— title; love, it never dies, it never goes away, it never fades.
— pairing; xiao x reader
— summary; in which, even as a ghost, you still find yourself watching over xiao
— notes; dedicated to @oikadiors. happy birthday, and thank you for being my friend.
Your voice is the first to break the stillness. “No luck?”
The blonde traveller snaps to attention, nearly stumbling down the stairs, and promptly backpedals into the wall. He hits the wooden panelling and stares dead ahead, at how you seem to have materialised from thin air, standing at the very bottom of the landing.
Appearing to be on the very cusp of youthhood, your features are perfect and beautiful – most stunning of all are your eyes, which sparkle with brightness and good humour. A bright blue flower is pinned to the front of your purple robes, which, though made from the finest silks, appear to be a tad old-fashioned, the design of which could never be replicated by the clothing shops so prominent in the harbour of Liyue.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Your lips come together, and you offer him an apologetic smile, your head dipping into a formal bow. “Were you talking to Xiao?”
The boy’s companion gapes at you. Her tone screams volumes of her displeasure. “You know that cranky Adeptus?”
“Fufu, you’re not the first person to call him that.” You use the sleeve of your robes to hide your smile and muffle your laughter. “I managed to get the gist of the conversation. The two of you need to see Xiao, right?”
The traveller relaxes a little, but alertness and curiosity continue to burn in his eyes. “You wouldn’t happen to know how, would you?”
You tap your finger to your lips, considering. “I might have an idea or two.”
Moments later, the three of you find yourselves inside the sugar-perfumed kitchen of Wangshu Inn. Pots bubble cheerfully on the stove, and you call out instructions to Aether and Paimon, watching from the sidelines and occasionally correcting the way that they hold a knife, or strain mixtures into bowls.
“What are we making now?” Aether asks, liberally adding tomatoes to his salad, which is full of bright colours and textures. He’d been so excited to make it that you hadn’t had the heart to tell him that Xiao only ate almond tofu – had been doing so for centuries on end now.
“This is my speciality. It’s called Tau Huay.” You say. You try to pick up a bowl, but your fingers mist through it, and you’re left with a sudden sense of loss. Aether and Paimon are both silent, but you’re acutely aware of their gazes, weighing heavily upon your shoulders. Then you push a smile onto your lips that is broken in several spots. “Would you be willing to help me make it?”
It’s a sweet dish. Almost as sweet as the almond tofu. You know the recipe by heart. Chilled soyabean milk, agar powder, flavoured with a generous amount of sweet ginger syrup. Xiao had loved it, had always fallen upon your cooking with an eagerness that had melted your heart. You remember this much. Your breath catches in your throat.
It’s hard for you to see through the sudden well of tears that threatens.
“Aren’t you coming?” Aether asks, bearing a tray with three of the offerings balanced precariously upon it.
Your voice is scraped raw. “Of course.”
The walk up the stairs is short, but to you, it feels like an eternity, with how slowly you’re moving, your movements mechanical as you focus on placing first one foot in front of you, then the other. Aether and Paimon soon leave you behind in their haste to see Xiao. And in their wake, there is a sudden, hollow silence, accompanied by a frigid soreness buried so deep inside that no amount of heat will be able to wring it out.
“Where did you get this?” Xiao’s voice is sharp, and not nearly as steady as he would have hoped.
Your chest feels hollow. Everything inside you uncoils.
Time is a funny thing. It means nothing to an Adeptus, or to a ghost such as yourself. It’s been centuries since you’ve last seen him, and you find yourself drinking in his every feature; the bright gold of his eyes, his delicate features, the choppy length of his hair. Just looking at him is enough to bring you to times long gone. You can still remember the smell of his skin, the warmth in his eyes when he’d stared at you when he thought you weren’t looking, the calloused roughness of his hands that were exceedingly gentle as they’d held yours.
“That person, there – They told us to make it.”
“Where?”
Comprehension flickers across Aether’s face, the pieces of the puzzle falling into place. Your inability to cook. The way you’d materialised from thin air. The oddness of your clothes. “Can’t you see them? They’re standing by the door, just over there.”
You’ve never seen Xiao move so quickly before. He’s standing before you almost instantly, his features contorted as he lifts up a hand, trying desperately to hold onto what little of you there still is.
But it’s a futile effort.
He can’t see you.
He can’t touch you.
You can only watch as his fingers slip through the air, leaving you with a spark of sadness. Your heart twists in your chest, your lips open in a silent cry. Your own pain is reflected upon his face; it’s an expression the two of you are intimately familiar with.
It is a curious thing, watching someone so strong fall to pieces. How quietly Xiao has endured everything that has fallen upon him. But now, with you standing so close, and yet so far from him, the smallest sound escapes from his parted lips, the quietest breaking of a soul.
— summary; in which you have a last dance with xiao
— notes; dedicated to @teyvatstories for carrying me in genshin and always making me lose my mind during our co op sessions.
“Dance with me,” You tell Xiao.
An elegant hairpin carved to resemble a glaze lily adorns your hair, and your robes are a matching shade of blue, the material as light as a breath against your skin. Strands of pearls are wrapped around your neck, your wrists; luxury that you would normally not have cause to wear, but today is a special day. And the ensemble feels so perfect, so lovely, that it feels as though you’re royalty, and that alone is cause for you to smile, the dark stirrings in your mind temporarily held at bay by the force of your joy.
“Alright.”
The pain in his eyes pricks at the darkness writhing and frothing at the back of your mind, banging at the barely standing barriers.
“Dance with me,” You tell him again, your smile never faltering as you slot your body into his arms. The warmth of his touch seeps through the thin silk of your robes, contrasting with the cold chill of the spring night. It’s as easy as breathing, as though the two of you have done so a thousand times before.
You’ve never been one for dancing. You might be a graceful force of nature on the battlefield, but compared to Xiao, your steps are clumsy and hesitant. Still, you find yourself laughing as Xiao spins you in complex twists and turns, your body melting into his form. Like this, with the roses filling your gaunt cheeks and your laughter ringing out in his ears, a dim hope still flickers to life in Xiao’s chest that this night will have a happy ending, that the two of you will be able to see another sunrise together.
The world fades away, leaving only you and Xiao, moving together. Your pulse jumps through your veins. You can feel Xiao’s heartbeat too, as if your own heart is racing frantically alongside his. You move like one mesmerized, your eyes never leaving Xiao’s steady gaze. With each step, your bodies draw together, ever nearer, ever closer. You grow bold enough to lift your hand, resting it against his cheek. He’s warm, and you’re cold. Colder than you’ve ever been, surely. In the light of the full moon above, the hard lines of his face are softer, younger than they look in the day. And his eyes are twin pools of gold.
You close the slight distance between your faces, and brush your lips against his, softly at first, but when his hand reaches up and knots in your hair, anchoring you against him, the soft edge to your kiss fades away. There is nothing soft about it. Not now. Everything slips away until your world is made up of mingled breaths, calloused hands, and your name breathed out in benediction.
“Xiao?” You murmur, once the two of you can’t kiss anymore, and he’s just holding you against him with your face pressed to the crook of his neck.
“Promise me something.”
“Anything.”
“Please find happiness.” A sickening heat sweeps over you, causing you to sweat and shiver. A sensation you know all too well. Only this one is far more intense. And it hurts. Oh, it hurts. Pain shoots through you, undeniable, agony in its purest form. Your breathing comes in short, sharp rasps, not enough oxygen reaching your head. “I want you to find happiness.”
Xiao must recognise this for what it is. A goodbye. The cruellest twist of the knife you can deliver, your last words hurting you as much as they hurt him. The two of you had walked across the grassy plains knowing that this trip would be your very last, your body finally succumbing to the darkness festering inside your soul. Every word seems to pain him, but you can see how badly he tries not to show it.
Xiao looks at you as though you’ve destroyed him, as though you’ve already made a ruin out of him. He might be a warrior with blood staining his hands, but just now, he’s nothing more than a heartbroken boy. “. . . I give you my word.”
It feels as if your sanity, your emotions . . . Your everything hangs at the end of a horribly frayed rope. Any second the threads will snap, and you’ll fall, crack open, and all the darkness inside will spill out.
Death and destruction soon to follow.
No one will be safe.
You know this.
So does Xiao.
“Xiao.” Your vision sways, the world spinning and settling. You have to resist the urge to claw at your chest, desperate to release this darkness clutching you, to be free from its strangling hold. “It’s time.”
For a moment, Xiao’s fingers dig into the fabric of your robes, into your flesh, as if he wants to cling to you rather than let you go. It seems to you that he holds on for a long while, as if he can’t bear to let go of you.
But he does.
Because it’s you asking.
Because he’s duty-bound.
You smile at him. And it is a beautiful, broken thing. “It’s alright. You could never hurt me.”
You’re still smiling when he plunges his polearm into your chest.
— title; i'll hold you through the night until you smile.
— pairing; child! xiao x child! reader
— summary; in which xiao has a nightmare, and you comfort him.
It’s the long string of unceasing whimpers that has you jerking awake in a cold sweat, your heart pounding violently. You stare at the darkened ceiling, panting, your mind clawing up from the depths of sleep.
“Go away!”
Xiao?
“Don’t wanna go back!”
Throwing off the covers, you scramble out of bed, running into the room next door. The faint light from the bedside lamp casts a warm, buttery glow over the room, exposing Xiao writhing on the bed, his legs twisted in the bedding.
“Xiao!”
It’s your voice, pained and fraying apart at the seams with worry that coaxes Xiao back into reality. He wakes with a violent jerk and a startled cry. His eyes dart around the room, as looking for the monsters which had plagued him in his sleep. He stares at you, with dazed, half-shut eyes, at the tension pinching your cheeks and your eyes much too large in your frightened face.
“[ NAME ]?” Xiao gasps, his voice breaking apart at the seams. “What’s wrong?”
You linger hesitantly by the edge of his bed. “Did you have a bad dream?”
He looks even younger than usual, his round face wet with the beginnings of tears and his large eyes red and frightened.
You come to a quick decision.
“Move over.”
“Wh – What?”
“Move over.”
Confusion breaks across Xiao’s face like the sunrise, but he scooches to the edge of the bed. The mattress creaks as you settle your frame upon it, kicking and squirming as you try to get comfortable. In short order, you have him settled back against the pillows once more, the two of you huddled together beneath the blanket with only the bedside lamp for company.
You twist around to face him. “What you were dreaming about?”
Xiao hesitates for only a breath, fresh tears springing to his eyes. “I had to go back to – I don’t wanna go back.”
You’ve heard the story, of course. How your Lord had rescued Xiao from the clutches of an evil god, had given him a new name and taken him under his wing. Now, your anger burns brightly. You’ve never been much of a fighter, but now, you feel the urge to rage and scream and destroy bubbling up in the pit of your stomach.
“It’s okay.” You pet at his face, his hair, just as you remember seeing Guizhong doing, gestures of comfort for the young Adepti particularly prone to bursting into tears at the smallest of problems. You wish that you could do more. “You’re okay. You can stay here with us.”
Xiao sniffles. “I’m scared.”
“I won’t let anyone hurt you.” You say, a protective edge to your voice. “Staying right here. Promise.”
You continue talking in a low soothing voice, murmuring reassurances and promises. Xiao slips away with a deep exhalation, the pucker in his forehead smoothed out.
Guizhong and Rex Lapis find you both in the morning, your body still curled protectively around Xiao’s, even in slumber.
— summary; in which you mistake xiao’s feelings for those of hatred, when he in fact feels the opposite for you.
— notes; happy belated birthday, xiao !!
“Psst. Lady Guizhong?” Your little face peeks around the shadowy corner of a stone pillar, into her peripheral vision. Intent on staying out of sight, you’re hiding from your Lord and the newest Adeptus to grace your numbers, rescued mere months ago. “Lady Guizhong? Come quick, please?”
Guizhong is quick to set her book down upon the table, and is even quicker to follow you deeper into the winding walkway of the garden. In the distance, the faint sound of the ocean soothes your ears and your jangled nerves. “What is it, little one?”
“Can I tell you a secret?” You ask, stopping only when you’ve rounded the corner of a thick row of hedges.
After a minute, Guizhong recovers her voice. “Of course.” She says, bending down to your level.
“I don’t like Xiao.” You say, unable to look at her, instead staring at the ground underfoot, damp and littered with leaves, as the natural debris of autumn is churned into a faintly red mud. “Can he go away?”
Disapproval mars her otherwise beautiful face as she gently lifts up your chin, forcing your eyes up. “Little one, that’s not a nice thing to say. What did Xiao do to you that was so bad?”
“He’s – He’s always staring at me.” Always, always, that itchy uncomfortable feeling that you can’t quite shake whenever you’re with him. He’s about your age, but already, the intensity of his gaze is searing. Another thing that he and your Lord have in common. You bubble up and over at the indignity of it all. “And, and, he doesn’t wanna talk to me at all! His face gets all red, and then he won’t look at me – Xiao’s so weird!”
“Oh.” Guizhong reaches up, covers her red-tinted mouth with a billowing sleeve. Still, you can hear the laughter in her voice, as much as she tries to hide it. “Oh, dear.”
“Wha – Lady Guizhong? Why are you laughing at me? What did I say?”
“Why don’t you give Xiao another chance? He’s a very sweet boy. Isn’t that right, Xiao?”
Guilt is written all over Xiao’s face as he shuffles out from behind the hedge at the sound of his name, fleshy cheeks flushed with the force of his guilt at being caught eavesdropping. Guizhong beckons him over with a smile, and the two of them speak in hushed voices, Xiao’s fraying with worry, Guizhong’s steady and calm.
“Go on.” You hear Guizhong say.
You perk up an ear, but don’t twitch an eyelid.
“But I’m scared.”
“It’s all right.”
Guizhong won’t take no for an answer as she pushes Xiao in your direction; he practically stumbles forwards, almost tripping over his own two feet. His hands are curiously tucked behind his back, but the reason for that soon makes itself known when he presents you with a bunch of glazed lilies. The heat of the day brings the flower to its strongest essence, and the open blossoms are spilling out perfume.
“For you.” Xiao blurts out, the first time he’s ever spoken directly to you.
— title; call out my name, i will be here when you call.
— pairing; xiao x child! reader (platonic)
— summary; in which, plagued by nightmares, you call for an adeptus to keep you company
— notes; this is my first time writing for xiao, so i hope it’s not too ooc!! dedicated to @uwuwriting for helping me beat dvalin!!
Frightening dreams buffet you about through the night; a room filled with blood, the colorless pallor of your parents, and the cold, sharp bite of a blade pressed to your throat. You wake with a start and a gasp to your dark room, listening to the pipes in the belly of your house grumbling with elderly flatulence. Outside, the heavy splatter of rain can be heard. Lightning flashes and thunder freezes you where you lie. Cold beads of sweat roll down your forehead and you're shivering, gagging for breath.
Your heart is beating at an impossible rate. Caught in the throes of fear, you squeeze your eyes tight shut. A single image floods your mind behind your closed eyes: the solemn, delicate features of the Adeptus you'd encountered only several days before, rescuing you from a group of particularly persistent slimes. The Adeptus had found you cowering behind a clump of bushes, your entire body shaking, the trembling of your tiny frame betraying the deep fear and tension you'd felt. He'd departed swiftly, shortly after checking that you were unhurt, but not without leaving you with a parting message.
"If you are ever in danger, call out my name. Adeptus Xiao. I will be here when you call."
"X-Xiao. Xiaooo." Your heart falls through your gut, and you make a whining sound, words choked out. Your eyes sting as tears form. "A. Adeptus Xiaoooo."
A ferocious wind rips through your room as the windows are flung open, bringing in the scent of damp soil and rain; the bitter draft stirs your hair and tickles your skin. Your room is filled with a gentle green glow, and all at once, the dark shadows and corners are less of a menace now that you're not alone.
Xiao's frame is tense as he scans the entirety of your room, his eyes darting about in their search for nonexistent threats and monsters. Still huddled under your blankets, you watch, wide-eyed, as he throws open cupboards and peeks into corners; only after deeming your room safe does he turn to you.
His lips downturned at the corners, Xiao demands, "Are you the one who called out for me?"
Dry sobs tickle your throat, and you take several short and shallow breaths, trying to nod your head but failing.
"Why?" A hand is flung out, as if to demonstrate the apparent safety of your room. Xiao huffs, as though preparing to leave. "There isn't any danger here, is there? You're unhurt. This is a waste of time."
"No. Nooo." You say, feeling your bottom lip quiver, bringing with it a fresh wave of tears, leaking out from beneath your eyelids and wetting the pillow beneath your head. The darkness seems to be closing in again, every corner of the room seeming menacing. Outside, the sound of the wind roaring through the trees is chilling. "But. But. I'm scared. I got bad dreams, so I called for Xiao – And, and I don't wanna be alone. Please don't go."
There's a pause. Silence falls like a thick foot of fresh snow. But then the windows click close, and you shut your eyes, sure that he's gone. The fear rises, holding you tight in its clawed grip. You can't be alone. The floor creaks. Your heart stops. The sound of footsteps are muffled by the plush carpet, and then silence. You mattress dips at the added weight. Slowly, you crack an eye open.
Xiao sits there, casually perched on the edge of your bed. Quickly, before he can change his mind, you reach out a hand, twining your smaller, stubbier fingers with his as if to keep him anchored to your side. It is, you know, a silly thought, especially since you know that you're helpless to keep him from leaving. The contact straightens Xiao's spine, tenses his frame like the string of a bow pulled taut, but he doesn't pull away.
"You humans are so weak." Xiao says, but there's no real anger to his voice, not with how securely he keeps your fingers threaded through his own, rough and corded with muscle. "Sleep. I'll be here."
He keeps his word.
For when you awaken again in the night, conscious enough to flip restlessly onto your stomach, he's still there, bathed in the moonlight. Siting beside you, still clutching your hand, his amber eyes alert as he guards you from the night and its terrors.
the wave of pain is so strong that it’s enough to make him dizzy. xiao groans against your swollen chest, wrapping his lips around your nipple, his cheeks hollowing slowly. the sweet, familiar taste of your milk coats his tongue, the pain loosening its grip when your power begins to seep through him.
the tender suckling feels so good that you gasp and arch into the deep pulls that echo in the clenching of your core. his tongue laps greedily at the hardened point, worrying it, before surrounding it with wet heat and suction. you pet at his hair, over and over, gentling him as he continues to suckle greedily, even as your heart races wildly, the wetness slick and burning in between your thighs.
