Work Text:
There is one time Ayaka has seen Aether angry.
That one time made her decide she will be the person that gets angry for him.
What she does not know is that this is the first time Aether has gotten angry in over 50 years.
Aether is a person of calm, logical decisions. He abhors his emotionally-volatile form, but at the same time, it would not have brought him the relationships to the people he considers his friends.
He does not like seeing said friends be harmed. That much is certain. But he must keep himself contained.
Contrary to popular belief, he does not embrace “light” powers. No, his sister, for all the irony in the world now, is the one who holds the “light”. She, the one who heals, makes peace, stops harm, is the one on the side trying to destroy all.
He, the embodiment of monsters, war, and death, is the opposite. A calamity, an eternal, hollow abyss. Of shadows, darkness, and all-consuming rage.
Aether vowed to never get truly angry in front of his friends.
20 days into his adventure, he realized he was absolute shit at holding vows.
45 days into his adventure, he discovered how hard it was to not get angry.
412 days, he snapped.
In front of Ayaka, Thoma, and Yoimiya, no less.
When he sees a small village of people under siege, he and his friends calmly assess and take down as much of the threat as possible.
When he sees a young child be separated from his mother, he remains calm and manages to escort them to safety.
When he sees a father beheaded, he swallows his guilt and anger.
When he sees a mother and son, laying in each other’s arms, dead, he feels negativity rising, but he keeps it suppressed.
The tipping point is when he hears the screams of pain. Not his own, but his friends.
Not elongated howls, but just short bursts. Defiant to the end, surrounded, and very angry.
They will die, amongst the endless horde of enemies.
Unacceptable.
Moving as fast as the winds of Anemo allow him to, he charges forward, pushing through the waves of enemies and into the heart where his friends are.
He breathes a sigh of relief. There are no fatal injuries, but some of them will require care. He takes note of Ayaka’s face, and decides it shouldn’t be blemished like so. Thoma should not be clutching a broken arm. Yoimiya should not be using Thoma as support.
Unforgivable.
He levels a small glare at his surroundings. Dozens of red eyes glare right back. The sounds of hundreds of sword unsheathing do not bother him. He barely registers Ayaka cry for him to stop, nor the low, horrified whisper of his name.
Intolerable.
He abandons his name. He throws away his blade.
And in return, his hands become his new swords. Fingernails lengthen, his hair becomes a wild mane, and he snarls like a demon. His back arches unnaturally, his crimson - Ayaka decides its not right on him - eyes glowing with absolute hate.
He told himself all life is precious, like his sister used to say.
Obviously he’s wrong, as the dozens of suicidal rogues charge him. He lets out a bloodcurdling howl as his form snaps up, inhumanely taller, and comes down on their form.
Ayaka is glad the shockwave of the scream blasts Thoma and Yoimiya into unconsciousness. Even as her own vision fades, she hears… whatever Aether was… scream their names, and she swears she sees the monster crying, tears flashing in the hollow moonlight.
When she wakes up again, it’s on the same battlefield, but there is no trace of anyone they fought. The grass is pristine, the villagers are talking amongst each other peacefully, and-
Aether. Oh god. Where’s Aether?
Did he die in the battle? Did the rogues cut their losses and run away with his corpse? A pit here in her stomach as she began to recall the night.
No. Nonono. Aether, please don’t tell her that was him…
Her hands shook uncontrollably, unbefitting of someone like her. She takes several deep breaths, but it takes almost 10 minutes for her to regain control.
When she gets up, she realizes she hasn’t been moved, and Yoimiya and her retainer Thoma are still out. Her shaky legs do nothing to support her.
She shakily moves, wobbling her way around the terrain, trying to find Aether.
She looks left and catches him under another tree. With a swallow, she trembles towards him, using anything for leverage. She wants to hang onto her weapon for safety, because she doesn’t know what he is anymore.
She’s scared of him, Ayaka realizes, horrified. After the massacre she barely witnessed, why shouldn’t she be? It’s not like- wait, is that sniffling?
Ayaka realizes with a startling expression that Aether is crying, sobbing, and it’s painfully obvious he has been sobbing for a long time.
Ayaka drops down in front of him, her hand resting on her sword’s hilt. Aether’s eyes, golden beauties marred by bloodshot veins and puffiness, and heavy bags underneath, stare up at hers for a split second before he recoils harshly. He screams.
“You need to stay away!”
Ayaka has another realization: he’s more scared of himself than she is of him.
She bites her lip, swallows her fear. This isn’t a monster, she tells herself, and she slowly moves her sword hand towards him.
It’s calm, reassuring, but Aether freaks out nonetheless. He curls up into a ball and tucks himself into the tree as much as possible.
Ayaka comes to a third realization. There’s no way he voluntarily became such a beast without a lapse of judgment so great. A fourth follows up immediately, in that he hates himself.
Aether does, in fact, absolutely hate himself.
The moment he feels Ayaka’s hand touch his tear-ridden cheek, he freezes, and not because of her vision. The hand is warm, gentle, reassuring.
He slowly brings himself back to look into her eyes. Her blue orbs were sad, filled with sorrow and sympathy. The hints of fear were still there, but she didn’t blame him.
“I will not leave you.”
“You should. I’m a freak, Ayaka.” He mutters out sourly, flicking her hand away from his face.
Ayaka frowns. This isn’t her Traveler. Not the one she knew. But of course, she also knows this is the same person who potentially… removed… dozens of rogue warriors like it was a feast.
Cautiously, she touches his face again.
“Aether. Please. I need to know.”
It takes multiple tries, and there’s lots of yelling and screaming, all of it from Aether. Then there’s crying, empty laughter and a lot of self-resentment.
And finally, Aether gives in.
“I’m a freak, Ayaka. I’m not like you humans. And the worst part is, I can’t ever fully control my emotions like you, or Zhongli, or even Diluc. And it sucks.”
He tucks his head between his knees, even as the Cryo Vision user hugs him gently.
“And whenever I get mad… really mad… that happens. It’s a curse, Ayaka. It’s a damn curse I can never be rid of.”
One final realization.
Aether wishes he was someone who gave life instead of took it.
Ayaka cannot help but feel sorrow for him. It is something beyond his control, a burden on him, but one he used nonetheless.
She’s not sure how to feel, but there is one thing.
A burning rage inside of her ice-cold body. Aether was her friend. Someone she cared for than most others.
It’s horrifying to see this side of him, both monster and the aftermath. So she reaffirms her promise to Aether.
“Aether.”
He stares her in the eyes.
“Never get mad again. You’ll never have to.” She holds his hands gently, a fiery gaze unlike any other he’s seen in her beautiful blue eyes.
“I will be the one who gets angry for you. You’ll never have to use that form again. Just let me be angry for you.”
And Aether’s golden eyes widen. He could never let Ayaka do this. It’s not right, not for someone like her-
“Aether. I care for you. When I saw you take that form, I was scared and terrified. Seeing you like this breaks my heart, and not just because of you being my friend. It almost hurt me physically to see you so hateful towards yourself.” She places his hand over her heart, and the heartbeat, the slow and steady heartbeat picks up pace, beating with her powerful declaration.
“Aether. I won’t let you feel this way again. Not while I’m with you. Let me be angry for you. Just let me do this for you. Let me be someone you can rely on.” Please don’t hate yourself. Don’t hate yourself for something you can’t control.
Her message reaches him loud and clear, but what he does not expect is the warm embrace Ayaka pulls him into.
It’s nice, and he melts into her hold, his hands wrapping around her. He can feel the hot tears pouring down his face, but now they’re full of something else.
Gratitude.
On that day, their relationship become something stronger, harder than just friends. Even if he became a monster forever, even if he was left alone to the darkness to do the right thing, even if he became a hated demon…
Ayaka vows to always be by his side. She'll wait an eternity for him.
She will wait. She will always wait.
She loves him.