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[ Aether's going to feel the smallest breeze for a brief moment before Venti appears at the bench next to him. He smiles brightly at the young man. ]

Aether, you called?

[JUMPS]

[Just. Looks from his magi-comm to Venti, before tucking it into his pocket.]

Well, I guess that saves me having to ask for your number... are you always listening for your name, or were you just in the area?

My name simply reaches me in the wind.

[ He's being a poetic little jerk about it. ]

And since you were trying to find me, I'm here. I'll give you my number, so no more surprises.

What do you need? Or did you just miss my face?

[ A giggle. ]

[...]

[Does this mean Venti's heard him moan his name while--]

[AHEM]

Well, I actually did have something I wanted to tell you.

[Not that he didn't also miss his face, but this is important!!]

My sister is here in Nippon now!

Edited (Used the same icon twice which is a SIN) 2021-09-24 22:32 (UTC)

[ Ask him sometime, Aether. ]

Your sister! That's really exciting, Aether. I'm happy for you and her to be reunited. I'll have to meet her - or do you want to introduce us?

[ He does sound happy without...any of his typical mischievous nature. ]

I have a feeling you two might cross paths sooner or later-- but I'd love to introduce you! She and I are a lot alike, so I'm sure you'll like her a lot!

[Well, certain things aside-- but he'll get to that.]

I'm confident that I will like her just as much as I'd like you.

[ Which is saying a lot, really. Venti cares a lot about Aether and his well being. He's a friend and it's important to him that the other's happy. ]

All you ever have to do is call for me.

[...]

[Okay hold on he's gotta ask--]

So... you can really hear it whenever I call your name?

Well, yes - ehe.

[ He winks, because just because he could doesn't mean he's always listening. Don't ask questions you don't actually want the answer to, Aether. ]

[...]

[And then Aether never fantasized about Venti while wanking again.]

[CLEARS HIS THROAT]

A-Anyway... there's something else I needed to talk to you about, too. Before you meet Lumine.

Alright, what is it?

[ He doesn't have to know why he asked from hearing to know why Aether asked. Why else would he ask, after all? He's pretty amused by the fact that the other just had to k now.]

You can tell me anything.

["You can tell me anything"... and yet that's not entirely true, is it? Even now, there were still things he was keeping from Venti. As first, simply because there was no good time to ask about it. But now? Maybe a part of him would rather just forget it, and push it to the back of his mind.]

She's missing some of her memory. As far as she knows, we were only separated for a few minutes, but... it was a lot longer than that.

[...]

...and I want it to stay that way. Nothing good will come of her remembering Teyvat.

[Venti is sure to notice the way his tone changes. The methodical way he speaks, choosing his words carefully -- clearly trying to avoid saying or implying too much.]

I can't imagine why it would come up, but just in case... please don't mention anything to her about what happened with Dvalin and the Abyss Order.

I won't mention anything to her, Aether.

[ It's an odd request, but it's not a difficult one to honor. He's not about to bust through and do anything to give Aether a reason to distrust him. He's... just unsure about why he's going through all this effort. Well, if it's important he's sure he'll find out before too long. ]

I don't really see why it would come up either. I'll make sure not to, though, anyway. I look forward to meeting her for real, though.

[That was... easier than he thought. But then, should he have really expected anything less? Venti trusted him, after all.]

[And maybe that's why it makes his heart ache.]

...you aren't going to ask me why?

I don't need to.

[ Aether asked, he's going to do his best to honor it. This isn't some meaningless task for errand that he's sending Venti on. This isn't a scheme to make money through someone else's work. They come from a place of legitimate care for Aether, and by extension - his sister. He knows she's important to him. ]

But would you tell me?

[ Because he thinks, despite it, that the answer is no. ]

[There's a moment where he considers it.]

[He trusts Venti. He does! He has no reason not to! He's offered him nothing but kindness and friendship. Venti's seen a side of Aether that, up until that point, no one else ever had. Surely, if he asked, he could tell him something about it, right? About the role the gods played in the destruction of Khaenri'ah, and everything that played out after. Or perhaps he might confess that he doesn't know anything, and there was no need to worry about this at all!]

I...

[Venti is his best friend, after all. He trusts him.]

...I'm not ready to have that conversation with you yet.

[But maybe not as much as he thought--]

[Their bond breaks so suddenly and so unexpectedly, Aether swears he could almost hear the snap as the kizuna lashes out against his heart. It's a horribly familiar feeling by now, but no matter how many times he feels it, it gets no easier.]

[He cries out in pain as he clutches his chest, his vision nearly going dark as he curls forward. Pain surges through his heart and lungs, he can't even take a breath, his eyes starting to water as he gasps for air--]

[And just like that, it's over. And all that's left is that numbing emptiness and a stream of tears that refuses to stop running down his cheek.]

[But what of Venti--]

[ It hurts. For Venti's it's an ache that runs deep and strikes those permanent sensitive parts of him. Those spots that are used to loss and death and have found inappropriate ways to cope. Those tightly wound and neatly restrained parts that keep him from crying at any reminder of them. The boxes containing his fears of the future when the people he cares for deeply now are gone all over again.

These are the things that don't let him let go of anyone he's gotten to know and care about. It's forcing him to try and rid himself of Aether. And he doesn't recognize what it is immediately. He's never felt anything like this before.

And he bursts into surprising, immediate tears. He brings a hand to his chest, gripping it tight as he watches Aether. ]

What did you do to me?

[ Why would he think Aether would do anything to him? Aether would never. He loves Aether - a cherished, important friend. A part of his life that he's latched onto. And then there's an emptiness - and he goes numb at the realization that this is their bond breaking. ]

[Bonds were a tricky thing, especially when held together by magic as mysterious as Kizuna. Something so simple, a realization that he didn't trust Venti as much as he thought, was all it took for the fragile link connecting their hearts to snap. It hurts-- but not nearly as much as it hurts to see Venti in so much pain. He reaches up, desperate to stop the ache as the frayed edges of their bond call out to be reunited, and then--]

["What did you do to me?"]

[And with those words, something else... cracks.]

[Aether was warned countless times. Don't do anything too strenuous. Don't spend too much time alone. And most importantly: don't allow yourself to become emotionally overwhelmed. Take a step back, and calm down. Easier said than done, perhaps, but it was necessary while his soul was healing. While it was still fragile. It was the same reason his own mind was suppressing those memories of Inazuma, unconsciously aware that he can't handle them right now. Not in his current state.]

[He never expected to be experiencing a second bond breaking so soon after the first. Even if he could have handled it, those words carve out whatever pieces of their bond remained -- driving a deep crack through his already fractured soul.]

[Ah... this was all his fault, wasn't it?]

[The feeling that overwhelms him... it's so much worse than moments earlier. His whole body aches, trembling as indescribable feelings well up inside his chest. And for Venti, the first person to notice what had happened to Aether's soul up in Takamagahara -- suddenly the fractured state of Aether's soul will seem even worse than before.]

S-So... rry....

[He wraps his arms around his chest, nails digging into his upper arms as he tries to hold himself together, but-- something feels wrong. His bond with Venti was the strongest he had in Nippon, the strongest connection he's made short of the one tethering him to this world. He wants so badly to reach out to him right now, to hold him and reassure him that everything will be okay-- but he can't. What right does he have, when he's broken like this? All he'll do is break him further.]

I-I'm sorry.... V-Ven... ti...

[ The emptiness left behind where their bond was is much worse than the snap itself, Venti notices immediately. It's dizzying, and he feels...sick. Part of him wants to escape. He wants to run away from the difficult things again. He wants to hide and sleep for another hundred years or so and turn it all off. He doesn't understand what had caused the initial shatter, though he suspects he was the reason that his own words were the final snap.

And - then he just feels guilty. He tries, with every bit of effort, to stop himself from crying. It's not successful completely, though he seems at least able to catch his breath. ]

I don't understand.

[ His voice shakes. Venti latches onto his bonds so much that this is - something he doesn't fully understand the how of. Everything feels so wrong. Aether feels wrong. Not just because of the bond but because of something else - and in that moment the instinct to run away died. No.

No.

He can't leave him like this. Aether was his friend. His companion. Someone he loved like he was one of his own and beyond that. He was important. He was special. And he was seated deep in Venti's heart, and he wants it back. He wants what he had just -- not even ten minutes ago. He wants it but he also -- what if it just shatters again. What if whatever broke them this time caused it to break again. What if? What if he hurts himself again like this. What if he feels so close - loved, cared for - and then it vanishes again all over.

His eyes are red, his face is soaked with tears. How long has it been since he's cried like this? He doesn't ignore Aether's apology. He hears it so clearly - it's the most clear, loudest thing right now for him. And he reaches for him. Right now - he doesn't think it can actually get any worse, so there's nothing to lose. He takes a deep breath, pushing back a few tears for just enough to say. ]

Aether. Please.

[ Please what? He's not clear on. ]

[He doesn't know how to fix this. It's not the first time he's broken a bond. It's not the first time a broken bond led to cracks in his soul. It's not the first time he's felt like he was losing someone precious to him. And yet--]

[But why? Venti was still here. He was right here in front of him! So why did he feel so far away?]

[It's hearing his name fall from Venti's lips that finally lifts some of the fog around him. Everything felt like so much, like he couldn't even process the sound of himself crying. It all felt so far away, impossible to deal with. Like an impending avalanche of emotion that he can't possibly flee from in time.]

[But when Venti reaches for him-- Aether reaches back.]

[Because no matter how much it hurts, or how much his soul wants to recoil and run away from the situation that caused it to crack-- beyond all of that, he still loved Venti. He didn't want this rift to exist between them, nor did he want their bond to remain in limbo for even a moment longer.]

[Because Venti was his best friend. And he's never had one before.]

[It's tentative at first, the way he reaches out and rests a hand on Venti's arm. But then, all at once-- he pulls him in closer and wraps his arms around him, hugging him almost desperately, as if he might vanish in an instant. He doesn't even notice that he's been sobbing this whole time. But the moment his arms are around him, a flood of warmth spreads between them. Bonds that are once broken will always seek to become whole again. And just as quickly as it had snapped, the bond reforms, as a burst of kizuna surges between them.]

[All around them, illusions of dandelions sprout from the ground, interrupted only by the occasional windwheel aster. But Aether doesn't notice any of it, his face buried into Venti's shoulder as he continues to cry -- though perhaps now, in relief.]

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