Chapter Text
This is a story about Amber... well Amber and a certain Traveller who would one day appear on the outskirts of Monstadt and throw absolutely everything into disarray.
Also Monstadt probably had some things going on too.
It was a relatively normal day about one kilometre outside the city, sunny, not too hot, a perfect day three of Amber's scouting project. You see, acting Grandmaster Jean had once again been receiving reports of Hilichurls coming a little too close to one of Monstadt's major roads, and the duty to both confirm and handle these sorts of reports would only ever fall to Amber; the one and only Outrider of the Knights of Favonious. Truth be told, most of these reports were often found to be inaccurate, and frequently came from skittish merchants travelling from the surrounding territories, but, it was Amber's sole duty to always treat these reports with the utmost care. That's why Jean bestowed the role of Outrider Captain to Amber after all, nobody else was nearly as reliable and thorough.
At least... that's what Amber liked to believe. The reality was a teensy tiny bit more complicated than that, and thinking about it was a great way for Amber to dredge up some painful memories, so she generally avoided doing it.
Today though; would be a very different kind of day than how it initially presented itself, and eventually would give affirmation to some choices Amber had made with her gear before setting out three days prior. Just past noontime, and after a small snack of fisherman's toast, a strange sequence of events would play out. A sequence in which the dragon, Stormterror, would dive into the whispering woods; before, only moments later, taking off into the sky again. A terrifying sight in itself for anyone who might be nearby, but odd in the sense that Stormterror was not particularly known to land anywhere except for his lair. Stranger still was the person and her tiny floating partner that would cross a threshold right beneath Amber's scouting position in a large pine tree, barely two minutes after Stormterror had flown off from the exact same direction. Being ever dutiful, Amber could simply not ignore the series of events and these mystery... people, and (temporarily) abandoned her post to meet them.
Amber dropped from the tree, hit the soft dirt below and bounded along the hillside, just enough out of sight that she shouldn't be spotted under most circumstances. She looked down the hill and saw her charges leisurely walking the path that exited whispering woods. She knew the area well, and knew that this hillside eventually met up with the pathway in such a way that Amber would be able to stop the two dead in their tracks. It was moments like this that excited her the most. The little hiccups in her daily routines of leaving the city to scout some something or other that had scared a merchant or a traveller with no road smarts. A true chance for her to flex her skills and knowledge as a Knight... and... (Amber would think this part a little bit more quietly,) A chance to meet someone new before anyone else in Monstadt could. Something that had become a non-existent opportunity in the days since Stormterror began to act up. She didn't dwell on this for long though, Amber truly never dwelt on anything for longer than she had to; and, with her pace perfectly ahead of the duo, Amber made her move.
“Hey you! Stop right there!”
With one impressive leap, Amber exited the mountainside and made a less than spectacular landing in front of her new charges, featuring an awkward tumble, but a solid recovery, Amber managed to right herself, and faced the two, quite shocked, individuals. Taking advantage of their surprise, Amber quickly looked over the suspicious pair before they had a chance to gain composure, and made a mental tally of anything threatening. The tiny floating one; a girl with white hair and an outfit that would look odd on anyone aside from herself; Amber quickly surmised, was absolutely terrified. She also seemed incapable of wielding any weaponry aside from magic, possibly, but really appeared to be no immediate threat. The other one was a different story; blonde hair, piercing yellow eyes and what looked to be a battle gown embroidered with green-ish gemstones. Amber's eyes followed the girl's body shape and posture; toned features and a soft battle stance, this girl looked incredibly capable in all aspects of the word. Her face contained much the same story, beautiful and intense, without a hint of trepidation, and yet, not a single ounce of malice or anger, only a hint of concern; her eyes locked on to Amber, unwavering except only once, momentarily glancing away to her smaller travelling partner. Amber could read any situation in under one second and have an answer, but in this rare case, she felt conflicted, her earlier suspicions very rapidly losing traction in her mind. These two couldn't possibly be bad people... could they?
“May the Anemo God protect you stranger!” Amber called out, placing one hand over her heart in what was the start of knights of Favonious salute. Looking each of the two in the eyes, silence followed, but the tension created by her rather aggressive entrance dissipated somewhat. Confident, Amber continued.
“I am Amber, Outrider for the Knights of Favonious. You don't look like citizens of Monstadt. Explain yourselves!” Amber commanded, steeling her voice as best as she could. To her surprise; however, it was the tiny one who spoke up first, despite looking terrified mere moments ago.
“W-We're not looking for trouble.” The smaller one spoke up, fear still heavily evident in her voice. Amber felt a momentary regret at being the cause of terror in a being so small; she prided herself on being a friend and protector to all, and had a specific fondness for the rabbits, foxes and squirrels that would visit her on her lengthy scouting endeavours. This... this felt tantamount to what it might be like to betray that gentle trust.
Amber had a job to do though... and could always apologize later if she needed to... she hoped.
“That's what all the troublemakers say.”
“Hello Amber. My name is Lumine.” The taller one cut in, with a voice as gentle as the breezes blessed by the Anemo Archon himself. Visibly relaxed, she had shifted her weight out of a stance ready to engage in combat, and into one more reminiscent of an easy conversation with a friend. Amber felt another twinge of guilt, maybe... she had been a little too aggressive.
“...doesn't sound like a local name to me... And this... mascot, what's the deal with it?”
“We're friends” the girl called Lumine spoke up again, the softness in her voice evidently a permanent fixture. “Her name is Paimon.”
“Yeah, we're the bestest of friends!” Paimon piped up, the prior fear fading almost in an instant.
“So... to sum it up, you're travelling partners, right?” Amber confirmed with nobody in particular, then sighed. Aside from their odd garb and names, the two seemed like they had absolutely nothing suspicious about them and were at best, gently confused travellers. The awful timing of Stormterror followed by the appearance of the pair had set Amber on edge for nothing. “Well look, there's been a large dragon sighted around Monstadt recently. Best you get inside the city as soon as possible. Its not far from here. I'll escort you there.”
“Oh? Are you not out here for some other reason? We've come this far on our own, so Paimon's sure you're not here just to pick us up.” Paimon stated in a rather accusatory manner. This one... Amber thought, she may be small and cute but she's got some spikes... It was something to keep in mind.
“I... am, but don't worry, I can keep the both of you safe while doing that too.” Amber paused, still a little taken aback by Paimon's sudden snark. “Besides, I'm still not sure I can trust you two just yet!”
“Why so suspicious?” Lumine spoke up, her voice pointed but not without its heart soothing softness Amber had very quickly started to expect. Disarming, was the only word she could use to describe it, even with the rather simple sentences throughout the interaction. Amber felt as if she had tripped, or was one step behind what Lumine was thinking behind her words at all times.
“Oh ahh... I'm sorry. Probably not something I should say as a Knight... I give you my apologies, uh... strange yet... respectable travellers.” Amber finished. Embarrassed by how hard it had been to recount the words ingrained in her mind by the Knights of Favonious handbook. Amber wondered if she'd ever had an interaction that had gone this poorly before, she felt as though she was usually so composed and noble. In front of Paimon and Lumine though...
“That sounded so fake!” Paimon ripped in, disallowing Amber from further wandering thoughts.
“Do you have something against the type of language usage prescribed by the by the Knights of Favonius Handbook?!” Amber took on a lighthearted defensive tone. Falling into a more casual and friendly demeanour felt so natural that Amber wondered if she always sounded stiff in comparison. A thought for another time. Shaking her head, she decided to make good on her promise of guiding the pair to the city after cleaning up her own work, and wordlessly gestured that they should get moving. With Amber leading the way down the path, she tried to keep the conversation going, and not let it slip too much that she had mostly given up her earlier suspicions.
“So... suspicious Travellers, what are you doing in Monstadt?”
To Amber's surprise, it was Paimon who spoke up,
“Lumine got separated from her brother on a really really long journey. Paimon is her travel buddy, helping her to find him!”
“Oh... looking for your family huh... Ah...” Amber felt as though she'd misjudged everything. Her own family had been... missing, for years, so she very viscerally understood the pain of losing someone important in that way. Biting her lip so she didn't dwell on the thought, Amber refused to let her composure slip. “Okay let me finish my other stuff first and then I can help you put up posters around the city...” She trailed off a little. She wanted to do more, she really really did. Lumine's silence on the matter only served for Amber as confirmation that Paimon was telling the truth.
It was decided.
These two were not strangers or suspicious people at all. They were friends in need of help and Amber was not about to shun someone in need.
As the trio continued their jaunt along one of the many roads in Monstadt, Amber was filled with an all-new resolve. She would do what couldn't be done for her. Casting her gaze briefly to Lumine who was wearing a somewhat distant expression, Amber silently vowed that no matter what lied ahead, she would do everything in her power to find Lumine's brother.
“What exactly is it that you need to finish doing first anyway?” Paimon questioned, breaking the silence that had fallen between the three.
“Its simple. You'll understand in a bit.” Amber responded casually. All the earlier confusion and non-assuredness had now been cast aside with the simple revelation.
Turning sharply south-east, the trio were now slowly approaching Amber's final destination. In spite of her earlier position's ability to look upon the Hilichurl camp she was sent to find, getting to it on foot was a rather large chore. Monstadt was known for lots of things, and unfortunately, hills, boulders and generally uneven terrain were a few of them. Careful to keep the two in her sights, Amber took this opportunity to point out the city of Monstadt on the horizon, as well as some of the other sights and sounds of the area. Things like dandelions, the city's national flower; the abundance of apple and sunsettia trees; and a particular favourite of Amber's, lamp grass, which tended to grow beneath the denser, needled trees. Amber was proud of the city state where she resided; though the individuals she was sharing this with still hadn't truly experienced it at all yet, she was thrilled to be able to share the things she loved about the land she'd grown up in.
Dragging her away from the idle dialogue, the group had rounded a rather large rock, and the camp Amber had been scouting came into view. The girl slowed her steps, gently holding out an arm to signal it was time to stop.
“This. Is what I have to do today,” Amber stated, directing her words to Lumine and Paimon, “These monsters have been getting too close to the city lately. My task this time is to clear out their camp!”
“I'll help out.” Lumine responded quietly. The blonde haired girl effortlessly retrieving an odd looking long sword from the aether.
“Th-thanks.” Amber responded quickly. Something about how the girl had armed herself looked incredibly practised, and Amber wondered just what she might have signed herself up for in the future by bringing them to Monstadt. She hoped that the girl would at least consider joining in with the Knights of Favonious as well... were she to stay in town of course.
Shaking the thoughts away, Amber pulled out her own weapon, a standard issue Knights of Favonious bow, and took on a loose crouched position, nocking an arrow as she moved. With a small gesture of her hand, she crept forwards, around the rock, with her new combat partner in tow. Looking back briefly, Amber spied Lumine dutifully following, and the ever tiny Paimon trailing just far enough behind that she could presumably escape if any of the action began to get rough. The sight allowed Amber to relax just a little, it seemed her faith wasn't misplaced, these two were allies.
As the Hilichurl camp came into view, Amber drew her bow, holding her breath and taking aim at an opposing archer, standing atop a small platform, a scout for the camp without a doubt. With her target in sight, Amber gently released her held breath and let her arrow fly, striking her target with fearsome accuracy, killing him instantly. Lumine took this as her sign to attack, and quickly dashed ahead to take advantage of the impending confusion. Amber popped out of her crouch and nocked another arrow, trotting forwards and scanning for her next target, of which there was suddenly few options. Lumine had managed to take out two of the four remaining Hilichurls in a matter of moments. Lining up a target, Amber quickly drew and released just as Lumine managed to fell the third Hilichurl.
“She's so fast...” Amber whispered, unable to even watch the trajectory of her arrow, as her eyes were busy elsewhere. Completely affixed to the girl with the lightning fast blade just 50 meters away from her. Every movement looked so practised, so comfortable, as though Lumine had been training her entire lifetime and then some. Graceful and precise, Amber's heart skipped a beat as the last Hilichurl fell to the ground, and Lumine did a quick once over of the camp. Dropping her combat stance, Amber hopped over to meet up with the girl and congratulate her on a job well done... though, it was her own job initially.
“That's some impressive moves you got there!” At a total loss for words, that was the only sentence that Amber could manage to come up with in the moment. Lumine contorted her eyebrows, nodded and gave a short “thanks” as she concluded her scan of the area. The camp was empty now, save for the cookfire, a few wooden barrels and boxes, and the singular scouting tower; though, it was almost unfair to call it a tower, as the top was only around 6 feet from the ground. With a quick scan of the horizon, Amber was satisfied that things were done here. No hidden Hilichurls, as they likely would have been ambushed by now, and nothing overly threatening left in the camp. Amber walked over to the cookfire and put it out with a quick shuff of her feet, only a handful of embers still glowing.
“Was that all you had to do?” Paimon suddenly spoke up, she must have drifted over once the combat had ceased.
“Ah, yeah.” Amber returned quickly. Turning away from the cookfire. “We can head to Monstadt properly now. I'll lead the way!” Lumine gave a small smile and with that, the trio were headed off to the city of Monstadt, thoughts of Hilichurls now by the wayside and turned onto speculating on exactly what Amber was going to do when she got the two travellers into the city. She supposed she should take them to Acting Gran Master Jean first and foremost, especially after how Lumine had handled herself with a blade... but Amber was still feeling kind of bad about how much suspicion she had treated the two with initially... and given their newcomer status to Monstadt, she wanted to show them something only Monstadt had to offer.
As Amber continued to ponder this, the trio had made their way down the hill and were quickly nearing the bridge to the city. Amber had made sort of a big show of leading them, but the reality was that they had been close enough to the city that anyone could pretty reasonably find their way. To top that off, Lumine was more than capable of defending herself... it all made Amber feel a little bit sheepish. She very quietly thanked Barbatos that neither Lumine nor Paimon had made any motion to point this out, or she'd probably die on the spot of embarrassment. Fortunately for her, the pair behind her had been chatting away about food for the relatively short duration, with Lumine gently ribbing Paimon about her propensity to eat. The two had clearly known each other for a while from the way they spoke, and the overheard conversation had given Amber a very good idea of what gift to give the two once they'd gotten to town.