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“What kinda sadist makes you fight three ruin guards at once- gah!” Aether yelled as yet another barrage of missiles sent him flying over a bit of crumbling wall. He landed hard on his left leg, which gave out from underneath him with a sickening snap, the pain knocking the air from his lungs.
“Aether!” Paimon cried, “Barbara, help!”
Barbara rushed over to heal the battered boy while the others did their best to draw the guard's fire away from him. “What are it's weak spots? Does it have any?”
“The eye,” Paimon squeaked as she huddled close to Aether's side, “But Amber and Fishl aren't with us. None of us can hit it.”
“If we lure one away from the others and fight it alone we might stand a chance,” said Kaeya, narrowly dodging a guard's arm, “Can you still fight, Aether?”
“Worth a shot. Everyone retreat, but try to make the one Kaeya and Ningguang hit follow us!” Aether ordered as he struggled to his feet.
The team scrambled up a nearby hill, Aether leaning heavily on Kaeya while Barbara continued healing his fractured leg as best she could, Ningguang covering their escape from behind. The ground shook as the guards followed them most of the way up, before all three suddenly turned and headed back to their posts.
“Those things are programmed a little too well,” Ningguang sighed as everyone collapsed onto the grass at the top of the hill, “It looks like they're designed to work in unison with each other. If we try to fight one, they all activate.”
“You and Kaeya got that one down to about half health, right?” Aether said, pointing at the guard that sat nearest to the hill, “If we all rush it, we might be able to finish it off before the other two get close enough to attack.”
“Sounds good, but none of you are leaving this hill till I get you healed up,” Barbara said as she finished with Aether's leg and moved to treat some burns on Ningguang's arm, “You all look like what happens when Amber tries to cook a steak!”
“I feel like what happens when Amber tries to cook a steak,” Kaeya groaned.
“Seriously though, thanks for your help, Barbara,” said Aether with a tired smile, “I'm sure we would look much worse without you.”
Barbara huffed, trying to hide a happy little grin and failing miserably. She finished with Ningguang and moved on to Kaeya, who despite his complaining was the least injured of her three patients. “I think that's the best I can do for now. Are you all ready for round two?”
Everyone nodded, except for Paimon who hovered behind Aether's shoulder looking nervous before disappearing back into thin air. They crept down the hill and hid behind a rock near the guard.
“On my mark,” Aether whispered, “Rush in and use your elemental attacks, then Kaeya will follow up with melee. I'll see if my anemo can knock them off balance to give you a bigger opening. One... two... THREE!”
They closed the space in an instant, and realized their mistake just as quickly.
“It's back to full health!” Ningguang cried.
“What the hell...” Aether muttered, “Keep trying! Hit it as hard as you can!”
“Barbara, look out!” Kaeya yelled a second too late. One of the other guards had already launched it's missiles directly at her, each one pushing her closer to a nearby cliff until she fell over the edge with a scream.
“Kaeya! Ningguang! Grab Barbara and get out of here! Meet up at HQ!” Aether ordered, leading the guards away from the cliff.
“What about you?” Ningguang asked.
“I'll cover you!” he yelled, “Don't worry about me, go!”
“You better not die, kid!” Kaeya yelled back as he rushed towards the cliff and leaped off to deploy his wing glider, Ningguang close behind. A few seconds later the unmistakable blue glow of teleportation lit up the valley below.
Aether almost sighed with relief before remembering where he was. He back flipped out of the way of a guard's attempt to crush him before rushing forward and slashing at it.
“We did some damage to it already,” he thought, “If I can just take it out-”
“Aether, stop being an idiot and retreat already!” Paimon shrieked, “You can't take three of them by yourself!”
“But the treasure!”
“Forget the stupid treasure! Look out!”
Two of the guards were bearing down on him, spinning their arms like cyclones. Aether ran as fast as he could, but fatigue was catching up to him. One of the arms crashed into his side, shattering his arm and several ribs and launching him across the ground. He hit a wall and collapsed against it in a heap. Unconsciousness toyed with him for a few seconds until ragged coughs shook him awake, scattering drops of blood on the stone below him. The figures of the approaching guards swam in and out of focus as they closed in on him. Was that Paimon tugging on his sleeve? She's crying...
Time slowed as Aether closed his eyes and reached inward, searching for the pool of magic within his body and trying to grasp some of it, but it slipped through his fingers like a vapor. He tried again more urgently, but still nothing. His thoughts felt hazy, like a dark veil was draped over his mind.
“Please, someone,” he called, “Save me...”
No one responded. It would be strange if someone did, wouldn't it? There was no point in asking for help in his own mind; after all, he should be the only one there.
The moment he thought this, a tiny breeze, so soft he nearly missed it, passed by his ear. The veil fluttered for a moment, and a bit of his magic rushed through. He quickly grabbed hold of it.
Fly, the breeze whispered, I'll catch you.
It took all of his concentration, but finally teleportation magic sparked to life in his palm as he opened his eyes. Where was he supposed to go again? Everything was so murky... He wrapped his arm around Paimon and whispered the only instructions he could think of into the spell.
“Take us somewhere safe.”
Blue light filled his vision for a moment, then everything went black. The ruin guard's arms fell toward him, but all they crushed were old, worn stones.
***********************
The first thing he heard was the wind. It danced beautifully through the air, waltzing with the leaves above his head, sometimes pulling them aside to let warm sunlight through. The sound was soon accompanied by birds singing in the branches and bugs buzzing in the grass. Slowly he became aware of a pleasant numbness that was running through his body, covering the pain that lay underneath. He felt light and somewhat tingly, like he could float away at any moment, although he was pretty sure he was lying on the grass with his head elevated. Some kind of anesthesia maybe? He realized there was something warm resting on his cheek and tried to lift his hand to touch it.
Someone gasped excitedly above him. “Paimon, look! He's waking up!”
Aether opened his eyes just in time to see the tiny girl fly directly into his chest before sitting up and studying his face intently. “Aether! Aether!” she squeaked, “Can you hear me?”
“Ghhuh...” he mumbled, still trying to claw his way back into consciousness. Then, a little clearer: “...Paimon?”
Paimon lit up with joy before burying her face in his scarf and wrapping her arms around him as best she could. “Thank goodness! I thought... I thought you were...” She suddenly sat up again and punched him in the shoulder. If she was any bigger, it might have actually hurt. “Never do that to me again, you meanie!” she pouted.
A soft laugh like wind chimes rang through the air. “Paimon, be nice to him. He's still recovering!”
Aether looked up, trying to blink everything into clearer focus. A familiar boy smiled down at him. Tufts of black hair framed his face and twin blue-tipped braids swayed gently in the breeze. His bright sea green eyes sparkled in soft relief. He was seated at the base of a large tree, holding Aether's head in his lap and gently cupping his cheek with one hand while supporting himself with the other as he leaned casually against the soft earth.
“Venti...” Aether sighed, the corners of his lips turning upwards in a tired smile.
“Hey there,” Venti responded happily, “Welcome back. Don't try too move too much just yet, I'm still working on getting you fixed up.”
“...Thought you were an angel for a second there,” Aether said with a soft chuckle, “With the sunlight around you like a halo and all. Though I guess you're technically higher than an angel, huh?”
Everyone went silent. Venti raised an eyebrow in amusement, while Paimon's jaw looked like it was about to fall off her face.
“I think those guards hit him in the head a little too hard,” she whispered to Venti.
“What do you mean?” asked Aether, “Don't you think he's beautiful too? I mean, the way his eyes shine in the sun-”
“Ok, I'm leaving now!” Paimon announced loudly, quickly flying away to hide her flushed cheeks, “I am not sticking around for this! He's your problem now, bard!” She promptly disappeared again, though if one looked hard enough, they might be able to see the air shimmer as she peeked through her fingers from the tree's lower branches.
“So what was that about my eyes shining in the sun?” Venti grinned, “Please, tell me more.”
Aether raised a hand to brush a lock of hair behind Venti's ear. “When I look at them... I feel like I'm drifting in an endless, perfect sea. They steal my breath away and dangle it in front of me, and when I go to grab it they lift it out of my reach with a laugh like wind chimes.”
As if to provide an example, the small god broke into laughter. “Where did you learn to tease like that?” he asked, “It almost sounds like you're confessing feelings for me!”
“I'm not teasing you,” Aether replied, “I really think I like you. Like, romantically and stuff.”
Venti shut up immediately. He stared at Aether, trying to find any hint that he was joking. Oh my, he thought, I think he's serious.
“Um, how about we talk about this later?” he said with a nervous chuckle, running the hand that was on Aether's cheek through his hair. Why is my heart doing somersaults in my chest? “Maybe when you're fully recovered and actually awake?” That's it, this is a dream. I'm definitely not panicking. Are my cheeks getting pink, or is it just warm out today?
Aether frowned, frustrated at the loss of contact and that Venti didn't seem to believe him. “Your lips are cute and I want to kiss them,” he said earnestly.
“Aether, please!” Venti squeaked. His cheeks were definitely burning now. “Be kind to my poor heart! I- I believe you, okay? I just need time to think about it, so please rest until then? I promise I will give you my answer when you've healed up.”
The grumpy look slowly fell from the traveler's face. “Hm, alright,” he hummed, and closed his eyes, feeling worn out again. His breathing slowed as he relaxed back into Venti's lap and fell asleep, leaving the flustered bard alone with his racing thoughts.
“You know, if I'm being honest,” he said quietly, “You were pretty adorable just now. So sweet and cheesy... I might just fall for you. Maybe I already have.” He picked up Aether's long braid and played with it affectionately, smiling at nothing in particular. The wind danced around them a little faster.
Loving you sounds like lots of fun.