Turns out, taking off in a random direction was a bad idea, because you had no clue where you were.
Ariel was panting beside you, for an angel he had shit stamina, and you spun around, narrowing your eyes at the trees.
You could feel Ariel's incredulous stare. "What… in the world… are you doing?" He managed to get out through his gasps for air.
"I'm trying to see if there's anything I recognize, but I was never one for exploring so I have no sense of navigation right now."
It was true. Exploration has always been incredibly boring to you, only forcing yourself to do it occasionally when you had too. You were drawn in by the intriguing story and characters, not by the idea of running around a grassy plane for two hours to raise your percentage by three.
"I suppose we'll just have to follow the water to civilization. Survival rule number one!"
"What water? We're not even close to any water!" The exasperation was palpable.
"We'll just have to find water then!"
Ariel threw his hands in the air (like he just didn't care). "Sure! Let's keep walking in another random direction for the next hour to find water!"
"You know," you turned to him. "You're rather negative for an angel. I thought y'all were supposed to be a lot more positive."
"You thought wrong."
You huffed, crossing your arms. "Well why don't you just use your wings then smartass?"
Ariel paused, his eyes widening in what you could only assume was embarrassed realization.
"Did you forget you had wings?"
"Shut up." He spread his wings, ignoring the light blush in his pale cheeks. His wings looked so breakable you almost thought they would snap as soon as he attempted to fly. Nothing of the sort happened and Ariel launched into the air.
You had to cover your eyes to see him past the glaring sun, but you managed to spot his figure hovering in the sky. He twisted in the air, spinning gracefully as he looked for any sign of life. You supposed he managed to spot it because he descended rather fast, a giddy smile on his face.
"You look happy."
Ariel nodded enthusiastically. "There's a city not too far from here. Surprisingly, we were going in a close enough direction. Now we can finally get out of this heat!"
"You're not even sweating."
"It's still hot!"
You chuckled. The two of you began making your way in the direction Ariel corrected. The kind of trees had not changed from the clearing, so you assumed you were still in the same country.
You hoped you were headed towards Mondstadt. Inazuma, Liyue, and Sumeru were all very cool and really pretty but Mondstadt always felt like 'home' weirdly enough. At the very least, you always went back there to collect commissions and to use the alchemy table.
It was something about the more simplistic and smaller scale compared to other countries. It really gave off the vibe of 'everybody knows everybody' and the initial bias might've played a role in the liking as well.
But Mondstadt was also the country most likely to not ask any questions about your clothing or where you were from or what you wanted. You didn't really feel like dealing with the existential crisis that would probably ensue if you had to explain that these people were just entertainment for others, that all the suffering they went through was meant to give depth to their character and make them more enjoyable.
The Knights of Favonious were generally welcoming and it didn't seem like you had to do any immigration paperwork, so that's a bonus.
The two of you finally broke through the trees and spotted the stone walled city surrounded by a glistening lake. You started to make your way to the bridge that connected the island city to the mainland but was stopped by a gentle tug at your elbow.
"Wait, you look ridiculous, you can't enter the city in a hoodie and sweatpants."
You put your hands on our hips and rolled your eyes. "Says who?"
"Says me. You want to avoid questions about where you came from? Don't show up wearing something people don't wear in any of these countries."
"Well then let's go get some clothes." You started to go on your way but another tug pulled you back.
"You don't have any money dumbass."
You threw your hands up. "Well then whatta ya want me to do?"
He shrugged. The black tassels on his lapels swung and jingled. "Steal it."
"Doesn't God say 'Do Not Steal'?"
"God's not here right now." He exhaled sharply. "Besides, I'm trying to keep you alive. I already messed up once and I don't want to lose you."
You couldn't stop the small smile that creeped on your face. You grabbed the hand that had come up to play with the dangling sleeve of his jacket and cupped it gently.
"I'll be careful, I promise. Just cus I wanna fuck shit up, doesn't mean I'm gonna be a total idiot."
He laughed and you felt a warmth in your stomach. "You're still going to be a partial idiot?"
Your lips pursed to stop the laughter that wanted to escape. "I can't stop the occasional bout of idiocy that may pop up."
You felt your hand be squeezed before it was dropped. "I guess that's the best I'm gonna get."
"Probably."
The two of you shared a chuckle and continued the trek to the bridge. Now, not under the cover of any trees, the sun beat down heavily on your skin. You could feel the heat seep into your pores and your skin heat up from the light.
Despite his claim of annoyance earlier, Ariel seemed to be doing fine. His draped clothing that covered him from head to toe didn't affect him at all as he marched through the grass, a look of determination fitted on his face.
You had to bite your lip when you caught his eye and he tilted his head like a confused puppy.
Eventually the two of you reached the bridge. You spotted Timmie and his pigeons, not feeling too bad that you were gonna scare them all off.
Walking across it, the inevitable happened and the birds flew away, Timmie crying in desperate despair that his only friends had abandoned him just like his father before.
Maybe that was a little harsh.
"We'll have to steal clothes inside the city. We just have to make sure the least amount of people see us." You turned to him slightly, making sure not to be too obvious that you were talking to someone invisible. "Can you touch intangible objects? I feel like I shoulda asked that earlier but I forgot."
"I can but it would look very strange to see floating clothes go down the street."
"Alright scrapping that idea." You sighed.
His nose wrinkled and you laughed, probably sounding insane to anyone who was looking at you right now.
You got to the gate and the guards simply smiled at you, welcoming you with a 'strange yet respectable Traveler'.
The city was bustling, the noon sun lighting up the cobblestone roads and wooden buildings that leaned against each other. Cloth overhangs sway in the wind and the amalgamation of chatter, heels, and welding reach your ears in a pleasant commotion.
You and Ariel stuck to the shadows, Ariel not having to worry but sticking beside you anyway, as you made your way through the crowd to find a clothing shop.
You found one tucked in a little corner, door worn and rusted with use. You felt bad, but you really couldn't walk around looking like you just rolled out of bed for much longer.
You slipped inside, wincing at the chine of the bell above the door. An old woman emerged from behind the counter, a kind smile on her face and a sparkle in her eyes. Guilt welled up in you and you had to remind yourself that it's just one pair of pants and one shirt you were looking for. Nothing major, nothing detrimental.
"Is there anything you need my dear?" Her voice came out in a kind warble, old age clearly affecting her already.
"Oh I just want to look around." You tried to put on a smile, but it came out as kind of a grimace instead. If the old lady noticed, she didn't say anything.
"Something pretty? Something casual?"
"Something practical for now." You responded. "I just need a pair of pants and a shirt."
She snapped her fingers. "I have just the thing for you!"
She shuffled back to the counter, an excited smile on her face, and slipped into a back room.
You wandered around the store for something to buy when you realized that everything on display was a dress or custom piece. Only your luck could have you walk into a place that only did custom orders. Nothing would fit you properly and you'd probably look awkward wearing ill fitted clothes. So you settled on a bench near the window and resigned yourself to having to tell the nice old lady that you just didn't have any money.
Speak of the devil and she shall appear. The woman came from the back room carrying a small mound of clothes and what you assumed were matching shoes.
You stood up and opened your mouth to tell her that you were broke, but a forceful shove into a nearby changing room had you stuttering. She pushed the clothes into your arms and shut the curtain calling out that if you needed her, she'd be by the counter.
Nodding in disbelief you took a moment to inspect the clothes she gave you. A pair of black form fitting pants, loose, black, short shorts, and a couple of oversized white shirts that would balance out the look. The shoes were a pair of knee high, black, leather boots that would easily hug your calves.
Sighing in resignation you stripped yourself of the comfortable clothes you had trekked through the woods in and slipped on the shorts and one of the white button downs, tucking the shirt into the shorts to stop the excess from waving about.
You tugged on the knee high boots, first thanking the lord that she provided some long socks for you.
Everything fit perfectly, so perfectly you were kinda suspicious. You rolled the sleeves up to your elbows for a final touch and tugged the curtain to the side. Stepping out, you checked the counter only to see the old woman scanning you from head to toe.
"You look very nice." The smile touched the corners of her eyes and you blushed from how much she sounded like a doting grandmother. "I'm sure everything else would look good on you too, I've always been good at picking out sizes."
"Yeah." You mumbled. "But Miss I'm sorry to say that I can't pay for this." Your feet shuffled and the new boots clicked nicely against the wooden floors.
You looked up to see mirth glittering in her worn eyes. "Yes I could tell when you didn't come in with any money."
"So why did you give me the clothes?"
She chuckled and walked over to you, taking your hands in her own. Her hands were wrinkled and nimble, rough patches in the tips of her fingers from where a needle has pricked too many times.
"I thought you needed them. They were sitting in the back collecting dust anyway." She patted your hands. "Do you need some money too? I have a little tucked away."
"Oh no Miss," you hastily reassured. "I'll be okay, I couldn't take your money, especially after you gave me these nice clothes."
She waved you off, a tease in her voice. "Oh nonsense! You're a youngin and I can help!"
She brought you a small pouch of mora, dropping it in your hand. You curled around it, digging your fingers into the rough burlap of the sack.
"Thank you." You really had nothing else to say. "How can I repay you?"
"Tell you what," she shuffles you out the door. "You come here, and only here, to get your clothes and accessories, then I'll consider you repaid."
"Of course." You agreed immediately, these clothes were amazing anyway. "Thank you so much."
"You've already said that dear." She gave you one final nudge out the door. "Now go explore, you look ready to run out!"
"Wait!" You pushed the door that had nearly closed on your face. The old lady turned towards you, a face that clearly said 'why are you still here?'. "What's your name?"
"Oh!" Her smile came back again. "My name is Odette Blanchard. Feel free to stop by anytime!" She waved and you finally let the door close.
Turning around with a skip you ran straight into Ariel, who had been waiting for you outside. Jerking back you looked down, he was a little shorter than you, and saw his hands on his hips, foot tapping.
"You've been in there for so long! What were you doing?" He check you up and down. "And where did you get those clothes?"
You explained the situation to him and throughout the story he began to rub the bridge of his nose. He let out a long sigh by the end of the recount.
"Okay. That works out."
"Great!" You beamed. "Now let's go explore!"
You whooped as you ran off to the central part of Mondstadt.