TURBULENT / XIAOVEN

twenty five

authors notes: happy 3.0 everyone!! yes im updating this during the update bc i am.. bored but ill update yall if i get tighnari and his weapon in the comments later!

um also. try and not be harsh on hu tao or just basically all of the siblings bc they quite literally all have ptsd and they cope in different ways.. also this chapter is a filler btws, i just wanna advance to the next arc tbh

lily qotd: all xiaos family know is kill, be bisexual and cry

cws- abusive sibling relationships, past murder, mention of dissociative amnesia,. i think thats it

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hu tao feels as if she's seeing a ghost.

zhongli glares at her as she's sat on a chair in the middle of what seemed to be the food court. zhongli's arms are crossed as he says nothing while everyone around her is talking loudly, discussing what to do with her as if she wasn't there. well, everyone except xiao, apparently.

"where's xiao?" hu tao asks and the small man next to zhongli speaks up.

"xiao keeps having panic attacks and borderline meltdowns around you, so yeah." the man nods, the braids framing his face bouncing along with his head.

hu tao looks at him– his braids are messy and the bags under his eyes are subtle but not as deep as xiao's were. he wore a sweater that seemed a few sizes too big with shorts. bruises were prominent on his knees– a mixture of dark purple and yellow. on his hand was a small ring, a mint green and white color. hu tao frowns, it seemed as if it was a home-made ring instead of a traditional wedding ring.

"oh, i see. you're his husband so you're doing what you think is best for him, huh? i'm his family. believe me, i know what's good for him." hu tao says and if the glare on zhongli's face could get more murderous with rage, it did.

"you're his family but you know nothing about what's good for him. leave him alone." zhongli says and hu tao pouts.

"yeah? and what are you?" she asks, "because last time i checked, family didn't disappear for a decade. i'm the closest thing xiao has to family. i grew up with him, i was there when he started transitioning, i was there for him for all the huge events in your life but you? you were nowhere to be seen, zhongli."

zhongli nods, "i know i wasn't there and i deeply apologize for that– i was a kid and i didn't know what to do so i ran. however, you did unspeakable things to xiao and for what?"

"because i needed you." she says as he lashes become wet from the tears welling in her eyes, "you have never cared for me in the way you do for him. so, i... i needed to find you for... for an explanation, i guess? i needed to know if the reason why you ran was because of me."

"i'm sorry for that. i really am." zhongli says as he looks into her eyes, "that doesn't give you a right to be shitty to him, though."

"you are always defending him!" she shouts. the others look at her with concern, even dottore who is used to the usual attitude she has on her.

"i am," he nods, "because it's what makes sense to me. as far as i know xiao has never done anything close to what you've done."

hu tao shakes her head as she laughs softly, "even if he did, it wouldn't matter to you. you've always protected him. even the day that the police came for dad's body, you covered for xiao. you said it was an accident."