With and Without You (AetherxAyaka)

Chapter 17: Unexpected Reunion ⚠️ 🔞🍋

(WARNING: this chapter is fairly explicit. 18+ content resides within this chapter as stated in the story description. If you are not 18+ or sensitive to sexual and or graphic content, I would advise skipping. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED)

[In Liyue]

Thanks to Madame Ping, she can finally do something that she had wanted to for a long time now. The gift given by the elder adeptus lady was certainly surprising, but also most welcomed. And now with the item that she held in her hand, she could visit a certain someone.

Of course there were some restrictions with the magical device she was given, but it was still better than nothing.

... [Later On, In the Serenitea Pot]

It had been a long time since Aether slept peacefully without waking. Not to say that all days were difficult to sleep, it's just that it was rare for him to slumber for such a lengthy period of time and not wake.

His mind was focused and strained all the time. Being an adventurer was far too time consuming for him to get the right amount of sleep any commoner would get; but the other factor was stress. Aether did well at not showing his weakness when it comes to emotion, but emotion definitely took a mental toll on him.

Whether it be the cries for help from nations or the deprivation create in between him and his sister; his mind was always racking for a solution, if not silently grieving what he has lost.

All of this plays a role into Aether's resting schedule. So, he was the utmost suprised by how well he felt upon opening his eyes. 

He had to stretch his body upon awakening, feeling well rested. He let out a content sigh, feeling the best he had for a long time.

It's amazing how much a proper sleep can change things.

He had remembered a decent portion of what all went down last night; though admittedly he wasn't completely sure what  events was and wasn't a dream.

One things was for sure though; he was on the bed rather than the floor. It began to make Aether question...

...where was Ayaka?

She had not been on the bed anymore, let alone the floor. His mind went to work when he had finally realized that she must have been in the bathroom.

The bathroom was closed, which would haven't been the case if someone was not in it.

Aether grunted as he swung himself upright before getting of the bed. There was a good chance that she was preparing for the day, despite probably not having everything that she needed. This was also be a good opportunity for Aether to change into his traveling attire, considering that they would probably be cleansing another shrine today.

He stood up from his position on the bed, now moving his bare feet acrossed the warm wooden floor. 

He had begun to change into his traveling gear, which would have been more practical for the adventures ahead.

Unfortunately, the bathroom door handle had clicked and begun to open. He had no time to warn her, and she had no time to realize he was changing.

Luckily he had only to put on the top half of his armour plated clothing, but it still caused an interesting reaction.

She had a while ago, awoken. With some essentials she had with her, she stepped into the Bathroom. A fresh change of clothes, washing materials, make up, etc. She would have spent way more time preparing had she been in her room.

He was still in deep sleep when she entered the bathroom. It took a while to prepare, but she was also effective and efficient about it too. By time she had opened the door even her hair was still wet, though held in its regular position.