(Y/N) was an Adeptus. Now that there was peace, she spent her time tending to requests sent from the people of Liyue. Her life was simple now: no more wars, no more fighting, no losses.
And things could almost be considered boring, until one day she...
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The following morning, she had made her way to Wangshu Inn, already falling back to her usual daily schedule. She glanced over at the terrace, wondering where Xiao was. News of Rex Lapis' death must have spread quickly. Afterall, rumors like that were like wildfires. The wind would only help it grow.
She hoped he was okay. (Y/N) didn't expect him to open up to her. Even if she always considered him family, he was a reclusive person and did not talk about his emotions freely. While she didn't believe that was good for him, it wasn't like she could convince him to change himself when he had been like that since the very start.
She didn't flinch when he appeared behind her, but she was surprised to see the sad expression on his face.
"(Y/N)," he said.
"Xiao," she returned, tipping her head. She was unsure whether she should bring up the topic or not and decided not to. Talking about it would happen at his pace. That was the least she could do for him. He didn't look her in the eye. He must have been feeling conflicted and wondering whether he should talk to her or not. It would be the first time, after all.
They both quietly leaned against the railing. Perhaps the silence expressed more than what words could. Perhaps the little frown that knitted his eyebrows and the softer tone his voice held showed how deeply he was affected. She was so tempted to tell him the truth, but she had faith in Zhongli. He would reveal it one day. He had to.
"Be careful," he said.
She tilted her head, confused. "About what?"
"..." He didn't respond immediately, as if he didn't want to say what he was thinking out loud. "Don't die too. Don't..." he mumbled. "Don't leave me too."
Her heart sank and shattered into an uncountable number of pieces. Poor boy. She placed a hand on her chest, showing her sincerity. "I'm not going anywhere, Xiao. And hey, you better be careful too, then."
His golden eyes met hers. He nodded firmly. "I will."
She felt content with that, and seemingly, he did too, since he decided to cut the interaction short and disappear into the air. She looked towards the rising sun for a moment longer, before turning around, wanting to forget just how sad he looked so she could continue her day in some sort of false peace she managed to make herself find.
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It had been a few days since then. Nothing special had occurred. (Y/N) checked on Xiao whenever she could, but he seemed to have forgotten that he had expressed his emotions to her. He was as cold as ever.
She could sense that he was getting better, baby step by baby step, so she didn't worry about it too much.
She was in Liyue when she saw the blonde girl and floating thing Childe had saved almost a week ago. She wondered who they were and why the Harbinger was so eager to save them in the first place. After all, they were strangers. Unless he knew them from beforehand.
