno confirmed. From what he recalled, not only did they already find and convict the real culprit, but the Harbinger's verdict was different from the Iudex's— an unexpected turn of events in an already unexpected series of events. "What makes you think about the Harbinger? I doubt he'd be willing to help us since Aether's been a thorn in the Fatui's side for a long time."

"Don't be so quick to write off a potential ally. General. I'm sure you understand where I'm going with this, Miss Keqing."

"Hmm… maybe," she hummed. It was a long shot but Tartaglia— otherwise known as Childe —was one of the few "friendly" Harbingers. Despite being one of the driving factors in Osiel's awakening all that time ago, he was also somehow one of Aether's allies. Tartaglia was also the walking wallet of the least money-minded man in all of Liyue Harbour despite Zhongli's immense knowledge and expertise in commerce (among other things). However, although she was willing to do nearly anything to help Aether, enlisting the help of a Fatui Harbinger was a step too far in Keqing's opinion— especially the one responsible for nearly destroying her city.

For now, she'd keep Tartaglia in the back of her mind as the Melusine was approaching them with stacks of files in hand. "Here you go. I believe this will be helpful in your… endeavours? May I ask why you're looking into this?"

Kaeya answered calmly, having already come up with an excuse on the way in case someone asked. "We're curious what are the usual procedures when the defendant is from a foreign nation and if there are any avenues we could make use of." Exploit carried too much of a negative connotation to say aloud. The Melusine accepted their reasoning and was about to leave them be but Ayaka had one more question.

"Is Monsieur Neuvillette here today? I haven't seen him enter."

"Monsieur Neuvillette is already in his office. Unfortunately, I don't believe he will be seeing anyone today as he's swamped with improperly filed paperwork that requires his attention."

"He is always so busy, isn't he?" Kaeya couldn't help but note, being reminded of Jean's own troubles.

"That's correct. Fontaine has been having a period of unrest for some time too. Monsieur Neuvillette has had his hands full for a while now. Helping run the nation is no easy task but he's been managing well in my opinion."

It was likely a biased opinion but Ayaka had another question upon hearing that. "Doesn't Lady Furina do anything? At the risk of sounding impertinent, from all I've heard and seen of her, she spends all her time in the opera house." Technically, so does Neuvillette but at least it's his job to be there. Lady Furina seemed to be there to watch the drama that'd unfold…

To her and everyone's surprise though, the Melusine gave a small laugh and said she didn't blame them for thinking that way. "Lady Furina leaves most matters to Monsieur Neuvillette but she does have the final say if her opinion is truly needed. Even the Traveller's case was something that'd required her authority."

"What do you mean?" Ayaka (and Kaeya) knew that the Aether's arrest was a result of a misunderstanding but didn't know anything beyond that. Fortunately, the receptionist was willing to divulge a bit more.

"From what I understand, there was no reason he should have been charged with anything. Lady Furina had willingly gone with Sir Aether that night when she went missing but she still insisted this trial goes through. He would have been let go had she not stepped in; her and Monsieur Neuvillette anyway. Both of them agreed he should stand trial for the confusion that happened the following morning."

'Both of them?' Ayaka had already suspected the Hydro Archon had her own plans to keep Aether in Fontaine but Neuvillette as well? She had more questions than before now…

Before she or any of the others could continue down that sentence, a commotion coming from the entrance caught their attention. They couldn't see anything but could hear people shouting, one such shout being "None of you will ever catch me alive!" The receptionist excused herself to check what was happening and Ayaka had half a mind to follow. Fortunately for them, they soon found out what was making a ruckus.

"I'm innocent, I tell you!" A feminine-looking boy (or a boyish-looking girl, Ayaka couldn't tell) dressed in green screamed as he ran into the main hall to evade the chasing guards. "Lady Furina is expecting me! He should've told her that— Ack!"

He never got the chance to finish as a sudden gunshot echoed through the hall and the boy in green fell. He wasn't dead but had simply been hit by an Electro-powered bullet that tased him unconscious. A moment later, he was dragged by the Gardes out of the hall as Clorinde came to their table. "Please excuse that disturbance. It's not uncommon for… Aren't you all…"

"Good morning, Miss Clorinde. Please don't mind us. We're in the middle of doing some homework," Kaeya smiled, hoping to convince her they weren't up to something.

Whether or not it worked was a mystery as she kept her usual stoic expression. "…Enjoy the rest of your day," she said before walking away towards the door on the left side of the hall.

"What was that about?" Cyno finally said after a moment.

"I think we'll have to thread carefully from now on. Oh, and assuming things don't go well for the bard, we may have our man on the inside."

Once again, Ayaka had more questions than before…

A/N: And done! Sorry for the short hiatus. As I said in VH, I forgot Aerina Week was coming and had to put my focus on that this last week. But it's now we can continue and 4.3 is almost here as well!

Anyway, in this chapter, here's the Xiao-centric section I said was meant to be in the last chapter and also some Aerina pillow talk. Also RIP Venti, he shall be missed. I actually forgot for a second that Cheveruse was a Pyro character and not Electro. Had I not remembered, she would've made her official debut here after a brief mention of her a couple chapters ago. So instead, Clorinde takes her place.

In Genshin news, my summon plans are now thrown into chaos yet again. I was already torn between getting Mistsplitter or Raiden Shogun but now Cloud Retainer (or Xianyun as she's called) is coming in 4.4… Oh, and Gaming. Either way, I do not have enough Primos for everything I want (and there's also Furina's weapon…)

As always, thank you for reading and see you all next time!