Unreachable Hand || [ xiao ]

2.0 till the day we meet again

Artist: @gen_hati from twitter

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Wet....cold...disgusting. That's all the feeling I had when I was transferred into the surface prison. How long has it passed? day, night, when I was locked up underground I had no idea what's going on outside. but now that I'm here I could tell it just reaches noon, as the sun peaks its head from the cloud. 

I look around me, a view full of white. With two-guard, guarding in front of my cell, looking sleepy and tired.  They don't provide shoes nor warm clothes for prisoners, and that does the same for me too. 

"hey," I voice out. The guard looks at me and looks away, showing no sign of communication. So I sat back down on the cold wet snow. it's freezing out here yet I feel numb. In a few hours, I'm probably gonna be executed. When did I start to become careless about my own life? I don't know.  I've been thinking and thinking the past few months in prison, spending boring days of nothing but staying in a room behind the bar for months. 

"stand back sir, you're not permitted to be here" hearing a voice I raise my head to see what's going on. Seeing a ginger color head behind held down by a few guards. "We will have no choice but to attack you, sir, please this was an order given by our royal highness herself!!" another yells. 

"Let me through, all I want to do is just to talk!!" childe yelled out. When the place died down, the guard let him through, I could see him approach me step by step. Standing in front of my cell unlocking it. "w-what are you doing!? I thought you only want to talk to her" one of the guards tried to pull childe back but childe just glared at him, making him shiver and back away. 

He came into my cell and pulled me outside harshly. I widen my eyes at his act and look back at him who is throwing the key into the cell I was locked up in. I open my mouth eager to know the reason why he did this but "just to make it clear. I'm not betraying the fatui" he shot back a glare as I closed my mouth knowing, in the end, I had nowhere to run. 

After that, he held two of my arms and tied them up behind me with a rope. "I was ordered to escort her to the main arena of execution" I heard childe speak to his men as he continued to give them orders. 

no matter how nice he acts, no matter how kind he becomes in the end fatui are just fatui. He had stated from the start that he won't betray the fatui yet how dumb of me to felt that he betrayed me. He was never on my side from the start. 

"I'm sorry y/n" he whispered into my ear. There is no need for apologies. he did not do anything wrong. As two of my arms are being tied behind my back I start walking towards the direction childe leads me to. 

Eventually walking into an arena filled with crowds. He forcefully pushes me down onto the ground and walks away into the crowds of people. From this position, I look up seeing the cryo archon up close. She stands high and mighty from here with a pair of a sword in her hand. beautiful, that's my first impression of seeing her. "Greeting my fellow follower and-"

Out of nowhere, she starts her speech, though none of the information came through my head. hearing the crowd cheers out I instantly bite on my lips. it is going to end like this? Am I going to die like this?  all the emotions I didn't feel before started flowing inside of me. I feel like I'm back alive again yet I'm at the peek of death. 

"xiao!!! I have made almond tofu for you!!"

"...*sigh* thanks"

Why now, I bite my lip harder and harder as it starts to draw blood. Why now I must get a memory of you!! I scream inside my head, I can hear my heartbeat going louder and louder as I see her highness taking each step closer in my direction.

I don't want to die... I don't want to die!!! blood starts to drip from my lips as I look up at the archon. "y/n? *sigh* did you explode something again" memory of him is starting to flow inside my head, he pinch at me lightly then smiles away. 

"that mortal... why can't you stay out of trouble sometimes" 

"ah!! y/n!!!!! paimon missed you!!! How was Sumeru?!"

"hey y/n!! It's astrology, not whatever the word you're saying."

"hm...? a recommendation? I would say diluc makes the best- ouch!!"

I can hear, I can hear all the people I have met so far, I can see their smile why. Why did I suddenly remember about them now? No...I want to go back. I want to live. "a potential threat to our country should be eliminated" I heard her highness say as she raised her sword. The tip of the swords shines from the reflection of light. it was quick yet I saw everything in slow motion. 

The sword shines and in the speed of light comes swinging down at me, I shut my eyes tight and wait for death to pull me away but "Y/N!!!!!!!" I open my eyes  again and look over to where the voice came from, it was childe. Everyone is confused, even the archon herself is. She didn't cut me yet. it stops on top of my head. 

Childe huffed out for air as each breath came out white due to its freezing temperature. His eyes are watery, I could see his nose is red. "Y/n!!! FIRE!!!!" he yelled out again. 

I widen my eyes and look over to my waist. how come I didn't notice this. it's my vision, when did he. no, it's not a time to think about this now. While everyone still has attention on childe, while they still have an eye on him I quickly burn down the rope around my wrist and stand up kicking the sword away from me. 

Now that all the attention to childe turns to me, I'm still shocked at the situation but I have to keep moving, if I stop I will get caught. But my leg is no longer used anymore, with the constant coldness from the snow it had turned all pale. I feel numb, as much as I want to run it's a little difficult. 

"Y/n!!!! I heard another yell from childe. He hopped away from the crowd and ran up to me picking me up in his arms and began running. "get your bag and sword from my back!!" he yelled as he ran. I nodded at him and reached out for my stuff holding my sword. "can you create an explosion? that blast us away" he continues while dodging all the attacks. 

"cough... ahem y-yes" he put me down as I stuck my sword out glancing up to the fatui that was chasing us. "uhhh they are coming!!" childe shakes me up a little bit as he points the sword to the ground. I breathe in and out, looking up again. not now... not yet... I began concentrating as childe shook me up more. jeez if you want to run from this situation then stay calm a bit. 

"hold on tight if you don't want to get blast away" I yelled at him as my sword began glowing red, the snow around the place starts to melt. Childe grabs me and as soon as the fatui gets too close I pull my sword out creating a massive explosion, blasting two of us away. "WHOOOHOOO you're so cool!" childe yelled in a sparkly eye. In return, I smile at him weekly. 

Flying a mile away, successfully I escaped. I have escaped yet the reality is cruel. It didn't take much longer for me to collapse on the ground.

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2.0 till the day we meet again

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With no further trace of you, 2 years have passed by. 

Aether runs and runs down the hill, eventually tripping on the rock and hit the tree. "Careful now" he heard xiao's voice. instantly looking up he got up from the floor. "x-xiao!! xiao!!! hear me out hear me out!! Lantern lite is coming close. WAIT this year!! Please come with us!!!.  instead of just sending me off like last year, this year let's enjoy the lantern lite together. not just me but Zhongli also has invited you out" said aether. 

"zhongli did....?"

"y-yes!! so, please will you come with us this year?" nervously aether asked. Xiao thought about it for a second and "....sure" he replied. Xiao could see the spark in Aether 's eye when he agreed to come. 

two years. two more years have passed. After hearing the story from childe, aether and paimon directly went back to wangshuu inn for a report.  Childe had no idea where you went next after Snezhnaya so there is no further trace of you. 
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