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It was his mother who told him about soulmates.
How soulmates could write to each other by their skin, sending messages across the world to where the other part of their soul was. Sweet words and drawings, whatever one wished to send to them.
So from the moment he was able to hold a pen in his hand, he’d written on his arms. While words often got misspelt and the clunk of the letters would rarely make sense, the spire of hope that bloomed in his heart did not cease. Even as his mother explained that not everyone gets soulmates, or his soulmate could not be born yet, Freminet glowed at the thought of a soulmate.
Even as years passed, as his writing got better, as his doodles of flowers and animals improved, his favourite was a penguin doing mundane human things, even when he never received a response to his words, his hope did not fade from the hope.
Not even as his mother placed him in the hands of the House of the Hearth, she told him to stay hopeful. She’d hoped to come back for him, he hoped she’d come back for him. The Hearth was strict, and he found himself writing less and less to his soulmate, not that they ever responded. That was fine.
That was fine.
His grip on hope had dwindled since his mother vanished and shattered when the new Father of the Hearth had told him the truth. He’d tried so hard not to cry, clutching a pendant his mother had left him, falling to his knees as soon as he was out of sight of the house. Sitting by a lonely, hidden away waterfront barely outside the Fontaine city walls.
He slept by that shoreline, tears streaming down his face. He’d begged for a response that night, for his soulmate, should they exist, to give him a sign- give him anything… yet nothing came.
Collei never knew what the scribbles were. In the dark, damp, dungeon she receded in, it was hard to tell if it was words or just her eyes still trying to adjust to the darkness. The Doctor would snatch her arm on occasion, look at the scribbles and laugh. She’d never dared to ask what they were.
It didn’t seem the Doctor cared what they were either, occasionally he’d cut a chunk of the skin with scribbles on it off.
Beyond the cut skin and the Eleazar, she liked the little pictures. She didn’t know what it was, a blob of some sort with a face doing things.
The Doctor would always tsk at her for undoing the bandages, then proceed to tighten them till her fingers started turning blue.
It almost seemed like a coincidence when the blob on her arm was seemingly running on very small feet, that the door to her cell had been left unattended. She’d never attempted to flee before, but she’d never had the chance either. She’d waited, sitting on her knees just inside the door of the cell; what if they caught her? What if it was a trap? What if… but… but what if this was her only chance? Could she even get away? What would she do if she got away?
Her hand had pushed against the door, bringing the dim light into the room. It was nothing but a dank smelly room, maybe she could find her parents…
They were probably dead, something in her mind said.
Anything had to be better than this place, she argued.
She’d slipped through the crack in the door, running into a stone-walled hallway. Bare feet on the cold ground, she snuck around until she fell into a hole in the ground, falling into water, and being rushed away- struggling to stay above water.
She’d awoken on a beach, with no idea where she was.
But there was no turning back.
Freminet didn’t write much after that night. Maybe he just didn’t have a soulmate as he’d hoped for. Looking back, he found it stupid how long he’d believed he did. He’d never gotten a response so there couldn’t be anyone on the other side.
He scolded himself mentally for believing it. His mother’s attempt to calm his excitement, to dull the pain of “not everyone has a soulmate” He’d just believed he was special enough to have one.
His stomach told him otherwise, there was someone there. His instincts told him to be patient, to keep going, that someone was there… But he couldn’t find it in himself to believe it.
When Lyney and Lynette came to the House of the Hearth, he’d been glad. The house needed someone like Lyney, chaotic in the best ways, and Lynette, someone to control it. They were sweet, and while it took them some time to adjust as well, they did open up as well.
Sometimes… Lyney is a bit too much…
The twins quickly dragged him and the other orphans into their magic shows, first, he was glad to watch, their talent was spectacular, but then he started asking Freminet to join them- firstly he didn’t know anything about magic, he’d tried to say no. Only to then offer Pers.
The crippling loneliness from the lack of a soulmate has slowly filled in with the new life of the Hearth.
Even Father had seemed to enjoy the little magic shows.
Some nights, Freminet had found himself staring at his arms, hoping for marks. Rarely did he write anymore, only times he was feeling particularly lonely.
Horrifically, Lyney had discovered his little pastime hobby.
And just like that, something had sparked, when Freminet told him what a soulmate meant to him. Lyney seemed just as dreamy, if not a bit more intense about it. Turning straight to his daydreaming of soulmates.
Somehow, Lyney didn’t have a soulmate.
Or that’s what he believed.
“I wrote on my arms at some point, but there was no one to ever respond.” He said, sitting next to him on the bed, carefully moving Pers from where he was about to plant himself.
“And you weren’t upset about it?” Freminet asked, picking at the edge of his rolled-up sleeve.
“Of course I was, I just thought that- that I couldn’t sit around and wait for someone. It would’ve been nice, but it wasn’t going to stop me from moving forward.”
Freminet looked back down at his arm, rubbing the skin carefully. He’d always wished for a soulmate, but maybe it was okay to not have one.
Lyney didn’t have one, and it didn’t seem to stop him from being a hopeless romantic. Or idiotic romantic as Lynette had called it. So when Lyney left for bed that night, Freminet sat in silence, staring at his arms once again. He wondered if Lynette had a soulmate or even Father…
He paused, trying to imagine Father with a soulmate, he couldn’t imagine what kind of person that would be. Father was intense, scary, secretly soft (but you didn’t hear that from him), and strict. Her soulmate had to be otherworldly!
Quietly he got up from the bed, sneaking over to the small desk in the corner of the room, careful not to wake up the other children in the room. It was way past bedtime by then. He grabbed a pen… and held it.
What would he even write at this point?
‘ You’re probably not real, but I hope you’re okay. ’
He wrote on the length of his arm, before tucking himself into his bed, eyes still gazing at his arm.
“Um, Master,” Collei said timidly as she entered Tighnari’s hut, pushing the door open, yet not looking into the room for her teacher.
Tighnari looked up from his desk, some stray leaves and a few glass slides strewn out in front of him. “Hm, yes?”
Collei, almost jumping at the response, one she’d expected but still somehow caught her off guard, looked up finally. “I’ve had these marks on my arms, it's not the Eleazar, it’s like a scribble. I… um… I don’t know what it is.”
Tighnari put his pen, one he’d seemingly stored with the end in his mouth, on the table. “Did you get injured?”
“N-no, they look like words.” She said.
Tighnari’s ears perked and he ushered her over to a spare stool by the desk. He held out his hand for her, open, silently asking for permission to touch her.
Collei held out her arm, sleeve pulled up to her elbow. “I’ve seen them before, but I never understood what they were.”
Between the old, slightly raised scar lines, and the remnants of the Eleazar, a mere slight fade of grey skin and tiny scales, Tighnari saw the words clear as day.
A mixture of emotions flashed on his face as he read it, expressions that didn’t ease Collei’s anxiety.
“You’ve never been told about soulmates, have you?” Tighnari asked, while he knew most of Collei’s story from Cyno, Collei was still slightly reserved about certain aspects. He’d been able to convince her to tell him when things got uncomfortable for her, being near syringes or scalpels.
Collei shook her head, “Can you tell me what it says?”
Tighnari smiled softly, “I think you’re capable of reading it yourself,”
“I just don’t want to be wrong,”
Tighnari breathed a laugh, and leaned back, “Soulmates refers to the other part of one's soul, a perfect match made by fate. Some people have soulmates, and they’re able to write to each other on their skin. What you write will also appear for them, and what they write will appear for you.”
Collei looked at her arm again, she bit her lip reading the line.
‘ You’re probably not real, but I hope you’re okay. ’
“But I am real,” She argued.
“Well, if you didn’t know what a soulmate was until now, and you’ve only recently learned to read and write, they’ve probably wondered if you’re real or not,” Tighnari said, crossing his arms gently, not in any malicious form, he quietly picked up his pen from the small pile of papers and leaves and handed it to her. “Better late than never, don’t you think?” He smiled.
Collei stared at the pen for a minute, before taking it, “but-” she started, staring again at the writing, “what do I even say?”
Tighnari leaned onto the table, leaning his chin on his propped arm, “You could begin by telling them you’re real,”
Collei looked between the pen and her arm again, before putting the ink on her skin.
‘ I am real ’ she wrote, while her handwriting wasn’t one to brag about, it was understandable.
“Cyno and I are soulmates,” Tighnari said quietly, pulling his sleeve down. Revealing a small wall of text against his skin. He smiled as he showed her some of their exchanged words, either from the day's work, to Cyno telling jokes, to asking if each other was okay, to even asking if Collei was okay.
“He was very annoying during our academia days,” Tighnari said, “He would tell just… just the dumbest jokes while I was in class. Believe it or not, back then he was actually funny-” Collei snorted, “I call it my moment of weakness,”
“Does it take long to respond?” She asked, looking at her arm again.
“From what we’ve seen, the text stays for a while, but they have to see it to respond,”
Collei stared for a long time… until tears started forming in her eyes-
“Col- what’s-”
“I’m a horrible soulmate!” She cried, wiping her eyes with her fists, “I didn’t know! I didn’t know! I-” Tighnari stood from his chair, quickly pacing to find tissues, “I’ve had them this entire time! But- But I never knew! I should-”
“Collei,” Tighnari interrupted, holding out paper and a warm cloth, “You didn’t know, you were trapped far away, you couldn’t read or write, that is not your fault.”
She let him wipe her eyes with the cloth.
“But they have to hate me at this point!” she cried.
“Tell them,” Tighnari said, “Tell them why you haven’t been able to before now.”
Collei nodded and whispered a soft Okay.
“I’ll help you, of course,”
Cyno looked at his arm on his way out of the desert, a weeklong mission with the egotistical formal scholar in a carriage on the way back to the Academiya.
‘ Collei has a soulmate ’
He’d never finished paperwork that fast.
Freminet didn’t notice anything until breakfast, sitting down beside the other children, Lyney and Lynette sitting across while they all listened to the other children talk about their dreams in the night.
Lyney had noticed it when Freminet’s sleeve slid down, leaning over the table, hastily grabbing Freminet’s arm- almost making Freminet drop his croissant.
Wide-eyed, both of them, Lyney let out a sigh with a large smile. It took another moment before he let go of Freminet’s arm, even Lynette and the other children had gotten to glance at his arm.
Finally, when Lyney, at the behest of Lynette, let go of the arm. Freminet got to look.
‘ I am real ’
This time he did drop the croissant.
A hundred different emotions ran through him.
His heart beat at the thought, he did have a soulmate, joy filled his stomach at the magical moment he’d dreamed of since he was little. The unbelievable fantasy of having a perfect other half, someone… just someone who could love him.
But it also broke, where had they been? Why had they just now responded? Why? Why now? Just as he’d come to terms with his reality, now he’d accepted that he probably didn’t have a soulmate, it was just a fantasy- a gift for those really special, those who were good and deserved it…
Did he deserve a soulmate?
As a child, he believed he did. He’d always been a good boy. Done as his mother had asked. Kept his room clean. Helped with chores.
But now… since the House of the Hearth… With the fatui and the missions… he didn’t deserve one now.
It wasn’t until the snap of fingers nearby drew him out of the trance, Father was standing at the side of the table, crouched down beside them, she opened her mouth to speak but he didn’t hear her. Lyney was standing too, worry written across his face.
Freminet swallowed, and suddenly everything came back to him. Noise filled the room, and the continuous call of his name finally reached him. With a loud gasp, he realized he’d been holding his breath the entire time.
“Freminet, are you alright?” he finally heard Father ask.
“Oh- yes! Sorry I-” he stuttered, “I’m sorry, father, I-” The back of her hand fell gently to his forehead, seemingly checking for a fever. Freminet swallowed again, “I’m sorry, I just… I got a response from my soulmate,” he whispered towards the end as if he couldn’t believe his own words.
Father stood for another second, and nodded, “Right, you drew quite the attention when you became unresponsive just now,”
“I’m sorry, father,”
Father didn’t say anything else, before standing up, a soft pat on his head before returning to her seat at the end of the table.
His heart fluttered as he looked down at his arm again.
He suddenly hid his face when he noticed Lyney looking at him, with a dorky happy smile. Lynette was also smiling, tho very subtle, he could tell she was happy. But Lyney’s smile concerned him, without a doubt, Lyney was gonna hound him about this for the rest of the day.
Freminet was absolutely right. Lyney did hound him for the rest of the day, Lynette was there too but she seemed to be there to control Lyney from becoming overbearing. Hiding away in the ocean depths seemed to help.
Hiding by an underwater ruin fairly out of the way of the city, he sat quietly, watching his arm. While Lyney had told him to respond, almost bouncing in place with excitement, Freminet had yet to.
Part of him was too scared now. The rush of what-ifs and reasons why it took them this long ran through his head. New fears of what if they didn’t like him, what if their expectations were so far off of what he was they’d hate him.
The ruin’s roof was covered in a glowing plant that he couldn’t remember the name of, but it lit up the space fairly decently. A pen in his other hand, a hair away from his skin.
He sighed, letting the pen drop to the ground. “What am I gonna do?”
He didn’t want to disappoint this person. His soulmate. His equal.
This was a person fate had made for him, and him for them… but what if he disappointed them…
He looked back, with a bated breath- and nearly choked.
‘ I’m sorry I haven’t responded, I didn’t learn to read until resently recently. I didn’t mean to ignore you all these years. ’
Oh.
He reached for the pen again, panicking when he didn’t find it only to see it’d rolled a foot away. He almost pressed the pen to his skin immediately, only pausing to think about what to say.
‘ Oh ’ he wrote on instinct. Before slapping himself in the face, ‘oh’ was all he could think of?! Where was Lyney when you needed him?
‘ That makes sense, ’ he followed quickly.
The line fell quiet for a while, he thought they might’ve gone somewhere, which was reasonable, people couldn’t always be available to write.
‘ Still learning to write ’
Freminet scratched his head.
‘ That’s okay, glad you finally can ’ He wrote back, before drawing a small happy penguin.
Another multiple-minute pause.
‘ What is that crea animal? ’
‘ It’s a penguin, I named him Pers ’ A small happy face appeared beside the drawing of Pers
Then another drawing appeared, he couldn’t think of any particular animal that it looked like.
‘ Cuilein-Anbar, he’s my friend.’
Freminet drew a smiling face next to it.
‘ Is he an animal? ’ he asked.
‘ No, I made him up. ’
He didn’t know how long he sat there for, making surprisingly nice small talk. Usually, he hated small talk, but it felt nice now. Getting to know someone he, somehow, felt like he’d known for a long time.
‘ Cuilein-Anbar, where is that from? ’ There was another pause, and just as he was about to put the pen back, telling them they didn’t need to tell him-
‘ Sumeru ’
They were from Sumeru.
‘ I’m from Fontaine ’ he wrote.
It was only fair, was it not?
‘ Have to go now, it was nice talking with you, ’ they wrote.
And Freminet smiled.
‘ You too, ’ and he drew another small happy Pers.
It was then he realized how dark it’d gotten. The ruins had lit the place, but as he looked out the opening, the sea was dark.
Looking back at his heavily written arm, he smiled. While it’d taken a lifetime to get there, somehow… it filled his heart with warmth.
While Collei smiled at the little happy penguin, she could not ignore Tighnari scolding Cyno for bursting in the door like a wild animal.
And while it embarrassed Collei when Cyno tried to put on the protective father act, she also loved it. Tighnari rolling his eyes behind him also made for a happier atmosphere.
The three set up for dinner, Tighnari and Cyno asking Collei about her newfound soulmate, and Collei asking them about their own soulmate experience.
“How do you find out who it is?” She asked.
Cyno and Tighnari looked at each other, “It’s hard to explain-” Tighnari started.
“You sort of… just know, when you meet them for the first time.”
“It’s a spark,”
“A tingle in the skin,”
“The first time you lock eyes,”
“You will know,” They finished together, and once the second-hand embarrassment she would normally get, was filled with warmth.
‘ Goodnight, Freminet ’ Collei wrote on her arm that night, and a ‘ Goodnight, Collei ’ came back just a few minutes later.
“Sooooo…” Lyney said the second Freminet took a step into the House of the Hearth, appearing as if he’d been specifically waiting for Freminet to get home. “What do you know?” He asked , more demanded, with his geeky wide smile.
“Um,” Freminet started, tugging his sleeve down. It wasn’t like he didn’t want to tell him, but he also wanted to keep Collei to himself for a bit. If it was selfish, he couldn’t bring himself to care.
“Come onnnnn…” Lyney pleaded.
“Lyney,” Lynette interrupted, stepping into the hallway from the tea room, and as if reading his mind she continued, “Let him have it for a few days before you start interrogating him.”
Lyney dramatically groaned before he sighed, “No, you’re right. I’m sorry Fremi, I didn’t mean to intrude.”
Freminet gave a small nod, “It’s okay, and thank you.”
“Also you missed dinner,” Lynette said, “There’s a plate for you in the kitchen, come,”
Freminet ate his dinner with Lyney and Lynette in the tea room, listening to them talk about their next big show. Only occasionally interrupted by Lyney shooting his shot at information about Collei, he was quickly shut down by Lynette.
He’d have to get her a small gift later.
Checking his arm one more time as he climbed into bed, he read the ‘ Goodnight, Freminet ’
‘ Goodnight, Collei ’ he wrote back.
Kaveh had invited them all to a trip to Fontaine.
He’d be going on a small architect mission over there, while also taking some time for himself, he’d also invited friends to keep him company. Alhaitham, while reluctant, had agreed. Cyno had agreed as Tighnari did, and Tighnari knowing Collei’s soulmate was a Fontainian… Had instantly dragged her along. Cyno was yet to be made aware of Freminet, it wasn’t that she was afraid of his reaction… or it was kinda that-
She didn’t know how he’d react to actually seeing her soulmate. Cyno could be and look intense. And if he put on the protective dad act, oh archons even the thought made her embarrassed.
The trip to the city was nice and simple, they’d decided to take an alternate route away from the desert for Tighnari’s sake, while he’d initially argued he’d be fine, none of them believed him.
She didn’t really have a fear of heights, but standing on the edge of the aquabus lines, she took a step back in pure rationality. The Melusine tour guide was adorable, they reminded her of the Aranaras. She had seen them before when she first arrived back in Sumeru, she’d seen them hide away from Tighnari, but playfully interact with children. Including her, she’d always remember the one who’d accidentally scared her after one of her Eleazar-induced naps, it had apologized to her of course.
After leaving their bags at a rented apartment, they split off. Kaveh went off to meet his client, Alhaitham following him, but he didn’t explain why.
The remaining three decided to go sightseeing around the city.
And by lunchtime, the three were on a path overlooking the ocean, a slightly windy area, and suggested by their tour guide Melusine, to make sure their foothold was good.
Collei had heeded the warning, unlike other tourists, who seemed to dare to tempt fate by standing near the edge. And while the railing was there, it wouldn’t do much should the wind decide to lift them.
It wasn’t only the Melusine on the tour, of course, a few human guides and security followed as well, explaining they were there for a plethora of reasons, including protecting the guide master.
The group were coming to the end of the tour, ending by the aquabus line leading to the opera house, as many often took the tour over there as well. But Collei’s legs were starting to ache, and Tighnari and Cyno could definitely tell.
It was at that moment, that a strong burst of wind brushed through. Many grabbed their purses and hats, some grabbed each other to hold on. But Collei’s legs had let up, brushing her clean off the side of the wall.
She barely had time to register what was happening, but suddenly she was falling.
There was shouting.
The security above grabbed Cyno and Tighnari before they could follow suit, trying to assure the two there was always a rescue team by the water. Undoubtedly they’d read the expression in their eyes, the two were just about to dive after her.
“SHE CAN’T SWIM!” Tighnari shouted, tears forming in his eyes.
“Freminet!” someone shouted, and someone dove off the ledge.
Collei was somehow aware of her falling, but also not…
She hadn’t felt this weightless since Cyno had sealed that… that monster away.
She knew she should’ve been afraid, screaming, crying… But she wasn’t-
Maybe it was the horror of it.
Someone was closing in on her, as fast as her arrows. Her hand reached for the figure.
Then it all stopped.
As the person’s hand clasped around her own, the world stopped.
And their eyes met.
And they both knew.
Then they hit the water.
Freminet had been with Lyney and Lynette by the Aquabus, about to head to the opera house, when the commotion had drawn their attention.
“SHE CAN’T SWIM!” a fox-eared man shouted, and over the ledge, someone was falling. A green-haired person.
Freminet knew these waters, while fall was survivable, serious injuries could lead to drowning- but she couldn’t swim already- and she was falling with her back first, her spine would break-
He didn’t know why he did it.
But a second later he was diving towards the person- the girl.
He heard Lyney yell his name.
“C’mon!” He hissed, reaching for her hand.
Something happened suddenly, the world froze over, a shiver ran through his arm, and a tingle through his heart. Their eyes met.
Collei, he thought.
He’d grabbed her shoulder and bent his body for the brunt of the water force. He was used to the sudden change of air to, well, non-air. They spun around in the water until the force of the fall had stopped, Freminet, very capable of adapting quickly to the water, set for the surface.
She gasped for air as she emerged, splashing in a panic until she was able to hold herself up by Freminet’s arms, her feet kicked wildly-
“I got you!” he said, she was able to slightly control her panic. Which, he couldn’t blame her if she couldn’t swim.
He held her hand over his shoulder, letting her use him as a floater. It wasn’t anywhere close to his first rescue mission, so keeping himself up with a terrified person on his shoulder wasn’t new.
She scrambled onto dry land as soon as her feet got a foothold, Freminet on his knees next to her, quickly pulling out a breathing apparatus he carried on his back.
Perhaps a bit too quickly he tried to place it across her mouth- only for her to scream, and roll away.
Frozen, he simply held it, torn as he watched Collei struggle for air.
“P-please, it’s just air, it’ll help you regulate!”
She looked at him, and never before had he seen such fear. Not even from people on his missions, people who had died on his hands. His hands shook, almost dropping the apparatus to the ground.
“Um-” He stuttered, “Here!” He placed the apparatus at his own mouth and took deep breaths, praying it’d indicate harmlessness.
If it was their souls talking or his attempt at proving it wasn’t bad, she shuffled forward and reached for the half mask, he let her take it.
Freminet didn’t know what could have caused this, but it stirred in his stomach, her eyes filled with fear, not any other person he’d saved from drowning had made such a face.
He watched Collei hold the mask to her face, and as if trying to project his breathing onto her, he sat there taking deep breaths as well.
“Collei!”
People came running. The fox-eared man and the white-haired man. Lyney and Lynette are behind them, and three security guards.
“Freminet!”
Freminet stood, meeting his siblings as they reached him. He could only nod to their questions, some of which he probably should’ve said no to. But he could only look past them.
The fox-eared man was speaking softly to Collei, but he wasn’t touching her. Similar to the white-haired man.
Freminet swallowed his words and looked at the ground. Suddenly there were too many people there. He stepped forward, barely noticing he’d bumped into Lyney’s shoulder. A small beep came from his air tank, and he sat down next to the tank, “You should be okay now… with… um with the air, I mean.”
Collei looked at him and handed him the mask. Pausing as their hands brushed each other, almost as if searching for the same feeling they’d felt during the fall. A warmth bloomed in his chest heart until she pulled away.
“Y-you’re Freminet?” She asked quietly, and he nodded.
“And you’re Collei?” He asked back. Quietly regretting it he realized how dumb it sounded out loud.
The fox-eared man was the only one who seemed to catch on, a soft smile forming on his face.
“Thank you, Mr Freminet, thank you for saving Collei.”
Freminet snapped to face him, “Oh, it’s nothing, it’s part of my job-”
One of the guards cut in, “We should take the young ma'am to a doctor-”
“NO!” Collei cried.
“That won’t be necessary,” The white-haired man said, taking all of the Fontainian by surprise by the deepness and threatening undertone in his voice.
The fox-eared man stood up, helping Collei to her feet, she shook slightly- and almost instinctively he twitched to reach out to help her. “No offence, officer, I’m a physician in Sumeru I’ll be able to handle this, no need to worry.”
The guard hesitated before nodding and huffing a simple “Alright,”
Freminet, wanting to say so much more, was frozen in place.
It even took some convincing by the white-haired man, to let him carry her back home, considering Collei could barely walk at all at this point.
The fox-eared man remained for a minute after the other started carrying Collei towards the elevator. She glanced over his shoulder at Freminet, looking like she wanted to speak with him more.
“Thank you, again,” The man said, “I’m Tighnari, and that’s Cyno.”
“Ah, um Freminet-”
“I know, you told,” Tighnari said. “You seem like a kind young man,” Tighnari suddenly said, crossing his arms.
Freminet could feel Lyney and Lynette behind him as if trying to telepathically ask questions.
“Collei will probably try to contact you later, hopefully, your second meeting won’t be as dramatic,” He started walking away, “Oh, and don’t let Cyno intimidate you when you meet Collei again. Have a good night.”
Freminet watched the man go, knowing damn well his siblings were behind him about to grill him.
“So…” Lyney started. “I’m taking a wild guess, this Collei is your little secret.”
“Umm… yeah,”
“Aww, that’s sweet, minus the whole almost falling to your death thing.” Lyney said, “Now, we’re gonna head back home and you’re gonna tell us all about her!”
It didn’t seem like he had much of a choice in the matter.
‘ Sorry, we had to meet like that ’ Collei wrote that evening.
‘ Don’t worry about it, I’m glad I managed to save you in time, ’ he replied
‘ Could we meet in a better way tomorrow? ’
‘ Sure, you know where Café Lutece is? ’
‘ Yes ’
‘ How about noon? ’
‘ Works for me, I’ll see you then. Goodnight, ’
‘ Goodnight ’
Collei nervously scratched at her arms waiting by the cafe entrance, swallowing nervously and wondering if she should just go and order something. If she looked too out of place for the area.
It’d been a nightmare trying to leave the apartment earlier, with Kaveh, somehow, freaking the most out about the whole situation. Tighnari and Cyno had calmed from the previous incident, and while Alhaitham had seemed surprised and worried he was mostly glad Collei made it out mostly unharmed.
It was during breakfast she’d accidentally revealed she was meeting her soulmate. The four were of course happy for her, while Cyno looked like he was about to do something- was halted by a stern glare from Tighnari. Alhaitham had wished her good luck, only to be scolded by Kaveh because all of a sudden they needed to find her new clothes.
Where Kaveh had the money for that was never brought up.
Tighnari had ushered out before Kaveh got too excited with a small pouch of mora, undoubtedly he’d be devastated when she returned home. She’d make it up another day.
She only hoped it didn’t have to be shopping. She wasn’t opposed to it, she just preferred to make her own clothing.
“So sorry to keep you waiting!” snapped Collei from her thoughts, Freminet jogging towards her. “Something came up at home and I just had to finish it real quick,” He took a second to catch his breath, “I hope I didn’t keep you waiting for too long?”
Collei shook her head, “No, it’s alright,”
They entered together and sat in one of the further away tables. Calmer than the middle of the courtyard filled with people.
Collei bit her lip at some of the words on the menu, wondering how in the world she was supposed to pronounce them.
“And what will the madam have?” The waiter asked.
“Umm… I’m not sure- sorry, I’m not a local so I don’t-” She admitted.
“The conch madeleine is very good,” Freminet suggested.
“Alright,” Collei almost sighed in relief, “I’ll have some of- conche madeleines”
“Very nice,” The waiter wrote on his little slip, “Any drinks?”
“Have you tried Fonta here?” Freminet asked.
“Oh yes, I had one when we arrived, yes thank you,”
“Two fontas” The waiter gave them a kind smile, “I will return very soon with your drinks then,” He left.
“I’m sorry,” Collei sighed, “I’m not great at reading and Fontainian words were a bit much,”
“Not a problem,” Freminet said, “I get it, I wasn’t a top student in my classes either, but the worst of it should be over now. The people here are usually very nice about it.”
Comforting words.
The two chatted for a bit longer before their drinks and sweets arrived. Both found themselves lowering their shoulders as they talked. Talked about everything and nothing at the same time. About Sumeru. About Fontaine. About the towering trees of the Sumeru forest. About the hidden caverns of the Fontainian sea.
Time once again seemed still around them, nothing mattered.
It was indeed hours that had passed, they paid for theirs after Freminet offered to pay- to which Collei couldn’t agree. The waiter rolled his eyes with a smile as they left, muttering under his breath.
The two walked through the city, and while they neither had meant to end up outside the walls, they had arrived at a small beach pocket on the west side of the city. A small pocket of city walls leads to the waterline. A balcony overlooking the water above them as they walked to the sand.
Before sitting down on the shaded stones listening to the water gently roll onto the sand.
“This is nice,” Collei said, following how the plants in the water moved with the waves. “It’s different hearing the water instead of the trees.”
Freminet looked at the water, a part of him wondered how different it could be. The trees from the water, did they blow in the wind the same way?
“I’d like to visit Sumeru one day,” Freminet said softly, “The way you speak about the trees reminds me of how I feel about water.”
They sat in silence for a moment, a comfortable quiet. Listening to the water, the birds squawk and sing from the sky, the suppressed sounds of the city on the other side of the inner wall. And even as the sky changed from blue to orange, neither had the rush to get up and move.
Until Freminet stood, “Wait here for a minute,” he turned towards the water before stopping- quickly turning back and putting a mechanical penguin where he’d previously been sat. Again he walked away before stopping a second time to shed his coat.
Collei suppressed her laughter until Freminet vanished beneath the waters. She sat quietly, waiting. Watching as the sun started to set behind the mountains.
The sun was setting.
She hissed to herself, wondering how she’d explain this to Tighnari or Cyno or even worse, Kaveh…
Freminet emerged surprisingly quietly from the water, a plant in his hands.
Nervously he held them out to her, “They’re Romaritime Flowers, they thrive in deep waters and- um… you’d mentioned how you’re forest ranger so I thought maybe… maybe you’d like them, they don’t need much care, just water, literally.” He rambled.
Collei took the flowers into her hands, “They’re so pretty,” She whispered, as Freminet sat back down.
Putting the flowers in her lap she said “I also wanted to apologize,” Freminet looked confused, “About the freaking out when you saved me, I-” She paused, “I just have bad experiences with doctors.”
That explained that.
She continued, “I used to be in the care of a very evil fatui doctor, but I got away. Doctors and medical stuff freaks me out, even though it's been years.”
Freminet’s heart stopped, fatui. “No, I- sorry, that’s understandable,” He said, “I didn’t know,”
“Of course, you wouldn’t have, that’s okay-”
“Thank you, for telling me I mean,” Freminet’s mind raced, Fatui. Fatui? Fatui! Fatui… this couldn’t be good. Oh, archons… why would fate do this?...
Collei leaned back, resting on her arms, the sudden movement snapping him from his thoughts.
Freminet glanced at Collei again, before looking across the path to the small overhang balcony above the water. He couldn’t count how many times he’d sat under that overhang and cried, sometimes he’d written on his arm, hoping, praying for a response.
“I used to come here a lot,” Freminet started, either a part that wanted to share as her equal or if it was the guilt brewing in his stomach. “It's far away from people, not even my siblings know I go here. It’s quiet and no one to disturb me. Sometimes I go here just to cry. Father doesn’t like it when we cry,”
Collei’s brows furrowed, “What do you mean?”
“Father is strict about it, she calls it a product of emotional weakness.”
“Oh,”
Freminet leaned back, jumping when his hand brushed against Collei’s, they both jolted taking their hands back as if they’d been burned.
And in a way, it felt like it, the sudden spark and warmth that had appeared the first time they met.
Freminet blushed, turning away to hide his reddened cheeks. Collei turned the other way, hiding her cheeks with her hand, her heart raced in her chest and she wondered if Freminet could hear it hammer against her chest.
“M-maybe we should head back,” Freminet said, “It’s almost dark,”
“Oh-uh- yes…”
Neither had wanted to leave, but as they walked, both seemed to notice the sudden shyness that had washed over them. Afraid to look each other in the eyes as they walked the main street.
Outside the apartment building Collei resided in, Freminet wished her goodbye, and a good night.
Collei took a deep breath before- as of outside her own body, she wrapped her arms around him, it must’ve surprised him too as it took a handful of seconds before he wrapped his arms around her.
“Goodnight,” She said, waving as she entered and closed the door.
He pretended not to see the four heads looking out through the living room window at them, he also pretended not to have seen them as they vanished from view.
He stood for another minute, thoughts mingling in his head.
Guilt stirred inside him.
Freminet walked in silence, not that he would have spoken regardless, but this silence was different. Compared to the loudness of his mind.
A fatui doctor had hurt her… only one came to mind.
The old Father of the House of the Hearth had used him as a boogieman, Naughty children would be sent to the doctor and never return. While the current Father had never used such a threat before, Freminet remembered the old one. He’d seen children beg for forgiveness, pleading for their lives as Old Father had thrown them away.
New Father hadn’t as far as he’d seen. From what he could tell, the new Father didn’t like The Doctor, snarling and spitting his name like a curse.
What was the chance of this? That fate had put him, a fatui puppet, with a girl like her, someone who’d been hurt by the fatui. Was it some kind of cruel twist? Some prank to ruin their lives? A punishment for a crime of their lives? A sin from their past lives?
He hadn’t even noticed he was standing outside the House of the Hearth before Lyney had thrown the door open- missing his face by the hair.
“Fremi!” He yelled, “Where have you been!? It’s late, you’ve missed dinner. Again!”
Freminet was tired, his eyes threatening to fill with tears. He couldn’t cry now.
His expression must’ve shown as Lyney’s face sunk, his hands falling to Freminet’s shoulders.
“What happened?”
“I-”
“Come inside,” Lynette suggested, pulling both of them inside into the hallway.
“Father isn’t here tonight, come,” She led the two to the twins' bedroom. An assortment of their show props stacked around, Lynette’s bed neatly made with a toy cat by the pillow- as opposed to Lyney’s who was… it looked like an attempt was made…
Sitting on Lyney’s bed, he told them what happened.
The same horror he’d felt dawned on their faces, horror and sadness. And as he spoke, the tears fell. He couldn’t hold them. He couldn’t hold them for the Romaritime Flowers this time.
But the twins held him.
Held him until his tears ceased, until his eyes drifted closed.
He had to tell her the truth.
She deserved the truth.
What he deserved after this, he didn’t know.
Yet, held his tongue for another day.
Something was bothering Freminet, Collei noted. Somehow, even though only known him for one and a half days, she could feel the loudness of his mind. His eyes seemed duller, unlike how she’d noted them before- almost sparkling as light reflected on water, but deeper. Head hanging lower than usual, and his fingers fiddled with the hem of his coat.
Sitting on a bench behind the Palais Mermonia, with brought snacks between them.
While the silence before had been comfortable, warm, and quiet- this time it felt colder, like a bomb was about to go off.
“Collei,” he said quietly, almost as if wishing she wouldn’t hear him.
“Yes?”
He was silent for a moment, “I need to tell you something,”
She shifted, unsure what to say, or feel. His voice was grave, but his eyes betrayed the strength of his voice, brimming with tears.
“You told me, about the… about the Doctor- the fatui…”
Collei’s hand froze over the jar of sugared bulle fruits. Her gaze shifted back to him, yet he couldn’t seem to look at her, staring off into the grass fields.
“Yes?” She said, almost afraid to do so.
“I- I don’t know how to tell you this… but you deserve the truth.”
Her hand shook.
No.
Please.
Please, by the archons… no…
“The House of the Hearth is backed by the fatui.”
If he’d driven his claymore through her heart, it might’ve hurt less.
“I- Coll-”
She stood abruptly, and though he was speaking, she couldn’t hear a single word that came from him. Shaking her head, all she could do was turn away.
She wanted to run.
To flee.
A hand halted her.
A rush of fear washed over her. Old horrors that sent ice through her veins.
“DON’T TOUCH ME!” She cried, ribbing her wrist from the hold.
She glared into his eyes, those that once held ocean secrets, but all she could see now was… That monster… The doctor looked down at her from the depth of his eyes, like the monster in the depths of the ocean. Her breath caught in her throat. Her neck started to ache and burn.
But Freminet looked at her, his hand outstretched from where he’d grabbed her, mouth open in shock.
“Just-” She spat, “Just leave me alone,”
Blinded by her own tears, she ran. Hoping she’d come home to her dads- no- Master Tighnari and Cyno.
Freminet fell to his knees, unable to stop the tears.
He’d never know who brought them, but Lyney and Lynette had appeared at some point. Taking him home.
Collie found her way home.
And there she stayed.
Until the end of the trip.
No matter how many times she heard the commotion from the door.
“Please just-” The door slammed. Someone, it wasn’t Freminet, she could tell.
“Leave.” Cyno growled.
“She doesn’t want to see any of you,” Kaveh hissed.
The door would slam. Again. And again. And again.
Every time the tears would fall again.
It was three days later when the three of them would return to Sumeru some days earlier. Kaveh and Alhaitham would stay until Kaveh’s mission ended.
She sat on her bed, looking at her own luggage, hoping it would magically fall into her backpack again and she wouldn’t have to actually pack it. Her room was dark, curtains drawn. She just wanted to go home. Home to what was familiar now…
The Romaritime Flowers were bundled on the floor beside the backpack, untouched since that day.
“Collei?” Cyno stood in the doorway.
She could only look at him with misery.
“What are you feeling right now?” He asked, sitting on the bed next to her. And while he sat, she didn’t miss the way he tried to glance at the seal on her neck. A mere glance he probably hoped she wouldn’t notice.
“A lot,” She said.
Cyno visibly bit his lip, and Collei almost breathed a laugh at it. She knew he wanted to say something, probably make some dumb pun.
“I’m confused,” She continued.
“Oh?”
“I don’t know… I just… I want to hate him-” She said, fist clenching in her lap, “But I can’t-” Her breath hitched. “Why can’t I hate him?”
Cyno said nothing for a few seconds, but he held out his hand for her; an invitation. Collei hesitated before taking it.
She remembered from when she was younger when Cyno first brought her to Sumeru- he never touched her without letting her take the first step; his palm open for her.
“Why does it hurt so much? I don’t- I don’t get it…” She cried, “What- what did I do to deserve this? Any of it?! I don’t get it.”
Cyno remained quiet, merely listening.
“I want to hate him. But I can’t- Why?! Why did fate decide this for me?”
Cyno’s other hand reached for Collei’s wrapping over it like a protective shield. “Fate is neither kind nor cruel, but in the end, it’s you who decide where to take it.”
“I wish I just didn’t have a soulmate now…”
Cyno paused, looking away for a minute before he said quietly, “You don’t have to love your soulmate,” He said with a shaky breath, “While… while it’s easier and nice, and good… You don’t have to.”
This time it was Collei’s turn to listen.
“She’ll probably hunt me down for this, but… Lisa…”
Collie blinked.
“Lisa rejected her soulmate.” Cyno said, “I remember it, her soulmate was this overly confident and dangerous monster of a man- and she just couldn’t, she couldn’t live with it. How he was to people, to animals, to anything… So she stood by herself and decided fate would not have that from her, and now she’s engaged to another woman in Mondstadt.” He shrugged the last part of the tale as if was the most normal thing.
“Jean and Lisa are engaged?”
“Didn’t I tell you?”
“No?”
“Oh.”
They paused.
“Well, Jean and Lisa are engaged,” He said with a half smile.
And Collei couldn’t help but smile a little. She withdrew her hand, looking at where she’d been biting her nails for the last few days. “The worst part of it is,” She said quietly, solemnly, “Part of me still wants to love him,” and like a protective shield, she raised her hands to her chest, over her beating heart.
“Well, you don’t know someone after one week, as they say, me and ‘Nari certainly didn’t- we hated each other in the beginning.” Cyno said with a soft smile, “However, no matter what you decide, we’re here to help you,”
“Thank you,” Collei leaned in and hugged him. “Wait, what do you mean you and Master Tighnari hated each other?”
Cyno turned, cheeks red, “That’s a story for a different day-” he said, fleeing the room.
Comatosed.
That was the only way they could describe him.
Like a corpse rotting in his bed staring off into nothingness.
The twins would do their best to encourage him to eat anything, which wasn’t always successful.
Lyney paced the room, between going out to seek conversation with Collei or her family, anything. But every time he was sent away at the door. He couldn’t explain it, but somehow despite the pure rage within the white-haired man and the tall grey-haired one, the scariest was the fennec fox man. Somehow he had the glare that had him taking a step back and swallowing his words.
It was after he came back from one of these personal missions that he found Freminet sitting up, staring at his arm.
Without a single word, and without allowing Lyney to speak, Freminet sprinted from the room. Like the primordial water was on his heels.
“Frem-”
But he was already gone, down the stairs, seemingly running into someone as he heard a yelp and a quick ‘sorry’
Freminet met her in the little side corner of Fontaine leading down to the waters. His body was weak, but a rush of adrenaline spiked through him as he saw the message on his arm.
‘Would you meet me by the west water? The one you showed me?’
With little in his stomach, and poor rest for the last few days, he supposed he shouldn’t be running, but he didn’t care. Even as Melusines blew whistles and yelled at him to slow down, part of him chose not to hear them- the other side would apologize later.
As the elevator came to a halt he saw her, sitting on the stone fence, bathed in the afternoon sunlight. Freminet stood for a second, hidden by the shadows of the entry tower. Spring was his first thought. She looked like spring.
She was fiddling with something on her shirt.
“Well?” Freminet practically jumped from his skin, turning around. The white-haired man… Cyno, if he remembered correctly, was standing behind him, arms crossed in the shadows. “I’m not here to taunt you, I’m just here for emotional support, I won’t eavesdrop.”
The man said it as if he hadn’t just stripped 10 years of Freminet’s life.
But he did as intended, walking into the half courtyard. Collei saw him immediately, and even tho he could sense the spike in her anxiety he walked forward. Slowly and with his hands at the side. He wouldn’t even dream of hurting her.
They stood a few feet away from each other, a distance meant for comfort. He wouldn’t want to crowd her, especially as she knew the truth.
“H-Hi,” she said, arms crossing to hug herself.
“Um, hi,” Freminet said.
A long moment of silence followed.
And suddenly.
“I’m sorry-”
“I should apologiz-”
They said in unison.
“Um, sorry,” Freminet offered, “Do you want me to listen first?”
Collei scratched the back of her neck, “I’ll start.” She took a deep breath, “I’m sorry I hurt you. It’s just that, because of my past I started getting bad memories and I started panicking and-” She halted, taking another deep breath, her rambling catching up to her.
“You don’t have to apologize,” Freminet said, “I told you because I didn’t want to lie to you about something as… horrible, as that.”
“And I appreciate it, I really do.”
“I know it probably won’t make the situation better, but in that sense, I’m sorry for it.”
Collei shook her head, “No, you shouldn’t apologize. I don’t know how you ended up at the House of the Hearth, and I have no right to judge you for it. You’ve already saved me once and made me feel happy while here. Thank you.”
Freminet smiled softly.
“I’m not sure how fast I can move past it, but I would like to still stay in contact with you.”
Something in his chest heated up, “R-Really?”
Collei nodded, “You don’t know someone after one week,” Her eyes flickered to Cyno hidden away in the distance, “and I would like to know who you are, Freminet.”
“I- I would like that too… with you, of course.”