Basically Aether's braid falls out but he doesn't know how to braid his own hair cuz Lumine did it. So he asks 2 of the archons for help
Inspired by Ibeauu on tiktok
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Paimon was floating ahead of Aether, going on and on about an idea for a new recipe she wanted to try. Now, that was exactly why they were on their way to the marketplace in Sumeru to pick up a few ingredients. At the expense of his pockets of course.
"The spices here make their food so flavorful. So that's why we have to combine a little bit of all the nations we've been to already into one dish!"
Aether nervously chuckled. He wasn't sure how that was going to taste. "Are you sure about that? It might make your tastebuds short circuit..."
"Duh! That's the whole point!" She flew around his head in a circle. "We gotta make it so unbelievably unbelievable!" She laughed and then paused for a second when her eyes dropped to her companion's hairstyle. "Oh Aether, your clasp fell off!"
"Huh?" He stopped walking and Paimon flew back in front of him.
"You know, the thing that was holding your braid together." She looked around on the ground and back to the path they just walked. She couldn't see it anywhere, and definitely didn't know when it fell.
Aether's hands went behind his head to feel what should have been a messy braid. But he only felt the loose strands of hair slowly unraveling the more he touched it. "Damn it..." he muttered.
"I mean hey, Paimon thinks you look pretty good with a ponytail!"
Aether forced a smile on his face. "Thanks... but that's not really the problem, Paimon." He looked forward and his eyes landed on a familiar face. "I think Collei's over there, do you mind staying with her for a minute or two? There's... someone I want to see quickly."
Paimon's face turned worried, "Are you sure? I want to come with you!"
Aether tried to let her down gently, "I would, but it's just a silly trip. So when I come back, we can make that dish you want to try out, yeah?"
She still appeared skeptical, but nodded her head. "Okay, but don't take too long!"
Ei
Aether strolled up to Narukami shrine, hoping the person he wanted to see was around. And luckily, she was. "Miss Yae!"
The fox lady was talking to one of the maidens in front of the fortune stall. She turned around and gave him a wave, "it's always good to see you and... oh? It's just you today?" Then she tilted her head to the side. "And you are trying out a new hairstyle."
"Well, it's something like that." Aether could feel the hairs tickling his bare back. "Would you happen to know where Ei is?"
Yae hummed, "Ei... Why, of course I do. But she's a bit... busy right now. Currently, she's meditating in her plane."
