【蝴蝶】ᵇᵘᵗᵗᵉʳᶠˡⁱᵉˢ [ʸᵃⁿ!ᴳᵉⁿˢʰⁱⁿ ᴵᵐᵖᵃᶜᵗ]

ᴏɴᴇ

ᴡɪᴛʜ ʙᴜᴛ ᴀ ʙᴜᴛᴛᴇʀꜰʟʏ ᴛᴏ ᴋᴇᴇᴘ ʜᴇʀ ᴄᴏᴍᴘᴀɴʏ, ꜱʜᴇ ʟᴀʏ ᴇᴠᴇʀ ꜱᴏ ꜱᴛɪʟʟ ᴀꜱ ꜱʜᴇ ᴀᴄᴄᴇᴘᴛᴇᴅ ʜᴇʀ ꜰᴀᴛᴇ, ᴛᴏ ʟᴀʏ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ɢʀᴀꜱꜱ ꜰᴏʀᴇᴠᴇʀᴍᴏʀᴇ

≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫

"Windblade!"

Lumine finished the opponent off quickly, sheathing her sword quickly after. "Wow! It looks like you've already got a good grasp on your elemental powers Lumine!" Paimon clapped gleefully.

Lumine nodded, looking down at the hand from which she had created the gust of wind. This power was all too familiar, yet oh so unrecognisable. "Yes, I ... thank you, Paimon."

"Now, let's carry on towards Mondstadt!" Paimon floated away excitedly towards the city of wind, bards and wine. Oh and freedom too, right? Yeah, freedom. "With enough luck, we'll run into someone who's seen your brother!"

Ah yes, Aether. Lumine walked on solemnly, the memories of her brother running through her mind once more. The unknown god, her brother disappearing, 500 years worth of nightmares.

Fun.

"We'll find him Lumine, I promise! Pinkie swear!" Paimon held out her small hand, little finger extended as she smiled comfortingly at Lumine. Lumine smiled, and intertwined their pinkies. "I'm holding you to that, Paimon."

≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫

"Woah! What- what's that?!" Paimon pointed up at the sky fearfully as a large shadow flew over their heads. "Is that- is that a dragon?" Lumine narrowed her eyes against the glare of the sun, but could confirm that yes, it was in fact, a dragon.

She nodded her head in the direction the dragon went, gesturing to paimon to follow the dragon. "So, we're just going to follow the giant dragon into the forest for no reason?" Paimon asked as Lumine simply shrugged, "Curiosity killed the cat, I guess."

After a bit of walking through the thick unpathed forest, Lumine and Paimon hid behind a tree as they witnessed a boy[?] dressed in green clothing -get this- talking to the dragon.

Bards these days, jeez.

Suddenly, Lumine's clothes lit up in the brightest green/blue, drawing the attention of the dragon and the bard in green. Startled, the dragon roared and flew off in a large gust of wind, and the boy in green stared into the forest before disappearing from thin air.

"Whew! Thank the Archons Paimon grabbed your hair in time, else Paimon would've been blown away!" Paimon exclaimed in relief as Lumine tugged at her clothes, trying to figure out how they started glowing.

Paimon glanced over at the spot where the dragon had been, eyes squinting to see further. "Look over there! There's something shiny on the ledge, let's go check it out!" Paimon pointed.

Lumine and Paimon walked closer to the mysterious shiny. "Looks like a mysterious crystal or something! Well, best keep it with y- wait, what's that on the wall?" Paimon floated over to a cliff face, and brushed away the vines.

Lumine walked over, her clothes beginning to glow dimly. Carved into the rock, hidden behind the vines that hung from the top of the cliff, was a small butterfly symbol and a short poem.

ʚɞ

ᝯׁυׁׅꭈׁׅꪱׁׅᨵׁׅ꯱ׁׅ֒ꪱׁׅtׁׅᨮ꫶ׁׅ֮ ƙׁׅ֑ꪱׁׅᥣׁׅ֪ᥣׁׅ֪ꫀׁׅܻժׁׅ݊ tׁׅhׁׅ֮ꪱׁׅ꯱ׁׅ֒ ᝯׁɑׁׅ֮tׁׅ ɑׁׅ֮ꪀׁׅժׁׅ݊ ꯱ׁׅ֒ɑׁׅ֮tׁׅꪱׁׅ꯱ׁׅ֒⨍ɑׁׅ֮ᝯׁtׁׅꪱׁׅᨵׁׅꪀׁׅ ⨍ɑׁׅ֮ꪱׁׅᥣׁׅ֪ꫀׁׅܻժׁׅ݊ tׁׅᨵׁׅ ϐׁׅ֒ꭈׁׅꪱׁׅꪀׁׅᧁׁ hׁׅ֮ꫀׁׅܻꭈׁׅ ϐׁׅ֒ɑׁׅ֮ᝯׁƙׁׅ֑.

꯱ׁׅ֒hׁׅ֮ꫀׁׅܻ ꯱ׁׅ֒tׁׅυׁׅᝯׁƙׁׅ֑ hׁׅ֮ꫀׁׅܻꭈׁׅ ꪀׁׅᨵׁׅ꯱ׁׅ֒ꫀׁׅܻ ᨰׁׅhׁׅ֮ꫀׁׅܻꭈׁׅꫀׁׅܻ ꪱׁׅtׁׅ ժׁׅ݊ꪱׁׅժׁׅ݊ꪀׁׅ'tׁׅ ϐׁׅ֒ꫀׁׅܻᥣׁׅ֪ᨵׁׅꪀׁׅᧁׁ, ɑׁׅ֮ꪀׁׅժׁׅ݊ ꪀׁׅᨵׁׅᨰׁׅ ꯱ׁׅ֒hׁׅ֮ꫀׁׅܻ'ᥣׁׅ֪ᥣׁׅ֪ ꯱ׁׅ֒υׁׅ⨍⨍ꫀׁׅܻꭈׁׅ ⨍ᨵׁׅꭈׁׅ ꫀׁׅܻᨵׁׅꪀׁׅ꯱ׁׅ֒ tׁׅᨵׁׅ ᝯׁᨵׁׅ ꩇׁׅ݊ꫀׁׅܻ.

꯱ׁׅ֒ꫀׁׅܻɑׁׅ֮ᥣׁׅ֪ꫀׁׅܻժׁׅ݊ ɑׁׅ֮ᨰׁׅɑׁׅ֮ᨮ꫶ׁׅ֮ ϐׁׅ֒ᨮ꫶ׁׅ֮ tׁׅhׁׅ֮ꫀׁׅܻ hׁׅ֮ꫀׁׅܻɑׁׅ֮᥎꫶ׁׅꫀׁׅܻꪀׁׅᥣׁׅ֪ᨮ꫶ׁׅ֮ ℘ꭈׁׅꪱׁׅꪀׁׅᝯׁꪱׁׅ℘ɑׁׅ֮ᥣׁׅ֪꯱ׁׅ֒ ᨰׁׅꪱׁׅtׁׅhׁׅ֮ tׁׅꫀׁׅܻɑׁׅ֮ꭈׁׅ꯱ׁׅ֒ ᨵׁׅ⨍ ᨵׁׅᥣׁׅ֪ժׁׅ݊, hׁׅ֮ꫀׁׅܻꭈׁׅ ꯱ׁׅ֒tׁׅᨵׁׅꭈׁׅᨮ꫶ׁׅ֮ ᨰׁׅꪱׁׅᥣׁׅ֪ᥣׁׅ֪ ⨍ᨵׁׅꭈׁׅꫀׁׅܻ᥎꫶ׁׅꫀׁׅܻꭈׁׅ
ꭈׁׅꫀׁׅܻ ꩇׁׅ݊ɑׁׅ֮ꪱׁׅꪀׁׅ υׁׅꪀׁׅtׁׅᨵׁׅᥣׁׅ֪ժׁׅ݊.

Interesting.

"That's strange...It's like the old Teyvat folk tale that old people like to tell kids, to teach not to be nosy!" Paimon explained, to which Lumine nodded, interested in the story and as to why her clothes were, once again, glowing.

Hand on her chin, Paimon spoke again. "We should ask the locals of Mondstadt when we get there!" Paimon suggested. "Yeah...let's...let's do that." Lumine mumbled distractedly, taking Paimon's extended hand and walking towards Mondstadt once more.

≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫

Lumine's breath came in short, deep pants as she leaned forward with her hands on her knees.

Operation 'Steal-the-holy-lyre' was a bust, some strange person in purple had stolen the lyre and gotten them caught. So now here she was, in Angels Share with Venti.

"We'd like your uh...least conspicuous table please~"

The red haired man, Diluc, raised one eyebrow. "...There are fewer costumers on the second floor, you'd be less conspicuous up there..." He said suspiciously as Venti, Lumine and Paimon went up to the second floor.

When the group settled in the far corner of the tavern, Lumine suddenly remembered something from earlier that day. The butterfly symbol on the cliff wall.

"Venti, do you know anything about that one Teyvat folk tale about teaching kids not to be nosy?" Lumine questioned softly. Venti's demeanor seemed to turn downcast,as a frown fell onto his face.

Paimon nodded, "Yeah, the one that goes: 'Curiosity killed this cat and satisfaction failed to bring her back, she stuck her nose where it didn't belong-"

"-and now she'll suffer for eons to come, sealed away by the heavenly principals with the tears of old, her story will forever remain untold." Venti sighed, a sad look cast upon his face as he finished the poem.

"I am...very familiar with that story..." Lumine was intrigued by Venti's actions, wondering why he would be reaching so...somberly. Is that a word?

Venti questioned Lumine and Paimon as to why they were asking about the old folk tale all of the sudden. "Well," Paimon said, recalling the scene.

"We had just found Dvalin's teardrop crystal, when Paimon saw some writing on a wall! We got a closer look and Lumine noticed a butterfly symbol above the story." Paimon explained.

Lumine watched as Venti's expression changed into one that she couldn't name. He looked hungry, as if he had been starved for years on end. "Y-you- you found it?!" He stood, the squeaking from the chair sliding against the floor filling Lumine's ears.

He looked like he was on the verge of crying as Lumine practically saw the memories flash behind his eyes.

Lumine only had more questions now.

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