Barbara saw Fischl hemming and hawing and only leaned in harder—eyes bright with curiosity, but with a mischievous glint hiding underneath.
"Fischl, come on—say it! What kind of 'comfortable' are we talking about?"
Fischl's face went scarlet. She fumbled for words. "It's… mm… relaxing… and then…"
She paused, drew a breath, as if committing to the plunge. When she spoke again, her voice carried a soft, involuntary sweetness—like she'd drifted back into the memory.
"It's… warm. Your whole body just… sinks into it, like you're wrapped up from the inside out. You stop thinking and— you just let go…"
Barbara's eyes grew wider with every word, disbelief warring with a blush that climbed from her cheeks to the tips of her ears. She bit her lip, mind clearly racing with… pictures.
"Th-that comfortable?"
Her face turned a deeper pink. Envy—yes, a flicker—slid under her embarrassment. She patted her cheeks in a token effort to cool down. "You're not… exaggerating, are you?"
Fischl was mortified enough already; Barbara's doubtful tone made her flare up in alarm. "Of course it's true! If you don't believe me, then— then… try it yourself?"
She heard herself say it and froze. Eyes round. The color shot down her neck.
"I—I didn't mean…!"
"W-what?! You want me to try?!" Barbara's brain short-circuited. She all but hid in her skirt, heart thudding like a drum.
"H-how could I— I can't— I—!"
So much for teasing Fischl. The tables had flipped in a heartbeat, and now Barbara was the one in pieces. She squeaked, "N-no more! L-let's just… go eat!"
And fled down the stairs like she'd sprouted Anemo wings.
Fischl watched her retreat, then ducked her head with a tiny, helpless laugh. The blush lingered, but so did a small, inexplicable sense of victory. Prinzessin, not fool.
Morning light spilled across Wangshu Inn's corridors, gilding two pink-cheeked girls and the hush between them with a private warmth.
Even after breakfast, Barbara's face was still rosy.
"Anyway," Paimon said, squinting between the two of them, "does anyone know you're here? You're both Vision-bearers—suddenly vanishing is kinda bad, right?"
Barbara and Fischl stiffened in unison.
"Uh-oh."
They'd snuck out—and been gone all night.
Barbara's fingers twisted at her hem. "I… um…"
Fischl coughed into the back of her hand and threw up the royal composure. "Be at ease. We walk the road of destiny itself; one missing night shall not plunge Mondstadt into chaos!"
That was confidence. Barbara… didn't have it. She was the Deaconess of the Church of Favonius. She normally left word. This time, she'd let Fischl drag her through a blue flash and— poof. No notes. No permission.
"I… should be fine," she murmured, not convincing herself. "Work isn't that busy. The Church doesn't watch me that closely."
But what if Acting Grand Master Jean found out she hadn't come home? The thought made Barbara regret not scribbling anything before they left.
"Also…" Barbara blinked, a new worry dawning. "Fischl—can we even go back soon? That ticket of yours… it's spent, right?"
"Eh? It can't be used again?" Paimon drifted closer, wide-eyed. "Was it one-time only?"
"Hmph." Fischl flicked her hair, defiant but pinched. "Relics of fate are not trifles for mortal convenience. Its power is exhausted. Without time to replenish it, reuse is… unlikely."
They had charged it for days. Even the Church's element conduits had been pressed into service. All for a single jump.
"So… we're stuck in Liyue for a few days?" Barbara asked, resigned.
Paimon's grin went sly. "Easy! Just have Kairo take you home. No ticket needed!"
"R-really?" Barbara turned to him, startled.
Kairo smiled and nodded. "Sure. There's a Statue of The Seven out in Dihua Marsh. Ley-line density's high—enough to open a return anchor to Mondstadt."
He'd noticed it yesterday; it just wasn't on the Inn's side of the river.
"Statues mark nodes where ley energy pools," Kairo added. "That's what the Abyss Order piggybacks when they set their own anchors."
Barbara only half-understood, but the gist was clear. Fischl's eyes shone with a thoughtful glint. "As foretold—thou wieldest secret paths as if they were thy birthright."
Paimon clapped. "See? No problem! We can sightsee to-day, then Kairo zaps you back tonight. We crash here, and tomorrow we hit the road!"
Barbara brightened, then faltered, peeking at Kairo. "Won't that… trouble you?"
"It's nothing."
Fischl sniffed, crossing her arms. "Since we have come so far as Liyue, why hurry to leave? Let us savor this land of contracts. Besides—Kairo's journey is unfinished. We should not withdraw so soon."
Paimon nodded vigorously. "Exactly! Liyue's huge—come play!"
"But… did you tell your family?" Barbara asked softly.
That one hit. Fischl hadn't. Oz hadn't come with her either. He'd cover for her for a day, maybe two. Longer would be tricky—unless she picked up a 'long-range assignment' she could… interpret loosely.
While Fischl calculated evasions, far away in Mondstadt—
Morning sun slanted through the Knights of Favonius headquarters. Peace—and paperwork—reigned.
"What? Barbara is missing?!"
Behind her desk, Jean looked up sharply as Kaeya reported in, arms loosely folded.
"Fresh from the Cathedral," Kaeya said. "The Deaconess has… vanished."
Jean set down her quill, fingers tapping the desk, eyes cooling. "Impossible. Barbara doesn't leave without notice—and the Church is guarded. How could she simply disappear?"
She knew her sister. Barbara flitted to the plaza to sing, visited the Knights often—but never this. Never a silence that swallowed footprints.
"And the Cathedral keeps watch," Jean added. "One of the sisters has a Cryo Vision. Even the Abyss would find it difficult to slip past and spirit her away."
Kaeya lifted a shoulder. "That's the strange part. They insist Barbara never left the Cathedral… and yet she isn't there."
Jean's frown deepened. Vanished was a word she didn't like. Abyss Order was the only thing that fit—except the Cathedral had been on high alert since the Lyre incident. To intrude and abduct, unseen? Unlikely.
"Anyone else missing? Any other threads?" she asked.
Kaeya's smile tilted. "One more—and you might not expect her."
He let the beat stretch. "Fischl."
Jean's brows lifted. "Fischl is gone too?"
Kaeya nodded. "Odder still—Oz is still in Mondstadt."
Jean went still. Oz without Fischl? Never. The raven was her shadow and her voice—he translated her, for Barbatos' sake.
"This time," Kaeya went on, "they entered the Cathedral together. Witnesses confirm it. They did not come out. And yet—both are gone; Oz remains."
Jean's fingers stilled. She exhaled slowly. "If even Oz won't say…"
"The Church asked him." Kaeya's eye glinted with amusement. "All he offered was: 'Her Highness entrusted Miss Barbara with a task.' As for where? 'Unclear.'"
Jean pinched the bridge of her nose. "Even Oz is tight-lipped. Then this is no simple absence."
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