Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Mom returned home with many gifts after her most recent trip.

The first was a hefty tome with thousands of pages, each filled with beautiful, ornate illustrations of princesses in high towers, guarded by fearsome dragons. The second was a music box, teal and sparkling, that took on a different appearance every time it was opened. The third was a boy, with ash-spun hair and empty eyes, and shoulders that didn’t so much as quiver when he was ushered through the door.

At least, Klee thought it was a boy. She’d met tons before, like the pair of brothers in the Knights of Favonius, one with hair red like dawn, the other, midnight blue. Or, Grand Master Varka, who was gruff and tough and so big that he blocked out the sun when Klee stood in front of him, or the strange boy in Wolvendom, Razor, who growled and howled but smiled too. They were definitely all boys, so she knew what they looked like, but this one seemed a little different from the rest.

He was stiff, stood like one of the statues of the Seven in the living room doorway while Mom came rushing in with a grin on her face. “Klee, my darling! We’re home! I’ve missed you, sweetie, look at this!”

In typical Mom fashion, she had different priorities, and decided to demonstrate the tome first and foremost. She sat down at the dinner table in a flurry of red fabric, patting her lap for Klee to jump on. Klee, who was used to Mom’s energy, did so, and was rewarded with a kiss on the head. The boy stood stock still and silent as pages were turned, Mom pointing out the stories and the images that she thought Klee might like best.

The dragons breathed fire. The princesses always tried to escape. Klee tried her best to focus, but while she thought that the book really was pretty, the illustrations bright and expressive and colourful, she was more interested in the boy.

After she’d had her fill of it, she turned her head, looking up at Mom with big eyes, inquisitive as she whispered loudly, “It’s really cool, but who’s that with you?”

Mom blinked, before glancing over at the boy, her mouth parting in surprise. “Oh! Darling, why are you still stood in the hall? You can come in, you know? This is your house too now! Come here and introduce yourself to your sister, she’s going to be ever so excited to hear your name!”

The boy turned mechanically, reminding Klee of one of the big, mean Ruin Guards that the Knights of Favonius always warned everyone to steer clear of. He was dressed strangely, like nothing Klee had ever seen in Mondstadt before. She was used to the shiny, silver armour of the Knights, or the soft fabric of dungarees and blouses and warm coats to stave off the wind. Not metallic bodysuits of gold and blue and white. It was all one piece, and Klee couldn’t imagine how he was ever meant to take such a complicated article of clothing off to get cosy for bed.

When he came to a stop before them both, she began to doubt he was even a boy at all. His gaze was cool and empty, his mouth a thin line, not a hint of emotion to be found. Hopping from Mom’s lap, Klee inspected him from every angle, trying to make sense of him. “Is he a toy, Mom?” she asked, when he didn’t object to her fussing. “Oh! Like Dodoco!”

Her little, fluffy friend was never far from her, and indeed, she had him clipped to her dress. She pulled him from the hem and had him inspect the new boy too, the pair of them looking for a mechanism. Maybe he had a wind-up key and he’d just run down, so she had to find the answer, something to bring a little bounce back to this life-sized doll.

But Mom only laughed, sitting back in her chair. Her hair was loose and blonde about her face. “Now, now, Klee. He’s no toy, though I can see why you’d think that. I do hope he’ll introduce himself soon, though, or you might never know his name!”

The boy looked down at Klee, his eyes ever so blue, but his focus off, like he wasn’t really looking at her at all. “Albedo,” he said, so softly that Klee thought she’d imagined it. She tilted her head, and he repeated it again. “My name is Albedo.”

“Albedo,” she echoed, testing it out for herself. A strange name, but it felt fun to say. “Nice to meet you, Albedo! I’m Klee!”

He didn’t respond to her, making Mom click her tongue. She wasn’t angry, Klee knew. Just amused. “He’s not much for conversation it seems! Rhine should have put that in the letter, but ah, well. This is your new brother, Klee, so be good to him, okay? And you be good to her too, Albedo. We’ll be family from now on, so treat her like your younger sister.”

“Oh!” Klee nodded, though the sentiment was quickly chased with doubt, because Mom was well known for playing tricks, and this was starting to look like one. Where had he come from? What would Dad say? There seemed to be too many questions, so she made one last check for a wind-up key.

“What is it, sweetie?” asked Mom.

Klee stepped back, her hands on her hips. “Klee doesn’t get it. Shouldn’t Albedo be a baby then, if he’s my new brother?”

Mom chuckled again, shaking her head. “How should I explain this? Albedo has a different mom, my good friend Rhine, but she can’t look after him right now, so she sent him here to me. He’s come from very far away, just to be part of our family now. I sent a letter to Dad, but he won’t know for a little while yet—but still, isn’t this exciting, Klee?”

It all seemed a little sudden to Klee, but that was fine. She liked surprises, and Mom was well known for bringing them back. This just happened to be a bigger surprise than usual. She looked up at Albedo, who looked back down in turn. He looked a little like her and Mom, actually, but his ears were round instead of pointed, and his neck bore a golden mark that looked like a star in the night sky. He was still statue-still, like he was made of stone.

“Um, I’ve never had a brother before,” Klee said bravely, not wanting to admit that she was a little daunted by his unblinking gaze. “I don’t know how to do it, but I’ll try and be a good sister! You can play with Dodoco and me! We could do that now! Please, please, please? Do you wanna play with me?”

Albedo held her gaze for a moment longer before he turned to Mom. He clenched his fists, and unclenched them again, the movement practiced and rhythmic. “Miss Alice, I don’t understand the question.”

His voice was tense and strange. Klee also looked at Mom for help, but only found her with her usual look, eyes glittering with mischief and delight. “I think you’ll have to figure out the answer yourself. Now, Klee, settle down. Albedo, how about you demonstrate the music box to her? I’m sure she’d love to see it.”

Without a word, Albedo sat down opposite the box. First, he opened it to show her a man and woman dancing with one another, amidst harps and a forest-like backdrop.  Then, quietly, he fiddled with the front of it, fingers working deftly. He turned something here, pushed something there, and, once he was done, he pushed it over to where Klee stood.

Mom nodded in encouragement, and, excited at the prospect, Klee jumped up and popped the box open. This time, a little woman in a pink dress danced within, twirling to the fairy-tale music. The backdrop was a lake, now, the sky dark with night.

“Oh! How lovely!” said Mom, who clapped her hands together in delight. “Did you see that, Klee?”

“I didn’t see anything!” Klee said, wasting no time in scrambling up into Albedo’s lap instead. He wouldn’t mind if he was her brother, right? His clothes were cold, and, if possible, he stiffened further, but Klee paid it no mind as she pulled the box in front of them both. Jiggling it to get his attention, she said, “Please make it change again, Albedo!”

“Again?” asked Albedo, still stilted. “But why? Once was enough to ascertain the outcome.”

“I wanna see it!” Klee said, poking the front of the box. When she opened it, it was still the little pink woman, still the dark night. “Again! Please, Albedo?”

Albedo didn’t make a sound, but he did lean forward. His chin was just above her head as he did his work, and it was there that she realised what the problem was. When she sat against Mom, or Dad, she felt their chest’s move as they breathed, could hear their hearts beating if her head was close enough. Albedo didn’t move like Mom or Dad did. He was cold, where they were warm. He was still, where Mom was always moving.

But Klee didn’t say anything, because now, she could see how he was working with the front of the box. There was a dial on it, which he turned carefully. His hands were half covered by the suit he wore, his palms encased while his fingers were exposed. Wondering if he was cold there too, she reached out and grabbed him by the hand, making him go still once again.

“I thought you wanted to see the box work,” he said.

“But you’re cold,” Klee said. She could feel the metallic of the suit beneath her own fingers. It was cool, smooth, and weird. “Mom always says to wrap up warm, or you’ll get sick! ‘Specially ‘cause it’s winter now!”

“I can’t get sick,” said Albedo. He freed his hand from hers, carefully shaking her off, and went back to working at the box. Klee frowned, putting both her hands in her lap, and didn’t try again. “You wanted to see it work. Watch.”

He turned the dial again. Klee reached forward, barely waiting until he was finished to pop the lid open. This time, a dragon, long and thin, twirled like a snake within. Snow fell in flurries on the backdrop, and the music had taken on a gentle, soothing tune.

“Wow…!” Klee clapped her hands together like Mom did. “It’s like magic!”

Mom giggled at that, shaking her head. “Not magic, my dear! Just the clever work of a human mind in a place far from here!”

Albedo tensed again. Klee tipped her head back to look up at him. He had that empty look in his eyes again, his mouth a perfect line. There was something about him that seemed sad, but Klee couldn’t figure out why. Mom was the best mom in the whole world, and Mondstadt was the nicest city anywhere. Klee was going to be the best little sister ever, too. She was already thinking about all the games they could play.

But, then, Klee remembered what Mom had said, how Albedo’s mom couldn’t be with him right now, and she thought about all the times that her own mom hadn’t been there. Whenever Klee was alone with Dodoco, only Grand Master Varka and the Knights of Favonius for occasional company, Mondstadt seemed a little bit emptier. A little colder. A little sadder.

“Do you miss your mom, Albedo?” Klee asked. “Is that why you don’t want to speak?”

Albedo’s gaze didn’t regain its focus. Mom’s smile fell for the first time since she’d come in through the door. Klee wondered if she’d said something wrong. Grand Master Varka always said that if she didn’t have anything nice to say, she shouldn’t say anything at all. But she hadn’t said anything nasty. She’d just asked a question.

Albedo, quiet and cold as he was, didn’t reply.

***

The next morning, after the best breakfast Klee had ever had of pancakes and eggs, Mom flitted away with Albedo in tow, a promise to return by lunch on her lips. They were going to the Knights of Favonius’ Headquarters, she said, because Albedo needed a laboratory, and the Knights had the biggest, nicest one in the whole city. Klee tried not to feel sad that Mom was going away so soon, and comforted herself with the fact that she never, ever broke a promise.

Albedo’s appearance was not going to change that.

True to her word, as the clock dinged to signal midday, Mom returned home beaming. Albedo had his arms full of fabric weaved in the colours of the Knights themselves. He looked a little lost in the doorway there as Mom ushered him in yet again. It felt a little like the day before, repeating anew.

Once they were in the living room where Klee had scattered her crayons, she waved her over and said, “Congratulations are in order! You’re looking at the newest alchemist of the Knights of Favonius!”

Klee wasn’t entirely sure what an alchemist was, but it certainly sounded grand. “Oh! Well done Albedo!” she declared, but Albedo didn’t seem very interested in accepting her praise. His hair hung loose about his face as he stared down at his new uniform, mouth still a perfect line, his expression still empty.

He didn’t seem to use his face much at all, which was weird, Klee thought, because everyone else did. Bennet, the boy who the Adventurer’s Guild looked after, was always smiles and cheers. Mom’s grins were the biggest in the whole wide world. Even Grand Master Varka pulled all sorts of faces, especially when Klee was off making mischief. He got so mad sometimes that he went redder than even Klee’s favourite hat.

“You should get changed,” Mom said to Albedo, pushing him in the direction of the stairs. His new room was next to Klee’s, an old spare room of theirs that was usually piled high with Mom’s treasures. Now, all of those treasures were spilling out of a cupboard that was much too small for them. They shouldn’t have been able to fit, but Mom had worked some of her most special magic on it, and now, they nearly did.

He went, and returned, but he had not changed. He was still wearing the same thing as before, still restricted by the uncomfortable looking clothes, only, now, he kept pressing his fingers to the golden mark at his throat. Mom was in the kitchen now, pottering around with preparations for dinner much later, and Klee was left alone with Albedo entirely.

Albedo was an alchemist, Mom had said, and he’d wanted a laboratory. With that in mind, Klee carefully approached him, Dodoco clipped to her dress, and tugged at his hand to get his attention. When he looked down at her with his eerie gaze, she looked past it, smiling up at him like Mom had. “Albedo, do you wanna see something cool?”

“Something cold?” he asked, surprising her that he’d even replied at all with something other than a yes or a no.

“Noooo, something cool!” she said, pulling his hand. This was right, wasn’t it? Little sisters were meant to show their brothers their best treasures. “Hot! Really hot. And loud! Super, super loud! Do you like gunpowder, Albedo?”

“Gunpower?” Albedo repeated the word as if it was foreign. “I…don’t have any particular feelings towards it.”

“I think it’s really cool!” Klee dragged him through the living room, to the doors leading out into the garden. They lived on the outskirts of Mondstadt, away from the hustle and bustle of the city, on expansive lands that Dad loved to tend to, when he was home. Flowers poked their heads up from the grass, dandelions scattered most everywhere, Cecilias, purer than anything found in the wild. Right on the edge was a small, singed wooden hut, with a nameplate decorated in colourful crayons and Dodoco’s face. Klee’s Workshop.

“This is Klee’s own very special laboratory!” Klee said, watching as his face finally changed, a flicker of interest darting through his eyes. She could have jumped for joy. “It’s where I do all my experiments!”

She led him in. It was, admittedly, not very tidy, her tools and her toys scattered everywhere, but that was fine. Mom only said that Klee had to keep her room clean, not her workshop. She watched in delight as Albedo looked around in quiet intrigue, his fingers trailing across the beaten-up wood of the desk, tilting the shell of a Jumpty Dumpty that sat by the window, bathed in sunlight.

He took it all in, quietly, uncertainly, before finally speaking. “This is…where you do your experiments?”

“Yup!”

“But, how?”

“Easy!” Klee jumped up onto her chair, taking another Jumpty Dumpty in hand. He smiled up at her joyously. “You gotta put the gunpowder in these, and then, boom! I make them blow up!”

Albedo blinked, and then shook his head. “But it’s messy. My master always said that a chaotic mind meant chaotic work. Cleanliness lends to creation.”

“Your master?” Klee took a moment to process the word. Was it like Grand Master Varka? No. That wasn’t right. There was another use for the word. “Um, is that Albedo’s teacher?”

“Miss Alice’s friend,” Albedo replied. She’d lost him a little, his gaze having gone empty again as he looked through the window. “Rhinedottir.”

“Oh! Silly, that’s your mom, not your master!” Klee’s pigtails bounced as she gathered all her finished Jumpty Dumpty’s together. “Mom teaches me stuff all the time, like how to make the biggest booms, but she’s still my mom. Come on, come on, I wanna show you them!”

She didn’t give him a chance to protest. Off she went again, dragging Albedo by the hand back into the garden, nearly making him trip with her haste. There was a patch where the flowers didn’t grow, where the grass was singed and black, and it was there that she laid her tiny Jumpty Dumpty’s down. “Better stand back, Albedo!” she said, rushing away from the sight.

He followed, but with little urgency. She hopped up and down on the spot to make him rush, and only when he was safely at her side, she grinned. “Okay! Watch this!”

Dodoco was not Klee’s only treasure. On a pendant she wore around her neck, hidden beneath her dress, she had a second. It was that which she called on now, the Pyro Vision she’d had for as long as she could remember. It ran warm against her chest, answering her plea. In a rush of heat, the fuse of the nearest Jumpty Dumpty caught.

Albedo tilted his head curiously. “What did you—"

Jumpty Dumpty cut him off with a bang, erupting in a shower of sparks. Each one blew up in succession as it was caught in the blast of the next closest one, and Klee jumped for joy, grabbing hold of Albedo’s cold, half-covered hand again. This was what she loved best; the rush of the explosion, the din of the rupture. Boom. Boom. Boom!

“Look, Albedo!” She pointed in her excitement. “Look!”

The colours reflected in Albedo’s teal eyes like fireworks, and, for the first time, his attention didn’t seem elsewhere. He watched, transfixed, silent until it finished, at which point he asked, “You…have a Vision?”

“Yup!” Klee nodded proudly, untucking the pendant to show him. He looked back, intrigued yet again. If only she could capture his interest and keep it in a jar, so she didn’t lose it again. “Do you have one, Albedo?”

“I do.” He looked around, briefly, and then, his eyes fell on a Cecilia. He regarded it thoughtfully, and then he said, “I should show you something. An exchange.”

He approached it, and carefully, he plucked it free. He turned it in his hand, the gold in his suit catching the sunlight and making it gleam. Klee watched him in turn, wondering what he would possibly do that could rival Jumpty Dumpty. She hoped he would be quick with whatever it was; really, she just wanted to know what his Vision was. If it was something cool like Electro, they could go have fun overloading the slimes outside Mondstadt,

“What is it, Albedo?” Klee asked. “Are you gonna do something cool?”

“I’ll show you alchemy,” he said, returning to her. “Creating life. One exchange, for another. Cecilia flowers only grow during hardship, where the winds blow most. I’ve never seen one in a place where it’s calm, like this, but they are here nonetheless. I like them.”

He presented the Cecilia to her, holding it in his palm. Before her eyes, it began glow, soft white enveloping its body. Then, it began to shrink. Its petals fused together before unfurling, the stem shortening, and thickening. Albedo closed his fist around the glowing flower, closed his eyes too, and whispered beneath his breath.

Then, without warning, he snapped his hand open. A butterfly took flight. Klee gasped as it flitted by her face, its wings white like the Cecilia, its body green like the stem. With her hands at her mouth, she watched it fly around her, once, twice, before it made off into the garden and landed upon another Cecilia to settle. Its antennas twitched.

It was real.

“Oh, wow…!” Klee looked at Albedo with wide eyes. “Again? Please!”

Albedo shook his head. “Not right now. Once was enough. But…was it a good exchange?”

“The bestest!” Klee couldn’t tear her eyes away from the butterfly. “Wait ‘til Mom hears about it…!”

“She already knows,” Albedo said, turning away from her to look back at the house. “It’s good, that you enjoyed it. Thank you for showing me your bombs, too. They make you happy?”

“They do! But so does that butterfly! So much makes Klee happy. Mom always says that you have to find joy in everything you do.” Klee nodded, to reaffirm it to herself. “What makes you happy, Albedo?”

“Me?” Albedo’s voice had taken on that unaffected tone again, cold and brittle in that single word. He’d gone tense, his shoulders straight. “My master. Exploring with her. Exceeding her expectations. But, now…”

He trailed off. Klee couldn’t help but feel like she’d stepped on one of her Jumpty Dumpty’s. When she rushed around to see what expression he bore, her disappointment was palpable. Once again, her new brother had turned to stone, and she hadn’t even meant to do it! It was an accident, but still, she knew how accidents could hurt people. It was why Grand Master Varka was so insistent that she watch where she played. Bombs could go off without warning, after all.

“Sorry, Albedo,” Klee said. “Did I say something wrong? I didn’t mean to make you sad.”

Hoping to patch up her mistake, she took him by the hand and led him back inside, but for the rest of the day, he remained cold and distant. Even when she deposited her crayons in front of him, even when Mom called them both for dinner.

It was Klee’s favourite, too. Mom-cooked-Sunshine-Sprat, but Albedo absently pushed fish around his plate and ate very little. He retired to his room as soon as he was done, and Klee, looking at his mostly still-full plate, said, quietly, “Does Albedo not like fish?”

Mom was always worried if Klee didn’t finish her meal, but she didn’t seem too concerned about this. Instead, she reached over to Albedo’s plate with her fork, and speared a chunk of fish for herself. “He ate some of it. I think he doesn’t need that much fuel, is all. That, and he’s acclimatising still, sweetie.”

That was a big word, and Klee still wasn’t that good at some of those. “What does that mean?”

Mom chewed her fish before answering. “See, Albedo’s mom’s a little strange,” she explained, stealing another chunk. “She’s a bit of a wildcard, journeys around just like I do, but she took Albedo with her. They did all sorts of strange, whacky, dangerous things together I imagine. So, Albedo probably isn’t used to home-cooked food, or settling down in one place.”

Klee finished her own piece of fish, but it didn’t taste as good as normal. “He’s sad ‘cause he misses his mom, right?”

“Sad? Do you think that’s what it is?” Mom mused on it a moment before shrugging. “Maybe you’re right. Rhine certainly did a job and a half with that boy, honestly.”

Klee wasn’t sure what she meant by that, but she knew that she had to try one last time to make it better. After dinner, once she was dressed for bed with Dodoco clutched in her hand, she knocked on Albedo’s door. He didn’t answer, but she didn’t give up.

Through the wood, she asked, “Can we read a bedtime story together?”

That was what big brothers were meant to do, right? Mom would do it, if she asked, but she wanted to hear what Albedo’s steady, cool voice sounded like doing the different characters. She crossed her fingers and waited for a reply. Knocked again. Asked once more.

But Albedo’s reply never came.

***

Days slipped by. Life went on. Dad came home, whirled Klee around and showed her a delightful contraption that scattered scars across the ceiling. It was from a land far away, he explained, and it used light to project them there. Mom loved it, putting it on again and again, and, when Albedo was present, he watched too, eyes tracking each star in silence.

But, Albedo wasn’t often home. If he wasn’t locked up in his room, he was out at the laboratory that the Knights of Favonius had given him, and if he was home, then he didn’t often try and make conversation with her. She saw him in his uniform now more often than his strange mechanical suit, which at least made him look comfier. Klee wanted to try and hug him to test her hypothesis, but he was never around long enough for her to do so.

When she went out to play in Mondstadt, now, she heard people talking about alchemy. She listened to everyone when she was out and about, and she was sure she’d never heard people chatting about that before. Sometimes, she even saw Sucrose, the shy young woman with the cool ears, stood with Albedo as he spoke in his cool tones. She rushed to take notes, but he didn’t slow down for her. No, he was off in his own world, going on at length.

Did Klee have to learn alchemy to speak to him, too? Was that what she’d done wrong? Was that why he was ignoring her? One afternoon when he wasn’t home, she stole some of his notes from his room to look at with Dodoco. They didn’t make much sense, though, just squiggles of perfectly defined letters on the page. What she did understand, however, were his pictures. Sketches of flowers. Hilichurls. Boars.

Did Albedo like drawing, she wondered? She made sure to tuck them safely away before he came home, and made a resolution to offer Albedo her crayons the next time she managed to corner him. If she didn’t know alchemy, then maybe he could teach her too, when she did. Then he’d like her.

But before she managed to find the time, she noticed something. Mom and Dad were travellers at heart, and they were drawn to the open road just as Klee was drawn to bombs, Albedo to his solitude. Dad was gathering supplies again, the dining room table growing with maps and bags. Mom was testing new explosive magic outside, Klee’s singed patch of grass expanding. Klee watched from the window, the poor Cecilias blowing about in the aftermath.

When they took her aside and told her that Grand Master Varka would be checking in on her for the next couple of weeks, she was not surprised. “But, it’ll be better this time!” Mom said, hugging Klee tight as she pressed a kiss to her head. “I’ve told Albedo that he needs to come home early and look after you. No more long days at the Knights, that’s for certain!”

“Okay.” Klee nodded, making herself smile wide for Mom’s sake. She wasn’t so sure, though. By now, she was convinced that Albedo wasn’t interested in being a brother, so she didn’t think he’d listen. She’d missed her chance to make him like her.

“Be a good girl, okay?” said Dad, ruffling her hair. “We’ll be back before you know it!”

They were gone, the next morning. Klee woke up to a quiet house, and stared at the ceiling for what felt like hours, Dodoco clutched close to her side. In reality, it wasn’t that long; she knew, because the sun had barely moved. It took a lot of effort to get out of her huddle of blankets, though; she knew downstairs would be empty. Grand Master Varka hadn’t knocked, yet.

But, as she left her room, she noticed that Albedo’s door was wide open, which it normally wasn’t, when he was out of the house. That, and she got the sense that the house wasn’t quite as empty as she’d believed. When she came plodding down the stairs, intent on heading for the kitchen for a snack, Albedo was stood at the stove to her surprise, looking down at a carton of eggs.

“Albedo?” she said, rubbing her eyes to make sure she wasn’t still dreaming. “Oh! Albedo! You’re still here.”

He replied with little more than a murmur, and when Klee came to stand at his side, she saw that he was looking at the eggs with a very similar expression to Varka whenever he saw Klee playing with her explosives in the vicinity of the Knights’ Headquarters. It was the most expressive she’d ever seen him be, so she tugged on the back of his white coat and said, “Um, you look worried! Is everything okay?”

“Everything is fine.” Albedo paused, hands flexing like they always did. Fists. Palms. Fists. Palms. “Do you like eggs?”

“Oooh, are you gonna fry ‘em?” Klee couldn’t believe her luck as she scrambled up onto the counter. Grand Master Varka always burned breakfast. Anything would be better. “Fried eggs are best! How does Albedo like eggs?”

“It doesn’t matter. Regardless, they offer decent nutritional value.”

“Uh,” Klee wasn’t so sure of what that meant, but she was having a conversation! With Albedo! Properly! “Maybe! But they taste real good too! Can I help you make them? I wanna crack the eggs! Mom says I’m best at egg cracking!”

“Okay, then.” Albedo turned to retrieve a pan from the cupboard. He settled it atop the stove, and then knelt to light it. “I’m glad you like them. Miss Alice told me to keep you fed, but I wasn’t sure of what to make.”

“Is that why Albedo looked worried?” Klee asked.

“Worried?”

“Your face! It moved!” Klee pulled her own, exaggerated face, eyebrows wide and her mouth open. “You never move your face ever! I was beginning to wonder it was made of stone!”

“Not stone,” said Albedo, taking his stick of butter to drop into the pan. It began to melt instantly. “Chalk.”

“Chalk? That’s silly, Albedo. My drawings are made of chalk sometimes, but you’re made of skin! Like everyone else!” She straightened up as she recalled her vow from before. Now she had him, and he was listening, she had to ask. “Oh! Oh! Do you like to draw, Albedo?”

He passed her the pan for her to crack the egg into. She did so with gusto, giggling as the yolk spilled out. As she made sure there were no shards of shell stuck in it, he replied, “Yes. I do.”

“Klee loves to draw too!” Klee bashed her next egg into the edge, and soon, two eggs were sat in the pan, ready to be fried. Albedo settled it back on the stove. “I have tons of crayons, Albedo. After breakfast, I wanna draw! Do you wanna draw with me?”

Albedo looked between her and the door. She got the sense she was about to lose him, so she reached over and grabbed him by his sleeve. “Please! Please, I’ll draw Hilichurls! Or flowers! Or boars! Whatever you want!”

He was silent for a moment, his face no longer giving anything away. Klee pleaded silently to Lord Barbatos that she hadn’t accidentally said the wrong thing, and apparently the Archon was listening today, because Albedo looked back at her, then, tilting his head curiously. “We don’t have to draw those things. But, why do you want to draw with me?”

“‘Cause it’ll be fun!” Klee tugged him towards her, and he came willingly, to her astonishment. She had to say everything she wanted now, or she might not get another chance. “I wanna play with you, but you’re always busy, and I’m scared you don’t like me!”

His stony expression fractured again, returning to that Varka-like look of worry. Klee couldn’t figure out why. She didn’t have a single Jumpty Dumpty on her, and the eggs were frying nicely. But, then, he picked her up, hands under her armpits, holding her out like she was a bomb, on the verge of exploding.

That wasn’t very fair. She didn’t have a single Jumpty Dumpty on her. With a gasp, she kicked her legs. “Albedo?”

“Miss Alice told me to treat you like a younger sister,” Albedo said, regarding her with a curiosity she hadn’t seen of him yet.  His eyes had honed in on her, and she knew he was definitely seeing her, at least. “But I don’t know what that means. You’re small. Fragile. Built of soil. Master told me to be careful when around such beings, because I’m not built the same. I don’t dislike you, however. That is the wrong hypothesis to draw. I’m just…uncertain of what to do, with you.”

Albedo never made sense, but at least he was talking. “I’m not sure how to be a little sister either, but that’s okay! We can learn together!”

“And that means we have to draw?”

“Yup! But can I get down? Or sit on your shoulders? Oh! Oh! Yes! Klee wants to sit on Albedo’s shoulders! Please?”

He was no warmer than he’d been in the suit, when he manoeuvred her to sit on him. It was as if his body didn’t radiate heat, and he was still very stiff beneath her. “Is that okay?” he asked, his voice dipping a little. “I don’t know if I’m very comfortable. Nobody has ever…well. Sat on me before.”

When he moved, she nearly tipped back. With a gasp, she grabbed his hair for help. He didn’t so much as yelp when she pulled on the fine strands. “Woah! You have so much hair! And it’s so messy! Mom puts mine up to make it easier. Can I put yours up too?”

“If you want. I don’t mind, it doesn’t bother me either way.”

Klee got to work as Albedo pottered about the kitchen, getting the plates and their forks, retrieving the pan from the stove. She weaved his hair around her fingers, plaiting segments the best she could, and admired her handiwork when she was done. His hair was soft but strong. Sometimes, when she ran her hands through her own hair, strands came out on her hands. Albedo’s didn’t. It remained stubbornly attached to his head.

They ate breakfast together, Klee inhaling her well-fried egg in her excitement while Albedo made his way methodically through his own. She grabbed her papers and her crayons from her room when she was done, bringing them back to the table. They piled their plates together, each taking a sheet of paper, and then looked at each other.

“What should I draw?” Albedo asked her. “I’m afraid I don’t have much of a muse in here.”

“What do you usually draw?” Klee asked in response. She always found it easier to draw the things she had before.

“My research articles. Creatures of this world. The things I would like to keep in my memory.” Albedo tapped the crayon against the edge of the paper. “What do you usually draw?”

“Dodoco! Or Jumpty Dumpty’s! Or Klee, having adventures with Mom!”

“Dodoco?”

“My friend! Here!” Klee showed him off proudly, sat in the palm of her hand. Albedo took him into his own hands, cradling him with utmost care. “He’s Klee’s first ever friend. Mom brought him to me as a super special gift!”

“It’s…soft,” Albedo said, smoothing the fluff down. “A toy. One you enjoy?”

“Yeah! Does Albedo have any cool toys?”

“No.” Albedo returned his gaze to the paper, and then, slowly, he began to scope out a shape on the page in beige crayon. Klee retrieved Dodoco from his other hand, and stared hard at her own page. What could she draw, that would impress Albedo? Could she draw alchemy, somehow? But she didn’t even know what alchemy was!

What if she drew Albedo instead? She’d never drawn him before, but she was sure she could do it. He was right in front of her, after all.

She took her gold crayon and got to work. It took more than that, though. She needed her blue one, too, and her black one. He was tall, so she made sure to draw his legs long enough. And she made sure his hair was just light enough, and braided like she’d done it this morning. His shoulders were a straight line, and so was his mouth. His Geo Vision, which he now wore at his neck, was coloured in next.

Then, she added herself, stood next to him with a beaming grin and all her Jumpty Dumpty’s scattered all around. She made the sky beautiful and blue, the grass glimmering green. When she was done, she knelt up on her chair and said, “Finished! Let’s swap!”

Albedo looked across at hers, and saw how his face cracked yet again. Surprise, followed by a gentle smile. It was gone nearly as quickly as it came, but she’d seen it! She was sure!

He passed her his own. It was a perfect rendition of Dodoco in crayon, down to his fluff. Crayons were a little hard to draw details with, and Klee never managed to make Dodoco look like he was meant to, so seeing him so exact made her gasp. “Wow! Albedo, you’re so good!”

“Master always said I had to improve,” Albedo said, taking Klee’s drawing to look at it more closely. She crossed her fingers, held her breath. Albedo, apparently noticing, said, “What’s wrong? Breathe.”

She did, letting out a huge exhale. “I wanna know if you like it!”

“It’s…” He looked back at her expectant face, and then to the drawing again. “Much better than mine.”

“What? Really?” Klee nearly squeaked at the unexpected praise. He didn’t sound like he was lying, though. “Then, let’s do another one! I wanna draw with you! You draw Klee, and I’ll draw Albedo again. Let’s play!”

“Again? But…once was enough.”

“No! It wasn’t! We’ve gotta do more, until yours is as good as mine!” She grinned. “Right? Right?”

And he looked on the verge of declining. She tried not to get her hopes up, but already they’d climbed sky-high. She’d had one victory over him. Now, she just needed to make him like her even more.

So she prayed to Barbatos again, just in case, and was rewarded once more. “Alright,” Albedo relented, a hint of life in his teal eyes. “One more time. Let’s do it.”

***

As the week drew on, Klee saw more of Albedo. They ate breakfast and dinner together, and played in the interim. They drew again, then played with the music box that Mom had brought home. He even finally read her some of the stories from the special book about dragons and princesses, and Klee couldn’t believe that he was the same person that Mom had brought home! Having a big brother was way better than she thought it could be. He even showed her some of his special alchemy again, this time making a crystalfly from nothing but his own art. It flew around the house, and then out the open window, leaving a trail of crystal-dust behind.

But, towards the tail end of the week, he began to grow distant again. As he started to spend more time at the Favonius Knights’ Headquarters, Klee found herself on her own during the day. It spilled over into the next week too. She played in the garden by herself, working on her Jumpty Dumpty’s, but it wasn’t as fun as before. She wanted Albedo’s input. She wanted to see what he thought of her new explosions.

She wanted to make sure he liked her, because she was starting to worry again that he didn’t.

But then, one night, he didn’t come home. And the next night, and the night after, and the night after that, too. Grand Master Varka picked up his slack, said that Albedo was working very hard on something, and that he couldn’t come back just yet. Klee clutched Dodoco close, and wished that Mom and Dad would come home sooner. She’d always been lonely when they were gone, but she pretended she wasn’t, because she didn’t want to make them sad.

Albedo had filled that hole, but now he was gone too. People called her the lucky girl, Klee, the good-luck charm of Mondstadt, but she didn’t believe it. Everyone always left her alone, and she didn’t know what she’d done to deserve it. She’d tried to be a good girl. She’d tried to be cheerful and happy and kind.

One evening, the skies over Mondstadt began to darken, signalling an incoming storm. Grand Master Varka appeared the next morning with a warning to Klee to not go out, that it would be too dangerous. Klee nodded, and made sure to take her blankets downstairs with her so she could wrap up warm. She hoped Albedo was staying warm too, and that Mom and Dad were having fun outside of Mondstadt’s storm.

“I’m not sad, Dodoco,” she said to the tiny toy, though it might have been a little white lie. “I’ve just gotta wait, and they’ll come back home, right?”

She took to the storybook, reading about the dragons and the princesses again, imagining Mom and Dad and Albedo doing the voices for her in her place. She was absorbed that she didn’t realise that the sun was setting behind the dark clouds, and her heart nearly pulsed out of her chest when someone knocked, rapid and harsh, against the front door.

There was nobody she was expecting. Had Mom come back suddenly? Or Dad? Were they home early? She jumped up, taking Dodoco with her, and made sure to check through the spyhole before opening the door. She wasn’t allowed to open the door to strangers. Mom had told her so.

But, surprisingly, it wasn’t Mom, or Dad, or Grand Master Varka, or even Albedo. It was Sucrose, drenched by the downpour, her hands held over her head to try and stay dry. Klee didn’t know her well, but she wasn’t a stranger, so she opened the door wide.

“Um, Klee! Hello!” Sucrose always spoke fast. She was Albedo’s opposite in every way, twitchy and nervous, hunched half over. It looked like she’d been out in the rain for a while, given how her hair was stuck to her face, her ears weighed down. “Have you seen Mr. Albedo? Is he here?”

Klee shook her head. Lightning flashed over Sucrose’s head, making her jump with a gasp, but Klee loved the sound of the thunder that chased it, the wonderous roar of the sky. “Albedo’s not been home in days,” she said, fiddling with the hem of her skirt. “Um, is he okay?”

“O-oh, I see.” Sucrose bit her lip. She turned her head, looked back out towards Mondstadt, and fretted. “He’s been missing all day. I’m worried…he’s quiet, but he’s been even worse this week. I’ve barely seen him out of his lab and now he isn’t there at all…all his notes were scattered, and he’s usually so careful. Do you know where he might have gone, Klee?”

Klee thought hard, but nowhere came to mind. She simply didn’t know Albedo well enough. What did he like? Dislike? Which places were his favourites? She could only think of the laboratory he was always at, but that was where he’d vanished from.

She clutched Dodoco to her chest. “I’m sorry, Sucrose…Klee doesn’t know.”

Still, Sucrose thanked her, and apologised profusely for bothering her. She ran back off into the rain, but, even long after Klee had closed the door and huddled back in her blankets, she couldn’t stop thinking about the encounter.

She hadn’t said anything to upset Albedo this time, she knew that for certain. Albedo had been happy, even! She’d seen him smile. Last week, they’d had their fun. They’d drawn pictures together, read books, played like real brothers and sisters did. But, now he was gone, and even Sucrose couldn’t find him. What was she meant to do? How was she meant to fix it?

What was a real little sister meant to do?

Abandoning her fort, she stole into Albedo’s room, looking through his notes. He had piles of them everywhere, all neatly stacked like Sucrose had said, but she tore through them now as she looked for clues. He could fix them later, when he came back from wherever he’d gone. His suit laid on the bed, alongside a Cecilia flower, which brought her some relief. He was wearing his uniform, wherever he was, and he had his Vision too. That was good. At least it was warmer, and he’d be safe from monsters.

On his desk, she found two things. The first was the drawing of the two of them that she’d done, carefully laid out without a single crease. Beneath it was a drawing of a Jumpty Dumpty, labelled with multiple notes in stiff handwriting that she had trouble reading. She could make out the title of the drawing, though. It said, Improvements.

Was he going to help her make a Jumpty Dumpty? Wait! No, she was getting distracted. She kept looking. More notes. More drawings. Hilichurls. Boars. Flowers.

Cecilias.

Again. Again. They popped up here, there, everywhere. Some were kept in a pot. Some were de-petaled and left abandoned on his desk. Had Albedo gone to find more, maybe? But they only grew properly in one place, and that was Starsnatch Cliff. The winds were angry, up there. They’d be angrier still, in a storm like this.

Klee looked out the window, at the darkened sky. Rain lashed at the glass, lightning flashing again, and she thought of her strange brother up on the cliffside in the gale. Grand Master Varka had told her not to go outside. Dad had asked her to be a good girl. But Klee was bad at listening, and she knew that.

Maybe, if she went to the Knights of Favonius, they could help her.

A goal in mind, she bundled up. Red coat, red hat, red boots. Her special backpack, where she hung Dodoco from, and her Vision taken from her pendant to set in its place on it. It was a special bag; Mom had brought it back from a far-away place, and it could hold anything! If Albedo had stuff to bring home, they could put it there. For now, she placed a few spare Jumpty Dumptys inside, just in case a mean Hilichurl wanted to pick a fight. Mom always said to be prepared for anything.

The storm had grown fiercer since Sucrose had knocked on the door, and Klee struggled to push it wide open. It slammed shut as soon as she was outside, rain crashing down around her, winds whipping around. Klee held onto her hat, took a deep breath, and set off running towards Mondstadt’s city centre. The Knights of Favonius’ Headquarters wasn’t far. She knew the way, she just had to get there.

The city, however, was not the safe haven she knew it to be. Klee gasped and ducked as a billboard went flying over her head, crashing into the side of a building. The trees rattled dangerously, on the verge of being ripped from their roots. One had, in fact, already fallen, blocking the way through the middle of town. Grand Master Varka was out with the rest of the Knights, directing people home from the market and away from the disastrous weather. Klee made for him immediately, waving her arms.

“Master Varka!” Klee cried, her voice nearly swallowed up by the storm. He looked over, his eyes nearly bugging out of his head when he saw her. “Master Varka! Klee needs help—!”

She let out a cry as a market stall tipped over near her, but Varka was quicker. He rushed forwards, dragging her out of the way as it crashed to the floor, holding her close to his broad chest. His armour was cool against her cheeks, his breath ragged.

“Klee!” he shouted, gruff as always. “What in the name of the Anemo Archon himself are you doing out here?”

“Sucrose said Albedo is missing!” Klee shouted back. “And Klee thinks she knows where to find him!”

“Of all the—this is about that stone-faced alchemist?” Varka knelt low, shielding Klee from the winds. “I heard he tore his lab up after a failed experiment and then went missing right after, so, alright, I’ll bite. Where is he, then?”

“Starsnatch Cliff! Klee found all these Cecilias in his room, and Albedo likes making butterflies from them, so—!”

“He’s not at Starsnatch Cliff,” Varka said, his voice having taken on a grave tone. He looked at the city gate, shaking his head. “He can’t be. If he is, during a storm like this…he’s not that stupid. Quiet, sure. But not stupid. He has to be somewhere else. Somewhere safer.”

“But where else would he go?” Klee asked. “There isn’t anywhere! Sucrose said she looked! Please, Master Varka! We have to go look!”

“Klee, we can’t. This storm is already crazy. It’s too dangerous to go out there on a hunch!”

She squirmed free of his hold, darting away when he grabbed for her. If he wasn’t going to listen, then she had no choice. “Klee can go by herself then! With, or without you!”

“Klee! Dammit, Klee, wait!” Varka rose to his feet, pressing one hand to his head. “What makes you so sure he’s there?”

“The Cecilia flowers!” Klee had one in her bag, but she didn’t think Varka needed a demonstration. “That’s where they grow, so maybe he went to gather more for another experiment! Sucrose said he’s been missing all day, so she must have looked everywhere in Mondstadt, right? He has to be there instead!”

Klee held his gaze. Her pigtails were drenched and drooping now, her hat sodden, her coat heavy, but she couldn’t give up and falter. Varka’s eyes were steady in a way Albedo’s weren’t, steel and strength rather than stone and emptiness. Lightning flashed, and sighed, deep and heavy.

“Kaeya!” he called out, turning his head towards where the blue and red-haired knights were trying their best to dismantle the market. “Find Jean. Tell her she’s in charge until I’m back.”

The blue-haired one tipped his head up. “Sir, with all due respect, you can’t seriously be considering heading out in this.”

“Trust me, I’m not thrilled about it either, but I’m never going to hear the end of it if I don’t.” Varka fixed Klee with a serious look. “I can’t take a horse out there, so I’ll be on foot. This is not something we should ever be doing given how dangerous it is. Normal protocol says we should be waiting for the storm to blow over, but I’m making an exception for you because you think there’s one of our own out there—and, in my experience, you are very rarely wrong, Klee.”

“Klee’s a lucky girl,” Klee said. “Mom always says so.”

“I know. I’ll get Diluc to escort you home.”

Wait, that wasn’t part of the plan! “No! I’m coming with! You have to take me with! I’ve gotta see Albedo, make sure he’s okay!”

“Don’t argue—”

“I’ll just go myself!”

“Agh! Alright!” Varka looked like he was at the end of his tether, as Mom liked to say, but Klee had to have this. Albedo might not come home if Varka asked, but he had to if Klee did. Mom had made him promise to look after her. He didn’t have a choice but to. “But you stay with me, and if it looks like it’s getting worse, we’re turning back. Am I understood?”

“Yes Sir!” Klee said, mimicking the salute she’d seen the Knights do before. “Now, quick! We’ve gotta go get him!”

She turned on her heel, setting off running outside of Mondstadt’s gate. Varka’s shout of her name was swallowed up by the roar of thunder, and Klee could only hope to Barbatos that Albedo was still safe and sound, and right where she thought he would be.

***

The plains of Mondstadt were different, storm-touched as they were. Klee had never experienced it like this before; usually, she was safe inside, with a fire blazing and her pillows and blankets piled high. Now, it was ruinous. The winds crashed against her, the lightning flashing all over.

In truth, she loved it.

Varka didn’t. He was steel and clunky, but still, he moved across the plains with a speed Klee didn’t think would be possible in a huge suit of armour. He was a beast, she knew, impressive with his claymore and his Vision of Anemo. The winds barely touched him, as he moved, like they knew to listen to his will.

Not even the slimes had come out to play, given the weather. The Hilichurls were hiding in their huts. Klee stayed close to Varka regardless, just in case. She didn’t want him to turn around, or send her home. She had to be on her best behaviour now, and she couldn’t be distracted, even if blowing them up would be a little fun.

Starsnatch Cliff was a mere shadow in the distance at first, illuminated every now and then by the lightning. Otherwise, it was impossible to see, and so far. They ran, and ran, and ran. Klee’s lungs burned with every breath she took. She had to be right. Mom would be so proud of her, if she was. She was gonna prove herself to be so brave!

As they finally approached the cliff, Varka stopped, doubling over to draw breath. Klee skidded to a stop beside him, her legs like jelly as her knees wavered. Both of them stood there a moment, battered by rain, and wheezed for breath.

“You—you really care about that kid, huh?” Varka said, shaking his head to get his hair out of his eyes. It didn’t achieve much. “Enough to go looking for him in this. Even though he don’t talk much?”

“He’s Klee’s brother,” Klee said, looking up at the cliff. It seemed so much larger, scarier than during the day. “I don’t know much about him, and he doesn’t know much about me, but we’re going to learn! And, anyway, Mom told us to look after each other, so I have to bring him back!”

“By Barbatos’s breath, he’d better be up here, then.” Varka straightened up, only to lurch forward as Klee went running again. “Hey! Wait!”

But Klee was already gone, tearing past the distressed Cecilia flowers, her eyes searching left, right, up, down. She looked for that glimmer of gold, that shining white, that esteemed gold, lit up in the flashing lightning. A bolt crashed into the ground beside her, sparking with Electro energy, but still she ran onwards.

“Albedo!” she shouted, her tiny voice eaten up by the gale. “Albedo, are you here?”

She couldn’t see well. It was so dark, and the cliff was so large. She waded onwards despite the winds, ignoring Varka’s calls behind her. “Albedo! Please say you’re here! Please!”

A flash of lightning lit the cliff’s peak in purple. There, she saw the outline of a figure, and her heart jolted. She ran forward, shouting again, “Albedo!”

He twisted sharply. Lightning scored the sky anew, illuminating his face, how his mask was entirely fractured, eyes wide and wary. She bolted into his arms, wrapping her own around him, feeling how he tensed beneath her touch. It was him. Definitely; freezing cold and drenched through, but typically stilted and awkward, just like he was meant to be.

“Klee?” His voice was as fragmented as his face, not what she was accustomed to from him. He didn’t hug her back; his arms were frozen in mid-air. “What are you doing here?”

She held onto him tight. “I had to come find you, ‘cause you went missing and Sucrose couldn’t find you! Master Varka came too! Did you want Cecilia flowers? You can have some from the garden, so let’s go home!”

“Home…” He sounded broken and uncertain. “I can’t go home.”

“Huh?”

“Master,” he said, and it was then that Klee figured out why he was so stiff, why he didn’t move like other people. He stood still, because he didn’t breathe. While her own breaths were still ragged, while Varka had struggled to fill his lungs after their mad dash here, Albedo didn’t so much as twitch. His chest didn’t rise, or fall. His shoulders didn’t shift with the rhythm. “She said that I can’t come back until I figure it out. The truth, and meaning of this world. The Cecilia flowers, they have the feel of deities around them, so I thought that they might be the answer. But...nothing I did bore any fruit. I can’t think of the answer. The experiment failed.”

“Hey, you two!” Varka’s shout cut through the air. “Come away from the cliff edge, we can talk later!”

But Klee barely heard him. Instead, she was thinking. She’d held her breath when she wanted Albedo to recognize her skill in her drawing. Was that why Albedo wasn’t breathing, then? Was he holding his breath, waiting for his Master—his mom—to recognize his skill in alchemy?

“Is that why you’re sad?” Klee looked up at him, trying to figure out the answer, trying to understand this odd boy who Mom had brought to her. “Because you wanna see your mom, and you don’t think you can anymore?”

“She—she said she had nothing left of alchemy to teach me,” Albedo said, still sounding so horribly broken. “But she always threatened to leave me, if I failed to meet her expectations. Was I not good enough? Was that why she said that? Was it just an excuse? I came here looking for an answer, but I don’t know what I was looking for. It was…a lapse in my judgement. A failure of my mind. Maybe she was right to leave me.”

“No! She wouldn’t have said it if she didn’t mean it!” Klee said. “Maybe you’re too good at alchemy now, and she can’t keep up! Maybe she wanted to learn more to teach you!”

“She was already a master. She knew everything already!”

How she hated the uncertain rattle of his voice. He was still holding his breath, still waiting for praise that wouldn’t come, because his mom wasn’t here. Hugging him tight, Klee whispered into his chest, “You should breathe, Albedo.”

“What?” Albedo didn’t so much as move. “I don’t understand—”

The roar of the wind. The gale tearing past them. Klee gasped in horror as it shoved against her, shoving her against Albedo in turn. Her weight was enough to dislodge him from his spot. He tipped backwards, his voice jamming in his throat as gravity yanked hard on them both.

Varka screamed her name. Klee felt the world tip sideways. The sky was the wrong way around. They were in a free-fall, the ground fast approaching.

Albedo’s arms reached around her, pulling her close to his chest. Klee slammed her eyes shut, anticipating the impact—but instead, only felt the dull thud of Albedo’s back hitting something solid. Behind her eyelids, she saw the glow of gold, and when she dared to open them, she found them both bathed in that gold, cupped in the hold of petals.

A flower that hung in mid-air, pulsing with Geo energy, cocooning them both in a protective light. Albedo stared up at her, his eyes still wide, and Klee felt her throat tighten, her own eyes growing hot.

“A-are we okay…?” she asked him. “Albedo…”

“It’s—it’s fine,” he said, back to his old, stiff self. “This construct, it’s mine. It’ll lower us down gently. You won’t be hurt.” He paused. Seemed to gather himself. “You told me to breathe. But, I don’t understand.”

She nodded, burying her head into his chest, hiding her tears. She could still hear Varka shouting, and she knew the two of them were in for it when he caught up with them on the ground. “Y-yeah. ‘Cause you’ve gotta breathe, or you’ll feel all dizzy…your mom loves you, Albedo, so you can.”

“I don’t know how,” Albedo said. “I’m…not like you. Or Sucrose. Or Miss Alice. I don’t require oxygen. My body doesn’t use it.”

He was being weird again. Everybody needed air, and he was no exception, even if he thought he was too tough, or even if he was too scared. “You’ve still gotta…just take a big breath in. Like me.”

She inhaled shakily. Albedo didn’t move, as she did, and she felt herself deflate in disappointment. She hadn’t been enough, again. He was going to leave her alone after this, all in pursuit of his mom’s love, which she knew he already had. It wasn’t fair. A sob built in her throat.

But, then, something shifted beneath her cheek. The fabric of his shirt, wet and uncomfortable against her skin. His chest, rising once, and then falling again.

“Like that?” he asked.

The flower gently touched them down. She heard the thunderous stampede of Varka’s boots hitting the floor fast approaching, and held on tight to her strange brother. “Yeah…! But, um, we’re in trouble. Big trouble. Thanks for saving us, Albedo, but he’s gonna yell. Real loud.”

“I’ll take the blame,” Albedo said. His arms were still wrapped tightly around her. “The fault is mine, not yours.”

He took another breath, slow, fragmented, but a breath nonetheless. Klee curled her fingers into the fabric of his shirt. “You’re not gonna leave again, are you? ‘Cause it was lonely and sad at home, and I wanted to play more…can we play again, Albedo? When we go home?”

Albedo said, “You wanted me?”

“Uh-huh. ‘Cause you’re my brother now, and you’re real good at drawing, and reading. And I bet you’re good at a ton of other things too. I wanna know them!”

The wind roared on. Varka was nearing them both. Albedo sat up, finally, but still kept her close to his chest.

“I’ll show you,” he said. “Whatever you want to see, just ask, and I’ll show you. Once, twice, three times, more. If you want to see it, if you just…want me, then I’ll show you.”

Klee wiped her eyes, giving a hesitant nod.

Maybe, just maybe, everything would be alright after all.

***

Mom cooked the best Sunshine Sprat, but Klee was inclined to say that maybe Albedo cooked the world’s second best Sunshine Sprat.

She wasn’t actually even sure if it was Sunshine Sprat anymore, given how he laid the fish and the vegetables out on the plate. It looked like a scene from the storybook, a rustic city in the middle, winding alleyways cutting through the streets. Forests lined the outskirts, and Klee exclaimed, “It looks like a woodland dream!”

“Really?” Albedo was dressed in a set of Dad’s clothes, now, his shirt white and crisp, the buttons all done up immaculately. He only had the suit and his uniform, and Klee wouldn’t let him get back into his old, cold clothes. She’d gotten into her pyjamas after they’d returned home, the two of them drying each other’s hair before Albedo had gotten to work on dinner, and now she was cosy and warm.

“Uh-huh! Mom just puts it all on the plate but yours looks like a picture!” She beamed. “Klee knew you’d be good at other stuff! This is so cool!”

Almost too cool to eat, but her stomach was rumbling and she was starving. Varka had sent them both home immediately, with a warning that Alice would be hearing about this. Albedo didn’t look particularly thrilled at that, but Klee was just excited that he looked that way at all. It seemed like he was learning to use his face more. Maybe she and Sucrose had helped by using theirs so much.

Albedo ate very little of his own again, so Klee stole his leftovers. “Should we make a different dinner tomorrow, so Albedo will eat all of it?”

“It’s not that I don’t like fish,” Albedo said, moving the plate to her so she could easily access it. “I just don’t require as much as a regular person. It was easier, that way.”

“Oh.” Klee nodded, and that was that. That was just how he was, she guessed. “Um…Albedo?”

“Yes?” There was a spark of life to his eyes again, a hint of interest. She loved that—it was so much better than the empty look he’d worn before.

“You’re really gonna stay? I know you wanna go home to your mom, but…if you do, I’d be lonely.”

Albedo rested his head in his hand. It was one of the most normal things she’d ever seen him do. She liked that much better than his fist-palm-fist-palm routine. “The Cecilias were not my answer, as much as I thought they were…I’d hoped that by chasing the scent of the Archons themselves, I might understand, but it seems that I don’t.”

“Um, so you’re going to try again?”

Albedo considered her question, blinking languidly. It took him some thought before he replied. “I don’t even know where to begin next, so I doubt I’ll be going for a while. Is…is that what you want, Klee?”

Klee nodded vigorously. “Yes! We’re gonna be so great! I can’t wait! We’re gonna play so many games too, and see so many Jumpty Dumptys…!”

She remembered, suddenly, the mess she’d made of Albedo’s room. The notes on Jumpty Dumpty too. She knelt up on her chair, waving her hands in his face. “You wanted to make him even better, didn’t you? I saw the notes in your room!”

“My notes?” He’d gone a tad paler, if possible. “You…saw my notes?”

“Uh-huh! I had to figure out where you’d gone, so I went looking, and…Klee made a little bit of a mess, so she really hopes you’re not too mad…”

Albedo pressed his forehead into his hand, closing his eyes against it. Maybe he was using his face a bit too much now. He looked like Grand Master Varka again. “Klee…how big of a mess did you make?”

“Not too big!” It was an outright lie, and she knew it. Still, she hopped off the chair, and rushed around to his side of the table. “No bigger than what Master Varka said you did in your lab! But it’s okay! I’ll fix it! Right now! Let’s do it together! We’ll make your room nice and tidy so Mom can’t say anything when she comes back!”

“I don’t think my room will be the issue there,” Albedo said, but he stood up regardless. Klee snagged his hand in hers, and he glanced down curiously. “Hm?”

“Your hand is cold,” she said, because it was that simple. “So I’m gonna warm it up. Now, let’s go! Let’s go!”

She dragged him upstairs, and, as he regarded the mess of his room with drawn eyebrows and sagging shoulders, Klee could have danced with joy.

If she’d known that that was all it’d take to get him to stop being so stiff, she’d have messed up his room on the first day he’d been there.