Work Text:
"Look, Dain, if you're going to keep being a pessimist, I'm going to dump my slushie on your nice new jeans."
Aether accentuates this with a pointed slurp of his rose-colored drink, his fluffy parka with his house crest printed on the back dotted with snow. Sighing, Dainsleif adjusts the cuffs of his long jacket, his own hair flecked with snowflakes. "I'm not being a pessimist. I'm just being correct ."
The shorter young man rolls his eyes. "You don't know that."
Oh, Dainsleif's patience is being tested right now. Take the new student under your wing, they said. It'll be fine, they said. Well, it's not "fine." The little shit is quick-witted, ruthless, really fucking cute, and quite possibly the most trying person Dainsleif has seen in his life. Of course, he's head over heels in love, but he wouldn't necessarily say that to his face. Aether, "the Prince," transferred to his class out of nowhere, with absolutely nothing to put on the table apart from a knack for alchemy, sorcery, and elemental prowess. Dainsleif is sure that he's some kind of demon, but would demons really drink strawberry slushies and have sleeves that cover their hands up to their knuckles? With the way Aether's pink fingertips are curled around his drink, it doesn't seem likely that the young man is a demon. Even if he is drinking a slushie in subzero temperatures.
"All I'm saying," Aether says, breath misting in the cold air, "is that I think he's fine."
Dainsleif grits his teeth. While on a quick outing for textbooks, the two of them spotted what appeared to be Aether's twin, a perky girl with short blonde hair and a ridiculous fashion sense for the peaks of Dragonspine. Attending on her is a tall man with vibrant red hair, who is maybe more appropriately dressed but still has frost-ridden eyelashes and bright red fingertips. Both of them, rather stupidly, if you ask Dainsleif, are traveling through Dragonspine Mountain's Emporium for Gods-know-what without the proper equipment. Aether had stayed back, peering at them through bookshelves, over the top of his drink, and through store windows without a word.
"Absolutely not. That one looks like the timid frat boy type." Dainsleif whips out his phone, running a quick inquiry into his informants' group chat. "Hold on... Several people are typing... Aha! That, my silly little Prince, is Diluc Ragnvindr, heir of Ragnvindr Wines. Filthy rich, dead father, and a knack for pissing off the Mondstadtian Ordo Favonius."
Aether's face turns a little pinker as he takes a sip of his slushie. "Never really liked law enforcement. They never let me do the fun stuff."
Dainsleif tries to ignore how his heart is racing at the realization he called Aether "my Prince" and clears his throat. "Well. He's trouble. But if your sister looks for a decent wallet, he's the one to go with."
They watch from around a corner, a steaming mug of coffee sitting in front of the taller blond, as the pair are joined by a lithe girl with long, brown hair, who is even more wildly unequipped for the weather. In her shorts and her sleeveless shirt, she hops over to Aether's sister, throwing her arms around her waist and burying her face in her neck. As she shivers, Lumine laughs heartily, rubbing her hands up and down the brunette's arms.
"Well, then." Aether grins like the cat who got the cream, his boot sliding up Dainsleif's shin. "Guess we were both wrong."
Coughing, the taller young man takes a sip of his coffee. "Y-Yes, I suppose so."
The toe of Aether's worn-down combat boots doesn't stop, and - wait, shit, is he flirting with him? Judging by the indifferent look on Aether's face, it's almost as if he's coming at this like a game of chess. It's all analysis and strategy. Dainsleif would be lying if he said he didn't find it hot. Nudging his legs open, the shorter blond finally makes eye contact, peach-colored eyes gazing up at him through his eyelashes. Dainsleif's breath catches in his throat.
"Is everything alright, Dain? You look like you've seen a ghost." Aether lilts, stirring his drink with his straw.
"Y-You..." He places his coffee back down before he spills it over himself.
Aether leans over the table, a rakish grin spreading across his face. "M-Me?"
The mocking stutter is somehow still attractive. When, oh Gods, when did Dainsleif find the mean ones the hottest? The Prince is untouchable, flocked by Abyss Mages waiting on him hand and foot, ordering his subjects to obtain the best results, the best data, everything down to the tiniest detail in his experiments and battles. It's not every day that Khaenri'ah Academy's battles are won without any casualties. With the war still raging, it's a blessing that they have the Prince on their side.
But Aether? Aether is here; he's funny, he's cute, but he's also such a dumbass. Drinking his ice-cold slushie too fast and getting a brain freeze, worrying about his sister and her constant stream of love interests. The Prince is high up, a freezing tower of perfection, but Aether is with him, right here and right now. Dainsleif can't really believe that he'd choose him, seeing as he's this ever-spouting fountain of random, stupid, useless knowledge and has the emotional range of a damp sponge. So Dainsleif doubts. Says Aether's only playing around, he's here for a hookup or two, and then he'll move on. Maybe get it on with a bloody Archon if Dainsleif feels bitter enough to think about it.
"Oi, Dain." Aether pokes him on the nose, frowning. "You're making your thinking face again. If you keep that up, you're going to get wrinkles, and then your outside will match your inside."
Dainsleif frowns. "Are you saying I'm internally old?"
"There's nothing wrong with being a dilf, Dain. You'd make a fine old man." Aether snickers, leaning his chin on his hand.
Rolling his eyes, the taller young man gets to his feet, abandoning his coffee. "I'm leaving you here. Maybe someone would adopt you and your depraved ways. Maybe with your height, you could pass as a sixteen-year-old."
A gasp rings out behind him, and the scuffing of a chair being pushed back as Aether hurries to follow behind his friend hits Dainsleif's eardrums rather satisfactorily.
"You dick! Take that back." The blond orders, tugging on his sleeve.
Raising an eyebrow, Dainsleif gives Aether a look of indifference. "Oh? Or what? You'll hit my knees with your little hands?"
As he narrows his eyes, the taller young man senses that he's made a mistake. With a tug, Aether pulls Dainsleif down by the lapels of his coat, pressing his lips to the shell of his ear as he whispers with a tone like honey.
"Remember what I'm capable of, Dainsleif." He murmurs, and Dainsleif is so sure that he can feel the heat of his face from where he's leaning so close to his skin. "I can make you scream ."
That, Dainsleif thinks, is an innuendo and a threat, and I am not equipped to deal with this situation . Aether doesn't let him go for a moment, his lips ghosting over the side of his face as he inhales deeply. Then, he releases Dainsleif from his claws.
"You smell good." He states simply, taking a final sip of his slushie and tossing it in the trash can.
Nodding, the taller blond can only stare at his face, his mouth opening and closing like a confused goldfish. Finally, his stupid brain stops lagging enough for him to force out a hoarse, "Thank you. It's the, uh..."
Aether adjusts his scarf, exhaling forcefully as a way to deal with the cold. "The one I gave you? It's good to know you wear it. Gods damn it, it's so fucking cold."
There he goes again, being so ridiculously adorable right after threatening to kill and/or fuck him. The Prince of the Abyss is a force to be reckoned with, and Dainsleif prays he's not going to be sucked up into that vortex behind his golden eyes and spat right back out.
"Hey, Dain." Aether calls out. "Thinking face."
Startling out of his thoughts, he looks up from where he was gazing at the snow-covered cobblestone and then at the blond's cold-pinched face. The tip of Aether's nose has turned pink, and there's a smile on his face as the blond slips his shivering hands into his pockets. Dainsleif scoffs.
As he runs a hand through his hair, he shakes his head slowly as he walks with Aether through the alleyways, assumedly heading back to the Academy. "You're the worst."
Sighing, Aether removes his hands from his pockets, opting to grab hold of Dainsleif's arm and hug him closely. "My un-redeeming qualities are what make me so sexy. I'm an antihero - I get automatic libido because I'm morally ambiguous and have a nice butt."
"That's not how it works," Dainsleif argues, looking into the distance as Aether snuggles close, blinking the snow out of his eyes.
The streets are lined with open-air markets and stores, showing off the latest alchemic tech or fashion trend. Snow falls in thick, fat flakes, sticking to Dainsleif's eyelashes and hair, coating every surface in a hefty three inches of snow. People bustle to and fro, snapping photographs with the mountain's peak in the distance, or sampling food, or maybe just browsing. Aether puts a hand to his forehead as he looks into the sky, watching the Frost Nail glitter with unyielding ice.
"Soon, she'll be ours again." He mutters. "But no work talk today. Dain, what do you think of taking a quick detour?"
Dainsleif nods. "Why not? I've accepted my fate as your personal heater already, so what's the worst you can do to me?"
Aether waggles his eyebrows like the little shit he is. "Oh, my dear Dainsleif, you'll be blissed out by the end of it."
Good fucking grief.
Aether's detour, surprisingly not involving anything suspicious, is making sure his sister gets back down the mountain safely, trailing behind her through the snow and keeping his recon agents at bay. Alright, it may be a little suspicious, but it's nothing outright shady. It's all about the means, not the ends, according to the shorter young man. Honestly, Dainsleif seems to forget himself around Aether. Gone is his calculating, skeptical self, replaced by someone who reluctantly lets himself breathe a little.
"Alright, since you've been so patient, my dear companion," Aether whispers as he watches Lumine step back onto Mondstadtian fields of sweet flowers and tall grass, "you deserve a reward."
Quickly, he places a kiss on the very corner of Dainsleif's jaw, but it lingers slightly. It's too long to be one of those friendly kisses on the cheek, and it has his cheeks glowing with heat. Watching him turn into a jueyun chili is apparently enough of an accidental guilt trip to get Aether to giggle a little, placing his hand in his friend's.
"Aw, Dain, you're just adorable." He teases, rendering him speechless.
Stammering, Dainsleif stares at Aether's mouth, then at their hands, and then at his lips again. "You... You actually -"
Aether takes his face in his hands and kisses him again, like, properly this time, his lips warm against Dainsleif. It warms him from the core of his stomach outwards, and when Aether pulls back, he finds himself missing his touch immediately. Before he can speak, however, the shorter young man rolls his eyes.
"You're going to talk me to death when that wears off, I know it." He laughs softly. "Don't worry, Dain. I'll listen. You have a nice voice, and as much as I hate to admit it, you're usually right. I like that about you."
Nodding dumbly, Dainsleif finds himself believing it.