My Warmth Is Yours

Chapter 5: What It Used To Be

"Be careful, there's a lot of stuff hidden under the snow. You don't want to get hurt by accident." The trio had managed to get a fair way down the mountain safely, although they still had a ways to go. They'd made it across the broken bridge and were now carefully heading down, avoiding Hilichurl camps and Ruin Machines. There hadn't really been anything major- aside from a repeat of the episode from earlier at the ruins by the Statue of the Seven. Most of the rest would be smooth though. The Traveler hadn't asked about… whatever it was that had happened earlier, and Paimon had kept her mouth shut too. However, the outlander still had questions running through his head, fighting an argument in his mind. Sure, he's kind of (very) pretty, and it's pretty obvious he's not the social person, but i can't trust him unless he actually tells me something (you already trust him don't you it's because he's beautiful isn't it) oh shut up no I don't care what you say, headvoice of dumbassery, i need more information outta this guy but how do I get it? (just ask man)

Aether sighed. Despite denying it, his rather intrusive thoughts held some sense. He should just ask about it. But then, if he did ask about it, then he'd probably be asked for information about him in exchange… and that wasn't something Aether was going to go back into. Especially not now, when someone needed his help. He might as well just take a shot.

"Hey… this is probably going to sound strange, but… where do you come from? As far as i know, Dragonspine hasn't had civilization on it for years… I mean, I know it's probably personal and I might be touching nerves here but I just want to be able to trust you, if you know what I mean…" he shut his mouth, realising he was rambling. Probably not a good thing, he'd always been awful at first impressions. She had been much better at it, although she wasn't much help past that conversation point. Nope. Not thinking about her. Not right now, no thanks, not today.

"You want to know? That makes sense, I suppose, considering the circumstances. I can't quite remember everything, but I can tell you what I know.” he looked up into the sky, gently snowing despite the lack of clouds. “From what you said just now, I assume you already know about the civilisation of this mountain- Sal Vindagnyr. Correct?” he fixed Aether with a serious look. It was startling, the way he seemed lost, almost drifting in some unknown sea before suddenly making eye contact like that. Aether had to actually register what he’d said before he responded. “Y-yeah, although I didn't realise it was called Sal Vindagnyr. These days the mountain is known as Dragonspine…” the Kriedeprinz’ look turned curious.

“Dragonspine? Interesting, I wonder why… that aside, Sal Vindagnyr is the nation I spent most of my life in. It is… it was a beautiful nation, very much focused on preserving the natural beauty of the mountain far into the future. Most of this came in the form of alchemy, using alchemical processes to preserve, reincarnate and even create life. It also came as art, and some types of machinery used to protect certain places, usually ones of some religious importance. Often the mechanisms were used to fill an area with water, for some reason or another.” The last statement made something go click in the Traveler’s head.

“Oh- yeah, I think I've seen some of those water-filled areas before! The machinery still works, too. And now that I think about it, I might have seen some of the art too, although not much of it. It’s all pretty weathered, for obvious reasons I suppose… It's been a long time since Sal Vindagnyr became Dragonspine. That aside, though… Well, keep going, I guess.” The Kriedeprinz nodded.

“It’s nice to know something, at least, has managed to survive the storms of however many years have passed. Back then, it was just about the opposite from what you see now- only at the very peak was snow to be seen, and right at the base where the frozen lands of Mondstat met the mountain. Honestly? The reversal was rather shocking. Especially Starglow Cavern… it used to be full of flowers. You couldn’t go anywhere in there without stepping on one, and the kids planting whatever exotic flowers they found there certainly didn’t help. It was a place dedicated to Celestia, so to see it covered in snow… I should have known, I suppose. Either way, the mountain was verdant- so much, in fact, the entire city was built in clearings, or so they said. It certainly seemed true to me.” he smiled softly at the memory.

Aether couldn’t help but be transfixed by him and his stories and that little smile. He’d always been good at picturing things, and something about the Kriedeprinz’ voice drew him in when he kept talking like that, in one consistent tone. And that smile was so cute. If Aether was going to do anything with this guy, his secondary objective would be to make him smile. (the primary objective was to do whatever they were doing.) there was absolutely no way Aether would fail in making him smile. He would not let himself fail. 

"But a home like that… Why would they seal you away? Did you mean something to them? Judging by the title, you would have been some sort of prince, no…?" Aether asked, confused. The circumstances didn't match up with the story. The Kreideprinz nodded.

"Yes, you're absolutely right. I was their heir to the throne. The problem was, at one point a Celestial Nail was placed on Sal Vind by the gods. It started freezing the mountain over, killing almost everything… essentially, it was turning the mountain into what you see today. So in the hopes of preserving the nation, the head priestess, who was my master, and the other high-ups attempted to seal me in the hopes of sending me forward to whoever survived. Eventually, although they took other steps to try to ensure the kingdom survived, it all seems to have come to naught… too little, too late. And now here I am." He sighed, shaking his head as they walked past the large white and red tree. "At least the Frostbearing Tree survived… it was instrumental in surviving in the snow."

There was a slightly tense silence for a while. He was really good at hiding it, but Aether could still tell that the Kreideprinz was sad. Of course he is. He's walking through the ruins of his own home… that's bound to make anyone sad. He's irreversibly distanced from everyone he knew, and the only person he knows in this age is me. …Maybe asking him about his past wasn't such a good idea.

Then, with no other visible way to comfort him, the Traveler leaned in and wrapped his arms around the Kreideprinz, pulling him into a soft, warm hug. After a moment the young man relaxed into the embrace, returning it with his own hug. There were no words needed, just the feelings conveyed through the physical contact. Aether didn't really know what he would have said anyway. He just wanted his new friend to know that he was there. That, however unlikely it may seem, Aether knew exactly how he felt…

Perhaps it was this gesture that first lit the spark of attraction between them both.