wanderer's moon | kaedehara kazuha

08 | words you hold onto alone at night (i)

3 weeks later

Deep into the night, Kazuha finds himself a place to sit on one of the many cliffs at the east of Qiongji Estuary. Whether it is intentional that he chose that particular spot to end the day is questionable, but he knows that compared to anywhere in the land of Geo, he picks the lone spot of a log in a heartbeat. Nothing beats the breathtaking view laid in front of him. Liyue has gone through many wars and disasters, finally at peace in this day and age rewarded with a spectacular view.

In front of Kazuha was a live painting of the Huaguang Stone Forest, its mountain peaks kissing the clouds, blessed by purity. The landscape stretches from Mt. Tianheng all the way to the Dihua Marsh, littered by ruins of an old civilization. The wind around him is quiet—simply singing a mellow lullaby for the rock and mountains to quell its rumbling. The blades of grass underneath his feet are scarcely still, proven to be asleep allured by the winds' soothing tunes.

When the wind finally ceased, Kazuha took this chance to look into the sky and witness the nightly glow of the cratered moon, hanging high up into the firmament of an endless sea of stars.

Kazuha wonders what sound the moon and stars make, well, despite him being profoundly in tune with nature. Beings like those that belonged to the heavens not meant for the mortals is one of the many things he is curious about. The stars exist to shine and fall onto the horizon for one to make a wish, but what good would it do if the world merely saw them as ornaments for the night canvas—wouldn't it be more meaningful when one learns its story? Then, what about the moon? Yes, it gleams brighter than the envied stars. Yes, it takes the shape of the rivalling sun that sleeps underneath the horizon. Yes, it guides lost souls to the unlost. Yet, what would one know about the story behind the moon?

If you are one with the wind and I am one with the moon, you can teach me to fly and I'll take you to the stars.

Nara might not know this, but does she know how those words moved his heart? Does she know that ever since then—each night in front of a warm campfire—Kazuha would gaze at the moon and recall those words?

"If you are one with the wind and I am one with the moon, you can teach me to fly and I'll take you to the stars," he whispers with a moonlit smile, and with the recitation of Nara's words, he could not cloak himself with lies when his heart pounded for a fleeting moment. Nara had left a mark on him, and he is hopeless.

"Are you saying that one day, you will take me to the land of stars in which, I can listen to their celestial story, Nara-san?" There is no one around him, but he speaks as if he was talking to the moon which he learned Nara is fond of one.

As a wanderer who has met many different people all over Teyvat, meeting Nara was...refreshing. He was only unlucky that he did not find shelter in time the moment he read the impending, gloomy storm, soaked from top to bottom the moment he reached the outskirts of Konda Village. It was late at night so most residents were already asleep, evident from the dearth of lamps glowing within the huts.

However, in that moment of contemplation, despite the raucous sounds of pitter-pattering of rain hitting the stones and howling winds, his sense of smell detected a faint scent of a burning lantern still alight somewhere, hence, following the trail and found himself walking towards a hut with its sliding doors open from the backyard. He could barely make out a figure lying on the tatami floor, perhaps asleep, but with the situation he was in—it was freezing cold, and he was desperate.

From that moment onward, Kazuha did not see it coming. He is a wanderer who travels with no aim in mind, yet upon meeting the young lady, Kazuha did not expect but was grateful for her company each time they meet. Again, he meets a lot of different people every day, but seeing Nara often on some days in a week is...pleasant.