Chapter Text
Xiao sat motionless on the roof, a silent shape against the fading light of the amber sky. His hair blew about his head, dark strands getting in his eyes. He brushed it away. He probably needed another hair cut, but the last time he had tried he had accidentally cut one half too short with the dull blade he had borrowed from one of the inn workers.
He sighed, tension coiled tight in his shoulders. Another ship was passing over the horizon near the harbor, and he narrowed his sight in on it, scanning. No flash of bright golden hair. It wasn’t even a large ship, he could assume that Aether would be returning on the Crux, since that was what he had taken out. But still, he couldn’t help but hope that each ship that went past might carry the traveler.
He scoffed silently at himself. He should be hunting monsters, or patrolling, or even meditating at the very least. Anything other than sitting here, waiting, being completely useless.
The breeze blew at his hair again, strands falling back in his eyes. He didn’t bother pushing it aside this time, it was no use. He would just hack it shorter when he got back to his adeptal realm. It was a very small realm, just enough space for him to toss some things around the tiny island and collapse when his Karmic Debt got unbearable.
Aether liked his hair longer anyway. He’d said so before, that it looked soft.
He clicked his tongue. He shouldn’t care what Aether thought.
The wind was picking up. He stood straight, rolling his shoulder as it twinged with an old ache he’d been ignoring for several days. He had probably pulled a muscle during that fight with a few ruin guards who had suddenly awoken while he was handling some hilichurls. Annoying, but nothing he cared to be concerned about.
His ear twitched, and he glanced up. There was a flock of birds over the sea. He wasn’t sure what had alerted him, but now he could see the outline of a massive ship.
The Crux was returning.
He narrowed his eyes, focusing. Sure enough, he could see a flash of gold near the stern. His pupils dilated subtly.
That was all he needed.
“Idiot.” He muttered. The tightness in his chest was unbecoming of a Yaksha.
Still, he vanished in a burst of Anemo and deep green light.
He blinked as he appeared on a rooftop near the harbor, annoyed by the bright lanterns now suddenly around him. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust, but when they did he quickly looked out over the sea.
Sure enough, now he could see Aether standing on the railing of the ship, waiting for it to pull closer. That little fairy was hovering next to him, probably complaining from the looks of her scrunched up face, trying to stop sea water from spraying on her. Aether looked unbothered by the wind, his hair in its usual loose braid, a bit messier than usual and frizzy from the salt water.
His neck and shoulder were wrapped in bandages, but Xiao couldn’t see any signs of what kind of injury it might be from here. Aether’s stance was tired, but that didn’t surprise Xiao. He had seemed tired when he’d left too.
The ship finally docked, yelling from the land and deck as the crew and those waiting on shore began tying her in. Aether didn’t wait for the ramp to be placed, instead simply jumping across the slowly closing gap. Paimon yelled something as she rushed after him, and he said something back.
Xiao watched closely, uncertain. He wouldn’t mind going down to check on them, make sure Aether was actually planning to rest somewhere, perhaps escort them there. But he didn’t have the energy to deal with questions.
He watched them walk, his eyes glinting in the flickering light of golden lanterns. Eventually, he started walking along the roof, parallel to the two wanderers.
-
Xiao watched as Aether wandered about the city. People stopped him in the street, waving and greeting him, probably requesting help from him. Xiao narrowed his eyes at a particularly insistent couple, trying to get Aether to accept a commission from what he could tell. Luckily, Paimon seemed to be complaining about being tired quite loudly, so Aether politely declined and continued.
Aether bought some dango and some kind of noodle dish from a seller, and took Paimon to the bridge out of the city.
The blond sat with his fairy companion, handing her a plate and stick of dango. Her portion was much larger than his, and even as Xiao watched, Aether ended up giving Paimon half of his own to quiet her complaining.
Xiao sighed, silently slipping off the rooftop. Luckily he had some mora in a pouch on his hip still. He made his way to the same seller that Aether had just ordered from.
The merchant was in the middle of cleaning up her cart, ready to pack up for the night. Xiao set his gloved hand on the cart. “Do you have anything left?”
She jumped, startled by his presence. He internally winced. He had a habit of accidentally sneaking up on people. “Ah! Sorry sir, I hadn’t seen you. Yes, I still have enough for a couple more portions!” She beamed at him.
He nodded, glancing at the small hand made menu and pulling out the right price for one of the hot dishes she had pulled back out. “Just that then.”
She nodded, swiftly scooping up the offered mora and packing up the meal. She handed it to him. “Thank you young man, come again!”
Xiao nodded, already turning. He ducked into an alley so he wouldn’t startle anyone, then teleported in a blast of Anemo, appearing on the roof above. He swiftly turned to scan the area, seeing Aether back at the bridge. He was picking up a very clearly fast asleep Paimon, holding her like a small child(which Xiao supposed she was.)
The blond started down the road again, adjusting Paimon as he headed away from the city.
Xiao leapt to the next roof, then glanced around before jumping down, landing lightly as he sped up.
-
Xiao grabbed Aether’s arm as he reached the end of the bridge. Aether yelped, turning as electricity sparked down his arm.
Xiao quickly pulled back, holding up his hand. “Apologies. I didn’t mean to startle you.”
Aether blinked. “...Do you always appear out of nowhere?”
Xiao shrugged. “It wasn’t nowhere.”
Aether sighed, but started walking again, nodding for Xiao to follow. “Well hello to you too.”
Xiao just nodded. Aether glanced at him. “What are you doing in the city? I thought you said you didn’t like being here.”
Xiao shook his head. “I don’t. There are too many idiotic people and noises. But I saw you come into the harbor and thought I should check on you.”
Aether looked a bit surprised by that. “Check on me?”
Xiao nodded. He didn’t feel the need to elaborate. Or maybe he didn’t want to.
Aether studied him out of the corner of his eye, stopping as they rounded bend in the path, now more or less out of sight of the city behind some cliffs. “Well, I’m alright. Thank you for coming.” He smiled.
“It’s nice to see you again, I missed you.”
Xiao glanced away, scanning the area in case there were monsters. He tried not to think about the possibility of there being other reasons he didn’t want to look at the traveler. “What are those bandages for?”
Aether glanced at his arm. “Oh, just a fight.” Xiao could hear the tiny hesitance, the almost non existent pause as Aether settled on the words. He could press later, when they weren’t out where others could stumble on them.
“I brought you food.”
Aether smiled. “I just ate.”
Xiao shook his head. “Paimon ate what you got.”
Aether blinked, glancing at the little fairy. “I suppose she did… How long have you been watching me?”
Xiao shrugged. “Since you came into the harbor. I was waiting for you to get somewhere safe, but you were taking a while, so I thought I’d escort you properly.”
Aether nodded slowly, now also glancing away. Xiao wondered if he had said something wrong, but then the traveler looked back at him and smiled. “Thank you. I was going to head to my Serenitea pot to put Paimon to bed. Would you like to come?”
Xiao nodded once, then held out his hand. “I’ll take us.”
Aether took his hand, and Xiao held firmly. In a second, they vanished in a burst of Anemo, this time accompanied by faint gold sparks by the invitation Aether had given him that allowed him to move to and from Aether’s Serenitea pot whenever he liked.
The air was much warmer here. Xiao blinked a few times as the bright golden sky above them fanned out, glowing faintly. It was just beginning to grow darker here, though it never became truly dark within these adeptal realms. He turned towards the manor, only then realizing he was still holding Aether’s hand. He swiftly looked away, taking his hand back. “Come, you can put her to bed and I will put this on a plate.” he nodded to the package of food.
Aether nodded, following him. Somehow Paimon hadn’t woken throughout their interaction. Though, Xiao reasoned she did seem the type to sleep heavily.
He watched Aether go down the hall to put Paimon to bed, turning to the small kitchen area in the main room. He took a plate from an upper cabinet, setting it on the small floor table under the stairs, unpacking the food he had bought. He got some chopsticks from a drawer, setting them beside the plate before sitting at one of the other floor cushions. He felt a little awkward, unsure if he should just leave now that he had done what he’d wanted. But he had a feeling Aether wouldn’t remember to actually eat if he didn’t stay.
-
Aether returned a few minutes later, glancing around. He smiled when he saw Xiao sitting and waiting, surprised to see that the adeptus hadn’t left. “Hey,” he walked over, settling beside Xiao by the low table. Xiao simply nodded in response, but Aether didn’t seem bothered by his silence. “How have you been? Since I’ve been gone.”
Xiao shrugged. “The same as always.” he paused before adding, “My Karmic Debt has not worsened, if that is what you mean.”
Aether nodded. “That’s good.” He took the chopsticks, hesitantly beginning to eat.
Xiao studied the blond silently. Aether’s golden hair was a mess, tangled and dry from salt water. He looked exhausted, with faint pink lines Xiao didn’t recognize trailing up his cheek, like tendrils from vines. The bandages were dirty, clearly they hadn’t been changed recently.
Aether glanced at him, setting down his chopsticks beside the now half-eaten meal. “Something up?”
Xiao blinked. “No, why?”
Aether tilted his head. “You’ve been staring at me for almost five minutes now.”
Xiao looked away. “Ah, sorry.”
Aether shrugged. “I don’t mind, you just look like you’re thinking about something.”
Xiao looked at him again, considering whether or not to answer. “I am.” he said finally. “You’re injured.”
Aether smiled. “You already pointed that out. It’s nothing too bad, I’ll just put on some salve before bed.”
Xiao narrowed his eyes. “It looks large, and those bandages haven’t been changed in days.” Aether glanced at his arm, realizing Xiao was right.
“I guess I forgot about them.”
Xiao stood suddenly, turning on his heel and heading down the side hall. He knew exactly where Aether kept his medical supplies. He returned with a small bucket of warm water, a cloth, and fresh bandages. He sat beside Aether and set the things down. “Take off your shirt.”
Aether blinked, startled by Xiao’s sudden intensity. “Xiao it’s alright, I can handle it myself!” He smiled, raising a hand. Xiao simply stared at him, and after a slightly awkward pause, Aether sighed. “Seriously, you don’t have to do this…” he mumbled, slowly pulling off his scarf, gloves, armor and finally his cropped shirt.
Xiao ignored him, carefully beginning to unwrap the stained bandages. “I am aware, but you need it and you are likely not to do it yourself.” He said quietly, peeling them away. Aether glanced away, but he let Xiao carefully remove the rest of them.
Xiao’s hands hesitated as he pulled back the largest portion. Aether’s skin was burned, red and raw around the wound. Now he could see what those odd tendrils had been.
Running from Aether’s right shoulder, down his side, and up the side of his neck, was a lightning scar. Dark, raw red tendrils tracing down his arm and up to fade against his cheek. It was tinted a sickly purple color, clearly created by Electro energy and not a typical lightning strike.
Xiao studied it silently, gently brushing Aether’s hair out of the way. “Who?” He asked softly.
Aether kept his eyes trained on the table. “I fought the Electro Archon.” He said softly, wincing as he felt Xiao’s grip tighten for a second before Xiao quickly forced his muscles to relax. Xiao stared at the injury, running his gloved fingers as light as a feather over the fried skin.
“You fought the Electro Archon.” he repeated, his eyes burning. This traveler was probably the most foolish man Xiao had ever met. “You fought an Archon.”
Aether nodded. “Yeah, but not by myself. There was a kitsune, and a large fight happening outside, and a lot of other things happening. Actually, this was from the first time we fought, so-”
“You fought her twice?” Xiao snapped, his voice harsher than he meant it. Aether winced.
“Not really? I was trying to protect a friend, and I didn’t have time to react to her attack. So she just… struck me with lightning.”
Xiao stared at him. “You were struck with lightning. From the Electro Archon. And you fought her after that?” Aether nodded. Xiao very slowly dipped the cloth in the warm water, beginning to carefully clean away flakes of dirt, dust and broken off skin. “You are a fool.”
Aether nodded. “I’m aware. But it wasn’t like I had a choice, I just needed to help the resistance, and it worked out in the end…”
Xiao scoffed. “I’m sure you had an option other than fighting a goddess after already being injured by the same said goddess.” Aether winced as Xiao carefully removed a dead chunk of burned skin. “This hasn’t even been cleaned properly. How long ago was this?”
Aether shrugged, and Xiao lightly pushed his shoulders back to place to keep him still. “Um, A few weeks ago I think? I’m not really sure…”
Xiao glared at the injury, as if that might scare off all the signs of infection he saw. “You are a fool,” he repeated. Aether chuckled softly.
“I’ve been told.”
-
It took a while, but eventually Xiao decided the wound was clean enough. He stood, heading back to the wardrobe full of medicinal supplies. He grabbed some soothing ointment and burn salve, going to dump the now dirty water into the sink in the bathroom before heading back. Aether had gotten up and was currently rinsing off his plate and chopsticks in the sink.
Xiao narrowed his eyes. “You need to rest.” Aether glanced up at him.
“It’s not like cleaning these is going to hurt.”
Xiao huffed, but didn’t argue further. He waited impatiently for Aether to return to the cushions, and as soon as he did he pulled him a little closer. “This will sting,” he warned, beginning to carefully rub the salve on first. Aether winced, but tried to stay still as Xiao carefully covered every inch of the wound with the salve. He sighed softly, the sting giving way to a cool sensation that soothed the ache he had been ignoring for weeks now.
Xiao said nothing, finishing with the salve and moving on to massaging in the ointment. He glared at the wound, thinking over several things at once.
“Aether?”
The blond hummed in acknowledgement, glancing at him.
“Why did you not call for me?”
Aether’s brow furrowed a little. “What do you mean?”
“Why didn’t you call for me while fighting the Archon?”
Aether studied him, then looked away, taking a moment to answer. “I… I don’t know. It didn’t cross my mind I guess.” he said softly. “I don’t think I would have called you though, even if I had thought about it. I wouldn’t ask you to do something that dangerous.”
Xiao narrowed his eyes. “I do not care about the danger. I told you, call my name if you are ever in fear.” Aether fidgeted uncertainly with his fingers as Xiao carefully rubbed the ointment into his side.
“I know, I’m sorry. It's just… I don’t want to pull you into something you can’t get out of.”
Xiao said nothing in response, setting down the ointment bottle to begin carefully bandaging Aether back up.
They remained in semi-comfortable silence for a while as Xiao worked. Xiao took the opportunity to glance over Aether’s torso. The man was covered in scars, perhaps as many as Xiao himself, though more obvious since he lacked adeptal healing. There were a few old blade scars up his arms and abdomen, though nothing serious. Probably just from training.
His back was a different story though. Two massive scars tore down each shoulder blade, so large they nearly merged into one, most of the skin of the traveler’s back tight and discolored, too red, raw. It was as if something had ripped out of his skin and left it to heal without help.
He wanted to ask. He wanted to offer more, to try and fix whatever had happened. But he didn’t want to press. He’d questioned enough tonight, and Aether was clearly exhausted.
He tied off the last section on Aether’s arm and stood, collecting the rest of the supplies to put away. “You must rest.”
Aether nodded, looking up to smile sleepily at Xiao. Xiao felt a twinge of relief that Aether didn’t look annoyed or upset at all the scolding. “I know. Thank you Xiao,” He stood, reaching out to give Xiao’s hand a small squeeze. “I really did miss you. I’ll see you tomorrow, yeah?”
Xiao glanced away, huffing. “...Perhaps. If it would help.”
Aether nodded, the tension Xiao could see in his gaze loosening a little. “It would.” He squeezed Xiao’s hand one more time before turning. “Good night Xiao.”
“Good night.” Xiao watched as Aether disappeared down the hall, turning to head back to begin setting the supplies back on their shelves. He closed the doors of the cabinet.
Since when was this room so hot?