"The Tsaritsa has sent a reply," spoke the Balladeer, his voice echoing through the warmed air. Fire flickered in the middle of the campsite, heat wrapping all of them in a loving manner. A letter that was most likely delivered by Snezhnayan eagles was clutched in his hand.

"My loyal harbinger, I am greatly pleased with your results. The information and assistance you have provided me with will not go unnoticed. Inform all of your recruits that a reward remains for them in Snezhnaya," he read out.

Giddy smiles spread across the faces of all the Fatui recruits, an arrogant smirk upon their leader's.

"She is pleased," he said, smirk growing wider. "She has advised us to station ourselves in Liyue the day after tomorrow, so we'll be out of this freezing dump soon,".

Cries of joy left their mouths, though they kept care not to get too carried away. Upsetting the Balladeer at such a time would be suicidal. It was uncommon for him to not be this benevolent with them.

That night, returning to their individual tents, they all slept with relief in their hearts, a burning sense of loyalty and power in his.

"Klee?" said Y/N.

Indeed, the young, fiery knight was sitting on the edge of a shallow lake, looking up at the sound of her name.

"Y/N? Y/N! You're here too?" she squeaked out, jumping up at seeing a familiar face.

"I was supervising the Dragonspine outer border, on Jean's orders, what are you doing here?". She was thoroughly confused at why the girl would be here. It was common knowledge that Klee loved exploring the areas of Mondstadt, but this part was so close to the snowy peaks of Dragonspine, and very hazardous too.

"I was going to visit big brother Albedo, but I found this cool lake to do fish-blasting!".

Of course. One quirk of the girl was that she had an affinity with bombs, and was unnaturally skilled at making them.

"Albedo? Well, I do need to visit him for the devices...how about I escort you there?" she asked the little girl, who could burst with happiness.

"Yes! I'm finally going to see Albedo!" she hollered, grabbing her large backpack, which was no doubt filled with jumpty-dumpties, and followed Y/N around to the safest path to Dragonspine.

It was hard not to take her eyes off Klee, since the girl as so full of energy that Y/N worried she would get herself into danger. So they both trekked up the frosted mountain paths together. Thankfully, the worst thing that they ran into was a stray cryo slime that was no match for a mixture of Klee's pyro vision and Y/N's electro.

Soon, Albedo's campsite came into view.

"Albedooo!" shouted the girl, running in and suffocating her brother in a big hug. He would've tripped over if it wasn't for the chair behind him.

"Klee? Oh, I didn't know you were coming to visit," he said, a small smile making its way onto his face as he saw his adopted sister.

"I had a bit of work today, and I saw her near Dragonspine looking for you, so I thought to come here with her," she explained.

"Well, thank you, I wouldn't want Klee to come here on her own regardless," said the alchemist. "That reminds me, your detection device, it's finished,". Opening a drawer in his desk, he brought out a circular metal orb with a glowing hole near the end of it.

"Press this and you'll be able to detect abyssal and ruin monsters in the vicinity," He showed, pressing the button. Nothing happened. "It will glow bright red when a monster is actually near,".

Even Klee stopped for a moment to look at the pretty machine.

"Woah, it's so shiny!" she said, marvelling at her brother's creation.

A while went by, and Y/N decided it was time to go.

"Again, thank you Albedo, I should be going now, goodbye Klee," said Y/N, waving to the girl. They both waved back goodbye to her, and in less than thirty minutes, she began scaling down the mountainous snow peaks once more.

It had gotten significantly colder since the winter months were looming in, so to maintain good body temperature, she stopped near an abandoned camp and lit the fire to warm up. It felt relaxing to sit down and just gaze at the horizon peeking through the trees, iced grass adorning the pathways beside her. It had been such a long while since she had allowed herself to truly relax. Ever since she stepped onto Teyvat soil, the whole place intrigued her, since - as if by instinct – she knew the many nations held secrets so deep, it would take lifetimes to unveil all of them. Although, Teyvat was the most accepting place she had ever been in.

Her ears pricked up. The clocking of a gun burst her out of her reverie.

"I thought I told you to leave".

The sword left her belt faster than her brain could comprehend. A shield of surging electric charge surrounded her, the vision tied to her side springing to life.

Getting rid of three Fatui skirmishers would be a difficult task. Running forward, the hilt of her sword turned and a wave of electro paralysed them all, but they had their own shields ready, shooting her with pyro and cryo attacks simultaneously. She didn't know if it was the impending cold or the shock of it all, but her legs refused to move as fast as he mind, though moments ago she knew what she would attack with.

It was excruciating, being bombarded with attacks from them.

"We can do whatever we want now, our supplies will be renewed once we leave to Liyue anyway," sniggered one of the men, singeing her uniform with his gun.

"Definitely, we could take her head back as a trophy too-,".

Sharp. That's what it was. Sharp, brutal energy, electrical and all, pulsating around them, their limbs collapsing and failing them. An explosion from the woman herself, her electro vision being blindingly purple.

The skirmishers were dead.

Heart pounding, Y/N gasped for breath, practically begging the anemo Archon for some fresh air. Everything seemed to crackle with an unknown, eerie energy. Clapping hands could be heard from the distance, but Y/N's mind was too disoriented to register it.

Her vision, her power, her weapon, Klee, Albedo, the chaos cores, the abyss, Mondstadt, home, her......

---

The tent's flap heaved open as he stepped out. Only he was quite surprised when they saw a girl in the Knight of Favonius uniform lying unconscious in a hydrogunners's arms.

"They got to us already? I'm impressed," spoke the Balladeer, walking up to his recruits. "And who is this poor knight you've kidnapped?" he asked, eyeing the woman's vision and sword.

"Master Balladeer, she- she's different," stuttered out the man. He raised an eyebrow in distaste.

"Oh really? In what way?". He seemed to be genuinely interested.

"She did something, her vision, it's electro right? But when we fought her in the mountains, it seemed to throw everything but normal electro at us. It nearly blew us off the cliffs,". He seemed to pale at the memory. All the others behind him nodded rapidly in agreement. "The others...they died,".

Their leader simply stood there with a calculating look on his face.

"If what you say is true, then she could be dangerous, but I doubt it is. Regardless-" he stopped, looking at the panicked look on the skirmisher's face, "-we'll keep her here. Since our leave to Liyue is tomorrow, we'll be far away from the Knights, so they won't expect it. After that, we can just pawn her off to Dottore, he'll love a new guinea pig,". He ended the explanation by nodding to Y/N's body and the old hilichurl cage found at the camp, signalling to put her there.

And he did nothing but comply.

Y/N felt like somebody had thrown her off the mountains and sunk needles into her brain along the way. She winced as she lifted her eyelids, colours hazily coming into view.

Colours? Wasn't she on a mountain?

"Awake, are we?" came a voice that she couldn't recognise. Trying to sit up, she founded her wrists being tugged by a rough, bristled rope. The same went for her ankles. There also was cloth brushing her head, and when she turned it around, she was met with the wall of a tent.

Lying there like an animal waiting for the slaughterhouse, she opened her mouth – the only thing not bound.

"Who are you?" was the first thought that came to her. A scoff. And a chuckle that left the hairs on the back of her neck standing.

Her vision was covered in shadows of the metal bars of what she guessed was a cage, the light of a fire coming in from outside. Whoever that had laughed was definitely standing behind her, since not even her peripheral vision could make out anybody else there.

"Who I am is of no concern to you, but I'll amuse you. The Balladeer, number six of the Fatui Harbingers. Maybe that'll keep you on your toes," he cackled menacingly. Fatui Harbinger? Y/N had known the Fatui resided here in Dragonspine; she had met many of them in the City itself, diplomats and such, but never had she had the pleasure to meet a harbinger before. And surely after seeing her lose it in the forest the most reasonable option was to kidnap and keep a close eye on her.

Also, the sixth? It sounded intimidating.

But she was careful not to reveal how she felt. Instead, she spoke with a calm tone, "Is there any other reason to keep me tied up here? I have duties to get back to".

Finally, she saw him. He walked up to her, dressed in what was definitely considered clothing of nobility. A kasa hat covered his short, purple hair and his menacing violet eyes made up for the short stature. And most notably, an electro vision, similar to hers hung on his front clothes. He would have looked quite handsome if it wasn't for the cruel grin on his porcelain skin.

"You managed to kill five of my strongest soldiers without any exceptional weapons, apart from that drooping piece of steel you call a sword," he said, sneering. "Of-course I'd get curious,".

Her sword. The one Jean had gifted her when she first became a Knight. Of-course they would take it. At times, the Fatui could be as vulgar as treasure hoarders.

"I'm going to keep you with me until I find out how you did that, or more accurately, until the Tsaritsa,". He sat down on the chair opposite her, in front of such a disorganised desk that Albedo's would be put to shame.

"The Tsaritsa?" asked Y/N, frowning.

"I sent her a letter yesterday when you arrived and told her what happened, and I've gotten a reply. She wants to see you," The last part was said with a disbelieving tone. As if he didn't believe she was worthy of the Tsaritsa's attention.

Y/N couldn't tell what was more shocking. The fact that she had slept for an entire day, or that the Cryo Archon's interest in her would go this far.

How was she going to explain this to the Knights?

"You're mistaken. The Knights will be alerted, they'll come looking for me," she said with a hard conviction. Another cruel chuckle.

"We're leaving for Liyue tomorrow. Our next patrol area before we head back to the Snezhnaya. So I doubt your knightly friends would come searching for you by then,". It felt horrifying at how apathetic the man was. He got up from the chair and started to leave.

"Don't think about leaving, you won't get far," he said finally, without looking back. Electricity had crackled from his hand, more controlled than what Y/N usually worked with.

Truth be told, Y/N wasn't planning to. At least not now. She had been wondering when to break it to Jean that she wanted to leave to the Knights, it felt constricting always having to be alert about every minor crisis in Mondstadt, so this...conventional way at least provided her a shortcut. Even if she couldn't say goodbye now, she could send a letter.

When they arrived in Liyue, Y/N could come up with a plan to escape, maybe even use her full abilities, even with the backlash on her downgraded body. It was unnerving at how logically she took the situation. Any other person in her shoes would have fought tooth and nail trying to leave. But after seeing him face to face, the thought of fighting a harbinger, especially this one, left a bad taste in her mouth.

Immediately after, her mind raced to the detection devices. The Fatui had been merciful enough to leave her vision on her, perhaps out of fear that it may kill them like their colleagues in the mountain, but her satchel was no where to be found. It must have been searched through as well.

She felt like pummelling the smug faces of those recruits, not to mention their heartless leader.

With the wind blowing heavily outside and the warmth of the tent tempting her, she started to fall asleep shortly after the Balladeer left.

Sounds of increased chatter had awoken her much later. Her eyes opened quickly and adjusted to her surroundings once more. It was a grim reminder of where she was. By the light spilling through the pores of the tent, it was early morning.

"-I thought you were retreating back to Snezhnaya. You're telling me your coming back to Liyue? For what reason?". She knew the Balladeer spoke that, and wondered how she would get punished if she eavesdropped. Forgetting that, she tried to lean her head closer to the wall of the tent, trying to hear further.

A new voice spoke after that, not belonging to any recruit that's for sure, since it sounded bolder towards the Balladeer's.

"I have business in Inazuma, Liyue is the stop I'll be waiting at until I'm able to get there," responded the new man.

"Didn't you get the gnosis and complete your job at Liyue already?" asked the irritated voice once more.

"Partly," came a smooth reply. "I mostly came here to spend some time,".

Footsteps grew closer to the door and suddenly, the tent flap burst open to reveal a tall, ginger man, a bow and arrow resting on his back. A hydro vision dangled from his belt. The most noticeable feature of his was the wild energy around him – not elemental – but pure aura. He was definitely a free spirit.

He smiled as he caught Y/N's eye and walked up to her.

"So the rumours that you have a Knight locked up here are true, huh?" asked his cheerful voice. "But why do you have her tied up like an animal?" he said, eyeing the ropes binding her. The Balladeer came into the tent.

"So she doesn't run away?" he stated, as if it was obvious.

"I won't," said Y/N suddenly. "I have no reason to,".

"Oh really? And that's meant to make me release you?" he asked, mocking her.

"If I swear on the Tsaritsa that I won't do anything, will you at least release my hands so I can eat?" The honesty was prominent in her eyes, and maybe the Balladeer saw through to it as well. Something must have happened for him to sigh and say "Her highness did wish for the girl to come alive," and motioned for the ginger man who was standing there, silently watching the conversation, to untie Y/N.

"So what's your name?" asked the man, trying to build conversation as he reached through the bars of the cage, gripping her wrists.

"What's yours?" rebutted Y/N. A calculating grin came upon the man's face.

"Oh, so this is how it's going to be, well, I'm Tartaglia, number eleven of the Fatui harbingers, codename Childe," he looked as if he had won a bet or something. "Now your turn,". So he was also a harbinger, huh. He seemed far less intimidating that the Balladeer.

What was the point in hiding her identity? Even if the Balladeer presumably deemed it unnecessary to him, the Tsaritsa was bound to tell her harbingers after they met.

"Y/N L/N, Thunderblade Knight,".

Her vision sparked a tiny bit at that.

"Thunderblade Knight? Sounds powerful. So, you're from Mondstadt?" he continued. It seemed strange to Y/N why a harbinger was trying to evoke conversation to her.

"You could say that,". The harbinger saw the wordplay that she had used, a way to avoid the question, but couldn't say anything. The only one who had a right to, who requested to question her, was the one he was forever loyal to. The Tsaritsa. And he wasn't about to betray her for some Knight.

That, and the fact that the purple haired harbinger had strutted up to them and gave Childe a seething glare.

"If you're done chatting up our new prisoner, then leave,". Heavy emphasis was put on the word leave. Raising his hands up in surrender he left the tent as quickly as he came.

Y/N rubbed her wrists lightly and fished around in her inner uniform pocket.

One crumbly hash brown wrapped in brown paper. Sara from Good Hunter had given it to her yesterday morning as a thank you for delivering her dish to Dawn Winery. Thankfully she hadn't eaten it.

The Balladeer seemed to stand there, stoic face and hands behind his back, watching her as she ate with a somewhat bored sheen in his eyes. Y/N truly didn't care where he stood, she hurriedly shoved down the hash brown in a few large bites, before wiping her mouth and staring straight at the Balladeer once more.

"Is there any particular reason why you're staring into my soul?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Don't try to be smart with me. I'm observing why in Teyvat would the Her highness would ever wish to meet you," He spoke, looking down his nose at her. Y/N somehow felt that he would be doing that a lot now.

"I don't know myself. But I am curious, so I'll comply with your wishes until I get to speak to her," she lied.

The Balladeer looked at her for a moment with narrowed eyes, before he up and left again, the train of his kasa hat trailing by his feet "If you know what's good for you...".

Him leaving allowed Y/N time to gather her thoughts. She had a vague feeling why the Cryo Archon may wish to see her, but going through this insufferable harbinger's orders is the only way that she'll be able to see. Liyue was where they were headed next, and that's when she would escape. Liyue was a beautiful nation and Y/N wished for nothing more than to see it in all its glory. But she would do it after she met the Tsaritsa. At least there wasn't a possibility of death then.

After that...maybe she would meet up with the Traveller in Inazuma. She wasn't really associated with the Traveller the way Jean or Kaeya were. She had seen him a few times, and the strange floating fairy that always followed him. He did seem like a nice guy, especially after saving Mondstadt from Stormterror. Y/N was busy camping out at Cape Oath for many months whilst it happened, wanting to see fight every type of abyss mage there.

Abyssal creatures always intrigued her.

She sat up straighter and untied the ropes binding her feet, finally stretching her limbs after so long.

Jean would probably wonder where she was now, but, if the Fatui really were leaving for Liyue tomorrow, then the Knight's wouldn't have enough time to realise she really was missing. Her stomach tightened at the thought of leaving them all behind without a goodbye.

But she always knew Mondstadt was never a permanent stop for her. Nor was the fate that was given to her with her vision. It was a tool to her, as was Albedo's when he told her about it on a chilly afternoon long ago. She was grateful to the electro Archon for granting her a path to godhood in Celestia, but she didn't want it.

Clutching the purple gem and the silver lining of the vision in her hand, she leaned back against the wall of the large hilichurl cage and allowed herself to nod off once more into a dreamless sleep.