Chapter Text
Clorinde’s gaze sweeps across the room, sharp violet eyes meeting Neuvillette’s stern gaze as she waits for her cue. The Iudex draconic eyes are like pinpricks of needles pressed into flesh. There's an almost accusing glint to them, as if he were unsatisfied.
“Your charges against Furina have already been resolved.” He says nonetheless with a finality, addressing the champion’s unspoken query.
For a moment Clorinde can’t help but feel a little outraged. How is she getting off scot-free when it was her hand that made the former Archon bleed? Then she remembered that particular dreadful day when Furina held a blade to her own throat and their conversation after.
“Oh…. right.”
She supposed that particular incident would resolve whatever conflicts they had up until that point; she has also been paying the lady semi-regular visits whenever she could, so it's not like there's bad energy between them anymore. Furina has been much more pleasant to her ever since as well; the lady’s face softens with fondness each time they meet.
“Eh, were we late for that?” Paimon wonders, lips pouting in disappointment.
Clorinde shakes her head. “No, it was another trial... a private one.” She understands that what went down between her and Furina is much more personal and intimate to her lady than it is to the rest of them gathered here.
These people were her citizens, but Clorinde was more than that; she had been a friend—the closest thing Furina could have had to a confidante—when she committed her betrayal.
“And you have carried your sentence out diligently since,” Furina reminds her from across the table. “I won’t dredge up past grievances that have already been resolved. I think your sentence is cruel enough as it is.”
The champion frowns, “My……. sentence?”
It feels a little inadequate because there were no witnesses to their 'trial' as it is referred to, and 'cruel' wouldn't be the word she'd use to describe her fate, but she is willing to swallow any thoughts of pushing for a public one if Furina is not in favor of such an arrangement.
Furina nods, “You’ll live till your last breath with a broken oath on your shoulders and the weight of my blood on your hands, just as the dissolved are on mine.”
An oath breaker and a charlatan—what a pair they make.
“Ah, I see. Thank you for your leniency.” Clorinde tips her head forward as her lips curve amusedly.
“What leniency? You people are ridiculous.” Furina huffs, rolling her eyes so hard it's a wonder they haven't rolled off her face.
When the lady of the hour turns to face her audience, she is left with one more person.
The ex-Archon grimaces as the menace in the room, the source of her stress, wide-eyed and all too determined, jolts up from her seat and leans forward with too much excitement for someone supposedly about to be on trial.
“So my turn? Cool, do your worst.” Lumine smirks, hands clasped together in anticipation.
‘What's got her so excited?’ Furina thinks she'll spend the rest of her remaining lifetime never finding out, not that she wants to. Some cans of worms can stay shut tight and forgotten; sometimes it's better to shove the closets of skeletons off into the deep end than pry them open.
Lumine is a landmine that she will NOT be stepping on any more than she already has.
With that, Furina sneers, “No, not you. We’re done here; that will be all.”
She slams her file shut with a flick of her wrist; the force has Lumine stumbling back dramatically, the blonde clutching her nonexistent pearls at her collarbone in scandalized shock.
“What? Why? Have I not wronged you enough? Is that it?” Lumine all but whines like a wronged maiden left at the altar as she drops into a sprawl on the meeting table. “Do I need to commit a felony or five? Are the massacres not enough?!”
Navia, bless the girl, yanks her partner up from the table in such frenzied nervousness that it would be funny if the lady in question wasn’t trying to be Furina’s headache. Neuvillette and Wriothesley are both sporting indifferent looks at the side, both having anticipated this reaction and thus pretending not to see it.
Furina scowls, “You do one more felony on my turf and I'm going to….to…. Send you to therapy!” She points one finger threateningly, to which Lumine gasps in despair, letting her weight fall on poor Navia.
She’s trying to get Clorinde to help but to no avail; the Champion for once refuses to meet her gaze.
“You would subject some poor mortal shrink to this?!” She screeches incredulously as she gestures over herself. Truly, what has gotten the hooligan in such a mood?! She is hardly this dramatic unprompted. “Furina, you cruel cruel woman! The poor fella! 10 years of studying psychology to be licensed, and they'll need one for themself after an hour with me!”
“You are infuriating! That’s what you are!” Furina is held back only by her lack of energy after the hours of holding trials. Otherwise the lady surely would’ve been up and in the blonde’s face and tried to shake sanity back into her mind.
“And that is enough excitement for you today, Furina.” Sigewinne sighs.
Furina nods. “Meeting dismissed; I'm a sick sick human now; I need my nap!”
“Weren’t you avoiding being prosecuted?” whispered the demoiselle to her partner, utterly befuddled.
Paimon shrugs, “And we still ended up in jail—on purpose too!” She’s fanning her companion with a hanky since Lumine is still being dramatic.
“Yeah but everyone here seems to get their fancy charges and sentences; I want one too!” The traveler whines with a pout.
“And that’s why you’re not getting it, you inane hooligan!” Furina’s voice echoes as she is wheeled out of the room by an exasperated melusine nurse.
Furina hadn’t meant to mess around; she truly hadn’t!
But lady curiosity is one alluring temptress that she can’t always resist now that there isn’t a catastrophe-level threat hanging over her head. It’s just so easy to give in when there aren’t actual consequences beyond lectures and medically mandated house arrest.
Allogenes or vision wielders, have access to the teleport waypoints through their visions, with the waypoint as doors and the visions themselves acting like a passkey. It’s a privilege every allogene utilizes the most since it makes large distance traveling all that much easier.
Furina has always been curious about this ability; having no such power herself when she was an archon, she gave every reason there is imaginable for why she couldn’t show any hydro abilities or use the waypoints. However, she is in possession of one now, and weeks of being stuck in the Palais have been driving her a little cabin-fever crazy.
In retrospect, she should have had someone supervise her, especially when loads of her acquaintances are allogenes themselves, including her nurse. But alas, a girl must do what a girl must do to sneak out of a heavily guarded building.
“Woah!”
She tumbles onto a carpet of grass on her knees, her head spinning from the whiplash. She hadn't expected the journey to be so overwhelming; for a split second, she felt for a waypoint with her elemental sight and tugged hesitantly on it.
The next thing she knew, she was being yanked towards it at breakneck speed, her every sense turned up to 11, and the world appeared to spin and phase around her. She could no longer feel the carpet flooring from a few seconds ago on her skin, but instead grass and soot.
Furina felt bile rising up her throat, and her head was spinning as she attempted to regain her bearings. Yeah, she’s not doing any waypoint travels anytime soon or ever again if this is what it felt like. The former archon groans, clutching her stomach while looking around to recognize the area.
The surrounding environment at least tells her she’s still in Fontaine, and the waypoint didn’t feel too far, so it’s likely somewhere in Erinnyes. However, she nearly has a heart attack when she senses an approaching presence through her elemental sight, and heavy footsteps can be heard heading in her direction.
Still shaken from the vertigo, the lady scrambles to her feet to start bolting, except she barely gets five steps away before a burst of pyro explodes inches away from her face, the fiery blaze popping up from the ground and forming into a plant-like creature.
"Shit, fuck, shit," Furina yelps as the whopperflower spits fireballs at her, forcing the lady to breathlessly dart around, avoiding each attack, while a hand is pressed to her cheek where it burned her moments ago.
She didn’t have any weapons on her to deal with it, not that she’s allowed one yet after her previous stunt.
Furina attempts to summon her hydro powers, but nothing manifests quickly enough before her concentration is diverted to avoid the creature's attacks. A wrong step to avoid incoming fire caused her to trip and go face-planting. Furina hisses when pain shoots up her left leg when she tries to get up.
Everything freaking hurts. Great, a sprain. Can her luck get any worse?!
“Get down! Dead reckoning!”
A surge of cryo covers the area; the sensation washes over her soothingly, not quite healing her, but it numbs the pain in her foot and soothes the burn on her face. A slash of light blue hits the whopperflower dead center, the creature screeching at the hit.
“Pers!” A blonde boy comes striding into the area wielding a large claymore.
Furina watches on in awe as he makes quick work of the elemental being; for someone of her stature, he swings that claymore with more expertise than Furina could ever hope to with her own sword. Once the threat is taken care of, the blonde newcomer slowly turns to face her.
“Are you alri—” his voice cuts off mid-sentence, mouth suddenly hanging agape at who he is looking at.
Truthfully, he hadn’t recognized her when he saw her being attacked from the distance, simply focusing on neutralizing the threat and keeping the attacked person safe.
But now up close, what Fontainian wouldn’t recognize Lady Furina at a glance, dressed down as she may be?
The sight was strange for him: his former regal archon sprawled on the floor, her cheek reddish from a burn, her clothes jumbled, and looking like she had decided to go for a walk in her casual indoor attire.
Freminet stares, maybe a bit too long in his shock, for she starts to fidget. He whipped his face away so fast he might just break his neck, face bashfully red as he tries to form something coherent to say. The boy meekly holds out a helping hand to the lady.
“Ah…thank you for saving me,” the lady sheepishly offers her sudden savior her gratitude as she takes his hand.
Furina carefully stands up and grimaces at the mess she’s made of herself, slippers muddied, splotches of grass and burnt singes on her skirt and sleeves; she’s never been more disheveled. And yet she feels nothing but excitement drumming in her chest.
Furina is rather satisfied with herself; months ago she would have had a mental breakdown, and being found in such a state by one of her citizens would be unbecoming of her as a regal archon.
Now, who gives a damn if she went rolling in the mud? She’s human and free to do whatever she wants.
“You’re….” The teen gulps, his head lowered slightly in acknowledgement. “My apologies… Lady Furina…. I didn’t realize it was… you.”
“Oh dear, no no no, no need for all that formality! I’m just me, Furina, now. No lady or anything.” She immediately shakes her head; it is starting to get really awkward when he too starts fidgeting nervously, not knowing what to say.
However, she misjudges her balance and shifts her weight onto the wrong foot, the injured foot, and now falls forward onto the boy. Mostly out of instinct, Freminet caught her by the waist before she actually tumbled onto him. Now he’s red-faced and trying not to make it weird as he holds her up and assists her in walking towards his campsite so he can examine her injury more closely.
Furina, of course, feels like she’s wreaking havoc on the poor guys’s anxieties and decides to try easing the tension. Clearing her throat, she inquires, "You are... Freminet?"
Freminet startles; his eyes widen in surprise. “You… know me?” He did not expect the former archon to know who he is, let alone know his name, but then again, the archon did personally know his two elder siblings.
“Former Hearth?”
Well now that’s just awkward.
Ferminet’s little round face makes a very strained expression at the mention of his previous affiliation, wanting to be nowhere where he is now but can’t, as he’s the only thing making sure Furina doesn’t dislocate her foot while moving.
Furina could physically feel the awkwardness in the air triple. Hastily she adds on, “Lumine also tells me about you! And Charlotte, gosh, that girl couldn’t stay quiet on a good day, but she does go on and on about her diver friend."
The former archon is using the term ‘friend’ loosely here; Charlotte is downright smitten with the guy. She stated in some of her letters that she would take a lot of scenic pictures of underwater sights to give to Fermient, and just last week he gifted her some kemera gear to make underwater photography easier.
Freminet, to her relief, relaxes slightly when the journalist is brought up, and Furina bets half her savings on the guy having a crush based on how much he blushes at the quip.
“Oh…is that right? She’s really nice,” he mutters softly, a shy smile gracing those lips.
They reach the campsite next to a small sandy shore, and he helps her settle down. Looking around, it doesn’t feel like they’re near any cities or ports. A quiet little alcove far away from their bustling city, the atmosphere is quite serene as well.
“Lady—I mean…. Uhh….w-water Miss Furina?” Freminet hands her a mug. “I can make some grilled fish if you’re hungry.”
“Thank you, and no need for that.” She sees him nod and returns inside his camp, likely in search of medical supplies for her. She can barely feel the stinging burn on her face, the sprain would be the bigger issue here. Freminet breaks out his medical kit—a mini luggage, really—and gets to work on her leg.
“My siblings worry,” he offers an explanation after seeing her stare at it a little too long. “Miss Furina, how did you... why are you... out here... alone?”
"I... had a mishap with my vision..." Furina laughs nervously, looking anywhere but at him. “Turns out waypoint travel is not meant to be taken lightly.”
“I see,” Freminet nods, and then their attention is drawn to a little robot waddling towards them from inside his tent, the little penguin-shaped contraption beeping curiously at her.
“-.. -... .-- -...?” It bounces slightly as it greets her.
“Oh! Hello?” Furina pauses, smiling at the cute robot. “And who’s this little cutie?”
“.- .-.. .-. .. --. .... -?”
The lady identified the beeping sequence as a cypher-encrypted code of some kind, so she decoded it quickly in her mind. She had to do a lot of this decoding work back when she started out as an archon; ancient texts aren’t all that different from numerical puzzles.
Freminet was about to provide an explanation when her own reply caught him off guard. "I'm quite fine, somewhat, thank you," she replies to Thelxie after a couple beats of silence.
“You…. can understand him?” He gapes in both awe and shock; even Freminet couldn’t decode the codes that fast without his helmet. He doesn’t even realize that the former archon knew how to do such things.
"Slowly, there was a time when people turned to me to understand ancient texts riddled with codes and cyphers," says Furina, shaking her head sheepishly. "I suppose I just got really good at it. It’s using a morse code module and a caesar cipher with a right shift of one, isn’t it? Is it yours?”
“Uh, yes... I made it for... a client,” he answers softly. “His name is... Thelxie."
Once she’s all bandaged up, he insists she has something to eat before heading back. "Why are you out here in the wilderness alone?" the former archon wonders while nibbling on the grilled fish she’s given.
Freminet shakes his head. “Uh, not completely alone. Lyney and Lynette check in on me occasionally… and Lumine is helping,” he tacks on, the name of the traveller bringing a bit of a grimace to the archon’s face.
“Always something with that one. Well, I hope she doesn’t drive you too insane.” she mutters sympathetically before rising to her feet while careful not to strain her foot. “I should really get going…”
Her wobbling isn’t giving the male diver any confidence. “It’s just that you really don’t look... well. Would you like to... rest a little?” Freminet suggests, a little worried for her.
Furina tries walking a couple paces and concludes he’s right; it’s far too difficult to walk without straining her injured foot.
“I guess I have to; I’m not trying waypoints again anytime soon.” She groans but then decides what the heck; she’s out here and if they’re so worried, they’ll track her down soon enough. "Where are we, by the way?”
“We’re….” Freminet is cut off by the sound of singing suddenly heard; a voice soft and melancholic drifts over them like the waters lapping at the shores.
“♪♫♪~”
Fremenit doesn’t look alarmed, only curious as he turns towards the singing with practiced ease. “Oh, Madame Zuria. You’re back; did you need anything else?” he calls out to their sudden singer, a lady dressed in purple and blues who walks towards them.
Furina guesses this must be the client he talked about; Thelxie too seems to beep with joy at the sight of her. It’s nearing evening hours; surely it’s not safe for her to walk around alone like this? Unless she must’ve lived somewhere nearby.
“Oh? Hmm. I must’ve wandered my way back here by mistake, silly me.” Then her eyes fall to Furina. “Oh…oh!”
The woman, a gentle face marked with something…painful, there are ghosts in her eyes that speak of haunting memories, yet as she stares at the newcomer in complete shock, Furina can tell Freminet doesn’t see it. Doesn’t feel the weight of the shadows in her voice as she sings.
“La—Lady Furina? Is that really Lady Furina?” her voice whispers, as if saying it too loud might blow away the mirage.
Furina shyly waves. “Oh! Um, please, just Furina, Hello Madame….?” she holds out her hand to her.
“Destree, Zuria Destree. What an honor,” she beams, taking the former archon’s hand to help lower herself into the seat next to Furina. “To think I would meet the amazing Lady Furina out here—why, I must be very lucky indeed.”
Freminet excuses himself to allow them privacy to converse with the excuse of collecting materials in the sea. The lady talks and engages in conversation with friendly ease, yet Furina can’t help but notice that there’s something about her, the way she’s looking at her, yet there’s a haziness to her gaze as if there’s something more.
Her hands smelled of antiseptic, her hair was neatly styled in an almost deliberate manner to keep it from being messed up, a tight simple bun like how the melusines would do for her months ago when her mind was still reeling from dealing with the prophecy. Her clothes too were impersonal, as if they had been put together for her by someone else.
Furina wonders, “Are you Ferminet’s client then? The one who commissioned Thelxie?”
Zuria smiles. “Yes, he is helping me a lot. I appreciate him doing all he can to help me and my dearest darling son with his loneliness syndrome.”
Furina froze stiff when she heard the illness, grimacing as she hummed. “Loneliness syndrome, I see.” Her eyes are cast downwards, unable to meet the mother’s gaze.
If she has any knowledge of that illness—which she does, and regrettably in a far more personal capacity than she would like. Then the story being told here has taken a tragically dark turn. Furina feels bile in her throat; she has…an idea of what’s actually happening, and it’s too horrifying to even think about.
Zuria, with her gentle smile, nods along as if she didn’t just punch the former archon metaphorically through her gut. “Mhm, it's a type of mental disorder. Are you familiar with it, Miss Furina?” she asks.
“Somewhat.” The lady replies, her trembling hands fisting the hem of her skirt.
“The family doctor has already begun to treat my son... but since the disorder is rare, there aren't many good regimens for treatment. He's also developed some new symptoms lately... such as uncontrollable delusions.” Zuria continues to say, and Furina doesn’t know if she wants to laugh or cry.
‘Did he now? Yes, yes, uncontrollable delusions indeed.’ She thought to herself hysterically, ‘Your boy is long gone, isn’t he? And all you can cling to now are the echoes of a what-could-have-been that isn’t even real. Gee, gosh darn where have i heard THAT one?’
Furina stands up and, even to her own surprise, embraces Zuria in a tight hug. “Oh Zuria…I’m sorry.” She spits out the words like they're choking her; the pain she feels for this woman is overwhelming.
“Lady Furina? Is something wrong?” Zuria softly wonders, her arms returning the embrace as naturally as a mother would hug a loved child seeking comfort. “Oh, Archon, don’t be sad; it shall all come to pass soon once the journey is done.”
“All of this would one day end in a magnificent trial, my dear Furina.”
A voice from her memories echoes in her head. She doesn't correct Zuria for calling her a lady or an Archon, not when there's a much bigger concern here. Not when the grief she feels for this woman is shaking her to the core.
“Zuria, may I know the name of this son of yours…?” She asks even though she already knows the damned answer that’s sure to follow.
“Of course, my dearest joy, Thelxie.”
Furina buries herself deeper into the hug and wails, mourning both the young life lost and the state it left this poor mother, who had only wanted to help her child.
“Oh dear, there, there, it’ll be okay. He’ll be okay.”
‘I hope you will be too.’
When Freminet returned, Zuria had already left. Furina decided she’d overstayed her welcome as it is; there’s still too much grief in her heart and to hear another story, another life so tragic She couldn’t bear sitting there helpless to do anything for a second longer.
“Furina, are you sure you’re…alright to travel? You don’t look too good; did something happen with Madame Destree?” Freminet questions her worriedly as he helps guide her towards a waypoint; side effects be damned, she wants to be back in her room at once.
Furina shakes her head. “It’s nothing, it’s nothing! I’m…fine. You take care; make sure it all goes smoothly for the madame. Write to me about how she’s doing when this is all over, will you?”
Puzzled but complying, the boy nods, “Okay, if you say—” His eyes widen, seeing the enemies before she does. Stepping in front of her with his claymore out, “Miss Furina, run!”
“I can't just leave you here!?!” Furina’s voice trembles as she reaches for a weapon she doesn’t have.
“I can handle them! Just go!!”
She uses her elemental sense to grab onto a random waypoint and the world tilts once more. The leylines spit her out into the hedges next to Hotel Debord, thankfully not busy at this time of day. She grunts at the landing, which was no easier than the first time, legs trembling and breath panting as she drags herself to her feet, limping out of the greenery.
Even with practically no one around, of course someone notices her; an excited reporter rushes over with kamera out and snapping pictures she doesn’t want to exist. She can’t tell him off while still reeling from the vertigo and worry for Ferminet so she hopes a nasty glare gets the message through.
“Lady Furina! It’s been ages since the public—” he doesn’t get to finish when someone snatches his kamera out of his hands; a flurry of red and pink suddenly stands between her and the eager man.
“Francis! Goodness, what is wrong with you? Have you no conduct as a reporter or do I need to drag your ear kicking and screaming back to remedial lessons on etiquette? We do not take pictures without explicit consent and in her case written or verbal permission. You fool are you asking to be sued?!?” Charlotte scolds him while her finger is busily deleting any pictures he managed to take of her friend in such a state.
“Shoo! And can’t you see when a lady doesn’t want to be bothered?! Humph!” She hands the sheepish reporter back his kamera before swirling back to face Furina.
“I’m so sorry about my coworker, Miss Furina. How have you been? Didja read any of the books I recommended?” She rambles off, clearly not having noticed the state Furina’s in yet. “Oh! The Two Musketeers was quite the plot; it's a shame the author declined an interview because so many readers are wondering if there's a sequel in the making or another work to look forward to—are you alright?”
The girl’s eyes went wide, taking in the disheveled clothing, bandages and the very obvious bandage on her face. “Well, thank goodness she stopped Francis’s nonsense before it could escalate, or the steambird would be in for a lot of legal trouble.
Furina hisses as her foot stings, “Char—” She stumbles, and suddenly Charlotte has a handful of her nation’s former archon.
“Oh dear,” she gasps, holding her up as best as she could. “Furina! Good gracious, you’re not fine!”
“Char.. Charlotte, Frem! Freminet he… you have to….help, Freminet!” she says between her ragged breathes, “At… Erinnyes!”
“Freminet? Blonde, diver guy, about yea tall, shy little button but swings a claymore?” The reporter lists off, a shy smile tugging at her lips, “My Ferminet?”
“He’s…in trouble!”
Charlotte clicks her tongue, “Oh dear, so are you! Now hold on, let's get you settled down somewhere.” despite her small build that’s similar to Furina, she doesn’t struggle at all to lift the former archon into her arms with ease in a bridal carry.
“No time! He's… He's…” Furina doesn’t get to even contemplate why people like to carry her this way, and publicly too, because she wouldn’t forgive herself if anything happened to the kid.
“Don't you worry, Miss Furina. Freminet is made of sterner stuff than he looks.” Charlotte assures her she brought her into a lounge inside Hotel Debord. “Don't let the shyness fool you; he'll be fine.”
She sat the lady down on a couch. “You, on the other hand, are looking worse for wear. Madame! Tea and croissants for the lady stat!!” she calls out to the staff, and then pauses for beat. “Some medical supplies too please!”
Casting a look around, she sees a melusine from the Maison Gardiennage looking quite frantic, going from one guest to another, seemingly questioning them about something. Charlotte being the amazing reporter she is, recognizes her immediately.
“Hi Enghiene, sorry to bother you on duty but I've found Miss Furina here—”
The melusine slumps down in utter relief when her eyes fall upon Furina. “Lady Furina! You've found her! We've been looking for her for hours!” she cries out, rushing over to her and beginning to fuss. “Look at you! What would Sigewinne say? My sister isn’t going to be too happy with you.”
“Charlotte, Enghiene, send someone to Erinnyes, Freminet is—”
“Miss Furina! Oh, thank goodness you're alright.” The person she’s been worrying about walks up to her, not a hair out of place. Furina shuts up and sags in her seat; she’s so tired of this. Today has been a whirlwind of emotions.
“Right as rain, like I said he would be. What did I tell ya?” Charlotte giggles, “Hi Fremmy! Got put to work, I see."
"Hello, Charlotte. It was just some hillichurls, nothing really.” His cheeks are instantly dusted with pink. “Thanks for helping Miss Furina.”
“Ah we’re all friends here, no biggie!”
And then, to add to the fun, because it's not enough to have her friends and a Melusine fuss over her, there come two voices Furina dreads to hear in that moment. Not them, anyone but them!
“There you are!” Paimon’s voice is recognizable from across the city. Lumine doesn’t say a thing, but she does wear a rather stormy look on her face. Very not impressed, at all.
“Oh? Hi Lumine, Paimon.” Freminet greets them, unfazed by the rather terrifying aura that surorunds the traveler. “Uh yeah I found her near my campsite; she’s mostly alright…”
“Freminet, Charlotte,” Lumine nods, with the air of someone exercising full patience, and she turns to the runaway lady. “Furina, what did we agree on?”
“Oh no, no no no nope! You’re not lecturing me! You don’t get to!” She screeches, dignity be damned. This hooligan will not get to lecture her no matter how right she is!
Lumine sighs, “I do get to, but I won’t. You got the whole Palais scrambling in panic, and you’re lucky if Neuvillette doesn’t assign you personal guards!”
The idea of it alone makes her shudder. “Oh crud,”
They check her injuries over, feed her potions and food, and fuss till she’s glaring at them to knock it off. Ferminet and Charlotte leave soon to give her privacy to rest up. The day is eventful, but it's not all bad, even if it feels like it's one mishap after another.
“Okay, I’ve sent word that you’re safe and found… mostly. But… I was looking for you.” Lumine suddenly chimes in, a gleeful shine in her eyes at last. Good, it never bodes well when the crazy one is the one with reason.
“Whatever for?” She might as well entertain this.
Paimon immediately jumps into exposition, “So, there’s this theater troupe…..”