Faded Harmony

Captured

No letters found their way to her doorstep for the next two days, despite Lyra's growing anxiety. The silence in the city had turned uncomfortable, as if a blanket had been thrown over it. No city she had ever been in had been quiet. Liyue was always bustling with trade and merchants calling out their wares. But that was many a year ago, and she wasn't sure it was the same now.

The people trapped in sleep seemed peaceful, like corpses before their funeral. Only the slight movement of their chests indicated they were even awake. Relatives waited for them to wake up, and Lyra watched those people from her window, wondering which were the nations they all hailed from.

The blame fell upon the Knights' shoulders, for they had failed to protect a city under their jurisdiction. Lyra had spent the last two days hiding in a corner of the library, watching Jean grow more anxious and frustrated as each day passed with no lead, no suspect.

And Jean had been so nice to her. Lyra almost wanted to turn herself in.

Lyra took her place behind the bookshelf, her footsteps silent on the floor as she listened. Pulling out a book from the shelf, she peered through the hole to see Jean, Kaeya and Lisa around a table in the library, almost as if they were having a round table conference. Lyra made sure the letters from the Abyss Order, which were tucked in her pocket, were hidden from view.

"Have there been no other witnesses?" asked Lisa, her hand on a book that had been lying on the table.

"Except for the deaf man? No." Kaeya glanced at the bookshelf Lyra was hiding behind. Lyra was quite sure she was well hidden from their view, but nonetheless, took a few steps back into the shadows, her heart pounding in her chest.

"I see," said Jean. She traced patterns on the table with her finger, and Lyra wondered if that was a nervous habit.

"Don't worry, we'll find them. And then we'll figure out how to wake everyone up."

"I've sent my teacher from Sumeru a letter," said Lisa. Lyra ran the name through her head. Sumeru was another one of the seven nations, but she had never been there before. "Perhaps she has some answers."

Silence prevailed for a second, until it was broken by Jean. "Whoever it was probably has a Vision, but what element? There are none that can force a person into a prison of sleep."

Lyra found a fleeting amusement at her words. She had no Vision, and she could do far more than entrap people in the depths of sleep. She wondered what would happen if she went into a murdering spree, where people fell dead with no obvious cause, but then had to stop herself from going down that train of thought.

"I've asked my teacher that too," said Lisa, just as the sound of the door opening resounded. Lyra held her breath as a sudden silence fell over the library.

"Klee. What are you doing here?" Jean asked, looking down at a little girl with elf ears. Her voice held a hint of surprise. Lyra studied the girl; she was dressed in red, blonde hair under a cap. She was a mere child, far too young to have anything to do with the Knights of Favonius. A backpack with a little doll hung on her back.

"Ms. Jean, I want to go to the lake!"

"Are you going to blow up the fish?"

Lyra wondered if this was how people fished nowadays.

"What if someone gets hurt?"

"I'll make sure there's no one around." Klee looked up at Jean with big eyes, and this child could have asked for anything in the world and Lyra would've given it to her.

Jean, an exasperated smile on her face, stood up. "Come with me." She walked out and Klee followed her, a slight skip in her step. Lyra heard the door fall shut.