Whether or not they are directly linked, or the characters know each other, I think of my stories as all having happened within the same little world! In my stories. I frequently mention things that have happened in others I have written, but most of them should be able to be read stand alone without issues.
Also, while I try to keep it very close with Genshin lore, I don't know every single bit of lore, and can't remember it all. So, some things are slightly different, there are also some things that are only guessed. I'm just here to write stories for people to read, should they choose!
As for my version of travel time, everything is small, and close together in the game, so I spread it out a little. It should take time to get places! (More dramatic that way rofl)
Thank you to my husband for being my proofreader!
As always, thank you for reading, I hope everyone enjoys it!
Feel free to leave a comment :)
Home Is Where My Boots Are
Chapter One
"I am not gullible!" Kaveh shot back at Alhaitham. "Just because you have no empathy doesn't mean the rest of us have to."
"I have empathy, Kaveh. The difference is its fundamental function isn't overwhelmed by excessive emotion, unlike yours. Your gullibility evades your common sense."
Kaveh would never expect anything more than a cold (at best) response on the subject of empathy when it came to Alhaitham. Still, that knowledge didn't stop Kaveh from getting angry at the brute.
"What?! You!- That's it. I'm going home."
Alhaitham raised an eyebrow at him, "So you're leaving the lunch that I didn't want to be at, thus leaving me free to leave as well. Very well. I'll see you at home."
"Don't you move a muscle, mister! You're not going anywhere."
"What's the point in me staying if you're leaving?" Alhaitham asked.
What was the point? Well, none, probably, but that was beside the point because he wasn't going to let Alhaitham have what he wanted.
"I'm not leaving." Kaveh sat back down, and crossed his arms. "And neither are you."
"The two of you are disrupting the peace," a familiar voice said, "I would recommend that you both leave, and let others enjoy their meals."
Kaveh spun to confront Cyno as the General approached, "He is disrupting the peace, I am fighting to keep it."
"Hm."
He turned back to Alhaitham, and wagged a finger at him, "What do you mean 'Hm'? There is no 'Hm', just you being you and not caring that you are!"
"What did he do this time?" Cyno asked, ever interested in their little squabbles.
Kaveh glared at Alhaitham, "He called me gullible."
"I see. Did you donate to the rishboland tiger charity again? They're back at it…"
"What? No!… Not you too!"
Cyno turned to leave, "Right. I'll look into it. I suggest you both go home."
With that Cyno was gone, Kaveh was left even more annoyed than he had been before, and Alhaitham was smirking. Kaveh stomped away, not waiting for the gray-haired nuisance, who would likely show back up to pick at Kaveh's character soon enough.
Once Kaveh was far enough away from the café, and could breathe again, he realized he may have been overreacting, but only a little. He also realized that Alhaitham had been trying to rile him up on purpose, probably so that he could go home and read, and it worked. He'd pay for it later.
"Hello, dear! Could I interest you in a charm bracelet? All the proceeds go to the children's charity!"
Kaveh knew that voice, he'd heard it before. He scanned the crowd until he found what he was looking for, a man talking to passers-by, or more specifically, Dehya. He stepped behind the corner of the closest building and watched, knowing that the Flame Maine wouldn't fall for anything.
"What are you looking at?"
The whisper right in his ear made him nearly jump out of his skin. Alhaitham had snuck up on him, and was now laughing at his plight. The kind of laugh that was reserved only for the scribe's most evil of acts. Kaveh smacked him across the shoulder.
"Oh my god, Alhaitham! Are you trying to send me to an early grave?!" Kaveh grumbled then turned back around, "That's the guy!"
Alhaitham raised an eyebrow, "The guy? Is this someone I should be concerned about? Should I purchase you a bouquet, and profess my love?"
"What – no! S-stop that! It's the guy I bought the lion keychains from. I'm sure of it!"
Alhaitham followed Kaveh's gaze, and crossed his arms, "That guy tricked you? Have you no sense at all, Kaveh?"
"I was in a bad place, and couldn't bear to think about others suffering, okay?! Now that I've seen him again…"
"Very well. I shall protect your honor," Alhaitham said as he straightened up, and began to march towards the man before Kaveh could stop him.
"That's… not what that… Wait – wait! Alhaitham!"
Why wouldn't anyone listen to him?
Chapter Two
Alhaitham could hear Kaveh calling to him, but chose to ignore it. This was all about annoying Kaveh more, but he was also curious about this man. Judging by his attire, he definitely wasn't from Sumeru, yet he was supposedly collecting for a local charity. Listening closer, Alhaitham couldn't tell where his accent was from. He sounded more like Lumine than anyone, but still different.
There were many things that Alhaitham could see, which should have been warning signs to Kaveh. Instead, the blonde always wanted to see the good in everyone, and selected to ignore other behaviors. As much as he complained about it, he loved Kaveh for it. People who genuinely had people's interests at heart were rare, and Kaveh was a beautiful person for it.
As Alhaitham approached, the man turned to greet him. Bright green eyes pierced into teal and gold ones, and the man's stance instantly changed as he brought up his guard. The man whisked his blue hair out of his face as he plastered on a "charming" smile, one that didn't fool Alhaitham for a second.
"Well hello, good sir! I assume you're interested in one of these charms? The money goes to-"
"Koski!"
That was it, the man, Koski, had taken off running in the blink of an eye, and he was quite fast. A blonde man with a scowl ran past, also fast considering the several pounds of clothing and armor he was wearing compared to the blue haired man.
Alhaitham could have let the new person take care of it, the fight wasn't really his, after all. However, he still had a score to settle for Kaveh, who was once again yelling in his direction as Alhaitham took off after the others.
He watched Koski jump over one of the railings with no concern to where it led, but Alhaitham knew it led to a large drop. Still, the blonde man followed, using ice to cushion his fall. That was interesting, considering he hadn't seen a Vision on either of them.
As good at acrobatics as Alhaitham was, he didn't need them to drop a level. He drew on his dendro abilities, and flickered down, safe, and fast. Efficient, as always. The problem was the head start they had on him from the start.
Calling on his larger abilities took more energy, but judging the distance between them, he'd be tired, but not overly so if he caught the angles just right. Alhaitham flickered once, and he was even with the blonde man, who was caught off guard. He flickered again, and grabbed Koski right as he came out of it. Alhaitham twisted so that when they stumbled to the ground he had the man pinned.
It was interesting. The man only looked surprised for a second before the phony smile was back.
"Why sir, you haven't even bought me dinner yet!"
"Who are you?" Alhaitham ignored the man's taunt.
"He," the blonde man behind them said, barely out of breath, "Is Sampo Koski, a conman-"
"Aww, Geppie, I thought I was more than that to you-"
"I've never seen abilities like yours before, mister…?"
"Alhaitham! I can't believe you just ran off like that! You have no idea who this man is, he could have been dangerous! You could have gotten hurt!"
"Oh, heh, heh. I see you're taken already," Sampo said with a wink.
Alhaitham glared at Sampo, and stood, pulling the man to his feet as he did. He turned to the man the bluenette had called Geppie, "I'm Alhaitham, and my abilities are thanks to my Vision," he pointed where his was attached at his shoulder, "Who are you, and why might you be here disrupting Sumeru's peace?"
"I was about to ask the same. You've drawn the attention of the Marta. I'm Cyno, the General Mahamatra. Who are you?"
Everyone turned to Cyno, who had been standing behind them for Archons knew how long. The blonde in the armor stepped forward, "I'm Captain Gepard Landau of the Silvermane Guards. Though… I suppose that doesn't mean much here. This is Sampo Koski, who is a known criminal where I'm from. I'm not certain how we got here, but I have a feeling he could give us some answers. Don't let go of him, please. He's slippery."
"I had no intention of doing so. I have my own questions that need answered," Alhaitham replied.
Kaveh stepped forward, "Ah- that's really… not necessary. We could just go home-"
"Well, I remember you, mister beautiful. Your kindness was insurmountable in raising funds for – Ah! Ow, ow! Watch it there, Muscles!" Sampo yelped as Alhaitham squeezed his arm.
"You may address him respectfully as Sir, or not at all."
Sampo snapped his mouth shut, swallowed hard, and shrunk away.
Gepard raised his brows in surprise, "I've… never actually seen him do what he was told like that…"
"Is anyone injured?" Cyno asked, looking over everyone.
"Well, the circulation in my arm-"
"No? Let's move this elsewhere," Cyno said as he took Sampo's other arm, and stared at Alhaitham, waiting for him to let go.
Normally, Alhaitham might consider annoying Cyno, but this really did need to be taken off the streets. He let go, but followed right on their heels, not letting either of them get out of arm's reach.
"Alhaitham," Kaveh whispered as he followed, "Cyno's got this, let's go home."
"Hm."
Kaveh growled, "Again with the 'Hm'! We don't need to be involved in this!"
"I'll see you at home, then," Alhaitham replied, receiving another growl.
"Awe, you guys are so cute! Reminds me of Geppie and me!"
"They are nothing like us," Gepard replied, the annoyance in his voice audible.
"Of course they are. How do you not see it? Two cuties, fighting constantly, always chasing each other."
"I'm not chasing him!-"
"I'm not chasing you!-"
Kaveh, and Gepard's words came out in a jumble as they both turned red. Alhaitham, however, would deny nothing. He had always chased Kaveh, just not in a conventional way. Even when they were apart he kept track of Kaveh's work, unsurprised by the beauty it held, and when he'd found out about the blonde's homelessness, he'd asked him to move in.
After he moved in, Alhaitham mostly ignored the rent, which Kaveh had insisted on, only bringing it up when he was out to annoy his Light, and it worked so well. Most of their squabbling wasn't random, it was often a way for Alhaitham to distract the architect from his stress by putting something else on his mind.
The issue with these things was that Kaveh had no idea why Alhaitham did it. He thought it was just to be annoying, and at times – as it had been earlier that day – it had been. Alhaitham was looking for the reaction, the way Kaveh's cheeks, and down his neck flushed red. He would also enjoy making up for it later on.
Ultimately, It took an accident for him to realize that if he didn't start outwardly showing how he felt, he would never have Kaveh in the ways he wanted, and that was unfathomable.
"Argh… It's not like I was chasing you like that." Gepard corrected, face still red.
"Well I kind of like it when you manhandle me to the ground, and straddle me so you can cuff me, Geppie… I thought you felt the same!" the man taunted with a pout.
Gepard swiped his hand down his face, "Aeons, why must you be so embarrassing?"
"Here," Cyno said as they entered his office.
The area was rarely used. During the day Cyno would wander, and do any investigating he needed. As for the General's reports, he'd heard Tighnari complain plenty of times about Cyno using his free time at home to do them.
Cyno pulled the chairs away from the desk, and gestured for their guests to have a seat. Kaveh placed himself in front of the door, and Alhaitham stood behind the men, between them, and Kaveh.
"Wow, where are all the windows? Ah, heh… just a little stuffy in here, yeah?" Sampo asked.
"It would be a breeze to tell you a pun about air, but I'll stick with a joke that will leave you breathless," Cyno deadpanned.
The guests glanced at each other uncertainly, it was the most genuine face Alhaitham had seen the conman make yet.
"Get it? Because you said something about it being stuffy, and both breeze, and breathless are references to air… No? Alright, then. Explain the situation to me."
"Well, you see-" Sampo began, but was cut off by Gepard.
"Whatever lies you are about to spout, I recommend that you don't, Koski," the Captain said, glaring at the blue haired man. "I'm fairly certain this world isn't Belobog, correct? Or you may have heard it called Jarilo-VI?"
Cyno shook his head, "This is Teyvat. I've never heard either of those names before. Scribe?"
Alhaitham shook his head. In everything he'd ever read, he had never heard either of those names. He turned to Kaveh, who gave a shrug, unusually quiet for him.
Gepard continued, "I see. That's where we're from. I was chasing Koski when we were attacked by a fragmentum monster. They were once people, but were corrupted to become what they are now. This one was different. It had an item that looked a lot like that on it." He gestured to Cyno's Vision, "I noticed that some people wear them here, but in different colors. The one the fragmentum beast had was blue, and had what looked like a snowflake on it."
"Interesting. That would be a cryo Vision," Alhaitham said, "Visions are given by Celestia as something of an acknowledgement of that person's aspirations, and ambition. They allow those people to channel the type of energy that Vision wields."
"Some people from our world have the ability to draw on elements to aid in their attacks. Those people are called Pathstriders. It's believed that the Aeons give these abilities."
"Are Aeons your deities, then?" Kaveh asked.
Gepard nodded, "Something like that. They are, at the very least, very powerful beings."
"So… what happened after your fight?" Kaveh had wandered closer with neither men having made a move towards the door.
"Well, you see-" Sampo started again, and was cut off once more.
"When we killed the monster, it created some sort of…"
"Energy portal!-"
"… Energy portal that sucked us in. I know Koski must have been deposited in the same spot, I found his footprints, but I lost consciousness. He had left by the time I came to. I… apologize for any issues, and inconvenience this situation might be causing."
"Trouble? Poor little ole me would never cause trouble!" Sampo tried, and received four glares in return.
"You've been here before," Alhaitham said, "And you caused trouble both times. How did you get home before?"
"Oh, ah… well. I had my mask before, and I kind of don't just at this moment. Been meaning to get it back…"
"Mask? What kind of nonsense are you talking about, Koski?"
"Oh, Geppie, Geppie. That part doesn't matter! What matters is that I don't have a way to get us back this time."
The man made a pouty face at Gepard, and the Captain sighed, scrubbing his hands over his face. Cyno had been quiet for a while, not even protesting Kaveh, and Alhaitham asking questions in his place.
"Kaveh, would you mind seeing if Lesser Lord Kusanali could help?" the General asked.
The blonde looked like he wanted to protest, but turned and left instead.
Excellent. This would give Alhaitham a chance to ask Mister Koski some questions.
Chapter Three
Kaveh's mind was buzzing. People from another world? He wondered what it was like where they came from. One of them dressed like he was traversing the frozen lands of Snezhnaya the other in everyday wear. In fact, he was wearing exactly the same thing he was wearing the last time Kaveh met him.
It begged the question, though, why was the man selling random items if this wasn't his world. He supposed if someone were stuck for any period of time they would still need food, and shelter.
Not paying attention, Kaveh rounded the corner, and ran straight into Hat Guy. Considering how small the young man was, it was a surprise when it was Kaveh who ended up on the floor, the other not even having moved.
"Sorry!" Kaveh said, scrambling to his feet, "Are you alright? I wasn't watching where I was going…"
"Hm. Whatever."
Talkative as always.
"Okay, then. Oh, hey – You're always around Lesser Lord Kusanali, do you know where I might find her?"
Hat Guy narrowed his eyes, and glared at Kaveh, "Do I look like your lapdog?"
"What? No, no! I… I didn't mean it that way!" Kaveh backtracked.
Had he said it that way? He didn't mean to imply something like that. The last thing he wanted to do was insult anyone. Well, except Alhaitham, maybe, but that was different.
"Wow. I can see you overthinking," Hat Guy sighed, and crossed his arms, "I'll bring you to her."
"Thank you!"
"Pfft. Just don't expect it all the time."
"Right… of course!"
Hat Guy rolled his eyes, and walked away, Kaveh followed. He had never been to this area. It was quiet, and a deep calm seemed to engulf everything within. They weren't two steps in the door when a tiny streak with white hair lunged at him.
You never knew what to expect with Nahida. Sometimes, she would be calm, and spout wisdom to all around. Other times she was very child-like. Either way she always greeted Kaveh so cheerfully.
"Kaveh! I haven't seen you since your birthday. How have you been?"
"Oh, well… good. Thank you. I'm afraid I'm here for a reason, though."
"You are, indeed. It seems there's been a disturbance in the force."
Kaveh's eyebrows knit together in confusion, "The force?"
Nahida giggled, "Never mind. It was something the Traveler taught me. I sensed something was a little off."
"There are some people who seem to have shown up out of nowhere. They claim they're from an entirely different world, and Cyno asked me to see you about it…"
"Excellent. I was searching for the cause of the changes I sensed. It would seem I don't have to look very far! Lead the way, Mister Kaveh."
The Archon hummed pleasantly as she skipped along the halls. Kaveh couldn't remember the last time he had done such a thing. Before his father died, certainly. He felt a hand on his arm as Nahida came to a stop.
"Those we lose are still on the same path, just a little further along."
A sigh sounded from behind them where Hat Guy had been silently following along. There were many times that Nahida's words of wisdom didn't make a lot of sense to him, but this made perfect sense. Supposedly they would all see their loved ones again, in time.
It was just so difficult to simply believe that. It was hard enough to be separated from them, but if you were expecting to see them again, and it never happened… that would be devastating.
"Kaveh, I promise that in the end, every little thing will be alright," the tiny Archon reassured.
She patted him on the arm again, and continued her skipping. Kaveh stared after her for a moment, and Hat Guy stepped up next to him. The young man gave him a nod, and for just a brief moment, the understanding of deep loss crossed his face before he followed Nahida.
When they made it back to the room, Alhaitham was smirking, Gepard looked surprised once more, and Sampo was almost cowering. Cyno sat against his desk, looking almost bored until he saw Nahida.
"Lesser Lord Kusanali, thank you for coming."
"Of course, and as I always say, please call me Nahida," she said as she walked over to the visitors. She looked at them both before settling on Sampo, "What would bring someone of your capabilities here?"
Sampo seemed almost in awe of Nahida, and Gepard looked between the two, confusion evident on his face. When the bluenette only stared instead of answering, the Archon touched his cheek to bring him back to her questioning.
"Was it intentional?"
"N-no? Um, no. It was an accident. Some sort of energy explosion," Sampo answered.
Nahida looked at Gepard once more, smiled sweetly, and held out a hand for him to take, "May I?"
Gepard hesitantly took her small hand in his own, and she closed her eyes. Small glowing wisps of green, leafy vines appeared between their clasped hands, circling them. Gepard's eyes went wide, but he made no move to pull away, entranced by what he was seeing. A moment later, Nahida pulled away, and looked at Sampo once more.
"Part of this energy comes from the Visions of this world, and the other… comes from another universe. I believe it reacted to you in this way because of the type of energy you carry within. This isn't the first time this has happened to you, correct?"
"… A few years ago," he glanced at Kaveh, "I had something with me at the time to help me return after I recovered a bit."
"Well," Nahida tapped her chin, "I believe I can send you back using the energy that anchors your soul to your own universe. That would be your family, Mister Gepard. You would be sent to one of them. As for you, Mister Sampo, there are two things which anchor you. One is the mask you spoke of. Just like Mister Gepard, you would be sent to its location." She paused, and looked back and forth between the two men, but didn't continue.
Sampo's brows raised at that, "What is the second option?"
"There are many people you care for, but one more than most. Enough that they anchor you to your universe. However, if I were to send you to them, they would then know."
"Oh? Oh… Well, I've been meaning to go get my… item… back anyway! Haha."
"Alright then, I'll need some time to prepare. I'll be back soon!" Nahida said as she bounced back out the door.
Chapter Four
Gepard was in overall shock for a multitude of reasons, currently, but most of all because had never seen Sampo act that way before. Compliant, and truthful. The young girl they had spoken to could truly work miracles. Alhaitham could too, for that matter. The man seemed to intimidate Sampo.
Alhaitham didn't take kindly to Sampo scamming his loved one, and Gepard didn't blame him there. Somehow, Alhaitham had gotten Sampo to agree to apologizing to Kaveh, and finding a way to pay him back before he left.
On one hand, and for once, he understood why Sampo had ultimately done it. Circumstances left him without resources, and he used his skills to amend that. What they were asking in recompense was more than fair. Gepard wouldn't be happy about someone coming into his city, and conning them. He knew that for a fact, thanks to Sampo.
The girl they had called Lesser Lord Kusanali was interesting. She looked like a child, but obviously held great power. He could feel it when he took her hand, and she seemed confident that she could send them home. Alhaitham, Kaveh, and the hat wearing kid had left with her, hopefully to sort out their solution.
That left Sampo, the General, and himself. He was surprised that Sampo seemed content to stay where he was as they listened to Cyno tell bad joke, after bad joke. He found them odd, and not terribly funny, but Sampo seemed to really enjoy them. The white haired man told them all so straight-faced.
Sampo's plans were often loud, distracting from what he was actually doing. Now, Sampo just looked tired. He could understand that, being exploded, thrown for what felt like hours, and spit out into an unknown place, a place which was very warm.
Gepard had to remove several layers of his gear so he wouldn't end up passing out. He'd never understood how Sampo could run around in the snow plains wearing as little as he did. Half the time he'd chased the man out there was because he was worried he would freeze to death. Either way, he was always chasing Sampo, and Sampo seemed to think it was a game. Gepard could see the gleam in the bluenette's eyes when he'd pause to make sure he was being chased.
He heard the door open behind them, and Kaveh's voice floated through.
"I can handle this just fine! You don't have to supervise me, Alhaitham."
The latter only grunted in response. They were arguing again, that wasn't much of a surprise at this point. They seemed to do that a lot. In the short time since he'd met them he'd already heard them sniping at each other, and bickering countless times. The key was that they both seemed to enjoy it. Sampo wasn't wrong, those two sounded a lot like them, but he and Sampo weren't together. Those two obviously were, even to someone as oblivious as Gepard knew he could be at times.
Kaveh, and Alhaitham appeared in front of them holding trays, "I thought you might be hungry, and thirsty. I hope you like it alright… I wasn't sure what to get since I don't know what foods you are used to, so I just brought what I could."
"You brought half of the café's menu, Kaveh, thus the supervision. If I hadn't stopped you, you would have ordered everything. I'm sure they'll find something," Alhaitham said as he handed Gepard a tray.
It was piled high with different types of food, and a few types of drinks. Gepard could get very hungry after several days of continuously fighting off fragmentum monsters, but even then this would have been too much. It probably could have fed himself, and many of his soldiers. With a glance at Sampo, he saw the man's eyes go wide, then a large, genuine grin spread across his face.
"Thank you! I can't speak for my dear Captain, but I'm ravenous!" he said as he dug in.
Gepard turned back to the men, "Thank you. This is very kind.""
Sampo made quick work of it, finishing most of the tray. Gepard couldn't figure out where he could possibly keep it all. The conman sat back, and smiled happily, until Alhaitham crossed his arms, and stared at him.
"Oh… right. Kaveh, I wanted to apologize for… having sold you those keychains…"
Keychains? Sampo had been selling keychains? Gepard had to physically bite his lip to stop from laughing out loud. That was certainly not something one would have ever caught Sampo selling on the streets in Belobog. He was very proud of his quality, and high value stolen wares. The man must have been desperate. A small growl from the General drew his attention to the smaller man, and Sampo swallowed hard.
"I-I truly am very sorry!"
He certainly sounded it, but Gepard was fairly certain it was out of fear. However, he found it surprising that Sampo didn't even try to make excuses, or give his side of the story. It was odd. He always had several excuses at the ready, and would spout them like a fountain.
"I would like to pay you back, but, honestly…" he seemed to deflate a little, "I'm not really sure how…"
Kaveh waved his hands in the air, "Don't worry about it. The apology is more than enough."
The look on Sampo's face was priceless. The man genuinely didn't know what to make of someone not wanting something from him. Whether it was stolen goods, a favor, or retribution for his crimes, everyone wanted something from the fabulous Sampo Koski.
"Hm."
"Stop it with the "Hm"!" Kaveh rounded on the silver-haired man, "This whole apology thing obviously has something to do with you. While I appreciate that you may have put some thought into someone's feelings for once, I'm fine, Haitham!"
"He conned you out of what little money you had at the time. What about that is okay, exactly?"
"It may be true that I didn't have much money, but I have an actual object to show for my purchase!" Kaveh started patting down his pockets, and Alhaitham sighed and held up a pair of keys, which the blonde immediately snatched from him, "Why do you have my keys again?! Ugh – no, that doesn't matter. The point is, Alhaitham, I have something to show for what I bought, and it wasn't forced on me, I chose to buy it."
"You chose to buy it on the basis that it was helping people."
"Then they are the ones who are the victims here, not me. And unless he plans on staying here, and getting a full-time job, he's got no way to pay that back. Besides, he was a needy person at the time."
"That's a fine line when said people never existed to begin with, Kaveh. He can work for various researchers doing errands," Alhaitham said.
Sampo started to say something, but was cut off. Gepard was reminded of a dramatic play Serval, and Lynx had dragged him off to go watch after an extremely difficult, and stressful week. Lady Bronya had been in on it, insisting he take some time off.
In the play, two not yet lovers pined over each other, but instead of just saying so they argued. This went on until one nearly lost their life in an accident, and they finally admitted their feelings for each other. It had sounded like it would be boring, but Gepard had found himself intrigued by it, and stayed until the end.
These two were like their very own play. They constantly argued, a lot of it was Alhaitham trying to convince Kaveh to do what's best for himself rather than others. Kaveh was resistant to the idea, and argued that others needed help more than he did. They were complete opposites.
"Gentlemen?" Gepard managed to cut in, "I understand your plight, but Sampo really should return to our own world. I realize this wouldn't settle his debt to your own world, but if I were to ensure he was enlisted in community service as payment for this alone, would that be acceptable?"
"Yes! That would be wonderful. As long as he's helping others, I'd be happy." Kaveh agreed happily.
"What? Don't I get to say what I think?"
The sound of four people saying "No!" at the same time echoed through the room. Sampo groaned, and sunk into his seat. Gepard found it amusing to watch Sampo pout. He wondered about this mask Sampo would be sent to, and how he would track him, considering it wasn't terribly likely whatever it was would be at Serval's shop. Ultimately, it didn't matter. Sampo would certainly show himself soon enough, and even if he didn't, Gepard would make sure he'd fulfill the community service requirement.
He had never felt terribly stupid before, but all of this was so over his head. Sampo didn't seem even remotely shocked by the fact that they weren't even in their own universe anymore, but then he had been to this place before. Gepard had been no slacker in school, but this particular subject wasn't something they had studied. In fact, he'd never even had the time to stop any think that something like this could exist, let alone happen to him. It was a lot to learn about, and deal with.
"Alright there, Geppie?" Sampo asked.
Gepard blinked at him, not having paid attention, "Hm?"
"Are you alright? You seem… dazed? Shocked? I'm not quite sure what the right word is here… You look pale."
The bluenette had dropped all of his usual façade. The fake smile, the fake voice, every false move gone. Gepard would almost think he really was concerned.
"Were you shocked the first time you ended up here?"
Sampo seemed to think on this, twiddling his thumbs in circles, and biting his lip. Now that was a serious look for the man. One Gepard would probably never see again.
"I suppose I was somewhat, but I'm also rather adaptable. I didn't know what a Vision was at the time, and I didn't realize it was the energy from it that sent me here before. I thought it was simply a trinket. Kaveh was the only Vision user I ran into."
"Why didn't you stay last time?" Gepard wondered out loud, "It's nice here, warm, plenty of food, and luxury."
"Hah, true, but I had left my good shoes at home that day. Home is where my boots are, Captain!"
Gepard rolled his eyes, "So, who is it then? The person you care so much about?"
Sampo leaned back in his seat, and crossed his arms, "It doesn't matter. We'd never get along anyway."
"How would you know that unless you told them?"
A small, sad smile crossed Sampo's lips, "Even if I were ready to tell them, I doubt they would be ready to hear it. We're total opposites, right down to the smallest things we do. I'm more than happy watching over them, instead."
The very last part of what he said, it was a lie, and Gepard could tell. Before he could ask any further questions, the door opened again, and the young girl, along with the kid with the very large hat, were back.
She stopped in front of them, smiling, "Are you ready?"
With a glance at Sampo, Gepard nodded, and the blue haired man did the same.
"We're ready."
"Excellent! Who will go first?"
That was a good question. If he went first, that gave Sampo a chance to do something on this end. If Sampo went first, that gave him a chance to get away. Although he doubted wherever Sampo was going was anywhere near where he was going.
"I'll go first."
"Okay. Come over here, if you would. Having some elbow space isn't strictly necessary, but I would prefer it."
Gepard turned to Sampo, "Why did you turn back when I got attacked? You could have kept going. You could have escaped, and you wouldn't have ended up in this situation."
Sampo looked caught off guard by the question before he fixed his features into his usual smooth smile, "Lost something, had to go back for it. What a ride just for that, hm?"
Lies. He supposed he'd never get a serious answer.
"I'll catch you later, Koski."
"Looking forward to it, Captain!" Sampo saluted.
With an exasperated sigh in Sampo's direction he turned to the others present.
"Thank you all for your hospitality. Again, I apologize for the inconvenience it has caused."
"It was no inconvenience at all!" Kaveh said, waving a hand dismissively.
"Be sure you avoid this kind of situation in the future." Alhaitham added as he crossed his arms.
The General gave him a nod, and the kid with the hat simple made a noise at him. Gepard couldn't help but think of Serval when she went through a short stage like that. He was young, and still didn't understand it when he reached that same age. He was always the type to do what he was told, when he was told.
With their goodbye's being done, he stepped up to where the girl indicated.
"There may be some turbulence. It's likely that it won't be as smooth of a ride as it was coming here. Are you ready?"
Gepard nodded once more, "I'm ready… and thank you."
She held out both of her hands, and he took them. The feeling of power was immediate, and much stronger than before. A moment later the world was spinning, all the air was sucked out of his lungs, and he felt like he was falling.
The sudden contact with a solid surface was painful, and he slid into something that crashed over him, before hitting something solid once more. Metal clattered across what he assumed was the floor, and he heard a voice - Serval's voice.
"… Gepard?! What in the…"
He might have answered if all thoughts weren't leaking out of his head.
"Gepard, hey… answer me. Don't you dare pass out!"
He just needed a little nap.
~xxxxxxxxxx~
"You already took out half my shop, bro. I don't know if I could really trust your repairs…"
"That's an exaggeration. It was just a little corner," Gepard said as he started working on patching the wall, "And my carpentry is excellent, I'll have you know."
Close to the floor the wall had a Gepard sized hole in it. Serval, with all of her mechanical genius, was not good at carpentry. So, when he had healed from his "fall", which could have ended far worse, the job fell on him, not that he minded.
She had been ready to hire someone, but he felt that since he made the mess, he should be the one to personally fix it. Being as he'd been cleared to return to work the next day, he figured it would be best to get it done.
A while later he was headed home. For some reason, every time he stepped foot outside it had become habit to look for dark blue hair, and burgundy jacket. He hadn't seen Sampo since they left Teyvat, and he found that worrisome.
On one hand, it could mean that the conman was planning something big. Something that would cause Gepard large amounts of trouble, and likely apologizing to pedestrians in large numbers. On the other hand… it could mean that Sampo didn't have a safe trip home.
While Gepard's trip was far from safe, he made it, and he lived. The other man may not have been so lucky. Nahida calling it turbulence was an astronomical understatement, and he hoped to never travel that way again.
"Aww… What's got you down, Geppie?"
Gepard spun at the comment, blue eyes meeting bright green. Across from him stood none other than the very man he had just been worried about, and he looked perfectly healthy. In fact, the mischievous grin spread across his face seemed to have extra mischief in it.
"Koski! Where have you been?"
Sampo pushed off of the wall he'd been leaning against, and gasped mockingly, "Why, I'll be! You were worried about little ole me?! Oh, aren't you such a sweetheart?!"
"I wasn't worried!" Gepard quickly denied.
"Well, I'm just fine, Captain. No more need to worry!"
Sampo winked as he said it, and Gepard let out an annoyed growl. This man had some nerve, that was for sure. He knew full well what was waiting for him the next time they ran into each other.
"It's time to do some community service, Koski. I expect you to hold up your end of the deal."
Sampo tapped his finger on his chin as if thinking, "Hmm. How about… if you catch me!"
Just like that, the man took off at a run, laughing as he went. It always had to be a game.
Epilogue
"What is it with tall, good-looking, red-headed guys crashing onto the Express?! He really does look just like her, isn't that weird?! And what's with this guy? I wonder if he's a pirate."
The voice was slightly piercing. It reminded Kaeya of Paimon's voice, but more nasally, and less shrill. He groaned at the thought of more women pinning over Diluc. Something like half of Mondstadt's population already did, and the redhead had no appreciation for it, preferring to hide away from the attention.
His groan must have been loud enough to get the person's attention. A moment later, he felt a hand rest gently on his arm, and the breath of someone leaning over him. He tried to squirm away on the lightly padded surface he was on, but he felt drained of energy, and queasy. Kaeya opted to get his eye open instead. Looking down at him was a girl with gray hair, and kind golden eyes.
She smiled at him, "The suspense is killing me. Arrrr you a pirate?"
Out of all the times he had been asked that, this was the most straight forward he'd ever had. He'd been asked in many round-about ways, and even trailed by Fischl for an entire day, but never asked out right from someone with a hopeful smile on their face.
"Stelle! You can't just ask people things like that!" a girl with pink hair appeared over him now, "Sorry for that, we're still training her! Um… we do need to know how you got aboard the Express, though."
"… Express?"
Kaeya choked on air, coughing hard enough to make his throat, and lungs burn. Suddenly, there was a man with a white coat helping him to sit up, groaning at the soreness throughout his entire body, and he was handed a drink. The water felt smooth on his throat.
"Kaeya?" Diluc's voice mumbled from his left somewhere, and the man in the white coat moved to another table.
Kaeya could see Diluc's boots at one end, and a large amount of bright red hair on the other. He realized just a little too late what was about to happen.
"No, don't-"
Too slow. One touch was all it took for Diluc to be on his feet, and backed against a wall, ready to fight… if he weren't wobbling.
"Stay away…" Diluc growled.
With the coat, which resembled a very specific doctor's with a blurry glance, a barely conscious Diluc, and being touched without permission, Kaeya could see why it would set Diluc off. Kaeya got to his feet, also wobbling, and put himself in Diluc's line of sight.
"Diluc… I don't think they're going to hurt us."
"... Kaeya? Where?" Diluc asked, not taking his eyes off the man.
That was something he didn't know. It was a blur, and had happened so quickly that it was difficult to remember what had happened. They had just finished dinner, when there was a light, engulfing Diluc, and Kaeya had lunged for him. The world spun, and hurt, and they – thankfully – woke up here. Organizing his brain to put that into words wasn't an option just yet.
"I don't know, but I think we're fine. I don't think they want to hurt us," Kaeya said as he moved to where he could support his brother if he fell.
Diluc was definitely on the verge of panic, waking up in an unknown bed, in a room that was obviously some sort of medical lab, to a man in a white coat touching him. This was a physical manifestation of his brother's nightmares.
A woman's voice floated through a nearby doorway, "Mister Yang? Dan Heng and I have finished with the -" she stopped just inside the frame, and took in the scene, "I apologize, but if you are threatening my crew, I'm afraid I'll have to move you to more secure quarters."
The pink haired girl said something, but Kaeya didn't hear a word of it as he took in the red haired woman. He knew her face so well, not because he'd ever met her, but because he had stared at the beautiful features for hours when he was a kid.
It was a painting that had been hanging in the Ragnvindr mansion, then the winery. He glanced at Diluc, whose attention had now been diverted away from the man. It was almost as if his brother had been paused right where he was, even his breathing had stopped for a long moment before he whispered a single word-
"… Mom?"
To Be Continued…