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Where did such a blossom come from? Zhongli wondered. Only one petal is blue...and the center seems to glow, not unlike the rest of her attire…
“Is everything okay?”
Zhongli found himself no longer looking at the flowers in silken gold hair but rather at two large eyes instead, a twinge of concern passing through them. He put a hand to his chin, as he often did when thinking. Did he dare even ask? What if it wasn’t customary to ask such a thing where she was from?
Lumine cocked her head ever so slightly. She was always so patient with him and it was always astounding to him that someone as busy as her took that time for him.
“Well,” Zhongli started, reaching carefully towards her, touching one of the petals gently.
Lumine closed one eye as his finger brushed against the flower.
“I’ve never seen this flower before,” he said, pulling away. It was impossible to hide the excitement and interest in his voice. It was so rare that he didn’t know about something, that someone else could teach him. “Would you tell me about it?”
The Traveler smiled, a gesture that always reminded him of warm meals around a campfire and nights under the stars. Of someone long ago, who taught him the secret to Glaze Lilies and cared for the people of Liyue long before the nation was established as such.
Would he ever not see her in other people?
“Sure,” Lumine said, her posture straightening a little.
Perhaps she had dreaded his question. He hoped not. That hadn’t been his intention.
“It’s a preserved magnolia,” Lumine carefully plucked one from her hair and held it out to him, the flower cradled in the palm of her hand. “It’s one of the oldest genus of flowers in a land called Terra that Aether and I once traveled to. According to the people there, this genus existed before even some of the oldest insects and there’s even some fossils from millions of years before this one ever bloomed.”
Zhongli took the flower and examined it carefully, as though it was glass.
“It was a gift from a little girl whose family we helped protect from a bunch of colonists. Their business was in preserving the best blooms and selling them to nobility and royalty who wanted to collect them.”
“Is there any particular meaning to magnolias? A flower with such a legacy surely has to be a symbol in some fashion…”
He lifted the blossom to his nose, catching a hint of sweet lemon.
“Longevity and perseverance, she told me,” Lumine murmured. “Her family mentioned that there was a phrase called ‘Steel Magnolia’ and it was often used to describe a woman who is feminine but strong, noble, and independent.”
Zhongli couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle.
“They’re quite a fitting gift,” he replied, finding the fastening and sliding the flower back into her hair. “Thank you for sharing them with me.”
“I wear them to remind me that traveling isn’t just about what I find but who I meet,” Lumine replied. “And the impact my actions can have on the worlds I leave behind.”
Being this close to her, he realized she always smelled like those flowers, sweet and citrusy. Spring. She smelled like the start of spring.
Of new beginnings.
I doubt anyone would ever forget you, dear Lumine. Myself included.