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Once a year, the people of Teyvat prepare ornate lanterns, each filled with a wish, in preparation to send into the sky. They believe the people in the sky to be powerful, after all they live in a kingdom suspended in the clouds by ancient magic. This event is known as the Lantern Rite, and has been happening annually for several decades now.
Aether had always sent the same wish every year since he was 5: ‘I want to be happy’. And while the year was never miserable, it was never what he envisioned happiness to be.
“Well, what do you envision?” Asked his twin sister, Lumine, after he expressed his disappointment. They were making lanterns together in their bedroom, as they did every year, paper and wood sprawled all over the floor.
“I don’t know, I guess I just want to smile like you do.”
Lumine laughed. “Aw Aeth, it’s not like my life is so different to yours. You just need to lighten up a little!”
He sighed. “You’re always surrounded by so many people. You make everyone smile, I’m always so jealous.” He let out a small ow when she jabbed him in his side.
“Hey, you make people smile too! Don’t be so down on yourself. I’m sure if you let people in, you could make many friends too.”
They sat in silence for a few minutes, only the sound of rustling and folding paper filling the air.
“Heh,” Lumine chuckled, “maybe this year you could wish for a friend?”
Aether glared at his sister. “I don’t think that’s what these are for. That would be like wishing for a lover. It’s dumb.”
Lumine laughed, but said nothing more. They continued working on their lanterns until well into the night, Lumine writing her wish just before she headed off to bed. “Night, Aether. Don’t stay up too late, we have to run errands tomorrow morning.”
“Good night, I won’t.” He muttered, concentrating on his lantern. Somehow, Lumine had finished her lantern, although it wasn’t exactly the best quality. Aether was convinced that the reason his wish had never been fulfilled was that his lantern had never survived long enough to make it to the kingdom in the clouds. As he got to writing his wish, he thought about what Lumine had said.
A friend would be nice, he mused, writing something down before finishing the last steps of the lantern, then rolling into bed himself.
____
For the past 40 or so years, the banks of Celestia were littered with lanterns from the kingdom below. At first, they tried to punish this disrespectful practice by sending a 2 month long drought, however this was met with joy rather than anguish. And so the following year, when the lanterns came again, they sent 1 month long rain, but once again it was perceived as a blessing rather than a curse. No matter what they did to deter the lanterns, they still returned the following year, and so the inhabitants of Celestia accepted their fate, forming organisations to clean the mess each year. It wasn’t until the 30th occurrence of this event, did they think to open the lanterns.
Needless to say, they were not impressed that this excessive rubbish sent each year was supposed to be the people of the earth asking for their blessings. Why would one create garbage to offer to those they hold esteem? So they took great care in reading every wish, and specifically not fulfilling it. Surely once they see their pathetic attempts were fruitless, they would stop.
It had only been 10 years since that decision was made, and the lanterns kept coming. The decline in numbers was hardly noticeable, but yearly counts did confirm that less lanterns were being sent each time. Due to this, any who tried to fulfil any wish they found were to be punished, for even if only one is fulfilled, the people of the earth would take it as a sign to keep sending the lanterns.
Xiao was part of the group in charge of reading (and deliberately disregarding) the wishes, known as the Yakshas. He cared not for the wishes of Celestia nor the desires of those who lingered on the earth, however he had no choice in the matter. His duty as a Yaksha only came into play for a few days each year, so it was not much of a bother. It was thankless work, much like most jobs in Celestia, and while Xiao never sought praise, a part of him silently yearned for something more. The same routine every year was almost maddening, had he not had years to adjust to it.
For that was the striking difference between the nation of the earth and the nation in the sky: life in Teyvat was unpredictable, ever-changing. Most importantly, it was fleeting, for a life of change is inevitable to face death. In Celestia, nothing changed. Every day was planned, every year matched the last. While they had complete control over every event, no one ever died. They were immortals, and yet the mortals far beneath them threatened this with their simple act of selfishness.
Perhaps Xiao was a little selfish himself, wishing he had something to look forward to. Wanting for something other than the sameness he was condemned to. But he dared not get his hopes up, for such a thing was forbidden in the immortal realm.
____
It was the day of the Lantern Rite, or more accurately the evening. After completing his morning chores, Aether had slept for hours as midday came and went. He was shaken awake by Lumine, and groaned.
“Hnn… what do you want?” He mumbled into his pillow, trying to wipe his face of the drool that had accumulated during his nap.
“We have to leave soon if we want to release our lanterns from the harbour.” She continued to shake him, generating more displeased noises. He tried to swat her away with a weak hand, succeeding for only a few short seconds before he was shaken again, with more vigour.
“Alright, alright, I’m getting up.” He sighed, sitting up in his bed. Lumine was already dressed in a blue and white dress, flowers in her hair. She was holding her lantern - which appeared to already be breaking slightly, prompting a laugh from Aether.
“Shut up! It’s gonna be fine!” She huffed, storming out of the room and protecting her lantern from Aether’s mocking gaze.
A few minutes later, he emerged into the main living space, dressed in dark brown, black, and gold. His long hair was loose over his shoulders, causing Lumine to sigh.
“Hold my lantern, I’ll do your hair on the way there. It’s too windy to have all that hair down.”
Aether huffed, not caring for what the weather would do to his hair. They walked for 20 minutes to the harbour, where it was already crowded. It was a popular site to release the lanterns, after all. Aether’s hair had been miraculously neatly braided, and tied off with a feather ornament. He wouldn’t admit it, but he was glad it was out of the way. The wind was far stronger than he had anticipated.
“Won’t the lanterns get blown away with this wind?” He asked.
Lumine shrugged. “Maybe with enough lanterns in the sky, ours won’t be hit with the wind. Like a giant floating wind breaker.”
“I don’t think that’s how it works…” he trailed off. The sun had long disappeared behind the nearby mountains, and the lamps that had been lit were slowly being extinguished. Before the lanterns were released, the kingdom on the earth plunged their city into darkness, so that the people could marvel at the sight of the lanterns being released.
“Are you ready?” Lumine breathed in his ear, unwilling to break the silence that accompanied the darkness. Aether nodded. It wasn’t really a big deal, all they had to do was light their lanterns and let go, but he couldn’t help but feel nervous as he truly hoped that his wish would come true this time.
The collective silence was broken by soft words spoken by one of the event administrators.
“Tonight, we, the people of Teyvat, release our wishes to you who live in the clouds, and ask that you may consider to fulfill them. Let our lanterns reach you safely, and let our hearts be clear.”
At the last word, the speaker released her own lantern, prompting all others on the harbour to release theirs. Despite having seen the sight many times, Aether couldn’t help but catch his breath, as thousands of lanterns drifted into the night sky, like fireflies migrating to their homeland.
After the lanterns had made a decent height, conversation returned to the crowd, as everyone discussed their wishes, hopes, and dreams.
“I wished to understand the creatures around us better,” Lumine confessed. That was so her, Aether smiled to himself. He got another painful jab in the ribs. “I know what you’re thinking, so stop it.”
The twins both laughed. Lumine looked pointedly at Aether.
“What did you end up wishing for?”
____
The Yakshas knew when to anticipate the litter on the shores of Celestia, as the usually illuminated world below grew dim. They knew not why the people of the earth did this, but it allowed them time to set up their members to most effectively collect the lanterns as they arrived. It was best to tackle the issue the moment it started, so the mess could be cleared as early as possible.
Soon, the tell-tale glow of the lanterns grew closer, as the first few peaked through the clouds and landed softly on the snow-like shores of the kingdom in the sky. Each one differed slightly from the next, a sign of their unique crafting hands. Xiao picked up 5 or so, reading the painted words inside the lanterns.
‘I wish to be successful’
‘I wish to be rich’
‘I wish to be healthy’
‘I wish my family is happy’
‘I wish for peace’
Such generic wishes, and how Celestia planned to not fulfil them was beyond him, but it mattered not. He couldn’t help but ponder what drove the people of the earth to cast such wishes. Where they could do whatever they pleased, and yet they wished for more.
Of course, even if Xiao was given the chance to make a wish, he didn’t know what he would ask for. His life in Celestia meant unchanging. It meant that he had the same as he ever did, as he ever will. The wishes he read each year were the only thing that wasn’t the same.
He would say it was the most entertaining part of each year, if it wasn’t strictly forbidden in the sky kingdom.
As the night progressed, he and his fellow Yakshas collected thousands of lanterns, reading each and every wish written in them, and reporting their findings to the archons. Some stood out more than others, but even if Xiao wanted to, he could not grant the wishes. Some wished for happiness, some wished for their ill loved ones to get better, and some wished for love while others wished for freedom. Each lantern was a glimpse into the life of its maker, and yet each lantern was to be disposed of, and the wishes to go ungranted.
1675 lanterns later, the Yakshas were told to rest until the following day, when they would continue their duty. Even if they did not specifically need rest, routine was not to be questioned nor disturbed. Xiao walked along the white shores towards his abode, not allowing himself to pick up the stray lanterns slowly polluting the ground. Routine was not to be disturbed. He noticed the glow of life ignite far below, wondering why the people of the earth insisted on making night like day. He could not investigate. Routine was not to be questioned.
But when he arrived at his living quarters - a house meticulously carved from a single piece of stone, like all others in Celestia - he could not bear to ignore the two lanterns on his doorstep. One looked as though it was about to fall apart, the other was in a much better condition. He picked them both up. Routine was not to be questioned. For so long he had yearned for change. He tried to read the note in the broken lantern, but found that it was missing. Routine was not to be disturbed. He opened the other lantern, wondering if somehow it contained both the wishes. His eyes widened at the message he read.
‘I wish to befriend the one who collects this lantern’
____
“That’s what you wished for?” Lumine all but laughed. Aether tried to wave away her humiliating look.
“You told me to ask for a friend!”
“Yeah, but I didn’t think you would write that!” She batted away Aether’s hands as they tried to attack her.
“Well, I’m curious what it’s like up there, ok? Stop looking at me like that!” He slapped his hand into her face, only causing her to laugh harder. He sighed, defeated, and crossed his arms. “At least mine is simple to fulfil.”
“What, befriending someone you’ve never met from a nation we have no contact with? Sure, Aeth.”
He sighed again, sounding much more deflated. “Well, when you put it like that…”
He could only wallow in his small misery for so long, before the twins - and everyone near them - were disturbed by a gust of wind originating from behind them. Aether turned to look at the source of the sudden wind, and found himself speechless.
A man, about the same height as him, with dark hair and teal highlights that appeared to glow, stood in the middle of where the air had dispersed from. In his gloved hands, he held a lantern. Aether’s lantern.
“Wh…” he barely managed to breathe his question. Was this beautiful man from Celestia? He had heard that the people of the sky were unfathomably attractive, but he never expected this.
“I believe this belongs to you,” the man said, holding the lantern out towards Aether. He merely nodded, unable to keep his jaw closed. He was really pretty.
Lumine, thankfully, still had her voice. “Are you… from up there?” She asked. She tried her best not to sound nervous, and maybe she could have fooled a stranger but the people of the sky kingdom were far more adept at, well, everything.
The man nodded. “My name is Xiao. Myself, along with several others, are in charge of reading your wishes.”
Lumine gasped. “Oh, so you actually read our wishes! Can you tell me if mine will come true? Oh wait, you probably aren’t allowed to talk about it. If I’m being honest, I didn’t think anyone actually read our wishes, if I knew that I might have written something different haha!” Words kept falling from her mouth as she was unable to stop them. Xiao merely crossed his arms, not responding to any of her questions.
Aether, in contrast, still hadn’t managed to say anything, and Xiao was beginning to worry if he was even breathing. He cleared his throat, trying to give the lantern back to the silent twin.
Aether took it with shaky hands, as if in a daze. He couldn’t take his eyes off this man. He swallowed, opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came.
“You… wished to be friends with the one who collected your lantern, did you not?”
Aether nodded.
“I happened to be the one who received your wish. Judging by your expression - my visit was not expected?”
Aether merely blinked, forming few incoherent sounds.
Xiao huffed. No wonder Celestia was not fond of those residing on Teyvat, they seemed unable to communicate properly. He had already met one who couldn’t control her words and another who couldn’t speak at all. They appeared to be twins, so perhaps the noisy one had taken all of the speaking ability for herself before their birth. Xiao didn’t know. Birth, and by extension, twins, were not a thing in Celestia. Perhaps these were the side effects of such feeble means of creation.
Lumine pushed her silent brother forward. “C’mon, it was your wish, Aether, talk to him!”
Aether felt his face heat up, once again trying to form words but with no success.
“If ‘friendship’ does not entail talking, then perhaps I shall take my leave.” Xiao knew he couldn’t go back. He broke the law of Celestia. He would be banished to Teyvat if he ever tried to return, or worse. The blond in front of him - Aether - seemed upset at the idea of him leaving, so he stayed, if only to see if he could talk at all.
“I- You… I didn’t-” he stuttered. Well, he could talk, but forming a sentence was a whole different matter. Xiao waited not-so-patiently as the boy stumbled over his words, before finally blurting:
“You’re beautiful”
The compliment took him so off guard, that when his heart started to beat faster he was sure he was being attacked. But the talkative one started laughing, and the one which just spoke those words buried his face in his hands. Xiao, in turn, felt his cheeks heat up. Perhaps the reason he was struggling to speak was because he was affected by an ailment - one which now affected Xiao too, for he struggled to respond. Were those words some kind of curse? No, he thought. Curses didn’t spread like this, and the people of Teyvat didn’t have such powers in the first place.
Honey eyes met piercing gold, as Xiao stuttered out a reply. “You… are quite aesthetically pleasing yourself.”
It took all her willpower for Lumine to not let out a squeal. She was definitely going to hold this moment over their heads for the rest of their friendship. And yes, they will have a friendship, she would make sure of that. Although the giddy smiles and rosy cheeks they both wore told her it wouldn’t be too much effort to achieve.