It Must be Love

Leader/Leading

Kaeya looks around the hilichurl camp down below. It looked familiar.

Mita the mitachurl puts Kaeya down and the four of them walk down the steep hill. Sleeping hilichurls are littered around in the grass and packed dirt.

Then it hits Kaeya. This is the same tribe that he and Ella had communicated with not that long ago.

"Can he do it?" Albedo asks.

"Huh?" Kaeya says, looking towards the alchemist.

"Can the hilichurl communicate with the tribe?" Albedo monitors to the sleeping hilichurls. It was a miracle that they were still sleeping.

"Why can't Mita do it?"

"Who's Mita?" Albedo asks.

"Oh," Kaeya chuckles. "I named her Mita. Sorry, I'm not really good at naming things."

"Mita, short for mitachurl. Since she is my first mitachurl she will be Mita #1."

Kaeya squints his eyes and raises an eyebrow to the alchemist. "Sure..." Kaeya says the word slowly.

"I like it," Albedo says. "To answer your question, the reason Mita #1 cannot talk to the hilichurls And So your hilichurl has to is because she doesn't know the language."

"What?" Kaeya says. "How can Mita be the leader of the hilichurls if she cannot talk to them?"

"Mita #1 doesn't have to know the language to be their leader. She will act more like their protector than a leader. Mita #1 will learn in time what to do. It's in her DNA."

"Okay."

Kaeya goes over to Celi Boya who is obvious at what they are doing. He takes the hilichurls hand and gently grass him to the sleeping hilichurls. Kaeya gets on his knees and just as he had done with Celi Boya, he shakes him awake.

Abruptly awoken by the shaking the hilichurl blinks to actions. "—!" It yells.

Kaeya shakes his head. "Dada." He points to himself and repeats the word. Celi Boya also joins in.

The noise startles nearby hilichurls and soon every creature is awake.

"Dada," Kaeya says, trying to get them to understand. They seem to and settle down.

'That was easy," Kaeya thinks to himself.

Kaeya didn't know how to explain to the hilichurls that Mita was going to be their new leader so instead he trudged to intrusive her to them.

"Mita." Kaeya points to the mitachurl. "Dada."
Kaeya thought that Celi Boua would join in the but the hilichurl goes quite. He pays no mind of this and continues to try to communicate with the hilichurls.

The hilichurls inch closer to Kaeya. Sweat start to build up in his forehead. The boy looks over to Albedo who just observes. Mita takes a step forward at his command.

The hilichurls do not move back but instead
Move toward her. They sorround their new leader and dance for her. A few leave the majority and come back hauling a giant ax. It has many scraps and scratches on it and overall looks aged.

Mita takes the present from her new tribe and walks farther into the grounds.

The hilichurls sing for her and circle around her dancing. Kaeya walks over to Albedo who has made his way to the top of the hill.

"It seems that they took her as their new leader," Albedo states.

"Yup," Kaeya says.

"Celi Boya!" Kaeya calls, waving his arm high above his head. Once he gets the attention of the hilichurl, Kaeya points to the ground right next to him.

The hilichurl slowly makes his way to the two humans, slowly plodding up the hill. As he makes it to the top he stands near his friend stooping forward and breathing heavily.

"Now that Mita #1 is the new leader of this tribe, it's time to head back," Albedo says, turning his back to his creation and walking away leaving Kaeya and Celi Boya to scramble behind him.

"Aren't you going to say goodbye?" Kaeya asks.

"Goodbye?" Albedo raises an eyebrow. "Why would I do that?"

"Because it's the right thing to do?" Kaeya questions. "It's not nice to just abandon people without...saying...goodbye..."

Kaeya's eyes grow big.

He stops.

"He...he didn't say goodbye..." Tears form in Kaeya's eyes.

"Who?"

"My dad."

Wind blew the branches of the naby trees. Gleaned shook trying to hold on for dear life. Some succeed others blow past Kaeya and Albedo.

"He left me on the steps of Dawn Winery and said I was the 'last hope'. Whatever that means."

"Could it be..."

Kaeya shut his mouth and let the older one of them talk.

"Could you be the last hope of Khaenri'ah?" Albedo asks, looking straight at the boy's eyes.

"What do you mean?" Kaeya asks.

"I don't remember much from my past but I distinctly remember talk about the last hope."