lyre • venti

xiv

"now that interstate is paved with memories!" y/n sang along.

the eight were currently in y/n's car (which they rarely used) on their way to an empty field to deploy the device that would take the people from teyvat home. it had been about a half hour's worth of driving so far, consisting of y/n at the wheel, zhongli in shotgun, hu tao, xingqiu, and chongyun in the passenger's, and aether, paimon, and venti (much to his dismay) at the back. the cryo user was asleep, as he didn't really handle motion sickness well. everyone else was listening to music, mainly tunes from y/n's playlist, and jamming to the ones they recognized from their time here.

"of a past life i lived when i was eighteen!" hu tao cheered, sticking her head out of the car window. at the moment, "roadtrip" by dream was playing for about the hundredth time as requested by the young director, and although some people were weirded out by the lyrics, they couldn't help but nod along to the catchy beat.

"musical culture here is very different then how it is in liyue," zhongli noted. "most of the songs i know are very traditional. many songs here, on the other hand, have a certain, bounce, to it..."

venti laughed from the backseat. "that's because you're an old man, old man! you should open your eyes to the more modern age of music."

zhongli only grumbled in annoyance. but while everyone was laughing and singing along, the geo archon spotted an odd figure at the corner of the side-view mirror.

...

"alrighty, folks. just a short drive through this town and we should be there in no time," y/n announced.

at this point in the trip, the group had become quiet. most of the people were asleep except for some, namely the driver themself, aether, zhongli, and xingqiu, who were gazing out the window. quiet r&b played in the background, and to be honest, y/n was feeling a bit anxious.

"it's been quite the long drive," zhongli spoke up. "are you really going to make the two hour journey back?"

y/n shrugged shyly. "maybe not. i have my card on me so i might just stay at a motel, but traffic usually eases up more in the evening. i'm sorry, i should've known it would be super busy on weekends."

zhongli reached over and gave them a pat on the head. from the back, venti began to stir. "you can't fully predict anything," the geo archon reassured.

y/n smiled, and from the back, venti sent the geo lord a death glare. if the windows were open, he'd definitely slap him in the face with the wind.

after a few more song's worth of driving, y/n parked the car. there seemed to be only one other person at the reserve, and it made sense, since it was a weekday and the sun already began its descent.

those who were up gently woke those asleep, and the group went deeper into the large field. tall pine trees surrounded the area and the grass was relatively tall. it would be a nice place to go to for a picnic or to fly kites, y/n thought.

speaking of which, they hadn't spoken to venti since they had arrived. the air between the two seemed to be awkward, and while everyone else was chatting amongst themselves, venti and y/n walked by alone, and pretty far away from each other.

"this seems like a good spot," zhongli deemed. he prepared the small device, which was a small blue ring, and held it in his hand for everyone to see. "are you all ready to go?"

everyone turned to look back at y/n. "thank you for your help again, my liege. you've been a big aid to us during our time here," xingqiu acknowledged. 

chongyun nodded, while hu tao engulfed the person in another bone-crushing hug. "i'll miss youuu, y/n! hey, when you die, be sure to visit me, i'll find your corpse and prepare the best funeral for you!"