Chapter 2
Liyue Harbour.
"Thanks for helping us escort the Merchants Traveller to Liyue Harbour. Without your assistance, we would not have made it safely fighting those bandits on the road," one of the knights of Favonius said with a grateful smile.
Aether nodded. "No problem; I'll let you handle the rest of here," he said, waving his hand. The knight saluted him as he turned to leave.
Paimon pops up next to him and says, "Few, that's been a long journey, but we finally made it to Liyue Harbour!" She stretched her body. "Let's head to Adventure Guild and report our success in helping the knights escort the merchants," she said as she floated towards the guild.
Aether followed her fast, with Qiqi running away from Hutao. She waved to him before running after the little zombie. Aether eyed the two before disappearing into the crowd. He caught up to Paimon bump into Ganyu and Keqing, heading towards the jade chamber. Ganyu waved her hand at him, a paint blush on her cheeks. And Keqing did the same with a blush on her cheeks before she dragged Ganyu away towards the jade chamber. Aether raised his brow before shaking his head and chuckling. As they were almost to the guild, he saw Zhongli listening to Iron Tongue Tian. Zhongli saw them and nodded his head. Aethed did the same. Zhongli picked up his tea and took a sip. And continue listening to Iron Tongue Tian. Aether and Paimon arrived at the guild.
The receptionist greeted them warmly. "Ad astra abyssosque Traveller and Paimon are here to report mission success in escorting the merchants to Liyue Harbour." The receptionist smiled.
"Hi Katheryne, and yes, the escort mission was a success," Paimon said excitedly.
The receptionist nodded and handed them their reward. "Here's your reward for a job well done," she said. "Both of you must be exhausted after such a long journey. Go and take a break, Traveller and Paimon."
Aether put the reward in his personal pocket. "Thanks; we will, Katheryne." He waved his hand as they turned and walked away. Katheryne watched them go, smiling at their backs.
"Hah, Paimon is hungry. Let's head to Wanmin Restaurant and grab a bite to eat," she said, floating off in the direction of the restaurant.
Both of us seated ourselves at a table. Chef Mao appeared from the kitchen, ready to take our order.
"Hello Traveller and Paimon , what can I get for you today?" he said.
"Paimon wants grilled tiger fish and minty meat rolls!" she said excitedly.
He nodded his head and jotted down the order on his notepad. He looked at Aether and asked, "And you, Traveller?"
"Jewellery soup and mint salad, Chef Mao," he said calmly.
He nodded his head and wrote down the order: "Grilled tiger fish and minty meat rolls, jewellery soup, and mint salad coming right up!" he said, heading towards the kitchen.
As Aether and Paimon waited patiently at the table,
"While we wait, next week we have a day off. What do you want to do on your day off, Aether?" she said, floating gently above the chair.
Aether thought for a moment before replying, "I'll be visiting my kids next week, Paimon, and my son is in trouble, so I'll be gone in a few days," he said, whispering that only he and Paimon can hear.
"Eh!? What happened to your son?" Paimon whispered , worry etched on her face.
Aether whispered, "Don't worry, this is just some trouble he got into," he said. Paimon nodded.
After a few minutes, the food that they ordered arrived. Chef Mao placed the dishes on the table.
"Enjoy your meal!" he said with a smile. He went back to the kitchen to prepare more orders.
Aether picked up his chopstick and said, "If someone is looking for me, Paimon, tell them that I went to visit a friend in the Sumeru desert." as he took a bite of mint salad.
Paimon nodded, stuffing her mouth with minty meat rolls. " I'll be sure to let them know when they come looking for you."
He hummed and nodded his head. "Thanks; I already stock up some food for a few days, so you don't have to worry about going hungry," he said.
After a few minutes of eating and both of them being finished, Aether proceeded to pay for their meal before leaving the restaurant. He called his tea pot; both of them sucked into it and disappeared.
Aether and Paimon arrived inside and walked towards the mansion. They greeted Tubby, and she greeted them back, smiling. Aether opened the door, and they entered. Paimon went to her room to rest after a long day. And Aether went to his room. He sat on his bed, staring out the window, lost in thought. After a few minutes, he went to his closet and opened it, searching for his old clothes that he had kept hidden. After a few seconds of searching, he finally found them. He placed it on the table in front of him, reminiscing about the memories attached to each piece of clothing. After a few minutes of looking at his old clothes, he stood up and went to take a shower. Minutes later , he emerged refreshed and sat on his bed, drying his hair with a towel. After he was done drying his hair, he decided to lay down on his bed and take out a book to read before going to sleep. An hour later , he finally put the book down and turned off the light to go to sleep.
"Tomorrow is another day," he thought as he closed his eyes.
Meanwhile, in Astrall Express.
"Ugh, that sting Stelle!" he groaned as Stelle rolled her eyes and continued to focus on her work, dubing the cotton on his cheek.
"Don't be a baby; it's just a little cut," she replied. "You better be thankful that we saved your ass from Madam Yukong killing you," she said. As she moved to his forehead, she saw a little cut above his eyebrow.
"Oh boy, Madam Yukong was dead set killing you with her bow " she said as Caelus hissed in pain.
"You are in big trouble, young man," Himeko said as she crossed her arms and glared at him with a stern expression.
"Jeez Caelus, you really made Madam Yukong furious; even her tail was fluffed up in anger." March 7 said with a sighed that even the shield she applied to them was going to break when she used her ultimate ability. A massive arrow was launched towards us with incredible speed and force. Even Dan Heng, in his form of imbibitor Lunae, protects him from arrows.
"Thankfully, the Shogun arrived just in time to block the arrow with his lightbringer," Welt said as he adjusted his glasses.
"Yeah, Dan Heng had a few minor injuries, but he's fine now," Stelle said with a sense of relief. She put bandages on Caelus, who had been grazed by the arrow.
"For now, stay here at the express for the time being until Dad arrives in a few days, Caelus," Stelle said.
"Ugh," he grumbled. He was going to get scolded for this.
"Oh, is he going to visit us in a few days?" Himeko said excitedly. "Ahh, I have a lot of coffee beans I bought from other worlds we visit," she said, clasping her hands together.
Everyone cringed at the Himeko coffee she makes . It was always unbearably bitter.
"Geh! I'm feeling sorry for dad's taste buds," Stelle said with a grimace.
"I'm sure my father can handle it, I think?" Caelus said.
"Don't worry, your father can handle bitter things just fine," Welt said reassuringly to the twins. "I saved up a vintage wine I bought back in Belebog. Both of us drank it when he arrived; it's been awhile since I last saw him ." He adjusts his glasses. "We can talk about old times and back in my home world."
Stelle finished bandaging Caelus. "There finished ," she said, putting back the first aid kit. "You and Dad knew each other a long time, right, Mister Welt?"
"Oh yes , we go way back," Mister Welt replied with a smile. "I was still young at that time. I don't know how long he was in my world at that time," he said. "I'm sure he was there for a few centuries, maybe even longer."
"Your dad is pretty old, Stelle Caelus, but are you both immortal?" March 7 asks the twins.
Both twins shrugged in response. "We don't know; we didn't ask dad if me and Caelus are immortal or not," Stelle said. "Our mother is mortal; well, the chances are 50-50 for me and Caelus, if the two of us are mortal or immortal ."
"Well, it's time for us to retire to bed," Himeko said , ending the conversation for the night. "Goodnight, everyone." Himeko went back to her room, followed by Welt before saying his own goodnights to them .
March 7 dawned. "Guess we better get some sleep too," she said before heading to her own room.
Stelle stands up. "Let's go, Caelus " she said, helping her brother up from the couch. "Have you contacted Qingni yet?" she asked both of them, walking towards their room.
Caelus shook his head. "Not yet , but I will do it now," he replied. He took out his phone and opened the screen, but there were a lot of missed calls and messages from Qingni.
Stelle peaked over his shoulder and asked, "Whoa, that's a lot of missed calls and messages; she must be really worried about you," she said, looking at the screen. "You probably should call her and tell her you're okay."
He scratched his head and said, "Yeah , I probably should."
Stelle patted his shoulder. "Hmm, hmm, I'll leave you to it then," she said as she walked away to their room, giving him some privacy to make the call.
Caelus gazed at his sister as she opened the door to their room and stepped inside before turning his attention back to the phone in his hand. He pressed the call button and waited for the dial tone to connect. After a few rings , a voice answered on the other line.
"Qing-," she interrupted him.
"Caelus! Are you ok? Did Mom hurt you?" she shouted, panicking and sobbing at the same time.
He calmed her down and assured her, "Hey, hey , don't worry. I'm fine, just a few scratches, but I'm okay," he said with a reassuring tone.
"I'm glad (sobbing) that you're okay," she said, sobbing uncontrollably. "I was so scared. I thought mom killed you ."
Caelus smiled warmly. "Don't worry, I'm at the express now; thanks to my sister and my friends for rescuing me," he said. "And the Shogun, thanks to him for blocking the giant arrow that was about to hit us ."
He heard her sighed in relief.
"I'm glad you're safe," she said. "I don't want our little one to grow up without a father."
He grinned and said, "Hehehe , don't worry, I won't die easily," puffing his chest out confidently. "Ive lived worse than getting stabbed by a giant iced shard, haha," he laughed.
He heard her gasp. "Wait! What do you mean you got stabbed by a giant iced shard?" she asked. Her worries are coming back again.
"Ah, damn it, I shouldn't have said that," he thought . He didn't want to worry her again.
"C-A-E-L-U-S!" she said scarily. "Explain yourself, mister !" she shouted.
He shivered down to his spine. "A-haha, it was just a joke, Qingni. Haha," he nervously chuckled.
"Caelus," she said with a cold, stern voice.
He lowered his head in shame. "Yes, maam," he said. He explained how he got stabbed by a giant ice shard in Belebog and told her he pushed his sister away to save her. And got stabbed instead.
Back in their room, Stelle peaked her head out on the door, looking at her brother in the hallways.
She hears her brother apologise while his head hangs low in shame. And she can hear Qingni shouting at him on the phone.
"What did that idiot do to make her mad at him?" Stelle thought, shaking her head and closing the door quietly behind her.
A few days later, back in Teyvat.
Inside the tea pot.
Aether was putting on his old travel outfit, feeling a mix of nostalgia and excitement. But his appearance changed; he looked tall and mature now, and his long braided hair was no longer the back of his hair. This is his old appearance from long ago; well, he did cut his braided hair, but he can put it back on by using his powers and attaching it again to his hair. And his cut, braided hair was neatly tucked away in his dimensions bag.
As he put his earrings back on and his old scarf around his neck, he felt like his old self again. He looked in the mirror and adjusted his gloves. He looked at the mirror again, and his eyes glowed a little. He nodded his head in satisfaction. headed out the door.
Paimon was there, eating dangos. Her eyes looked up at him before she dropped the dangos and shouted, "Wh-who are you? How did you get in here!?" she said in panic.
He quickly reassured her. "It's me, Paimon! Don't panic," he said, maturely calming down his companion.
Paimon stopped panicking and looked at him with confusion. "Eh, is that you, Aether ?" She floated around near him, her voice filled with uncertainty.
He smiled. "Yeah, it's me. I just changed my old appearance back to my original form."
"Hmm? Your original form?" Paimon asked, squinting her eyes in disbelief. "Then your younger form was just a disguise this whole time?" she said , raising an eyebrow.
He scratched his head and chuckled. "Yeah, my younger form was just a way to blend in with humans better while also saving some energy in the process."
"That's cheating; Paimon wants to grow too!" she said, stamping her foot in frustration.
Aether laughed, patting her head. She pouted and crossed her arms.
She uncrossed her arms and asked, "It's time for you to get going now, right?"
Aether nodded. "Yeah, I'll be off now. See you later, Paimon !"
Paimon smiled and waved her hand. "Don't forget to bring me back a souvenir from your trip!"
He chuckled. "Yeah, I won't forget. See you in a few days!" He turned and disappeared.
Outside Liyue Harbour.
Aether stood outside, looking at the harbour, before he took out his phone and sent a message to Welt that he was ready. Putting back his phone, he sat while waiting. But a voice suddenly spoke behind him. Causing him to freeze in place. He looked behind him and saw Keqing and Ganyu, along with four milleliths, pointing their spears at him. Ganyu points her bow at him. Keqing approaches with a sword in hand.
"Remain where you are," she ordered sternly. "And surrender peacefully," she said , her voice filled with authority.
Aether stands up slowly and raises his hands in a gesture of surrender.
"A millelith guarding the gate said a strange person with strange clothes was standing up on the ridge , looking at the harbour from a distance." She said, "He seems to be looking at the harbour suspiciously. So who are you, and what are you doing here?"
Aether peered at his shoulder and said, "Your misunderstanding; I'm just a traveller, admiring the view." He said, "I mean no harm. I was just waiting for a friend to meet me here."
Keqing narrowed her eyes and replied, "Whose friend are you waiting for?" She asked suspiciously.
He shoked his head. "Sorry, but I cannot reveal that."
"Then I'm afraid that you need to come with us for further questioning." Keqing said she ordered the millelith to take him into custody.
The four milleliths walk slowly behind him while pointing their spears. Aether stood there calmly, readying his finger and preparing to summon his sword. Before they reached him, a glimmer appeared around him. Aether smiled as he was getting teleported away from the scene.
But Keqing didn't let it happen. She quickly activated her electropowers, nullified the teleportation spell, and swung her sword, but he summoned his sword to block her attack. Ganyu released a cryo arrow heading his way. Aether switched his element to pyro and summoned a flame in front of him, blocking the cryo arrow from reaching him. Keqing and the milleliths step back from the hot flame in front of them. They cannot step closer because it would burn them. Aether turned around and smiled at them, waving his hand before he banished them into parts of light. The flame in front of them died down, leaving behind a warm glow.
"He escaped, Lady Keqing," one of the milleliths said.
Keqing put away her sword and turned to face the millelith. "Head back to the harbour and report back to the headquarters," she said. "I'll be telling Ningguang about the suspicious person." The milleliths nodded and quickly ran head back. to the harbour.
Keqing and Ganyu are walking down the path, heading towards the jade chamber.
Ganyu looked at Keqing and asked, "Keqing, that person looks familiar."
Keqing stopped, turned his head, and looked at Ganyu. "What do you mean, Ganyu?"
Ganyu looked at the ground. "That person looks like Aether, but an adult," she said. "And the earring he is wearing looks just like the one that Aether always wears."
Keqing put a finger on her chin and thought for a moment before responding,That's not possible; it must be a coincidence." She said, " It's probably just someone who resembles Aether and happens to have a similar earring. And besides, today is his day off, so he is probably at Mondstadt with Paimon right now, enjoying themselves," as she started walking in the direction of the city gate. Ganyu ran to catch up to her.
"Hmm, if Aether looks like that when he grows up , he will surely be quite the handsome adult man," Keqing thought, her face suddenly flushed red, slapping her cheeks lightly. Before she walked faster back to the jade chamber, Ganyu behind her was confused and tried to ask her what was wrong, but Keqing just ignored her and kept walking. Ganyu ran after her, worried about her.
Astrall Express.
Inside the express world, Himeko was waiting for Aether to arrive. The door opened, and Pom-Pom walked in, followed by Adult Aether smiling and walking towards the two.
He waved his hand and said, "Welt, Himeko , nice to see you guys again !" He gave them a hug.
"It's nice to see you too, old friend," Welt said with a smile as he returned the hug. "I bought vintage wine back at the belebog so we can drink it later ."
Aether nodded excitedly. "Nice, it's been awhile since I last drank back in Teyvat; they won't serve me alcohol because I'm in my younger form ."
"Hahaha, you shouldn't have turned yourself into a younger form when you arrived at the teyvat Aether," Himeko giggled.
He shook his chuckled head and replied, "I wanted to blend in with the locals and avoid any unwanted attention. So I decided to change my form from adult to younger and lowered my powers to avoid any suspicion."
"Oh, I forgot," he said, patting Pom-Pom's head. "That was nice timing; my friends almost arrested me for being a suspicious person at the harbour. Thanks for getting me out of there in time, Pom-pom."
"No problem, Aether, so stop patting Pom-pom's head!" she said . as she swatted his hand away. Before walking away, leaving the three adults behind.
"Hehehe, still cute as ever ," Aether thought to himself.
He turned his face towards the two. "So where's Stelle and Caelus?" he asked.
Himeko gave him a knowing smile before replying, "They are in their room resting or playing with their phones."
Aether nodded, walking towards their room as Himeko watched him disappear down the hallway.
"Do you think he will be able to talk to Madam Yukong about Caelus getting her daughter pregnant ?" she said, looking at Welt.
Welt adjusts his glass and says, "Don't worry about it. Aether will handle the situation with Madam Yukong." He said, "But I hope she doesn't kill him when we arrive in Xianzhou, Luofu."
Himeko giggled mischievously and said, "Well, knowing Madam Yukong, anything is possible because Aether slept with her a long time ago ."
As Aether arrived in their room, he could hear the sound of his daughter playing her phone in the room. He knocked on the door and waited.
"March, is that you? "Come in," she replied.
He chuckled that she mistook him for her daughter, a friend, and entered the room to find her sitting on the bed, engrossed in her game.
Stelle looked up with her phone in her hand, her eyes wide, and dropped the phone. "Dad?" she said, stunned.
Aether smiled and waved his hand. "Yo Stelle, how's it going?" Before he could finish his sentence, Stelle ran over and jumped into his arms, hugging him tightly.
"Dad! You're finally here !" Rubbing her cheeks against his chest, she was so happy to see him after so long. "I missed you so much."
Aether smiled warmly at his daughter's excitement. "Hey there, kiddo , I missed you too," he said. "Are you and Caelus taking care of each other? Are you both eating well ? and getting enough rest ?"
His daughter's eyes sparkled with joy as she nodded eagerly. "Hmm, hmm," she hummed happily.
He chuckled, "I hope you and Caelus are not diving into trashcans again like you used to."
Stelle pouted, "Dad trashcans are fun, and me, Caelus, found some treasures inside ." She said, "There's some money inside too!" she exclaimed with a big smile. "And we won't stop!"
He shoked his head. "You both really inherited your mother's obsession with trashcans."
Stelle grinned at him with pride.
The door behind them opened, and Caelus walked in, holding a plate full of snacks. "I'm back, Stelle; I brought some snacks from the kitch." He stopped mid-sentence when he saw his father standing there.
Aether was smiling at him scarily. "Hey there, Caelus, I came to visit you both and talk about your situation of getting your girlfriend pregnant with your child."
Caelus immediately ran out of the room, but his father used his dendro to make a vine, grab his leg, and pull him back inside. Caelus stared at his father with fear in his eyes, knowing he couldn't escape.
"So... I had a lot to talk to you about," his father said sternly. "For example, not wearing protection while you and your girlfriend made love?" as he dragged him inside the room to have a conversation. "Stelle, go outside for a bit while I talk to your brother alone." His daughter nodded her head in agreement and left the room. The father then turned to his son and said, "We need to have a serious talk about responsibility." His son trembled slightly on the ground . Aether pulled something from his dimensional bag, and he was holding a flip-flop in his hand.
"Now shall we? "begin this discussion," he said.
Stelle went to the parlour; she opened the March 7 Dan Heng Himeko Pom-pom, and Welt was sitting on the couch.
"Hey Stelle, I heard from Miss Himeko and Mr. Welt that your dad is finally here to visit you both, so where is he?" March 7 asked.
Stelle scratched her cheeks. "About th-" she got interrupted by a shout from her and Caelus room.
"AHHHHHH FATHER, IM SOOOORRY!"" her brother shouted.
"YOU BETTER TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR GETTING YUKONG DAUGHTER PREGNANT !" her father shouted.
Everyone in the room fell silent. Stelle laughed nervously, scratching her cheek and averting her eyes from them.
Dan Heng stood up and went to the other sufa. "Wake me up when this is over. I'm going to take a nap," he said before lying down and closing his eyes.
"A-ahaha, u-um, im gonna check my camera for a bit" March 7 . She said it nervously, heading over to the chair, sitting, and checking some pictures on her camera.
Pom-pom is doing her business by watering the potted plant in the corner.
Himeko was drinking her coffee as she watched outside the window.
As for Welt , he was lounging on the couch, flipping through magazines absentmindedly.
Stelle was looking at her companions. She walked over to Sofa, pulled out her phone, and started playing a game.
As everyone waits for Aether and Caelus to finish their talk,.
But they didn't notice the drone hovering above them invisibly and someone watching them from a distance.
Unknown location.
Two people are watching from the monitor.
"Uwaaa, weren't those twins, Dad, really scary?" said the silver-haired girl while chewing bub bublegum.
"Fufufu, he's still as scary as ever, just like the time he got mad at me," said the red-wined woman watching the other monitor, watching Aether spanking Caelus with flip-flops.
"So are you sending a hologram to them? " the silver hair said while playing games on her phone, not interested in watching the monitor.
"Hmm, I'm not going to show my face in Xianzhou yet. Until my records are clean," the red-wined woman said with a grinned.
The silver-haired girl hummed. "what about her? What are we going to do?" she said, pointing behind them at the girl, who was strapped in straitjackets to a chair, and a gag on her mouth was wiggly, desperately trying to break free.
"Let's leave her be until she's calmed down so she can't kill Caelus's girlfriend ," the red-wined woman said without looking at her companion.
"Hmmp! Hmmp! " the long silver-haired girl made muffled sounds, wiggling on the chair.
As the red-wined haird woman continued to watch while sipping her wine, The Express will be heading to Xianzhou Luofu tomorrow.
While outside of the hideout, we see long, dark blue hair with red tips and red eyes staring blankly into the distance. "Ahhh… Fuck my life…" he absently muttered while seating himself on the chair.
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End