eftinanish

[eftinanish]

rainy rooftop [xiao x lumine]

slight natlan AQ spoilers!

characters: xiao, traveler (lumine)

notes: i feel so upset after completing the natlan archon quest and had the urge to write this. hopefully it's good enough. not proofread. 😔

🪻----------

how long has it been since the traveler called out for him? how many days has it been since she went on with her journey, leaving liyue and all its terrain behind to search for the lost one? he had no way of knowing what lumine was up to, or if she was doing well and safe. the yaksha could just go see her, if possible, but his duty that has him bound to this land was never-ending, seemingly forever—

a soft breeze touched his face, the rustling of leaves accompanied the declaration of someone's arrival. xiao clenched his fists, overseeing the vast valleys stretched out. he felt a sense of relief knowing that the blonde haired traveler was close now. he wondered what could be the reason for her visit. did she come for business with rex lapis or the qixing, or perhaps just to meet up with old friends?

xiao turned his head, swiping away the thoughts and focused his attention back on his duties, he couldn't let this distract him. so what if the one he's been a little concerned about was so close he could go and see her in a second, his responsibilities are far more important, and he won't let these trivial thoughts swindle his mind.

the sun slowly slid down behind the hills, leaving only slight shadows of red and orange in the clouds. the yaksha leaned his back against the tree he had taken as a shelter to sit and guard, close to the wangshuu inn. only a while ago he had defeated a hoard of abyss mages, effortlessly driving them to their end. his eyelashes rested down, fluttering ever so slightly whenever the cool puffs of air bumped into them.

“..xiao..” a soft voice resonated with the pitter pattern of light rain that just started to fall. the adeptus did not have to guess twice whose call it was, or how far the caller was. in fact, he has been waiting for this one, he would not admit, but somewhere inside of him he wished desperately to find an excuse to go see her, to check up even once if she was doing well.

lumine’s golden hair danced along, fanning over her cheeks and forehead, causing her to move them behind her ear. her amber eyes stared off in the dull distance, trying to make out the huge mountains and ruins hidden behind the fog. she flinched, sensing heavy elemental energy behind her, but before her hand could have gone to grab her sword, the familiar gravel held her back—

“you called?”

lumine's vision met the sight of the vigilant yaksha standing behind her, arms crossed and the usual stolid face, “xiao? it's been a while.”

“indeed,” the latter nodded, his gold accessories making a little sound bumping into each other due to the wind, “i heard you calling me.”

“i did?” the traveler looked genuinely confused for a few seconds, standing still and trying to figure out when exactly had she actually done that before letting out a dry laugh, “i must have done it unconsciously.. i mean, i was thinking about you.”

the yaksha flinched, feeling a sudden spill of warmth inside his chest. he had always admired the honesty of this outlander, sometimes too crude and blatant for her own good. she was not afraid to admit her affection or hatred for others, she had no need to, and xiao knew how well she preferred his company, and he was sure she was aware of him having the same feeling.

“i'm sorry, i hope i did not disturb you.”

“no.” he responded this time, almost too quickly, “no, you did not.”

the lamps barely lit the roof of the wangshuu inn, but xiao could read the shadows forming on the traveler's face. he noticed her lips twitching into a small smile, a few seconds before she faced away from him again. he almost-- almost reached out to grab her arm and make her look at him, because it was cruel. so cruel of her to visit after so long only to display her face to him for not even a good amount of time.

“is something troubling you?” he held back his words from getting laced with worry, however it was still evident. he desperately hoped lumine wouldn't notice how much he is aching to have her talk. to know what is going on inside her head.

the traveler refused to answer for a few minutes, admiring how the darkness has now stilled down. the hills that were outlined with fog were now nothing but distant structures, barely noticeable through the crowd of small raindrops that were now on their way down. she flinched when a drop fell on her shoulder, instilling a chill down her skin.

“no, not really. i just missed liyue.”

“did you really?”

“yes.”

the soft pitter patter on the roof was starting to get loud. xiao noticed how she trembled, but did not bother to move under the shade. he tried following the trail of her eyes, where she was so focused on, and found nothing but stretches of lands. he gripped his own arm, feeling so helpless and spiralled in that moment.

he wished, perhaps for the first time, to be able to understand how she felt.

“xiao, can i ask you something?”

he hummed to her question, taking a step forward so his own figure was exposed to the rain. he wanted to feel as cold as she did, to have his veins drown in chills so he'd quiver alongside her. if she won't get away from the shower, then he'd stand beside her.

“all these years you've been carrying out your duty, you've seen so many deaths, witnessed so many ends..” her face was unmoving, “doesn’t the tragedy scare you?”

“it doesn't.” he murmured, feeling a strange rush of pulse. maybe he should have been honest. “it used to, at one point, but i got used to it.”

he closed his eyes, chasing away the image that flashed, from before he became of the yakshas, before he met the rex lapis. it was no use remembering, or worth mentioning.

“what happened?” he asked.

lumine gripped the handrails, knuckles fighting to keep blood running. “if i was fast enough, maybe i could have saved them..” her eyes wavered down, “all the people, old and young, and even the baby saurians.. it was so cruel.”

xiao heard a crack in her voice, after which she fell silent. he looked at her hands holding on the rails like that was the only thing keeping her on her feet. her eyes were no longer searching the lands but fixated on her shoes. he wondered if the drops were of rain or her tears.

he did not see the reason to ask what she meant, or what she witnessed for her to break like this. the adeptus stood there, getting drenched under the rain, forgetting about his promises for the time, and only focused on the blonde haired traveler next to him. he stared at her wet hair sticking to the side of her face and neck before swiftly raising his arm over her head, the long sleeve around his arm dangled, barely stopping the water from reaching down on her. his hand felt slightly numb, but that was the least of his concern.

he heard a sniffle, and the traveler raised her head. “thank you.”

the yaksha did not look at her, he didn't have to. his feet stayed glued, as well as his expression. he didn't move his arm, but only when the traveler pushed it away with her own was when he put a little distance between them.

“you will get sick if you stay like this.” he warned, and as if on cue, the outlander sneezed, chuckling afterwards.

“what about you?”

“adepti don't catch cold.”

lumine laughed again, before walking under the shade, followed by xiao. she grabbed a small stool kept in the corner, settling down. “you didn't leave, like you usually do.”

xiao averted his eyes, “there is nothing to do tonight.”

he heard the traveler's hum, then let out a long breath. there were no works exchanged afterwards, only the presence of two people silently reading the tunes of the falling rain. it wasn't too loud, but the sound has drowned out their surroundings.

xiao knew he shouldn't be straying away from his duties, but he couldn't think about how the traveler would be all alone. he wondered if she'd be crying in the rain by herself if he had left after seeing there was no threat. a part of him felt a sense of relief knowing that he was there, to share the dread she was feeling— even though all he did was to stand next to her.

“there are new geovishap hatchlings at dihua marsh.” he mentioned, catching lumine’s attention, “they didn't look as aggressive as usual ones.”

the traveler stared at him, waiting for him to continue.

“if you don't have anything to do tomorrow, i can take you there..” he paused for a second to look at her, “to see them.”

the rain had stopped by then, only a few stubborn drops were still rushing down. lumine’s lips lifted, and xiao could have bet anyone that it was one of the most beautiful smiles he'd seen on her face. it was accompanied by tears, perhaps it was the water dripping down her face from her wet hair, but what mattered was the chuckle that she let out.

“yes, please. i’d love to see them.”

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[eftinanish]

oh my god, i just thought about another plot idea. so, whenever the traveler calls for xiao, he always arrives right there at the moment. so what happens when the traveler is stuck somewhere, and has been stuck for days, and no matter how much they call for xiao he can't hear so there's no way he can come for aid. now, the traveler does get out somehow, and the first thing they say to xiao when they see him is, “can you hear me?”

[eftinanish]

okay hear me out, modern genshin au where xiao is touch-deprived 24/7, he doesn't let the traveler get away from him for even a second.

or it could be like, he's reincarnated in the modern world and all the past life trauma where he once tried to get away from mortals is now making him crave for constant company.

[eftinanish]

one writing prompt i absolutely love is- meeting your ex-lover after years and you see they still keep that one special thing you bought them and all you can utter is "you still have it.. why?"