Chapter Text
Monstadt was always a lively place, even early in the mornings. This was a fact that Lumine came to learn very quickly, and one she had to get used to just as quickly. There was hardly a time when the city she had come to know as home was quiet, and it didn’t surprise the traveller as she returned from Dragonspine to hear Wagner’s hammer and the soft clamoring of voices inside the city, even if she had really been hoping to get a bit of peace and quiet.
The traveller had been out all night traversing the frozen mountain in order to find a boy’s father who had gone exploring, and while she’d been successful in her search, she’d had to fight a few dozen thieves just to get the frantic man down the mountain to safety. She stifled a yawn as Paimon appeared next to her head, scanning her with obvious concern.
“Paimon is worried about you, Lumine! You need to sleep!” Her hands squished her cheeks slightly, knowing her companion was pushing her limits at this point. However, the blonde traveller barely even acknowledged her companions worries as she hobbled to the adventurer’s guild to get her next set of commissions from Katheryne, who also tried to voice her worries for Lumine’s wellbeing.
“I’m fine, guys! Really!” She smiled at the girls, even if it was forced, she just wanted to get her duties done before she could get any proper rest. “Either way, I won’t be doing this stuff alone. Master Diluc, Venti and Kaeya are joining me.” Lumine really, genuinely hoped that would reassure Paimon even a bit, but it just served to upset her even more.
“Paimon seems to remember that Master Diluc and Kaeya don’t get along. This might go really bad…”
“Well if you’re so worried, why don’t you stay at Good Hunter. I can give you some mora.” As much as she hated the thought of leaving Paimon behind, she really wasn’t in the mood to listen to her constant fussing. The thought of food immediately made the pixie perk up, and she did so even more when Lumine handed her a small pouch. “Have fun, Paimon. I won’t be gone too long.”
“Be safe! Make sure you come back to Paimon!” She shouted after Lumine as she left through the front gate of Mondstadt, only stopping to wave at her companion before running to Windrise.
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Venti hopped down from his spot in the tree as he felt the telltale breeze of Lumine’s Anemo abilities, knowing the traveller had likely come across a few slimes on his journey over to the trio underneath the tree.
“Our fearless hero is on her way!” He laughed, placing the lyre he had been strumming on back into his bag. Diluc rose from his seat on the root of the tree and stood next to the former Anemo archon, lifting a hand to his mouth to call out to the traveller as he made his way to the trio.
“Lumine! There you are!” He crossed his arms as the blonde girl bounded over to them, panting heavily.
“Sorry for the wait, everyone. Paimon didn’t want me to go this morning.” She smiled at her travelling party, placing her sword back into it’s sheath for the time being. A light breeze blew the hair that had been stuck to her head back into place, and upon looking at Venti, her smile fell. The normally chipper bard’s eyebrows were scrunched in the middle, in a very Not-So-Venti expression.
“Are you sure you should be doing these commissions, Lumine?” Kaeya’s voice popped up from behind Diluc, making Lumine jump. She almost forgotten she invited the knight on their little escapade.
“I’m sure!” Lumine held her hands up, “Seriously, I’m fine. A little tired is all.I just want to get the work over with so I can relax the rest of the day.” She really hoped that was enough to convince them, but when she gazed upon her friend’s concerned faces again, she knew this was going to be a long, long outing. With a sigh, she started walking, pretending to have not seen their faces. Kaeya and Venti shared a knowing look, and immediately followed after the blonde traveller. Diluc, however, hesitated. He had a terrible feeling about this little quest of theirs, and Lumine’s behavior struck him as simply, wrong. He would keep an eye on the girl, just to make sure she wouldn’t get too seriously injured.
Boy, would he have his work cut out for him.
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“Where are all these damn hilichurls coming from!?” Kaeya shouted as he slashed through another one of the beasts, narrowly avoiding being clubbed by one from the side. The group had come across a large encampment of hilichurls, and no matter how many they killed, more rushed them. Lumine had no idea how long they had all been fighting. Minutes? Hours? Time felt slow as her muscles ached for relief from the strain of her sword. Even Venti was having trouble keeping up with the monsters.
“No idea, but we can’t stop now.” Diluc yelled back at the blue haired man. Diluc Ragnvindr, always level headed, even in a crisis. Lumine had always admired that about him, glancing at the red hair that flew by her as another swing of his claymore sent fire blazing across the grass in front of them and knocked another hilichurl over the side of the cliff. Venti panted, jumping down from the ledge he had been perched upon, his bow still drawn tight.
“Was that the last of them?” His voice was rough, and after a quick glance around the area, Kaeya nodded at the archer. The entire group breathed a sigh of relief as Venti flopped back into the cool grass. “Good, that was intense.”
“You’re telling me.” The cavalry captain chuckled, taking a seat next to the bard. “It’s a nice spot to rest, at least.” A small smile graced Kaeya’s lips as he patted the seat next to him, gesturing for Diluc to take the spot. However, Diluc stayed standing, watching vigilantly for any other enemies nearby. And Lumine? She was staring up at the peak of the mountain. It took a moment for any of them to notice, but when they did, Venti was the first to speak up.
“Uh… Venti to Lumine? Hello?” He raised a brow. “Can you hear me?”
“Hm?”
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine… Just tired, and we still have a long way to go.” Lumine sighed, lugging her sword behind her. Diluc stopped her midstep.
“There’s no shame in going back to Mondstadt to rest, Lumine. You’re struggling to lift your sword.” There was no hiding the concern in his voice, but Lumine sharply shook her head, pushing past the man to continue up the path to the peak.
“If you all want to go back, you can. I, however, am seeing this commission through to the end-” Lumine was practically shouting as she walked, but was abruptly cut off by the snow giving out beneath her feet. No, not the snow. The rocks gave out beneath her.
“LUMINE-” Kaeya shouted, jumping from his place in the snow and attempting to rush over to the girl as she fell.
He didn’t get to her in time.
And he wasn’t able to grab Diluc as he jumped after her either.