The Power of Revelation: The Truth Shall Set You Free

Chapter 28: Pretend My Pain Away

The lights flickered back on, but no one seemed willing to talk. They just looked at each other mutely, occasionally flicking towards the dejected Harbinger, before averting their gaze to look at someone else.

Kazuha thought that having Aether, Paimon, Mona, Fischl and Xinyan seeing his past in that mirage domain was already a little invasive (not that he blamed them, that was the magic of the islands), but that mirage had been a marvelous dreamscape, weaving the past they lived through into a majestic realm, a fantastical retelling of the stories of their lives.

It allowed them to see their pasts with a new light; from Xinyan's hobbies being rejected and scorned by those all around her, to the harassment Mona faced due to her laying out all the facts with astrology, from the downfall of his clan and the death of his friend, to Fischl's insecurity about her own identity, torn between reality and fiction.

Because there was no way they could make the past okay; it was already messed up. It was about accepting the past as what it was, accepting that it had happened, that it had shaped them into who they were currently, and living the future as best as they could.

But this wasn't such a simple solution. Ever since getting out of the Abyss, the poor boy had been suffering all on his own, and his family couldn't even begin to understand the pain that the boy was going through, nor his coping mechanisms.

How could he heal, when even his family wasn't able to properly understand and help him? How could he begin to heal when everyone just disregarded his pain? Escaping from a place that breeds pain and hatred and resentment into one's very soul, an incomprehensible force that is even capable of destroying gods and illuminated beasts...

Suddenly, Zhongli stood up, gently tugging Tartaglia up with him, "I will go and check on my soup. We can start dinner soon. You can be my taste-tester."

With that, the ex-archon dragged the Harbinger into the teapot, with no resistance from the latter, and after a bit more silence, eventually, Ningguang suggested drawing lots for the night once more.

It was decided that Jean, Aether, Noelle, Venti, Xiao, Amber, Paimon and Yae would be staying in the teapot, but Amber graciously gave her slot up to Ei so the two Inazuma Electro ladies could be together (also because Yae was the only one who could keep Ei in check, and Eula wasn't going to be in the teapot either, but she kept that part to herself).

Once again, Noelle and Thoma volunteered to cook, Aether vehemently refused, and Eula decided that it was her turn to fix up dinner, dragging Amber along with her.

"Hmph, delicious delicacies... you will all pay for this!" She declared, puffing up her chest proudly as she disappeared into the teapot, "This transgression will not go unnoticed! Mark my words, vengeance will be mine!"

Thoma blinked at her, before turning to Amber, "Is she... always like this?"

"That's just Eula's way of saying that she's going to cook a sumptuous feast. Her cooking is really good, trust me!" Amber nodded excitedly, doing her best to try and lift the mood, "Oh, that Stormcrest Pie is the most delicious thing you could ever taste..."

She continued chattering on about Eula's cooking and how nice a person Eula actually was beneath her icy exterior, and Ayaka decided that she wanted to try and make friends with her, thinking that they were rather similar despite their differing circumstances, and dragged Qiqi along with her.

Ganyu was quite happy to let the Kamisato girl take charge of Qiqi, since she seemed rather fond of the little Cryo user, and the zombie didn't seem to mind too much; plus, Keqing did want to talk to her regarding some Liyue matters.

Of course, Thoma tagged along to keep Ayaka company (and totally not because he was going to sneak in some extra cooking).

"You know..." Paimon not-so-quietly whispered to Aether, who was cooking some Biryani, "Paimon hopes that Childe will be alright. Paimon knows that this is different from what happened in Sumeru... but after what happened to Dunyarzad... Paimon can't help but be worried..."