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The Plane of Euthymia. The Wanderer doesn't remember if he was here in the beginning or not. Even being a puppet, his early years are just as blurry to him as it is to a human child.
Funny, isn't it? An inhumane being with human traits. The irony is not lost on Kunikuzushi.
He stares at the woman facing him, the owner of this very realm he's standing on.
The God of Electro. God of Thunder. Narukami Ogosho. The Almighty Shogun. The Immortal Shogun. The Raiden Shogun. Raiden Ei. Beelzebub. Baal's sister. The shadow twin. His creator. His mother. Different names and titles for the same immortal being, the same god, the same creation of the heavens. Yet, looking into her eyes, he sees nothing but the woman that left him in that buried place in an eternal slumber, the one who gave him his pathetic emotions and then decided to discard like he was a broken toy, something she didn't want to play with anymore. Like he was trash, a nuisance. Something to get rid of.
Honestly, even he didn't know for sure why he came looking for her. Maybe it was because he decided to not erase her memory. Maybe it was because, against all odds, he still had the tiniest spark of faith.
Faith in what, he didn't know. He was supposed to be a vessel for a gnosis, a heart. He was supposed to be the Shogun, standing tall before Inazuma. He was supposed to have utility for his creator. Yet, the woman in front of him decided that he was useful for naught.
Insightful, he almost didn't hear when she decided to talk.
"After 500 years, I think I owe you some answers", Ei says, her eyes wandering eagerly through his appearance. "After all, I guess you didn't come all the way from Sumeru just to gaze at me and leave". Her voice sounds peaceful, far from the voice edged with despair, guilt and grief he remembered faintly from his beginning. (Do puppets have or deserve something similar to a childhood? He can't tell, even if the childlike innocence is very much what he used to have in those seemingly ancient times.)
(Either way,) She's right. He came here for explanations, indeed. So, why does he feel a knot on his throat?
He was tired of crying. He was tired of dreaming. He was tired of human experiences. He wasn't human. He would never be. So, pray tell, why do mortal feelings and experiences haunt him so much?
"Why did you abandon me?"
The first question felt like it was meant to be since the start of his betrayals.
Ei answered without a hitch.
"It felt too cruel to simply get rid of you by the way inazuman traditions demand." She didn't say which traditions were. She didn't need to. They were both from the same land, after all. Burning a doll to release its soul, its funeral meant to be held in one of the numerous temples. That was the way she was meant to handle his existence, or rather, the end of it. However… "I decided to set you free from the strings attached to you, to leave you in an eternal slumber, the dreams being your loving reality. Alas, it did not last for long. I don't know why I thought it would", an apologetic expression.
Well, this changed his worldview. "This is bullshit. You're telling me all of this started because you were too much of a coward to go on with what the traditions of your own nation say? I bet that kitsune at the Narukami Shrine advised you to fucking burn me alive, didn't she? And still, you couldn't bring yourself to do it? To end my suffering?" Ei remained calm even with all the swearing, even though she frowned at the mention of Yae.
"She did say that decision was gonna have repercussions against me someday, but even then, she may be the closest to me, but she doesn't interfere with most of my final decisions at all". Kunikuzushi could sense the honesty in Beelzebub's words. "However, I admit I was, indeed, too involved in my own emotions to realize you could genuinely suffer from my past actions, or for my lack of guidance. For that, I apologize. I should've been a better creator." I should've been a better mother, is what goes unsaid.
That answer only aroused more questions.
"Why there, of all places?"
"Safekeeping. A sanctuary, only for you to rest forever"
"Sounds like a shitty reason"
"Sounds eternal", Ei had the ghost of a smile now. "You reminded me of her, and if I couldn't keep her close to the Heavenly Principles, at least I could keep you. My creation, eternally safe in a heaven created by my own hands."
Ei didn't have to tell Kuni who the mentioned 'her' was. He simply knew. Irminsul is the source of all knowledge in Teyvat, after all, and Raiden Makoto surely wasn't erased from existence.
"How the hell did I remind you of your twin? We're obviously nothing alike."
"Oh, but you are. Makoto also had that petulance, that stubbornness that only comes from those who are born to be in the spotlight. She was kind, caring, and smart, just like you were before and are now." Ei's eyes leave him. "However, you're still my creation. Clinging to the past is not something Makoto would do, no, that is entirely me. That is entirely you, too, judging from the fact that you're here, in the first place."
Kuni had no answer to that. Even with all the knowledge about the sister who perished, he hadn't met Makoto. His mere existence meant that she was no longer in this world. The fact that he was created was a great sign of Ei's grief. Thus, it's only natural that he carries traces from both twins.
Doesn't mean he likes it.
"Why did you leave me without a heart?"
At that, Ei looked confused.
"Well, from my perspective, every creature who dreams, cries, laughs and overall feels, has a heart." Her answer was similar to Kusanali's. Was that an unspoken agreement between archons?
"But I was created to host a divine heart, not a human one". Even if I came to want a human one later.
"You were created as my first try, to test my abilities"
"Gods, that's even worse!"
"It is the truth. Was that not what you wanted? You were special to me, in your own way. You may not have been the final form of your type, but you served your purpose, and I did not want you to be eternally tied by my side. That was never your purpose, Kunikuzushi." His self-given name sounds strange coming from her lips.
"Well, what if I wanted to get stuck by your side? What if I wanted to be given a purpose, Beelzebub?" Tears are rolling down his face. He doesn't care, not at this point.
"Your fate is entirely yours to decide. Isn't that a blessing?"
"What, a blessing from the Electro Archon? No, thank you."
"A blessing from your mother"
A beat of silence.
"That is the first time you refer to yourself as my mother since…"
"Since your birth, yes. I apologize for this, as well."
"Mom…"
"Kuni…"
His self-given name echoes in his mind after she says it. He doesn't know his true name, isn't even sure he has one, but the way she says it makes it sound like it was his since the beginning.
They don't run to each other, no. That would be undignified. If there's another thing that the two of them share in common is to never let go of their pride.
They do cry in each other's arms, though.
"You know, your fiery hatred towards everything that displeases you does remind me of Miko, more than anyone, but I think you wouldn't be pleased to hear much about it." Ei says, voice muffled in his hair.
"Mother, without all due respect, shut the fuck up". Kunikuzushi's voice lacks the usual venom.
As the sky in the realm turns lilac, they discuss about everything meaningful that has happened over the past five centuries. It's not perfect, but it's close to something.
More importantly, it's enough for the bruised but kind puppet and his maimed creator.