I have but one goal, and no one will keep me from achieving it. I will burn my stepfather, Shido, to the ground with my bare hands. In order to further this, I decide to befriend the Phantom Thieves. I spend time with them, befriend them, laugh and joke with them, and even strategize with them as we dodge in and out of Palaces, taking hearts where we please. But I never lose sight of the real reason why I'm using them. We get closer and closer, and Ren Amamiya, the leader of the group, peaks my interest. We finally become friends, and suddenly, something changes. I must choose what side to stand on, and whether or not using the Joker and his friends is still my destiny.

Emotionally drained, Aether gave up on Teyvat and its people. At least.. he tried. But he kept getting pulled back in. Only destroying himself in the process. That was, until he was given a new way out. A chance, from the enemy. !! This will contain spoilers about The Sumeru and Liyue story quests !! Cover art by @dandanbi_hehe on Twitter (I may probably change it later). A New Harbinger was originally written by @Scarelis

An AU where Aether lost the fight against The Balladeer, and was taken to Snezhnaya. - "You're all mine now," Scaramouche laughed lightly. The tone wasn't mocking, and his words weren't out of a desire for Aether to be 'his'- it was purely to spite him. "Where are we?" Aether demanded. Scaramouche rolled his eyes, dropping Aether from his grip. "We're almost in Snezhnaya." Aether's head fell, quickly looking back up to watch Scaramouche walk out of the cell. He looked around frantically, for any way to escape. This could be his only chance. "Don't bother," Scaramouche drawled, shutting the door behind him as he walked out. "Just accept it. You're not getting out of this one." Aether's body was slumped over as he watched him leave. It was true. There was nothing he could do, especially in this state. He could feel himself slipping from his consciousness, down, down, down... - Just for fun! Don't take me too seriously. The art on the cover was not made by me, and doesn't belong to me. This story will be somewhat similar to Beauty and the Beast, if that makes it sound more fun.