I have rewritten 1 - 7 at the time of this release because I wasn't entirely satisfied with Keqing's part. It's like drawing: it's all right and you can live with it when you finish, but then the next day it feels kinda horrible and you wanna do it again. Expect this often; the length of this story may possibly go up to more than 20 chapters. So far, I've planned up to 15.

Also, I'm very glad that some of you think Keqing is acting somewhat like an asshole, because it's exactly what I wanted, but I still want her to come off as... human? It doesn't suit the personality I've got planned for her if she's all mean and no understanding – and I hope I've succeeded in giving you a tiny taste of that in the rewritten version of 1 - 7. She really isn't that well fleshed out yet, but be patient because there'll be a lot of her in future chapters.

Also, everything I removed that seemed important will eventually be added back, I didn't suddenly just change the course of the story. If you can, please give constructive feedback.

[ 1 - 8 ]

Day 6

Yesterday, the young woman spent most of her time tending to Paimon, stuck to her bedside like glue – for multiple hours on end, if she had to. Keqing didn't bother on eating, the injured came first. The traveller, on the other hand, spent most of his day helping repair Qingce's homes and machines wherever it was possible for him to, as well as performing a few odd requests here and there.

Throughout, it felt like both she and the traveller had attempted to avoid each other, as degrading as it was to say. Anyhow, at least matters have not gone south – yet. Keqing had no courage to picture such an eventuality. The blond, despite the odd behaviour he had given, seemed to have reverted to his old mannerisms – much to the Yuheng's gratefulness.

Maybe she was still inexperienced, having acted quite brashly, swept up in the heat of the moment – and maybe, it was assuredly plausible, that all of the young lady's frustrations had only been thrown the traveller's way, solely a method of venting.

My, how unprofessional could she possibly be, how low she had stooped, how unsightly – in no way at all fitting for a being as high as she. It would go beyond doubt to say that her father ought to feel mortified.

Yes, Keqing had still much to learn, managing a critical affair most improperly, treating the relationship she and her escort held unprofessionally, not having bothered to apologise in the slightest for her impolite outburst.

Had nothing changed?

Was she still only a mere child, unable to grasp not but a single thing in her tiny, little hands?

But still–!

Maybe she had only blamed the traveller because the Yuheng didn't want to admit her own mistakes, that she still hadn't been what she thought she was.

Keqing sighed, still keeping watch of Paimon just like yesterday, it had been all she did.

The boy did not show any signs of cowering – not then, not now – and it had to be ludicrous! He had no knowledge of why she had done what she had, why the Yuheng preferred to go alone, why the young lady yearned for everyone's safety that she didn't dare for anyone else in the sight of her amethyst eyes to be harmed – and still!

Still, the boy chose to take his steps forward, blocking her way: the long, winding path she had chosen for herself.

She even remembered worrying about silly slimes. It was not for the sake of her reputation, but the sake of the people's safety. Even if the young lady and the traveller's means clashed, she continued to worry for him and his companion – since she would be ashamed if her skills couldn't even help the pair survive from a single slime, just the thought itself was an insult to her countless contributions.

Even whilst on walks, observing the safety of passerby had been her priority. Call the Yuheng what you wanted, she hadn't the ability to care – not that she desired to have the ability in the first place.

It was not his right to meddle; it had been apparent when the ruin guard in Tianqiu had been close to striking him, when that damned arrow struck the fairy. She still had no clue as to what species the floating entity was, so Keqing resorted to calling her a fairy, though she never dared to use it to address her – she would never hear the end of it, just like that night when they had camped in Cijue Slope.

His actions only brought on further despair, combining with hers to produce an unwanted product. If that was the case, then yes – she admitted – that it would partly be her fault; Keqing had the decency to admit that.

Should another mistake her as one who made use of logic in order to provide an answer in which ruined her opponent and served to improve her favours, yet ignore all logic in the event that it is not in her favour, they are gravely mistaken.

Maybe she had only been running away.

The Yuheng won all her meetings through her own efforts, fair and square. That is one reason why none have attempted to bring her down – that and because she was of the Qixing, and that she possessed a vision, and that she knew how to use a sword.

Her hand tentatively approached Paimon's forehead, slipping under her colourless hair and lightly brushing the bangs aside and resting on her little forehead, eyelids now more visible for the young lady to gaze at. A smile crept up her mouth, threatening to contort into a wide grin yet also into a frown – and her eyes watered to a small extent, brimming at the edge as a few words threatened to release.

Though there had been no way for the fairy to realise whatever it was the Yuheng would say, Keqing... pined to speak.

Perhaps she longed to say the words – but once she did, the young lady would have to admit what lied in wait, what it meant if Keqing decided to. Be that as it may, on the bight side – her mind surely must be desperate if the Yuheng had begun searching for compromise – her thoughts could be less cloudy. At the very least, her head could be clearer.

It's just...

Her eyebrows scrunched, lips wavering as the words found their way out.

"I'm sorry..."

"I have been given the task to protect you."

"You have no need to."

"I believe I have every need to."

"I am quite sure you don't–"

"Guys–!"

Once again, Aether heard flesh tearing, droplets of blood crashing into the ground like balls of paint being flung to a wall – an exceedingly unpleasant racket the boy was subjected to hear for hours on end, and to make matters worse (as if they weren't already), the blond always heard a single exhale, so realistic he swore the voice was right behind his ear, like an unrelenting phantom that ceased to disappear.

This past week, the boy's past had been surfacing more often than before, never mind the countless headaches. His mind had been echoing countless voices that he didn't wish to hear anymore, getting louder with every passing second until it came to a frustrating point where he hoped to just bash his fucking head into a sharp rock and pierce his brain, killing himself altogether.

Would Master Diluc relate, having lost his father in such a gruesome way that even he had been uncomfortable just imagining the winery owner's words? Would the Acting Grand Master know of the symptoms which pained Aether, which made him want to rip out his own skin and plunge his fingers right into his heart?

The boy had no idea as to what relationship they both held, but he knew of the melancholy glances Jean had – he knew just what it was in her eyes. They had been close in the past, weren't they?

The only unanswerable question to the boy was why Diluc hadn't taken the support Jean offered, and it faintly angered the boy. The vigilante was alone, even when he had a way out – and now that relationship both he and Jean had dwindled, fully leaving the winery owner by himself.

Aether was envious, Aether longed for the light that Diluc was offered, the light in his tunnel. For the blond, that light didn't exist; he had thought so multiple times.

Surely there was another out there who he could correlate with.

Paimon couldn't fit that role, even if she hoped to. Her smiles and her sweet, comforting laughter could only go so far.

The only one Aether could think of had been snatched away by some unknown god, taken from his grasp like a parent took away their child's possessions – quick, strong enough that the child would be powerless to do anything but a vain attempt in taking it back, a small shout of protest.

Power, it seemed, was the only way in which anyone could attain happiness. Power was always present, either in the form of social standings, in wealth, the job one had, or pure strength.

The boy didn't have enough, and when a being hadn't enough, another would always overtake them, control them – be it an opponent in the form of a warrior, a persecutor in school, at work, even one of the Qixing, a person's words, the victim's brain as they belittle themselves, even he himself to hilichurls, even death, time itself.

Power had no end; something bigger would always come to swallow up the smaller one, even if others believed that there is such an existence of an almighty, omnipotent being.

So far, Aether thought it was all crap – praying to gods, that was.

As much as you prayed, there was no guarantee they would answer, much less even hear your thoughts. Did people have proof of telepathy? Did they seriously believe that gods were omnipotent? Take for example a weakling god that had survived in the archon war simply by hiding.

When they had survived, people would believe they had power, even when they really did not. There was no guarantee. In that case, why not just believe in something realistically possible to grasp for those who weren't divine?

This was just a random thought, but what about the person's own strength?

Pleading for mercy was useless; it's equivalent to crying for someone's impending death when you weren't doing anything. He had already done so long ago, and he was never answered – not once. It'd be best to take it upon one's own hands to deal with their problems, and if you failed, it would be your fault.

"Is something wrong, big bro?" A boy had grabbed on to his leg, eyes looking back at his.

"N-nothing's wrong..."

He had been put in babysitting duty, this was no time to be thinking of such things. Aether promptly shook his head, showing what could count as a smile before sitting a bit more straighter. He had noticed that whilst he had been absorbed in his thoughts – the traveller had started to space out a lot more – his back had bent forward with his chin resting on his hands.

Thankfully, even if Aether didn't deal well with kids, the ones he had been told to take care of were all well-behaved. Maybe the Yuheng had influenced them. In any case, Aether only needed to tend to the children for a little while longer, up to 5 pm when their parents would call out to them by the entrances of their homes, shouting mildly for their children to come back for dinner – and right now, it was 4:45.

Try as he might, Aether couldn't prevent his most recent thought from returning.

It'd be best to take it upon one's own hands to deal with their problems, and if you failed, it would be your fault.

Ah, that only meant one thing, if thoughts like these were coming back.

"Don't blame yourself..."

Dammit, fine.

"Bye, mister traveller!"

Aether returned the cheerful waves with one of his own, turning to the direction at which the trio was lodging at, the lamp posts outside snuffed out by villagers still roaming around. Stars atop hills like these, especially in small villages were amazing, quite breathtaking. He looked up at the night sky, taking in the brisk air. The stars were shining brightly, as if they had the energy and regained passion to light up the sky, more dark blue than pitch-black.

Somewhere far away, unknown to him, someone – or a group of people – were happy. The blond had been told that whenever the stars seemed to be illuminating the night more so than before, it meant joy was present somewhere. Aether could only see his nights as being pitch-black. None of the constellations were familiar to him, but even so, it brought back wanted yet unwanted nostalgia, sitting on the cool grass beside that cerulean-haired girl.

Then the sound of flesh ripping returned. Yep, unwanted.

The blond silently opened the door, although the Yuheng was likely to have heard his feet approaching the door a few meters away, Aether continued to silently step in before lightly closing the door behind him. The floorboards creaked, signalling his presence to the young lady as he approached Keqing's room, the room in which Paimon rested.

From what Aether's eyes could see, Paimon was asleep, and a glass of water and some painkillers contained in tiny vials on a bedside table next to the Yuheng, who had been resting her head on the bed whilst sitting on the floor beside her before he decided to come in.

She stood up, clearing her throat, "I... Can we take this outside?"

With a nod, they silently walked out, taking care to close Paimon's door.

People like Aether loved silence, it was tranquillity, peace, relaxation – however, when face to face with a person you had just argued with, the boy would beg to differ. His clenched fists relaxed somewhat, gradually letting out a deep breath as he steeled his resolve and looked Keqing straight in the eye. The boy hadn't felt so much ever since he left the other world, hoping that this could be the last time he had to feel like this.

"I'm sorry... well, for everything. I hope I don't have to make the same mistakes again."

If anything, Aether thought he was a total dick, and now – having looked back – the traveller could see some of his mistakes. He was attempting to protect a person who already knew how to take care of herself, as well as others, all his 'heroic' habits had become too obsessive much less than kind, and it brought his downfall. Despite being obsessed, it didn't mean he had gotten any better. Well, of course, he already knew it – no less than some part of it, but by some chance, he had only been denying. No, he was denying.

After all, how could one admit that they've continued to make the mistakes even when they had been submitted to the consequences long ago?

"I guess I was too obsessed with, well, you know, the plan..." Aether trailed off, guilt in his eyes as he stared off to anywhere that wasn't in view of Keqing. The fences seemed to be more intriguing than usual, with its silver nails and its, uh, brownness. Dammit, he was supposed to be the experienced one here, wasn't he? The one who went through hell? It turns out he's just a kid who hasn't learned a single thing.

And after another breath...

"It's my fault, and I don't think I can face Paimon, but I still want you to take care of her, seeing as you two are pretty close and all."

The boy felt selfish, he knew Keqing hadn't eaten, maybe slept, for a whole day – and he didn't want to see that. It had been reminding him of how he used to be. Well, there wasn't a lot of difference; Aether thought he hadn't changed aside from having learnt his lesson, which the blond was wrong about.

"Don't you think I feel guilty, as well?" It had been her voice this time, and Aether could hear the gravel crunch as he felt the warmth of her hands grasp his own – or to be more exact his wrist, and she had been holding on quite tightly, enough that the boy wondered if his blood could pass through her grip. His hands would be numb soon, he guessed, but even then – against the cold winds of winter – her warmth served to satisfy him even if right now wasn't the perfect time to be thinking that.

Her nails weren't so sharp had it been digging into Aether's skin, but the softness of her fingers, matching that of a pillow, sent low shivers through his body. The traveller was a boy, after all; there was no helping it, not that Aether had any intention of stopping her. Aether felt her squeeze his wrist involuntarily, the grip loosening as it moved about a centimetre down.

"If only I hadn't tried to do everything by myself," she repeated his words from before. Clearing her throat, the Yuheng looked up at him, even if the traveller had been looking another way, still unable to look at her. "I acted quite mean last night, pushing you away like that. You cant say it's your fault, not when I'm feeling so guilty, not when I wanted to apologise, too. If only I hadn't kept ignoring you, actually bothered to listen to you, then Paimon wouldn't have..."

She tugged on the wrist she had been holding, "Please look this way... Aether."

"Honestly... are you gonna look at me or what?"

No, the resemblance was too much – but who was he to deny a request? Gradually, his head turned back, his eyes reluctantly staring into hers, although the boy didn't want to come off as a terrified child afraid of a girl, so his face managed to pull off an indifferent expression.

"I don't want you to be held responsible for this, not when I hold part of the blame, I won't be able to live with it. That being said, could you... could you forgive me?" Now, it was Keqing's turn to look somewhere else, and that somewhere else was the ground.

"That's my line."

An awkward chuckle escaped both their lips, the diamonds in the sky sparkling more than Aether had ever seen for the first time in a while.