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Albedo stood up from his desk and, stretching, idly looked outside the mouth of the cave. He had meant to wander the mountain trails and get some more sketching done today. However, he had been so engrossed in his reading that he lost track of time. Now, it was dark. It didn't help that today was the winter solstice, giving him less daylight than on any other day of the year.
The thought of the solstice generated a melancholy ache in his chest. For the first time in two years, he would spend it alone.
He knew that Aether would have come if he had asked, which was precisely why he hadn't asked. Aether had recently written to him about an upcoming event in Inazuma. While he had sounded lukewarm about the event itself, he was clearly excited to see his Inazuman friends again after several hectic months in Sumeru. As much as Albedo wanted to see Aether, he didn’t feel right depriving Aether of his chance to see his friends. So, Albedo had simply wished him a good time at the event.
That didn’t stop Albedo from missing Aether, unfortunately. The same events that had kept Aether away from Inazuma had kept him away from Mondstadt as well. Even during his brief visit during Weinlesefest, both had been too busy to spend much time alone with each other.
They had managed to sneak away, once. On the last day, when it was time to take down the stall, some of the other Knights insisted that Aether leave it to them, and by sheer luck Albedo happened to return to the festival that day in the hopes of catching Aether when he wasn't busy.
They walked hand-in-hand along the lake shore, past the bridge to Mondstadt, eventually coming to a stop at the foot of a cliff. Albedo sat cross-legged beneath a tree, Aether's head in his lap. As Aether recounted his adventures in Sumeru, Albedo ran his fingers through that golden hair, a smile on his lips.
Too soon, Paimon appeared in front of them to relay a request for Aether's help. Aether planted a quick, apologetic kiss on Albedo's cheek. And then, he was gone.
Back in the present, Albedo touched the place Aether had kissed him. In lieu of his walk, he could spend the rest of the evening writing a letter to Aether, suggesting they meet again soon.
The sound of footsteps pulled Albedo out of his thoughts.
Standing just outside the cave, Aether smiled, hand raised in greeting.
"Aether?" Albedo said, momentarily stunned. Then, collecting himself, he added hastily, "Please, come in. What brings you here at this hour?"
Aether eyed the dying campfire suspiciously. "Did you eat dinner, or did you get too caught up in your research again?"
"I...have not eaten yet. But that doesn't answer my question. Is everything alright? This seems like an odd time to pay a casual visit."
"Oh, yeah, everything's fine!" Aether said as he rummaged around the campsite for ingredients. "I just...really wanted to see you. That's all. So I waited until Paimon and the others were asleep, then used the waypoint to come here."
Albedo was dubious about that really being all there was to it, but he doubted he would get more of an answer by pressing the issue now.
Sighing, he said, “Here, let me show you where I keep the ingredients for meals.”
As the two set about chopping vegetables, Aether told Albedo about the Test of Courage, Akitsu Yuugei, and the Mikawa Flower Festival. He recounted the stories of the youkai Kamai and the human samurai, of the young youkai trio trying to revive the festival, of Yae Miko and Kamisato Ayato's plan to covertly attract people to it.
Once the vegetables were in the pot, Aether grew quiet for a moment, a pensive expression on his face.
"There was actually a fourth youkai involved, too," he said. "Her name was Chizuru. Apparently her takeaway from the story of lord Kamai and the human was that humans and youkai should stay away from each other, so she spent most of the festival trying to scare everyone away."
He absentmindedly stirred the pot. "She came around in the end, but...well, even youkai don't live forever. And apparently her time was up."
Albedo was at a loss for words. He wasn't sure whether condolences were in order for someone Aether had just met. Then again, Aether had a habit of making friends easily, and he did seem to be affected by Chizuru's death. Albedo settled for reaching out and squeezing Aether's shoulder.
Aether startled. It was rare for Albedo to initiate contact like this. With a soft chuckle, he lifted Albedo's hand to his lips and kissed the knuckles, then nuzzled his nose into the palm.
"I think I understand why you came here," Albedo said.
"Oh yeah?" Aether raised his eyebrows playfully, though it didn't entirely dispel the sadness in his eyes.
"Reminders of mortality, whether our own or of those we care about, can encourage a person to seek out their loved ones for comfort."
"That's part of it."
"But not all of it, apparently."
Aether turned to Albedo, cupped his face with his hands, and pressed their foreheads together.
"Not quite. A while ago, I had the thought that, if I weren't going to leave Teyvat...I would ask you to marry me. But after talking to Chizuru, and thinking about how all relationships end eventually, I wondered if I should ask anyway."
Albedo's heart skipped a beat. He had honestly never considered the possibility of marriage. The concept had never appealed to him before meeting Aether. He had never bothered to revisit the idea, since Aether’s nature as a Traveler had seemed to preclude it as a possibility.
He wrapped his arms around Aether's waist. "I am curious what exactly marriage would mean to you, in this situation?"
Aether brushed his lips over Albedo's. "It means that I love you. That you mean so much to me. That even if we have to say goodbye someday, I want to be there for you until then."
Warmth bloomed in Albedo's chest. "That does sound rather nice."
"Is that a yes?"
"I don't want to make any rash decisions, so I would like to sleep on it.” Albedo cleared his throat. “That said, tentatively, yes, it is."
Aether let out a joyful laugh and kissed him.