Chapter Text
“Excuse me, Lady Keqing?”
“Yes? Is there something I need to know?”
“Yes. Regarding the Chasm’s current condition.”
Keqing let out a sigh. This had been troubling the Liyue QIxing quite a lot recently. Although Ganyu was in charge of this, she had been busy for quite a bit.With that in mind, Keqing had requested that information regarding the Chasm also be given to her such that he could perhaps lend a helping hand should the secretary be neck deep in work.
“Okay. Do tell, I don’t have all day.” She replied, looking up from her desk and folding her hands. She didn’t mean to appear intimidating, but it comes almost as a second nature to her now.
“A-ah. Yes! So, after some time, we’ve received word that the current adventure team that would be sent into the Chasm has just left inside. Apparently it would seem that the Chasm had opened to allow them in.”
“They did? Huh. Alright then. The faster we solve this, the better I suppose.” Keqing gave a sigh, this business giving her quite a headache. Especially since the Chasm is a high source of ore for the region and that it would be a great economical boost should it open once more.She picked up her ink pen and resumed her writing.
“Anything else to update?”
“Yes! The recent troubles with the Treasure Hoarders in the area have also been solved. It would seem that the Milelith have managed to accomplish it despite the difficulties of the mission. Their report also states that they had some external help.”
“Oh? So they did. Hmm, very well. Have the report on my desk over there please. Anything else?”
“Yes, another one. It would seem that the Fatui have also left the Chasm. As they were down there without knowledge of information, their ranks are greatly reduced and in a mess. Most of them ran off during quieter hours.”
“That’s good. We can get rid of the scum from our mines at long last. Did they say anything important?”
“Yes. One of the squads that retreated peacefully made a remark about getting help from an adventurer to escape the chasm.”
Keqing raised an eyebrow. This was quite extraordinary that a lot of issues were solved in very quick succession. To think that this all would’ve been solved this quickly.
“Alright. File the report and give it to the Qixing as soon as possible. Is that all?”
“Yes, Lady Keqing. That is all.”
“Hmm. Alright then.”
As the person who gave her the news was about to leave, something itched within the Yuheng. Come to think of it, everything seemed to have gone straightforwardly without much issue. The hoarders, the Fatui, and now even the Chasm itself was being explored to find the reason behind its latest earthquakes that halted operations. At this rate, if all goes to plan then the Chasm would be open very soon.
Too soon. She wondered how so much could be done so quickly? The last time this had happened, it was all because of-
Wait.
Wait a moment.
“Wait!”
“Y-Yes?”
Keqing paused from her work, looking up to address the Qixing employee. She narrowed her eyes slightly. “May I ask, who was it that helped them?”
“Ah! Right! So apparently after checking all the reports, it seems that the adventurer who helped settle the problem with the Fatui and Hoarders is also the same adventurer who was assigned as the senior adventurer in leading the group into the chasm!”
She felt her worries rise. Surely it wasn’t him again, right?
“And judging from the reports, it seems like he is one of their most talented adventurers with his long list of achievements! In fact, I know him as well for all he did for Liyue. Even Lady Ningguang has a high level of admiration for-”
“Who. Is. He.” Keqing asked, cutting her off. The change in tone immediately caught the employee off guard, making her cower slightly from the Yuheng’s dark tone.
“A-ah! My apologies.” She cleared her throat. “It’s Aether, Lady Yuheng. The adventurer that helped us during both Osial and Beisht attacks.”
The ink brush slipped from her hand and onto the floor below. Her eye twitched ever so slightly. Wasn’t it just recently that they had been to Lantern Rite together? And now he’s already throwing himself into danger’s arms again? Especially with reports of high abyss activity within the chasm?
Keqing had secretly hoped that the commission would fall on another adventurer, perhaps one of high skill as well to resolve the issue, but not Aether himself. Not the golden boy.
Not HER golden boy.
“W-what?!?”
“Y-yes, Lady Yuheng. Aether is the adventurer that was assigned as the lead in the Chasm exploration team. Based on recent reports, it seems he has gone inside the Chasm and is making progress to the-”
“Why didn’t you tell me that earlier?!” Keqing practically screamed as she got up from her seat, frightening the poor employee. She quickly grabbed a few documents before scurrying out of the room in a flash, leaving the employee behind stunned.
In the wall, a photo of her and Aether, both enjoying the fireworks show out from the Jade Chamber in the last lantern rite, swung a bit as Keqing passed it at high speed.
“W-what was that?”
—-----------------------------------------------
“This is what I get for getting into a relationship with someone as selfless and as capable as Aether.”
Keqing mumbled to herself as she sped off into the Chasm’s entrance. Before long, the rather irritated Yuheng was standing in front of Muning.
“Ah, Lady Keqing! How may I help you? Would you like a status report on the Chasm’s current conditions, or perhaps a-”
“Where’s the adventure team you sent?”
“E-eh?” Muning was taken off guard by the question, but Keqing’s piercing gaze and somewhat annoyed aura intimidated him to the point he got extremely nervous.
“U-uh. They have already set foot inside, and have set up a camp deeper into the mines. Originally their camp was much shallower, but they were able to dive deeper inside.”
Keqing’s gaze sharpened, enough to make even the strongest people in Tyevat shiver under her glare. “And why did you allow them inside just like that?”
“B-but Lady Keqing, wasn’t it in the best interests of the Liyue Qixing that we open the mines as soon as possible? With Aether as the lead explorer, it would only be a matter of time before they’re finished down there.”
“How many adventurers went down there with him?” Keqing asked.
“Just one. Zhiqiong. We didn’t have any more in the team. We thought that they would be enough and that-”
A strong tingle of electro flew through the air. Muning was immediately silenced.
“Two? You wanted to explore a place as dangerous as the Chasm and you agreed to only send TWO?! Do you have any idea how dangerous it is down there?!” Keqing’s frustration was released as she berated the poor man.
“B-But we have Aether! He’s p-part of the team.” Muning tried to defend himself, only for Keqing’s glare to sharpen again, now looking like it could pierce the ocean in one swoop.
“He’s the EXACT reason why you should’ve rethink this whole damn operation! What if something were to happen there? We’re talking about dangerous things such as Fatui and even possibly Vishaps down there! Are you taking all their lives for granted? Especially, and very especially, his?”
“N-No! Not at all, Lady Keqing. We believe in Aether’s abilities, that’s why I agreed to have him join the lead team. With him there, it would-”
“What if something were to happen down there? How would that turn out for Liyue? You should’ve told me first who the team was before sending them down there!” Keqing continued, before taking a short breath to calm herself down, her hands on her forehead as she tried to quell her frustration.
“Damn it. I love you a lot but couldn’t you stop jumping into danger every 10 seconds? You’re going to give me a heart attack before I even grow old.” Keqing muttered under her breath, inaudible to everyone but herself.
“Enough of this. I’ll deal with this later. When they return, tell Aether to come see me.” Keqing said, looking at Muning with a rather dangerous expression. “Immediately.”
“Y-yes! Lady Keqing.”
Keqing walked off, very uneasy as she looked back at the foggy entrance to the Chasm’s underground mines. “Be safe, Aether.”
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“Huh. Paimon can’t believe Keqing herself would come to the Chasm when she heard you were leading the team down there.”
“Hehe, I knew she’d do that, in all honesty.”
Paimon hummed along as the fairy and Aether walked along the route back to Liyue. Aether for one was glad that through his efforts, despite the troubles, enemies, and annoyance at Zhiqiong that he had to face, they finally finished up for now. There was some more to do, but he’d get to that on a later date when he’s free. Right now, his girlfriend has called for him, and he has a feeling she wouldn’t be too pleased with him.
And perhaps he’d better leave Paimon out of it.
“Paimon, here.” Aether tosses a small sack to the fairy, who catches it after a bit of fumbling.
“Huh? Mora? What’s this for?”
“Go get a meal in Wanmin. Xiangling’s bound to be there at this time. I’ll sort it out with Keqing and join you later.” Aether shoots the little thing a wink. Paimon floats about happily.
“Are you sure? Don’t blame Paimon if they run out of supplies then!” Paimon cheers. Aether chuckles, giving her a thumbs up before the fairy flies off at terminal velocity towards the best restaurant at Chihu Rock.
With her gone, Aether sighs as he turns towards the Qixing building on his right. This was going to be a long one.
Walking up to her office, Aether hesitates but knocks after a second. He was bound to see her again, and well the scolding would come one way or another.
As Aether opens the door, he sees Keqing writing something on her desk. She didn’t even look up as she’s drowned in her work.
“If you have anything important to note, leave it at my desk there for now. If there are any updates on the Chasm, leave it on the corner of my desk.” She says, autonomously.
“Well, then perhaps I should seat myself in the corner of your desk?”
She stops. The inkpen halts moving as she blinks a few times, her head cranking upwards.
Amethyst eyes meet gold eyes.
“A-Aether….”
“Hi, Keq. You wanted to see me for some- Oof!”
Without another word, Keqing tackled Aether into a hug as the door closed behind him, Keqing burying her face into his chest as he stumbled back. Luckly, he caught her and his footing remained stable.
“You’re back!”
“I am.”
She looks up to him, checking his face and grimacing at the small bruise on his left cheek. She untangles herself from him, now thoroughly inspecting him. Indeed, she found some stray bandages and a few visible marks of damage.
“Are you okay? Do you need those checked or perhaps some more thorough wrapping?” Keqing asked, concerned. Aether chuckled, waving her off. “No, no. I’m good, love. All okay, it will be gone within a day or so.”
“So you’re good? And Paimon?”
“She’s eating lunch right now. We both are fine. A little banged up here and there, but otherwise fine.”
“Oh, okay that’s great then.”
“Hmm?”
A loud slap resonated within the office, the staff and secretaries looking in shock as the loud noise emanated from Keqing’s office. Even Ningguang and Ganyu, discussing some matters with regards to the opening of Inazuma’s borders soon, were a little taken aback by the loud noise.
Aether reeled back, the sudden hit taking him off guard as his cheek turned red from the hit. He rubbed the spot with his hand as the pain set in.
“Ow! Keqing?! What was that for?”
“What were you thinking?! Going down there with only minimal backup?!” Keqing scolded him, her voice wanting to sound rather angry but it came out as annoyed instead.
“E-eh? But I was doing a commission about opening the Chasm?”
“And why did you think that commission was meant for you? Couldn’t you have taken something else?”
“Uhm, well it's difficult and Lan told me that not many adventurers want to take it on due to how much it could be. I suppose it would benefit me to take it, seeing as how it would benefit Liyue as a whole if the Chasm could reopen and- Ow!”
Keqing swung again, hitting him in the same place. This one stung more, and Aether was recoiling in pain. Although mages and heralds could deliver some nasty hits, Keqing’s barehanded slaps were another level to him.
“K-Keqing?!”
“Did you know how worried I was? How I thought about you a lot?! The Chasm is a dangerous place with many unknowns, and yet you waltz in there like you own the place. Couldn’t you have been more modest in taking commissions for once?” The Yuheng complained, her body heating from the amount of scolding she’s giving him.
“I know you think this could benefit us, but think about the consequences for a second! What if it didn’t go as well?! What if you failed?!” She sounded more worried than angry now, her arm subconsciously gripping his arm. “I know you’re the best bet for this, but couldn’t you have called for some help or something? Not from just one other adventurer!” She continued.
“Keqing, I-”
“I know, I know! It’s not something a random person can do or accomplish. Yes, it's a hard commission and you’re right that the best candidate would be yourself to reduce the amount of lives lost discovering the insides of that damned cave. I get it, your selflessness is once again proven.”
“But for once. For once Aether, can you please consider others? Like, if word got out, others would have been worried sick! Ningguang or Ganyu would’ve sent extra teams in if they had known about it! And if I had known earlier you were the team leader, I would’ve offloaded my work and gone with you!”
“K-Keqing….”
“I know! You’re busy, you want to explore the world, find answers. Find your sister. All that. I know this, and I don’t want to stop you. Not one bit, but please.” She looked straight at his eyes. “I’ve nearly lost you a few times already. Don’t do this again to me.”
Aether and Keqing stayed silent for a moment, their eyes conveying their feelings for one another. Before long, they reconnected with a quick hug, Keqing’s earlier angry demeanor gone in a flash. Aether hugged her gently, bringing his hand to gently rub her back as she hugged him tight.
“I-I’m sorry.” Keqing started first.
“Hmm?”
“Sorry. It’s just…” She paused, trying hard to compose the proper words for it. “I just don’t want to lose you. We’ve made a promise to be by each other’s side until we’ve both achieved our goals, and I just can’t imagine it without you. A new Liyue would be meaningless to me if the person I promised to look forward to is not even able to see it.”
“I should be sorry as well.” Aether replied, taking a moment to think. “I should’ve known this would be worrying to you, and for that I’m really sorry for just going with it. It’s just that I heard many things about the Chasm, including some rumors of abyss activity down there. I guess I was just as focused as I ever was in finding my sister that I jumped in without much thought.”
“I forgot about the fact that this world has so much more to it than just finding my sister. In my haste, I didn’t see anything else but my objective. I guess I tunnel visioned a little too hard there.”
“So, for that, Keqing.” She gently pulled her face up to meet his gaze. “I’m really sorry for making you worried.”
Keqing sighed. She couldn’t stay mad at him for long. Not with how those beautiful eyes are looking right at hers.
“Just, don’t endanger yourself too much. Tell me first or something, I could probably go and help you. Better that than trying to fight an entire organization alone.” She replied.
“I will, I will. I promise.”
“Do you have a sign to say you promised?” Keqing asked, her lips curving to a slight smile ever since they met just minutes earlier.
Aether chuckled. He knew what she wanted, and she also knew what he wanted. Lovers do share thoughts after all.
Aether tilted his face and used his hands to gently bring her closer to him. Keqing joined in, leaning her face into his. Practiced many times before, their lips meet perfectly in the middle. She sighed, savoring the moment. He’s been gone for quite a bit on his adventures and she’s been drowning in work related to the chasm, so much so they haven’t been able to do much without ruining someone's schedule.
They were gonna savor this moment for quite a bit.
It took them a steamy minute, but Aether and Keqing finally separated after a parliament of kisses, leaving them slightly breathless. He smiled as he looked into her eyes.
“Next time, I will ask you to join me. I don’t want to take those slaps again.”
Keqing giggled, her demeanor finally shifting back to the one he adored. “Mmm, I’ll take your word for it. Don’t dare do that again to me, or I’ll have a bounty on your head to bring you to me and I’ll tape you up until I can send you to the next nation.”
“Hehe wouldn’t dream of it.”
They moved, taking a seat on the sofa nearby as Keqing laid her head idly on Aether’s shoulder. “So, did you find anything in there?”
“Oh, a lot.” Aether chuckled, confused where to begin. The clock in the room sounded the 12:00 ding, and the two in the room looked up at it as the clock showed that midday had just passed.
“Say, Paimon’s over at Wanmin’s. Let’s have some lunch there while we talk it over. There’s a lot to talk about if you want to know all about what I found in the chasm.”
“Hmm.” Keqing thinks, before shrugging. “You’re buying after what you’ve done, my ever so eager traveler.”
“Oh, I most definitely will, my ever so lovable Yuheng.”
The two shared a chuckle, taking a quick kiss before departing from her office, hand in hand. The secretaries and various employees did not need to ask Keqing about what the noise was earlier. Aether’s cheek had a hand imprint on it that was bright red, and that was all they needed to know.
Besides, not many wanted to know more about the traveler and the Yuheng’s relationship, it's far more trouble than it's worth.