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Dearest Citlali,
I have a surprise for you! I’ll pick you up at sunset three days from now. See you soon~
-Lumine
Citlali let out a long and pained groan, tossing the letter aside. This was the fourth of such letters from the Traveler, who seemed determined to bother her no matter how much she protested. The first time, they went for a midnight stroll on the beach. The second, she requested they have tea in Citlali’s hideaway and asked her to describe what was happening in her new favorite light novel series. The third time she just hung out at her house, straightening up and making sure the shaman ate a proper meal.
What in Teyvat could that woman be planning this time?
At least Lumine had the decency to never take her anywhere crowded. She had a reputation to uphold, after all. No one could be allowed to see Granny Itztli smiling like some kind of fool. She had to remain tough and distant, lest people start getting ideas. Not that the Traveler made her smile or anything…
She sat in bed for a bit, turning over the last few meetings with the blonde woman over and over in her mind. The sly thoughts no one else could hear, stating she was worthy of love and respect, calling her the “lovely Miss Itztli”... just what was she playing at, anyway?
And what, indeed, was this “surprise” she had planned? Sunset was too early in the day to go out. People might see them. Perhaps she had gone to Inazuma and picked up more light novels? The latest volume of “New Chronicles of the Six Kitsune” was out, but the Traveler must know Citlali well enough at this point to know that she had preordered it months ago.
This was too much. Citlali needed a drink.
And so a drink she had. Or two. Or three. Okay, maybe more than three. Ororon came by at one point to deliver some vegetables and check up on her, but Citlali simply shouted at him to get out and leave the delivery by the door. Yet, no matter how much she tried to distract herself with drinks, light novels, and snacks, she couldn’t get the Traveler’s note out of her mind.
Before she knew it, three days had come to pass. She woke up in a haze around 2:00PM and scrambled to make the place and herself presentable, although she wasn’t exactly sure how to dress for the occasion. The Traveler hadn’t specified, so she was left with no other recourse than to look… how she looked. She hoped that would be enough.
She heard a “click” and rushed to sit down, trying to look casual. Lumine let herself in like she always had. Maybe giving her that key was a mistake.
“Citlali!” Lumine called, not noticing the woman at first. She scanned the room, eyes finally landing on the chair the shaman had plopped herself in. “Oh, there you are!”
She looked the same as always, which let Citlali breathe a sigh of relief. Maybe this wasn’t some fancy outing after all. Thank Archons…
“Ready to go?” Lumine cocked her head to one side and smiled that stupid, crooked smile that always made Citlali’s mind short-circuit. She blinked a few times before meeting her guest’s gaze.
“G-go?” she replied, a bit dazed.
“Yeah! Did you not get my letter?” Lumine was much closer to her now than she would like. Though it did feel… sort of nice.
“I mean yeah but your letter was a little less than specific. For all I know you could’ve just been bringing me light novels.”
“Oh, I did that too,” Lumine giggled, placing down three of the latest releases from Inazuma. How she managed to get them so quickly was just one of many questions Citlali found herself asking about the blonde.
“Now, c’mon,” Lunmine said, holding out her hand. “Hold my hand.”
“I-I’m sorry?!” Citlali pulled away, her face turning red as a beet.
“What’s the big deal? We’ve held hands before, right?”
“Those were different circumstances!” Cilali shouted, crossing her arms with a ‘hmph’.
“The sooner you get over it the sooner we can get out of here,” Lumine teased.
“What if someone sees?”
“No one you know will see, I promise.” Lumine’s face beamed with a confidence only she possessed. One that could disarm the shaman no matter the situation. Citlali slowly reached out and took Lumine’s hand, her stomach doing flips the entire time.
“F-Fine…”
There was a rush of warm wind accompanied by a blinding light, forcing Citlali to shut her eyes tightly. She clung to Lumine’s hand for what felt like dear life. Then, just as quickly as it had begun, everything subsided. When Citlali opened her eyes, she was stunned by what she saw.
A giant harbor filled with ships. People in strange clothes passing by. Merchants lining an unfamiliar road, selling things like “Cor Lapis” and a “Floral Zither”. Scents that she had never even conceived of but were not unwelcome. She stood there, unmoving, unable to fully process what had just happened.
Lumine squeezed her hand, gaining the other woman’s attention. “Welcome to Liyue!” she said, gesturing grandly to the square they now found themselves in. Citlali scanned the surroundings. They certainly weren’t in Natlan anymore.
“Wait… how?!” Citlali tore her hand from Lumine’s, giving the blonde a death stare she usually reserved for challengers and younglings. Lumine stood her ground, her smile unwavering. She gestured to a stone structure behind them, encrusted with gemstones. Citlali took a moment to examine the structure. She knew what they were, but there was no way the Traveler could. She looked at the structure, then back at Lumine.
“Are you telling me… you know how to utilize the waypoints?”
“Shh,” Lumine said, making a downward motion with her hands. “I don’t really advertise it to people.”
“That explains how you’re able to go everywhere in Natlan in such a short time…” Citlali took a deep breath, then let out a long and clearly annoyed sigh. “I suppose there’s no way to know what a descender has the capability to do in Teyvat, huh?”
Lumine just shrugged, taking Citlali’s hand in hers again.
“But do you get it?” she said.
“What, that you have magical superpowers I don’t understand?”
“No, this!” The blonde made another grand gesture toward the city they now found themselves in.
“You said we’re in Liyue, right? I guess that’s a pretty cool place to visit.”
“Citlali,” Lumine said, her tone much more serious than before. “No one knows who you are here.”
Citlali blinked, slowly beginning to understand the weight of the Traveler’s words. Cilalin appeared under her, catching her as she lost all feeling in her legs. As she stared out at the harbor, really taking it in this time, things started to click.
A young girl looking at toys at a nearby stall pointed toward the floating pillow, glee in her eyes. Her friends eyes grew wide as they saw it too, and the trio ran up to the women without a second thought.
“Fei, Lulu, Meng! It’s so good to see you!” Lumine said, kneeling down to meet the children on their level.
“Miss Traveler, who’s your friend?” Little Lulu asked, poking Cilalin questioningly. “And why does she have such a fluffy pillow?”
Citlali came to her senses and stood up, motioning Citlalin away. “How dare you!” she shouted. “I am Granny Itzt-”
“Kids, this is my friend Citlali,” Lumine interrupted, speaking in a calm and happy voice.
“Hi Miss Citlali!” Little Lulu said. “I love your dress! It’s so pretty!”
“Yeah,” Little Fei added. “And your feathers are super cool!”
“Do you wanna play pirates with us?” Little Meng asked, tugging at the shaman’s skirt.
“I- well-” Citlali was speechless.
“We can’t stay and play for long, unfortunately,” Lumine said. “But next time I’m in town, we’ll totally play! I promise! Now, run along. It’s getting dark.”
“Okay!” the three children said, waving goodbye. Citlali stood frozen, still unsure how to process what just happened.
“See?” Lumine smiled. “No Granny Itztli here. Just you.”
She took Citlali’s hand in her own and squeezed it one more time. A wave of calm rushed over the shaman, who finally understood the gravity of the blonde woman’s gift. Lumine’s eyes sparkled, clearly satisfied with herself. “Wanna know what’s going to make this even better?” she said.
“I have no idea how it could be,” Citlali replied, her usual gruffness replaced by something far kinder.
“Drinks are on me tonight.”