a Lesson of Lumine

Chapter One: First Day, First Sight

    It was finally here. The first day at Teyvat's one and only highschool. The fall air nipped at Lumine's ears as she walked to the front entry, bearing a brown sweater. Her brother, Aether, followed along carefully. He did want to protect his sister after all (Aether was the older twin). The two walked to the front entry and met the gaze of their friends and teachers. Both Aether and Lumine were quite social and quite popular. After waving to everyone, they parted ways. Lumine looked at the sheet of paper known as her schedule, peering for her locker number. #102 Fontaine Wing.
Navigating her way through the halls, it didn't take long for Lumine to meet up with one of her closest friends, Amber. "Lumine! Hey! What's up?" She called, her red backpack bouncing as she ran.
"Oh Amber! How have you been?"
"Great! I'm so exited to be back. Maybe you'll beat me in track for once."
"Perhaps, perhaps. So...where's your locker?"
"Number 79, Sumeru Wing! How about you?"
Lumine read off her locker number, continuing to walk beside her friend. They did eventually have to separate as the Sumeru Wing was in the opposite direction of the Fontaine wing. Amber vowed to catch up with Lumine later before running off, dashing through the halls.

Lumine kept walking and eventually reached her locker. It was a habit of hers to look around and see who was around her locker. Ayaka, Hu Tao, Yun Jin, and...Xiao. Seeing Xiao, she instantly hid her face behind the door of her locker. If you were close enough with Lumine, you would know she had a massive crush on our beloved short emo king, Xiao. Even though they were far from next to eachother that didn't stop Lumine from appearing as red as a tomato. Avoiding him, Lumine kept taking care of her books and other supplies. The first class was simple enough - Math, Miss Ningguang, Room 07. While Ningguang was sometimes strict, she was a wise teacher. She would make a great leader as well!
Lumine dashed away from Xiao and nearly ran into half of the students. After arriving to the classroom, Lumine took out her freshly-sharpened pencil and simple notebook. Beside her sat Chonggyun who looked as if he was about to start panicking.
"You alright?" She asked.
"I...I ran out of popsicles..."
"Hm...do you have any more in your locker?"
"No...but...but Xingqu said he'd give me some during lunch. Oh, Auntie Shenhe's going to be so upset!"
"It's your first day, don't worry. We're all bound to forget something!" Lumine smiled with reassurance, "I'm sure that Miss Barbara can help you if you really get in trouble, as can I!"
"Alright...if you say so... I just hope Miss Ningguang doesn't point me out too much - I'd rather study paranormal history than math!"
It didn't take long for the teacher to walk in. Ningguang was dressed in a light-gray dress, complete with a yellow tie and matching hairpiece. Some of the other students all said that she was the "hottest" teacher - a concept to with Lumine thought was absurd. "Welcome class. I'm sure your schedules informed you as to what class this is. Arithmetic. Huh... Today is the first day of your school year, so I will keep the lesson minimal today. You should all have your computers, correct? I will give you a look into the years assignments and classes, including the test dates. Let us begin," Ningguang began to explain the class work exactly as she said. Not a single detail was left out - well, every detail that she spoke of. Since all the periods were scrunched in to one day, the next class came along. Biology with Mister Albedo and Miss Sucrose...wait, weren't they fellow students? Whatever the case was, Lumine made her way to the next classroom. Biology, Miss/Mister Albedo & Sucrose, Room 18.

Lumine walked through the halls, continuously greeting the other students. It was after she got into a "traffic jam" that she ran into Xiao. He was wearing an oversized black-and-teal hoodie, complete with a gray backpack. Of course, everyone was avoiding him except for everyone's favorite: Hu Tao. Her cheery energy completely contrasted his stone-cold expression. Hu Tao had noticed Lumine's glances and shoved her friend over. Xiao nearly bumped into her, not even appearing to care. "Oh-oh! I'm sorry!" Lumine frantically regained her position and continued to clutch her books. "Could've been worse," Xiao muttered.
"So...How has your first period?"
"Good luck with Mona. She's a real ass."
"Really?...Well, I've heard different things. Is she really that bad?"
"She said something along the lines of, 'If you pass this class I'd be qUiTe SuRpRiSeD! Only geniuses like me can make through the first semester!' Real pain in the neck."
"Hm...Maybe she's just anxious! Come to think of it, there are quite a few young teachers..."
"Always the optimist. So - what class are you going to?" Xiao grumbled. He hadn't made any eye contact with Lumine at all and instead was looking about the halls, glaring at the other students that had passed. "Biology. I'm quite exited, though I think it may not be the most thrilling," Lumine chuckled nervously.
"Ever the optimist. Hm."
Xiao continued to walk the halls, trying to avoid conversation. The only time he would look at Lumine was when she looked away. They were childhood friends yet Xiao still felt a strong sense of anxiety around her. Maybe it was their clashing personalities or the fact that they were slowly drifting apart. Whatever it was, it made it easy for the two of them to separate and go their own ways in the halls. 

Lumine entered the Biology classroom, which was thankfully just around the corner. Being the first student she easily gave Miss Sucrose (the assistant teacher) a heart attack. "Ah!" She shouted. Albedo peeked from his office, rolling out in his chair.
"Ah! Welcome to hell, Bitch!" He laughed, spinning around.
"Mister Albedo! Please watch your language!" Sucrose hissed who was still gathering her things, "This is a highschool! If you keep that up, Principle Gunhilder will have us fired!"
As if a switch was flipped, Albedo stood up from his chair and crossed his arms. "My apologies. Welcome to class Lumine. You may pick whichever seat you'd like. Class will start as soon as the bell rings."
Lumine nodded and took a seat before pulling out her notebook for the class. Though all she could think about was Xiao. His amber-gold eyes, his dark-teal hair, and his attitude that had bits of everything in it. Trying her best to doodle her beloved, it wasn't long before another classmate walked in. "Oh!...uh...Welcome!" Sucrose waved nervously to nobody other than Xiao himself.