𝚃𝚊𝚕𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝙵𝚕𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙵𝚛𝚘𝚜𝚝 | ✦ Hu Tao x Male!Reader

18. 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚈𝚊𝚔𝚜𝚑𝚊 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙲𝚊𝚝

"Alright, here goes nothing. Xiao! You there? We'd like some help! I got food!" Y/N shouted, as a black mist appeared in front of him, revealing Xiao, as he held a cat with green and black fur in his arms.

"Oh. It's you." Xiao said, as he let the cat on the ground, and it immediately began hissing at Y/N, before turning invisible all of a sudden. "Huh? What?" Jinhua asked, extremely confused as to where the cat went.

"Good to see you and this jerk are doing well. Did you give him a name?" Y/N asked, and Xiao averted his gaze. "...No..." He said, shyly. "R-really? After all this time?" Y/N asked again, which Xiao didn't answer. "Oh, did you name it something embarrassing then?" He asked again, as to which the Yaksha looked annoyed. "Human, why did you call me?" He asked, wanting to go away as soon as he could.

"Oh, right." Y/N glanced over at Jinhua, as he was about to introduce her to Xiao, but he was surprised to see the girl holding the cat in her arms. "Jinhua?" He surprised her, as the girl looked at him. "Oh, yes. Um, my name is Jinhua." Jinhua introduced herself, which seemed to amuse Xiao. "Meowy seems to like you." Xiao said, revealing the cat's name.

- God. These two are weirdly similar in the aspect that normally they're so prideful and strong. But near small animals they're... easily distracted. -

"Anyways. Before asking for a favor, I made some food. Almond Tofu included, you want some?" Y/N asked, as he motioned to inside the Inn, where the food was. "You think you could ask me to do anything if you brought enough food, don't you?" Xiao said, causing fear to enter Y/N.

"Hmph. Bring me to it." The adeptus said, as he glanced over at Jinhua, who had been holding Meowy. "God. You scared me for a second." Y/N said, as the three of them entered the Inn.

"Did Hu Tao do something weird? Just asking..." Y/N asked, as they walked to the tables. As he mentions her name, Xiao seemed to get slightly irritated.

"That girl thought it'd be a great idea to simply call my name to ask me of the simplest things. By the fifth time, I had already gotten tired of it, as the last time she had asked me about my opinion on coffin ornaments." He said, angrily.

"Oh... Sorry about it." Y\N said, averting Xiao's gaze for once.

- I... should've expected something like this... - Y/N thought.

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- It is quite strange that this cursed energy, this karma, does not seem to be able to corrode through Y/N. Perhaps he's not a human? The same could be said to the woman he brought along. Still, Meowy feeds off this energy, so it might be on control as long as it is around. - Xiao thought, as he was eating.

"I assume you've heard of what happened in the Rite of Descension already?" Y/N asked, as Xiao ate his food.

"*munch* Yes. A traveler with a silver fairy came to tell me." He said, not looking away from the food.

- Oh, I recognize that description. Still, why would they of all people come to Xiao? - Y/N thought, as he ate as well.

"Tomorrow, the Adepti will gather at Liyue Harbor to speak to the Qixing about it." Xiao said, still eating. "Huh? Tomorrrow?" Y/N asked, looking at Xiao.

"Hmph. It mattters not to you, human." He says, glancing over.

"I live in Liyue, of course that meeting between you guys matters to me. It might determine the future of Liyue Harbor." Y/N says, as Xiao looked at him.

- And the Fatui will for sure do something to interrupt that meeting. It might be our chance to finally achieve my revenge. - Jinhua thought, as she finished eating as well.