In The Midst of Snow

One Of Us, One of Us

Aether had been hoping to get a small audience (preferably only Xiao) when he returned. He wasn't the smoothest man in the universe and will probably make things very much more awkward when faced with a judging crowd.

Thus he found himself in one of the worst situations when he was faced with what seemed to be the whole lot of adepti and Rex Lapis himself.

He had never wanted more than ever to jump off the mountain and excuse himself. He probably would have if he didn't catch the sight of a gorgeous man that he could have only seen in his dreams for these eleven years.

"Xiao," Aether whispered.

He took a step forward. But as Celestia would have it, he was interrupted as a light voice said, "Your aura...is strange. Might you be a god too, o' strange one?"

Upon finding the owner of the voice, Aether was, to say the least, perplexed beyond his wits. What was Scaramouche, sixth of the Fatui Harbingers, doing here alive and kicking thousands of years before he was supposed to?

He looked totally different too - in a black chiton and lush white roses in his hair. Was it possible that Scaramouche himself was not mortal? Was that why he claimed the sky was a gigantic hoax - because he had seen the true sky himself? If so...what happened to him? What led him to join the Fatui?

Apparently Aether had been wondering for too long for Scaramouche snarled, "What are you staring at, punk?"

"Ah, sorry, I spaced out a bit there," Aether said hurriedly. "Um...I'm not a god. I'm uh...an adeptus."

"An adeptus." Scaramouche repeated, clearly unconvinced. His smile was wiped off now, his purple eyes simmering with brimming anger. "It doesn't take a fool to know that you're lying. With how Cloud Retainer reacted and the other adepti clearly not recognising you, you call yourself an adeptus? Are you looking down on me?"

"Th-that's- I'm not-"

Who knew Scaramouche had a bad temperament and held himself so highly? Aether could feel the static electricity in the air, gradually increasing in intensity as Scaramouche smouldered.

However, that was when a person stepped in front of him, getting in between him and Scaramouche. Scaramouche quirked his eyebrow at the sight of the Anemo Yaksha standing protectively, glaring right back at him.

"Well, now. Xiao, was it? Can you please not get in the way? I'm not done interrogating him," Scaramouche said lightly with a little smile. Oh, the speed at which he changed expressions was horrifying.

Yet despite that, Xiao still stubbornly stood his ground. Was this what one would describe as an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object?

"He is one of us," Xiao stated firmly, much to Aether's surprise. "Aether here has been fighting around Liyue a lot, occasionally going to other regions to help out. He hasn't been back in some time, so the new adepti doesn't recognise him."

"Ye-yeah!" Indarias shakily supported. Aether watched incredulously as she tensely joined Xiao's side, facing off against Scaramouche. "He's one of us. I remember seeing him around too."

"Nosy brat," Bosacius scoffed.

"A courageous soldier!" Bonanus added proudly.

"Xiao's crush," Menogias agreed.

What.

Aether glanced at Xiao questioningly. But Xiao refused to turn around, standing as still as a statue. His ears were definitely a burning red, though.

Rex Lapis coughed, diverting everyone's attention to him. "As you can see, Scaramouche, Aether is one of us. I can testify to it myself."

Archons, even Rex Lapis was backing him up. Aether resisted the urge to bow and thank him and the Yakshas right here and now.

"Urgh, you guys are no fun," Scaramouche groaned, reluctantly retracting back his powers. "Fine, then. Enjoy your gross, heartfelt reunion."

With a blink of an eye, Scaramouche disappeared, leaving nothing else but a sizzling, charred blemish on the ground - as if a mini lightning had struck where he stood.

Now that Scaramouche was gone, all eyes fell on Aether again. Some curious, some hostile, some with teary eyes.

Xiao, finally facing him, crossed his arms. Aether's heart swelled at being able to see Xiao again. But seeing Xiao so closed off...it's like Xiao didn't know whether to treat Aether as someone he knew or a total stranger. Aether can understand, he supposed - eleven years would have put a serious strain on their precariously built relationship.

"Say, are you really Aether?"

That was not really what he expected.

Taken aback, Aether stuttered with genuine puzzlement. "Ye-yeah. Of course I am. Who else could I be?"

Xiao narrowed his eyes, his entire body language spelling doubt. He didn't reply to Aether's question either - which only made Aether all the more anxious.

"Answer this, then," Xiao said coldly. "What was the promise I made to you the last time we met?"

The entire mountaintop was silent. In the taut atmosphere, Cloud Retainer nervously leaned down to Rex Lapis' ear so that only he could hear.

"Do you know what Xiao promised him, my Lord?" she clicked apprehensively.

"I'm afraid even I do not know this," Rex Lapis said grimly. "I can only assume Xiao picked this question because only the two of them know the answer."

Cloud Retainer chirped proudly. "As one expects, Xiao is a very smart adeptus." Her gaze softening, she mumbled, "One hopes it really is Aether, though. Xiao has been waiting for him for so long - it would even break this one's heart if this was all a prank. Even though...Aether's aura is totally unrecognisable."

Meanwhile, Aether stared seriously at Xiao. Closing his eyes, he breathed in. Xiao, already vigilant for the slightest suspicious action, waited for the verdict, ready to kill this imposter at once if the answer deviated even if by a bit.

"Well, did you?" Aether demanded. Xiao, surprised at the sudden change in behaviour, was at a loss for what to say. He totally wasn't ready when Aether walked up into his face to inspect his face and give him a once-over.

"Hm, I supposed you kept your end of your promise!" Aether praised cheerfully. "Looks like you did eat and rest well. I'm glad, really, I'm..."

Without warning, tears had started to spill from Aether's eyes, reducing his next words to incomprehensible blabbering. Xiao's restraint simply broke like a rusted chain at the sight. Words weren't enough to express the surging emotions he felt, now that he let himself accept it that it was Aether - Aether in the flesh - in front of him. He can hear his voice, feel his presence, admire his looks. No more rereading old letters that held the past.

The present was what matters.

Reaching a hand out, Xiao gently cupped Aether's warm, damp and soft face, relishing in how he could touch him too. With a tender brush of his thumb, he wiped away a trail of Aether's tears, a warm sensation blooming in his chest as Aether looked back up at him through wet eyelashes.

"You're home," Xiao said endearingly. "You kept your part of the promise too."

What no one expected was for Xiao to lean in and capture Aether's lips with his own. Gasps aroused from the crowd in dramatic unison. There were also a handful of adepti that whooped and sobbed. Indarias herself had even passed out.

After recovering from the initial shock, Aether too leaned into the kiss with a big smile that made Xiao's heart do a solo tap dance plus a gymnastics routine.

And that was enough. Xiao didn't care about what others thought. Because in this moment, he held the entire world in his hands.

"Welcome back, Aether."

A/N:
Scaramouche, sensing the gayness in the air: Gross. Aight imma head out