"Furina, come on. I said I had a new idea."
"Nope! You made your choice. Now I'm too sad to get up."
"She really doesn't sound it... and you! Paimon thought you'd have learned some way to get on Furina's good side after all the time you've spent with her without Paimon."
Aether sighed. He had lost track of how long he had been standing outside Furina's apartment and Furina refused to budge. He understood why she was upset but he thought she would be back to her usual self if she just heard out his idea.
How was he to know she made a comprehensive list of all the operas showing and when to see them with Lantern Rite coming up?
He was sure she knew he couldn't stay in Fontaine with her forever. Maybe she just wanted to make the most of the time she had of him being here before heading to Natlan.
He was actually going to tell her that he'd be leaving Fontaine for a while to head to Liyue when Furina bounded up to him with news of her activities. It wasn't until later that he had thought there wasn't actually anything keeping her tied to Fontaine anymore.
In theory then, she could come with them to celebrate Lantern Rite.
"Furina, what about-"
"Still too sad! I'm perfectly fine right here. By myself. In Fontaine."
In practice, Furina was choosing not to listen and sulking. He could picture her on the other side of the door with her arms folded tightly and her nose turned up.
"Hey, you two!" Navia's cheerful voice came from behind them. Both Aether and Paimon turned to see her with Clorinde. Navia looked between them and the still closed door. "What's going on here? Is Furina busy?"
"No, she's just pouting-"
"I'm not pouting! You're pouting!" Furina cut in. "And don't think you can weasel your way in just because you've got company!"
"Yeah, so we're stuck out here," Paimon concluded.
Clorinde didn't look all too surprised. "So what led to this?" she asked quietly enough so Furina wouldn't butt in.
Aether sighed again. "Furina made plans for us when we were going to tell her we were going to Liyue for Lantern Rite."
"So now she thinks you're going off to have fun without her?" Navia summarised.
"We actually came up with the idea to take her with us but she's not hearing us out but yeah that's pretty much it."
"'Pretty much'?" The door opened to reveal Furina enough that she was still blocking their entry. "What about how much trouble I went through that's now been wasted? Now you come back here to beg for my forgiveness without sounding the least bit sorry!"
"Furina, we came here to invite-"
"Did you bring an apology cake?"
"Paimon knew we should have stopped for something..." Paimon muttered.
Furina's eyes couldn't narrow much further.
Clorinde coughed into her hand to get her attention.
"Furina this is perhaps one of those times where you should hear out what they're saying rather than be stubborn."
Thank goodness for Clorinde, Aether thought to himself.
Furina pouted before eventually shrugging with a sigh. "Fine. I am known for my magnanimity after all." She opened the door fully with an expectant look on her face. "Go on then. After disregarding the sacrifices I've made to arrange all kinds of wonderful activities and not providing any compensation, what do you have to say to me?"
"Best to keep things straightforward," Aether thought. He knew enough about her to see that Furina hardly had the patience at this point. "Do you want to come to Liyue with us?"
Opening her mouth and already jabbing a finger at him, Furina froze before any words could actually come out. Whatever comment she had prepared was completely forgotten.
She stood there, wide eyed and unsure of how to respond, simply settling with, "Huh?"
"You'll love it!" Paimon joined in to take some of the burden off of Aether. "Lantern Rite's always an amazing time and you'll get to see more of the world."
Furina continued to try to find the words. She couldn't carry on with her earlier stubbornness after being caught so off guard and as much as she did want to spend time with Aether, she couldn't bring herself to immediately accept either.
Her. Leaving Fontaine? Was she even allowed?
Furina withdrew from her posturing, her voice small. "But I- For me to leave Fontaine... to join in another nation's traditions..."
"I don't think you need to worry about that," Navia said. "It sounds fun and what have you got to lose?"
"It is quite sudden, I agree," Clorinde, who had been watching the exchange with quiet contemplation, spoke up. "But this could be a wonderful opportunity for you Furina. You've been to a few gatherings now and this is your chance to experience the world beyond Fontaine. You won't be going alone either."
Furina looked between them, her mind a whirlwind of conflicting emotions. Sure, it all sounded nice but to suddenly go traveling was perhaps too large a jump. Fontaine was all she had ever known. She couldn't leave. What if something happened as soon as she left?
The water levels could rise. Another Archon would recognise that she was a fraud.
She shook her head to dispel the thoughts. Much like the idea of her birthday, she imagined these kinds of thoughts so ingrained in her over 500 years would eventually fade, reminding herself that she could finally put them behind her.
If she was honest with herself, she always just assumed she was bound to Fontaine. With everything she had to lose, the thought of leaving Fontaine for anything wouldn't be possible for her.
Beyond that though, there was the other thing she was worried about.
She didn't know the first thing about traveling and didn't know anything about Liyue. At least the Fontinalia Festival was in Fontaine so she didn't have to worry about that part. What if she made a fool out of herself because she didn't know their traditions? She couldn't exactly brush her ignorance aside with some convoluted excuse in her former persona. How were Fontaine and Liyue's relations? The last she remembered was sending a message to the Qixing, almost demanding them to tell her everything they knew about Aether.
As much as she wanted to blame her hesitance on the embarrassment of potentially meeting one of the Qixing face to face to discuss her letter, the fear of the unknown was strong.
"Aether, I... I don't know," she began. "Would I even be welcome? I'm probably not even allowed to go."
"Wait, even now you can't leave?" Paimon asked.
"That's news to me," Clorinde uttered. "Should we check with Monsieur Neuvillette?"
Navia nodded in agreement, fully on board to see the plan through. "Maybe we should. I mean, with Furina's role for all her time as archon, there could be a law against her leaving."
Aether hummed. "I'm sure Neuvillette will be willing to overlook it."
"Huh?" Furina blinked. "Wait wait wait, we don't need to get Neuvillette involved."
"We kinda do," Aether replied, turning to leave. "I just think it would be a good idea to let him know what's going on. Besides, I'm sure he'd want to be informed if you were leaving Fontaine, even if it's just for a short while."
"Y-you can't just go to ask for Neuvillette's approval for something like that!" Furina's cheeks flushed at what she assumed the implications of his words were, running to grab Aether's hand to stop him.
"What's the problem?" He asked, not really stopping despite Furina tugging on his arm. "He'd want to know if you're heading out. We already freaked out enough when you didn't tell anyone you flooded your place and moved into the teapot for a while."
"That's different," Furina declared, digging her heels in to stand her ground, only to be pulled along. "I'm not a child and he's not my fath-" She blushed harder when she noticed Clorinde and Navia were also coming with them. She tried to dig her heels in as Aether gently pulled her along. "I-I mean- Fine, stop dragging me! I can walk on my own!"
Once they got past Neuvillette's confusion at why they were asking him for permission for Furina, she felt a lot better about the whole thing. He had even suggested Clorinde and Navia join her if she wanted that extra bit of familiarity in a foreign nation.
More people would make the journeying part easier, she supposed, and she was adamant on walking rather than taking a boat straight to Liyue Harbour.
"If we're traveling then we need the full adventuring experience," she declared to Aether. "Camping out under the stars, unexpected encounters, treasure chests. All of it looked so exciting from your pictures and now I get to try my hand at the adventurer's life. Maybe not the getting lost part but they'll still be memories to look back on fondly."
And so a few days later, after some help packing and reading up on Liyue and Lantern Rite customs from what books she could find, Furina was ready to go.
Furina felt on top of everything until the moment they had to step on the boat from Lumidouce Harbour to Yilong Wharf.
Furina, however, stopped in her tracks.
She couldn't move.
She was about to step foot off Fontaine's shores.
What if one step was all it took for all she had been trying to prevent for 500 years to come apart?
She had been so excited before and everyone else was waiting for her. Now she was going to make the boat late.
Her hands trembled. Her heart pounded.
Aether, noticing her hesitation, turned back to face her. "Furina?" he called gently, stepping closer.
Furina tried to force her legs to move, but they wouldn't budge.
"Nothing will happen," he reassured her. "Fontaine is safe, Furina. Neuvillette is there. You don't have to carry that burden anymore."
Furina stared at him, her chest tightening. Was it really okay for her to leave?
She stopped when she felt something warm.
Aether had taken her hand. "Furina," he said softly, drawing her attention back to him. "Come with me."
Furina took a deep breath. One step. That's all it took.
Her fingers tightened around Aether's hand as she finally stepped forward, her heart pounding.
One step onto the gangplank.
Then another.
And another.
Before she knew it, she was on the ship.
She held onto the side looking back, looking at the shores of Fontaine.
Clorinde stood nearby, adding in her calm and measured tone, "You've done more than enough to ensure that Fontaine can stand on its own. We can trust Neuvillette to take care of it while we're gone."
Navia nodded. "And besides, it's not like you're disappearing forever. You'll be back before you know it."
Furina took a moment to gather herself, and to just stand there on the boat among friends.
Nothing will happen, she told herself.
The group took in the sights of Yilong Wharf, their expressions a mix of fascination and curiosity. The bustling market was alive with vendors calling out to passersby, ships unloading crates of exotic goods. Furina watched, wide-eyed, taking it all in with a sense of growing wonder.
"Over here, look! Wouldn't these be lovely to put around the house? And we need to stock up on this tea as well."
Navia exchanged a knowing glance with Clorinde, both smiling at Furina's excitement. It was refreshing to see her so open and carefree, even if it meant frequent stops along the way.
The group would have liked to take the first steps out from Yilong Wharf were it not for Furina often stopping to take in the sights and ask about things she spotted along the way. Every little detail of Liyue seemed to fascinate her, from the finely woven silk banners that hung from stone archways to the intricate carvings on the buildings they passed.
Aether chuckled, indulging Furina's enthusiasm. "There's plenty of time to explore, Furina. Lantern Rite itself will bring out even more sights and sounds."
Furina turned back from examining a stall with a sigh and a shrug as if she was the one being inconvenienced. "Oh, alright then. It is what we came for, I suppose, and I have been promised a spectacular event." She nodded thoughtfully, her eyes sparkling as she turned to gaze down the winding path. "I'm sure there will be plenty to see on the journey." She passed the group, taking the lead like she had any idea of where they needed to go. "Onwards to uncharted lands! ... for me at least."
In her newfound excitement, Furina was quick to take charge with a vague idea of where to go. She assured the others, particularly Clorinde, that there was no need to worry about guarding her now that she had her Vision. Speaking of which, she thought, the Salon Solitaire were summoned to join her.
"Leave any troublemakers to them. You needn't waste your energy with me here."
"I can hardly call this a nostalgic feeling but somehow this all feels very familiar," Clorinde commented as they fell in step behind Furina.
Navia smiled. "Oh, good. You can tell us all the tricks you picked up in keeping up with her then,"
"Ooh, yeah, like is there a way to keep her on the path and not get distracted?" Paimon asked. "Or what about if she runs out of energy and someone has to carry her? For the record, Paimon's not someone you can palm that off onto."
"Unless she had somewhere to be urgently, it was usually best to wait until she decided to move on by herself," Clorinde recalled. "Carrying isn't something that came up, however. Granted we never ventured outside of Fontaine, but I've only had to carry her when she was inebriated."
"Th-that's enough of that story, no one needs to hear about that," Furina cut in just as everyone showed their interest in learning more. "It's a perfectly normal occurrence when one is invited to a party with such drinks on offer." She nodded and placed her hands on her hips. "...or so I hear..." she added quietly.
As they made their way along the path through Chenyu Vale, Furina's excitement became more animated with a smile on her face and a song in her heart. She would stop and start, admiring the scenery and wanting to capture almost everything on Kamera to document her new experiences. Aether and the others indulged her whims, happy to see her so captivated by the experience.
Continuing further, her boundless energy was gradually giving way to fatigue. She tried to keep up, not wanting to miss a single detail, but eventually, her footsteps became sluggish and her enthusiastic commentary became less frequent. She had flopped ungracefully onto Madamoiselle Crabaletta's back for a while before even her construct slowed down from Furina's own exhaustion and popped.
Furina groaned as she pushed herself up from the ground.
"Everything alright, Furina?" Aether asked, stopping to wait for her.
Furina came to a halt with a dramatic sigh, lifting one foot and grimacing. "My feet hurt."
"Oh boy, here we go," Paimon uttered.
"Excusez-moi, the only one here not walking," Furina began, jabbing a finger at her. "I'm at a disadvantage here. I can hardly be blamed for my legs not being as long as everyone else's. Keeping up requires much more energy on my part."
"And nothing to do with running ahead and the detours to the cave and the river, I'm sure," Navia muttered to the others while Furina was preoccupied with Paimon. "We can stop here for the night. Seems like as good a place as any."
"Agreed, we've made good progress," Clorinde nodded, surveying the area.
"Alright, that's enough," Aether said, standing in between Furina and Paimon. "We'll stop here for now."
"Not bad for your first trek outside Fontaine," Aether offered, approaching and sitting next to Furina once their camp was set up. "And to think you're out here now after worrying about if you'd be welcome at first."
Furina waved her hand dismissively. "Aether, please, that was days ago. I'm in adventuring mode now and fully prepared to celebrate now that I've done my research. It's a long trip and we have to make good time."
"Maybe, but we need to actually get there first. You don't have to push yourself to keep up with everyone the whole time," Aether said, looking at the campfire with her. "I've got plenty of experience at travelling at this point as well, I might add, so don't use me as a reference for how you should go about tackling your first adventure."
Furina didn't immediately respond, simply watching the flames flicker.
"I know," Furina uttered.
She sat in a comfortable silence, thinking about the experiences of the day to distract herself from the aching of her feet.
"I suppose I had the impression when I was packing that we'd be there in no time with all kinds of excitement on the way and villages to stop at at every turn. All the stories of adventures I've read seem to leave out some key details."
"Like the amount of walking."
"Like the amount of walking, yes."
She trailed off and looked over to her other companions, Clorinde preparing for her shift at keeping watch that she had volunteered for and Navia showing off the purchases she had made to Paimon from the caravan they had encountered along the way.
"But, I'm having fun," A smile crossed her face as she turned to face Aether. "It still feels so strange to think I'm venturing outside of Fontaine but here I am."
Aether wrapped an arm around her shoulder, pulling her in closer.
"This… everything has been… I can't even begin to describe what it feels like." She looked to the ground shyly. "I'm doing things I never thought I'd have the chance to. Travelling, sightseeing outside of Fontaine. I know you've probably done this hundreds of times and been to so many even more amazing places at this point but, to me, this is all beyond what I ever expected."
Aether chuckled softly, feeling Furina relax. He may have taken her to explore some of Fontaine before but this was on a completely different level for her. She didn't have to worry about leaving anything behind and could just enjoy a journey with friends.
How much would it have meant for her to just have one day like this in the past, he wondered.
"Hundreds of times or not, this time is still special," he chuckled softly. "Me and Paimon don't get enough time like this with everything going on in each nation but celebrating Lantern Rite with friends who've never been before this year is a new experience for me too."
Furina smiled, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'm really looking forward to it."
"Make sure you get a good rest for tomorrow then. We've still got time to get there before Lantern Rite starts so you can take it easy until we get to the harbour."
"Oh no, we have another day of adventuring with much more to see ahead of us, and I have a perfectly good companion to carry me whe- if my feet give out again."
After one final night camping under the stars, the group awoke to a quiet and peaceful morning. Furina, already wide awake, sat on a nearby rock, gazing toward the distant silhouette of Liyue Harbour.
"I can feel it," she said, more to herself than anyone else, her voice filled with a sense of awe. "It's not much further now, is it?"
"Is this your new adventurer sense talking or just something you remember from our conversations yesterday?" Navia commented with an amused look. Despite the teasing, she couldn't help but smile fondly at Furina's renewed energy. The long trek through Chenyu Vale seemed to have only deepened her sense of wonder at the world beyond Fontaine.
Aether, who had already packed up his bedroll and was making breakfast over the campfire, nodded with a smile. "Just a bit farther, Furina."
"With any luck, we should be there this afternoon," Clorinde said as she tended to their gear.
"Yup, we'll be there before you know it" Paimon agreed with a grin. "And we'll see all the colours and lanterns and the theme for this year, oh, and the food. Can't forget that."
Furina bounced on her feet with a small laugh. "I can hardly wait!"
The sun had just started to set when they finally arrived at the harbour. The harbour was alive with activity; ships from all over Teyvat were docked, their sails billowing in the breeze, while merchants called out their wares. Lanterns of all shapes and sizes floated lazily in the air, their soft glow illuminating the bustling streets below.
Furina paused in awe, her eyes wide with wonder. "This… this is what Liyue Harbour looks like? It's magnificent."
Aether chuckled, his eyes warm. "I thought you'd like it."
Furina was practically bouncing on her heels now, any fatigue long forgotten. "It's so grand! Everything's so alive here, every moment feels like it's bursting with possibility!"
Navia looked around, admiring the sights for herself, "All this and we've only just arrived."
Clorinde nodded, her gaze sweeping over the harbour with a quiet appreciation. "It's certainly a sight to behold. And with Lantern Rite approaching, the entire city will only become more vibrant."
"Quickly now!" Furina declared as she tugged at Aether's hand. "There's no time to waste! We have an entire city to explore, and I will not have Fontaine's representatives being slow to take in the sights!"