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Sometimes, when all Aether wanted was peace and quiet, when he’d had a bad day or could hardly stand to do anything - he went back to his teapot realm, closing his eyes and then opening them to find a home away from home.
He spent some time sitting in the garden, relaxing as he looked around at all the flowers and climbing trails of ivy. The Qingxin gently fluttering in the wind made him think of Xiao, and he couldn’t help but smile at the thought of him. With the warm sunshine falling across his body, Aether stayed there for a while, just breathing.
The house was quiet as he stepped inside - no little hums or melodies courtesy of Barbara, no ticking from Pers, not even the sound of Yanfei’s muttering or Gaming’s laughter.
Instead, what he saw was a shadow cast from one of the siderooms, and the faint sound of pages being turned. As he stepped inside, Alhaitham briefly looked up only to return to his book after a blink. Aether flopped gracelessly down onto the sofa by the window, sighing as the silence persisted. It was honestly a relief, not having to talk.
He’d gotten better at finding his voice, but he still largely preferred for Paimon to take the lead in conversations.
He was glad that Alhaitham was here - somehow, despite first impressions, Aether had come to find comfort in the scribe. After getting to know him better, after becoming friends, Aether couldn’t help but enjoy his straightforward and unbothered personality, especially after a long day of solving complicated problems for even more complicated people.
Alhaitham was blessedly, fortunately simple. There was no need to talk. Aether didn’t have to be anyone other than who he was, and maybe that was the best part - Alhaitham truly wouldn’t care, whether Aether was a god or a human. Here, in the safety of good company, he could just be.
Dozing in a haze of warmth and security, Aether only blearily opened his eyes when Alhaitham finished his book and put it back, walking out of the room without a backwards glance. Aether immediately fell asleep.
He woke again not long after to the scent of food, spices and meat. His stomach rumbled, and he sat up, watching as Alhaitham came back with a plate full of pita pockets - or, well, what looked to be a variation on them. Wordlessly, Aether was offered one, and he dipped his head in thanks, humming in delight as soon as he bit down. The meat was juicy and still hot, and the spices and vegetables blended together perfectly, reminding him of a few kinds of dumplings he’d tried before.
After drinking some water from a pitcher placed conveniently on the side table right next to him, Aether smiled. “It’s good.”
Alhaitham appeared satisfied. “You can thank Kaveh for being the taste tester of all the inferior versions that came before. He volunteered, and yet he still blamed me when the first few tries weren’t up to standard.”
Aether laughed. “Did you add meat just to spite him?” It wasn’t that Kaveh didn’t like to eat meat, it was just that he usually preferred meat substitutes. Alhaitham even tweaking a recipe like this was probably just a way to start an argument, in all honesty.
With a small smile, the scribe tilted his head. “Not spite, no, but you must admit that he could stand to eat something more filling every once in a while - I’m not keen to have to deal with him fainting again.”
In other words, Alhaitham was worried he wasn’t eating well enough. Aether thought the two of them were sweet, if a little baffling.
After a few minutes of comfortable silence where they both continued eating, Alhaitham was the one to speak up this time. “Where is your adeptus?”
Raising a brow, Aether waited. Sighing, as if genuinely put upon, Alhaitham said, “Fine. I hardly see the two of you apart from each other, especially in your own home, so I’m curious now. What could possibly tear Xiao from your side?”
Aether knew that the other was part teasing and part sincere. Strangers might have thought Alhaitham apathetic or selfish, and he could be, but Aether knew that wasn’t all he was. Alhaitham was kind in his own way, and he always paid attention to the people he cared about.
Just because people couldn’t recognize the ways in which he did - that didn’t invalidate or erase any of it.
It made Aether feel warm, every time, to be on the receiving end of this man’s meticulous, sharp eyed concern. In a world that couldn’t decide whether to treat Aether as a child or an adult, Alhaitham was a breath of fresh air. The scribe never condescended or looked down on him - he just treated Aether like a person.
“He got invited to a party with the other adeptus, a get together so that everyone can catch up.” Of course, Xiao had been hesitant to attend, but Aether had encouraged him, said he’d be fine alone. And he was, and he was happy that Xiao had seemed determined and resolved to be social, but…
“Were you not invited?” Alhaitham’s voice is soothingly flat as it often is, and Aether sighs a little.
“I… didn’t want to intrude.” He knows that Xiao wouldn’t have refused going together, that Xianyun, Ganyu, Shenhe and the others would have welcomed him, and yet… he still sometimes feels as if he doesn’t belong in this world. A star, still drifting along to an unknown destination. He is one half, not yet complete. Part of him will always feel like this until he and Lumine are reunited.
“You don’t belong to this world, but why would that matter?” Alhaitham asks him, as blunt as ever. “You exist. You’re alive. You’ve formed connections in nearly every part of Teyvat and are widely considered beloved. But you already knew this - you’re scared, aren’t you?”
Aether looked down to his lap, fingers clenching down onto the fabric of his pants. It’s true. Ever since he woke up alone, he’s been afraid.
“Well, I have no comforting words to offer,” Alhaitham continued, and it made Aether laugh, to the other man's confusion.
“I know,” he said. “Thank you.”
‘Why would that matter’, huh? In other words…
Aether felt a smile on his lips, soft and grateful. “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere.”
He’d never once had cause to regret putting his trust in Alhaitham, and so he decided to trust him yet again. He had faith, after all. In his friends, in himself, in this journey having an end.
Even if Lumine asked him to go on to the next world, Aether knew he wouldn’t be able to. Teyvat had grown roots in him, and now he made the choice of staying. He’d been sent here without a say, trapped and separated from his family - and yet here in this moment, nothing seemed too much to overcome. Hadn’t he found family in people here too? Hadn’t he found joy and happiness even amidst the sorrow and countless frustrations? If he still felt lost sometimes and like he didn’t belong, it was also true that he’d made a home in countless places and people, just waiting for him.
“I’m glad I’m here,” Aether eventually settled on, because it was true. Despite everything, he’s glad that it was this world he’d landed on.
Alhaitham picked out another book and settled back into reading, looking relaxed. There was an ease in his shoulders and face, and Aether wondered if it was because of their conversation or if the book was one he’d been wanting to read for a while. Maybe it was both.
“That’s three times. Thank me any more and it will start to get excessive.”
With a smile, Aether simply replied, “Right.” He got up to get his own book, this one about the process of making perfumes and scented oils. It would be nice to make something with the Qingxins from the garden for Xiao, and he knew Paimon would have fun with it too.
But until he got home, Aether was perfectly content with curling up and spending a few hours in the presence of good company and a good book.
With a full stomach and the window letting in so much warm sunshine, Aether inevitably fell asleep once again, his book nearly falling from his hand before a certain scribe caught it, placing a bookmark in it before setting it aside.
After placing a blanket on the traveler, he wordlessly cleaned up the empty plate and pitcher before returning to his own book.
It was good that Aether was getting more sleep, he idly mused. The dark circles under the other’s eyes spoke to nightmares and too much stress. Alhaitham didn’t know how to comfort someone, and yet Aether seemed to take comfort in his mere presence. How unexpected, and yet it wasn’t unwelcome.
After all, Aether was one of the few people in the world he could stand to be around for long periods of time.
If only Kaveh could be as easy to take care of.
With a smirk, Alhaitham thought that then again, it was better that he wasn’t. Different perspectives offered different answers, and he appreciated both of them in different ways.
It was a good day. A gentle breeze was blowing, the skies were clear, and things were peaceful.
Just as Alhaitham liked.