Chapter Text
“I’m an idiot! I’m an idiot! I’m an idiot!”
The humiliating record kept echoing through Prune’s head long after she’d destroyed all the gramophones Alice had planted all around Mondstadt.
At first she was enraged, then annoyed, but as more and more people heard it, Prune became frustrated, tensed, on the verge of tears. She did her best to hide it of course – like she always did. And it usually worked.
“What are you doing to such a small child, Alice?”
That icy voice made Prune shiver, but all she felt was the alien comfort of a warm pair of arms hugging her.
“Yeah, what Eula says! You’re being too mean, Alice!”
Prune realized the warmth around her was from the girl she’d met a few days before, when she arrived in Mondstadt from Dornman Port.
Amber the Outrider, she remembered from her proud introduction. She had appeared to her overtly too friendly as she had guided her along the path to the main City. A bit simple and carefree, but now her embrace felt tense, protective, strangely comfortable. Amber was hugging her and frowning all the while, serious, strangely dependable.
In front of her, her arch-nemesis Alice stood with her usual grand airs and oversized hat, puffing her chest out, but not looking down at her this time. Instead she was locked in a weird confrontation, chest against chest with a tall, pretty woman with short blue hair and tight clothes. Another knight, based on her insignia.
“We’ll take it from here Alice,” Eula said with a chill in her voice, standing her ground against the mage.
“Ufufu, very well Eula, my Klee is waiting for me for lunch anyway. See you around, Prune!”
“See you in hell, witch!”
Her defiance made Amber gasp, but Prune was just happy the witch was finally retreating.
“Are you okay little Prune?”
“I’m fine! Don’t treat me like a kid!”
Prune pushed Amber away and scampered. Just as usual, she put her defensive walls up immediately.
I’m not a child, don’t treat me like one!
I don’t need to be a child!
Even if I want to, I can’t act like a kid!
I’m a grown up now!
I have to be a grown up.
“That should do it!”
Prune proudly stood back to admire the result of her hard work. She’d moved from shelter to shelter since leaving Nod-Krai, but now that she was finally in the nation of her prey, she needed a more permanent place to live in. The city itself was out of the question: that place was obviously already under Alice’s influence.
The little tent she built was quite impressive in appearance, made with the wood branches and leaves so abundant in the forests of Mondstadt. But her skills were only surface-level, having learned about many crafts from sifting through heaps of random books. She made ample notes, but a lot of things flew over her head.
Nevertheless, she was quite happy with herself.
She crawled under her little space and took out one of the apples she gathered along the way.
It was good: juicy, sweet, and most importantly free. Mondstadt really was a nation of abundance.
Her mind wandered while she took small bites of her fruit.
Her confrontation with Alice had not come as she hoped. She was overwhelming, cunning, and truly a force to be reckoned with.
Maybe even worse, the other citizens of the city did not seem to care that such a vile witch was openly bullying her in the open.
Well, not all of them.
Her little brows furrowed as she remembered Amber and Eula helping her. She had felt a kind of fuzzy warmth from their encounter, something she hadn’t felt in a long while. Akin to the good feeling she had when playing with Klee perhaps? But more… reassuring. Comfortable?
She wasn’t sure.
As her little mind churned, the world outside changed. The sunny sky slowly darkened, invaded by gray clouds, filled with rain.
When the first raindrops fell, Prune thought she’d be alright.
But that was without taking into account the band of hillichurls who had been following her trail since midday.
The little witch hunter had become prey herself.
Eula had only recently moved into Amber’s place, a little building creaking with age in the lower levels of Mondstadt City. It wasn’t too spacious, but it had been the place her grandpa had raised little Amber, and where Eula had often been invited to for lunch when she was still apprenticing with the first Outrider.
It had been several years since his disappearance, and now Amber and Eula were finally getting comfortable together to share a home, a bed, and their hearts.
Their small family was cozy, peaceful, and they loved cuddling together to sleep every night in the comfort of their home. Their little peace lasted until one day a small hand knocked at their door.
The streets outside were already dark and blurry with the falling rain, and the couple was on their way to dreamland, lazily embracing each other under their warm blanket.
Knock, knock, knock
Who could be knocking at their door at such a time?
Putting on a robe in a hurry, Amber went to answer the door downstairs while Eula remained half-asleep in their bed to keep the blankets warm.
When Amber opened the door, she gasped. The little girl behind the door gasped in return, as though she hadn’t expected someone to open the door.
“Prune? What are you doing out here so late at night??”
“I-I…”
The little girl was at a loss for words. Immediately Amber realized something was wrong. Prune was drenched and shivering, her little pale hands holding her cape over her head as best she could.
“You’re all wet and freezing! Come inside, we’ll get you warmed up!” Amber pulled the little wet dog inside and closed the door, “Eula, It’s little Prune! Can you come down help me?”
“What? How come… Oh, Archons, what happened?”
Eula was already rushing to get a warm blanket from upstairs when Amber helped Prune sit down near the fire in their hearth, to which she fed some more wood to bring its embers back to life.
Prune looked at the fire with foggy eyes.
She did not understood why and how she had come knocking at Amber and Eula’s door. All she remembered was her makeshift tent outside being destroyed by hillichurls, the dark rain, the escape, the freezing wind, the nigh dark streets as she rushed through the City Gate to find a refuge from the elements.
Somehow her little feet had guided her to the home of the two women who had defended her a few days ago. Did she even know where they lived? Or was she simply attracted there by the dim yet warm light of the fire through their windows?
They were the only ones who hadn’t just asked about her parents, or expressed pity for her.
They had stepped up and protected her, despite her protests, against Alice’s bullying.
And now she was buried in a bundle of blankets, a bowl of warm soup in her hands, with two worried women coming and going, showering her with more attention than she ever had.
“You look cold, do you want another blanket?” Eula asked gently while Amber hurried around to find more in her old room.
“I’m not! I, um, just have a hyperhernia!”
“...That’s hypothermia, and it does mean you’re cold.”
“I-I knew that!”
“Are you still hungry? I can give you a few more bowls of hot soup if you want!”
“I’m not…” Prune’s voice was instantly drowned by a terrible rumbling noise. “That’s not borborygmus, it’s just the-the thunder outside!”
Amber chuckled, “Here, if you eat well the thunder will go away. At least that works with Lisa…”
“Really? Hmm…” Without fighting back, Prune finally relented and took long sips of her fuming soup. The taste was simple, was so warm and delicious.
And so despite her best efforts Prune continued to melt from Amber and Eula’s incessant care, her little walls slowly crumbling from their gentle assaults.
“Hmph, you hair is still wet, allow me to help you dry them with this towel.”
“I’ll put your wet clothes to dry, let me check if my old clothes can fit you… I hope you like bunny motifs, sorry I don’t have anything with doggies!”
“Perhaps you may fancy a Baron Bunny warmer? Amber made a couple versions for her period. Here, peruse the shelf and choose the one you prefer.”
“S-STOP IT!”
Prune gasped when she realized she had lashed out at the two women who she knew were trying to help her.
But she wasn’t used to it at all.
“I-I’m not a kid! I’m fine, I don’t need th-that.”
Eula and Amber paused and exchanged a few glances. Prune curled up on herself, scared by what they might say in response.
They had seen on her face the typical yearning stare children had when they looked at something they wanted. No doubt the plushy bunnies on display had struck her curiosity. They realized Prune displayed very uncharacteristic restraint for a child her age, a mature facade not solid enough yet to prevent her childish desires to seep through.
“It’s fine, I’ll just lend it to you,” Amber said softly, picking the one bunny Prune was obviously eyeing, and putting it in her trembling embrace.
“…”
Prune pouted. She wasn’t used to this at all. She was uneasy, apprehensive. She was already expecting her hosts to ask for mora for their help. After all, who would help a kid from the streets for free?
But Amber and Eula were just too nice.
Way too nice. Every time she rejected their kindness, they doubled down.
“I don’t need a bed, I can sleep wherever.”
“Why would I want to wear that kind of pajamas? Just give me an old shirt of something.”
“A story? How old do you think I am?”
“… and from that day forward the birds flew freely in the sky. The end.”
Amber gently closed the book and glanced at the little girl tucked in her childhood bed. Her eyes were closed, her breathing slow and deep.
Prune had finally fallen asleep listening to Amber’s favorite story.
Amber smiled warmly, then adjusted the baron bunny plushy in the little girl’s arms, as well as the blanket over her little body.
She left the room and closed the door as silently as possible.
“How is she?” Eula inquired, nervously sitting at their dining table.
Amber nodded, “Finally fell asleep at the end of my story.”
“Amber, what are we going to do with her?”
“What do you mean?”
“We can’t keep a child in our home for long besides this kind of emergency. Do we even know where her parents are? Does she have any guardian at all?”
“Maybe I should ask Jean? She should know how to handle it…” Amber sighed, “She kind of reminds me of Collei a little bit the first time we met. I just hope we can help her just as well.”
The couple sat around their dining table with each a cup of steaming herbal tea. Sleep had quickly fled when little Prune had arrived, and they had decided it was better to talk lightly instead of tossing and turning waiting for sleep to come again.
Discreet as they thought they were, their voices low and hunched back close to each other, a little spy nonetheless managed to hear a few words from their conversation through a slightly open door.
Jean? Isn’t that the Grand Master of the Knights or something? So they plan to bring me to the authorities… I should’ve known!
Little Prune eavesdropped and worked out their intent.
Adults are all the same…
But she couldn’t flee right now. It was the middle of the night, rain was still pouring, and the bed she had been offered was warm and very, very inviting.
Tomorrow morning, she decided with her eyelids fluttering heavily, Tomorrow morning I’ll escape before they wake up!
She crawled back under her blanket, squirmed for a while, until the weight of the night finally claimed her conscousness.
The next day, Prune had a conundrum.
Amber was up already when she woke up, apparently busy preparing breakfast. The sun was barely shining through the windows, how early did she wake up?
Prune once again spied through her door left ajar. She’d already changed back into her clothes and she was ready to dart to the entrance and escape, assuming the door was unlocked – worst case scenario, she could use her hammer to break out. As soon as Amber left or let her vigilance down…
She observed with more interest than she thought as Amber mixed and cooked various ingredients wearing a strangely cute apron in the shape of a bunny.
D-Do honey and carrots mix together? And what’s with that weird burnt bread smell? Was that supposed to be a pancake? But why is it all red?
Prune was at a loss. She’d never seen such weird cuisine, but Amber was simply humming like everything she was doing was normal.
The little girl became so enthralled in fact that she missed her opportunity to escape. She realized she had made a mistake when she heard Eula’s heavy, sleepy steps coming down the stairs.
“Already up, my bunny?” she yawned, “What are you cooking?”
Eula gave a peck on Amber’s neck, who giggled but remained focused on her work.
“I thought I should bring my A game since we have a guest!”
“Have you checked on her already? Is she still asleep?”
“Oh, she’s been awake for a while now! Look, she’s spying on me through the crack of the door.”
Prune flinched and recoiled.
Shoot! She’d been found out!
She sprinted back and dove under her blanket, pulling the sheets over her head and trying to set a slower breathing speed.
She heard the door open, and the now light footsteps of Eula approach her.
“Prune? Are you awake?” she asked softly.
“… I’m not.”
“Oh, that’s too bad,” Eula chuckled, “We were about to eat. Aren’t you hungry?”
“I’m not.”
Alas, twice again her tummy growled and betrayed her, earning a scoff from Eula.
“Come out now, Amber made breakfast.”
Prune hesitated. She couldn’t stay, but she was very hungry indeed. Besides, she could not hide the fact that Amber’s cuisine, albeit unconventional, looked novel and curious. She loved weird ingredient combinations, and what Amber had made surely would be new to her.
“Ah, come take a seat you too!” Amber smiled warmly as she put down the food and cutlery all the around the table.
They helped Prune sit on a chair, propped up with a couple of cushions, and they finally ate breakfast.
Amber and Eula were strange. They behaved kind of like her mom and dad had when she was in Nod-Krai, although only on the rare occasions when they were home to take care of her – which meant almost never. They exuded that warm, cozy aura that had made Prune reluctant to escape. Why was that?
“So Prune, Amber and I had a talk.”
Prune froze up. She had forgotten all about yesterday’s conversation.
Eula continued, taking the little girl’s flinching for the usual apprehension children had when she talked to them, “You do not have parents here in Mondstadt, correct?”
“… Yes.”
“And you don’t have any guardian? Someone responsible for you.”
“… No.”
The reality of her situation began to down on Prune. She knew she wasn’t like the other kids. She didn’t have parents to take care of her. Especially now.
She had learned to be independent and mature, beyond her age. To replace the absence of her parents, she had to grow up and become her own before her childhood even began.
All the children she’d met in Mondstadt had parents. Parent to take care of them, shelter them, feed then, clothe them, play with them. Love them.
Even Klee had parents, even if her mother was the evilest witch of all times.
But Prune had none. Not anymore.
Amber felt very keenly the weight on little Prune’s heart as Eula did her best to gently interrogate her. She reached out and took her hand, which was cold, and o so small.
“Prune, if that is okay with you… What do you think of us two becoming your temporary guardians in Mondstadt?”
Prune shook, but immediately she retaliated against the offer.
“I don’t want to be owned! I’m free! Isn’t it what Mondstadt is all about? Or is it all a big lie?!”
She pulled her hand back, and once again curled into herself.
This was unusual for her. By know she should already be out of the door, running away. But something in here made her feel at ease with the two ladies who looked at her with kind eyes and worry.
“It’s okay, Prune. What it means is that we are offering you a home. The guarantee of a living space for you, food for when you are hungry, clothes and a fire when you are cold. And whenever you feel like you want to leave, you can do so on you own accord.”
That was all too good to be true, and Prune looked at them with a frown on her face.
She knew it had to be a trap of some kind, but the offer was too enticing. Plus, this would give her a safe-ish place to live in the midst of her enemy’s realm. Even better, her friend Klee wasn’t living too far away, and the gate to the outside was only a minute of walk away.
Yes, her little mind convinced her this was a good deal. To use the two strange women’s kindness for her own use, a headquarter to use to hunt down the evil witch.
Despite herself, Prune finally nodded.
Eula relaxed and let out a breath she’d held out for too long, and Amber took her hand in hers with a smile.
Their little family had suddenly grown, even if temporarily, and both of them were happy to welcome into their home that turbulent, cute bundle of defiance that had melted both of their hearts.