You really wished you had someone to hold your hair right now.

After throwing up every single food you ate in the last twelve hours, you let out another sickly groan. Lucky enough for you, none of the locals seemed to have taken interest in a young lady spilling her guts into the sea. Maybe they saw you as a pitiful drunkard that just had one too many drinks? Whatever it was, you were happy that no one decided to disturb you during your weakest moments.

There was still a flaming hot sensation sticking to the roof of your mouth and on the sides of your tongue, making beads of sweat drip down your face. Honestly, if you were in Snezhnaya, you would already be diving face-first into the snow beds and maybe laying there for an hour or two. But alas, you were currently slouched over the wooden fences of the Harbour, trying to get rid of that spicy taste in your throat.

Another tired groan made you shut your eyes out of misery. You didn't know how long you were out for or if you ended up bumping your head on the table when you collapsed from the heat. Maybe it would be a good idea to return back to the Traveller and the trio of best friends, you didn't want to be caught in another situation without your weapons-

"Secretary [Y/N]...?"

You let out a startled cough and stood up from the fence. An unfamiliar female voice just made you jump out of your skin like you were some kind of rookie soldier. You didn't even dare to turn around, that's how freaked out you were, you hoped that the woman would lose interest and leave. Moreover, you were hoping she couldn't see your face.

"Could it be...?" This time it was a man's voice.

Give me a break! You never felt the universe go against you until now. What was your luck? Is this supposed to be a cruel joke by the Archons as punishment for becoming a treacherous traitor? Very funny - no, not really. If anything, you were the victim here.

"You, in adventurer's clothes, turn around." The man and the woman began whispering among themselves that they might have the wrong person but decided to investigate you anyway.

I'm caught at last... You couldn't believe you were being ordered around by someone other than a Harbinger or Lord Scaramouche. All the more, it was uncalled for you to follow them. Well, what else could you do? If you tried to run back to Lumine's party, the duo behind you would run after you too. If you fought back, surely it would draw the attention of a large crowd and then soon, the Millelith. You were all out of options, maybe you could dive into the sea instead-

As you wiped your chin with your sleeve, you finally turned around to look at who was behind you. Maybe you should already have your arms ready in a handcuffing position, it would probably make it easier for everyone. It was time to surrender. Though, you wondered how your friends would react if they found out you were kidnapped again just like that.

"Oh my Archon...!" The lady gasped.

The man was equally astonished, "It's really her! She was here all along...!"

When you looked up to look at the people who caught you, you also looked as surprised as them. To the left was a young woman with silver hair and a uniform eye mask. To the right was a blond man with the same face wear. They seemed to be holding each other's hands, to your confusion.

Both of them were members of the Fatui, you could see it on their attire (and from the way they addressed you so formally). So, it was a little bit of a shocker to see them in front of you - not looking ready to throw a tarp over you or something.

"Ah..." You groaned out of awkwardness because of the strange situation you were currently in. Seeing that both of them were frozen in shock from being in your presence, you decided to speak first. "Hello, Vlad and Nadia..."

They looked starstruck, it seemed like just hearing your voice scared them a little. You weren't a ghost or some kind of mythological creature from the depths of the underworld, so you didn't really understand why Vlad and Nadia looked like they were ready to book it.

You continued to talk carefully, stepping along the railing to face them, "What are you two doing here? I thought both of you were situated at basecamps on the outskirts of Liyue Harbour?"

Vlad glanced down at the other woman briefly before returning his gaze back to you, stuttering a little bit, "We work here... at the Northland Bank, remember?"

"O-Of course, I remember..." Your face exploded red, sighing heavily in response. "Well, if you guys are working at the Bank then why are you away from your posts...? You do know that you aren't being paid during your breaks, right?"

"Uh... I think the most important question here is..." Nadia pointed back nervously, shrinking against the man next to her. "W-What are you doing here, Secretary [Y/N]? Where have you been? And what are you wearing?!"

"That's right!" Vlad joined in. "Did you know that Harbinger Scaramouche ordered every single soldier to be on the lookout for you? He ordered the most elite agents to track down your location and would become furious whenever they failed their mission...! And you're just... here?! Did you not realize that the whole military is hunting for you?!"

Another awkward silence washed over the three of you. There was a frozen expression of confusion all over your face. You didn't know that Scaramouche sent out all the soldiers, you only knew about that war machine, that Cicin Mage, and Kliment. Were there actually more than you thought?

Then how come you only encountered three obstacles? The hijacked Ruin Guard managed to grab you by the waist and take two steps before being beaten down by the Traveller's party. Then, the Cicin Mage had the chance to immobilize you and even almost snatch you away before Xiangling's little partner torched the Mage's Electro shield. Finally, Fatui Agent Kliment happened to successfully kidnap you before being stopped by Chongyun just in time with his Spirit Blades.

Were there actually more that you didn't know of?

Perhaps the times when Lumine goes off to do her commissions, she is actually fighting off other Fatui soldiers who were tracking you down? Is that why she disappears often? How about the time when Xiangling and Xingqiu happened to leave to go get ingredients for the exorcist's popsicles and end up with only enough to make two, did they also fight off enemies? Is that why they came back so late with such few ingredients?

And the time when Chongyun asked to talk alone in a secluded area, was he actually bringing you away from the Geo Archon's Statue because he knew it would be a likely marker that would attract the Fatui soldiers' attention? And from there, they failed to find you again. Was that what actually happened? You didn't know for sure, but you doubt that they would tell you anyway.

"Secretary [Y/N]...?" Both Vlad and Nadia were waiting for you to respond.

You felt the need to change the subject, "Why are you two away from your posts? As your superior, it is my duty to tell you not to leave the Bank unguarded."

(In the middle of that rant, you wondered if you even had the authority to talk to them like that anymore.)

"Well, we requested to have short breaks between our shifts... and Vlad and I were just going out for an evening stroll around the Harbour..." Nadia tightened her arm around the man's bicep, cautiously leaning in. "Watching for incoming ships... Mail deliveries... That's all..."

You shifted awkwardly on your feet and reminded them, "R-Romantic relationships are forbidden in the Fatui... It's punishable... It's something we're above, no one needs love to be a great soldier... I'm surprised both of you haven't been reported yet."

Nadia perked up at your words and shook her head quickly, smiling sincerely, "We understand the rule, secretary [Y/N]... and we don't intend to break any regulations...! So, please, don't worry! We're not dating-"

"We're not?" Vlad interrupted with a teary-eyed look on his face.

Nadia glanced behind herself, "Shh, she's right there... we might lose our jobs..."

"Ugh..." You once again withered in pure embarrassment, you didn't really know what to do in this situation. You could practically see hearts floating around the couple while a dark cloud was rolling over your head.

Both guards were back to being serious. They shifted their gazes back to you and felt the need to acknowledge the outstanding debt.

"We know the price that's on your head right now, secretary [Y/N]," Nadia muttered wistfully, keeping her hand tight around Vlad's arm. "Harbinger Scaramouche made sure that every able-bodied Fatui member knew about the bounty and will be dedicating every single minute searching for you. He even ordered a nationwide manhunt, some soldiers were even sent to Mondstadt in case you escaped there..."

"But, this is great...!" Vlad exclaimed with mild enthusiasm. "We're so glad that we found you safe - and alive. I can't even imagine how happy Lord Scaramouche would be hearing this news! Even better, Master Childe will be coming back to the Northland Bank, we should probably notify him about your whereabouts. If you don't mind, secretary [Y/N], Nadia and I will be taking the bounty reward. No hard feelings, only business."

"Nope, I'm leaving... Go ahead and continue with your evening date, your secret is safe with me..." You waved your hand in the air and walked off before they even got into their fighting stances. Surprisingly, the couple let you go - looking as dumbfounded as ever in the process.

You didn't want to stay out in public by yourself anymore. You didn't see Vlad or Nadia as threats, though their connections to communicate with the Fatui Harbingers are extremely concerning. Most importantly, you didn't want to even see Childe, let alone run into him!

But, something wasn't right. Something felt off. You could feel it in your gut that Scaramouche was not done with you just yet. The thought of it made you even more anxious. You couldn't imagine what kind of master plan he had up his sleeve. It would be best to lay low for the next few days.

It was time to vanish into the crowd for a while.

"Aw, she got away." Vlad sulked a little, sticking his bottom lip out. "Maybe if we let her go, she won't tell anyone about our relationship..."

"Secretary [Y/N]... is amazing, isn't she? She's very understanding... I've always respected her." Nadia shifted her gaze downwards. "There must be a valid reason for her disappearance. Perhaps we should keep our mouths shut too..."

"But the bounty reward..." The man sighed longingly, leaning onto his girlfriend as he pondered aloud. "What was it again? It keeps changing."

"Lord Scaramouche set it at ten million Mora... it's too good to be true, but that's how desperate he is for secretary [Y/N] to return back to him... it's a little scary..."

"Hey!" Vlad laughed all of a sudden which brought up the mood. "You know what I would do with that much Mora? Ohoho, the possibilities are endless...! But the first thing I would do is buy us a ship! We could finally go back to Snezhnaya and you can be reunited with your family again! Just like you always wanted!"

Touched by his statement, Nadia rested her head against his shoulder and couldn't control her upcoming smile, "Oh Vlad, you're so thoughtful... Don't forget to spoil yourself too...! Besides, you should only spend ten million Mora on things that are important to you."

•••

When you returned back to the Traveller and her group, they immediately surrounded you. Lumine placed a supportive arm around your back and guided you to take a seat.

"H-How did it taste?" Xiangling tried to break the ice. "I'm really sorry, I must have put too much spice! I really didn't mean to make your nose bleed!"

Xingqiu made his way next to you and opened his notebook once again, "How are you feeling? Did you happen to recall new memories? Would you say that the Electro implementation in your brain was Overloaded?"

"You don't have to speak if you don't want to." Chongyun's voice was gentle as he passed you a popsicle.

Only after taking the icy treat did you start explaining the memory you saw, leaving out some of the significant parts. They were matters between you and Scaramouche only. You felt like there were some discrepancies that needed to be addressed, cleared up...

And erased for good.

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