My Warmth Is Yours

Chapter 15: Isolation Amidst Fellowship

Aether absentmindedly played with his hair. He was sitting by one of Mondstadt's fountains outside the Goth Grand Hotel, waiting for Albedo to finish talking to Jean. After learning his name, both Lisa and Amber had recommended going for a position in the Knights of Favonius to get some work. Luckily the annual exam was close, so for the last week and a half Aether and Noelle had been taking this attempt at getting Albedo a job very seriously. They'd been helping each other study for a while, and become surprisingly good friends in the meantime. Although Aether wasn't confident about the prospect of Noelle's bad working habits being passed on to Albedo. The two of them had taken the exam that day, and since the exams were marked as they were taken, they would have their results back by the time they left the headquarters.

"There you are. Honorary Knight!"
Noelle's voice rang across the courtyard. Looking up, he was met with Noelle and Albedo walking towards him.

"Hey guys. How'd you do?" He asked, giving Noelle a high five.
"Wonderfully," she responded. "Our hard work paid off."
"So you got in?" Aether asked, bubbling with excitement.
"Yes! Both of us," Noelle responded. Aether tackled her in a hug.
"Amazing! Milestone, wow. We're throwing a party for you tonight, you can't stop me. You're both full Knights now! C'mon, let's get lunch. My treat, you guys deserve it." He grabbed his friends hands and dragged them down the city stairs, beelining for the Good Hunter. After getting a table on the balcony and ordering food, Aether leaned across the table and looked at his two companions.
"So," he said. "how'd you do? I mean, I know you passed, but tell me more. I actually don't know what's required to get a position in the Knights."

"Quite a bit," Noelle replied. "extensive knowledge of the Knights rules, general knowledge of the system, battle skills, and quite a lot more. Not to mention you have to show your personal skills so they know which division to put you in. There's more, too!" She laughed, and Aether returned it.
"I'm suddenly not surprised why it took you so many years to get in. Wait, just how many times did you try, Noelle?"
"This was my tenth attempt," she replied. "I'm very happy with how this one turned out, to say the least! Although, I am a little worried. Have I prepared enough?"
Aether snapped his fingers playfully.
"Girl, you have this in the bag. You've been preparing for ten years and you're the strongest lady in the city. If anything, you're overqualified. You'll be fine. Hey, you said something about divisions earlier. What's that about?"

Pausing for a moment as their food was delivered, warm and delicious, Noelle perked up. Clearly, she knew a lot about this.
"The Knights of Favonius are split into ten division, each one led by a captain. You've met Mr. Kaeya and Miss Eula before, yes? Kaeya is our Cavalry Captain, and Eula is our Reconnaissance Captain. There are more, but many are out on Grand Master Varka's expedition. Currently, the only four in Mondstadt are Kaeya, Eula, Logistics Captain Hertha and Acting Investigation Captain Sucrose. I was assigned to Hertha's team- not only do they do all the paperwork and background busywork, we help the people with their problems when possible! Oh, and Albedo mentioned he's in the Investigation Team. Very fitting for someone like you."

"Logistics, huh. That's useful to you, huh, Noelle? I should've known the Knights had a section for helping people. I get bounties and requests from Hertha all the time. She's actually pretty nice." Aether said.

They stopped talking to enjoy their food. Aether's hash browns were legendary, as usual for the Good Hunter, and Noelle was clearly enjoying her salad. On the other side of the table, Albedo was already halfway through his bolognaise, which was pleasing after those first few days he'd stayed with Aether. It's good that he's not avoiding his food anymore. I mean, it's been a week and a half since I talked to him about it, but still. He seems fine, anyway. Mm, I actually never asked what kind of food he likes. Eh, I'll do it later. He looks happy enough with his food right now.