神. ❛ 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐈

,, - have courage and be kind ; xiao

most of the times, you didn't even mean to.

xiao had sworn on his life as an adeptus to protect liyue, and after your many encounters with the mighty yaksha, you both bonded on friendship, countless plates of almond tofu as well as the fishes you would catch from mondstadt to bring it to him. you wanted a friend; nobody wanted to be yours. everyone was scared of you. terrified of you.

xiao didn't care that you were a fatui, he enjoyed your company. he liked it when you came to visit him at wangshu inn, even if that meant it got you in trouble with the fatui harbingers. they understood that you weren't just getting along with xiao to gather information, you were just hanging around xiao because you liked to.

xiao loved you. xiao accepted you. he loved you as a friend; and he saw through the evil persona you tried to put on front. he saw through layers upon layers of darkness and evil, and pulled you out into the shining sunshine of liyue. he wanted you to be in the light with him, standing by him while be took care of liyue in promise of lord morax.

"when i give my orders, i expect them to be done. all of you as fatui harbingers should obey me, the lord tsaritsa."

it was that command that sank your heart down. it was that command that made you cry inside your chambers late at night, unable to think about the bad things you were about to do to liyue; you were tasked with setting the whole liyue on fire, as the fatuis knew you had connections in liyue, and you were the only pyro weilder that was strong and powerful.

those heartless bastards... they knew you loved liyue.

signora and scaramouche had already started their attack in liyue harbour, sending panic and terror through their way. you stood next to childe as you both stood on the cliffs of liyue, glancing down at the chaotic city that once filled your heart with glee and happiness. the shining city that had beautiful people and amazing memories.

"well, aren't you going to go?" childe asked, his arms folded as he took a glance at you.

your heart clenched as you went to pick at the flower attached to your hair. it was a small qingxin that xiao had once slipped in between your locks while you were picking them in the fields, and you swore you'd never take it off, but you had to now. you no longer deserved to have the qingxin in your hair, and you no longer deserved to be accepted by xiao.

"just give me a moment to..." you mumbled but stopped; unable to say the words. you wanted to burn the flower, knowing that you were never going to be forgiven after this. it was not your choice to make; and if you disobeyed the fatui now, who knows what they could have done.

your palms lit the small white flower in flames, and you watched with your glossy eyes as the flower slowly blackened out into nothing but ash. little did you know, the qingxin flower you had just burnt to ash had sent a signal towards xiao far away down at wangshu inn.

he placed a hand on his heart, wincing a little once you had finished burning the white flower. he nodded his head dismissively when ver goldet asked if he was alright. he knew it wasn't. he knew nothing was alright. he knew liyue was in danger, and he was already prepared to leave under lord morax's command with ganyu and all the other adepti.

back on the cliffs, you jumped. you landed on the stones and rocks and set the mountains ablaze. the fire escaled from your hands and tips of your heels wherever you stepped on, each step burning the nature and the once beautiful mountains of liyue.