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ancha-aus · 2 months

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RealAgeAU Drabble - Hard Learned Lesson

Hello everyone!

*cough* so... you all ready for some... angst? ;3

Timeline wise this is in the spring of the first year the guys got the farm! So their first spring in FarmTale <3

First Drabble (Thank @spotaus for the one who started this madness with the original prompt) Prev Drabble Next Drabble

No beta or edits :3 We just going. Again. Angst incoming!

*--------------------*

Nightmare huffs as he looks bored at his stupid math work. He doesn't get it! The teacher jsut... doesn't explain it like when Dusty does. Dust knows how to tell him things that make sense!

Nightmare doesn't like this school he has to be in.

He doesn't like being away from his dads- caretakers- his four. He prefers to be with them and have them decide when it is time to learn and how.

Nightmare knows he can trust them. they are safe.

At least he doesn't have to be here for long... Just a day each week. And just until they figure out his school level or something.

The teacher smiles at him and speaks softly "Hey there night night."

Nightmare glares wiht all his might at her "Nightmare." his name is nightmare! Only his dads- his four are allowed to call him night night or nighty or nightlight!! That is their right! Not hers!

The teacher giggles and smiles at him "I am sorry. Nightmare. How is your math going?"

Nightmare frowns as he looks at the numbers and the drawings of apples. something about adding stuff together and taking a few away or something. He knows he used to be able to do this but how he did it he can't quite remember or figure out.

Ngihtamre shrugs and plays a bit iwht his pencil.

The teacher nods as she crouches next to him "Still hard?"

Nightmare shrugs and mutters softly "Dusty could explain..."

He doesn't like most adults who are here. Most of them imply that his four did stuff wrong or are doing wrong. Nightmare doesn't agree. They did everything right! THey came back so they can't do wrong. This lady is nice. she makes sure her voice is quiet and lets him stay inside when the other louder kids go play outside. She doesn't mind him reading his book instead of drawing.

the nice teacher smiles and nods "I am sure your dad is a great teacher. He seemed like the smart type."

Nightmare nods before catching up with what she said and freezing. He keeps messing up in his head and calling them dads... would that be weird? He doesn't want to be weird.

she smiles and takes a seat next to him "How about we try to do the problems together? We can try to work through them then?"

Nightmare shrugs again. Not really caring that much. He just needs to wait a bit longer and one of them will pick him up and they will go home and snuggle. Killer found a new movie to watch. Probably more cowboys! Nightmare likes them okay but loves to just lay wiht Killer when watching as Killer loves those a lot.

his teacher smiles at him and takes out a pencil. "OKay. the first problem. it is a bit of complex adding with the higher numbers but it works the same as the smaller numbers and-"

a loud knock on the door.

The door opens and one of the older ladies walks in. Nightmare doesn't like her. she is strict and always looks at his dads disapproving. As if they did smething wrong. She is also the one who says it is just a matter of time before Nightmare will like being here. Nightmare knows better and makes sure to tell the interview guy each time he wants to have classes with dusty again.

his nice teacher frowns as she looks up "Is something wrong miss March?"

The older lady huffs but speaks up "Someone came to pick him up. somekind of emergency."

Nightmare frowns and glances over. it are two humans who both look rather official. He immediantly leans behind the nice teacher and mutters "Dusty said to never go with others." One of the rules. Never ever leave this building unless it was with any of them. One of them is usually the whole day in the building with him.

The nice teacher looks unsure "March. I know for a fact those man are not part of the group that was allowed to pick him up."

March waves at one of the man and he shows an official looking document with somekind of symbol on it. Nightmare doesn't like this and inches clsoer to his teacher.

SHe reaches for the paper but the man pulls it away and tugs it away "It is sensitive information. It is a matter of great importance that we leave right this minute."

Ngihtmare doesn't like this. this is bad. These man are lying. he just knows it. Nightmare knows liars and he doesn't like them and these two are lying!

Nightmare looks at the nice lady "I don't want to go. I wanne wait for dad." he is scared. please.

The nice teacher smiles at him before looking at the other three adults "I am sorry. but he doesn't feel comfortable. I am sure we can just wait here for one of his fathers to show up. I will stay late with him to wait." she offers immediantly and Nightmare feels a bit better.

March glares at her "April! Stop that. These man are very important. They say it is an family emergency."

April! That was her name! April looks unsure between them and then Nightmare "I still think..."

MArch sighs loudly "You are a kindergarden teacher. You don't think." she smiles at the two man "I am so sorry for her. I will make sure to give her a talking to. You two make sure the little man gets to where he needs to go!" she grabs Arpil's arm and pulls her along.

April protests loudly "Wait! Miss March! I really don't think this is a good idea!"

Ngihtmare plans to follow her but one of the man gets in the way. he smiles andit doesn't feel good. it feels dangerous. He knows those type of faces. He used to see them daily. Ngihtmare feels his fight or flight response start to appear as he glances around.

The man speaks ina soft and quiet voice "Hey there. I know this is very scary but we have somewhere very important to be okay? We need to be quick. come now."

Nightmare shakes his skull as he glances around. Panic in his soul and magic. Where is Dusty? Or Crossy? Kills? 'Ror? where are his four? One is always near?

Unless these man knew... unless there are more people and some of them are distracting them!

THe man grabs his arm and pulls him along. Nightmare is once again reminded that he is weak. Weak and powerless and useless as he can't even defend himself!

The leave the building and a van is parked nearby. More panic as he is pushed in and the door clsoes.

Cross feels numb as he watches Killer tear the two ladies a new one "What the fuck you mean you let strangers take him!?"

Miss March, the personal assistant of the owner of this whole fucking thing looks insulted "Well! I will have you know that I tried to stop it but that April, the naive idiot girl, decided to trust strangers!"

Said girl, woman honestly even if she is still young sits on a chair in tears. She had been the one to call them in a panic. April looks up wiht a glare and read eyes from crying "I told you not to trust them! I told you not to let them take him but you pulled me away and when i got back to where he was before he wasn't there and and and-" she sobs as she hugs herself, she stares at them begging "I am sorry. I swear i tried! I tried to stay wiht him but Miss march she-"

March hisses at her "shut up you stupid dimwit!"

Killer is seething as he glares at March "Where. is. our. child!?"

MArch stammers and tries to explain that some man came in about some emergency. Killer growls "so instead of verifying that they were speaking the truth you just trust the first person to walk in and way a piece of paper around?"

Cross stares at April. he still can't feel anything. just dread. He walks to her side and stares at her "What did they look like?"

April blinks as she looks at Cross with tears in her eyes. Cross just doesn't care. He needs to find him. Now. a glance shows that Horror and Dsut are talking with police man. Dust is beside himself and keeps trying to pull his hood further over his skull. clearly nearing an actual breakdown.

Cross can fix this. He just needs to get Nightmare back.

April sobs as she rubs her eyes. She thinks for a moment before giving an as detailed description as possible.

Arpil frowns as she pauses "there... there was this symbol on the paper. Wait. let me draw it." she opens her folder and grabs a bright blue glitter pen and starts drawing it. Cross knows a police officer joined him and is taking notes himself.

She shows the symbol "It looks likes this. Some werid snake around a sword. It looked a bit like the medical symbol and stuff but it doesn't quite like it." she frowns.

The police man frowns and starts to talk about this gang named the Viper and how they kidnap children. often political reasons.

Cross however already checked out as he starts thinking. the speed limit is about 30 kilometres an hour in these type of areas. This happened not longer than 20 minutes ago.

If they were pushing their luck and driving hard they couldn't have driven harder than 50 an hour. which means they are at this point about at maximum about 15 to 20 kilometres away.

If they are already known with the police? They won't risk being out long. They know when Cross and the others would be away because they were held up getting food and snacks. Meaning it was planned. Meaning they knew that they would immediantly get the news out.

Cross hums and glances towards the door. They are hiding somewhere nearby. They can't risk being in a car and being searched. This universe has cops that actually care and want to help people. If they are already on their shitlist?

a circle of 25 kilometres. That is what Cross thinks they should be within for now until they will feel brave to search for a spot to... to... do whatever they had planned for Nightmare.

Cross slowly backs away from the othrs. He mutters to Horror that he is going to catch some air. Horror shoots him a worried look but Dust is actively shaking and tears are leaving his sockets so Horror is quick to try and calm him.

Cross feels the air grow more and more static. he steps out of the building and glances up. Very dark clouds, black and purple and some flashes of lightning.

Cross looks around the area around the building. police cars are everywhere but none of them notice Cross. Cross looks at his own arm and can only see himself because he knows what to look for. a slight difference in depth compared to the area around him. His camouflage his active.

Good.

He will need that.

He glances around againa nd finds the cops looking at tire tracks. he gets near and studies them.

He hates what his universe made him. He hates what XGaster has made him. BUt... Cross can admit... It has its benefits. He memorises the pattern of the track in the dirt and considers how deep the track is. Yeah. Somekind of van. A small one but heavy. So probably a two seater and the loading area in the back. Most likely no windows or Nightmare could have waved to get someones attention.

Cross has an area. And a general idea on what to look for.

Time. To. Hunt.

---

Something smashes into pieces and Nightmare shakes as he keeps hiding his skull wiht his arms. Not able to ban out the voices.

"What do you mean you don't know who to contact?!"

another shouting voice "It means I don't know! We have had no one react to our messages and codes about him! Our hackers didn't find anything on those four! No schooling. No past lives. No past adresses. Nothing!"

the first voice "Of course not! One of them was tugged away from eye sight to even get that child! Find out who he was with and we know who will pay raw gold to get that little freak back!"

Ngihtmare shivers at that word. He isn't a freak... he isn't... Crossy always says he is special and perfect. that means he isn't a freak.

another voice "What if this was all a waste?"

the first voice "Then we find some other weird fucker that wants a monster child. There is always some sick fuck that likes toys like that."

Ngihtamre is shaking. he wants his dads. He wants to cuddle with his dad and eat food with his dad and watch tv and...

He sobs.

A loud groan "And of course that stupid thing is a whining crybaby and it won't shut up!"

a new voice. much more worried "euh... guys? Remember those clouds i was talking about?"

more groans and the tired voice of before answers "Dude. not now. we are having a crisis here."

THe newest guy continues "No you don't get it... the clouds? Those are completely black... there is no sunlight coming through."

silence before rushing steps and more curses and awed noises.

a moment of silence for another person speaks up "The radios are out...so is the phone service and well... any service..."

A flash and immediatnly loud thunder. Nightmare isn't afraid however... as that was Dusty's storm. He can feel it. the familiar static and magic that circles and seems to hug him. If Dusty's storm has already found him... That must mean Dust is close right? Or that dust now knows his location right?

Nightmare isn't sure how they are getting more powers. but they are so cool...

more sounds of annoyance and grumbles as the humans all take seats. grumbles about how they can't keep looking for a buyer now and that they will be forced to wait or risk being seen.

Nightmare looks around his small cage. he is stuck in somekind of animal cage in a dark room without any window. but he still feels and hears the lightning and thunder. he knows the flashes happen as he feels his own magic notice them. the immediant thunder after it.

They are right in the middle with the lightning right above them.

another crack and flash and suddenly loud shouts as the light under the door turns off. Seems like everything is broken now.

Loud annoyances and grumbles as they wlak around. shouting at each other. Nightmare rolls back up and waits.

He just... he just has to have faith! They found him once... surely they can find him again right? Surely... they want him still right?

right?

---

Cross runs through the forest. letting the static in the air guide him as he follows the tracks. Cross isnt'sure if the storm is leading him or if he is leading the storm at this point.

It doesn't matter.

The effect is the same.

Dust's storm and him move togehter. the lightning and static move in unison with Cross as he rushes through the forest. Everything grows quiet and still around him as he moves. unseen and more one with the world around him than seperate at this point.

It doesn't matter.

Because he found it.

He spots the van first and sees the house it is parked by after. He watches for a moment and the bright purple magic flashes quickly and loudly. flash after flash after flash.

It should be bothersome to him.

It isn't.

Cross moves silently as he reaches the van first. he pulls the door open with one harsh tug and takes the actual backdoor with the tug. he drops it to the ground and looks into the van. Nobody but there are small marks of someone having clawed as the floor.

Cross moves silently and smoothly into the van and studies the marks. He knows those marks. Nightmare tends to try and push Killer away and if they don't help him clip his claws before they get too long Nightmare tends to accidentally scratch Killer.

The scratches are never deep and never take longer than a few minutes to heal. Nightmare still feels bad about it even if Killer doesnt even feel it.

Cross follows the marks with one of his own fingers. He was right.

Cross leaves the van just as quietly as he entered it and walks towards the door. Not marching. More like gliding. Silent. Smooth. Quickly.

He gets to the door and pusehs his knife in between the side and the door. One quick push and the lock breaks and the door swings open. THe hallway is dark.

He hears movement deeper in the building.

Cross moves silent as a shadow. leaving no trail or tracks in his wake.

he moves through the hall and leaves the door open. purple flashes behind him and Cross can't help but notice that his shadow looks weird. almost as if his shadow itself is melting into the other shadows and stuff... weird...

He follows the hall and gets to the living room. He just pushes the door open and sees about seven humans all looking around trying to locate stuff wiht flashlights. one of the flashlights shines over him and the human screams bloody murder. the others turn and scream and yell themselves. something about a demon.

Cross doesn't care. He is here for two reasons. one. get his baby back. two? Make sure these sorry excuses never get the chance to take their baby away ever again.

Cross stares before rushing one of the humans. he has them by the head and throws them into the wall. the wall cracks and the human drops motionless to the floor. Cross slowly turns to the others.

The raise their weapons but Cros has already jumped another. He pushes the human to the floor and grabs them by the head. he smashes the head against the floor once and hears the tiles break just as the skull caves in on itself and the human goes motionless instantly.

Cross rises back to his full length.

One of the humans shakes as they raise their weapon "fuck... fuck!" and starts firing.

Cross doens't know why he doesn't move. Maybe it is... because he kidna knew. the bullets seem to all, just move through him. as if he isn't all the way there yet is. untouchable until cross wants to touch something.

more panicked cursing as Cross holds out an arm. and his own weapon materialises. he goes for his one large sword and gets to work.

It isn't even a fight.

Cross would think calling this a fight would be an insult to actual fights he had.

play fights and spars with killer are more challenging.

Having a verbal debate with Killer is more challenging! and Killer hardly even gives arguments!

Cross dematerialises his sword and stalks around the house. He doens't hear anymore movement of people walking around.

a soft sob.

Cross is by the storage closet in seconds and pulls the door open.

Cross wants to thank his lucky stars he has night vision because he doesn't even need a flash of lightning to see their baby. Cross is on his knees by the cage in seconds as he pushes a hand through the bars and rubs the tiny cheeks to clean the tears. only for fresh tears to appear and Nightmare to grab his hands.

Nightmare sobs "dad... I was scared."

Cross mutters soft praises and reassurances all at once as he just sits by his baby "it is okay nighty. I am here. I am not going anywhere okay? We will just wait here. Your other dads are on their way okay? we will go home and lay in the nest and read stories. You have been so brave and I am so sorry you had to wait for so long." More tears keep appearing and Cross keeps rubbing them away gently.

Cross will stay right there for as long as they need.

flashing police lights and Cross feels himself growl when his phone buzzes. He opens the chat and sees a message from Killer.

'horror texted me to say he sees a broken open car and the police are nervous. Make sure the police can break nightmare out. Stay near but invisible. I know it sucks but please!!'

Cross doesn't like it but he can already feel himself start to disappear from view. He whispers to Nightmare "I am staying right here with you okay? Some people will walk in and they are police man. They will bring you to Dusty and Horror okay?"

Nightmare sniffs and sobs as he looks desperate at Cross. Seemingly not at all bothered by Cross using his weird invisibility. Nightmare keeps staring at him and sniffs "promise? You won't leave?"

Cross smiles and rubs the tiny cheek "I will stay right here with you. Forever." like fuck anyone is going to get any of them to leave their baby. He is theirs and no one elses. Everyone can gets lost and disappear for all Cross cares. He has what he needs with his new family.

Nightmare nods and sits their shaking. his tiny hands not letting go of Cross's hand and Cross keeps holding both tiny hands wiht one of his as he rubs the tiny cheek with his other. The discomfort of how he needs to wiggle his way through the bars not even fully registering as he waits.

Loud shouts of police and slow steps. dead silence as they find the slaughter that Cross left behind. more rushed steps and a panicked voice "Kid?! Kid please be okay! Yell out! We are here to help! please we are worried and your dads are worried too!"

Nightmare sobs and looks at the door. He can't seem to find words and just whines. The sound feels like a shot right through Cross's soul as he keeps holding the tiny hands.

Rushed steps and someone with lights and red and blue reflectives steps in. The officer sighs in relieve "oh thank the heavens you are okay." he takes a step closer but Nightmare obviously flinches and tugs himself in a corner. more sobs and shaking leaves him.

Nightmare mutters sound so loud in the silent room "want dad... dad... where is dad?" more sobbing and his breathing comes out in short pants. slight panic starts to appear on his face.

The officer takes out his walkie talkie "Get one of those skeletons in here..." a moment of silence "I don't care! Lead them in then to make sure they don't touch anything! This child just went through actual hell and deserves someone he can trust." after which he raises both hands. making it clear he isn't hiding anything.

It doesn't help as Ngihtmare keeps breathing quicker and more whines. Cross tries to reassure him but it only helps so much. Cross has no doubt the cage isn't helping either but that would mean that cross would have to open the cage and the other would see that and Cross doubts even Killer can lie their way out fo that one and-

Running steps and a moment later Dust pushes past the officer. He stands frozen before he throws himself at the cage and just rips it open. He has Ngihtmare in his arms wihtin seconds and just. stays rolled up on the floor. shaking.

Cross sees the Nightmare immediantly starts breathing easier as he pushes clsoe to dust. more sobs "dad... .dad... i was scared"

Dust mutters soft apologises and love messages to Nightmare. How he is sorry he wasn't there. and that he swears he will be better and that he and the others all love him so much and that they were terrified and that they won't let anyone hurt him and how much they love him.

Cross just hugs the two for a moment. using his invisibility to give them some comfort. Dust leans into the touch and mutters a thanks for saving him.

the police officer reassurace him it is just their job but Cross knows Dust had aimed it at him.

It makes him feel warm inside. knowing he did soemthing to save their baby. to protect his family. warm and loved.

Cross follows Dust and the police officer out as Dust staggers outside. Still hugging Nightmare close and clearly trying to hide him from the world.

Once outside Horror steps over and easily lifts Dust and Nightmare. Hiding both in his arms as he mutters his own apologises to Nightmare and how scared they had been.

Cross can't help but notice that the sky is no longer thundering and while still cloudy and dark all the lightning had disappeared.

Cross then feels his phone buzz again and he checks the message. it is killer. sending him a message that as soon as he can he needs to reunite with him in the police car he is riding with. Make sure to be sneaky.

Cross watches his two mates not mates mates friends fush over nightmare as the police people get to work.

Cross leaves the scene of the crime and follows the road to reunite wiht killer.

He sees a few other cop cars making their way over to the location and eaisly enough spots Killer in one. Killer stares outside and Cross manages to land silently on the car roof.

As Killer ordered Cross manages to wiggle his way into the moving cop car. Killer nudges him in the side and Cross feels his camouflage finally disappear, as it disappears he feels the exhaustian start to creep up.

Killer grins at the humans in front "Again thank you for giving us both a ride!"

The police man blinks confused but as he looks up he stares at both Cross and killer. Killer keeps smiling and the police man ends up nodding "Well... of course! Heavens knows that I would be beside myself if I lost my little girl. My daughter is my whole world and if anything happened to her..." he shakes his head "of course we would all try to reunite you four with your boy as soon as possible!"

Killer continues talking to the human. Cross zones out as he suddenly feels so very tired...

For now? None of it matters to Cross. Let Killer figure out how to manipulate and lie to the humans.

Cross feels tired and just wants to see their mate with thier child. Safely reunite with their other mate.

Nothing else matters right now.

Cross still remains vigilant. He can rest later... Once they are home again. Once they are all safe again.

*--------------------*

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#utmv #realageau #nightmare sans #deaged nightmare #cross sans #killer sans #dust sans #horror sans #Cross POV baby!!#And no worry. Cross was just VERY tired at the end from overusing his powers to perform a solo jailbreak #also Killer being the team player and lying through his teeth to try and get Cross an alibi wihtin seconds of cross magically appearing.#Killer at any moment 'don't be suspicious. don't be suspicious'#BUT!! Look at Cross! Using his new acolyte powers!!#Cross has all his past training to be a soldier and work for others? No. his power is to work for him and with him to do waht he wants.#I wanted to say more but i forgot lmao #But yeah! Cross POV and him being awesome and such a cool dude and saving the baby!#Also them all calling eahc other and themselves dad and nightmare acknowledging it <3 #Also don't mind cross slipping up and calling the others his mates. he is a tired bean who is low on magic and sleepy :)

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m1d-45 · 2 years

Note

i gobbled and devoured the post imposter things. scrumptious!! but what if poor little xiao man feels guilty for hunting or scarring us in the hunt? and please don’t feel obligated to answer, i know you’re busy

burden to bear

word count: 2.7k

-> warnings: spoilers for liyue archon quest, canon typical violence…. minor body horror? blood mention.

-> gn reader (you/yours)

taglist: @samarill || @thenyxsky || @valeriele3 || @shizunxie || @boba-is-a-soup || @yum1x || @esthelily || @turningfrogsgay

< masterlist >

during the hunt itself, xiao is driven by a need to prove himself, pushing past his instinct and the way his karma flares around the one on the throne. he sees it as a way to redeem himself, to finally scrape some of the sin off his hands. it’s a way to prove himself, and one he takes eagerly.

it’s not correct to say he’s blinded by faith, but it’s not exactly wrong either. he definitely feels, subconsciously, that something’s… off, maybe, about his god. perhaps it’s the way his vision always seems to flutter and flare, or the ice in his veins when the command to hunt is given. he feels uneasy, unsettled, finding himself rolling his shoulders and wondering if he needed to add more stretches into his routines. and yet, despite the tension in his shoulders and the twist in his stomach, he kneels, bowing his head with a swear of fealty that goes unanswered.

unacknowledged.

perhaps he had delivered it wrong?

he doesn’t think much of it, quickly dissolving from the throne room and appearing besides the statue of the seven on the west edge of liyue. looking out over jueyun karst, he knows it’s a bit fruitless to start his search there due to the vicinity to the other adepti, but the spires there are tall, filled with wiry bushes and crags of rock that are easier to hide in than may seem at first glance.

he draws his pole arm, spinning it once over his hand before tapping the end to the stone beneath him. he’s not sure why he’s so nervous—is it the fact that this is technically the first order he’s been given? is it the idea of slaughtering somebody so identical to his creator that it nearly fooled morax, who’s been alive longer than he could fathom?

or is it simply the prospect of failure?

xiao grits his teeth and steps off the edge of the floating stone, halting his fall with anemo at nearly the last possible moment.

his feelings meant nothing. orders were given, and he had to follow them.

why else was he there, if he couldn’t?

it takes him longer than he expected to find you. he’s almost impressed, really, that you managed to evade his searching eyes, that you dodged not only him but the other adepti as well, all without taking refuge in any villages or otherwise civilized areas due to the orders the millelith put out. you hid well, he could attest to that, and though he was the one to find you, it was only on accident.

he was clearing out a group of hilichurls north of the inn. he was surprised so many had settled so close to the statue of the seven, as hilichurls usually avoided concentrated elemental energy, but didn’t think too hard about it. he simply unhooked his mask from his belt, noticing the difference in strength between these hilichurls and the average, and teleported into the middle of the camp.

the first thing he heard was a spotter’s cry. the second was the mitachurls’—archons, there were three—roar as they hefted their weapons. the final one was the intricate chanting of the abyss, but not any incantation he recognized.

he kept himself half in smoke as he danced around the edge of the camp, taking out the archers while he tried to find the abyss mage. he could catch glimpses of hydro bubbles through the walls of the hut, but the steps were covered in frost-

he barely ducked under the swing of a mitachurl’s axe, slashing his spear along its side as he slipped away, darting across the path of one charging with a large stone shield. it clipped his shoulder despite his efforts, pain spiking down his arm, but he didn’t pay attention to the injurh. normally he wouldn’t be this distracted, but two abyss mages and three mitachurls in one camp could only spell bad news. the best he could likely do was to leave and grab back-up, but who? the millelith were busy, morax and the adepti were on their own search…

xiao quickly climbed onto the roof of the hut, jamming his spear between two of the logs to keep grip on the woven roofing. the grass was damp, squishing uber this feet, likely from whatever hydro magic the mage was busy with within it. it likely wasn’t the smartest idea to stand on the roof, but this area of liyue was mostly plains, with little cover from the charging mitachurls. he needed a moment, if only a short one, to hash out a plan to deal with the camp.

the three mitachurls were standing besides the hut, two with shields and one with a crackling axe, electro dancing along the blade. xiao shifted, pivoting around the peak of the hut to move away from that one, the grass roof squishing below his feet.

the mitachurl’s ear twitched.

he shoved himself off the roof just as the mitachurl slammed the flat of its blade onto the roof, the whole shack shaking. electricity swarmed across the waterlogged roofing, reaching the opposite edge just as xiao dropped off it, landing between the other two mitachurls. they didn’t charge, nor attack, their motivations only made clear when the hiss of cryo froze out the lingering moisture in the air in front of him, effectively boxing him in.

the abyss mage swayed in its circle, staff glowing a sharp blue from within its bubble of frost.

“leave, adeptus,” it hissed, waving its staff in a circle. “you have no place here.”

xiao didn’t reply, instead picking apart his options. he couldn’t do significant damage to the shield mitachurls without utilizing his burst to destroy their shields, but that didn’t cover the mage at all… and he was still wet from the roof, so the mage would be able to freeze him within the time he had drawn in enough anemo energy to wield his mask with any level of efficiency…

he flexed his hand around his polearm. how had he gotten into this situation? his only options were to get lucky or teleport away, but even the latter of those relied on the first.

luck. how useless was he, to rely on luck-?

“‘adeptus’?”

the abyss mage startled at the voice, the cryo it had been swirling dissipating. both he and it turned to the side, to the entrance to the hut, where a figure could be seen just beyond the mitachurl.

his first instinct was that it was his god, and he briefly relaxed under the knowledge that he’d get out of this in mostly one piece.

his second was to recognize the torn clothing and dirt-smeared skin, and realize that you could never be his god.

xiao’s eyes narrowed, his spear twisting towards you faster than the distracted mage could react. you, his target, the one he had been seeking out, were hiding behind the abyss. he should have expected it, in truth, figured out the one known for going against the rules of nature would side with the most unnatural force, but that was not for now.

not now, when he was launched forward by the power of anemo, his spear driving him forward, barely skimming the mitachurl in favor of his true target: you.

your eyes barely had the chance to dart in his direction.

xiao was, in truth, not the first one to see you.

many villagers had glimpsed you running around the outskirts of their villages, plucking apples and sunsettias off trees and taking mint from their gardens and leaving bundles of sweet flowers behind instead. they’d seen you, face half-covered in a poor mask made of scraps, your clothes that of the haphazard stitches of the hilichurls, which helped you blend into teyvat a bit more at the price of comfort. many had seen you and assumed you were a run of the mill thief, perhaps one taking advantage of the current hunt since the millelith were occupied. they wryly called you clever, warning the traveling merchants about you, the one they glimpsed at inane hours of night.

he wasn’t the first to see you, by far. he was, however, the first to recognize you.

he was the first to lay eyes upon your form and realize the truth, to realize that the blood seeping into your clothes was the color of stars and galaxies, to recognize that your heart beat blue.

the argument could be made that the hilichurls were the first, or perhaps the mages that had taken you in and brought you food, but it was not them that gathered you into their arms and whisked you away in a flash of teal, uncaring of the spike of cryo that drove into their side at the last minute. the hilichurls did not walk with frosted-over limbs, the abyss did not cry with a throat full of ice, calling for assistance in undoing their own crime.

xiao couldn’t decide whether it was lucky or not that baizhu was in the pharmacy, speaking with herbalist gui over the front desk. on one hand, it was best to have the most experienced healer in liyue at your side, but on the other..

“adeptus xiao, what is-…..”

confusion, then anger, then realization, all flashing over his face in an instant before he tilted his head and walked quickly to a back room, xiao following.

he busied himself with picking the ice off his body and clothes, ignoring the shake of his hands and the stench of blood in the room. the mage had pulled you from the point of his spear, but he still hit the side of your stomach, and he could tell it was messy.

knocks sounded at the door but baizhu turned them away sharply, only allowing qiqi to pass him a bowl of lotus seeds. he was focused, changsheng slithering off his shoulders to grab supplies as needed. time seemed to slow to a crawl, like xiao had entered a domain without an exit, filled with the iron smell of blood and the never ending chips of ice he peeled from his skin. it left behind stinging wounds and red marks, but he couldn’t find it in him to care.

what was his brief moment of injury compared to a scar upon his god?

the moment that baizhu had stopped, all but collapsing into a chair and wiping off his hands with a tired call of ‘it’s done. the foundation will be okay.’ xiao had stood and left, biting his tongue through the protests of both his own body and the doctor.

he’d given changsheng his confession, but he did not wish to stick around and hear his verdict.

weeks later, morax came and visited him at the inn, carrying with him a plate of almond tofu and an apology. xiao leaned against the furthest edge of the balcony, curled around the plate, staying as far as he could from the one with your aura imprinted upon him.

he felt it, when zhongli had first come up the stairs. the shock, then the warmth, the all-encompassing comfort that soothed the pain from the bruising on his shoulder. he felt it, and knew that he did not deserve it.

“it’s not your fault,” zhongli insisted, baritone words colored with unreturned sympathy. “the fake… had fooled us all. even me. i cannot hold your actions against you when i myself would have done the same.”

and maybe that was true. maybe he would have drawn his own weapon, pierced your skin himself, acting on the orders of one who dared to take the place of the divine, but that was irrelevant.

xiao was the one who had hurt you. and it was entirely his fault.

almond tofu, his favorite dish, tasted bitter and sour on his tongue, almost akin to the pain medication that zhongli had made him drink after noticing how cautious he was with his injured arm. he’d made him take the first dose in front of him and swear to take the rest, with a long monologue about taking care of himself tacked on afterwards, but it was for nothing. aside from the first night he had it, xiao hadn’t touched the bottle. it sat on his nightstand, beside a bed he hardly used, taunting him when he returned earlier than usual.

he could take it. there was nothing stopping him from doing so, and he probably should if he wanted to return to his duties quicker. but every time he picked up the glass, thumb tracing over the engravings as he undid the top, he hesitated.

he could take it. he probably should. but did he deserve to?

you were still recovering, possibly still bedridden weeks later. your blood still stained his spear, dripping down to his palms, pale and scarred skin marked further with the blue and purple swirls of his sin. you were still in pain, still healing from a spear to your side, and he was here, reaching for medicine for a sore shoulder?

(it was worse than that. bone had knocked against bone, bruising beneath where muscle could reach. it ached even when he sat as still as possible, dragging him out of every attempt to meditate. the dark purple splotches stretched beyond his clothing, reaching across his back and up his neck, making nearly any action flare the wound. it was far beyond an over-exerted muscle or a particularly tiring day, and yet even the worst nights of his pain were staved off by the memory of having to wash blue off his blade. even as the latch on the bottle was undone, the lip pressed to his, he could never bring himself to drink it)

(even the small droplet of it on the rim, tasting of qingxin extract and violet grass, threatened to make him sick. how dare he?)

yes, it would likely only get him into more trouble were he found out, but he was careful not to be. whenever the wind brought him the heavy presence of geo, zhongli’s familiar footsteps climbing the stairs, he snatched the bottle and emptied it into the stone carving on the balcony, letting the medicine soak into the soil beneath it. it splashed when he was sloppy, the deep purple medicine appearing blue on the stone, sparking a memory that weighed harder on the pit in his stomach.

even as he handed the bottle over to zhongli, his jaw clenched from the strain on his shoulder. the action was stiff, jerky, but evidently smooth enough that it had passed his assessment.

zhongli tucked the bottle away, surprisingly not drawing out a new one.

“i am proud of you, and of the progress you have made,” he said, golden eyes softening in the light of dusk. “well done, xiao.”

how strange, he thought, watching him leave, that the very action that made his vision swim with unshed tears was one that was praised.

he wouldn’t complain, of course. he never would. this pain was his to bear, just as the burden of your bloodshed was his to shoulder. he was well aware his pain could never take back yours—though he wished, desperately, that he could move your injury to him. he wanted to be able to take on the physical reminder of his defect, to take the hit of his own spear to spare you from his lapse in judgement. he would take it, take ten times the pain you endured, if only it meant that your skin was free of his scars.

it would be an honor to assist the divine, even at the price of his own life.

#genshin #genshin impact #sagau #self aware genshin #genshin sagau #sagau impostor au #genshin self aware au #sagau xiao #xiao #xiao x reader #xiao x you #genshin x reader #sagau x reader #*lying through my teeth* what do you mean of course i don’t have favorites #hey writer tip here: just write. i know you think it’s gonna be bad. i know it’ll likely seem strange and off-key. guess what? write.#just do it. best advice ever. who cares if it’s shit? you can rewrite it later! once you get through the bad and into the groove it’s fine!!#you’ve gotta expel your Bad Words to get to the good stuff. take it from me i always rewrite my beginnings whenever i post #the first paragraphs are gonna suck! and that’s okay! just keep goin baby!! you’ll get it eventually!!#oh btw just so it’s clear: zhongli’s proud of him for taking the meds not for his um. violent acts.#it’s meant to be a ‘thank you for trusting me and accepting help’ but the twist is: he ISNT #i love xiao. with all my heart. i absolutely adore him. he is my beloved little blorbo.#but good lord do i like to see him cry sometimes.

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