Chapter Text
Walking across the bridge to the Liyue Harbor docks is a marvel any time of year, but it's on a whole different level for the Lantern Rite. Lumine pauses at the crest of the bridge to take it all in. The sun is just starting to set, and the people of Liyue are just starting to light their lanterns--and there are so many of them, as if the stars in the sky had come to settle over the city instead. There's some kind of giant statue almost finished, something in the form of a blue and gold stag. Brightly colored umbrellas dot the marketplace. The scent of grilled meat is so strong it almost overpowers the smell of the ocean, wafting up toward them on the bridge.
Amber, next to her, slows to a stop as well. "It's so pretty..."
"Paimon is hungry! Paimon wants to try all the festival snacks! Let's go!"
"Unfortunately, we are on a time limit," Albedo remarks. "We should try to make the most of what we have."
Kaeya laughs. "That's the spirit," he says. "Come on."
---
At first, Lumine thought she would only invite Kaeya. She knew he spoke Liyuean conversationally, even if he wasn't fully fluent, and he might appreciate the introductions she now had the social stature to make. Then she overheard Albedo complaining about getting fresh violetgrass stock. She thought about Festering Desire and thought it would be good to thank him, and hoped maybe she could get to know him better. He seems lonely. It helps that he, too, is fully fluent in Liyuean... not that she knows how that came to be.
Amber was... a different matter. Lumine doesn't fully know why she invited Amber. She does have a reason: she wanted someone to really enjoy the festival with. Paimon will just want to eat, Kaeya will just want to get drunk, and Albedo doesn't seem the type to enjoy the event itself. But why Amber? Lumine isn't sure. It just... felt right.
Now, Lumine is wondering if it is the right idea. Amber is the only member of their party who doesn't speak any of the local language. She looks a little nervous, glancing from stall to stall.
"Let's get grilled tiger fish," Lumine says, in Mondstadian for everyone's benefit.
"Yeah!" Paimon cheers. "But which stall should we buy it from? Paimon sees it listed in a lot of places..."
"The one with the longest line is usually a reliable choice," Kaeya says. "There may be somewhere that tastes better, of course, but large crowds typically pick something solid."
Albedo peers around. "That is indeed a good rule of thumb, but surely we can come up with a better metric."
"You just don't wanna stand in line forever!" Amber laughs. "Not that I do either..." She studies the stalls again, but this time, she has a more focused expression, something Lumine recognizes from seeing her at work. "That long line is full of tourists," she says. "See? Only a few of them are wearing local clothes. The stall we want is... that one!" She points. It's still got a line, but a much shorter one--and everyone in it is a local.
"That's a good point," Albedo says. "For the most authentic experience, we would want to eat what the people of Liyue eat."
"Let's go there, then," Kaeya says, looking pleased.
Amber looks a little more confident now. Lumine smiles.
---
"Hey girlie. See you've brought some friends. Enjoying the sights?"
Lumine freezes. Then she turns, knowing exactly who she's going to see. "Hello, Tartaglia," she says. "I didn't think you would be in town."
"I go where my duties call me," Tartaglia says, smiling cheerfully. "Care to introduce us?"
"All right," Lumine says steadily. "These are my friends from Mondstadt, members of the Knights of Favonius. Cavalry Captain Kaeya Alberich, Chief Alchemist Albedo, and Outrider Amber." She turns to her friends, switching to Mondstadian for Amber. "This is... this is my sparring partner, Tartaglia."
"You're going to talk them up, but not me?" Tartaglia asks in Liyuean. "I may not be an expert, but I'm pretty sure I didn't hear my title."
Lumine sighs. "He's Number Eleven of the Fatui Harbingers," she adds.
"And he's... your friend?" Kaeya asks, switching to Liyuean.
"Friend is... a strong word," Lumine replies in the same language. She's still not entirely sure how she feels about Tartaglia, to be honest. He has his good points, but he manipulated her and was completely willing to kill an entire city of civilians, and those aren't the kinds of things it's good to forget. "As I said, we're sparring partners."
Tartaglia laughs. "Sparring partners. I like that."
"Paimon is surprised you're willing to show your face in front of Lumine after what happened!" Paimon says, crossing her tiny arms.
And Tartaglia looks... confused. "After... what?"
"Are you seriously saying you don't know?" Kaeya asks, rising to his feet.
"We are in public," Amber says in Mondstadian, grabbing Kaeya's wrists from behind him. "This is not the place for a fight!"
"We all saw what you Fatui did to Lumine a few months ago," Kaeya continues in Liyuean as if Amber hadn't intervened at all.
Tartaglia raises his hands. "I really don't know what you're talking about," he says. "The Harbingers operate independently, for the most part. I'm not usually involved in Mondstadt's operations."
"I think he really doesn't know," Albedo says in Mondstadian. "Look at him."
Kaeya looks, and whatever he sees calms him enough that he sits back down. "Someone else tell him," he says. "I don't know the vocabulary."
Lumine sighs. "Some Fatui tried to kidnap me," she explains. "I was sick, and someone saw it as an opportunity, I guess. I was also injured pretty seriously after an escape attempt. I don't remember most of it very well, though."
"I can honestly say that I had no involvement in that," Tartaglia says. "It must have failed pretty spectacularly, though. That's the only time these things get covered up that well."
"All the Fatui we know to be involved were executed," Albedo says. "We did have to pretend we thought they were independent actors, so perhaps that's why it was possible to hide it."
"Could someone please tell me what's going on?" Amber squeaks. Paimon floats over to her and starts whispering in her ear.
Tartaglia nods. "For the record, I would prefer Lumine be alive and relatively unharmed. I really like our sparring sessions."
Lumine rolls her eyes. "He's serious about them," she says. "Anyway, it was nice to see you, I guess, but we were a little busy," she tells Tartaglia with false cheer. "We can only be here a few days."
"Ah, of course," Tartaglia replies cheerfully. "I'll leave you all to your endeavors. Wonderful to meet you."
---
"So, when were you going to tell me you were friends with a Harbinger?" Kaeya asks. He insisted on paying for the room at the inn, and Lumine knows exactly why, but it still grates a little.
"We're not friends," Lumine says calmly. "I know what he is."
"And what is he?" Kaeya continues, checking the beds for... something, Lumine doesn't know, but it involves stripping the blankets off and examining both them and the mattress closely.
"Crazy," Lumine replies.
Amber giggles.
"Lumine isn't joking," Paimon chimes in. "Childe is definitely off his rocker! He's smart, and he can be nice, but he-"
"Childe was the alias Tartaglia was using when we first met him," Lumine interrupts.
"What are you avoiding?" Albedo asks, the curiosity in his voice deceptively mild.
"I'm surprised you don't know," Lumine says. "But I guess the extent of his involvement might not be public knowledge."
"You're talking about the death of Rex Lapis?" Kaeya guesses.
Lumine can't help it and starts to giggle.
"What's so funny?" Amber demands. "A whole Archon died! They had to hold a funeral!"
Lumine giggles a little more, then stops herself. "That part's a secret," she says. "But no, Tartaglia was not involved in the death of Rex Lapis. The monster attack on the city, though..."
Albedo blinks. "You sound as if you're unaware of the danger that a man like this would represent," he says.
Paimon grins. "Lumine kicked his butt, though!"
"You... fought him?" Amber asks. "Like, not just sparring, but for real?"
"It was nice to go all out," Lumine recalls. "The couple days after that sucked, but it was a fun fight."
The other Knights all just look at each other.
"What?" Lumine asks.
"You're a little crazy, too," Amber says, and laughs.
---
Late that night, Lumine startles awake. Laying on her side like this hurts-
Oh. She knows what this is. She climbs out of the bed she's sharing with Amber, who doesn't stir at all.
Paimon follows her out into the hallway. "Where are you going?" the little fairy asks softly.
"Just to the bathroom," Lumine replies. "Back in a minute."
"Okay," Paimon says, and flutters off, leaving Lumine to manage in private. Good.
In the bathroom, Lumine unwraps the bandages around her lower torso. She took a hit on the way in today, a slice from a Treasure Hoarder's knife. It wasn't serious. She had let everyone take a look at it--Kaeya was still a little overprotective sometimes after the time she got poisoned--but it was fine. Not a big deal. They rinsed it off with some water, bandaged it up, and went on their way.
Now, though... is it just her imagination, or is it redder than it was earlier today? Maybe it's bruising? And it hurts more than before to poke at it...
Lumine shakes her head. If it's still bothering her later, she'll do something about it. It's the middle of the night, and everyone confirmed it wasn't a serious injury.
She cleans it up again, just to be sure, then replaces the bandages. Satisfied, she returns to bed.