Let The Wind Be Your Guide

Indie Venti RP Blog

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"Alright, I’ll get the suitcase, then.” Xiao replied with an easy smile, running his hand lightly through Venti’s hair. As much as he felt bad for the other, the last thing Venti needed right now was his pity, that much he knew. It’d most likely make the other feel worse, so, he wouldn’t offer it.

Instead, he opted for comfort and distraction as he lifted himself up with the suitcase, offering the other his free hand. “It’s alright, don’t worry about it. We can focus on something else, if you’d like?” He offered, figuring that distracting the other would help more than assurances at the moment.

“Like… Are there any new songs you’ve learned recently? Any new games you played? Or we can also remain silent, of course.” He added softly. After all, he knew that remaining alone with his thoughts might make the other’s state worse, in his case it did anyway, but who knew? It may have helped Venti.

Taking the hand offered, Venti got to his feet as he listened to Xiao, wiping the last few tears from his eyes. He felt exhausted. Glancing down, he saw the letter that he’d thrown away from himself on the floor and frowned. Part of him didn’t want to leave it there, but a bigger part of him didn’t want to touch it, again.

“I’ve, um... I’ve been learning how to play a specific type of flute,” Venti then said. Maybe distraction was the way to go. “It’s called a dizi. You should know it; it’s Chinese. It has such a beautiful, high tone, but so clear, like a small bell. It’s a bit difficult, since it’s not like the Western styled flute. I didn’t expect to have to seal one of the holes and learning how to play an instrument with no keys, just holes in it, feels weird on my fingers. Even the mouth piece is so different, but I don’t think any other material than bamboo could get such a wonderful sound.”

Xiao could do nothing but giggle along as his face was peppered with kisses, face as red as Venti’s own. The bard’s continuous exclamations of love had his heart beating almost painfully in his chest, feeling like it’d give out on him any second now, the joy he felt near overwhelming in its strength.

Venti’s words of gratitude were enough to have the yaksha’s eyes misting over as the sheer joy of being loved, just as he was, overtook him completely. He hid his flaming face in the crook of Venti’s neck, his own hold on the other tightening ever so slightly as his arms instead went to wrap around Venti’s waist.

“And thank you, my beloved. For pulling me out of my shell, for showing me there was good in life and that love wasn’t just pain. Thank you for being so wonderful and for choosing to step into my life. For choosing to remain in this world and remain kind despite everything. ”

“Careful there. Still recovering,” Venti said, softly. There was no urgent or admonishing tone to his voice; it was just a gentle reminder that he’d taken a beating by those stupid enemies out in the field and he had yet to regenerate. Being an Archon, he healed far faster than most, but there was still a window of time that he had to adhere to, especially since his Gnosis was gone.

“And I don’t think you really have to thank me for that kind of thing,” Venti added with a chuckle. “I did it because I wanted to. Of course, if you’d told me to stop, or put up any real resistance, I would have, but you always seemed receptive to it, even if you said you didn’t care for things like this.” He kissed Xiao’s cheek. “It was your willingness to let me in that changed things between us. If you hadn’t wanted that, no matter what I did, it would have made no difference.

“Mh, of course. He’ll be here in a minute anyway, so you won’t have to stay here for much longer.” Xiao replied, pulling away from Venti for just long enough to grab the chord and hand it to the other. He could understand the need to escape, feeling the near terrifying familiarity of that debilitating fear.

“I can carry you down if you’d like."He offered knowing that the other may find it a bit harder to stand, and that the physical closeness may help calm and comfort Venti as well. "Just… Just focus on breathing, alright? I’ve got you. No one will hurt you, even if he by some miracle passes through my brother, which I doubt.”

The man was a giant, after all. And ridiculously strong. There had so far been no one able to take him down, and Xiao for one doubted that someone who couldn’t even face a no would be able to accomplish anything other than getting turned into a pretzel. “You’ll be okay, love. I’ll make sure of it.”

Venti wiped his eyes when Xiao pulled away, sniffling as he took the cord and shoved it into his suitcase. When it was offered to him to be carried, he shook his head. “I can walk, I just... If you could get the suitcase, that’d be better,” Venti replied, voice soft and meek. “Even though it’s on wheels, I don’t... I don’t know. I don’t think I’ll be able to maneuver it around, very well... Not without getting stupidly frustrated.”

All of this was so unlike Venti, he hated it. It made him feel like a stranger to himself. Having Xiao see such a side of him made the singer feel a little nauseous. It wasn’t a good state of mind of Venti’s to see. It made him feel ashamed, even though he understood there was nothing to be ashamed of in such a terrifying situation.

Xiao’s eyes widened at the unexpected contact and he flinched lightly at first, not expecting to be pulled into a gentle kiss. Once he’d gotten over the initial shock, which only really lasted a few seconds, he allowed his eyes to close and let himself enjoy it.

His own arms wrapped around Venti’s neck as he fully lost himself in the sensation of those soft, warm lips against his own, releasing a small sigh into the kiss as he kissed back, hoping his feelings of pure adoration would reach the bard through it.

Eventually, though, breathing became somewhat of a problem, forcing him to pull back. And as he did, a small giggle escaped him, an almost childlike sound in its innocence and joy. And when he did pull back he was still smiling so brightly, just about certain that his heart would beat out of his chest, because that had just happened. He had been kissed by the love of his life.

“I love you…”

Hearing those three words after Xiao had reciprocated the kiss made Venti feel a wonderful pain in his chest, too filled with emotion to really process it all. Even as a wordsmith, he couldn’t name all that he felt and all that his heart was screaming in delight. All the Archon could do was pepper Xiao’s face in light kisses, giggling in his giddiness, feeling lightheaded.

“I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you!” he repeated, over and over, not caring that his face was redder than any sunburn he’d ever suffered. “I love you more than I thought I could ever love anyone. No one compares to you, Xiao. You’re all I could ever want, ever wish for, and more. I used to regret becoming an Archon, for many reasons, but now... I’m thankful. If I never became who I am, I never would have met you.. I’m blessed.”

Xiao would fucking kill him.

He’d rip the stalking bastard to shreds, make him beg for mercy, make him experience all the pain that twisted psycho had put Venti through. And then he’d end that pathetic, miserable slime.

But right now, Venti didn’t need that. Didn’t need his anger or revenge. He needed someone to comfort him and be there for him. And for now, Xiao would do just that. He quickly fished out his phone, texting the man he’d considered his eldest brother their location and attaching a small “Hurry and be careful, please. Also might bringing me the dagger?” to the message, getting an “Okay.” in response, before refocusing on Venti.

He hugged the singer tighter, gently massaging his back with one hand while the other combed through his hair. “You’ll be okay, love… I won’t let him hurt you. This will all stop soon and he’ll never bother you again, I swear to you. He won’t get away with this and he certainly won’t torture you forever. You’ll be alright.” He spoke softly, gently, letting none of the anger show. Venti didn’t need it right now. “My brother’s on his way and your wx won’t find you at my place. He won’t be able to reach you at all.”

“I’m so scared...” Venti choked out. What happened to the pure happiness of just moments ago? He’d been giddy, right up until he found that stupid letter. He didn’t even want to know what its contents were, though his curious nature nagged at him to find out. He couldn’t, though. He just couldn’t. Venti didn’t think he could stand to even see that man’s writing, not with how visceral his reaction was to just seeing the envelope.

“I don’t want to be in here,” Venti said, softly, shaking his head. “C-Can you grab the black cord from that drawer?” His voice was shaking and it seemed like he was having a hard time getting in enough breath to talk. “That’s the last thing th-that needs to be packed away. I... I want to wait f-for your friend outside... I don’t want to be in my apartment, right now.”

“I don’t mind that at all.” Xiao replied with a small giggle at the tease. The other could quite literally glue them together and he wouldn’t mind, if it meant spending his life like this. “Thank you, really, I… I don’t know what I’d do if I was left without you.” He admitted, raising his head the tiniest bit to show Venti what must’ve been the brightest, happiest smile the yaksha had ever given the archon.

It was the kind of smile that made his eyes close and cheeks hurt, one that showed the pure euphoria he’d felt. Though the other’s words dusted his cheeks crimson. To know that Venti had thought him worth writing about, worth writing somgs for… It had his heart racing.

And the callout only made him blush deeper. “You know me too well…”

That smile made Venti fall into a bit of a stupor. He hadn’t seen Xiao smile like that, ever. His heart clenched and he found himself wishing that he could memorialize that smile, burn it into his mind so that the image never faded. It also had him doing something he never thought he would initiate (well, not without asking, first).

Cupping the Yaksha’s face in both hands, Venti leaned in, quickly, and pressed their lips together, letting out a little sigh of delight as his whole face lit up red. It was wrong to do such a thing without asking, but, goodness, were Xiao’s lips a lot softer than Venti was expecting. It felt so good to kiss him, so much so that it made Venti’s head feel light, almost like when he was starting to get a buzz from drinking.

“Mh, alright, if you say so…” Xiao mumbled, and it seemed the other’s small assurance was all he needed to finally let himself rest after the excruciatingly long and hard day. His expression had finally relaxed, and the tension just about evaporated from his body.

The day had been entirely too hard on him, and yet he still insisted on using up his energy just to be able to help the other. But… He could rest now, for the first time in a long while. He felt safe here, and Venti’s care and affection warmed his heart in a way few other things could.

It was to no one’s surprise that he felt too exhausted to even dream as he’d slept, subconsciously cuddling just a little closer to the archon that gave him so much.

Venti couldn’t think of a better end to the turmoil they’d gone through. Once Xiao was snoozing away, he chuckled, softly, opening his eyes to look at the leaves above them. “Thank you,” he whispered, though it wasn’t to the tree. It was to the person connected to the tree. He wondered how she was doing, how she was living in Celestia.

Oh well.

The moment he heard the sound of something shattering in Venti’s room, Xiao jumped down and sprinted in, and seeing the other on the ground with an envelope in his hand, calling desperately for the yaksha, he wasted no time in getting on the ground next to him and pulling him into a tight hug. “Shh, it’s okay baby, you’re okay.”

“He won’t get you, not while I’m here. If that asshole shows his face he’s dead.” He promised, pressing small kisses to Venti’s head, rubbing small circles into his lower back to help calm him.

“… I’m calling Diàn to pick us up. There is no way I’m trusting a taxi at this point.” He stated softly, his other hand raking through Venti’s hair. “If anyone can hold their own, it’s him.”

Venti gasped as he was pulled into a hug, startled by the sudden touch. He hadn’t realized that Xiao was already there. Throwing the letter, Venti clung to the other, sobbing hard into Xiao’s shoulder.

“He was here!” the young singer all but shrieked. “He was right here! In my bedroom and I didn’t even know!” When could it have happened? While Venti was out? But he hadn’t gone out much, lately, other than to buy groceries. Did his ex find a way into the apartment while Venti was still home? That thought terrified him, made him cling tighter to Xiao, his sobs loud enough that they hurt his own throat.

“I hate this! I hate all of this!” Venti cried out, shaking his head. He felt nauseous. He felt light headed. Venti couldn’t even breathe right through his sobs, making him feel a little faint. He hiccupped and coughed; it wasn’t the pretty crying in movies, but the true, face contorting, ugly crying of reality. Venti was gripping Xiao’s shirt so tightly, it made his hands hurt. The pain kind of grounded him, though; it made him more aware of the fact that he wasn’t alone and that he was clinging to someone who would have done anything to keep Venti safe.

So… It was real. Venti actually loved him and he wouldn’t just suddenly explain it away as a joke. A smile spread across Xiao’s face, a warm, relieved , adoring expression. “I’m… I’m very happy to hear that… I’ve- I’ve held feelings for you for so long, but admitting to them was… Hard. And scary. I’ve feared much the same reactions from you, since I was… I was nothing important. I had thought you would have found someone better. ”

He didn’t fight the way his eyes misted over with joy, instead simply resting his head on Venti’s shoulder. “I- I know I can, and for that I am eternally grateful to you, but I don’t… I don’t want to tell this no, it…” It was the one desire, the one wish he had allowed himself to harbor. And now it had come true.

Xiao really couldn’t be happier. “I love you so much… With all my heart. I- getting to spend eternity with you was the one wish I had.”

“Then let me officially announce that my long sleeps are over,” Venti said with a warm smile, holding onto Xiao a little tighter. It kind of hurt, since he’d been injured, earlier, but that didn’t matter. It didn’t hurt enough to make him recoil, so it wasn’t enough for him to pay attention to. “I won’t leave you alone, again. Never. That means you’re stuck with me, Xiao~!” he teased in a singsong tone of voice.

Really, Venti exuded elation. He was so happy, he felt as if he could burst. How could one body hold so much emotion? He had no idea. “My lovely Xiao... I’ll have to write more songs for you,” Venti hummed, totally pleased. “I only have the one. What a shame! I’ll have to write hundreds and hundreds. Thousands. All to express how much I adore you.” He chuckled, again. “It’ll be cute to see you get embarrassed over it,” he teased, already picturing Xiao’s blushing face.

Ah– Venti knew his feelings? Somehow, the thought made him even redder as he gently squeezed the archon’s hand in a silent thank you, letting his head drop back to his knees. Though, it took all his strength to not just topple over onto the other, for both comfort and the sole fact that he was tired. So painfully tired. He wanted nothing more than to just pass out in the other’s arms. “I uh…” Ah- that was up for debate. After all, if he was the one to die, the others may not have needed to.

He did his best to relax as he was instructed, to trust Venti’s words and allow himself to be filled with the energy the other was offering, though it did have him leaning on Venti’s shoulder slightly. “I- Thank you, Venti… I really appreciate your help.”

He was learning. To just be grateful instead of feeling guilty, to not deny the help he was offered. It was still difficult at times, but… With Venti, it seemed easier. The other’s help and constant reassurance was helping him learn.

“There’s no need to thank me,” Venti said, as he had a million times before. “I’m not doing this for your gratitude, I’m doing this as my own way of thanking you. And because I like you. I don’t need a reason to help you.” He sighed, softly, the warmth tingling through his body. Receiving energy always made him feel like the days he would lie in the sun and nap in the tall grasses. It was always such a peaceful feeling.

“If you want to take a nap, go ahead,” the bard then said. “I often sleep for a bit after this. Sometimes during it, too,” he chuckled. “It’s a pleasant and wonderful feeling, being connected to someone else’s heart, feeling that love and care. Take this time to relax, Xiao; I know you don’t have many opportunities to just breathe and take in some serenity.”

“You are not staying up until five or six in the morning just to wait for me, no way.” Xiao scolded lightly. Though, he supposed, if they lived together, that would be less expensive? Maybe he wouldn’t need to hold down two jobs then and could just work one, making it less straining. “I won’t let you be exhausted just because I am. That’s incredibly unfair.”

“Though, honestly, I really do appreciate your concern.” He admitted with a soft smile gracing his features. “It kind of warms my heart to know that you care so much as to actively pull me away from things that could harm me. I mean- I knew that before, of course, but… It’s kind of sweet that even for innocent things like that. Um… I could use someone warning me about such things every now and again. ” He admitted with a chuckle.

He chuckled at the statement, hiding his face behind his hand. “Ah, if only I had the courage to wear that kind of thing.” He had a few crops, in terms of a more feminine style as Venti had called it, and tended to just wander around in a shirt that was entirely too big for him and hung from him like a dress whenever he was home, but… Yeah, with various scars peppering his body, he sure didn’t have enough courage to wear the more open stuff. “Mh, alright, if you say so.”

He took Venti’s suggestion, taking a juice from his fridge and sipping on it quietly as he waited, pulling himself up to sit on the counter and buying himself by staring at his legs, swinging them absent-mindedly.

Venti was rather happy and giddy as he entered his room, grabbing a large suitcase from his closet and starting to fill it with clothes, accessories, and other essentials (he took a second to run to the bathroom to grab his toiletries, as well). He was so overjoyed that Xiao was pleased with Venti’s concern for the other. Venti had been worrying that he was nagging and would come off too strongly to the other, but Xiao had not only fully accepted it, he had expressed that he enjoyed it!

Aaah, there really was no one else in the world that was cuter than Xiao!

Venti went to his nightstand and pulled open a drawer, to grab the cord for his phone and a wall adapter, but paused, seeing an envelope inside. It was white and had nothing on the front of it. Frowning in confusion, Venti lifted it and turned it over with the intent to see its contents, but when he saw that it was sealed with a very particular heart sticker, one he had seen countless times before on different types of envelopes, malachite eyes went wide.

No. No! That couldn’t be; that was impossible! Venti’s vision blurred and he stumbled. Some part of his brain tried to keep him from falling, as he reached out for his nightstand, but his hand slipped across its surface, knocking a lamp to the floor, the bulb shattering as the lampshade went tumbling over the floor. Venti hit the ground hard, though he was sitting with his legs mostly folded under him.

Never, not once, had Venti saved a letter from that man. He certainly wouldn’t have kept it in his bedroom, of all places. The only times he’d hung onto two were once when he showed the police and once to show Xiao. That left only one option: Venti’s ex had broken into his house and left the letter there for him.

“Ah, um… Alright then.” Xiao replied, accepting in the moment that maybe it truly was okay for him to still need to learn. After all, he’d been in an environment where asking for something brought nothing but punishment for so long, so surely it was alright for unlearning it to take time.

And besides, if Venti said so, then it must’ve been true. “Ah, you’re welcome to come here whenever you wish, or just call for me if you want someone to be with you.” He offered to the other, wrapping his arms back around the bard. “Liyue has been peaceful lately anyway, so… It’s not like I’ll have to vanish off every two seconds.”

Ah, why did that sentence feel like it tore his heart to pieces? He wondered briefly who it could have possibly been that Venti was talking about, analyzing every move and word, finding himself stumped for a moment before finally understanding, and that new knowledge hit him like a brick.

Had Venti just said he loved him? Him, the one bound by nothing but negativity? The one who had known nothing but slaughter for all these years? How was this real? Crimson spread across his face like a wildfire, heart beating so rapidly he was sure it would burst from his chest. “I- you- you like me?” He asked quietly, as if afraid that he had somehow misunderstood the other. “I um… I…”

Fuck. Why was this so hard? Even if Venti had been talking about someone else, it’s not like the other would hate him just because he admitted to his feelings, right?

“I… I love you…” He finally muttered out, already braced for a potential yell or hit.

“You don’t have to sound so scared, saying that,” Venti pointed out, pulling back enough that he could lift his head and look up at Xiao. He grinned at the other, cheeks dusted a rosy red in color. “I confessed to you, first, though I guess not as directly. That makes you braver than me,” he said with a small chuckle, reaching up to cup Xiao’s cheek, thumb stroking over the heated skin there.

“You look good with a blush,” the Archon teased, lightly. “I’m... really more happy than can be put into words that you feel the same, Xiao. Stupid for a bard to say, I know; love songs and poems should be my forte! But, it’s true. It would take me an eternity to verbalize all the ways in which I love you. I don’t know really when I started to feel this way. I don’t know how I didn’t realize it, from the beginning. You’re the one I always want to be with. That’ll never change.”

He sighed, softly, still with a gentle smile on his face. “I’m sorry to have left you in the dark about my feelings for so long, though. I was afraid you’d push me away, or that you’d get mad and not want to see me. I know gods, other than Morax, kind of scare you, so I didn’t want to force my feelings onto you. I didn’t want to make you feel obligated to placate me. You can always tell me ‘no’. Your freedom is important to me and always will be. I don’t want you to view me as someone with authority over you; rather, I want to be someone that can just stand by your side, as an equal.

“Ah, I’m- I’ve dealt with worse, I’ll be fine, so… Don’t worry about it.” Xiao was quick to reply, lifting his head to give Venti a sheepish smile. “I just… Forgot Falcon coast was a bit further off than necessary, is all.” He assured him, though all the excuses were in reality because, as much as he wanted to cuddle up to the other, he was much too shy to actually accept the invitation, which was fairly obvious in the way his face turned absolutely crimson at the mere thought.

“In that same vein… I want to help you. Not because I feel like I owe you or anything, I know you are not the type, but purely because I wish to help, because I want to provide you with safety, comfort and assistance in any way I can.” Xiao reasoned. “You…”

Ah, of course he found that hard to say. Whether due to his shyness or the now bittersweet memories of how his loved ones ended up previously was up for debate, but… If he was honest, he would have guessed both. So instead, he corrected himself in a way that was easier for him to admit to the archon before him. “I care greatly for you, too. And so I want to help as much as I can.”

“It’s not helping anyone if you kill yourself in doing so,” Venti said, softly, only the barest hint of a smile on his face. He reached out, grabbing Xiao’s hand, gently as he rested his head back in a better position against the tree, letting his eyes fall fully closed, again. “Xiao, relax and just feel, okay?” he instructed, before giving really any explanation as to what he was doing.

“Whenever I ask her for energy, I open my heart to her,” the bard went on. “We connect because of our strong bond and affections for one another. I know I can connect with you in the same way, because I felt your warmth when you carried me. I could tell with the way you held me that there are more than enough feelings there to do this. So, take a deep breath, relax, and feel the warmth. She’s fine with giving a bit extra, so let me be your connection. Let me give you some strength back, since you did so much for me.”