The Lanterns Are Stars - Xiaother One Shot

Aether's eyes slowly open as he sits up. There's a throbbing pain in his head.

Ow... where am I? What happened...?

He blinks a couple of times, his eyes adjusting to the light in the room he's in. He's sitting in a fairly comfortable bed. There's a desk with a couple of papers on it to his left. The window outside gives him a view of a body of water with a clear reflection of the moon. Beyond the lake, some peaks scrape the sky.

He's in a room at the Wangshu Inn. His hand lightly touches his aching head as he tries to remember how he got here. There are bandages wrapping around his arms, back, and forehead.

"Don't sit up too fast."

Aether turns around quickly, instinctively reaching for his weapon but not finding it. He relaxes once he realizes who it is though. Xiao is sitting in a chair next to the bed. Aether instantly becomes less tense, sighing softly.

"Xiao... I'm glad to see you. How exactly did I get here?"

"I brought you here. I found you, half dead, fighting some creature in the middle of nowhere. You..." Xiao pauses, taking a deep breath, "Why didn't you ask for help?"

That's right. Aether had taken on a challenging bounty from Liyue's Ministry of Civil Affairs. His arrogance led him to take on this bounty without proper preparation. Looking down at him, Xiao was frowning a bit and even had his arms crossed.

"I didn't think I'd need help," Aether says softly.

"Well then, once you realized that you did need help, how come you didn't call for me?"

"I didn't want to bother you."

"Aether, I already told you. If you're ever in danger, just speak my name. I'd drop everything to help you. I promised you once and I'll say it again. I-"

"Come on, I'm an experienced adventurer. I can handle myself."

"Clearly not! Look at you! You would have died out there. I love how stubborn you are, but it's a double-edged sword. It could have gotten you killed!"

The sound of the crickets outside can be heard along with the ambiance of the inn. A soft breeze passes through the room causing a couple of papers on the desk to flutter softly. Xiao sighs and crosses his arms, not meaning to have snapped at Aether like that.

"Aether, listen. It's okay to ask for help. But, please... don't do this again?"

Aether looks away and then slowly nods. With that, Xiao moves to sit next to Aether on the bed. He gently holds Aether's arm, looking at the bandages. Aether doesn't look at his arm. Instead, he glances upwards at Xiao.

"Xiao. Why do you care so much?"

"What do you mean?"

"You care for me so much. You promise to be there at the call of your name. I could go on and on and on."

"Oh. I suppose I see what you mean."

Xiao doesn't reply. What was he supposed to say? Why did he care so much? Aether suddenly hugs him tightly, making Xiao gasp a little.

"It's okay. You don't have to answer. But at least let me take you out to watch the lanterns with me?"

"The lanterns?"

"At the Lantern Rite. I'd like to spend time at the Lantern Rite with you."

"Ah, that's right. The Lantern Rite is going on right now," Xiao says. He'd been caring for Aether the whole time that he'd been unconscious. It had completely slipped his mind. How could he have forgotten about the Lantern Rite? Xiao nods. "I'd be happy to accompany you."

"Okay then. It's a date."

"A date?!" Xiao jumps a little, whipping around to look at Aether with wide eyes.

"No, no, not an actual date. I was using it as an expression."

"Right, sorry. It just... caught me by surprise, that's all."

"No worries. Alright then! Let's go!" Aether stands up, seemingly to head to the Lantern Rite. Xiao grabs his arm and pulls him back.

"Woah, where do you think you're going?"

"The Lantern Rite? With you?"

Xiao shakes his head, "Not in this state, you're not. We can go tomorrow. Right now, you need to rest and recover."

"But, Xiao-"

"Let me care for you. Please. Your bandages need to be changed."

Aether hesitates but then nods, sitting back down on the bed. Xiao holds Aether's arm and unwraps the bandages around his arm. He wraps new bandages around his arm gently.

"You're being very sweet, Xiao. It's a nice change, seeing you like this."

"In comparison to what? Am I usually mean or something?"

"No, you're just usually... I don't know... reserved when it comes to feelings. I like seeing this side of you."

"Oh."

Xiao nods and blushes a little bit. He finishes wrapping Aether's arm up. His fingers trail along Aether's arm, making sure that the bandages are secure. But when he looks up, Aether looks at him, a little red in the face from the contact. Xiao pulls away without saying anything before moving to rebandage Aether's leg.

******

ONE DAY LATER

Xiao sits down on a rock near the Temple of Pervases. He takes a breath of the cold air and listens to the sounds of the waterfall. With the sound of the waterfall mixing with the chirping of crickets, Xiao closes his eyes and lets himself relax. But tonight he wasn't alone. Aether sits quietly beside him.

"Are you sure that you can see the lanterns from here?"

"From here, facing this direction? No. We'd have to turn around to see the lanterns."

Aether nods and looks up at the stars. Xiao doesn't say anything. He's not looking at the stars. Instead, his eyes glance ever so often over to the traveler next to him.

"Aether, do you remember yesterday when you asked why I cared so much about you?"

"Vaguely, but yes."

"I care for you so much because I enjoy being around you. Losing you would be like losing a part of me. I don't think I can handle losing anything else."

Aether's eyes widen a bit as Xiao's words weigh heavily on his heart. He nods a little. "I care a lot about you too, Xiao."

"You do? Really?"

"Yes, of course. Don't sound all shocked about it. I care about you because you're one of my closest friends."

"But I don't want to be your friend," Xiao suddenly blurts out. He grabs Aether's arms and looks into his golden eyes. "Aether, you're one of the only people I've let get this close to me. You make me feel the happiest I've felt in so long. I don't just want to be your friend. I want to be so much more than that."

"Xiao-"

"I get it if you don't feel the same. I know it's sudden and I'm sorry if I've-"

Aether puts a finger to Xiao's lips, "Please, let me speak?"

Xiao slowly nods. Aether pulls his finger away from Xiao's lips.

"You're not usually so upfront about your feelings, so I can tell that this means a lot to you. Xiao, I feel the same way. You care for me so much and I truly appreciate it," Aether says. "I want to be more than friends."

Xiao's eyes widen. He gently takes hold of Aether's hands. It's like they're holding their breaths, neither daring to ruin the moment. Xiao opens his mouth to speak, but then a light in the corner of their eyes catches their attention.

Golden lights of the city drift through the air, joining the stars. Aether and Xiao sit in silence, watching the lanterns. Xiao squeezes Aether's hand a little tighter.

"They're beautiful. You were right. They're just as beautiful here as in the city," Aether says breathlessly.

"They are. The best part about it though? It's just you and me."

Aether smiles a bit and leans against Xiao, "Yeah. Just you and me."

~AUTHOR'S NOTE~

This is poorly written since it's just for fun/practice. I just wanted to try to write a very short one shot. Thank you for reading and have a nice day! If you have any feedback, please let me know. I'd love advice on how to improve :D