Chapter Text
Jean had awoken with a strange feeling. The kind of feeling you have when something bad is about to happen, like when you see your child balance a bit above the ground and you just know they are going to fall. At least, this was how she tried to describe it to Kaeya when he asked about the look on her face. He could not quite understand her, but he also didn't ask any further. Jean tried to go about her day like usual, but soon found herself growing restless. She had wandered the streets of Mondstadt, lost in thoughts and trying to place this feeling that bothered her. When she came back from the place in her mind, she found herself far outside the city walls, near Stormterror's Lair. She had no idea how she had gotten so far without realizing it, much less why her legs had carried her here. With a heavy sigh, she turned around, intending to walk back to the city. However, the sight of a body lying a few feet away stopped her dead in her tracks. A second later, she was sprinting towards the person, praying that she did not just stumble upon a corpse.
Carefully, she turned the person over on their back and promptly let out a horrified gasp. There was a gaping wound on their head and the dried blood had dyed the hair into a muddy brown color. But now, she could see the teal patches under the blood and recognized the face. „Cael!“, she called out, softly patting his cheek, trying to wake him up. Even with all the wounds covering his body, the torn clothes and the crimson patches all over him, she knew he was alive. He was an immortal, just like Venti, Jean was sure of that. In Celestia's name, she had seen this kid falling off a cliff and hitting every rock on his way down, yet still spring up a second after the impact as if nothing happened. So, seeing him beat up and unconscious made all of her alarms ring. Maybe this was what the strange feeling was about. „Cael, come on, don't do this“, she pleaded, all her attempts to wake the boy in vain. Sighing, she picked him up and started her journey back to Mondstadt. Maybe on of the doctors could tell her when he would wake up. And treat all of those injuries too.
His body hurt, his head was throbbing and he could swear that muscles he didn't even knew existed were sore! Slowly, Cael tried to open his eyes, but closed them immediately, groaning. The world was too bright and even behind closed eyelids, he could see sparks of color dancing around. For the next few minutes, he carefully worked through the process of opening his eyes without feeling like going blind each time. After that, he looked through the room he was in, as much as he could without really turning his head. Nothing in this place looked familiar to him. Though, on second thought...
Cael sat up in one swift movement and regretted it in the same second. His body protested against the sudden shift, but luckily didn't force him to lie back down. He looked at his body, covered in bandages almost everywhere. At least that explained the pain, but even that became more of a dull throbbing, like a light headache. Annoying, but not unbearable. He was also more preoccupied with the fact that his brain was one big black question mark. No matter how hard he tried, there was nothing he could remember. Where he was, who he was or what had happened to put him in this state, all was lost. He started shaking, fear welling up in his chest. This was not supposed to be, there were supposed to be memories! Something, anything but this mist covering his mind!
„Cael?“ His head snapped up at the sound of the unknown voice. A blonde woman stood in the doorway, a little tray of food in her hands. He eyed her warily, trying to control the tremors that were shaking his body. Her eyes were warm and the smile on her lips calm and inviting. Like a good mother smiling at their child. He wondered if this was his mother. But then, nothing on her sparked something in his head. Shouldn't he be able to tell who his mother was, memories or not?
„How do you feel?“, she asked, putting the tray of food on a table and sitting down next to him. „Everything hurts“, he answered, „But not too badly. Where am I?“ The woman sighed, clearly relieved. Her grey-blue eyes seemed even warmer when she looked at him again. „You are at my home, having someone near you is important with such wounds. I would have brought you to your place, but I know Venti wouldn't be there and I have no idea where that bard is right now.“ She sighed again, heavier this time. He tilted his head. „Who is Venti?“, he asked, which caused the woman to laugh a bit. „Don't let him hear that, Cael. He would pout for days“, she said, still giggling. He frowned and pointed at himself. „Do you mean me? I'm sorry, but...who are you? It seems I can't remember anything. Is Cael my name?“
Jean stopped laughing. Instead, a horrified expression took over her face. She took Cael's face in her hands, searching for any kind of clue that the boy was joking. He was known for his pranks and jokes, never harmful, but always quite complicated. But those grey eyes held no jokes, only confusion. And fear, fear because everything he knew was gone. A cold shiver ran down her back, sadness starting to grow in her mind. This was the boy that she had come to see like a younger brother over the years, always looking out for him and listening to his worries, just as he had done to her. And now Celestia had decided to rob them of their bond. Taking a deep breath, she calmed herself down. This was not the time to overthink or let emotions get the better of her. Right now, she had to think of Cael, who did not understand anything and was probably more scared than ever before. She had to be there for him now.
„Yes, your name is Cael. My name is Jean and we are friends. Right now, you are in my house in Mondstadt, but you live with someone else. His name is Venti and, as I said, he is a bard and often wanders around the city. I found you at Stormterror's Lair, you were badly injured. The doctor said it's a miracle you survived with all these wounds and that you should take things slow“, she explained to him, pausing ever so often to let him absorb the words. If this was the right thing to do, she didn't know, it was the first time she dealt with an amnesiac person. The next minutes passed with Jean explaining as much as she could while Cael was slowly eating the fruits Jean had brought him. More often than not, she had to restart an explanation or stop one, simply because Cael could not understand a word of what she said. It was a bit frustrating, but of course she would not voice this. It was not Cael's fault he had been hurt. Not his fault that he had forgotten.
„That is about all I can tell you. I'm sorry that it's not much, Diluc or Venti know you better than me“, she ended, looking a bit upset. She wanted to be more helpful to him, be more of a guide. But the boy had always preferred Diluc over her, not that that was a surprise. After all, if your best friend's second home is the tavern, you just get to know the bartender. Speaking of which, maybe it was for the best to bring Cael to Angel's Share. Maybe Diluc could be more helpful than her.
A little while later, Jean and Cael stood before Angel's Share. The whole time they had walked through Mondstadt, Jean had prayed to spot Venti or that Cael would recognize something. Neither had happened and now her only hope was that Diluc could wake some memories in the boy's mind. Or that Venti was here and could do that much better than anyone else in the entirety of Mondstadt.
„Ask Diluc if Venti is there and if he is, talk to Venti. Otherwise, speak with Diluc and wait for Venti to arrive, that is bound to happen sooner or later. Don't go out on your own, I don't want you to get in trouble“, she told Cael, who nodded. „I'll have to go back to my duties now, good luck.“ Cael watched Jean walk away, her steps fast and determined. Still, he had been able to see it in her eyes, hear it in her voice. The sadness because he could not remember her, and the hope that maybe later, he would again. For a few more moments, he just stood there, watching until he could no longer see the blonde knight. Then, with a heavy feeling in his chest, he pushed open the door and entered the tavern.