𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐭 [Xiao x Aether]

[1] The Viridian Music Box

"Once upon a time in the days of olden Teyvat, Rex Lapis summoned five adepti, tasking them with the ultimate honor of being the first line of defense for Liyue. He bestowed upon them the power to protect, and gave them the name of 'Yakshas'. These five yakshas wandered the world, eliminating foes left and right that dared to rise up against the Geo archon. Through their bravery and vigilance, only then was Liyue truly safe."

"Unfortunately, no story of the Archon War ever ends in happiness. The yakshas were consumed by a karmic debt, driving them mad and corrupting their minds. Some turned to the side of darkness, and others fell completely. As of now, only one is said to remain, paying the ultimate sacrifice until his day is done."

The storyteller waved his hand, re-catching the attention of the children by his feet. "Were you listening? This story is very important, you know." He laughed, reaching to close the pamphlet he held in his other hand.

"S-sorry, sir!!" One child rang out. His friend giggled, bumping him with their elbow. "We didn't mean to ignore you! This story is just... a little boring?" The other children nodded, with murmurs of agreement rising from the crowd.

The man sighed. Reaching into his bag, he pulled out a small trinket. This piqued the children's interest. He smirked. "Hm, well I guess I should know better than to bestow the stories of this world onto children, not like you would be interested anyway." Holding the trinket up to the sun's light made it appear all the more beautiful. It was a small circular box, colored in shades of greens as brilliant as emeralds and teals as dark and deep as the sea, both swirling in beautiful painted patterns. The box was decorated with golden edges and golden leaves, climbing up towards the very top. The children stared in awe, as the storyteller gently raised the top from the box. Inside was a small contraption, and when the man turned the handle inside, the parts began to turn.

A melody began. It was deep and soft, sounding almost like a mother's lullaby. The storyteller hummed along, and the children gathered closer. And then, he sang.

"Broken by the back of it, it was hard enough without the loss."

A breeze swept through the courtyard, brushing leaves from the trees and carrying them off to who knows where. Merchants held onto their goods, to be sure they wouldn't blow away as well.

"Hanging on a thread of it,"

The song was carried along with the leaves, its melody ringing through the streets and bringing soft smiles to those who had a moment to listen. One of those people being an older man, sitting peacefully in a café nearby.

He listened in, recognizing the lyrics as words he once heard sung thousands of years ago. He looked out towards the courtyard, seeing the crowd of enamored children. He hummed along, taking a sip of the hot tea he held in his hands. 

"I didn't think that music box was still in existence." He laughed to himself. "I wonder if he knows?"

After collected his things, he left a few mora on the table and nodded towards the café owner. "Have a nice day, Mr. Zhongli."

"You as well."

"It was hard enough without the cost."

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Xiao lept from rock to rock, treading through a riverbank that could only be as old as himself. Reaching into the water, he picked up a smooth oval-shaped stone. He stared at it for a moment, perhaps a bit longer than he wanted to, then threw it towards the calm waters. It leapt up once, twice, then rejoined its fellow stones at the bottom of the river. The adeptus sighed, already bored with this area which he had trudged through time and time again. A gust of wind blew by, blowing his dark teal hair into his face, much to his annoyance.

He stood there, lost in his own thoughts until the sun began to set. The sky was painted with a hazy orange, and as soon as it started to fade into black, Xiao sighed and headed towards the Wangshu Inn.

He wouldn't exactly call the Inn 'Home', it was more just a place to rest. Verr Goldet allowed him to stay there so long that he kept monsters from being on the premises. That was easy enough. Hilichurls and Abyss mages were nothing compared to the mighty demons and creatures he fought at the beginning of his life. That was exactly the problem.

Xiao had spent his life protecting Liyue from threats much greater than any mortal could handle. Now? The creatures that wandered Teyvat were enough for Vision holders to bear. Thousands of years had come and gone, and nothing was challenging enough to drown out the yaksha's sorrows.

He headed up the elevator, fiddling with the bits of his spear that had begun to chip off. He knew he'd had to get help with repairing it later, but it wasn't like he was going to need it to be in pristine condition anyway. The elevator arrived at Inn's balcony, setting off a small bell as it did. Verr Goldet was sitting on a bench, away from her usual position at the front desk. She was shuffling through a stack of papers, most likely for future reservations.

At the bell, her head turned towards the elevator. She smiled, evenly stacked the papers, then slowly headed towards the front desk. "You're here earlier than usual." She said, setting everything down.

Xiao sighed. He wasn't in the mood to talk to her, but that never stops her from nagging him. "I know." He walked over to the desk, crossing his arms as to hopefully send a hint. If she understood, then she probably just ignored it. "Just as uneventful as yesterday, huh?" To that, he sighed. "I guess you could say that."

"Have you considered, I don't know..." she smirked, "getting a hobby or something?"

Xiao raised a brow. "What?"

"You know exactly what I'm saying. You need to figure out something to do." She sighed, reorganizing her pens. "I'm tired of seeing you moping around. You need to find something that makes you happy."

"I have plenty of things that-" 

"No, no you don't. Be honest with yourself, Xiao. You're a sad, depressed mess. I feel like it would be cheaper to get you therapy than to continue making you almond tofu to 'numb the pain' all the time. Shit ain't cheap."

He scoffed at the idea. Him? An adeptus? Therapy? Yeah, no. That wasn't going to work. Verr Goldet could almost read his mind, rolling her eyes and standing up from the desk.

"Either way, this?" She gestured to him in circular motions. "This needs to stop."

"You have no right to speak to me that way-"

"You don't pay rent. I can kick you out." She sneered.

Xiao glared at her. "You can't. The hilichurls will be back." He said, confident in his victory.

"I can just get the Traveler to clear them out." She smirked, shutting him down. Xiao felt his heart drop just a bit, but he didn't let the feeling linger. "Speaking of which," Verr Goldet continued, "why not reach out and join him on commissions or something? You two workaholics would get along great."

"Absolutely not."