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Beside him sits his beloved, Ajax staring off into the vast open sea, seemingly distant. Not that Aether minded, it gave him the opportunity to stare at his handsome profile. He makes sure the grip on his fishing rod is tight enough so that it wouldn’t accidentally fly out of his hands if there was a bite.
Goodness, Aether could never tire of staring at the young man.
His staring must’ve been too obvious because the young man was suddenly snapped out of his daze and turned to look at Aether. The blond was ready to defend himself to whatever teasing or complaints the young man was going to have for him, but that wasn’t where the conversation was heading.
“Do you remember the bet we made the other week?” Ajax asks. He sees the star nod before continuing, “Whoever lost the round that day has to do whatever the winner wants.”
“...Yes.” Aether didn’t know why he was bringing this up again, but his mind was starting to go deep into the gutter.
“I won.” The redhead reminds.
“You did.” Was he really going to ask for something naughty? The star should prepare himself, then. He tilts his head, eyes hooded ever so slightly with a coy smile on his lips. “What is it that you want me to do, Ajax?”
The young man’s face reddens at the suggestive tone before quickly collecting himself. The atmosphere between them instantly changes when he sees Ajax put on such a serious expression. Perhaps the reason for the young man placing that bet in the first place was for an entirely different reason than what he previously suspected.
“I’m going to ask you questions about yourself.” Ajax says. “And you have to answer it truthfully.”
The star raised his eyebrow. “Okay.”
“And you can’t avoid the question either. Nothing vague, half-assed or cryptic. I want to know the whole truth.”
You’re asking for a whole lot of trouble, my love. Aether fights the urge to raise an eyebrow and ask if he was sure, but that would only irritate the young man. He must’ve thought long and hard about this. So, the star stays silent and complies.
“Ask away.” He’s sure the young man knows what he’s signed up for before suggesting this idea.
Ajax didn’t say anything right away, almost as if he was thinking of which question to ask first. Aether was a patient man and the fish didn’t look like they were biting anytime soon. He did promise that he would answer whatever question he had, unfiltered. He watches as the bait bobs by its lonesome on the waves of the ocean, waiting for his beloved to break the silence.
“Are you a god?”
The Traveler raises his eyebrows yet again. It wasn’t as if he’s never been asked that before by other people, but he thought Ajax would’ve built up to it rather than asking it right off the bat. He would love to give a simple one word answer to this query, but he doubts the other would be happy with just that.
“To put it simply: no, I’m not a god. I’m a star.” He answers. That was something he needed to get out of the way first and foremost. “What classifies as a god varies from world to world. There are worlds who’s religions are more materialistic and concrete, much like this one where your gods are very much in a physical form and are known to make contact with the people here. There are others who've never seen their deities and yet they continue to worship them even if their existence was by word of mouth, much like the case in Mondstadt.”
“There are also worlds that practice Animism, worshiping things like the sky, celestial bodies, plants or any inanimate object. I suppose in those worlds that would be the closest thing I’d get to earning the title of a ‘god’, seeing as how some of them would even worship the stars in the sky.”
“So… You’re a literal star?” Ajax reiterates.
“Yes.” The blond lifts a finger up to the blue sky, where beyond the clouds lie his kind. “The dots you see in the sky, that’s who I was before gaining consciousness. The stars you see at night are ones who are lying dormant, waiting for the day that they one day get to move around and experience the same things we do. But for the time being, they’re just sitting there.”
“That sounds…” Blue eyes follow the star’s finger, a solemn look on his face.
“Depressing? It isn’t.” Aether laughs. “Truly, it isn’t. We don’t have feelings or senses prior to gaining consciousness, so we really wouldn’t know a thing about our situation until we’ve woken up.”
“So what do you do until then?” He looks back at the blond.
“We simply exist. We absorb and retain whatever information is around us, even if we don’t want to.” He shrugs. “Did that answer your question?”
“I have more.” The young man says. “You kept saying ‘gaining consciousness’, what does that mean?”
Aether hums, constructing the right sentences in his head. This was always a bit tricky to explain, hence why he always kept quiet about his nature. This was going to be a very long talk.
“Think of the stars currently in the sky as an unborn child in a parent’s womb. It very much exists, but can you really count it as something living? Has no feeling, has no awareness of its surroundings, has no capacity to even perceive anything. All it does is just sit there, waiting for the day it may or may not be ‘born’.” The blond rants. “That’s basically what gaining consciousness means. To be ‘born’.”
He studies Ajax’s face, hoping that his explanation was good enough. It took the young man a moment to absorb all this new info, but he gave him a nod, indicating that he understood.
“So… your sister?”
He pulls his shoulders back, letting out a satisfying pop of the shoulder blades before answering. “We were ‘born’ of the same star.”
“...That can happen?” Ajax was in awe.
“Well, I am here, aren’t I? So, that’s proof enough.”
“And if I ask why?” He was curious.
“I wouldn’t be able to give you an answer. There are a lot of questions I’ve had over the years, and you don’t know just how many I’ve given up on trying to find an answer. So, believe me when I say I understand your frustration sometimes.”
The redhead scoffs. “And yet.”
“And yet.” He parrots.
Silence falls between them, one that teetered between unease and comfort. Ajax was glad that Aether upheld his end of the bargain and was answering every question he’s asked so far. But at the same time, he was beginning to understand why the man never talked about it in the first place. He didn’t know what emotion to feel right now, but for some reason, the closest one that fits right now was fear or maybe even insecurity.
He would think that living in a world where literal gods walk the earth- Hell , even having conversed with some of them-, Ajax wouldn’t be as shaken up. Maybe if the circumstances were different, he wouldn't be able to accept all of this as easily. The reason why he feels this way must be related to his love for Aether. That was the only difference between the star and all the other Archons or adepti he’s talked to. All of them were just powerful beings with fancy names and powers in his eyes. None of them, other than his Lady, were as important as the Traveler.
Though nowadays, he’s beginning to doubt his love for his Archon was as intense as it was for Aether.
“How do you gain consciousness? Is it just a thing that occurs eventually and for how long do you have to wait?” He decides to keep prodding to avoid his own thoughts.
“Another star will do that. And it’s entirely up to them which star to bring into consciousness and just how many.” Aether adjusts his grip on the rod.
“And do you know who…?”
“Not a clue.” He answers, already anticipating that question. “In fact, that was the reason why my sister and I started travelling. We were curious who it was that brought us into this world. Had so many questions to ask of them, curious to know what kind of person they were. Eventually, we gave up and decided it just wasn’t worth the effort chasing after someone who either didn’t want to be found or too far away for us to reach.
“The universe is vast and ever expanding, the chances of running into another conscious star is almost impossible. Besides, most stars don’t usually like to affiliate themselves with each other, nor do they feel any familial obligation of any kind. Because there was no need for it.”
“But it’s different for you. And your sister” Ajax points out. “You care a lot for each other, as well as other people. A bit too much, if you don’t mind me saying.”
“No, no. It’s true..” Aether smiles. “I do have a hard time saying ‘no’ sometimes.” Especially so with you.
And now another heavy question that Ajax hates to ask, but he knows he must. For his own sanity, he has to know.
“When you finally find your sister…” His tongue feels heavy. “Will you stay in Teyvat?”
The Traveler hums, an amused smile on his face. He’s sure the young man has given this a lot of thought and mustered a lot of courage to even ask such a question directly. How brave was his beloved getting.
“Not unless I have a reason to.”
“...Must be a pretty important reason then.”
The star went quiet and it urged Ajax to make the grave mistake of finally looking him in the eye. His golden eyes paralyzed him, making him unable to look anywhere else except his face. His face held such a kind and loving look, with a smile that teetered on endearing and mockery. He knows this face well, and he wishes he could get used to it. But at the same time, he hopes he never will.
“You’re right.” His honey sweet voice is barely above a whisper.
Ajax didn’t have any other questions after that.
“What about Paimon?”
The redhead had wondered this ever since he laid eyes on the floating girl. He knew everyone else had the same thought. As plentiful as weird organisms come by in this world, there hasn’t been another one like Paimon. But seeing how she’s glued to the Traveler everyday, surely he would know something, right?
“What about Paimon?” Aether replies.
“Oh, you know what I mean. You have to know what she is, right?” Ajax prods.
He turns his head to look at the blonde, expecting an answer. Where he would want to see the slender figure of his star, instead a white cape that hides his figure. Aether’s hands seem to stop packing his things to digest Ajax’s question.
Aether turns around with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
“I don’t know, actually.”
Ajax feels a sharp sting in his chest. It seems the period of honesty from the Traveler has expired.