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“Home” is wherever we are together..
Aether shook himself awake, the image of his sister’s cold look still present in his mind. He looks around, trying to figure out where he is. Is this real life? Was he actually awake? He was close to panicking when he heard the voice of his companion, Paimon, next to his ear.
“Aether! Are you okay? Oh, thank barbatos you’re awake. I thought I had to throw water on you. You know what, wait here.” The little creature rambled on, relief clear in her voice, before floating outside their tent. Aether let out a sigh of relief, glad that he was finally out of his.. nightmare? Maybe he was going too far when calling it that. He did see his sister in said ‘nightmare’. He sat up fully and reached for his canteen full of water.
As he drank, He could see Paimon picking berries from the nearby bushes. He smiled fondly, thankful for his companion’s kind gesture. Paimon has always been there since the start of his adventure in this new world. Though annoying and needy at times, she has always looked out for him. Even with her small body, she always tries to help in any way that she can, be it gathering materials, telling him about the world they’re in, or even fighting the cicins at times.
Aether snapped out of his thoughts when he felt a poke on the side of his head. He looked up to see Paimon smiling proudly and gesturing at a small basket full of the berries she had just picked. He smiled at her, murmuring a soft ‘thank you’ before picking up some of the fruit in his hand. He and Paimon began to eat, watching the dancing of the campfire just outside their tent.
“Are you okay?” He heard Paimon say. Turning to look at his companion, he could see the look of worry on her face. And there it is again, the feeling of guilt. He’s been feeling like this for a while, ever since that day he got to see his sister again. Then losing her for the second time.
The reminder of their reunion startled him, made him feel guiltier than before. After the guilt, came that tightness in his chest that kept coming back. Maybe it was because of the recurring nightmares haunting his mind, causing the pain in his heart. All he knows is that it’s all so tiring. He just wants it to stop. Why can’t it stop?
“-ther?”
He zoned back in on their conversation after feeling a tug on his scarf. Apparently, Paimon could sense his change of mood because she immediately tried changing the subject, now about the new menu in Xiangling’s restaurant.
Aether only chuckled softly, even if the numbness was still there, because he was both relieved and so, so thankful that his friend was kind enough to change their topic. This was another reason why he was so grateful that Paimon is his companion. She is so thoughtful towards him, always respecting his boundaries. She can already read him like a book, even if they have only known each for months. She’s similar to his sister in that way, oh so caring , his mind supplied that he tried his best to ignore. He smiled at his dear companion, genuine and kind.
“Thank you.”
-
The world was kind enough that day to not bombard the young traveler with monsters too powerful, too many. And too different from the last time he encountered them, now looking more human. The words of his sister echoed in his mind.
He watched the people he was supposed to protect turn into monsters of the abyss..
People.. turned into monsters. But why? Who would do this to innocent people? And why did Dainsleif not protect the people of Khaenri’ah? How was Lumine even involved in this?
If it wasn’t monsters that bombarded him, it was questions. His own thoughts and worries consuming his mind and enveloping him in an unpleasant feeling of uneasiness. The why’s and how’s were not getting answered, will not be answered for a long time, and it was driving him crazy.
“..ther. Aether!”
The voice of his companion startled him out of his thoughts. When he turned to look at her, he could see that concerned look again. He tried his best to muster up a genuine smile, though it probably looked forced in the other’s perspective, before asking a simple ‘why?’. Paimon eyed him with an observant gaze before shaking her head and smiling back. “Just wanted to check if you’re doing okay. You’ve been zoning out a lot these past few days.”
Oh, perhaps he has, huh? He chuckled, ruffling Paimon’s hair, ignoring her protests against it. “I’m okay,” Was he though? “,but thank you anyway for checking in.” His companion smiled wider, seemingly satisfied with his answer. Oh, If only she knew about the ever-growing storm in his heart. “Phew, that’s good then!” Her response made him chuckle even more.
They continued on walking, soon reaching the lands of Mondstadt. The memory of him first arriving here came to him so suddenly. Was he always this sentimental? He remembered meeting Amber, the knight with such a fiery and determined attitude, his first friend. Then soon meeting the rest of the knights like Kaeya, a knight with a fun but mysterious personality. Or Jean, the seemingly cold, but actually just a very serious grand master and leader to her people. There was Lisa as well with her flirty attitude but very, very strict librarian rules. Remembering the people in his life right now made him feel so, so happy, and these were only a few of them too. It almost felt like.. Home. But his last home got taken away from him, maybe this will too.
But in this moment, Aether was happy. His mood was positive, the first time in a week since his encounter with Lumine. He and Paimon made their way to Dawn Winery, opting to visit Diluc. Maybe a little chat with a friend would be a nice distraction from his thoughts. He hasn’t seen the winery owner and his stupidly red hair in a while and thought this was a good time to stop by.
-
Apparently this wasn’t a good time at all because as soon as he got to the front entrance, he could hear shouting from the inside. One of the maids, Adelinde, came up to them and explained what was happening. “Master Diluc and Master Kaeya are inside. The bard as well. They’re arguing about something though we don’t really understand too well. I’m very sorry ” Adelinde bowed apologetically and Aether could only put his hands up in the air in a startled manner. “Oh. I- uhm, you really don’t need to apologize. It’s alright, really. Can- can i still go inside?” The maid straightened up from her bow and nodded. “You are free to go inside whenever you want, as Master Diluc said.” The young traveler couldn’t help but smile at that. What a kind friend, He thought to himself.
As the three of them walked up to the door, The voices became clearer. The muffled words became easier to understand, and he could definitely tell that it was Kaeya shouting right now. He turned to Adelinde, thanking her with a bow, before putting his hand on the door handle. He didn’t bother knocking since it’s probably not going to be heard within all this arguing anyway. Aether was about to turn the handle when a sentence from Kaeya stood out to him;
“Well, if you could have just told me about Khaenri’ah, my own hometown let me tell you again, then we wouldn’t be fighting now, huh?!”
Aether felt himself go stiff. Khaenri’ah? Hometown? What does Kaeya have to do with this? Don’t tell me.. His own thoughts got cut off when Venti started to shout in return, only adding fuel to the fire starting in Aether’s mind.
“I couldn’t tell you because that is the archons’ business! It’s not something a mortal like you has to worry about!”
He felt his heart drop. The archons have something to do with the destruction of Khaenri’ah? The same archons that he was asking help from to find his sister. The same archons that give him the power to fight with elements. They have something to do with this? His grip on the door handle tightened, as well as the unpleasant feeling in his heart. Breathing suddenly got harder to do. He clutched at his chest, the tight feeling soon turning painful. He can faintly hear Adelinde asking him if he was okay. He wanted to respond but it was all too overwhelming, too loud. And the shouting match inside certainly didn’t help.
The door he was leaning on disappeared and he found himself on the floor, kneeling. He didn’t notice the door opening but he did notice the feet running to him. Soon, he felt a pair of hands holding his face. They were wiping away the tears- wait, tears? He didn’t even notice himself crying. But as soon as he realized that, the shame in his heart increased tenfold. Pathetic. He is just so pathetic.
He could faintly hear the voices surrounding him, saying something about breathing in and out. He can feel his hand on someone’s chest, their heart beating was prominent enough to distract him from his panic. “That’s good, very good. Follow my breathing, yeah?” It was Diluc’s voice, his mind supplied. He tried his best to comply, he really did. But his heart hurt so, so much.
“You can do it, I know you can. You’re doing so well.” The voices became clearer, the cotton in his ears slowly disappearing. He slowly opened his eyes, looking up to meet Diluc’s gentle but concerned ones. He can feel the pain his chest leaving with every unsteady breath he took. He tried to focus on his friend’s calm aura, so different from his usual strict attitude.
Soon, breathing was easy again, though unsteady at times. He felt Diluc pulling away and even though he didn’t mean to, his grip on the other’s arm tightened. That seemed to work though as his friend stayed. He stayed. Aether peeled his eyes away from Diluc’s, now looking at the other people in the room, Kaeya and Venti. He noticed that his companion was nowhere in sight though, and that was almost enough to start up another wave of panic in his heart.
He was about to get up to look for Paimon when he saw her come from the direction of the kitchen, holding a glass of water with Adelinde by her side. “Aether! Oh my barbatos, i’m so glad you’re okay!” She said, pushing the glass onto the maid’s hands before rushing towards Aether. He could only chuckle fondly, his voice still rough from earlier, as she squeezed her way between him and Diluc before wrapping her tiny arms around his neck.
“Traveler, are you alright? You got us worried there, buddy.” He hesitantly turned to look at Kaeya and Venti. He remembers their argument from earlier, the whole reason why he had a whole panic attack in the first place, and it almost makes him flinch but he hides it behind a smile. He always hides it behind a smile.
Though it seems like Diluc can still sense his wariness as he moves to block the blonde’s view of the two. “Let’s get you upstairs to rest, yeah? I’ll lend you a room.” The redhead’s smile is gentle and Aether can only nod. He moves away from Diluc to stand up but as soon as he does, the sudden dizziness only makes him sway on his feet. He hears a sigh from his right and suddenly his feet weren’t on the ground anymore. Hm, he’ll let himself get carried this one time.
As he passes by, he can see Venti’s confused, but concerned gaze and Kaeya’s almost angry expression but he can also definitely see the way it softens when they make eye contact. He doesn’t know what to feel. They are his friends, sure, but still. He was already confused from the whole encounter with his sister, and now this? He doesn’t know what to trust anymore.
When they finally got to the room, Aether fell asleep almost immediately as soon as he felt the soft bed underneath him. He was just so tired.
-
“Home” is wherever we are together…
Aether opened his eyes to the sunlight from the window blinding his eyes. He almost forgot where he was again, but then remembered that he was in the winery. The memory of yesterday is still vivid in his mind and in his heart. But he felt peaceful as it was quiet this morning, with only the sounds of the birds chirping and the smell of food from downstairs. The faint sound of chattering from the staff made it feel even more domestic. But it didn’t feel like home.
He turned his head to the side, staring out of the window. He can see the sky, blue and almost clear. Only a few clouds were present. He remembers the words of his dear sister;
I cannot go with you to the next world to find a new home.. At least, not yet.
Once you reach the end of your journey as I did, you will see for yourself the true nature of this world.
“Oh, Lumine. I don’t think I want to see anymore of this ‘true nature’ you speak of. Please, just.. take me home.”