what does freedom really mean, when demanded of you by a god?

to become the desire of another, and to be someone you are not

day 1 of hottie training. lead by none other than captain kaeya. venti was glad they were drinking buddies, because no way in hell he'd pay for this.

what did other people look for in a partner?

hmmmm,,,

guess it depends. depends on what venti has to offer.
well.... financially unstable..... alcohol addiction....desperate....

ouch, he's not got much. but hey, femboys were popular these days, no? easy!

kaeya's training was pretty boring. just fancy etiquette, fancy words, fancy ways to sit. venti didn't really care but if it would get him money, he'd do it.

so sitting outside the tavern on a busy evening, he posed himself in just a way that made him seem a lot more... desirable than usual. sorry folks, no songs, but if you paid him a good amount.......

who had the most money to spare in mondstadt? eula? she's insufferable. venti would give up his godhood just to get away from that wicked woman!! sure, there was diluc, but do you seriously think DILUC would willingly give him money? no chance.

hours passed and nobody even looked his way. maybe this won't work!! maybe he's destined to be poor and alone forever.

all the rich people were in LIYUE. and he had a restraining order!!!! well, they weren't that strict right? they wouldn't be able to recognise him if he maybe got a disguise? he had an idea. a GREAT idea.

you see... when he undid his braids, he looked a little bit like that emo boy, no? and well, if he could act the part and maybe dress a little more adeptus-y, he could easily pass off as xiao and get into liyue suspicion free. who would dare to challenge the conqueror of demons anyway? he just had to make sure he didn't run into the actual xiao... or worse, zhongli...

captain kaeya agreed to lend some clothes. they were kind of big when venti put them on, but it kinda worked. sure, his eyeliner was a little wonky and he looked kinda goofy it's not like anyone will notice, right? maybe it's just adeptus xiao on a bad day. maybe he didn't sleep well the night before. maybe he was hungover. so many possibilities!

okay, okay. venti prepared himself for a very difficult acting job. he was pretty good at laying low, but yeesh, it hurt a little to act so emo. just felt wrong. he was a little too tall too. maybe he just had a growth spurt!!!!!

without hesitation, venti drew closer to stone gate. taking a deep breath, he approached the millelith (how do you spell it idk) standing guard.

his instinct was to shout 'hey pals!' but he knew it was very off character for what he was trying to achieve right now. maybe adeptus xiao would be more formal? it would just be too emo to ignore them, even by xiao's standards. what about 'hello friends'...? no, that just sounds so friendly. adeptus xiao isn't friendly, he's unhinged, he's mean and he's rabid. 'greetings acquaintance', that worked?? he'll try that..

"greetings.. aq acqaua aaaaaa acquanta nce.." fuck, he got nervous... nono! maybe! maybe maybe adeptus xiao was just... a bit shy today!

they gave him a weird look but they seemed to fall for his disguise. somewhat. maybe he looked nothing like a demon slaying yaksha but he definitely didn't look like the bard they were on the lookout for. phew..

he continued to skip down the path, maybe it was a little out of character but who's watching??!

dihua marsh... this was gonna be a little difficult. xiao frequented this area and the locals were bound to recognise him. he could just idk... fly but that would look a little weird. what was he saying?? didn't adeptus xiao do that toooo? with his highly convincing adeptus xiao cosplay, he'd definitely look pretty normal.