Chapter Text
She’d once held the world in the palm of her hand. That much, she remembered. Power had flowed through her veins like blood, encased her body in soft, glowing white light. She’d been untouchable, unreachable, immovable.
And then she’d fallen.
~
The girl’s eyes opened, a name forming on her lips. Her hand reached out at her side, instinctively grabbing at something that - to her surprise - wasn’t there. A sense of overwhelming loss swept over her, a profound loneliness that sank deep into her very bones.
It hurt. It hurt so much.
The girl made a soft sound, almost a whimper, and curled onto her side. What had she lost? She knew she’d lost… something ... but couldn’t remember what. Her mind was completely, frustratingly blank, and a part of her knew that that wasn’t normal, and yet it was like a dense fog, a fog that stubbornly refused to lift no matter how hard she tried.
She swallowed, and sat up. The world spun momentarily, and she shook off the sand that’d accumulated on her limbs, wondering how long she’d been laying there. She turned to her right automatically, mouth opening to ask -
Aether.
That was it. That was who she’d lost. She’d lost Aether, her brother, her twin, her other half - how could she have forgotten him? She saw his face clearly in her mind, so much like her own, his long hair pulled back in a braid that fell to his waist, his golden eyes soft with affection. He was all she had. From the moment they’d been born, they’d never been apart.
Except now.
Why was she alone? How had they gotten separated? She knew it hadn’t been by choice - Aether would never leave her, and she him. How, then, was she alone?
Her stomach rumbled, and she felt a prickle of surprise. An unfamiliar feeling gnawed at her stomach. She felt some kind of urge to do… something.
The longer she sat, the worse the feeling became. It was deeply uncomfortable, clearly pushing her to do something, but she wasn’t sure what. What did it want? She wanted to find her brother, but this feeling was distracting.
It would have to wait. Aether came first - he would always come first. She got to her feet, preparing to rise into the air, but nothing happened.
She paused, nonplussed. She put a hand on her back, feeling for something, and felt only her dress.
That was… wrong. The fog in her mind began to lift, just a little. There were supposed to be wings on her back, she realized. She belonged in the air, not on the earth.
Suddenly, she felt incredibly adrift. She didn’t have Aether, she didn’t have her wings, she didn’t even have her memories. She had so many questions, and no way of getting the answers to any of them.
She gazed out at the stretch of water before her. Maybe… maybe if she just waited, Aether would come back. She had a vague memory of a promise he’d made her when they were young.
“If we ever get separated, just wait for me, okay? I promise I’ll find you.”
(was that what his voice sounded like?)
She turned her gaze up to the sky, searching for a spot of white and gold. Aether would come. She was sure of it.
~
She wasn’t sure how long she stood there, staring at the sky. The sun rose, then set, then rose again, enough times that she lost count. Eventually, the thought occurred to her:
Maybe… maybe Aether wasn’t coming.
Suddenly, she felt like an idiot. Maybe Aether couldn’t come. Maybe something was keeping him from reaching her - something like -
(white hair, amber eyes, a cold, unfeeling distance on her face as the unknown god raised her hand - )
She gasped, clutching her head as a sudden pain shot through it. What was that? Was that a memory?
She concentrated harder, closing her eyes, trying to draw back the image of that unknown god, but the memory slipped through her fingers like water.
Frustration filled her, so much so that she felt like she was suffocating. Who was that unknown god? Was she the reason Aether wasn’t coming?
She felt her hands curl into fists at her side. Fine. If Aether couldn’t find her, then she’d just find him instead. She would search every inch of this world, turn over every stone, until she found him. And if she came across that unknown god along the way, then...
Her eyes darkened.
Well. She’d be getting answers, one way or another.
~
The uncomfortable feeling in her stomach had faded, much to her relief, although she now felt a little light-headed and tired. Her newfound resolution to find her brother was difficult to hold onto in light of this development, so her first priority was getting rid of it.
The problem was… she didn’t quite know how. She was quite sure she’d never experienced anything like this before - her memories might be gone, so she could be wrong, but either way - she didn’t know how to fix this.
It was frustrating. She felt like an infant, who’d just come into the world for the first time. If only there was someone who could help guide her - what was that?
She narrowed her eyes, vision sharpening. There was some kind of humanoid shape floating in the water. If Aether were here, he’d jump in to help immediately, on the off-chance that it could still be alive. But Aether wasn’t here. She was alone. That meant… if she didn’t check on the creature, no one would.
Strength surged through her body at this new purpose. Finally, finally, something actionable that she could actually do. She dove into the water, realizing only after she hit the water that she hadn’t lost all her memories - muscle memory, like how to swim, still remained.
She neared the floating creature. It was small, like a toddler, with cropped white hair and pink and white clothes. Grabbing onto it with one arm, she pulled the creature towards the shore, kicking strongly with her legs. Reaching the beach, she pulled the creature onto the sand with ease. She felt for its pulse- the creature was still alive.
Instinct took over. She put her mouth over the creature’s nose and mouth, holding its head, and gave it two quick breaths. Then, she positioned her hands over the creature’s chest, over where she assumed its heart was, and started compressions. She continued, alternating breaths and compressions, until she could feel the creature’s heartbeat resume under her hands. Soon after, it coughed, water spilling from its mouth. She turned the creature onto its side in case it vomited, which it did, and cleaned up as best she could. Then, she waited.
Soon, her patience was rewarded. The creature’s eyes fluttered open.
“What - what - ?”
In her head, something clicked.
“Hello,” the girl said, the words slotting into place in her brain like puzzle pieces. “How are you feeling?”
The creature narrowed its eyes at her. “How do you think Paimon’s feeling? Paimon almost drowned!”
Amusement glinted in the girl’s eyes; it was a welcome change from loneliness and despair. “Paimon. Is that your name?”
“Of course it is,” Paimon said. “What - wait. Did you save Paimon?”
The girl blinked. A slight feeling of discomfort prickled at her cheeks, and she ducked her head. “Well… yes.”
“Thank you!” Paimon beamed. Suddenly, Paimon shot up into the air, floating in front of her. She gaped. Paimon could fly?
“Paimon thought Paimon was going to die for sure!” Paimon went on. “What’s your name, anyways?”
The girl hesitated. She hadn’t needed a name, not before now. She’d been alone. But… she did have a name, didn’t she? She remembered Aether using it. She remembered his mouth forming syllables - but what, exactly? She wasn’t sure.
The frown on her face deepened. “I… I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?” Paimon looked puzzled. “Did you lose your memories or something?”
“I did,” the girl confirmed. “I remember some things, but most of my memory’s a blank. I’m looking for my brother,” she added, a little hopefully. “His name’s Aether. He looks just like me, but with longer hair that he keeps in a braid. Have you heard of him?”
Paimon shook her head. “Sorry, no. Paimon can help you look for him, though! You saved Paimon’s life, so Paimon will help you in return!”
Disappointment and hope welled up in equal measure. It would’ve been too easy to believe that the first - person? Thing? - she came across would know where Aether was.
“Thank you, Paimon,” the girl said. “But you don’t owe me anything. I didn’t save you so that you would do something for me.”
Paimon giggled. “You silly! Paimon’s not offering because she thinks she should, Paimon’s doing it because she wants to!”
“Oh.” The girl paused. She… wasn’t exactly in a position to turn down help, especially not when it was freely offered. “Alright, then.”
“Great!” Paimon beamed. “Now, first things first - Paimon’s starving! You don’t happen to have any food, do you?”
“Food?” the girl echoed. “Why would I have food?” It’d just take up space, wouldn’t it?
Paimon stared at her. The girl stared back.
“For… when you get hungry?”
“Why would I get hungry?”
The girl’s abdomen made an odd noise, a bit like a dying whale. Paimon’s stare grew flat.
“You’re hungry right now. Your stomach just growled.”
“Am I?” the girl frowned. “Hunger? Is that what this feeling is?”
Paimon gave the girl an odd look. “Um, yeah. Anyways, Paimon sees a sunsettia tree over there - let’s eat some!”
The girl followed Paimon’s gaze, eyes landing on some orange fruits hanging from a tree. She trailed after Paimon as the pixie floated over to the tree and copied her, plucking a fruit from a branch and biting into it carefully.
Suddenly, the feeling in her stomach came roaring back as sweetness burst in her mouth. Her eyes widened, and she ate more rapidly, finishing the fruit in seconds. She ate two more, slowing down as the gnawing in her stomach eased, replaced by a comfortable feeling of fullness. So she’d been hungry after all - huh. Why hadn’t she recognized the feeling? She looked over at Paimon, eyes widening when she saw the massive pile of stems beside the pixie - where had the fruit gone? The tree was bare!
“Will you help me look for my brother now?” the girl asked.
“Sure! Paimon’s stuffed!” Paimon beamed. “Let’s try heading to Mondstadt, first - Paimon thinks that’s the closest city.”
The girl frowned. “Mondstadt?”
Paimon tilted her head. “You know, Mondstadt? One of the seven nations of Teyvat?”
“... Teyvat?”
~
Soon, both beings came to the realization that the girl knew absolutely nothing about this world. Paimon explained as best she could about Teyvat and Archons and Visions, and the girl listened attentively.
“... and that’s everything, I think!” Paimon finished. “How is it that you don’t know any of this, anyways?” Then, her eyes widened. “Oh, sorry! Paimon forgot you don’t remember anything!”
“It’s alright.” The girl paused, frowning. “I think… I’m a traveler,” she said slowly. That sounded right. She and Aether were travelers, going from world to world, and she told Paimon so. Paimon gaped.
“‘World to - ‘ hang on! Are you saying that you’re not from Teyvat?”
“Of course not,” the girl said, baffled. “I’m from…” the word was right there. It was on the tip of her tongue, but refused to form, and she let out an audible, frustrated growl.
“Um…” Paimon said, wringing her hands. “Do you… do you want the last sunsettia?”
The girl laughed, and realized it was her first laugh since being separated from her brother. She didn’t know how to feel about that, so she pushed it aside. “Thank you, Paimon,” she said warmly. “Although, I’d prefer if you keep that little tidbit to yourself - I’d rather not have everyone know I’m not from Teyvat.”
“Paimon’s lips are sealed!” Paimon promised, putting her hands on her hips. “You can count on me, Traveler!”
“Shall we go to Mondstadt, then?”
Paimon frowned, glancing at the sky. The sun had set while she’d been talking, and the stars shone brightly in the dark expanse of the night. “It’s kinda late. Let’s sleep first, and we can go to Mondstadt in the morning.”
Sleep. Yet another thing that the girl hadn’t known she’d needed to do, but perhaps it explained her exhaustion.
“Alright,” the girl agreed.
~
“Who are you?” Aether asked warily. “What do you want?”
The unknown god simply regarded him, a cold look in her eyes. She raised a hand, and a swarm of dark red cubes materialized around them. They forced themselves between the twins, separating them. The unknown god was saying something, but the girl couldn’t hear her over the roaring in her ears.
“Lumine!” Aether yelled, stretching out a hand.
“Aether!”
“- veler? Traveler!”
The girl’s eyes flew open, and she sucked in a breath. Paimon was floating in front of her, a worried look on her face.
“Are you okay, Traveler?” Paimon asked. “You were having a nightmare.”
The girl stared down at her hands, flexing her fingers. That hadn’t just been a nightmare - that’d been a memory. The unknown god had separated them. Her and Aether. Aether and -
“Lumine.”
“What?”
“Lumine,” she repeated. “That’s my name.”