Vibrant yellow leaves trickled down to the ground. You held out a hand, just in time for a leaf to land on your palm. 

'It's the same color. Just a little darker...' you thought, looking up at the sky as you squint your eyes.

A bright yellow tree loomed over a building with red walls and green roofs. It was pretty hard to miss, especially with the way it sat atop a massive stone pillar. 

'This is the place.'  

You look around, spotting the bridge and iconic Silk Flowers behind you. To the front was a wide flight of wooden stairs adorned with lanterns on each side. Strangely enough, you couldn't see a clear entrance beyond it. 

Taking a deep breath, you climbed up the stairs until you reached the orange carpet. Immediately, you spot a dark-haired man dressed in gray Liyue clothing approaching you. 

"Ah! You must be (Y/N) from Mondstadt!" The man exclaims. "Welcome, welcome to Wangshu Inn!" He smiles, extending his arms in a warm welcome. 

You dip your head in a bow as a sign of respect. "You must be Huai'an! Great to meet you again. Thank you for taking me in!" you reply, a warm smile spreading across your face. 

Huai'an laughs. "Of course! It's rare for a Mondstadter to want to work in Liyue, but I admire your skills," he says, before turning his back and beckoning to you. "Now, follow me." 

You follow closely behind him, taking in the sights of the inn as birds chirped in the distance. 

"This elevator is only used for the guests. But since you are carrying a lot with you, I will be making an exception for now." He chuckles, before stepping inside what seems to be the elevator.

You furrowed your brows in confusion but followed anyway. 'I wonder what an elevator does...' you thought, gazing at the gold lining its three circular windows. 

Then, the floor beneath you lifted off the ground.

You jumped from your spot, looking down from the windows to see the ground sinking farther and farther down. Rather, it was you who were moving farther up. 

"U-Uh!"

Huai'an looked just as shocked watching you, before bursting into laughter. "I almost forgot Mondstadt doesn't have any of these. Do not worry, this is perfectly safe."

You meet his calm gaze with your panic-stricken one. "Y-yeah but... t-this... might take a while to get used to–" you stammer, shaking off the slight dizziness you felt. 

Soon after, you got off, and a wave of relief washed over you. 'Thank the gods!' 

"This way." Huai'an led you to the entrance of the inn. After going down a flight of stairs, you see a woman behind a counter with a cat sleeping next to her. 

She meets your gaze, narrowing her eyes as she looks you up and down. "Let me guess... this is the girl you hired from Mondstadt." 

"Goldet! Yes, this is her." 

You turn to her with a bow. 'She looks like a Mondstadter...' 

"You previously worked at the Cat's Tail, right? The one with the gifted Kätzlein bartender."

A smile made its way to your face. "Right! Her name is Diona."

Huai'an sighs. "Her talent would have really helped this inn prosper. Unfortunately, we do not hire children here," he says, before walking off. 

You had to stop yourself from chuckling. 

Goldet shrugs. "Anyways, I'm Verr Goldet, boss of the Wangshu Inn. Huai'an over there is my husband, the innkeeper," she says. 

"I'm (Y/N), from Springvale! Thank you for having me!" You stuck out a hand for her to shake.

She nods, shaking your hand. "A well-mannered young lady, quite refreshing." A smile tugs at her lips, before she fishes out a set of keys from her pockets. "This is your room key. Work starts tomorrow morning, so take this time today to rest and unpack," she states, pulling out a specific key from the set and handing it to you. 

You thank her with a short bow.

"Oh, and by the way." She stares you right in the eye. "You may explore this inn as you please, but please refrain from loitering around the roof."

You tilt your head in confusion. "Sure, but may I know why?"

"...You wouldn't want to disturb our most important guest."

_ _ _

As you unpack in your new room, Verr's words never left your mind. 

"Most important guest? It doesn't look like there are any rooms on the roof, though..." you mumble, putting your empty bags to the side. 

Then, you spot something moving in the corner of your eye. 

"Nya~" A cat with white and black fur saunters into your room. It looks up at you with interest, before taking a seat opposite of where you were. 

Your eyes widened. "Oh, hello!" You slowly approach the cat and crouch down. "You're the cat who was next to Boss. What are you doing here~?" you cooed, holding out a hand for it to sniff. 

The cat inspects your hand. As it sniffed, it didn't take long for it to allow you to scratch its head.

You chuckled. "You're cute! I wonder what your name is?"

"Nya!" 

The cat nuzzles into your hand as it relaxes. You proceeded to pet its back, enjoying the feel of soft fur in your hands. 

Eventually, it meows and moves away, turning back to the door.

'Aw, it's leaving already...'  

However, the cat looks back at you from the corner of its eye. It continues forward, before looking back at you again. 

You tilt your head. "Do you want me to follow?" 

"Nyaa~" The cat proceeds, finally prancing out of the room.

'Well, I guess unpacking could wait...' you thought, standing back up and exiting your room as well.

"Nya!" The next thing you knew, the cat was making its way up the stairs leading to the roof. 

You widen your eyes. "Ah! You can't go there!" you thrust a hand forward, but it didn't stop the cat from continuing its way. 

'What's it doing?' An apprehensive sigh left your lips. Looking back to the inn's main hall, you see Verr absent from her spot behind the counter. You gaze up at the stairs, seeing the cat waiting for you as it licks its paw. 'I guess it's fine if I only go for a little while...' 

You continue up the stairs, only for the cat to run away from you until it finally reaches the roof. 

"Hey, you really can't stay there!" you whisper-shout, cupping a hand around your mouth as you follow it to the roof.

Odd silence fills your ears as you step into a wide balcony. Potted plants decorated each side, with the cat standing in the center, looking up at you with anticipation. 

"I finally caught up with you," you sighed in relief, crouching down to carry it with both arms. "What was that all about?" 

It merely meows at you, looking at the scenery ahead.

You follow its gaze, coming face to face with the Liyue landscape. "Woah!" you gasped, walking forward until you reached the railings. 

The sun had begun to set, sinking below the mountains to the west. It painted the skies a beautiful golden color, much different from what you could see back home. 

"So pretty..." you leaned forward, not even noticing the cat jump down from your arms and hurry back inside. 

As you stared at the sunset and basked in the peaceful silence around, images of golden feathers filled your vision once more. However, there seemed to be something more this time. But it all came out as a blur. You couldn't make anything of it. 

And you were violently interrupted from your trance before you could try.   

"Wo-AHH!" Your eyes widened to the size of saucers, hearing the wind, and your voice, screaming at your ears as you slipped over the railings. 

Your feet were forced off the ground as your body jerked forward. The next thing you saw was the blue-green roof under you. It seemed painful to land on. 

'Crap! Am I falling?!'  You shut your eyes tight, bracing for impact. 

But it never came. 

You shot your eyes open, feeling your heart beating loudly against your chest as you blinked in disbelief. You... you're safe?

Then, you feel someone holding your outstretched arm, keeping you from falling. You tried looking back to see who your savior was, though you were pulled back onto the balcony floor. 

At that moment, you came face to face with the very thing that haunted your dreams for years. 

"Wh-Wha...?"

A pair of amber eyes stared right at you, basking in the glow of the sunset. Except this time, they were real, and you could see much more. A beautiful young man with fair skin, dark green hair, and teal highlights. 

His previously stone-cold expression morphed into one of pure shock the moment he gazed into your eyes. He shoves your hand away, stepping back to create some distance between you both.

A strange feeling swirled around your head. "Uh, have we... met before?" you muttered, matching your expression with his, though yours held more confusion than anything. 

The man opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes. When he opened them, all traces of emotion were gone again. 

"No."

Then, you were all alone. Nothing but black fumes and turquoise embers faded away in his place.