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Mona finally found her way to the gates of Mondstadt again.
"Home sweet home" Mona thought to herself, and began making her way to her house. She ignored the ramblings of Stanley next to the gate, returned the eager waving of Schulz as she past Wagner's smithy, tuned out the song from the woman on the balcony above and exchanged some of her freshly gained Mora for some apples and earth apples at the produce stand just across from them.
Mona chuckled inwardly at the Fontaine name for potatoes and made her way home. She could have gone to Good Hunters to grab something to eat, but she has had enough of that place and that accursed Fisherman's Toast of theirs for a lifetime. She had some cabbage and eggs at home, with these apples of different persuasions she could make a very satisfying salad.
Also taking the stairs up to Good Hunters really, really did not agree with her.
She just wanted to go home. Salads are easy.
Huh. Home. That words still felt a bit weird on the tongue or brain for Mona, having been here for only a few months now, and yet she was calling it home. She still didn't know anybody here very well, but everybody was fairly friendly, or at least neutral to her at worst. Well... almost everybody in Mondstadt.
She sighed, trying to get the short tempered guy she had to deal with a couple of hours ago out of her mind. At least she had rent for the month covered. And last month's back rent. Thank goodness Goth is a merciful landlord. Even if he deals with the Fatui.
She leaned against her door trying to conjure up the motions required to open the hydro seal she placed on her lock from memory as Clouseau rubbed around her legs, purring.
"Aww, I missed you too, mon ami~" Mona purred back, rubbing the sheriff cat's head, when from within the house she heard noises. Mona jolted upright, adrenaline coursing through her as she quickly undid the seal, and quietly slipped into her house, her Eye of Perception floating beside her.
Passing through the lobby she could hear hushed voices and metallic clanking from the back.
"The kitchen... no... anything but my valuables!" She passed the tables loaded with books, experiments, and a shiny new astrolabe she had been able to splurge on thanks to a very peculiar pompadoured man from Liyue a couple weeks back.
Reaching her sanctum sanctorum, light shining through the cracked door, she swiftly opened the door and unleashed her simulacrum upon those who would dare trespass upon her domicile!
"Delve into dest-"
Before her a woman in white and a small floating woman... also in white, looked in shock at the taunting visage of Mona's simulacrum and then threw themselves over the stove.
"Oh, it's you two! I say, how did you enter my abode so freely?"
Mona looked at the Honorary Knight of the Ordo Favonius and her bitesized tour guide baffled, before flinching at the noise the blonde woman made next.
"Yeeow!" Lumine jolted up, sticking her arms into the spluttering decoy Mona had set up just as it splattered to a halt and dissipated.
"Oh goodness, Lumi!" Mona dashed to her side.
"We just got them out of the oven too... hi Mona, welcome home." the wet traveler gave the astrologer a pained smile, as the latter inspected her arms, which definitely had burns on them and then dashed her eyes around the scene. Paimon was wet too but seemed unharmed, and two whole Sweet Madames were sitting atop her stovetop, steam coming off of them.
"You... that can wait, we gotta get this taken care of. Paimon, are you ok?"
"Yes, Paimon didn't touch the plates. We have some cloth in the bag there."
"Good, I'll cool the skin. You go grab that. Just relax Lumi, I'm so sorry!"
"Hah, Mona, we're sorry, we just wanted to surprGAH!"
The blonde woman wasn't ready for the cold hydro element Mona was now gently applying to Lumine's arms.
"I'm sorry if this hurts, but it should hopefully sooth the pain pretty swiftly."
"Ah, yeah, it's already feeling better, just kinda like the skin pulling together, you know."
"It's gonna blister probably."
"Should be fine after a couple days though, and nothing that slows me down.”
“Here you go.” Paimon handed Mona a roll of gauze.
“Hold your arms forward please.” Mona and Paimon said in unison, elicitng a chuckle from the outlander.
“We came here to pamper you, Mona, not me~!” she said, a smirk finding its way back on her face as she did as she was told. The traveler's companion and the scryer of unknown truths both glared at her and Lumine quietly grinned as she was bandaged up.
Some time later, after a scrumptious meal, the three of them leaned back in their chairs in unison.
“Aaaah, so good, Paimon's tummy is feeling happy.”
“I bet it does, you ate both my drumsticks!”
“You snooze you loose~”
Mona regarded her friends bantering fondly while rubbing her own very happy stomach. Salads are good, but a hearty meal at home like that was always welcome. Especially a shared meal like this.
“Mona?”
Huh, that word again, home. But what else could she call it?
“Mona?”
She just wishes these moments weren't so ephemeral sometimes, but she will take what she can...
“Meg!”
“What did I say about calling me that?”
“There we go, that snapped her out of it finally~”
“Thanks Paimon.”
“What's the matter?” The astrologer looked at two of them.
“You tell us, you looked real deep in thought there.”
Mona relaxed into her seat and closed her eyes: “Don't worry about it. It's been a long day.”
Lumine and Paimon locked eyes and nodded at each other.
“Paimon will go do some, uhm, Paimonial activities for the night. You guys should catch up.”
“Thanks for the meal, Paimon.” Mona and Paimon smiled at each other and then in a poof of unknown constellations, Paimon disappeared.
“Let's get this here cleaned up.” Lumine stood up and started collecting the dishes.
“Wait, you're hurt, let me!” Mona sat up, but Lumine's hand on her shoulder firmly and gently pushed her back down.
“Just a regular kitchen injury. Let your disciple handle this, Master.”
“I must insist that I-” Mona's counterargument is cut short by a yawn.
Lumine leans down and plants a kiss on Mona's forehead: “Just rest for a moment. And then tell me all about your day, ok?”
Mona half dejected, half relieved sunk back into her chair and just nodded meekly. It had been a long day.
When Mona opened her eyes again she found herself on one of the sofas in the living room area, Lumine sitting by the window looking out at the stars, moonlight washing over her and painting Mona a picture that had her breath go out for milk and not return until what seemed a lifetime later, at a most inopportune moment, when the painting looked back at her, and Mona enters a coughing fit.
“You ok?”
“Yeah, sorry, was just surprised. Are you?”
“Yeah, just the usual wistful thinking about my brother.”
“I'm feel I am close to a breakthrough, but have nothing to show yet.”
“No worries. I... think he might be closer than I thought. I'll meet him soon, I am sure.”
“How do you know?”
“Dandelions on the wind told me.”
“You really have become a Mondstadter, haven't you?”
“Well, you know, when in Rome.”
“Where?”
“Never mind that, so how was your day?”
“Ugh!” Mona sunk back onto the sofa, trying to decide whether she wanted to vent or not, looking around for anything else to occupy them, when she noticed Lumine scratching her bandages.
“Sure, but let me redress those real quick for you!”
A few moments later they were both sitting on the sofa, Mona wrapping Lumine's arms in gauze.
“Thank you, Mona.”
“Think nothing of it. It is only the right thing to do.”
Lumine gazed at Mona's face during the process, and the Astrologer had to put real effort into not trembling at the sensation, as she made sure to keep her own eyes firmly on these arms.
“I understand if you don't want to talk about your day of course, but sometimes venting can help get it off one's chest.”
“I of course understand that.”
Mona sighed, and begun removing the bandages on the second arm.
“You know how some of the restaurants had that delivery service event going on the last couple of days?”
“Yeah, I did a few deliveries myself actually.” Lumine's gaze grew distant for just a moment before returning to Mona's face.
“I did one for Good Hunter Express today. Just some toast, but it apparently needed to go almost all the way to the Stone Gate.”
“That is quite the trek.”
Mona nods, unfurling a new roll of gauze.
“That's what I thought too. And under some pretty tight pressure too, had to make sure the toast stayed nice and warm and everything. So naturally I sprinted the whole way there.”
“You mean...” The traveler raised on eyebrow, realizing what was about to come up.
“Yeah. I used my Illusory Torrent art to make the trip as far as possible. For some reason that guy was sitting on a little stretch of sand across the river over there though.”
Lumine's face crinkled up. Mona was uncertain if it was because she knew the ending to this story already or because of the sensation of the fresh gauze on her wounds.
“Not a big deal of course, I can dash across water just fine... except I jumped out of my torrent just a bit to early and ended up landing just shy of dry land, splashing water right on the bag soaking it.”
“Ugh, I had similar experiences.”
“Oh?”
“Some laid back woman who was chilling out on a raft in Dihua Marsh.”
“If only my guy had been laid back and not so short tempered.”
“Oh no.”
“The toast was fine too! But nope, demanded it be redelivered, this time without water involved. Real snappy about it too. Like the world was without water or something.”
“Customers like that are a pain, yeah. You did your best.”
“Nevertheless, I mustn't dwell on such drivel things. This too shall pass.” Mona tucked the last bit of the bandaging in and leaned back, now finding herself meeting Lumine's gauze.
“All things do. But you also have the right to be angry about it.”
Mona blinked and stared at Lumine when she felt the outlander's hand upon her cheek.
“It's no good to lie to yourself.”
“I... I never!”
Mona's rising temper is swiftly brought back down by her friend's gentle smile. She knew what she meant, and once again sighed.
“I do mean it though. I mustn't let things like that clutter my mind. Not when I still have to work on my column.”
The blonde woman chuckled a little and sidled next to the astrologer.
“Don't worry about writing that tonight anymore. You need a night to just unwind at home.”
Mona once again yawned and leaned against Lumine, who brushed a few hairs out of her friend's hair.
“Maybe so... but am I really home?” Mona looks over at the beautiful brown eyes beside her.
“Home is where the heart is, they say.”
Mona smiled, and closed her eyes, head on Lumine's shoulder.
“Well, I do suppose tonight I am home.”
As the exhaustion once again washes over her like a tidal wave, she just faintly makes out Lumine's words to her.
“As am I.”