Work Text:
It was morning again. The sunlight warmed the yaksha's cheeks as he swiftly awoke from slumber.
It was still there— the aching pain that wouldn't go away no matter how many medicinal gifts the former Geo Archon had given him. It relieved the pain, sure, but once his mask meets the fading light of dusk, he knew that he was bound to feel worse again anyway.
"Sleeping... how careless of me," he muttered.
Xiao carefully stood up to once again purge the demons in Liyue and the demons in his body. It would be selfish of him to ever wish for a break, seeing as how Rex Lapis broke him free from a greater anguish. But to yearn for a single moment of inner peace... he shook the thought away.
Mt. Tianheng was a site he often avoided because it was so close to Liyue Harbor, but upon nearing the cliff that overlooks it, the yaksha was met with a familiar tune; one all too nostalgic. It was something he hadn't heard in centuries. A tune as old as time, a song of the highest honor...
Lovers' Oath.
Brimmed with curiosity, he cautiously approached the source of the sound. On the edge of the cliff, there he saw a lone glaze lily and a beautiful young maiden humming the dear lullaby to it.
"How do you know that song?"
Xiao wanted to tell her to stop. Lovers' Oath was a sacred song shared between Morax and Guizhong— the two gods he admired.
The young maiden turned around and met his eyes. The sunlight lined her figure as its reflection glistened in her eyes. She looked as delicate as the flower next to her. It was like watching a painting come to life.
"Oh my, are you an adeptus? I apologize. I didn't notice you were behind me." She stood up and patted the dust off her dress. "My name is Yun Jin, director of the Yun Han Opera Troupe of Liyue Harbor. I've been hearing the same song in my dreams since I was a child, but I did not know anything of it. Lately, however, I've been intruiged by the glaze lilies growing in Yujing Terrace. I remembered this one when I was out looking for quiet places to practice my singing and decided to pay it a visit."
"...Did the voice in your dreams say anything else other than the song?" Xiao asked.
"Not that I remember. Is everything okay?" Yun Jin asked.
Even though the melody carried pains of centuries past, Xiao stood before Yun Jin, hoping for a chance of redemption. It felt like a sin, but it was one he was willing to atone for a million times and more. If he could be selfish, just once in his life, even for just a moment...
"Can you... sing it for me?"