My Dear Friend | Chilumi

The Gift

It was a special day for the Traveler. Today, she celebrated her first birthday in Teyvat. 519 years old. That's how long she's been in Teyvat, but she was older than that. She had seen the birth of stars and the downfall of many civilizations, but for her everyday life, she'd rather just say she was 19. 500 years without her brother and another year added to the counter without him in her life. The day was special indeed, as it was a sad reminder to her heart that she was yet again without her lost twin. She envied Dainsleif for the years he had spent with her brother while she was asleep, to have been able to go on adventures while she wasn't even awake.

She tossed and turned in her bed, restless. Now was not the time to be jealous of a man who lost his city, and his people 500 years ago, when she couldn't even remember herself what had happened. She felt bad about being envious of a man who had lost everything. Well, it was not the day to dwell on a past that was not hers. She looked to the future and wished for a reunion with her brother soon. To be able to go from world to world again, to be herself. But would she be herself without the man who had made her walls crumble ever since their first encounter in Liuye? She couldn't fathom leaving to a world without him, which made her pain even worse. She wouldn't allow herself to dwell on these preoccupations meant for the future. Right now, she needed to get up from her bed at the winery and get dressed for the day. Her special day.

Diluc had been generous enough to host the birthday party Amber had been planning for weeks. She had tried to keep it a secret from Lumine, but let it slip during one of their conversations, and didn't even realize it until she was halfway through explaining the surprise to the birthday girl herself. They had both laughed it off, and it allowed Lumine to come to sleep in her room a day early, as there was nothing to hide from her anymore. Paimon and Lumine had stayed up late trying on clothes her friends had dropped off for her to try and had fun trying different outfits on all evening. In the end, she chose a black and gold fitted dress that reminded her of her brother's usual attire. A way for her to have him close to her today. Amber had invited a lot of people and even managed to get some of their friends from Liuye and Inazuma to come along to the party. Amber refused to tell her the entire guest list but assured her it was impressive.

When she finally got out of bed, it was already early afternoon and the party was starting in a couple of hours. She put on her outfit, styled her hair the same way she does usually and put on a pair of simple black shoes. The tied-together look made her look elegant and powerful, she felt like a real birthday girl. All she missed was her other half for the day to be perfect. And maybe a certain red-headed boy.

When she came out and went to wake Paimon up, the little fairy was already heading out to go get Lumine and escort her downstairs. They took the stairs down into the empty main hall
and exited through the main doors to go get some fresh air before the party.

BOOM!

A firework exploded as the duo came through the doors.

"SUPRISE! " A chorus of voices sang to her as she looked in shock at the number of people who showed up to celebrate this day for her. She was immensely grateful for the work done by her friends and became emotional to see how many people cared enough to show up. She couldn't help but cry tears of joy at the happy moment that was tainted minutes earlier by the absence of Aether by her side. Paimon hugged her and everyone took the time to say their words of celebration to her and her brother. She really appreciated the acknowledgement they sent to him.

"I guess your surprise party slip-up was just a ruse for another kind of surprise" Lumine asked Amber.

"Ding ding ding! I'm not dumb enough to spoil a surprise party for crying out loud haha !" The outrider responded.