A/N: Whispers of A Butterfly is already complete on AO3. If you'd like to read the full fic, you can check that out on my page. I'm only uploading the rest on Wattpad for formality purposes.

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The whole party was hoping for a letter from Chisato the next morning, but the post came in without bringing a single line from her. You were forced to conclude that she had already done the ceremony, but even of that, you would have been glad to be certain.

All Kanjou Commission clans strove to tarnish the reputation of Kujou Kamaji. You spoke with a maroon-haired detective, who introduced himself as Heizou, who winked at you before saying that he'd find your cousin in no time. He'd even get the Traveler to accompany him on his quest. And you sat, stone-faced, in-between meetings with Kujou Sara, demanding retribution from the Tenryou Commission for their head's actions.

If nothing worked, then Chisato had successfully forced you into taking her place as the heir. Though you tried not to, your mind began thinking of ways you could lie to the Inazuman press about her falling ill, hence your ascension.

To Inazuma, your current domestic situation would be a perplexing one. This was certainly not how anyone would have imagined your life to be. You were the forgotten princess, the shadow of Chisato. You were raised to be the chatelaine of a great house. Your head housekeeper should be anticipating every one of your needs, while you dressed up to go out with your powerful and influential husband to any one of the exclusive parties being thrown around the country that night. You weren't supposed to be the "harsh" one, as Chisato had described you, but you always confounded everyone's expectations.

"Mother, how will I tell Ayato?" you asked, as your mother helped herself to expensive Liyue tea after claiming it calmed her nerves.

Your mother threw you a perplexed look. "About what?"

"About the engagement," you said, starting to take off your ring. Now that you were teetering on the tightrope of not marrying, the band Ayato had given you suddenly seemed a lot more precious. "We're calling it off, aren't we?"

Your mother looked horrified and forced the ring back on your finger. "Celestia, no," she said. "You'll be ruined. I will not have my daughter thrown to the dogs because of Chisato's impulses."

"And Ayato will be rather upset, will he not?" added your father as he strode into the room. He was dressed in robes, businesslike and grave. "Continue your wedding as usual. The Kanjou Commission will be responsible for finding Chisato."

"It's frowned upon, but it's not uncommon for nobility to elope," sighed your mother, fixing your hair. "You are a good daughter, F/N. You are not like Chisato, or her father."

"And if she's already married?" you asked. There was something desperate in your voice. It unnerved you. "What then?"

Your parents shared a dark look. "Well, maybe it is best you brace yourself, dear."

Days later, you were kicked out of Ritou again, again, again, to do your duties as a bride. Your instructions were to pretend everything was alright.

You had chosen to dress simple, or at least as simple as an aristocrat could dress, because the people of Inazuma City did double takes when you strode past with sapphires hanging from your ears and a well-tailored silk belt wrapped around your waist. By your people's standards, this was hardly flashy. Drawing attention to yourself right now would be a bad move.

"Aren't these the most intricately detailed bracelets you've ever seen? They were inspired by the botanical gardens in Sumeru. Speaking of jewelry, did you like the wedding rings your fiancé bought for you?"

You looked up at the jeweler, confused. "Wedding rings?"

"Yes, the one Lord Kamisato recently purchased about two days ago after his Ritou visit. Didn't you know he got them from me?"

You averted your gaze, not wanting to look surprised. Ayato had told you that you would be wearing his parents' wedding rings. He had even been proud about it, despite your inherent dislike for one another. Was he so repulsed by you now, that he didn't want your skin touching an important family heirloom?

"Oh yes—I forgot," you said lightly. "They're beautiful. Did you help him pick them?"

"Yes. He came here right after you spent a day in Ritou together, all in a hurry. I think after your time together, he was eager to get you something new."

"Well, I am thrilled to wear your creation," you said, keeping your face completely calm. Ayato definitely hated you. He'd rather give you something newly bought than something with meaning. You didn't know why that bothered you so much.

The jeweler seemed to wish he had never brought up the rings. You didn't seem to be impressed when he described the diamonds on them weighing twenty-five carats. Or the way that the ring size was more common, like Ayato didn't care and he just chose whatever fit the average lady, like Chisato. It didn't help that the rings reminded you of her. Ayato had probably forgotten.

Your spine crawled knowing that you thought about him so much to the point that you noticed how much about you he actually remembered. As if you cared whether he cared.

"Lady Hiiragi, are you alright? You look a bit troubled."

"I'm fine, I'm fine," you mumbled as you breezed through the other selections.

The jeweler began to try damage control and explain that Ayato was clearly trying his best to give you an accessory that pleased you, despite its simplicity, but you had already purchased a gold brooch decorated in pink diamonds, a signed silver bracelet that had once belonged to the Shogun, and was now inspecting an extremely rare, fantastical pair of sapphire earrings from Natlan. None of this made a dent in your fortunes.

"You like sapphire blue, I see? Is this what you will wear at your wedding? Do they remind you of anything?"

"I think so," you said, trying to think of anything else but how Ayato might look when he'd see you.

Blue and gold. Marrying a Kamisato. The crest at your back. Blue. Ayato liked blue. That meant you should hate blue. You were aware that this was a stupid logic because many things in the world were blue, like the sky and the sea, but you didn't hate the sky and the sea for being blue. Blue was a good color. It was the color of water. Ayato had water powers. Blue looked good on Ayato.

Blue was the color of the sky and the sea when he almost kissed you, when you had refused.

You were supposed to be mad at him. But wasn't he mad at you as well? He must be, if he had bought new wedding rings.

Your palms began to sweat and you were aware that you were most likely turning into a nutcase. This was probably the result of thinking about Ayato too much. It was a nightmare how he managed to get under your skin without even being there.

Your heart pounded as you left the jeweler, clutching a parchment shopping bag that held more than what most people were worth. You had just bought jewelry that cost millions of Mora, yet you couldn't care less than if you bought them off the street.

These people would whisper again, when they'd discover that you'd become the Kanjou Commission head. Oh God. You regretted going to the jeweler now. Seeing you exit the shop would probably make passersby think that you were an ostentatious politician, or at least once you'd become one.

Relax. Relax. You're not going to become a politician. You're going to be Ayato's lovely wife. Either way, it sounded sickening. And stupid. Act normal. Act normal.

"Kamisato Estate, please," you said, as you clambered into Ayato's carriage.

Everything belonged to Ayato. Sure, you resented him, and maybe you wanted to slap him, but to disgrace him? That was too low. It was childish as well. He had gone out of his way to help you even though it didn't benefit him. And yes, his insults were irritating, but they were like inside jokes. And you did occasionally find his intellectual prowess impressive.

Darkness cloaked the cold air in Chinju Forest. When you were younger, playing with Ayato, you foolishly opened what looked like a treasure chest, only for it to be a deceitful tanuki who scratched your leg out of surprise. Ayato had carried you to the Estate, where his mother patched you up. You remembered how smooth and warm her hands had been. Back then, she was just Ayato's mother to you. It had been so long since you didn't think of her as the mistress of the household.

But that was what the wife of the Kamisato Lord should be, right? You were supposed to be supportive, caring, and pleasant to be around for your husband. You were the exact opposite of that to Ayato. Was that why he refused to give you his mother's ring? It must be. It made sense. You were not worthy of marrying him after all. Oh God. What if he wanted kids? No, he had to have kids. He was the Lord, it was your role to help him sire an heir. This is what you were born and raised for, was it not?

You found that you weren't completely averse to this. You had always known you'd become a rich man's wife. There was no shame in this — it was simply how your life worked. It was honorable to be a wife. The more you lived a lie, the more you resisted. It just didn't suit how brash and abrasive you were. Maybe you were better off as the Kanjou heir after all.

Did Ayato hate you for this?

"F/N."

You whipped your head around at the voice. Ayato, wrapped in a thick blue cloak above his prim tailorings, was standing at the side of the road, by the tanuki shrine. He looked concerned, even more so when you locked eyes. It freaked you out, how he resembled the ghosts in Tsurumi Island horror stories he used to spook you as kids. Clearly, he wanted to speak with you in private, somewhere you couldn't run away.

Heart sinking, you stepped off. Ayato waved the coach away so you were left with him. His pale face glowed in the warm candlelight of the forest. The intensity in his gaze embarrassed you. No one had ever looked at you in this way. Like he wanted to consume you.

Heat rushed to your cheeks when you remembered your last conversation coupled with the rings, and you hoped the dusk was dark enough to cover it up. It was as though he could see everything you were hiding.

"I received your letter about Chisato," he said. "That she eloped with Kamaji."

You nodded. "We're trying to find her."

"I would have interfered and offered my support to you, but—" Ayato cleared his throat, "—it seemed like you wanted solitude. I was just on my way to Ritou, actually."

That surprised you. "In the dark? It's not safe."

Ayato offered you a small smile. "You are forgetting that I am a trained fighter with security."

"Oh." You didn't know what else to say. The shopping bag weighed in your grip. "Typical."

"What's that you bought? The packaging looks familiar."

Small talk. You knew Ayato hated this, so it wasn't a good sign that he was initiating it. Like he was angry. Or nervous. He was about to tell you something.

"Nothing of importance," you answered in a neutral tone. Ayato hates me. Ayato hates me. The rings are proof. But nothing ever slipped past him. "Would you want me to stay in the Kamisato Estate or return to Ritou? Perhaps my presence will be serviceable in Chisato's return."

"Why are you suddenly so helpful all of a sudden?" he asked, lips turning down. "It's not like you to be so complacent."

"If you actually cared to understand the situation in the Kanjou Commission right now, you'd know that I have better things to do than let you ruin my day," you retorted. "Chisato is gone."

"Chisato will return," Ayato said, like it was a fact. "You only need to be patient."

He said her name with caution, like uttering it would make you berserk. He said it like he knew something. Of course he did. He was Kamisato Ayato, after all. Head of the Yashiro Commission, which oversaw cultural events including weddings in Inazuma. Trusted friend of Kujou Kamaji. Unlike you, people actually told him important information.

A thought occurred to you.

What was Ayato doing outside the Kanjou Commission in Ritou when you were there?

Surely not to talk to you. He had been avoiding you for quite some time. And for all three Tri-Commission heads — Ayato, Chisato, and the Kujou boy — to be in one place at the same time...

"You spoke to Chisato, didn't you? Before I did."

Ayato sighed. He had been expecting this.

"F/N."

All he said was your name, but it told you enough.

"Those rings you bought," you said. "They were for them. For their wedding. You're helping them get married."

"I'm helping you."

Anger flared inside you. "To what? Become the head of the Kanjou Commission? I am not as foolish as you think I am. Tell me, what did they pay you?"

Ayato pressed his lips together. "I had nothing to gain."

"Yes, you did!" you said. "If I'm the incoming head, the deal between our commissions is off. We don't marry. There is no alliance."

"We are one Tri-Commission under the Shogun, F/N."

"You did it to humiliate the Kanjou Commission!" you said, furious. "You knew — you knew — what was going on behind the scenes. Why you dangle me like a piece of rope. And I will be destroyed, and Chisato will abdicate — and you, you take the pride in this!"

"F/N, you know why you shouldn't marry me."

"Of course I do!" you spat. "I have every good reason to think poorly of you. You are the last creature in Teyvat whose hand I would ever accept!"

"Tolerance is different from wanting to marry, F/N. You surprised me a few days ago, at the beach, when you told me you refused Chisato. I thought you'd have jumped at the opportunity. But you didn't."

"Your plan was never going to work," you told him fiercely. "When I am Kanjou High Commissioner, I will ruin you."

"Look, you sound like a politician already," Ayato chuckled dryly. "I would be fine with getting ruined by you, if it meant you were happy."

Your stomach lurched with something.

"I hate to tell you this, but Chisato and Kamaji are going to be wed in a private ceremony tomorrow. There's not much time until everything is done."

Betrayal stabbed you like one of his swords. Like his coldness, it felt foreign. For you to feel betrayed, you would have had to trust him first. You should have known that he had always wanted to take everything from you. He had probably only agreed to wed you just so he could ruin your family from the start.

"You'll be miserable with me, F/N. I saw how happy you were in Ritou. Everything you told me at the beach made your feelings crystal clear."

"That's not... I wasn't..."

Ayato looked you directly in the eyes, and you were flooded by the influx of his blue irises and all the sadness in them.

"All we do is hurt each other. I'm sick of it."

You froze. Oh.

Despite your deeply-rooted resentment, a tornado of incredulous emotions reeled in your heart. Ayato's eyes were fixed on your face, all the sentiments varying across it—from surprise, to confusion, to hurt. To him, that this seemed like new information to you said enough.

"This engagement is off," he finally said, when you were silent. "You're right. This marriage was always doomed."

"'Yato... " you said, the childhood nickname accidentally tumbling out, but there was nothing you felt other than shock and strange hopelessness you could not explain.

You watched as he walked away for the nth time. You'd done this to each other about a million times, but this was the second time it truly hurt. Ayato spared you one last glance, almost hesitant, as though not sure whether to leave or not. You didn't know what to say, either.

Freedom from Ayato.

Were you so used to being caged, that it was nothing but a distant dream in your hands? You felt hollow, empty, like something inside you had shriveled up and died like tree bark.

"If you're coming tomorrow, Chisato and Kamaji will be in Konda Village. Everyone involved in the wedding will be staying there for a night. You might want to see your cousin married."

With that, he disappeared up the path leading to the Kamisato Estate, leaving you to dwell alone in a blanket of fog.