The Twelfth Fatui Harbinger (Semi-Hiatus)

Chapter 26 - Serious Talk and Doubts Arise, Again

The next day, in the meeting room with the Tsaritsa, Scaramouche, Childe, and Y/N, Y/N's POV

"Y/N, are you absolutely certain that you cannot remember anything about what happened before you fell into a coma?" the Tsaritsa inquired, face severe and slight wrinkles appearing on her forehead from evident concern. I was creeped out because she had never done anything to take care of me other than giving me a room instead of keeping me in prison.

I was so confused, but I pulled myself together and replied, "Yes, I'm certain, your Majesty. I only remember some basic information like my birthday, name, age, and family relationship and also why I'm in the Fatui. But I don't know who this 'Athena' is."

The Tsaritsa narrowed her eyes at me as if scanning my face for any trace of a lie. After some time, she must've determined that I had been honest and let out a long sigh.

"Very well then. I'm afraid this situation is much more serious than I had thought. Athena has nearly entirely wiped Y/N's memory, so we cannot determine when she first entered Y/N's mind. And how? There has to be some explanation, nobody, even an archon, has been able to use telepathy to communicate with others." The Cyro Archon paced back and forth, racking her head and trying to find an answer to her question.

"Could it be because of Y/N's background...?" Childe suggested hesitantly, speaking up for the first time that day. I'd never heard that ginger be so quiet for so long. What a record...

The Tsaritsa abruptly paused in her pacing, and her eyes lit up at the comment, but then grew dark again.

"I believe that is true. But this revelation takes us no further than we were just moments ago. Y/N is from Khaenri'ah, and when the nation fell several decades ago to Athena's control, she demanded that the king give her the power to telepathically communicate with her new people. Y/N is technically one of her subjects, even though they live here now, so that must have been how that wicked goddess managed to control Y/N's mind."

"Wait, I'm not following. Isn't it good that we know how Athena caused this mess?" Scaramouche cut in, eyebrows furrowed, wrapping an arm around me to comfort me. I turned and smiled at him slightly, leaning into his half embrace.

"There is nothing we can do to stop it. It was a treaty, a pact, and it cannot be broken unless the king takes back his word, and this king is either long dead or lost in the chaos of the Abyss," the icy-blue-eyed archon explained, sighing and putting her face in her hands. "Oh, what are we to do? This is bad, really bad!"

"Can I say something?" I piped in uncertainly, unsure if I could be part of this conversation. Everyone was talking about me, not to me, and it was getting highly annoying. I was literally right in this room with them.

The three worry-warts finally stopped pacing and worrying and turned to look at me. Childe and Scara apologized profusely while the Tsaritsa just sighed and said, "Go ahead, Y/N."

"Um, okay. So, first, if I lost all memory of Athena, doesn't that mean that she's given up and intends on hiding now that her secret is revealed?" I questioned, trying to straighten my posture in the uncomfy chair that the Tsaritsa had summoned in her throne room. I wanted to look more confident, more imposing, like the Cyro Archon did. Maybe it would make the Tsaritsa take Y/N a bit more seriously and include me in this very important conversation about someone controlling me.

"Not necessarily," Her Highness replied. "It could just mean that she is hiding in the shadows for a while until you are at your most vulnerable once more to strike again. Since you have no memory of her or what she said or made you do, it would be easy for her to trick you into thinking she's your conscience with a voice. It's not that far-fetched, considering that your conscience is basically yourself that guides you with proper reasoning and decision-making," the Tsaritsa elaborated.

"Okay, thank you. Second, does this mean that I can't go on my mission to Sumeru?" I asked, trying to hide my hope that the answer would be yes.

The Cyro Archon merely laughed coldly and replied, "Nice try, Y/N, but you've already been assigned that task. You'll be leading the mission, so it is essential that you are there. Do not jeopardize the mission or let anyone recognize you when you're there like you did at the delusion factory. Do I make myself clear?"

I sighed and hung my head as I reluctantly answered, "Yes, Your Majesty."

"Alright then," the Tsaritsa spoke cheerfully, "all of you may now be dismissed. Y/N, Scaramouche, be sure to be ready for your mission. Dottore will be waiting for you at the front entrance of the castle at 9 am sharp three days from now. Don't be late, and do remember my warnings, Y/N. Both about the mission and about Athena. You must not let her take control of you once again. She is very dangerous."

And on that very awesome note, the three harbingers took their cue to leave, closing the double doors softly behind them.

"Well, I suppose we could do some more training together to prepare for our mission. What do you say, Y/N?" Scara asked, smiling lightly at me. I smiled back and nodded in response, eyes lighting up at the suggestion. It'd been a while since Scara and I had trained, or even sparred, with each other.

Childe, seeing this, chuckled and teased, "Seems like I really am rubbing off on Y/N. They're becoming more and more battle-hungry day by day." Upon noticing the fierce glare I was giving him, he quickly added, "Which is not a bad thing, by the way. Jeez, I'm just teasing. Lighten up a little!"

I just rolled my eyes and walked away, but not before waving goodbye to Scara and deciding on a time to meet for some training.

I would need all the training I could get in the next three days to be ready for this mission of mine.

Especially because I knew another encounter with Lumine and Paimon would be inevitable.

Even as I walked back to my room to change into more suitable clothes for sparring, I wondered if any amount of preparation and fighting could help make the thought of seeing my old friends again any less daunting.

Either way, I had no choice.

I just hoped I wouldn't have to hurt them again.