The Spark [Xiao x Aether]

The banquet IV

Some time passed and eventually, the Tsaritsa showed up on one of the balconies with a bright smile on her face. She spent some time observing all the different people below her before declaring that the Banquet had officially begun. There was a huge table in one of the rooms with a chair ready for everyone. As for the Gods, they were all called into one room that was separated from the main part of the palace of Zapolyarny.

Most people happily moved to the next room. Xiao and Aether were still sipping on their drinks by that time. They waited for the crowd to move away so the two could go their separate ways for now.

The blonde quickly finished his glass in one go and wiped his lips with his arm. He stood up and scanned the room looking for the room where the Gods gathered.

"Don't drink so fast. Are you crazy?" The Yaksha scolded his lover while getting up as well and leaving his glass only half empty.

"Don't worry. I'm not gonna get drunk over one single glass."

While they were having small talk, most guests were already gone from the room.

"You should get going. The rest of the Gods are waiting for you. It would be quite disrespectful if one of the most important guests decided to be late." Xiao encouraged the blonde to hurry up even though he was a bit nervous meeting up with the other Adepti at the banquet table once more.

Aether smiled and kissed him on the cheek before quickly teleporting into the room where the Gods were having a banquet. All the gods were already seated except for the Hydro archon, or what was left of the Hydro archon. Furina has most likely passed away eventually after gaining a human form. Even though she never was the Hydro archon she always attended events like these.

Some new faces were also gathered around the table. They all seemed like nice people. The God of space and time took a seat and the rest of the Gods bowed. The blonde did the same and then the Anemo archon stood up and looked around making sure everyone was there.

"It's nice seeing how everyone showed up right on time. We hadn't had a gathering like this since the first archon war I believe, and back then, times were wild, but now, everything is more peaceful than ever all thanks to a certain someone!" The bard turned to Aether and continued speaking.

"To go through the same world and experience the same journey over 30 times without going mentally crazy is something worth the praise. I myself, believed that at some point this boy in front of me might switch sides, but he didn't. So! Let us raise a toast to our savior!"

And with that, the Anemo archon held a glass of wine high in the air. The rest of the Gods did the same.

As for Aether, he felt unworthy of all this so he didn't lift his glass. He destroyed so many parallel universes just to create a single one. The outcome was amazing, but it still cost many lives of those in the parallel universes. The memories of himself going crazy and killing the people he loved kept replaying in his head every night. It was a burden he had to carry. It was only fair, right?

He tried smiling but the Dendro archon noticed how something was up. She may or may not have used her power of wisdom to read the boy's thoughts. Talking about one's problems was usually the right decision but maybe this time it was better if Aether sorted his grief out by himself. If 200 years weren't enough, there are still yet many to come.

"Aether, know that you're always welcome in Teyvat, whatever nation it may be! We will all always welcome you with open arms." Nahida said with comfort in her voice.

"I'm...very grateful to have accidentally landed here while traveling through the stars. I honestly don't think I ever would've found myself without the people I've met here. So, thank you." The traveler began while slowly raising his own glass too. All the Gods made their glasses crash against one another and sat back down.