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Aether sat alone, underneath the statue of the seven at windrise. He was lacking his small but cheerful floating companion known as Paimon, as she had gone off with Amber as per his request. Paimon wasn’t to happy about it of course, Aether hated to say he didn’t blame her. He however, needed to be alone right now.
He wore his armoured crop top and armoured pants. His blond hair was in its usual braid, but Aether did his best to not think about that, Lumine always did his hair. But she wasn’t here right now, hanging out somewhere with abyss heralds. Instead of spending time with her brother. Was he even important to her anymore, Aether wondered if he would ever get to know. He wore his earring, and his boots which almost seemed to connect to his pants.
The giant oak tree behind him, the one that was named Windrise. Was the symbol of Mondstadt’s hero, Vanessa one of the only two people to ever ascend to celestia. He wondered what that was like, was Venessa still around somewhere? Hiding out in Celestia? Aether let out a chuckle, and then a sob. He didn’t want to be around anyone, not right now. Not after what had happened.
“Ah, traveller. We meet again.” A familiar, mischievous voice greeted him. Aether knew the voice of course, it belonged to none other than Venti. The anemo archon Barbatos in disguise as a mortal, Venti wore a green cap, a white tunic with green sleeves and green shorts along with black shoes.
“Venti.” Was all Aether managed in acknowledgment, looking up at him and scooting away. It wasn’t that he mistrusted Venti necessarily, no he trusted the mischievous green bard. It was just that he wasn’t her. Venti, was not Lumine. Aether didn’t want him around. He was not his sister. He wanted his sister.
“Traveller? Ah,” Venti began, but his voice stopped for a moment as he crouched down and reached out his hand towards Aether. A strange rock was in his hand, a rose quartz. Aether didn’t even know they had those in teyvat, how did Venti get his hands on it. For all Aether knew, Venti hailed from this world. “Jean received this, there was a note attached. From a fellow called Dainslief.”
The explanation made Aether reach out his hand, although Venti had said Dainslief, it didn’t feel like something Dain would do, at least in Aether’s limited experience with the man. It did however, remind him of a gesture he had made to Lumine in a different world a long time ago. He had found a quartz rose after learning from a merchant there that they symbolised Family love, and he had carved two stars into it.
With a shaky breath, and another tear rolling down his tweet. Aether spoke; “Can… can I… can I… can I uh… can I see the note?” His voice came out slowly, as Venti held it out to him. Aether took the note and the stone, and just like that Venti was alone. He once again had privacy.
He didn’t know if he wanted it anymore. Aether was scared, but his eyes gazed towards the note regardless. It was as if Dainslief’s voice echoed in his brain when he read what was written.
Dear Traveller,
When I and your sister travelled this world together, for some strange reason
she would check this quartz everyday. After every nightmare, or hardship she would just
stare at it. I don’t really understand it, but something tells me you will.
Perhaps this is some sort of connection between the two of you, anyways
I found it right where we had lost it. There was an incident during our time in Fontaine,
I hope it will bring you the comfort, It seemed to bring her.
Sincerely, Dainslief .
His eyes scanned over the note again and again. It took awhile for Aether to fully process the words, his stomach churned as if he were going to hurl. But nothing came out. He was nauseous, he leaned back against the statue of the seven behind him, Aether found himself feeling terrified.
Still, he lifted the quartz up to where he could see it. He spun it around, it had those two stars Aether had carved, his first emotion was annoyance at Lumine for losing it, then a thread of worry about the incident Dainslief had mentioned. He reassured himself that it was fine, whatever happened, happened at least five hundred years ago. Then just sadness, Aether closed his eyes.
Aether was happy to be alone, he needed it. The wind started to pick up and the clouds began to grey, but he did not complain. He did not move from the statue, if need be he could just go under the tree to avoid the rain. The rain never bothered him when he was travelling with Lumine.
His sister. He wanted her back. He longed for her, she was his other half. Aether wanted his twin, they had been forcefully separated. The sustainer of heavenly principles, but were twins not supposed to be together? Was that not a law in this heaven she spoke of? Aether chuckled at the thought. Of course the divine wouldn’t care.
He didn’t want to be alone, but the one person he wanted to be with was gone. Sometimes he still woke up and cooked an extra portion of breakfast. But Lumine was never there to eat it, and he wouldn’t let Paimon touch it so the food would rot and waste away, until his pet Shiba would jump up and eat it while he and Paimon are out doing commissions.
Aether opened his eyes, despite not wanting to. He saw Amber and Paimon walking towards him, and he cursed them slightly in his head. He didn’t want to explain this, he didn’t want to speak. As rude, and entitled as it was, he didn’t want there company. Though Aether supposed he had a bit of a right to that entitlement didn’t he? He ran around this world helping the nations and getting almost nothing in return.
“Traveller! Me and Paimon aren’t going to stay for long, but we made you lunch.” He heard Amber’s voice, but he wasn’t really there. He wasn’t really paying attention. Aether tightened his grip on the Quartz. Covering it before either of his friends could ask about it, and ripping the note in half.
“Okay, okay. We’ll be going now!” Amber’s voice held, well fear wasn’t the right word but Aether could tell his small outburst had unnerved her. It had unnerved himself, Paimon had been uncharacteristically quiet. Was that his fault? Was he worrying them? Surely not. Although, the rain was getting heavier.
Carefully the blond boy grabbed the food Amber had given him and went and sat closer to the trunk of the tree, seeking shelter that way. It was cold. Although he was not often, that he and his sister were affectionate with each other on a particularly cold or bad day, it had not been uncommon for them to snuggle up together. Aether missed the warmth of his sister, he felt so cold without it.
Being alone had made him feel like an alien inside of his body. Aether was scared to eat, he already felt like he was going to hurl, wouldn’t adding solids just solidify that it would happen? He wasn’t a doctor, he really didn’t know how it worked. He and Lumine had never really been apart, neither ever really needing medicine urgently. Aether knew how to tend to physical wounds tough, such as a deep blood gush or a broken leg. He and his sister had to be, so they could look out for each other.
Aether set the food down beside him, trying not to think about it. He went back to looking at the rose quartz with the carved stars. He smiled down gently at them, remembering when he first gave it to Lumine. He would see her again, and then he would give it back. And ask how she’d allowed herself to lose it, but there would be no malice behind his words. Yes teasing, but his care would be there. It would be like before.
When they were together, travelling worlds. Two halves of the same whole, home was wherever they were together and they weren’t together. Aether wasn’t home, and neither was Lumine. They both knew this. So why, why did it still hurt so much when he thought those words? The wound wasn’t fresh.
He wasn’t home. Neither was she. He longed for her company. She was the only one’s he couldn’t get. Aether wanted his sister and she wasn’t here. It hurt, hurt more than anytime the two had ever fought. Aether would trade almost anything to hear his sister speak to him again. Even if it was just a thousand I hate yous. He would give anything, he wanted his sister.
Aether heard footsteps and then a voice, an all too familiar voice; “But she wouldn’t say that, I swear Aether, you have such a readable expression,” She teased, as he looked up from the quartz. She was here. His sister. Lumine. Aether looked up at her, she wore her dress, she had two small twin tails at the front of her hair. Lumine still had the flower he had put in her hair, nearly a millennia ago. How had it lived this long? “Really? That’s your first question. What about, how are you, Lumine?”
Aether did not respond. He couldn’t tell if this was some kind of cruel joke. Was she there, really there? Or was she just here because she was doing something with the abyss. He tensed up, while he longed for her company. He didn’t exactly trust her, but much to his surprise tear drops started to fall from her eyes. Just like they were from his.
“Sit.. Sit down,” Aether ordered, he wasn’t sure why. He didn’t know why he told her too, but Lumine sat down next to him all the same. And as he said the next phrase, it became just like old times; “I’m… I’m.. I’m cold.”
That was all it took for the two siblings to snuggle up to each other. Both sitting down and leaning against the great tree of Windrise. Each twin had an arm swung over the other, cuddling into the other. While logically, it really shouldn’t have felt as warm, Aether would later suppose it was because of the fact that after all this time he was cuddling his sister again.
“I’m.. I’m scared.” He was the older twin between the two of them, and yet Aether had spoken first. Burdening his sister with his stupid fears no less. He felt sorry that Lumine had to put up with him.
“So am I, you know I find it hard to look at you? After the things I’ve done…” The sentence wasn’t finished, but
Aether was sure he could guess the rest of what Lumine wanted to say. “I mean, I can hardly look at myself, how could I look at you?”
“I don’t care! I don’t care what you’ve done,” He cared, but not enough. Aether leaned in closer to his sister, scared she was going to leave him again. “You’re my sister! You are my sister, you can’t change that. And even if you can. Please, I beg you not too.” Lumine was his twin sister, his other half. His biggest fear and his biggest hope.
“Of course I wouldn’t.” Such a simple sentence, and yet it came with more reassurance than anything else in this world had given him. He stifled a yawn, blinking his tears away.
“What, are you doing here, anyway?” Asked Aether, staring down at his twin sister. He was older by merely a few minutes, not that he could remember how long now. It didn’t matter. What mattered was that for once, Lumine was here.
Lumine hummed, seemingly thinking through her next words as she reached up and undid Aether’s braided hair. “Well, I couldn’t just ignore you.” She spoke, her hands running through his hair, “You haven’t been taking enough care of your hair, you know?”
Aether let out a chuckle, not wanting to pull away from his sister. Even if it would help her ‘fix’ his hair. “I didn’t want anyone else to touch it, I just,” his voice trailed off. He didn’t want to waste his time talking to Lumine about that, he was almost positive that this reunion would be merely temporary. Until the rain stops falling.
Until the rain stopped falling. He wouldn’t let her go before then. He couldn’t. She was his sister. “Yeah, it was always something I did, huh?” Chirped Lumine, as she started to kneed his long hair back into a braid, allowing Aether to keep his arms around her. She wanted to lean into his touch, but she wouldn’t allow herself too. Maybe, maybe after she fixed his hair.
For a while, neither of them spoke. Just happy to be in the company of the other, one was a traveller trying to find his way to the truth of this world so he could finally reunite with his sister. The other was a princess who had already travelled through this world once. Purposely avoiding her brother.
Aether gripped the rose quartz almost as tightly as he held his sister. Thinking back to the first time he had seen her, with Dainslief. All the way back when he had been adventuring the nation of Liyue, it felt like so long ago. He had just recently gotten back from Natlan, the nation of war. A place he did not want to speak about, especially with Lumine. And yet even though that had a much bigger impact, his thoughts still shifted focus to their first encounter.
Aether and Dainslief had been fighting an Abyss herald together, while Paimon floated around in the background. Offering a small cheer of encouragement every so often, but when Dainslief had been about to strike the final blow, a sword had blocked his.
Lumine’s sword. Aether recognised her instantly, how could he not? She was his sister. His twin. They were one of the smallest constellations that Aether remembered of the worlds they had been too. Just two stars, they were never separated and yet they had been when Kheanri’ah fell, yet Lumine didn’t even seem to acknowledge his presence.
“Aether, why are you with Dain?” It was clear that he was not the more important factor in that conversion, his sister continued speaking . He hated remembering that, it made Aether feel upset and resent Dainslief ever so slightly. It wasn’t Dain’s fault of course, but how could he not hold his tiny grudge?
“You know,” Lumine began, seemingly having grasped what was bothering Aether, finishing his braid gently. “I was happy to see you too. Back then, I mean.”
Aether turned his head towards her, as much as he could. He smiled. “I was just surprised, that you two had met. You don’t expect your brother and your enemy to work together,” Lumine continued, mostly talking to herself but Aether was listening regardless. “Then again, it’s not like I told you.”
He hummed. Aether felt warmer than he had in months. He felt, better. This was nice. “Hey, How could you lose the quartz I got you?” He said, teasing, yes but with no malice. How could he say something malicious to her, even after all this time, after all of this tragedy. Lumine was still his sister. Still his twin.
Lumine left out a soft sigh. “What I’m trying to say is- Wait are you not mad about?” She continued speaking, only really registering what Aether had said halfway through her sentence, she turned so she was facing him and hugged him.
“I’m a little hurt yes, but,” Aether began, as he was now the one playing with his sister’s hair. However unlike Lumine, his hands running through her hair didn’t serve a purpose as hers had. All he had to offer was comfort, “I’m not mad. I want to know your reasoning, I am disappointed in you for siding with the abyss. But I still love you. You’re still Lumine. You’re still my sister.”
Lumine nodded to her brother, although she did not share his sentiment about her being the same. A comfortable silence fell over the two, as it often did. Aether gently placed the rose quartz into his sister’s hand and smiled at her. “Keep it safe this time.”
“I will.” Promised Lumine, as she squeezed it in her hand, smiling up at her older brother. Aether looked up from the gaze of his twin to see Amber, Paimon and Venti chatting nearby as the rain seemed to grow softer. While it was an unofficial agreement as neither of them had said out loud, but Aether feared that once the rain dried then Lumine would leave him.
And so he spoke. Because if he didn’t now, when was he going to have another chance to tell his sister something he was sure she already knew, but it had been unspoken. “I love you.”
“I love you too” Replied Lumine, as a silence fell back over the two twins. Aether had so much he wanted to ask her, so much that he wanted to know. But he wasn’t going to waste time with pointless small talk. She was his sister, they would see each other again. At the end of his journey, when he could finally reunite with her.
Aether didn’t really remember exactly when Lumine had left, just that she had and it was no longer raining. He felt cold again, but not the cold which irritated him. He had at some point gone over to his friends and smiled at them.
“Traveller, you seem to be in higher spirits.” Venti chirped before offering; “want to a grab a drink?"