A/N: Before I start, yes I know the genshin lore, yes I did write this on purpose. It's better this way to blame the abyss for everything save the day and done.
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Even Paimon stopped floating for a moment, her tiny body hanging in the air like she'd forgotten how gravity worked.
Aether's face went through a rapid series of emotions—confusion, denial, dawning understanding. "What... what are you saying? That she's not my sister?"
"No, that's not what I'm saying at all." I held up my hands placatingly. "She is your sister. Same soul, same memories, same bond. But the path she walked, the experiences she had, the version of you she's been searching for—they're different from yours."
Lumine's voice was barely a whisper. "Different how? I... I don't understand. We were together when the Unknown God attacked. We got separated. That's all I know. I've been trying to find him ever since."
I met her eyes. She genuinely didn't know. She hadn't stepped foot in Teyvat at all—the shop door had intercepted her before she could. She had no context for what awaited her there.
"In your timeline," I said gently, "Aether didn't wake up in Mondstadt which this Aether did. He woke up... somewhere else. With people who weren't kind. Who shaped him differently."
Lumine's face paled. "What do you mean? What people? What happened to him?"
Aether hands tightened into hers. "The Abyss," he said quietly upon realization.
I looked at him. "You know about them?"
Which does make sense considering he has a direct confrontation with the abyss right after arriving at Mondstadt.
He nodded, his expression grim. "I've seen what they can do. When I first woke up in Mondstadt, after I met Paimon, I encountered them. They were... wrong. Twisted. They corrupted Dvalin, poisoned him against his own home. Whatever they touch, they ruin."
He looked at his sister. "If a version of me fell into their hands..."
I finished the thought for him. "He might become part of them."
Lumine's breath caught. "No. No, that's—my brother would never—"
"Your brother wouldn't," I agreed. "But I know a version of him, broken by loss, shaped by darkness, given nowhere else to turn? If you're late he'll become part of them. And in this Aether timeline, you're the one who's lost. You're the one he's been searching for, believing you need saving from the gods."
She stared at me, tears streaming down, then a look of determination appeared on her face and said with convention. "I have to save him!"
I smiled at that and said, "That's the spirit, but before that you should prepare."
Aether frowned at this and said, and upon realization he said. "Wait, if her version of Aether would become part of the abyss that means.."
I took a deep breath. Might as well tell him since hiding it wouldn't matter anyway, he already has the vital information.
"Lumine, here haven't landed at Tevyat at all and went directly to my shop." I said carefully.
I looked at Aether. "And you—when you woke up in Teyvat, you were alone?"
He nodded. "Completely alone. No Lumine, no memory of how I got there. Just... me and the ruins and then Paimon found me."
Paimon nodded vigorously. "Traveler found me while I was drowning! Then decide to take me along with him to become his guide!"
I pinched the bridge of my nose. Basically the canon, right.
"Okay," I said slowly. "Here's what happened. When the Unknown God attacked, she sealed you for a long time and your Lumine? She arrived at Tevyat 500 years ago or so. Her experience compared to you is different thanks to that mess which happened centuries ago and this Lumine—" I gestured at her. "—landed in a void between worlds and found my shop before she could reach any version of Teyvat."
A silent realization dawned on him, which terrified him. "My Lumine is already part of the abyss?"
I nodded. "At this point, yeah. It's already too late, she's already corrupted."
Silence fell over the shop.
Lumine was the first to break it. She laughed—a broken, wet sound that was half sob. "I need to find him now, before it's too late, so-so, I should leave."
Aether's voice cracked, realizing that he was too late to save his own sibling. "Yeah, you should, I'm so sorry for being the same brother that you're looking for, I'm not him, but since he's the same as me, he should be panicking right now looking for his sister."
"Don't." She grabbed his face with both hands, forcing him to look at her. "Don't you dare apologize for something so minor. Regardless of you not from my own timeline." Her thumbs wiped at his tears. "You are my brother. You have his face, his voice, his heart. You love me the same way he does. You searched for me the same way he would have."
"But—"
"Does it matter?" she demanded. "Does it matter which timeline we came from? Which version of you I lost or which version of me you found? We're here. Together. Right now."
Aether stared at her, something breaking and reforming in his eyes. "I... I don't know."
Paimon floated between them, waving her tiny arms. "Paimon thinks it doesn't matter! Paimon helped Traveler find his sister, and Paimon found her! Who cares about timelines?! Paimon certainly doesn't!"
Despite everything, Aether let out a small, choked laugh. "You really don't understand anything, do you?"
"Paimon understands what's important!" The little fairy crossed her arms huffily. "And what's important is that Traveler found his sister and Paimon is the best guide ever!"
Lumine laughed too, wiping at her eyes. "She's... something."
"Yeah." Aether's voice was soft. "She really is."
They sat in silence for a moment, processing. I gave them that space—it was the least I could do after dropping a multiversal bomb on their emotional reunion.
Finally, Aether spoke again. "So... the Lumine of my world. She's out there somewhere."
I nodded. "That's right."
And thought to myself. 'Probably with her abyss goons, looking for you as you're out of her monitoring sight.'
Lumine's hand found his. "And my Aether—the one I lost—he's out there too. Alone. Searching for me."
"Pretty much," I confirmed.
Then Aether surprised me by laughing. It wasn't a happy laugh—more like the sound of someone who'd hit the absolute limit of how much cosmic irony they could handle.
"So we're both each other's consolation prizes," he said. "Copies. Replacements."
Lumine's eyes flashed with something fierce. "No. We're not replacements. We're not copies." She grabbed his hand tighter. "We're us. Different paths, same experiences, but still us. The core—the part that makes us who we are—that's the same. And that part loves each other. That part will always love each other."
Aether looked at her for a long moment. Then, slowly, a real smile—small but genuine—tugged at his lips.
"You always were the stubborn one."
"Someone had to be."
Paimon, who had been watching the exchange with intense concentration, suddenly perked up. "Does this mean Traveler gets to keep his sister? Paimon doesn't want to give her back!"
Lumine laughed—a real laugh this time. "I'm not a toy to be kept or given back."
"Paimon knows that! Paimon was just making sure!"
I pushed off from the counter, feeling like the worst of the emotional storm had passed. "For what it's worth, you're both welcome here anytime. And if you ever want to talk about saving your other halves—the versions still waiting for you—I can help with that too. For a price, obviously. Business is business."
Aether shook his head, but there was no anger in it. "You really don't know when to stop selling, do you?"
"It's a gift."
Lumine studied me with new eyes—more analytical now, the survivor's instinct kicking in. "You knew. When you found me, you knew I wasn't from his world."
"Yep," I admitted. "You showed up alone, traumatized, with no context about Teyvat or the Abyss. That didn't match what I know about... well, about how things usually go." I shrugged. "Different experiences leave different marks."
She considered that, then nodded slowly. "I appreciate your honesty. Even if it hurt."
"Better hurt now than fester later," I said with a shrug. "Trust me, I've seen what happens when people build relationships on misunderstandings. It never ends well."
Paimon floated up to eye level with me. "Mister Shopkeeper, you're weird. But Paimon likes you. You gave Paimon snacks and reunited Traveler with his sister. Paimon declares you an honorary good person!"
I blinked. "I... thank you? I think?"
"Paimon's declarations are very prestigious! You should be honored!"
Lumine and Aether shared a look—the kind of look that siblings who've known each other for millennia share—and then both burst out laughing.
It was good to hear. Complicated as their situation was, they still had each other. And in a multiverse full of infinite possibilities, that was worth something.
I gestured toward the seating area again. "Seriously, make yourselves comfortable. Rest, talk, figure out what you want to do next. The shop doesn't close, and I'm not going anywhere."
Aether guided his sister toward the couches, Paimon floating alongside them chattering about snacks and how she was definitely the best guide in the universe and probably deserved a reward.
As they settled in, Lumine glanced back at me one more time. "Thank you. For saving me. For being honest. For... all of it."
I nodded. "You're welcome. And Lumine?"
"Yeah?"
"Good luck saving your brother and if you ever need some help, well you can pay me." I said with a sly smile.
She cracked a smile, but this time it was a good kind of smile. "Money grabber."
Paimon patted her head awkwardly. "There, there. Paimon is here. Paimon will help you too now! Paimon helps everyone!"
Aether snorted. "You help yourself to snacks, mostly."
"Paimon's help comes in many forms! Snack acquisition is just one of them!"
I watched them settle in, a found family of sorts forming right in front of me. From somewhere behind the counter, Archer caught my eye and raised an eyebrow.
I just shook my head and smiled.
Some things were more important than profit.
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