When I heard that the nation of electro had discovered a new island directly in between the rocky, unsure borders of Sumeru and Inazuma, I was at first curious. How would the nations solve this? Seeing as the Sumerians claimed they discovered it first, not well, I assumed.

My nation, Inazuma, would clearly, eventually, get this new territory to itself. We have better weapons, warriors, morale; we're better in every way, no doubt. Sumerians were just weak-bodied assholes, only believing in their brains and lacking in compassion, thusly.

But most importantly, I didn't think in any way imaginable, that I'd get involved.

"You know," my associate twirls a knife around her fingers. "I'd jump on this opportunity."

I scrunch my nose up and looked at her judgingly.

"It's not an opportunity, it's a direct order," I run a hand through my silver hair. "And why? You want to interact with people from Sumeru?"

"Why not?" Kuki Shinobu spins around in her bar chair. "Sounds interesting."

"You know they're all pretentious, annoying, snobby—"

"Yeah, yeah," Shinobu laughs it off. "You've been chief of police, which is on par with the head of military, for five years, and you've never been sent off-island, or met anyone from a different country."

The thought of the head of military, one bossy Kujou Sara, makes me sigh. She was quite annoying, yes, but what was worse was her constant arguments. Like, I'm chief of police! I'm not going to just say, 'yes, Sara, of course I'll allow my branch of the government to become a part of yours, yes, I'd love to be your subordinate'. Of course not. Does she not realize the police and military are actually very different?

"I can tell you're thinking about her again," Shinobu sighs. "Cyno, answer my question— well, statement."

"Yes, I have never left the country and never met a Sumeran," I shrug. "So what?"

"Experience life, man," Shinobu insists. "I didn't join the police just to sit around and file paperwork. I'm here for action."

"What are you even trying to convince me of?" I face her. "It's an order, I have to go anyway."

"Yeah, well, I'm at least trying to get you to see this in a new light." Shinobu finally pockets her knife and reaches for her drink. "Plus, you'll be going with Ei and Miko, they're a bunch of fun people."

"Yeah, no," I shake my head. "Those two don't ever think about being interesting."

"Let's just finish this mission," Kuki sighs.

I slide off my chair and walk, her arm in mine, slowly after the suspicious man who just left the bar. We've been sitting and pretending to be a civilian couple for a while now, and it has finally paid off.

I realize, now, that I've done this type of stake-out a million times before... maybe it is getting boring.

—

"Tighnari you absolute shit," Baizhu hisses as he pushes into my room.

Honestly, the guts on this man. Just because he's the head of the National Health Committee doesn't mean he can yank my door off its hinges any time he wants! I'm the head of the Sumerian Flora Research Committee, we're of the same rank, he needs to understand that sooner or later.

"What?" I ask, blinking slowly at him from my bed.

"You published a paper announcing the medical properties of the Psychotria Viridis without running it past me. Just because you discovered it logically and theoretically could help migraines doesn't mean it does, you need my approval and research," Baizhu continues. He's been rather riled up lately, ever since one of his newest volunteer testing patients, Collei, went into a coma after a new medication was applied. "This is an illegally posted paper."

"Well, sorry, I've been rather busy with other things to worry about your approval," I lift up a sheet of paper.

My long-time friend's eyes widen a fraction, and he smiles as he walks over.

"Is this what I think it is?" Baizhu takes it from me. "A formal invitation to attend an exploratory island expedition? Can I come?"

"Baizhu, you're a menace when you're curious. You can't come, definitely not," I shake my head. "Remember when you wooed that lady, even proposed to her, in order to get into her household so you could find what houseplant was on her windowsill without breaking and entering?"

"It was a mutated—"

"Yes, I know, I was equally curious," I sigh. "But not to your insanity. Anyway, you can't come, it's an invite from the archon, not a musical ticket I can sell off day-of."

"Yeah but it's not like our archon truly cares about serious, orderly proclamations or assignments..." Baizhu looks at me expectantly.

"Nope," I say unapologetically. "It's my formal invite, not yours."

"Who else is going along, at least tell me," Baizhu insists. "I need some good tea. Life's been shitty lately."

I breathe out through my nose, not quite a sigh.

"Alhaitham and Kaveh," I announce.

"The vice-president and the Head of the Development Committee," Baizhu mused. "Good choice. Both would be quite imperative..."

"...seeing as Inazumans will be joining," I finish solemnly.

"A peace offering, sending our most important government members, and they send theirs," Baizhu notes.

"Doesn't make it any less horrible," I manage a fake smile. "But I swear to not let those war-hungry eternity-seeking misguided electro idiots get into my head."

"To the power of knowledge and curiosity!" Baizhu lifts a fake glass, cheering to the cause.

I nod, still playing with my plastic smile, as I lift a glass made of air, filled with air, to clink against his.

"Order for one Mr. Tighnari?" a young girl's voice interrupts our joking.

Kirara, the local delivery master, enters the room with a grin.

"You better not have broken any of my test tubes this time," I squint my eyes at the girl.

"Only one!" she grins.

"Kirara..."

—

The royally overstimulating ceremony to send off the ship is finally over, and I allow myself to relax. Living in Inazuma naturally grants one stability at sea, but this long journey still looks daunting. Hah, I hope the Sumerians are suffering.

I turn to look at them. We'd met at Narukami Island, seeing as it was closest to the island. We'd have to begin our expedition together, otherwise the balanced talents between all of us wouldn't prove useful. This led to the tiny expedition team from Sumeru being the only people of the dendro element to step inside Inazuma for half a century.

As the ship moves along slowly, navigated by Captain Beidou, Inazuma's only member willing to traverse the waters and cross boundaries to other nations. She's got a questionable crew. Mostly Inazumans, obviously, but there were a few people I could have sworn were from other nations... I twist my head sharply when I swear I see that kid use anemo powers on the sails.

Being with people from other nations puts me on edge. When every citizen of the world gained elemental powers after the War of Visions, everyone separated into their respective new nations for a reason. I can't trust anyone not from Inazuma. They're willing to try and raid us at any moment, especially those Sumerians, who we've been feuding with for decades.

And my feelings of distrust and anxiety heighten when Yae Miko and Ei walk off together, acting all casual and normal, leaving me alone with my brain. I miss Shinobu, Razor, and Fischl. My closest friends always know how to comfort me when my anxious thoughts grow heavy.

"You alright?" a young voice asks.

I turn slowly to see a Sumerian, just a child, probably one of the medics ready for us on the boat if we meet any trouble on the new territory.

"Yeah," I huff, glaring at the girl.

"I'm Yaoyao!" she smiles. "Pleasure to meet you. I know I look young, but I've been in the business for a long time! I've never met an Inazuman."

"Cool," I blink, uncaring. Even if she's just a little girl, she's still Sumerian, still a wielder of the dendro element.

"What's it like?" she asks. Children and their carelessness.

"Better than Sumeru," I reply, as a default.

"But you've never been to my home," Yaoyao taps her chin. "How would you know?"

"Because it's well known that Sumeru's a musty, bug-ridden mess." I almost feel bad for enlightening this child on how much inferior her nation is than ours.

The tiny child tilts her head a bit and frowns, almost in a cute way– but I don't hang out with enough children to know what a cute one looks like. Unless Razor counts, but he's my cousin, so I might be a bit biased.

"Hey, Yaoyao, how about we leave this gentleman alone?" a new, silky smooth voice interrupts.

A (clearly more than a bit fruity) man approaches behind the child with a gentle smile. He's got green hair, just like the color of his element.

"But Dr. Baizhu," Yaoyao frowns even deeper, and her amber eyes glisten with what looks like curiosity. "He thinks Sumeru is a gross place. He's wrong."

"All Inazumans are uselessly aggressive and nationalist," Dr. Baizhu purrs the words out like honey. It almost makes the passive aggressive insult hurt less (that was sarcastic).

"Baizhu what the hell are you doing here?" Another Sumerian joins the conversation. I contemplate sneaking away, but the new man blocks my path by coming around on my right.

"They needed me for on-boat medical works," Baizhu grins and— is that a snake around his neck? Why is it looking at me like that?!

"Mmm no they don't. You snuck on didn't you?" the new guy, who I have to admit has got to be the most fashionable person I've seen, sighs.

The doctor smiles and walks off with Yaoyao, briskly and purposefully.

"Sorry about them, I–" the guy turns to me and pauses instantly. "You're Inazuman."

I raise my brows and rake my eyes up and down his body, my police instincts automatically focusing on a tiny dagger on his waist, a suspicious pocket, and clear marks of using a bow too often running across his fingers.

"You're not," I note, sarcastically.

"No shit," he flicks a long, kitsune-like ear in annoyance.

"Have a problem?" I glare at him.

"Many," he takes his turn to observe me more closely, and I watch his eyes until they meet mine again. I've been sized up many times before, but the way he does it like I'm just a piece of an experiment, not a threat, riles me up. "Please refrain from manipulating our children."

"Yeah, because of course that's what was happening." I click my tongue.

"An Inazuman holding a civil conversation with someone else? Likely." Their words are laced with venom.

"A Sumerian managing not to assume the worst in someone? Impossible," I retort. "I doubt you can find something to talk about besides insulting foreigners."

"Was that supposed to be a joke?" he's astounded. "Or are you just a hypocrite?"

"At least my life isn't dedicated to ruining the mood," I mumble.

"Says the one who looked nervous enough to flip the ship earlier," he responds.

"You noted I was anxious, but not that I was Inazuman? I thought Sumerians were supposed to be observant," I can feel my words grow a bit more emotional as the argument draws out. Sumerians are just as I expected them to be; aggravating, uselessly annoying.

He's about to respond when we hear an angry shout loudly pound over the peaceful sound of the calm ocean waves. We both look over to see two Sumerians arguing heatedly, way more intense than our argument. I lean my head back and looks smugly at this stupid Sumerian.

"Looks like being aggravating is a national problem," I say, gaining his attention again.

"You little shit," he hisses as he faces me again. "Why are all Inazumans so aggressive? I was trying to diffuse a situation and you start up this argument!"

"Pretty sure you started it, actually," I remain calm, clearly knowing I've won. I'm head of the entire police department for all of Inazuma's islands; I know how to argue. The 'you started it' is always a winning piece.

The Sumerians across the ship are growing louder. I've managed to remain quite calm this entire time, but that's because of my endless training and Shinobu's harsh control of emotions and teaching techniques.

"A pathetic attempt at arguing," he says with a note of superiority.

"That in itself is a pathetic attempt at arguing," I roll my eyes at him.

The boat, abruptly, slams into a particularly strong wave, knocking me against the side rail where I'd been leaning. I flail for a second, my top half flying backwards over the edge, but I ground my feet against the railing, my ankles holding me in place only weakly, and my heart is thumping heavily.

An arm grabs my shoulder and pulls me to complete stability. I rebalance on my feet and take a deep breath, the image of churning waves burned into my eyes.

"Clumsy, too." The annoying Sumerian, also my savior, huffs and lets go of my shoulder.

I glare at him, unable to control the urge. I notice, when I meet his eyes, that he is looking at side, a hint of worry reflected on his face. I turn and look too, noticing blood blooming from under my shirt.

"You caught on a rusty nail poking from the railing," the Sumerian notes.

"What does it mean to you?" I train my eyes back to him and avoid the stinging of the large scratch.

"If I'm going to explore a new island with bitches of companions, I'd at least like them to not drag me behind, injured," he scoffs. "I'm Tighnari, by the way. I'll lead you to the doctor who you so rudely spoke to earlier, he's Baizhu."

"Great, but I'll head to the Inazuman doctor," I look up towards where Beidou was controlling the ship.

"There is none, only Sumerian doctors. Remember the agreement? We need to be a team, so they got Sumerian doctors and Inazuman crew," Tighnari explains, clearly exasperated. "I knew you were less than average intelligence-wise, but you're genuinely dumb."

"What's with your ceaseless need to attack me?" I shoot back. "Fine, point me in the direction of Bae-Jou."

"Baizhu," Tighnari corrects.

"Sure," I glare.

Tighnari takes me (we stand five feet apart, so he's not really taking me, he's just leading me) to Baizhu and Yaoyao, who sat inside the ship under the deck in a tiny office with walls covered in medical supplies.

"Ironic," Dr. Baizhu notes as I step in and Tighnari explains. "The stand-offish Inazuman now requires our assistance."

"I could just leave." I put my hands in the air defensively.

"No, don't," Dr. Baizhu sighs. "We can't have any members getting infected, now can we?"

So I end up seated on a cheap wooden table while a Sumerian runs a few salves over my wound. It's deeper than I thought, and the doctor says it may be infected thanks to the rusty quality of the nail. I hate to admit it, but he does know a lot more than me on the topic, and I am forced to trust him.

He ends with a strange sticky bandage placed over the wound, unlike the usual medical wrappings we do in Inazuma. It must be one of those fancy medical advancements they hide from the other nations.

"Try to avoid running," Baizhu instructs as I stand up to leave.

I run right out of the room and up to the deck, not failing to notice his exasperated sigh, and I smile to myself.

I direct myself immediately towards Miko and Ei, because I've had enough Sumerians for today. Not in the mood for any more of those plant freaks, I ease into the Inazuman conversation, and even manage to crack a few jokes to ease the tension.

—

"Why are they all like that? So defensive of every damn thing!" Tighnari rants to Alhaitham.

He, an hour after dropping that stubborn Inazuman at Baizhu's, found his way to the Sumerian room under deck, where a multitude of hammocks were strung from the ceiling. Alhaitham and Kaveh had moved down there sometime while I was with Baizhu, and I was happy to engage in a ranting session with them.

"By the sound of it, you kind of provoked him," Kaveh notes.

"You don't get to say anything," I say pointedly. "You weren't there."

"I don't know. I talked to Yae Miko earlier and found her a rather interesting person. She listened to my opinions with interest," Kaveh adds.

"She's also the leader of an all-inclusive shrine, head of an international publishing company, and Minister of Foreign Affairs," I mention. "People like that are more open to foreigners. You just got lucky with the one nice Inazuman."

"Alhaitham hit it off with Raiden Ei!" Kaveh protests.

"She's stubborn and nationalistic, but looking to change her worldview," Alhaitham mentions. Kaveh points a thumb at him and nods in agreement.

"Okay, so maybe two of them are okay–"

"Captain Beidou is really fun, too," Kaveh interrupts. "Man, she's witnessed some crazy things. I kind of want to see Inazuma City now that she's described it."

"Kaveh, you're being manipulated," I say confidently. "Inazuma City is a trash heap with high crime rates and poor schooling, you know this."

"If they can afford to send their Chief of Police to discover a new island away from the country, then I'm going to assume their crime is not that bad," Alhaitham points out.

"You know what?" Kaveh speaks. "I'm gonna go talk to your new obsession and see if he's really as bad as you say."

"Obsession?" I choke.

"You've been ranting for an hour," Alhaitham says, looking down at his book again, not giving me the dignity of a glance.

"In a negative way," I protest.

"Now who's the stubborn one?" Kaveh grins.

I huff and look away from my friends, focusing on a wet spot on the wooden floors. The Inazuman-styled ship feels like it's weighing down around me, forcing me into a world I never wished to be a part of. Sure, I want to explore a new island, discover something remarkable; but the Inazuman from earlier really ruined my mood.

I admit I may have been a bit aggressive at the start, yeah. And the pang of guilt in my chest still resonates deep down... but he deserved it. That bitch just kept on going. And even tried to turn the tables on me! He was the one who judged Sumeru before I judged Inazuma. Out loud, that is.

Hearing rustling, I note Kaveh is getting up, probably making his previous proclamation a reality.

"You'll come back here complaining about how I was right," I remark as Kaveh flips me off and runs up the stairs.

I hear a tiny chuckle and whip my head around just in time to see Alhaitham pretending he wasn't amused by Kaveh's antics, but I spot the blush. Oblivious idiots, the lot of them.

Later, Kaveh comes back down to us, a smile on his face, like he'd freshly had the most amusing conversation of his life. It makes my stomach twist. No way did he just go and talk with that jerk and come back down all sunshine and happiness. There's something amiss.

"Your friend is fun," Kaveh laughs as he casually plops down in a hammock. "He had some really interesting things to say."

"Uh, no," I shake my head aggressively. "He must be manipulating you! All he did was argue with me."

"I got him to rant about criminal justice in Inazuma City," Kaveh explains. "Actually got him to crack a smile when I asked about one of his stake out missions. And he showed real interest in architecture."

I feel my ears warming with embarrassment, and am never more glad that they're furry enough to hide what would have been a blush. Of course I'm proven wrong by Kaveh, of all people. It's humiliating.

Wait no, I'm not wrong! That idiot is just trying to manipulate Kaveh into thinking he's a nice person, so then he can make me feel stupid for assuming he's just a stubborn, argumentative Inazuman. Yeah, that makes sense. I can still hate him, even more now that I know he's manipulating my friend.

"His name's Cyno," Kaveh says.

...but how am I supposed to hate someone with such a beautiful name?

—

I'm annoyed, to say the least. Mostly I'm uncomfortable.

It's only two more days on the cramped ship until we reach the island. Most people have grown close; Ei and Yae both got really friendly with the Sumerians, and apparently even Beidou was laughing along with one of the things that enthusiastic blond Sumerian was saying.

I, at this point, just want one thing: someone to talk to. I miss Razor, the adorable idiot of a kid who aspires to join the police, just like me. And Fischl, his eccentric best friend, who's antics always make me smile. Even Kuki, despite how annoying she can be at times, and her sarcasm and witty remarks.

Somehow, I even find myself missing Clorinde, the secretary to the president and veteran of the military; when we drank together, sometimes we'd find a common ground of mutual hate towards Sumerians to discuss.

Anywho, I end up here, trying to discuss my issue of loneliness, when I realize basically the entire Inazuman company is composed of women, who all happen to be relatively strange. I have trouble getting along with normal girls.

"Aww, you lonely?" Beidou wraps an arm around me strongly.

"We could be friends, cutie," Lisa smirks. She's only here due to her intelligence with literature and maps, so she's helping Beidou with navigation, and could potentially be called to the island if the linguist from Sumeru doesn't provide capable with his ruin translations.

"You know, I never even said I was lonely," I defend.

"But you areee," Beidou grins. "You're tired of being a third wheel to your other two, aren't you?"

Yae covers her mouth with a few dainty fingers, failing at concealing a chuckle. She wraps her arm tighter around Ei for emphasis.

"I'm just worried that once we get to the island and it's just the three of us, I'll have no one to discuss the criminal state of Inazuma with, or analyze the new terrain and provide input on my ideas," I explain.

"So, tired of being a third wheel, in summary," Beidou laughs.

"No," I insist. Man, women are way too intimidating. They're all taller than me and all look like they can read into the very depths of my soul.

"Why don't you make friends with a Sumerian?" Ei questions.

I blink at her a few times, and she tilts her head a bit, clearly confused at my reaction. Yae coos about how cute she is when she's confused, and she takes a break from our eye contact to glare at her girlfriend.

"You're serious?" I ask.

"We've all, by now, realized our prejudices were mostly wrong, right?" Lisa offers.

The women around me nod in agreement, Ei the most hesitant, Beidou the least (though, her crew suspiciously consists of people possibly with elements other than Electro, which is the best element ever, so she might have spent more time being brainwashed).

"No!" I exclaim before I can stop myself. "Of course not. I've had exactly one conversation with a Sumerian, three days ago, and it was the worst experience of my life. I'd rather talk to Keqing's workaholic depressed persona, or maybe even Dori-that conniving thief who I'm always out arresting-than any Sumerian."

"But I saw you talking to the doctor's assistant yesterday," Lisa leans against a crate, yet another of Beidou's suspicious cargo she won't explain to us.

Oh, right, yeah, that little girl Yaoyao. Okay, it's not my fault! She approached me, spoke like an innocent little girl, reminded me of Ruu and yeah, she was sweet, and almost cute, and maybe had some really fun opinions on bunnies— but it's not like I enjoyed a pleasant conversation with a Sumerian. It was the days spent sailing and wrapped in loneliness that caused me to lose my wits for a second, that was all.

I am not going to devolve to the level of my colleagues. They're all cozy with the enemy; knowing their names, jobs, and familial situations even; and I swear I heard Lisa totally give away a government secret to the doctor. This is unacceptable.

"That was a one time thing," I reply, finally. "You're all being ridiculous. They're the enemy. I should have never asked for your advice. Bye."

I leave. My temper's been growing shorter recently, I can't help but notice. I grumble and feel anxiety boiling up in my stomach as I head to the deck, where the wave's water spray mists my face.

"Stupid people," I huff.

"I know, right," a voice replies.

I turn to try and see where it's coming from. I don't find the source. I lean against the railing of the ship on my forearms, looking ahead. Maybe this unknown person could offer me some advice. I'm done trying to approach people in person.

"They just don't get it," I sigh.

"Yeah," the voice growls. "I had such a reasonable point and they go off and try to prove me wrong. But I'm still right, they're just being brainwashed."

I laugh a bit, blinking the sea water from my eyelashes.

"Yeah." I cross one leg behind the other and lean forward a bit more, just to feel the wind on my face as I close my eyes. "I just wanted someone I can trust to talk too. They all think I should confide in some conniving foreigner!"

"Yeah, and mine are all friendly with them," the voice snorted. "Honestly, we all know they could be plotting something."

"Exactly." I furrow my brows. "You're the smartest person on this ship."

The voice, which I've now decided must be below me somehow, responded with a tiny snort, and I found myself trying to prevent a smile at the adorable sound.

"You're the other smartest person. I came here to interact with the island for research purposes, and these idiots want to go making foreign relations," they respond. "At least you get it."

I stay silent after that, a tiny smile gracing my lips. The wind whipping and distorting the voice of the stranger lessens, and allows me to hear the sails shifting and the gulls crying out repeatedly. It's pleasant.

But after a second, it feels like I should engage back in the conversation. I don't know exactly what to say. Oh, right, that one time– Kuki said the best way to break silence was to tell a joke. I've never actually tried it before. Perhaps this should be my first time.

Except I can't think of anything, so I just sit there, brain wrapped up in trying to find something sufficiently hilarious. But what would this person consider funny? Sarcasm, or normal? Offensively funny, dark, or lighthearted? By the time I come around to something, the voice is already speaking again.

"See you," they say in a surprisingly bitter tone, and I take a chance, leaning over the edge to see if, indeed, the person was looking out of a window just below me. All I catch is the flicking of something black and fluffy.

—

I just had a, dare say, pleasant conversation. With Cyno. What the hell.

I didn't even realize it was him until I looked up and saw him leaning over the rail! And it was completely unfair how he looked with the sun behind his white hair, igniting it like the pale sand of the desert's beaches.

I was looking out at sea while Yaoyao and Kaveh were playing some board game behind me, and when Kaveh looked up at my sudden yanking away from the window, he starts to grin.

"You're blushing," he points out.

"Wha-" I startle. "No!"

"Was there some sexy seagull out there?" Baizhu, who's reading a book across the room full of hammocks, teases.

"Like Tighnari could even pull a seagull," Kaveh scoffs.

I huff and walk away from the window, almost feeling bad for leaving Cyno oblivious to the whole thing. And alone. No, I don't care. I had better study up.

I am here for a mission. I am here to investigate the flora of the new land, determine what is new, old, edible, poison, and chiefly I am here to search for new medicines, especially for something that might cure Eleazar. These are, obviously, very important tasks. I need to be at my best so that I can complete them.

That's what I say to myself, over and over, as I force the image of Cyno's shining hair from my mind. I study and study until I feel that I can teach everything there is to know about every plant in the world.

I only emerge to the sun again when I must; when we arrive.

It is no grand affair. Everyone is tired from the journey already; nobody is overly excited. Except maybe Kaveh, who keeps dragging Alhaitham around the ship, mumbling something excitedly about where he could put a beautiful palace within the cliffs of the island while he got Alhaitham to carry his scrolls.

The land itself is nothing special. It appears to be tropical; with palm trees and pristine beaches. What is strange, however, is the vast amount of large rocks. Like the landscape of Snezhnaya, the hills drop off to cliffs of some strangely pinkish rock, and similar boulders decorate the land between the trees.

Of course, this is all I can see from the ship. I've been organizing all of my materials and handing them off to the crew to transport them to the land; I haven't stepped on it myself.

I can't wait to observe the plants. The mysterious flora peaking between the strange rocks beckons me. But he's there. Cyno. Looking bored and slightly anxious, he's sitting on the beach.

His hair's up to battle the heat, and he's taken his socks and traditional Inazuman-styled getas off so that his toes can feel the water. He looks nearly peaceful; the only team member who's left the boat so far. Doesn't he have some kind of equipment to bring to land? No, wait, he's Inazuman. Those idiots bring nothing but their brutish personalities places.

"One more," I say to one of the Inazuman crew members. She sends me an annoyed look and trudge off as I stack another container of test tubes onto the pile in her arms. I don't care to apologize or make formalities. Inazumans would never do the same.

"Tighnari," Baizhu calls, distracting me from observing Cyno. "Get your prickly ass over here. Basically everyone is already exploring the island but you."

I turn and face the island. It was true. The other four who came with us to explore the island have already begun. I don't know how I failed to notice them all leaving.

I'm standing near the center of the deck, where there used to be a pile of boxes waiting to be moved. Now I'm alone except for Baizhu, who stands not too far off by the entrance to the lower deck, and a few crew members hustling around.

"Alright, fine," I sigh. "But I need to be sure I got everything before I think about setting up camp down there."

"You're always so focused on work. Loosen up a little. I sold my soul to a reptile and even I can still have fun," Baizhu reasons. The snake around his neck hissed gently.

"Just let me triple check everything," I offer.

Baizhu just rolls his eyes and retreats back below deck. Legally, he can't set foot on the island unless helping us unload supplies. Me, Kaveh, Alhaitham, and the three Inazumans were the ones designated for exploration, and we were the only ones allowed to touch the unexplored land, lest it be destroyed by unprofessional idiots.

I slowly end up following Baizhu bellow deck and come across the hammock where I had slept throughout the journey. There sits absolutely nothing. I brought nothing personal with me, as if I owned anything personal in the first place. I'm just here to check for any missing notebooks I might have left down here while studying.

It's here that I come across something strange. It's a little purple and green dagger, no longer than my pointer finger. I presume I should call it a knife, then. It's clearly Inazuman, by the way it's designed... but I notice a strong lack in any brutish additions to the blade, no drawings of dying people or blood. It seems to beautiful and delicate, unlike the Inazuman stereotypes.

I gently pick it up. It's just there; in the middle of the floor, between the path through the sleeping area leading above deck and the cafeteria. I have no doubt all Inazumans carry multiple weapons on them at all times; though finding something so pristine and fragile makes me question if it's some kind of prank. Maybe it's a child's a toy? No, there weren't any children on the ship besides Yaoyao, and she'd never touch such a sharp object.

I pocket it. Maybe it'll come in handy later; it's small size might be convenient for cutting samples from the flora of the island.

As per Baizhu's advice, I wrap up quickly and leave the ship, my boots hitting the sand and reminded me of Sumeru's desert. The wave of familiarity settles deep in me and makes me a lot more comfortable. I look around.

Kaveh and Alhaitham seem quite relaxed too. So do Yae Miko and Raiden Ei. I glance over at Cyno. The man fidgets with a bracelet as he goes through what little supplies he brought. I almost feel pity for him, he must feel far from home, probably lonely, seeing as the people he came with are so distracted with each other off somewhere else. But then remember his standoffish attitude... I don't care what he feels... Though that thought is quickly interrupted by the memory of their pleasant conversation on the ship.

I feel the knife in my pocket. Perhaps the anxious Inazuman Chief of Police is its owner. I contemplate it, but decide that keeping it would prove more beneficial to me. I bet Cyno has tons of weapons on him, he can't miss one.

"Tighnari," Baizhu calls from the ship. "We'll be back in a week to check up on everything."

"See you then," I wave, though not very enthusiastically.

"Try not to kill anyone," Baizhu responds before ducking away behind the railing, where I can't see him any longer.

Like I always do when I try to avoid shouting insults at people, I distract myself with research. Walking off the boat, I run through the potential experiments I'll be conducting.

—

The sand and island atmosphere are comforting. I haven't felt this relaxed for a while... but something's off.

It may be because I'm Chief of Police in all of Inazuma's borders. I guess that may have made me hyper-aware of anything suspicious. Nevertheless, something's wrong. The moment I stepped off the ship, I felt it.

A gentle anxiety, a feeling like you know you've forgotten something, but can't tell what. It tugs at my stomach and I can't soothe it, even after going through all of my supplies and triple-checking them. Beidou assured me twice that she'd moved everything to the shore and accounted for it all, but I feel like something's missing. A physical object or a piece of information, I have no idea.

I look back to the ship and catch a glare from a few crewmates. That's strange. The crew were Inazuman, why would they be judging me? Or are they observing me, waiting to strike like the pirates they, in actuality, are? No, that's the paranoia speaking.

I miss Shinobu. I never felt anxious when she was around.

A few minutes pass, and after that Sumerian doctor waves goodbye to Tighnari, the ship departs, only to return a week later, leaving me officially stuck with Miko, Ei, and three strangers (okay, Kaveh wasn't that bad, we had a nice conversation earlier) on an unmapped island between two hostile nations.

"Alright, gather around," Ei's monotone voice called.

As the highest-ranking member of this group, seeing as she's co-ruling the nation of Inazuma, she gets to lead all announcements and gatherings for the week and following days after the next check-up from Beidou's crew.

"First, we must establish a buddy system," Ei reasons.

Yae grins at Ei. Alhaitham looks expectantly at Kaveh, who latches onto him. I cross my arms and send an annoyed look Tighnari's way. Of course. Why wouldn't I be partners with that bitch? Makes sense.

"Okay, that's settled," Yae claps her hands.

"Now, based on Mr. Kaveh's position as Sumeru's Head of Development, he's going to stay here with his partner, Alhaitham, and set up camp, organize supplies, create a solid structure for us to live under," Ei continued. "Me and Yae will gather basic supplies; we're mostly here for diplomatic reasons, so we will work beside Vice-President of Sumeru Alhaitham and strengthen our bonds.

"Cyno and Tighnari can begin our purpose. Cyno, lead the expedition along the coast and start mapping our general area. Tighnari, bring back samples of plants, or other things we must observe," Ei concludes. "Any objections?"

I raise my hand immediately. Tighnari does too.

"Yes?" Ei asks me.

"Can I stay with you?" I plead to Yae and Ei.

"May I head off alone?" Tighnari requests at the same time.

"No," Ei immediately denies. "You two are the strongest team. A researcher with vast experience in nature and a combat-trained policeman work perfectly for our expeditions. Cyno, you've been taught how to take in small details, how to map places for investigations, and how to evade trouble, or combat it if needed. Tighnari, you understand the aspects of nature and it's workings; you have experience."

It's a really good point, damn it.

So I'm partnered with Tighnari. I don't speak to him. He doesn't try to speak to me. We set off with a few basic supplies. I equip myself with my polearm and a tiny dagger along with necessities like rations; Tighnari brings a vast array of scientific equipment like little glass bottles and a magnifying glass. I nearly chuckle when he holds it up to his eye, making his face look out of proportion.

As the adventure of bushwhacking through the woods continues in silence, the feeling of forgetting something fades.

"Wait, stop," Tighnari speaks for the first time.

"What?" I ask bitterly, pausing my trudging.

"I need to collect these petals. I've never seen such a thing," he says, then adds rudely; "Of course, you could never tell, with your significant lack of communication."

"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't dedicate my life to some boring, action-less knowledge-based career," I mutter.

Tighnari grumbles something but takes out a tiny knife and a bottle. I'm too far away and have a bad angle; he's crouching in the weeds and vines while I stand feet away, but I swear the knife is strange. Like it isn't something Tighnari would own. Immediately, my suspicions are peaked, but he puts the knife away before I can see anything more.

I watch him store the petals away with some interest. He handles them carefully, and to my surprise, he doesn't immediately take out a giant analyzing device to peer into the weird scientifical invisible things hidden within it. He just puts it in a vile on his belt and stands, no super nerdy Sumerian things ensue.

"Well?" Tighnari crosses his arms. "Keep going."

"Since when did you become the boss?" I hiss back.

"Since I became the more useful one," he responds simply, making my blood boil.

"Fine, you clear the path then." I offer him my machete.

He eyes it, and I see a tiny flash of surprise overcome his features. Does he think I am pointing a weapon at him in aggression? Is he surprised I am willing to trust him with my things? No clue, because the shitface pointedly looks away and I'm back to bushwhacking.

As we walk, my mind is wandering. Tighnari, in the peripheral vision, blends into the nature with his traditional Sumerian garb of deep greens. His strange animalistic features only add to his camouflage. He looks like he belongs in this strange forest of dense undergrowth and palm trees and rocks. I stick out, wearing purple, black and white, chopping down vines while my shoes slip into tiny puddles.

Tighnari's at home, and he looks brilliantly fitting. I feel like a wreck compared to his beauty. The realization does nothing to help my self consciousness.

"Watch out!" I suddenly shout.

Tighnari stands still and crouches a bit, looking wildly at whatever caused my reaction. I don't even know what triggered my senses; but something had, and it's coming fast.

I sign to Tighnari to hide at the base of a tree. I stand in front of his figure, curled against the trunk in the shadow of a large fern-like plant. I take out my polearm and hold it in a battle-stance.

We wait a second, and then a massive slime makes its appearance. It's moving faster than I've ever seen a slime capable of; the electro particles bouncing off of it and propelling it across the forest floor.

I glance quickly backwards to be sure Tighnari's okay. He looks scared. I would smirk, usually, to see a Sumerian in fear; but with Tighnari, I feel a lump in my stomach. Like his wide eyes made me want to protect him more than anything. Ignoring the feeling, I leap at the slime.

All Inazumans have electro powers. Not the most useful thing, now, when fighting an electro slime; but I'm skilled enough with just physical damage to tear the creature apart in less than a minute.

I flop to the ground the moment it dies, slime coating my face, and lay to catch my breath.

Tighnari comes up from behind and sits next to me.

"I guess that maybe you are useful," Tighnari says, eyes trained on the slime dripping down the leaves around them.

He faces me for a moment, looking down at me, where I lay with my hands behind my head.

"Told you so," I grin, despite myself.

He smiles.

—

The week passed by relatively quickly. I came to refer to Alhaitham and Kaveh as the housewives, just because they spent the entire time sorting, gathering, and setting up supplies for camp. Kaveh manages to build an exquisite structure out of leaves and sticks that looks somewhat like a gazebo, but with walls and windows instead of just pillars. It serves its use as a solid place to set up my science supplies.

Me and Cyno explored often. Every day, at least, we would go out on expeditions and come back with new flora to examine. I expected myself to grow to hate him more with time; though it turns out that, only occasionally, he's a dependable and useful asset to the team.

He's also been, strangely, making jokes lately. I haven't heard a joke in a while, not until he randomly began to invent his own while they boredly traversed the woods and beaches. It's the spontaneity that makes me chuckle every time, not that they're funny, or that I like his attention. Not at all because whenever I give him a reaction he smiles at me, almost sheepishly, then looks away.

The other Inazumans, Miko and Ei, I have grown closer with. They're more pleasant than Cyno; way less argumentative, tons more mature. They seem to have become besties with Alhaitham and Kaveh while I'm out with Cyno. I feel kind of lonely at dinner time, when the four of them talk like old friends and I sit across the fire from Cyno, silently eating my roasted fowl.

The ship arrives sooner than I'd expect. We all file onto deck and get examined for any medical issues. I submit all of my observations of new flora to the logs in Captain Beidou's cabin.

I catch Cyno looking around up on deck. He was standing there and observing the people, leaning against the mast. I caught his eye but turned away, heaving my box of samples closer to my chest and walking off; though I felt something weird. Cyno looked horrible anxious, and seeing as his instincts have proven trustworthy so far, it makes me uneasy. There must be something wrong (When did I come to trust Cyno's instincts?).

With my senses heightened, I start observing people too. Most look normal... but there are a few Inazuman crew members who send each other glances, who glare at me, who carry suspicious bags below deck. Maybe it's just my imagination. Maybe they're just searching for a missing item, like a knife, and don't mind to speak verbally, or else there might be paranoia.

The knife in my pocket still sits there, light, like it was made for quick and quiet murders. It's slightly stained green from when I was using it to cut up ferns.

After check ups and more supplies dropped off, they leave again. Cyno stands on the beach, watching them depart, fidgeting with his bracelet.

That night, when the fire burned in the pit and we all sat eating, Alhaitham spoke.

"Something is wrong," he states simply.

"No doubt," I add. "I felt it on the ship. The crew members are suspicious."

"Agreed," Yae Miko daintily bites into her apple. "I followed one of the strange crewmates beneath deck. After they set down their bag, I opened it. It was flour, but after digging through, I found a note. I couldn't read it's contents before another person showed up."

"Secret communication," Cyno says. "I am not unfamiliar. The note was probably coded. Something's being planned."

I find myself nodding, then stop quickly, making sure nobody saw me agreeing with him.

It was later that night when Kaveh and Alhaitham dragged me outside that my suspicions escalated.

"I think the Inazumans are planning something," Kaveh whispers. The Inazumans sleep in the 'tent too'. "All those suspicious crew members were Inazuman, and they sent me nasty looks."

"Ei is in on it," Alhaitham says with confidence. "I watched her as Miko and Cyno talked at the fire. She was quiet, bit her lip, averted her gaze."

"Telltale signs of lying, or hiding something," Kaveh nodded.

"I'll keep my eye out," I ensure.

"Be careful around Cyno. I know I said we should be friends with them... but the evidence points towards them being in the wrong," Kaveh notes. "You're out with him a lot, alone. Who knows what he could be poisoning you with."

The thought of Cyno poisoning me was hilarious. That incopetent Inazuman wou–

"Love, obviously," Kaveh winks. "Watch out or you'll fall hard. All that time together, I sometimes wonder what you're up to in the shadowy corners of the trees..."

Alhaitham whacks Kaveh hard on the head, and Kaveh looks at him with a cheeky grin.

"Sorry. Do be careful," Kaveh says sincerely.

"After that last comment, I am unsure whether anything you say is worth treating with care."

I try my best to seem indifferent, like normal. I don't laugh much; I'm research-focused, and on a serious expedition such as this, there should be no amusement, anyway. So why does Cyno, and only Cyno, possess the ability to make me laugh?

Why, then, am I blushing?

It's days later that I'm walking on yet another expedition with Cyno into the wilderness, and my thoughts are wandering. I know Kaveh (and Alhaitham, technically, because he'd been nodding along) told me to watch out when I'm around Cyno... but he's proven, over and over, how trustworthy he is. I feel comforted by his presence, and I hate myself for it.

By now, he's protected me from hostiles a dozen times, and at this point, I can't deny how thankful I am to him, even though I try to hide my gratitude. It's only his duty, he doesn't really care, I tell myself. But I'm smart enough to tell that he's grown to worry for me, and it warms my soul.

Our relationship has remained the same on the outside. We argue, we begrudgingly cooperate. But we've reached some kind of understanding nonverbally where we depend on and trust each other.

"Can you stop? You've taken samples of that same plant twelve times now." Cyno leans against his polearm like a walking stick, both his hands laced together atop the blunt end, his body leaning and using it as counterweight as he watches me work. It's kind of cute, for an Inazuman, anyway.

"This is a completely different specimen," I argue, not looking up. I don't bother explaining further. Cyno has a tendency to get distracted and pay no mind after more than a few seconds.

"Sure," Cyno is rolling his eyes, I can feel it. "But I think I see something strange over there. Can we check it out?"

"Why should I care? Go without me," I huff.

Cyno remains silent. He doesn't leave, and it makes my heart flutter.

"Wanna hear a joke?" he asks after a minute of sweet silence.

—

I've never been one for humor. Or loosening up. Or caring about others, or breaking my stereotypical views. To me, when something is a fact, it's forever a fact. Like Sumerians are weak nerds who are selfish and bratty to anyone slightly less smart.

Tighnari is anything but the stereotypes. His quips and increasingly sarcastic ways of speaking allure me. They make me care, make me want to protect him. At the same time, his presence has become a comfort to me. He feels like a friend, even though we argue. He makes me want to make him laugh.

But he's suspicious of me. I know it. I thought, maybe, we'd had some kind of unspoken bond where we agreed upon trust. Now, after two days ago when the ship left, I feel like he's been sending me glances. Him less than the other Sumerians, but still.

I haven't felt anxious in a while, but it builds up again. I feel judged and watched, but for what? What the hell are the Sumerians up to? It only makes me suspicious of them. Thus, the feeling of missing something comes back, especially after the ship came back for supplies. The crew members were strange. Now the Sumerians on the island are.

Meh, what the hell, Sumerians were always deceiving shits. I should treat them as such. I can't manage to be distrustful of Tighnari, though, regardless.

I just want to see him smile. It's the urge that overrules all my logical instincts.

"Yes," Tighnari responds, heavy sarcasm slapping me in the face. I feel myself smile a bit. He's still comfortable enough to use sarcasm, that's a sign, I guess.

"So, what did the sakura petals say to the Inazuman?" I ask. "The connection between us is electric. Get it? Sakura petals need to be shocked with elect–"

"Yup, got it," Tighnari says, finally standing up. "Let's go."

"Huh? Why the sudden change in attitude?" I lean away from my polearm and attach it to my back, ready to walk again.

"Your jokes are like torture. If I distract you with whatever 'something strange over there' you saw earlier, maybe you'll shut up," he responds sharply.

He sends a bored look my way. I huff and walk off towards whatever it was that I had seen, already annoyed by his behavior.

My frown quickly turns to a smug look as we near what appears to be ruins.

We're silent as we step into what appears to be some kind of ruined square structure. I walk to one side of the tomb that occupies the center. Its lid is stuck, like it had been covering the corpse beneath for centuries. Wordlessly, Tighnari joins me in trying to push it off.

It eventually takes me incorporating a bit of ingenuity; using my polearm as leverage and hoist it up while Tighnari pushes. What we find is no corpse, instead a dark passage leading below, cobwebs coating the walls. I jump in without hesitation.

"Wait," Tighnari says from outside.

I look up at him, where he stands peering into the hole, patterns of sunlit palm trees dancing across his face. He scans my face, which is neutral. Eventually, he seems to process some kind of thought, and his face relaxes as his eyes meet mine firmly.

"Never mind," he says.

Tighnari basically hides behind me as I light a lamp and carry on down into the tunnel. It grows progressively colder, and I flinch at each spiderweb tangling with my face, but pretend as if I don't. Eventually, we make it to a large circular room. Ruins decorate the walls.

We observe them all carefully. They tell the story of an average guy, centuries ago, who won the favor of the gods. They bestowed upon him a vision; and at this point, me and Tighnari are confused. Visions. They're basically a thing of fiction at this point, the tales of their existence turned to legend after they were dissolved. The real question, though, was how old this island was.

"Centuries, at least," Tighnari replies. He delicately drags his thin fingers over the paintings, and my eyes can't focus on anything but them.

"Let's get your graying guy," I say.

"Alhaitham?" Tighnari snorts. "He's not graying, it's dye."

I knew that. It was worth it to get such a pleasant sound out of my companion. Sumerian or not, laughter is good for the soul, right?

"Yeah, he's studied language, right? He could translate that." I point to the runes beneath the paintings.

"No," Tighnari, surprisingly, protests. "Let's not. The images imply all we need. Why don't we keep it to ourselves?"

I look at him, confused. He sighs.

"Alhaitham will share with Kaveh, then suddenly everyone will know," Tighnari huffs impatiently. "Isn't it cool to have something to ourselves? Ei and Miko found that freshwater deposit across the island, Alhaitham mapped out the entire shoreline. We need our own discovery."

"So let's tell them once we've solved it by ourselves," I conclude, and he nods.

So we have our own thing, now. My anxieties and suspicions seem to fade as I watch him go back to observing the paintings.

We continue to traverse the ruin. There are multiple pathways. Old contraptions, especially ones involving some kind of stone that resembles a button, decorate the place.

"It looks like we need to press everything at once," Tighnari notes. "Those two on the floor, those two on the ceiling. Back then, they probably had anemo-vision users help out..."

I'm already setting down my polearm and bending forward, looking at him expectantly.

"What are you doing?" He asks with a brow raised.

"Get on my back," I say, as much as I hate it, it makes sense. "Sit on my shoulders and press the ceiling."

He looks at me with utter disgust and I feel the urge to punch it off of his face. Reluctantly, he sets his backpack of collected materials and testing liquids down on the dusty, probably ancient floor.

For the hell of it, I pretend to trip, and above me, Tighnari lets out a startled yelp and flails. My impeccable balance manages to keep him upright, and as he grumbles cruel things at me, I can't help but smile a bit.

We (mostly me) manage to figure out puzzle after puzzle through the increasingly intricate domain until we realize it's probably dark out by now, and we're expected at the camp.

Backtracking, we make our way out, both relatively happy (he's smiling. I'm not, because I don't enjoy his presence) squinting at the brightness of the pink setting sun. The light attitude that comes with a successful day of exploring a monumental piece in the puzzle of this island follows us back to camp.

"Knock knock," I say.

"Please, enlighten me," Tighnari sighs with so much sarcasm that it pools around him.

"'Who's there?'" I ask in a quieter voice, mimicking Tighnari. "Why, it's me."

"Okay? And?" my companion's behind me as I make a new and more direct path from the ruin to camp, but he's rolling his eyes, I know it.

"It's funny because you wouldn't expect me at your door, because I would never visit your house," I offer.

"Why wouldn't you?" Tighnari says to himself.

"Because Sumeru is the land of smartasses," I reply simply. It doesn't feel true anymore. It doesn't carry much weight, not to me.

Tighnari seems to hold a similar sentiment. Instead of getting angry, he just huffs disappointedly.

"Hey, Inazuman. You should come to my section of the tent–" Kaveh had added individual sections of their ever-growing quasi-building at this point, and Tighnari has his own "–tonight, so we can go over what we learned."

"Okay, Sumerian," I reply. "I'll come into your evil nerdy lair. No way."

"Don't be stubborn," Tighnari argues behind me. "I'm certain you found something interesting while you kept getting distracted."

I was never distracted with anything important to our discoveries, or to our mission. Tighnari didn't need to know that I'd been thinking of new jokes just for him. Not for him, of course, I was only trying to distract him with my jokes, so he'd be annoyed at me.

No, I'm not about to enter denial. Tighnari's smile is hella adorable and I have to admit it in a full and complete thought before my brain combusts as that contradicts all I know.

"Are you listening to me?" Tighnari demands. "I swear, you've been awfully detached this entire time."

"The monster deep inside my brutish Inazuman heart has been trying to escape and ravage Teyvat recently, I have to take breaks to stop it," I deadpan.

Tighnari snorts and the sound is tattooed into my mind.

—

Whenever Cyno's distracted with archon knows what, I observe him. I can't help it. I hate him, sure, but I can appreciate his anatomical facial structure.

Plus, he's warming up to me. I can feel it. He's more sarcastic, like I find myself being, and he makes horrible jokes like we're old friends, then goes back to insulting me. It's refreshing how we've bonded so innocently; we trust each other (even though I probably shouldn't), we loosen up around each other, we laugh, sometimes, at each other (or together).

I don't know. He contradicts all I know about Inazumans. He's quiet most of the time, and I've never seen him get excited. He's analytical, smarter than any Inazuman I could imagine; he observes the scene before taking action, he's strategic. He's also dumb, like I'd thought, but in an endearing way.

I should really stop thinking before these thoughts solidify themselves.

"So? Meet me at my room, after they've gone to sleep?" I ask.

"Sure," Cyno replies.

We make it to camp fast, and I catch the weird glances as the group watches me and Cyno come from the tree line, standing side by side and not yelling at each other.

"You've been gone longer than normal," Kaveh nudges me the moment I sit around the fire. "And seem to have become closer with Cyno."

"Stop implying such things," I hiss. "You're not much better with Alhaitham."

"Gasp!" Kaveh jokes. "The hurt, how dare you imply I like that brute? And such satanist acts as to, dare say, spend time with him— archons, I will faint before dinner."

Alhaitham sends his partner a strange look and Kaveh just laughs.

I snort at their antics, and the two of them immediately pause. I tilt my head curiously at them. They look very surprised.

"You just... laughed," Kaveh points out.

"Astute observation," I reply sarcastically.

"Sarcasm, too," Alhaitham adds. "Are you sick?"

"My dying friend, when did you become versed in the idea of amusement and joy?" Kaveh shakes my shoulders.

"You should have become Head of Drama Committee. Do I really never laugh?" I question.

"Last time you laughed was months ago, and it was a maniacal, evil scientist laugh while high," Kaveh explains.

Alhaitham grunts in acknowledgement, and I am puzzled. I glance Cyno's way. He's seated beside Raiden Ei and Lady Yae, talking to them both on the other side of the fire. The Inazuman side.

We eat dinner soon after, and then the sun fully sets. The Raiden briefs us on how she and Yae had recently mapped the coast in fine detail and expected me and Cyno's map of the center of the island by next week. I'm much too distracted to pay attention. I really don't remember the last time I laughed.

Cyno and I meet up in my area of our tent-house that night, and Cyno scowled when he saw my large pile of books laying across my desk. I huff at him and we sit together on the slightly raised platform where my sleeping bag usually sat. I'd moved it to the side earlier, expecting Cyno to probably want a place to sit that wasn't the sandy floor.

"Alright. So I think the murals represent the ancient idea of visions, which implies at least a few centuries for age. But who made them? The style suggests traditional Liyuean..." I pick up a book and flip through it, trying to recall the details of the paintings.

"But the technology was older. I'm thinking this might be Archon war days," Cyno notes.

"No, idiot, that's way too old. The mechanisms wouldn't still be working," I shake my head, scanning quickly through a book about art I'd snatched from Kaveh.

"If we could read the runes..." Cyno sighs.

"Just go steal a book from Alhaitham or something," I offer.

"No way am I going to read," Cyno says with obvious disgust.

"You idiotic Inazumans," I grumble. "Oh, here."

He leans in a bit as I point out a passage in the thick book. I feel a tiny grin growing on my face as his eyes focus on the paper. He turns to glare at me and I nearly start laughing; the book wasn't in his language, I knew that, and he only realized when he looked over.

"Ugh, why even bother with you?" Cyno huffs.

"You should have avoided assuming everything is in your language," I glance at him smugly.

"Maybe if you'd thought of being considerate, you would at least have books in common," Cyno spits back, though it's less heated than the previous quippy statements. Like Cyno's hate towards me wasn't as strong as earlier...

"Here." I send two books his way, both in common, because the Sumerian translations weren't out yet. "Read those. Technology: Teyvat's Engineering Revolution, volumes one and two. Find something that fits the ones from the ruin."

Cyno doesn't complain, he just flops over against the tent, his back resting with horrible posture as he slouches down and opens the second volume first, just to piss me off. I have to stifle a fond smile and go back to reading. Wait, fond smile?

We bicker and read for at least three hours. It's hard work, finding exactly the right information. The art style is what I'm researching; the paint was old and crumbling, but preserved thanks to the tight enclosed space. It must have been plant-based, because it was so old, and that at least helps me narrow it down to the plants I know have dye properties, and that can stick to walls and last.

Such plants aren't found on this island, but instead the mainland, especially the Mondstadt and Fontaine regions. But how did this ancient person get international dyes? Nations are always hostile towards each other, trade is very fragile... Oh, right, back in the old days, the nations were friendly, before we all separated based on our gained elemental powers and grew our prejudices.

Not like said prejudices aren't true; they are. I mean, look at Cyno, the lumbering oaf. However, he was a bit anxious, when I first met him, for the classic bloodthirsty Inazuman. And I guess he cracks jokes, which is new. He's also pretty kind to others, once he knows them. Okay, yeah, and he's hot, which did not fit into the stereotypes.

I startle, wondering how my thoughts had circulated to Cyno being hot.

Back to the topic at hand: this group of people had developed trade with other nations. Then, we have to find the style. But the style of the paintings are loose in my memory, and I can't fully pinpoint them.

I'll have to go back... but I can't go back without Cyno, as much as I hate to admit, he is my only protection against enemies. And he's good with puzzles.

"Hey, Cyno," I turn.

Nope, he's asleep.

I wonder, for a moment, how people manage to fall asleep when such interesting discoveries are within reach. Then I realize he's Inazuman and doesn't care for anything interesting.

I slowly reach to poke his cheek with my pointer finger, but before I actually touch him he's already jerking awake and snatching something from his belt. His hand wraps around air and he's perplexed for a millisecond, then he draws his legs up and crosses them, yawning casually.

I glance at his belt. It's where a weapon would usually be; he was going to attack me on instinct if his weapon was there. I guess it's nice to know he's vigilant.

"Let's go to the ruin," I say. "I need to see those paintings again, and since you're clearly taking over the technology part, you can study those."

"You're supposed to be the brainy one, don't devote a whole subject for me to research," Cyno yawns again while he shakes his head my way.

"Well, you're here, so you're helping," I snap.

"More like 'I'm helping' myself to more sleep," Cyno says with a satisfied little smirk.

"Please, your jokes aren't even funny. Maybe if you'd practice on other people you could gain something of a sense of humor," I retort.

"I don't joke to other people because I haven't started joking since this expedition started," Cyno reasons. "And so far on this expedition, I've spent 70% of my talking time with you."

Oh, that's true. I think I've ended up talking to Cyno more than even Alhaitham and Kaveh combined. How did that come about?

"Well, anyway, let's go," I stand up, selecting a book to carry along with me.

Cyno begrudgingly stands, pretending to waver around like a drunk out of fake exhaustion. I roll my eyes and feel his teasing smile as we leave the tent quietly.

As we walk, I recall how I used to be. More research-based, less time spent talking with people (Cyno) and less sarcastic remarks. I guess I spent more time to physical things like walking and exploring now. I also used to be so humorless, to add to that. My colleagues were right. I really never used to laugh.

I remember all those times I'd hear things others couldn't, thanks to my ears. Maybe that's why my humor dissipated soon after childhood. I heard so many things my friends would say about me the moment I left, things my teachers, students, even family didn't intend for me to hear that harmed me and caused me to bottle myself up. Cyno hasn't, but Alhaitham and Kaveh have both said things that contribute to the lot.

Like now, as I'm leaving with Cyno, I can hear Kaveh's snicker as he points out 'Hey, Haitham, look, Tighnari and Cyno are sneaking off into the night together'. I also can hear Alhaitham getting up to look out the window behind me, and I can hear them both snicker a bit.

TLDR: I leave the camp blushing.

—

I'm actually so damn tired right now. I haven't read a book (unless case files count) for the past four years, and when I had, it was because Miko had forced me to read a light novel about police so I could grade it on accuracy (it wasn't accurate). So, when Tighnari insists I not only read but also sneak out in the middle of the night to do an extra research patrol? Yeah, no way am I putting effort into this.

We reach the ruins a lot faster than I thought we would, but I guess that's because Tighnari wasn't stopping to take plant samples.

While the moon shines dimly above and the clear stars provide our only other light we see something new. A faint, gentle, clearly muffled red glow behind the tomb-looking ruin. Tighnari and I glance at each other, and then I walk off to see what it is.

Behind the ruin's entrance, tucked into a tiny man-made indent in the ancient stone, is a old teleport waypoint.

"A waypoint?" Tighnari comes up close behind me and squints at the faint glow.

"Deactivated, too. Must have been a while since use," I say. I learned some things from that book. "This technology implies this ruin was, at maximum, made a thousand years ago."

Tighnari looks at me, and I look back, realizing he's surprised that I knew even that.

"Hey, I read that book for an hour," I huff in my defense.

"Still surprised Inazumans have memory," he responds simply, acting way more bewildered than he is. I love it when he's theatrical. Wait, what?

"Wanna try and get it to work?" I offer with a mischievous grin. I have to admit, research and experimentation are actually kinda fun, and I really want to see what kind of weird things unkept waypoints can do.

Tighnari grins back, and for a moment, from an outside perspectives, it could look like we're friends.

Teleport waypoints, I read, are finicky things when unkept. Usually, they glow a soft blue, meaning they're activated for anybody to use simply by heading to one waypoint, clicking on another, and boom, you teleport there. But the old ones sometimes can cause problems.

Teleporting you down a cliff, high above the waypoint, halfway through the ground, on top of someone's head, sometimes splitting you in half. If we could weaponize such a power for the Inazuman military... no, don't think like Clorinde and Sara, you're police, not those war hooligans.

I try to activate the thing, and immediately it glows blue, but it flickers for a bit and the pedestal takes a few seconds to rise, fighting against old vines. Tighnari pulls out a miniature temporary waypoint that he had brought from Sumeru and uses it to access the grid of waypoints nearby. The old one shows up.

"Looks like we can use it," he notes.

"Can I give it a spin?" I feel kind of excited to test it out; our very own discovery. I've never discovered something before. Like how he was enjoying himself while exploring, I'm suddenly enjoying myself with sciency things. It's kind of strange how easily I can admit it.

"Go ahead, snap your head off," he hands me the teleporting device.

When I make to tap the waypoint, he quickly lurches forward and grabs my wrist, stopping any further motion.

"I was being sarcastic!" he exclaims. "How moronic are you? You could have died."

"Like you'd care," I roll my eyes.

He goes silent for a minute, taken aback. We're pretty close. He scoffs and takes his device back, but only just out of my reach. He's still attached to my wrist. "Sure, I'd care."

I, too, am rendered quiet. What could I say? Cool? Hah, that's amusing? Really? Because none of those explain the butterflies kissing at my heart. I should scoff and say it's a joke. It really shouldn't affect me so much. But for some reason, Tighnari (A Sumerian!) caring that I don't accidentally lop my head off makes me feel warm.

"Thanks," I reply. "Likewise."

His eyes widen for a second, then he lets go of my wrist to bring that hand up to his mouth, hiding a cough as he turns away. "Anyway. Let's test it on something else first, like an apple."

"Well, I have tons of those in my pockets," I respond, scoffing. "How about some bread?"

"Yeah, my bread stash is in my boot," Tighnari shoots right back.

"I meant that I actually do have bread, no sarcasm intended." I can't help but smile a bit. "Would it work?"

"Oh, sure." He's looking away. I wonder if that was a tone of indifference, (of endearance,) or of embarrassment? Yeah, take that, Tighnari, you assumed wrong, I actually do have useful things on me. Be embarrassed.

I hand him a tiny loaf of bread and he examines it for a second before setting it on top of the teleporter and tapping on the one nearby. It appears before us, at the base of the rusted, mossy, dirty waypoint, completely unharmed.

Tighnari nods with satisfaction and picks up the teleporter, and before I can stop him, he teleports himself.

"Why'd you do that?" I cross my arms.

He looks unscathed. "I collected data first, it's safe."

"Even I know you need more data than that," I raise a brow. "I think that maybe you're just as eager to jump at things as me."

"I'm nothing like you," he responds. "I have a brain. I tested it first."

"Let's go with that," I grin.

So, we found a working waypoint. And perhaps an added camaraderie to our strange yet trusty relationship.

—

Collect data, study it, research, apply it, discover new things, it keeps going on and on, just how I'm used to it.

Except Cyno's here, asking to borrow books from me, guiding me to a private spot where nobody can see us teleporting to the ruin, watching me observe the paintings, figuring our puzzles. Whining about the space without a hint of useful knowledge, looking at me, protecting me from unexpected slimes in the depths of the place.

I end up diverging from my research routine to listen to his jokes, to theorize (sometimes on silly things Cyno asks about, like why ducks don't just live underwater), and to explore for fun.

I find myself trying to define how I feel about Cyno, but all the words in both common and Sumerian don't understand it. I love teasing him, seeing him get angry, watching him think of come backs. I genuinely get in heated arguments with him, too. But then we succeed in something together, and suddenly we're both smiling, and I feel so comfortable around him. There's no word for it, not even a sentence that can comprehend the complexities.

I'm a scientist, a researcher. I should be able to figure it out, right?

I give up and file it away after another minute of thinking.

It takes weeks, but we pinpoint the exact time period of the art, after running tests on the stone and paint, and after Cyno managed to figure out when the waypoint had last been used.

341 years ago, November, around the 18th to the 21st was when the waypoint was installed, the building began. The paintings, we figured, were around April the same year.

We also learned, after mapping out basically the entire center of the island, that this is the only thing man-made here, implying it has some sort of religious significance (see: vision paintings), which means this island wasn't that important. They didn't built a town around the domain, they didn't settle the land at all, meaning it must have been one rich guy funding one thing and then setting off to richer lands.

We also interpreted the... yeah you probably don't need all this info. Summarizing, we found a lot out.

"Greetings, young settlers of this new land," Beidou says grandly as she steps onto the sand. "Your last shipment has arrived."

Cyno heads off to help and I do too, but we're separated, doing our own thing. Nobody questions it, obviously, because they've never seen us get along. Speaking of hostile people, the entire ship seems on edge. Mostly the Sumerians.

The Inazumans of the boat are as suspicious as before. I catch Ei, like Alhaitham had pointed out that night in the camp, acting strange and showing clear signs of hiding something.

The shipment passes like the last one. Tense, suspicious. The knife in my pocket itches against my side constantly. I suddenly feel distrustful towards all Inazumans; their gazes, their suspicious cargo, Beidou's loud exclamations only sound like cover-ups.

The moment they leave, we all meet up, talk, eat, and go to sleep for the night. I can't. I can't sleep feeling like Miko or Ei could be plotting to steal our research or kill off us Sumerians.

I find myself teleporting to our ruin, watching the faint blue glow of the waypoint swirl around the moss for hours. Then Cyno shows up, and he sits next to me, and we watch it together.

—

They're up to something, I've decided. The crew, that is. I'm with the police; I can tell a criminal in disguise, a plot from common idea, in any crowd. I've singled it out: all Inazumans, all temporary crew members, all ones that Beidou doesn't know very well. They all have at least once assisted in transporting suspicious cargo around, and I've caught them talking in dark corners.

Between compiling information on our ruin, I focus on that. There's a lot of time for leisure on the island, and most of it I spend with Tighnari, though, so I don't make much way on the investigation.

That, of course, doesn't help my useless worrying. I don't really feel anxious; more just a bit concerned, kind of confused, but still ready to take on whatever's to come. Especially when I sneak out an find Tighnari had the same idea.

We're sitting in silence, and it's way more comfortable than it should have been between enemies.

After the moon as hit the dead center of the sky, Tighnari speaks.

"Maybe I'll stay here on the island." I'm glad he chose a topic avoiding the crew's tension. "Settle it, continue my research and teach what I've learned."

"I'll be your neighbor," I surprise myself by saying. He looks surprised too, for a second, but shifts to an easy little smile quickly, like he's comfortable with me.

I find myself realizing it's mutual.

"That's a waste of wood, you should just stay at my place," Tighnari reasons.

"Sure, but I get to decorate the exterior," I reply.

"Deal," Tighnari says firmly.

It's two days later that we've fully gathered and arranged all of our compiled information and called a meeting to explain our discovery to the members of our squad.

"Me and Tighnari have something we'd like to talk about," I begin.

Miko picks at her nails, and Kaveh's doing the same, like the disinterested lesbian/gay (respectively) they are. So, I find myself preparing to give them a little teaser to keep interest, but Tighnari speaks in my stead.

"We found a waypoint and dated the island's foundation, by that I mean there were people here, by the way, Liyuean to be specific. We mapped out the entire center of the island. We found paintings detailng the history of visions," Tighnari says. "So, if you want more details, kindly listen."

Yeah, this mutual bond of general trust is a lot more than it was a week ago. I can feel myself looking at him with way too much adoration (not adoration! Just, uh, respect. No, there's no denying it, he's great).

The team is dumbfounded as we go over our discoveries, picking up at each other's sentences, ranting on our different areas of expertise, and most importantly, forgetting our worries and feeling joy.

Alhaitham, even, seems surprised as he watches Tighnari smile and go on actually enthusiastic tangents. I, in turn do the same, frightening Miko and Ei with my energy.

When we're finished, we get a round of applause.

"So, you weren't making out in the woods?" Kaveh asks.

"No, Kaveh," I roll my eyes, and Tighnari, I catch, does it in sync.

"I don't even like that guy." He finishes for me.

—

Final week, and the ship comes back. They've dropped off our discoveries and are prepared to take us to Port Ormos, where they'll drop us and our heavy loads of research off and then bring the Inazumans to their nation.

I'm casually twiddling with the knife, infusing it with dendro and poking my fingers until it turns the tips slightly green. I'm pretty much convinced it's Cyno's, I mean, who else would have a weapon this tiny? But would Cyno really have something so delicate?

No, I don't want to reopen this mystery right now. The ship is arriving.

The tension is really high among us as it docks and I fail to see any Sumerians (Baizhu was always ready to examine me for wounds the moment they landed). The moment the ship is ready and stable, Inazumans rush out and surround us.

I don't really know what's happening; I just woke up. I fail to understand as the crew members take out weapons and point them at us Sumerians, rounding the three of us close together.

"What the hell?" Kaveh's asking loudly as they all point spears at us.

I try to see where Cyno is, wishing beyond everything that he's not standing with them, but I can't, because my attention is drawn to a bulky man right in front of me, leaning down with an evil glint in his eye.

"You Sumerians really trusted us?" he snarls.

We don't say anything, we're all in shock. How'd it happen so fast? The sound of their feet touching the sand was still fresh in my ears, like I'd just heard it a second ago.

The knife in my pocket is sharp, and suddenly I realize it could cut me.

I really think I'm cornered with Kaveh and Alhaitham, surrounded by malicious Inazumans, until I feel Cyno's shoulder pressed into mine. Suddenly, he's here, ready to protect me like he always has.

"Where's Beidou?" Cyno demands it, and I can't help but question why that's the first thing he's wondering.

"Where do you think she is?" the man laughs.

"How'd you manage to imprison Beidou?" Cyno asks more in bewilderment than anything else. "Never mind that. Ei, how many can you take?"

"At least ten." She's also with us in our cornered clump.

"Being Vice President doesn't mean I can't fight," Alhaitham adds. "I can take ten, too."

"Then I'll take the other three and back you up," Cyno says.

"Planning to fight your way out? I'll have you know we're experienced," the man hisses. "I've been planning to capture this island for myself and my pirates this entire time. We're all more prepared than your messed up bunc–"

And before he can finish, I've punched him in the jaw. Perhaps Cyno's taught me a bit about fighting.

I've never, not once in my life, pictured myself fighting. Even more strange, fighting alongside Inazumans.

I kick up a spear that had flung across the sand by my feet. Twirling it in my hands, I launch it hard. Someone screams in the distance, but I'm already distracted, defending myself form a rogue crew member.

I feel my arm twisting unnaturally as the Inazuman latches onto my arm. He ducks under my weak swing, sweeps my feet with his own, and I'm on the ground. The beach grates me like sandpaper, rubbing my ears the wrong way, reddening my elbows. The adrenaline fails to kick in, and I feel useless.

I understand, now, why Inazumans keep up with their combat. Anything could happen. The seas, land, and all of humanity always has some evil in it. I should have kept up with my combat excersises instead of spending three days studying without sleep. I should have taken some kind of class.

Helpless. I've never felt so helpless as when this stranger slams a fist to my neck, temporarily halting my throat's procedues, renering me gasping for breath. Cyno. He'll come. I know he will. But he wasn't coming, not fast enough, so I have to find a way out.

Reaching into my pocket, I find the tiny, delicate knife. Just before I'm picked up and thrown by the feet across the battlefield, I stab the enemy in the chest. It's horrible. It's bloody and gross and sticky and I can't see. I stumble to my feet and fall right back over.

It's then that everything fits together, as I'm looking at the Inazuman ahead of me, fumbling around at the knife in their chest. In their hand is one identical to it. Of course, of course. How hadn't I noticed? Cyno never asked for a missing knife, never even seemed to use anything of the sort, always so attatched to his polearm. Why hadn't I seen it? The enemy were carrying boxes of weapons, the knives tiny, delicate, perfect for asassination.

They'd been giving us strange looks. But not only us. Our Inazumans, too; because these weren't the government, these weren't Beidou's crew. The rogue pirates here had been right under our noses and it was so obvious.

"Tighnari!" Cyno skids to a stop in front of me, his spear dripping with dark blood.

"I..." I stare at the body in front of me. The knife is still there, sticking out like a cactus in a plain desert.

"We've taken care of them already," he comforts.

I lift my hands closer to my face and stare at them. They're bloody. I've never killed before. Huh.

"That was quite interesting," I find myself saying. "I feel like you, as a police detective and operative, should have figured out this plot a while ago."

"Oh it's my fault, yeah," Cyno shakes his head, but he's definitely not angry, and I find myself smiling.

I plop down on the sand and he does the same so we can both catch our breath. Cyno stabs his polearm into the sand just as he says "Hey, I just thought of a joke."

I stare at the field of bodies and bloody sand, then back at Cyno. I raise my eyebrows at him, trying to ask, is this the appropriate time?

"Sure, just say it," I sigh, because I doubt there would be a second raid of the pirates anyway, and Ei and Miko already went to find the tied up crew aboard the ship.

"Why did the stupid idiot rogue pirate think he can beat us in a fight?" Cyno asked.

"Why?" I lean on my fist, watching him.

"Because, uh," Cyno looks back at me and suddenly loses his train of thought.

His expression seems to relax, and I wonder why, until I realize I've been smiling ever since we sat down. I quickly force my face to it's normal frown. He copies it.

"You should smile more," Cyno says.

"Worst punch line yet," I roll my eyes.

Cyno shakes his head with a gentle smile. I know, strange. I literally just killed a guy for the first time. But Cyno's being weirdly nice and I can't help but listen to my heart increase the tempo. He likes my smile. He likes my smile. Suddenly, I don't care if we just killed people, because I've seen that all the time. I've never fallen in love before.

"You know, I could have used you back there," I change the topic, and as I'm about to face towards the ship, I feel myself unable to, because Cyno's undivided attention is on me, and mine on his.

"I think I've protected you enough already throughout this expedition," Cyno huffs.

"What if I were to have died a minute ago?" I offer.

"I'd probably avenge your death and then bury you in our ruin," Cyno shrugs, then adds hesitantly with a sheepish look; "...maybe cry a bit."

—

Yeah, I'd cry more than just a bit, because the moment I said it, Tighnari starts laughing, and I feel absolutely helpless. I've never felt so helpless as when his voice pierced the air. I don't know when it happened—maybe there isn't a specific time, maybe it was a slow progression, or maybe it really was a sudden realization one morning—but I am completely doubtless that I want to never leave Tighnari's side.

I watch him laugh, and it's contagious, so I'm laughing too, right on the and in front of a bloody body and ship full of hostages.

"For people who totally don't make out in the woods, you're awfully close," Kaveh crosses his arms as he smirks at us.

Tighnari immediately shuts up and glares the death out of Kaveh while I try to control both my laugh and blush.

"Anyway, I just totally witnessed Alhaitham kill someone, and I'm scarred for life. I don't think they need help freeing everyone, so I'm taking a break." He plops down on my side, unexpectedly, like we've been friends this whole time.

I realize I really don't mind, because while nothing used to be as disgusting as a Sumerian, now nothing is more disgusting than prejudice.

"Cyno," Tighnari says.

I turn back to him and away from Kaveh, who's staring off at the ship. He's standing, offering me his hand. I accept it and he pulls me up.

"Use protection," Kaveh says, not even giving us a glance.

"You're not funny, Kaveh," Tighnari says as he opens up his portable teleporter, and before I can even start a joke, we're teleporting away from the battlefield.

We fade into our surroundings and it's much quieter. The sudden lack of soft waves and shimmering of breezy palm trees is comforting. But even if it hadn't been comforting, Tighnari would've made it better. He makes everything better.

Including me, I've realized. I learned to relax, to investigate, and to make jokes. As well as to find the beauty in all things, like Tighnari himself. I never thought a Sumerian would be the cause of positive change, but I guess Tighnari is a lot of things, and I love every bit of him.