Chapter Text
“You’re staying.” Chongyun’s icy stare bore into Childe’s annoyed expression.
“No, I’m going,” he argued, taking yet another step towards the domain.
Chongyun scoffed. “Absolutely not,” he practically scolded, “Aether asked us to wait. We’re waiting, you included.”
“Oh, come on,” Childe finally looked at the rest of the team. “You all really gonna listen to a kid? ”
“Hey! He’s older than me!” Bennett reasoned. Next to him, Kazuha sighed, continuing to whittle an instrument out of a stick as he sat by the fire.
“Listen, Childe, I know you’re new, and I’m aware that you’re not quite used to the way things work with us, but Aether told us to stay. So that’s exactly what we’re going to do.” Chongyun, while only being sixteen, spoke with such finality that Childe had no choice but to huff and sit by the fire.
“Fine then,” he mumbled, “If Aether dies, I’m blaming you.”
“He’s not going to die,” Chongyun glared at Childe for the notion, “And he told me that if he’s not back by sunrise, then we could go after him.” He sat a few paces away from the fire Bennett had built, closing his eyes and breathing deeply. Bennett could tell he was livid, even if he wasn’t showing it.
Bennett knew Chongyun had been traveling with Aether the longest, and that Aether put every ounce of trust he had into the young exorcist. Bennett, while maybe a little jealous, completely understood why. Chongyun was by no means a natural leader, and had even admitted that he wasn’t always up to the task, but when it came to Aether and his team, Chongyun never missed the mark. Bennett knew this, and while he had been the leader of his own team back in Mondstat, once he understood how Chongyun led, and how vital his actions were to the team, he was happy to relinquish control.
He only wished Childe had understood that too.
Aether had descended into a nearby Domain roughly an hour ago, ordering the team to stand outside and wait for him. At first, all of them happily complied, but as time went on, their newcomer, Childe, started to grow restless. He insisted they follow, that Paimon was hardly backup, and that Aether needed help. Chongyun, their impromptu leader, wouldn’t let him, resulting in what Bennett guessed to be… a bit of a power struggle. It was obvious Childe wasn’t used to being told what to do, much less by some random liyuen exorcist kid.
Which brought the team to a new standstill; camping outside a domain Aether had trapped himself inside of, a fuming Chongyun meditating off to the side, a livid Childe stewing by the fire, and an exasperated Bennett and Kazuha, who had witnessed the former’s arguments one too many times.
Kazuha placed down the small knife he’d been using, admiring the little flute he’d made. Bennett watched as Kazhua gently placed it to his lips, blowing enough to let sound release.
Within moments, a soft, warbled song washed through the air. At the melody, Childe visibly relaxed, laying on his back to gaze at the stars. Bennett found himself smiling at the tune as well; he always loved when Kazuha found a way to bring music into their lives.
Sparing a glance at Chongyun, Bennett could tell that the music was helping his mood too.
When the music ended, Bennett felt a weight fall onto his shoulders, not even realizing that the tune had lifted it in the first place. “Thanks,” he sighed to Kazuha, inhaling the night air.
“It seems our camaraderie had been tainted by doubt,” Kazuha explained, using that same airy and wistful voice as always. “What better way to dispel it than with a song of hope?”
Kazuha was a weird guy, and Bennett wasn’t exactly sure where Aether picked him up from, but he did know that without Kazuha, Childe and Chongyun would have likely killed each other a long time ago.
“I still think it’s stupid,” Childe piped up from where he lay in the grass. “He’s a kid. Why are we listening to him?”
“I’m a kid,” Bennett offered, “And you let me patch you up when you’re hurt.”
“Yeah, ‘cause you’re good at it. You’re good at the job you were given, just like I’m good at beating stuff up, and Kazuha’s good at being windy.” Childe’s spiel left out one, specific person. Out of the corner of his eye, Bennett saw Chongyun scowl, indicating that he wasn’t meditating at all, rather listening in to what Childe was complaining about.
“How about we don’t disparage what our teammates are capable of,” Kazuha offered, trying to disperse the negativity Childe had yet to let go of. “Aether trusts each of us, and we each bring something important to our team’s composition” he continued, “And it would be wise not to doubt our leader’s judgement.”
Bennett knew what Kazuha was getting at, deciding to speak up. “And that also means we shouldn’t question who he puts in charge when he’s not around,” he added, resisting the urge to give Chongyun another sideways glance. Childe, having none of it, sat up again, this time turning towards Kazuha.
“You’re an adult,” he reasoned. Kazuha gave him a look, not eager to humor whatever Childe had to say. “You’ve been with Aether for a while. Why didn’t he put you in charge?”
Kazuha didn’t look at the man next to him, opting instead to stare at the fire. “Why don’t you ask the one this matter concerns?”
Childe scoffed. “I don’t even know what that means.”
“It means ask me,” Chongyun finally spoke up, eyes almost glowing in the dark. He hadn’t moved from his meditative stance, but he was staring daggers at Childe, who was moving to stand.
“Fine then, kid,” he offered, taking a step closer to where Chongyun sat. Bennett watched as Chongyun tilted his head to keep Childe’s gaze, but otherwise didn’t move a muscle. It was impressive, really- Bennett always admired Chongyun for that.
Childe stopped a foot or two away from Chongyun, arms crossed, clearly trying to be intimidating. “Why’d he put you in charge?”
Chongyun’s expression remained the same. “Are you bitter it’s not you?” he simply asked. After seeing Childe’s face falter, he continued. “Are you that insecure, that the notion of a kid being better fit to lead than you is cause for a tantrum? Perhaps you live up to your name- a mere child, throwing a fit when he doesn’t get what he wants.”
“Are you saying I’m immature, Popsicle?”
“Did you just call me a name like a schoolyard bully?” Chongyun’s lip twitched, and his feet moved like they wanted to stand, but he continued to sit, doing his best to stay calm. Kazuha, being the only level headed one, stood and pulled Childe away by the shoulder.
“Perhaps this conversation should continue after we’ve cooled down,” he offered, pulling Childe away.
A while later, Aether burst from the Domain, stained with blood and smiling profusely. The team jumped from where they sat to meet him.
“Guess what, guys!” he grinned, making his way toward his very stunned team.
“Are you hurt?!” asked Benntt.
“Who’s blood is that?” Childe raised a brow.
“Finally, you’re back,” Chongyun said.
Kazuha stayed silent, but brought Aether to sit by the fire. Aether answered each question in a row.
“Not hurt, hillichurl blood, and yeah, I’m back! And I’ve got presents!” Paimon fluttered excitedly behind him, fists clenched by her cheeks in excitement as Aether rummaged through his bag. He tossed Chongyun a pink crested goblet, “Chongyun, this one is enchanted to help with your cryo.” He threw Kazuha a matching hourglass, “Kazuha, your’s is supposed to help increase stamina, so you don’t have to wait too long between bursts.” He then handed a bronze-metallic flower to Bennett, and slapped a similar style helmet on Childe’s head. “Bennett, yours helps healing! And Childe, yours is enchanted to make your hits hit e ven harder !” Aether spoke fast, clearly still running on adrenaline. He silently ignored Bennett checking him for any injuries.
“Aether, these gifts are much appreciated, but may we ask where they came from?” Kazuha stepped forward, concern dotting his brow.
“He fought Stormterror!” Paimon answered, shrieking excitedly. “You shoulda seen him! His sword was like BAM! WHAM! KA-PLOW!” She mimicked swinging a sword, twirling in the air with excitement. “Stormterror didn’t know what hit him!”
“You fought him again?” Chongyun asked, mouth agape, “By yourself?”
“Yeah!” Aether tried to stand, but Bennett pushed his shoulder down, having found a scrape on his leg he needed to heal.
“See, kid, I told you I should have followed,” Childe noticed the cut on Aether’s leg and sent a glance at Chongyun, who glared back.
“No, no, you shouldn’t have!” Aether stood successfully this time, ignoring Bennetts protests. “It was to surprise you all! For being such a great team!” He grinned, looking between his teammates. His smile faltered, however, when he saw Childe and Chongyun glowering at one another.
“What happened while we were gone?” Paimon asked, and it was all Bennett could do to keep from cringing at how she asked that question. Paimon had a habit of pointing out the elephant in the room, especially when it wasn’t necessary.
“Nothing,” Chongyun gritted out, his eyes finally leaving Childe. “Thank you for the generous gift. We’ll each be sure to put these to good use.” That sentence sounded sincere, but Bennett had known Chongyun long enough to know that he was biting back some sort of comment.
Aether, equally as preceptive, frowned. “Chongyun, what happened while I was gone?” he repeated Paimon’s question, though sincerity was rooted in the question.
“What happened was you put a kid in charge, Aether,” Childe said, breaking the facade.
“Childe,” Bennett stood from where he was kneeling, taking a step closer to Chongyun. “Can you please let it go for now? Aether just got back, and he gave us presents!” Bennett desperately tried to keep the peace, gesturing wildly with a worried smile on his face. “Let’s focus on the presents we got, c’mon-“
“I’m going for a walk,” Kazuha cut Bennett off, gently pocketing the hourglass he was gifted. “I appreciate the gifts, but I need some space,” Bennett heard him mumble to Aether. Great, just great. The team was fighting, Kazuha was mad somehow, and Aether’s surprise was accidentally ruined. It wasn’t his fault in the slightest, but Bennett still felt bad.
“Childe, let’s go for a walk,” Aether grabbed Child by the arm, tearing him away from his staring contest with Chongyun. Paimon floated behind before being waved off by Aether. Bennett stayed rooted to the spot, somewhat shocked. Next to him, it seemed like Chongyun was defrosting. He slowly returned to life after that standoff, his breathing becoming deep and controlled. Out of nowhere materialized a popsicle, which Chongyun gratefully took a bite of, sighing with relief.
“Jeez, Childe’s mad,” Paimon began. “He’s usually not like this at all-“
A few paces away, where Aether and Childe believed to be out of earshot, shouts could be heard.
“-he’s a kid, Aether-“
“- I trust that kid with my life!”
“He’s, like, fourteen!”
“Sixteen, Childe, and he’s more mature than you’ll ever be!”
“I should go,” Chongyun frowned bitterly, taking a step back, popsicle still in hand.
“I’ll go with you,” Bennett immediately offered, an earnest and encouraging smile on his face. Chongyun nodded gratefully as Bennett told Paimon to wait back.
Childe’s voice cut through the dark once again. “-so irresponsible, I can’t believe-“ Bennett pressed his hands over Chongyun’s ears as they walked.