The Young Lord's Wish: Side 1

Going back home

After Childe and Aether solved Fontaine's problems, they still didn't have any clue where Lumine could be. Aether felt so hopeless... He has helped 5 of the 7 nations now and after his last encounter with her in Liyue, there was still no sign of Lumine.

"Childe, let's go home for a while..", Aether said, with a sad and empty tone.

"Are you okay?", Childe asked as he looked at Aether with concerned eyes.

"I'm fine, i'm just... tired.", Aether responded with a sigh.

So, they left Fontaine and went back to Snezhnaya to rest. They arrived in the evening and since Aether was really tired, he quickly went to bed after taking a shower and changing into more comfortable clothes. After Childe kissed Aether good night, he went to his younger siblings's room to check on them.

"Big brother!", Teucer said loudly.

"Sssshhh, you don't want to wake Tonia and Anthon do you?", Childe whispered. Teucer quickly covered his mouth with his hands and softly giggled.

"Is brother Aether here too?", Teucer asked quietly after removing his hands from his mouth.

Childe nodded, "yes, but he's really tired, so we best not wake him up."

After Childe told the story of his and Aether's journey through Fontaine, he put Teacer back to sleep and went to the room he and Aether shared. When he walked in, he saw Aether calmly laying on their bed. He walked over and sat on the bed next to Aether. He leaned forward and gently stroked Aether's head.

"I know you're working really hard", Childe said, "and i know you're trying to hide how you feel, but please, tell me when something is bothering you. I'll always listen." He followed, as he lightly kissed Aether on the head. Childe stood up and quickly changed before getting in bed. He moved closer to Aether and hugged him from the back as he fell asleep.

The next morning, Childe woke up before Aether. He thought about waking him up, but decided not to when he reminded himself of how tired Aether looked the day before. Childe got out of bed and went to the kitchen where all of his younger siblings were sitting as the maid was making breakfast for them.

"My lord, good morning. Did you sleep well?" The maid asked as she noticed Childe walking into the kitchen.

"Yes, i slept well, thank you." Childe responded with his usual smile.

"Has master Aether not risen yet?" The maid asked politely.

"Not yet. He was quite tired yesterday so i let him sleep a little longer." Childe responded, this time, with a concerned smile. A few minutes later, Aether also walked in as he greeted the others.

"Good morning my love, did you sleep well?~" Childe asked as he hugged Aether and gently kissed him on the cheek.

"Geez. You're so full of energy in the morning." Aether said as he softly laughed and rubbed his eyes.

"EW! Big bro and big bro Aether are kissing!" Teucer yelled as he stook out his tongue.

"C'mon, let's leave the adults alone and go play." Tonia suggested as she winked at her older brother who seemed to be thanking her for distracting Teucer. Anthon and Teacer followed Tonia out of the kitchen.

"I'll take my leave as well." The maid said as she slightly bowed. "Oh! Master Aether, i prepared breakfast for you when master Childe came in. You can heat it up if you'd like." The maid followed, as she pointed at the breakfast she had prepared a few minutes ago. Aether thanked her and she left the kitchen to give the two lovebirds some privacy.