Hello everyone, so before reading, do keep in mind that there are spoilers in this chapter of the Furina quest, and it highly depends on the story, so you need to be at least familiar with the story quest.

Also, I will soon post this on AO3, making it my debut AO3 book.

Also, another thing that is non-canon and a headcanon of mine is that during the 500 years, Furina actually learned some basic level of combat and knows a lot of stuff, cuz if she tried to research how to deal with the prophecy, she had to have a VAST knowledge of things.

With that, let's get into it.

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Neuvillette was standing in front of Focalors.

She had just explained her plan to him, and he was overwhelmed.

"But... Furina is only human, isn't she? Even though she has had a long life... her mind is no stronger than an ordinary human being! I... I cannot begin to fathom what she had to endure, it must have been torture to her," Neuvillette said in a grave tone.

"Indeed. And although she is me in a human form... I do owe her an apology. I have a few things prepared to aid her, but I'll leave that up to you... after all, o' Hydro Dragon, all this was done to return the authority to you. A vision, one that is more powerful than other visions, thanks to the excess Indemnitium, and the same curse of immortality I placed on her back then. Should she find something to dedicate herself to, I suppose that she should be given those. But of course, it will be your decision."

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Furina and Aether were taking a stroll after a talk with Navia. Aether told Paimon to stay behind, as he knew she didn't know how to read the room. As much as he liked her company, she really said some stupid things.

"I... I don't have many friends I can be honest with, so maybe she's right. You're the closest thing I have to friends that I have..." Furina said, looking down.

"I..." Aether started, but stopped. He had a lot of things he wanted to say, but the guilt of it all stopped him from saying it. How could he, when he was the cause of her pain?

"I'm just so grateful Miss Navia was so understanding. To be perfectly honest, I wasn't sure if I was ready to meet her..." Furina said, noticing Aether's uneasy look.

They then continued to walk in silence.

'How much pain is she in...' thought Aether, looking at her face as she wore a sad smile.

"It's always easier to run from your problems, but it never fixes anything. You can't get around the obstacles without facing them..." she said turning to him.

"So that's why you were nervous when they brought up Poisson..."

"Yeah, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared. But it was something that I had to do. As I was saying, I wanted to see things I could never in past..."

She went on to tell Aether about her fear, and how she felt, as they moved to a more secluded place.

'Here she's talking about facing everything, while I keep running away. What am I even scared of... her hating me?'

He couldn't bring himself to talk to her before. Just the thought of her looking at him with disdain pained him more than any injury ever did.

'I just... after 500 years... I just want to see her happy...' he thought, not noticing the tears welling up in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, you probably just wanted a relaxing stroll, and here I am dumping all of this ont-- TRAVELLER! Why are you crying?" asked Furina, surprised by his tears, as he was jerked out of his thoughts.

"H-huh! Oh... I... I just..." he muttered as he looked down, unable to make eye contact with her.

"I-is it something I said? I'm sor-"

"NO! Please don't apologise, when it's not even your fault..." he muttered, as the drops turned into a stream.

"I'm... I just wanted to... apologize. I'm the one who caused you pain. I'm sorry for putting you through all that! I just... Furina... I uh... saw your past somehow. I saw glimpses of how you felt over the past 500 years. It must have been painful... and I made it even more painful... It's all my fault... Even today, the things Paimon said... I wish I could just muster up the courage to approach you before, to apologize, to thank you for braving it for 500 hundred years, for SAVING FONTAINE, but no, I just had to stall until I needed something from you... I gave you every reason to hate me, and you're still calling me a friend..." Aether said as Furina looked at him, eyes wide.

"Traveler..." she said as she took a deep breath.

She then moved forward, making Aether look up. Before he could say more, she engulfed him in a hug.

"I-I guess I can't say it's alright... it hurt... it hurt a lot! But you did it for Fontaine. In the end, you saved it," She said before he interrupted.

"N-no! you saved Fontaine! Without you, the Heavenly Principles couldn't be fooled!" he said, making her sigh, and smile softly.

"Well, we saved it. As I was saying before you rudely interrupted me," she said in a mock stern tone, tears falling from her eyes, "you too did it all for Fontaine. So I guess, I can accept your apology. And though I am a little hurt that the first interaction after all that was due to a commission, I guess I can understand all this. Plus in the end, this is helping me move past..."

Aether wrapped his arms around her, gulping before speaking "You're too nice Furina... thanks for forgiving me... and thanks for still considering me close to a friend..."

"I am too nice? You're too nice, Traveller... even though I immediately put you through a lot as soon as you arrived, even though after everything you did, I didn't have any answers... even though I am just a fake... to be honest, I thought you hated me. I mean, I'm not needed anymore, I'm useless."

"STOP!" Aether almost yelled, pulling away as he stared deep into her eyes.

"You may not have powers, but you aren't a fake! You stood alone, filling in as an Archon, solving people's problems, helping them... in no way you were fake. You are Furina de Fontaine, the Hydro Archon, and the best archon I met so far..." Aether said with such conviction that Furina believed him.

"H-huh?"

"You were a great Archon! Under you, this nation prospered! You actually listened to people! The fact that people believed in you, that itself proves that you aren't a fake! A fake would slip up somewhere, but you didn't because you cared for them. You are an Archon, all but in name."

"B-but I let people in Poisson die..."

"Furina, you aren't perfect. No one is," he said and then sighed. "Listen. Barbatos, the Anemo Archon is a drunkard, who goes around singing and drinking. Geo Archon, who is supposed to be dead, well, he faked his own death, and FORGOT to put aside Mora for himself, ending up retiring dirt poor, and needing to work. Electro Archon, well, due to a personal loss, she retreated to seclusion and ruled through puppets, and made many wrong decisions causing a civil war. Dendro Archon... well she was imprisoned by her own people. What I'm saying is even Gods, Archons have their flaws. But you, who is a mere mortal filling for the god as an Archon, did better than any of those. Yes, a lot of people died, and yes, it's a bad thing, but it WASN'T your fault. YOU SAVED FONTAINE! And countless people are alive because of your sacrifice. We should grieve the fallen, but never blame the living. Including yourself..."

Throughout the speech, Aether didn't look away even once. His words had such conviction that she couldn't even try to deny or interrupt. Her heart was pumping extremely fast, as tears streamed down her face.

"You did well, Furina."

"Thank you," Furina said, sobbing making Aether hug her.

"You don't need to be alone anymore. I'm sorry for what Paimon said, and if I forced you to do something you don't like. I genuinely thought you were happy when you used to perform, since that was what Neuvillette told me..."

Furina put a finger on his lips, effectively shutting him up, and also making his heart race in the process.

"I said it already, didn't I? I forgive you. You don't need to feel guilty anymore. You say I did well, then so did you. We both did our best, and Fontaine is safe... I'm free... though on some level, it also means that I am no longer needed. I have no further use to people..." she said, getting sadder with every word.

"That's... Furina, think of it as a reward. Now you can be yourself, and do anything you want to. You don't have to pretend anymore, you can live for yourself," Aether said, rubbing circles on her back, making her smile.

"I guess you're right. Heh, I never really had anyone to confide in. I was scared that they'd see me for who I truly am, and expose the secret I swore to protect. 'Believe in the Furina you see on stage. She is the one to trust'. I kept my feelings bottled, my curiosity to myself. No one could know... that's why, I'm really grateful to you, Traveller," she said, holding onto him tightly.

"Aether"

"Huh?"

"That's my name."

She looked up and saw his face, and his contagious smile. She too smiled and nodded, laying her head back on his chest.

"Aether. I hope you don't mind staying like this for a while," she said, her face heating up, but the smile never left.

"I don't," he softly said as he looked up, looking at the moon.

"Furina?"

"Mhm?"

"What I said back then, about being your witness. I meant it, and I still mean it you know?"

"Huh? And what does that mean?"

"Well, I'll be the witness. Your witness. Your life, what was, and what will be, I'll be with you. I may not be always with you all the time, but I will always be there for you when you need me. I'll hear you, and share your burden. So please, if you ever need me, just... just ask..." he said.

"Aether... alright. Fine then, if that's what you want. Well, then, witness the great Furina de Fontaine, and marvel at her brilliance," She said with a sweet smile. At that moment, she felt that nothing was truly impossible for her. Maybe if he asked her, she could even fight the Heavenly Principles.

"Hmm... the Moon is beautiful tonight"

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The next few days went completely different from what the troupe and Paimon had expected.

Seeing the hesitance with which Furina joined them, they had half expected her to just get it over with. However, after she disappeared with the traveller for a few hours, when she returned, the confidence she radiated was completely different.

From getting them the Opera Epiclese to taking charge when the Lead got sick and couldn't perform, to the amazing direction and a great performance, she changed the Troupe's fate.

And throughout all that, Aether was by her side. He complimented her, he helped her, and he made her laugh. Even when they decided to announce her role in everything to the public, the pressure she thought she would feel was never there. All because he was with her.

However, a thought lingered in her mind.

'He's doing everything he can for me... but is anyone doing anything for him? He's searching for his sister, right? Did he even get any answers?'