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"You're late."
"Sorry, sorry!" Venti trips through the doorway of the warehouse, beaming all the while, as he tries to untangle one of his braids from his sweater. "Traffic was horrible, you know how it is!"
Xiao, as always, is unimpressed. Somehow, he looks imposing even when he's squished on a couch next to Zhongli, who looks as elegant as ever. His arms are crossed, and Venti has to make a concentrated effort to look away from the muscles bulging out from his tank top. "Everyone else managed to show up on time."
"Give me a break!" Venti whines. "I'm here now, aren't I?"
Xiao's lips quirk up into- wait, is that a half-smile?- as he waves Venti over to where the rest of their group is clustered on the ratty and worn-out couches. Kaeya scooches to make room for him, and Venti plops down next to him like he's always fit there.
"Alright!" Amber's up at the front, gaudy pointing stick tapping the flickering projector screen where a Powerpoint is displayed. In big, bold letters, the words Operation: Decarabian Downfall!!" sparkle onscreen. Below it, in smaller print, the words Arson Edition are surrounded by little flames. When Amber presses a button, the title spins in a circle before the presentation flips to the next slide. "Let's get started!"
The slides pass by in a blur, but Venti pretty much gets the gist. Zhongli's the guy in the chair, Kaeya's their guy on the inside, and the rest of them are in the field. Torching a tower takes a lot of work, yknow!
In fact, it's almost too same-y, and Venti really didn't get much sleep last night. His eyelids feel so heavy all of a sudden, hopefully Amber won't notice if he just takes a quick-
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"Cecil!"
Venti startles, nearly falling off the couch. "Huh? What?"
Xiao looks at him strangely, a furrow in his brow. "The presentation is over. Everyone else has already left. Did you fall asleep again?"
"Mmm... nooooo..." Venti yawns, closing his eyes as he stretches, like a cat in the sunlight (never mind that he's allergic to cats). Ah, that hits the spot!
When he opens his eyes again, Xiao has fallen silent. He's looking down at where Venti is sprawled on the couch, expression oddly soft. "You've been... different, recently," he says.
Venti is suddenly on full alert. He sits up, searching for any tells in Xiao's face, any sign that he's onto him. He only finds concern. "I, uh. What? I've been the same as always, silly!"
In lieu of responding, Xiao steps forwards, then backwards, then forwards again, hands jerking slightly like he's unsure of what they want to do. Finally, he leans down and wraps his arms around Venti, his body like a furnace pressed against Venti's own.
"I'm glad you came back when you did," Xiao murmurs into Venti's shoulder. "Half of us went with The Traveler, and we were not certain when they would return. And your presence..." he trails off, "...is a great comfort to me."
"Awww, Xiao!" Venti returns his hug full-force, savoring the slight gasp Xiao makes at the sudden pressure. "You don't have to worry about me, I'm not going anywhere!"
Xiao steps back, and Venti mourns the sudden loss of contact. "I'm glad," he says stiffly. His ears are tinted pink, and he grabs his bag from the other couch before speed-walking to the door.
Outwardly, Venti is smiling and following him out of the warehouse. Inwardly? He's still reeling. He's not used to being addressed by a name that isn't his, loved with a name that isn't his.
Cecil.
Acting has never been Venti's strong suit. His talents lie elsewhere- namely, musical performance. Give him a lyre or a minute to warm up his voice, and he's golden. His sweet words, whether speaking or song, can charm anyone, and he knows it.
Acting wasn't Cecil's talent, either. Cecil's always been smarter than him, braver than him. Cecil's always been the one on the front lines- revolutionary, worth something. All Venti's done is steal his face, his deeds, his name.
But Cecil's the one that got involved in something way over his head and subsequently beaten into a coma. So now, Venti has to slap Cecil's face over his own and hope no one notices the way it peels at the edges.
That was the plan from the beginning, after all. Talk his way in, and talk his way out. Find the culprit, then disappear. Give Cecil his life back.
"Cecil? Are you with me?" Across the room, Xiao holds the door open, waiting for Venti to follow him.
Venti schools his features into a smile, and tries his best to calm the racing of his heart. "Yep!" He says, stepping out into the winter sunlight that Cecil (or is it Venti, at this point?) may never see again. "I always will be."