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The Lantern Rite. An annual celebration in Liyue where people released lanterns into the sky, lighting up the night. The celebration has been going on for centuries, starting on the day of the first full moon. People run through the streets with sparklers, holding the hands of their loved ones as they release the lanterns, watching as they dot the sky like stars.
It was beautiful, Xiao thought as he stood on one of the cliffs near Liyue, watching as the sky was brightened by the many lanterns. He smiled softly as he watched, his vision filled with the night sky as he sighed.
This was one of the few times when he allowed himself to be content, allowed himself to be free and let go. He knew it wouldn’t last long, so he would relish in the time that he had. He had promised that he would meet Zhongli after the festival. He felt happy knowing he would finally have a chance to speak with him, especially after their long time apart.
There was one person, however, that he had been wanting to see even more.
When they had last stopped by the Wangshu Inn, Xiao had told them of the Lantern Rite. Excited, they had promised that they would go with him and watch the lanterns. Xiao had waited and waited. He finally decided to leave, mildly upset, but he didn’t want to miss the lanterns.
So now he sat atop the cliff, all by himself as they announced down in Liyue that the fireworks show was about to begin. Xiao frowned.
He knew that they had been putting much thought into the Lantern Rite this year, but he couldn’t say that he loved fireworks. They were beautiful, of course, but perhaps too loud. The booming sound, the crackling of gunpowder, made Xiao feel anxious.
They would wait for most of the lanterns to float away, so as to preserve people's wishes that had been sent with them. Xiao hummed to himself as he leaned back slightly, perching himself on his palms as he kicked his legs slightly, watching as the lanterns slowly floated away from the harbor.
“There you are!” Someone called, and Xiao groaned, perturbed that his peace had been interrupted. He turned, and all irritation faded away when he saw who it was.
“I’ve been looking for you everywhere! I promised to go with you, remember?”
Xiao felt his cheeks warm as Venti clamored up to him, panting. He held up a hand, signaling that he needed a moment before he could talk again, likely from climbing up to the clifftop that Xiao was on.
“Why’d you disappear??”
“You were late. I didn’t want to miss the lanterns,” Xiao said simply, turning his head back to the sea of lanterns, sighing. Venti pouted and took a seat next to Xiao, nudging him.
“I thought Adepti always kept their promises.”
“We uphold our contracts, yes. But you didn’t arrive on time.”
Venti was about to protest, but he shut his mouth with a pout, crossing his arms. “Well fine. Oh, I didn’t bring any food though. I figured we could go down and fetch some food after we watch the fireworks!”
Xiao grimaced. He didn’t like crowds…
Venti seemed to sense Xiao’s discomfort and he quickly waved his hand. “Or we could just head back to Wangshu Inn for the night! I’m sure I could treat you to some almond tofu, right?”
Xiao smiled and nodded. “I’d like that.”
Venti smiled back and looked to the lanterns, laying back on his hands. Xiao glanced down, noticing that Venti’s hands were rather close to his own. He flushed and felt a sudden urge to move his hand closer. To bring his fingers to Venti’s, to interlock them…
He shook the thoughts from his mind quickly, frowning, thanking the other Archons that Venti hadn’t seemed to notice as he usually did.
He had been feeling quite peculiar around Venti as of late. While they didn’t spend all their time together, the time spent had Xiao awash in a sea of various thoughts.
He couldn’t help staring at Venti’s eyes for too long, noticing ever fleck of color and every gleam of mischief. He found himself watching his lips as he talked, a light pink color, sometimes a darker shade from him biting his lip out of nervousness or his own thoughts.
He couldn’t help a rush of giddiness whenever Venti touched him, whether it was a simple brush of his hair to an embrace. He felt faint whenever he heard Venti laugh, he felt a dryness in his throat whenever Venti stretched and made a small noise akin to a moan. He felt himself growing clammy when Venti stared at him with that knowing grin, and he would always look away with a pout.
Even now as they sat together and Xiao felt drawn to Venti, he couldn’t quite place what exactly he was feeling. He felt like he needed to protect him, but not in the way he felt the need to protect the people of Liyue. He didn’t understand, and it bothered him.
Perhaps Venti was what bothered him.
Xiao decided to give it less thought. Venti was here now, and they were enjoying the Lantern Rite together. He turned his attention back to the lanterns, which were nearly out of the harbor. The fireworks would be starting soon…
Xiao felt something touch his hand. He looked down to see Venti’s fingers lightly touching the tips of his own, shyly. Xiao looked over at Venti, who was continuing to look at the lanterns, a small smile on his face. Xiao felt himself flush, and he allowed himself to entwine their fingers. Venti looked down, eyes widened, but he quickly recovered, grinning and turning his attention back to the lanterns.
Xiao’s mind began to race. The giddiness was running through him again, making his heart race.
“The fireworks are starting!” Venti said, pointing to the sky where a firework had just flown up into. It exploded in a medley of colors, bright and sparkling as Xiao’s eyes widened. It looked like how he felt.
An explosion, big and loud. It was yelling in his heart, but he had been keeping it down. It had been slipping by, which was what he was feeling. His grip on Venti’s hand tightened as he realized exactly what he was feeling.
The fireworks continued, blasting and exploding. They whistled shrilly as they fired upwards, booming loudly when the fuse finally met the core. Xiao looked at Venti, who was completely entranced.
“Venti,” Xiao said, and Venti turned his attention to Xiao with a smile.
“What is it?”
“I,” Xiao started, taking a deep breath. He braced himself, heart beating fast as his cheeks warmed brightly, though it was hard to discern in the night. “Love you,” A firework blasted loudly right as Xiao spoke the rest of his sentence, taking over his speech and replacing it with an obnoxious explosion.
Venti tilted his head to the side, raising an eyebrow.
“What was that? Sorry, the fireworks were too loud, I didn’t hear you.”
Xiao’s heart sank. The adrenaline of getting the words out, the giddiness that had been rushing all throughout him faded, and he frowned. He let go of Venti’s hand, bringing his knees up to his chest as he hugged his shins, shaking his head.
“It’s nothing, never mind.”
Venti frowned, about to press Xiao for more, but his attention was drawn back to the fireworks. Xiao felt himself wilt as Venti cheered with the people of Liyue, completely unaware of how Xiao was feeling.
Xiao sighed and Venti looked at him with concern. He put an arm around his shoulder, holding him close as Xiao felt the giddy feeling return, if only for a brief moment. Venti then rested his head on Xiao’s shoulder, humming to himself as he gestured to the fireworks.
“These fireworks are rather beautiful, but they’re hardly a sight compared to you, Xiao.”
Xiao looked at Venti with a perplexed look, feeling his cheeks begin to warm up. Venti grinned, rocking back and forth and bringing Xiao with him. He gabbed on, gesturing with his free hand as he didn’t let go of Xiao.
“When I’m with you I get this special feeling. Frankly, it makes me feel a little anxious…” Xiao felt his heart sink at Venti’s words, but then he continued. “But I still love that feeling.”
Xiao nodded his head, letting go of his legs as he curled up next to Venti, wrapping his arm around the bard’s waist.
“I… I think I feel the same. Being around you makes me crazy, like my head’s about to burst. I feel more like myself, and I feel silly admitting that now. But Venti… I…”
Venti chuckled. “You love me?”
Xiao blushed immediately, shoving Venti away. “You did hear me!”
Venti laughed, and Xiao immediately whined, covering his face in embarrassment as Venti wiped a tear from his eye.
“Dear Xiao, I only wanted to make sure you weren’t pulling my leg. Toying with an Archon’s feelings can spell disaster, you know.”
Xiao dragged his hands down his face, whimpering exasperatedly. “Why would I joke about that??”
Venti chuckled thoughtfully. “I suppose you aren’t the type to mess around with something as serious as love~”
Xiao groaned and Venti reached for him again, pulling him into a close hug as Xiao hesitantly hugged him back. Venti smiled, cupping Xiao’s cheeks and looking deep into his golden eyes, lips parting.
Xiao leaned in and their lips met, colliding in a gentle way as Venti hummed, hands sliding to the back of Xiao’s head as he locked his fingers in his hair. Xiao’s hands slid down Venti’s back, pulling him closer.
The fireworks continued to blast off in the distance, but Xiao and Venti were too busy with each other to notice. When they set off their own lanterns later, they knew what they would wish for…