Grounded

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A warm breeze caresses his skin, and Este whistles.

Instantly the cranes near the river startle into the air in hurried flaps of their wings. He laughs at the image, and turns his attention to the ducks a bit farther where the river merges into a lake.

He shouldn't be this far from home. It isn't good to stray too far from Mond, especially in recent weeks.

It was rumoured that there was a recent rise in the number of mitachurls wandering around. Additionally, that gardener Donald who lived a bit farther away from Mond near Dadaupa Gorge had said he saw an abyss mage. Apparently, it had wandered out from Dragonspine!

No one but the knights or stray adventurers went into Dragonspine, Este has heard many times that Dragonspine is dangerous.

Well, Este isn't too worried. He's only in Windrise, and while yes a bit far from Mond for a wandering six-year-old, he is sure he'll be safe. Why? Because right nearby is a statue of the seven! No hilichurl would dare approach the statue.

He stretches as he brings his hands up. A content smile flashed to Este's face and he falls back to the grass. There his eyes are drawn to the sky, with beautiful clouds drifting across an orange tinged sky.

Wait orange? He really is out late!

Este scuffs his knee on a root in his haste to get up. He pats the dirt off of his plaid shorts and takes off in a run.

It's easy enough to follow the roads. The matter is if he can make it back in time. The journey to the statue in Windrise is an entire hour away from Mond.

The wind is so unlike earlier. It whips across his face stinging like the gaze of a strict uncle. Wind rushes into his t-shirt and makes him shiver and regret.

His lips wobbles and he thinks back to his promise. It had been a simple thing really, all she had asked of him was to be back before the sky turned orange. Este's eyes turn misty in the thought of his mother's disappointment.

The wind is still brushing past him as he runs, but somehow, it feels like sympathy. Maybe empathy? It feels more gentle now, as it clings to his skin and makes his sleeves flap around.

Maybe mother wouldn't be too mad at him. He would prefer angry to disappointed anyway. Mother deserved to be treated right. He shouldn't act like a bad son

He makes it to Mondstadt's gates just as the sky is at its most reddish. The sun is already mostly gone, and his breaths are heavy as he sprints towards his home.

When he reaches home, his breath gets stuck in his throat. The air around him is calm, and there are no more sympathetic caresses of the wind on his skin. Este feels shivers run down his spine, dreading what's to come and makes him want to run away.

He slowly pulls the back door open.

His mother sits on a wooden chair, a needle between her fingers and a handkerchief in the other. She is absorbed in her work, seemingly embroidering the fabric.

He makes a choked sound as he creeps in, and closes the door behind him. He somehow feels the air is colder in the house than outside.

The sound Este makes catches mother's attention, and she quickly turns towards the door. Her wide gentle eyes droop down, and Este feels like clubbing his past self dead for getting too absorbed with the birds.

His mother stares at him like a kicked puppy, and Este curses whomever gave her those genetics.

"Estchel" Her voice is low, and her eyes misty. She looks like she is about to burst into tears and he reaaally doesn't want that to happen.

"Mother I- really I didn't mean to-"

She closes her eyes and brings a finger to her mouth to indicate silence. Este falls silent immediately.

"Este dear, I know. You didn't mean to, and you'll try better. But this time you really broke your promise. Este, how can I trust you to be safe in there?"

Her words are heavy in his mind and all he can do is look away with guilty eyes. She sighs in responds.

"You know I worry, so why would you make a mistake like this?"

Este stays silent. He can't bear to refute any of her words, because there isn't really an explanation. It was an accident that he forgot to check the time.

She sighs, and Este watches as she slowly puts down the handkerchief she was working on, and sits up. She slowly steps towards him, and her hands wrap around him in a warm embrace.

"I know you're mentally an adult, but you still have the body of a child. Please, your mother worries."

Right. Because this isn't Estchel's first life.