Archive of Our Own

"Fuck you." He repeats. "That's why you were so calm last week. You knew. You fucking knew he was back."

"And?" Lumine leans forward, sipping her drink from a boba straw. "If I told you what would you have done? Demanded his location and stormed him? He doesn't remember either of us dumbass." She flicks a wadded straw wrapper and Xiao. "You'd only get yourself arrested."

Xiao grumbles incomprehensibly, then flicks the piece of paper back across the table. "Fuck you, again."

"You're not the Yaksha anymore, nor am I the outlander." She shrugs. "Even Zhongli, the rock brain he is, has managed to adapt." She squints. "I think that might mostly be because of Childe though."

"Please don't remind me."

"Anyway," She leans back into her chair. "Point of case, I didn't tell you 'cause you'd just get yourself arrested and scare him off. Human-Aether is incredibly scittish. He was like this a lot in the beginning of a lot of our other incarnations too.

"You can either try to converse with him like a normal person." Lumine holds a finger up. She raises another finger. "Or we can just wait for him to get his memories back. That might take another decade or two though.

"Knowing your luck though," She starts cackling. "You're going to have to go the first route. 'Cause both of you are my subordinates and you bet your sorry ass I'm gonna fucking meddle."

It takes millenia of fighting against demons' worth of self-control for Xiao not to lunge across the table and strangle her right then and there.

---

He runs into Aether at the coffee shop across the office, because of fucking course Lumine is going to send him on a coffee run the exact moment she knows Xiao always heads over to get a pastry.

He briefly considers just purchasing his food, then slinking out back. But of course, his luck is a bitch, and Aether runs into him.

Literally.

The blonde squeaks, and Xiao nearly drops his donut. He saves it last second, but does, however, spill his drink. And god, it feels like a scene straight out of one of the trashy romances Zhongli is always reading. At least his jacket's spared from the sugary coffee, but he can't say the same for Aether.

It's the same blonde hair, still long, but held up in a ponytail. Same golden eyes, same face, but he's dressed in a grey jacket and jeans rather than the outlander outfit Xiao had been so used to.

"Oh my god. I am so sorry."

Yup. Trashy romance cliche.

"You're the one with coffee all over your clothes." Xiao sighs, walking across the shop to pull out some napkins. "I should be the one apologizing."

If Lumine was fucking with the loom again to pull this off, powerful demigod or not, he was going to stab her.

"It's fine." Aether slips off his jacket, then takes the napkins Xiao hands him. "It'll wash out." He winces. "Probably." 

Xiao raises an eyebrow. Aether simply laughs, waving him off, and folding his jacket into a neat square, with the coffee stain on the outside. "I'll pay you back for the coffee some time."

"I said it's-" Aether has already run off. Xiao blinks. "-fine."

---

"I don't think he was this skittish last time."

Lumine simply shrugs, then turns the page of her book. "Trauma and millenia worth of memories give you the courage to do both rational stuff as well as stupid stuff. Point in case." She motions to herself, then twists around and slings her feet over the back of Xiao's couch. "I'm sitting like this while a murderous Yaksha with a spear stands less than three fit away from me, in his own house."

"And I'd have kicked you out a while ago had it not been for Zhongli." Xiao responds dryly.

Lumine simply shrugs. "I think you freaked him out. In a good way though." She sets her book down on her chest and stares up at Xiao. "Like in the 'oh fuck he's hot I want him to rail me did I fuck up just now' kind of way and not the 'I think I'm gonna die' kind of way."

Xiao stares at her in slight disgust. "Please. Watch your language."

"Eh. Anyway," She snaps her book closed, then pulls herself up to sit on the back of the couch. "Have fun I guess. And yes, I will use the loom if you force my hand."

Xiao scowls.

---

He opens Zhongli's apartment door to find Hu Tao passed out on the floor. He glares at the director's limp form, then steps over an arm and into the apartment. 

"Morax." He calls out into the room. "Lumine wanted me to-" He breaks off, gagging in disgust when he steps into the kitchen, raising a hand to block his sight.

Of all ways to start a tiring day of running Lumine's errands, walking in on a former god and his partner sucking face was not what Xiao had had in mind.

"Ah." Zhongli pulls away from Childe, completely unperturbed. "May I help you?"

"I swear to god." Xiao mutters, lowering his arm. "Lumine wanted me to give you this." He reaches into his coat pocket and pulls out a small box wrapped in brown paper, then tosses the object to Zhongli, who fluidly catches it. 

He spins on his heel and stalks out of the apartment, barely catching wind of a "Morax? Who's that?" from Childe. As much as he wishes to offer aid in that faction, past experiences have told Xiao that it is probably best for those two to sort it out themselves, or let Lumine intervene. He'd never been one for meddling.

He taps away at his phone, standing in the building elevator as people file on at the 40th-some floor. Someone bumps into his shoulder, and Xiao scowls, retreating towards the back of the elevator.

"Oh."

He freezes, then side-eyes the person standing next to him.

It's Aether.

He's still very, very pretty. That much hasn't changed since their last meeting, 

God he is very fucked.

---

Thankfully, because fate isn't that cruel, the elevator doesn't break down. It does, however, take an eternity to arrive at the first floor, as the elevator stops at nearly all floors, opens the doors, revealing to those on the outside the lack of space, closes the doors, and continues its descent.

All in all, it takes probably a good ten minutes longer than it should to get from Zhongli's apartment to the lobby.

"So." Xiao pointedly stares at the wall while Aether speaks up. "Do you live here?"

"No." Xiao's answer is curt. "A friend and coworker of mine does though."

"Ah. Do I know them?"

"Perhaps? They're quite familiar with Lumine. Zhongli, if that rings any bells."

Aether squints at the Yaksha, scrunching his nose up.

(Cute, Xiao thinks.)

"He sounds familiar." Aether shakes his head. "But no, I don't think I've met him."

Xiao hums.

They stand there in silence, watching the elevator doors open and close. 

"Lumine, she's your sister, right?"

Aether glances up at Xiao. "No? A distant cousin I think. I'm not sure. I grew up without parents."

"Ah."

"What about you?"

"The closest thing I have to family is either dead, or about thirty floors above our heads right now."

"Oh... I'm sorry."

"It's fine. I don't remember much of it anyway."

Well way to kill the conversation, Xiao. 

As soon as the elevators open on the ground floor, Xiao rushes out. Or, well, he tries to, at least.

A hand catches him by the wrist.

"Wait."

He turns around. It's Aether.

The young boy smiles sheepishly. "I'll treat you to coffee tomorrow?"

"Ah." Xiao blinks, his hand unconsciously curling into a fist. "Yeah. Sure. Thanks."

Aether lets go, smiling, and Xiao dashes out of the complex.

"It's a date."

---

Despite the image Xiao struggles to keep up, Barbatos, Morax, and Lumine will all unanimously agree with the fact that the Last Yaksha is incredibly conscious about his appearance.

So when Lumine kicks down his door at the ass-crack of dawn, while Xiao is still in the bathroom messing with his eyeliner, he is reasonably pissed.

He spins around, glaring at Lumine, and is just about to throw his pen at her when she speaks up.

"He remembers."

Xiao freezes, the eyeliner pen in his hand snapping in two in his hand. "What?"

"Aether. He remembers." Lumine doesn't meet Xiao's gaze. Instead, she stares past him, into the bathroom mirror, and takes a sip from her coffee. "He woke up today sobbing. Called me meimei instead of jie and that's how I knew."

Xiao shakily sets down the remains of his eyeliner of the edge of the sink.

"Where is he?"

Lumine shrugs, and tosses a set of keys at him.

---

"Hey." Aether sits on the edge of the bed, smiling softly. His hair is down, pooling over his shoulders in a river of gold.

He looks small. Tired.

"Hi." Xiao croaks out. He walks towards the bed, then takes a seat next to the demigod.

"Lumine told you?"

Xiao nods.

"How-" Xiao swallows, hands curling into fists. "How much do you remember?"

Aether is silent for a couple seconds, then smiles sadly. "Most of it. I remember all of Teyvat, but homeworld, and some of the places I visited before still haven't come back."

"Zhongli? Celestia? The abyss?"

"Yeah. All of it."

Xiao lets his eyes fall shut and leans forward to rest his face in his hands. "I'm sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry for."

"You died because of me."

"I'm here now."

"That doesn't change anything."

"Nothing can change the past. We've just got to pack up and move on."

Xiao pauses, and when he speaks up again, his voice is choked. "I know."

Aether softens, then scoots over and wraps his arms around Xiao's shoulders. "Missed you. Love you."

"Me too."

---

(Bonus)

"...So does Childe remember?"

"He's mortal. And human."

"But does he remember?"

"...No."

"Huh. Okay."

"Don't you dare."

"I definitely am."

"Do not."

"It's in the blood. I am."

"No."

"Yes."

"...fine. Keep damage control on your sister, and if you hurt Zhongli-"

"pff- yes, yes, I know. And don't worry, you won't have to go after Lumine."