Kaeya's Ascent

17: Break Time

  Everyone was out of breath and in desperate need of a break. Yet they pushed on...

  Until Alice forced them all to sit down and take a rest. She conjured a protective dome around the group and demanded that they rest up.

  "We can't save anyone if we're half dead," Alice nodded to herself.

  Klee plopped down on the ground, sighing heavily. Her features were still rather... beastly. Nobody had said anything about it, but it was obvious now that it was causing a bit of unease among them.

  Lumine reasoned, "we shouldn't stay put for too long. Our times may be lined up now, but that doesn't mean something won't happen."

  "I understand that," Alice agreed, "but this is important too. We won't take too long, I promise. I just need to get a few spells going; it should only take a few minutes. For now, eat something and take a break."

  Lisa crawled over to Klee and laid beside her with a huff.

  "Klee is sooooo tired!" She sprawled out on the cold stone floor.

  Lisa sighed, "me too... Other than that, are you feeling alright?..."

  Klee nodded, "mhm, I'm just sleepy now... I haven't fought this much before..."

  "Don't worry, I'm sure we're getting close," Lisa smiled as she crossed her arms over his stomach.

  "I'm gonna go check on Albedo," Klee stated.

  "Do you think he would mind if I went with you?" Lisa asked.

  "Not at all! Rain Cloud would probably like to meet you, too!" Klee moved to lay against Lisa and closed her eyes.

  After a moment the two found themselves in an endless hallway of open doors.

  Klee held her hand out for a moment then pointed, "this way."

  "How do you know where to go?" Lisa asked curiously as she looked around.

  Klee shrugged, "I just feel it. I know what Rain Cloud feels like, so I just follow her feeling."

  "Huh..." the librarian couldn't quite make sense of this. Could Klee see traces of people like she could see Seelie trails with elemental sight?

——————

  Kaeya woke up not long after he fell asleep. His eyes were heavy, and he didn't want to open them.

  He wanted to lay there and never get up...

  But he couldn't. He had people to save and a burden to carry.

  The king reluctantly opened his eyes, pushing away his sleepiness. He found that his queen was still in his arms and seemed to be asleep.

  Kaeya smiled, moving back to get a better look at Albedo. He brushed some of the alchemist's hair out of his face with a soft sigh.

  Kaeya leaned over him and kissed his forehead. Surely waiting until Albedo woke up wouldn't be such a terrible thing... Besides, he needed to ask if—and how—he could use the stone.

  Kaeya gently pressed his thumb against the golden star on his husband's neck. He'd always thought it a beautiful marking, even if it was Albedo's only "imperfection." Kaeya loved it all the same. He loved Albedo all the same.

  Albedo woke up shortly after Kaeya did. He blinked his eyes open, looking quite surprised. He asked, "good morning?..."

  Kaeya smiled, closing his eyes, "any morning I get to wake up next to you is a good one."