Winter Moon | Xiao x Fem Reader

Empty darkness

A loud groan sounded in the quiet and dark room.

"Zhongli!"

"Morax!"

The two yakshas and the harbinger rushed to the now conscious archon's side.

"How are you feeling?" Asked Xiao who was keeping a respectable distance yet carried a worried look in his eyes.

Zhongli's voice was hoarse and low as he spoke, "Like I got my arm cut off."

"At least you kept your humour," jokes Childe with a smile on his face that held no amusement. He placed a cold hand on Zhongli's shoulder that was now bandaged tightly by a little child that the harbinger was told was actually five times his age. Liyue grew stranger by the day.

"Where is she?" The archon's face showed no signs of pain even though the harbinger was sure that his entire body was burning, tortured and worn.

No one spoke or replied. They didn't even dare look at each other as Yin played with her fingers uncomfortably and Xiao scowled and looked outside the window with a distant look on his face.

Zhongli's usually passive face scowled in anger, an emotion he hadn't felt, let alone showed in centuries. Pure, unadulterated, hot rage burned in his chest and dimmed out whatever pain was left from his missing arm as the god tried to sit up. "Where. Is. She?" He didn't raise his voice but made sure to punctuate each word.

Only Xiao dared speak as the atmosphere grew colder, "He took her." Where he'd crossed his arms across his chest, his fingers now gripped at his own forearms til the skin turned white and then red, blood rushing to the surface.

A growl sounded in the room, a rumble so deep it almost shook the grounds of Liyue. Smoke poured out of Zhongli's mouth as his eyes glowed golden. "He took her? And you're still here?"

"You all need time to recover-"

"Yin," furious, golden eyes turned to the female yaksha and shivers ran down her spine. "You will not speak." No one dared disobey or say anything against that statement.

Yin knew after all she did it would be hard for the others to trust her. She'd betrayed the one person she'd sworn to be loyal to for eternity and then some more. And she could stay here and let them trample her and talk down on her - she deserves it, really - but you were somewhere out there and she was the only one who could help locate you right now.

It was her fault you were taken away, that you were found by him again. And your yaksha was willing to find you, fight for you, before he got done playing with you. Unlike last time, she won't be late again. She won't find your body carved out and bleeding onto the white lilies. She will find you and she will save you, no matter the price.

She understood the affection her fellow yaksha harboured for you, the harbinger too - even though he'd vehemently deny it - Zhongli as well. He'd known you the longest, trained you, taught you the things you knew today and stood by you when you opposed the Archon War. But Yin could see the regret in those golden eyes. Not from now, no.

From millennia ago, when Yin had left your side to fight for him and you were left alone. To die.

He regretted it as much as Yin did. They both knew that if they could turn back time, Yin would let the whole world burn if only to save you. Including letting the god die. He knew that too and was completely okay with it. He'd die for you too.

Everyone here would. The harbinger who'd been betrayed by his own Archon, fought for her, believing she was right only to see half a town slaughtered on her order. Innocents - mothers and children and elderly. But would he run to her side again if she called for him? Yin wasn't so sure.