The Vigilant Yaksha

Chapter 60

"Why do you keep making that face?" Vena had snuck up on her blonde-haired friend, nearly scaring the delights out of him as he flinched and spun around to meet her eyes.

"W-what face?" Aether stuttered out, his eyes quickly drifting to anywhere but her own, clearly displaying his lie as if it was written across his forehead.

Vena's arms simply crossed across her chest as she shifted her weight onto one foot, a skeptical eyebrow raising as she stared him down with half-lidded eyes quietly.

There was an almost deafening silence between the two now, pure white snowflakes fluttering around them as they were carried along with the wind.

Dragonspine was a nearly inhabitable place for most wildlife or humans, and it's dangerous past usually served to keep most people away naturally.

On their quest to find Albedo, the group had also run into Eula, Amber and even Bennett, until they'd finally found Albedo too, but a few odd things had been happening ever since.

Most would just chalk it up to the danger that came with exploring such a place, but Vena never missed even one of Aether's misplaced expressions during their time there so far.

"What did you say to me that one time..? Something about being able to even read my poker face? I can tell something's up, spill it."

The male refrained from speaking a word, just lazily casting a wayward glance towards Albedo as they continued on their way toward his camp.

Previously, although she'd been distracted by the eerie scenery and lone monsters that inhabited Dragonspine, she'd heard them discussing the possibility of someone faking Albedo's identity, although Eula had been skeptical.

There's no way Aether was truly buying into that, right? Who would pose as Albedo and why? What could they possibly gain from it?

Vena had been around the gifted alchemist many times before when Aether used to venture to Liyue alone, Vena would often stay behind and she'd formed various friendships with Mondstadt's people during that time.

Albedo was reluctant to teach her much when it came to alchemy, him having his own skepticisms of the girl and her origins, but he eventually loosened up the more he'd gotten to know her, and it also helped that Sucrose had taken such a liking to her as well.

"We'll actually catch up with you guys in a bit, Vena needs to talk to me about something personal." Aether's voice calling over her shoulder caused her to look up, brows furrowed with curiosity at his sudden outburst, and a lie to boot.

Aether made it a habit to keep his words short and sweet, at least toward anyone that wasn't Vena, but he had never been one to directly lie either, and that had raised the red flags.

He seriously thinks there's an imposter Albedo.

The rest of the group simply nodded and said quick goodbyes as they continued up the mountain, leaving the two behind in the ice cold snow.

As their silhouettes faded into the distance behind falling snow and blizzard, the quiet girl simply eyes her best friend, waiting patiently for his explanation.

Oh how he knew she loathed lies, even if they weren't being told to her. She couldn't even stand them being spoken in her presence, even for good reason. It always rubbed her the wrong way.

"I know what you're thinking-" Aether began, only to be cut off by a razor sharp glare, her expression clearly unamused.

"You're actually humoring this? You think Eula is onto something?" Vena shifted her weight onto her other foot, the snow crunching softly beneath her feet as she continued to judge the boy with just simply her eyes.