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He knew each groove and crack of this mountain, knew the placement of the karst crawlers and each pitfall and loose step that could crumble under his feet. He feels the cor lapis deposits in his very veins and the water is the blood that flows through his veins. Mount Hulao has been a staple for Morax and has withstood the ages, always maintained by his master. Morax is not a fool; he knows that the earth has lived longer than he has, is so ancient much beyond his years. He is a child of rock, of the earth, and he will one day return to it when the erosion has settled in. It does not fear him as much as it used to back when he was younger.
The life of gods in this world is shorter than in other worlds in other systems. Morax would be foolish to believe he could outlive the very mountains and earth itself. What once was will not cease to exist the moment its time in this realm ends He will only return to bedrock that lives in his veins.
He returns, soaring to the entrance with Kaeya held gently in the arms of Barbatos, who sits on his back as Morax coils his body into the sky. He lands gently on the dirt path, the childish habit of avoiding stepping on blades of grass ingrained in his muscles. Barbatos floats done with a gust of wind, causing a giggle to leave the child he held on to. Morax shifts back into his mortal form, watching as Barbatos cooed at the young child in his arms. He feels the smile tug at his lips, as he steps towards his husband and their new child. Barbatos, or Venti as he prefers to be called when in this form, places Kaeya down on the ground before offering Zhongli his beizi, helping him slip it on.
“Will you be joining us?” asks Zhongli, knowing the answer. Venti lets out a snort and waves away the thought.
“Absolutely not! You know old Mountain Shaper would rather trap himself in amber than be graced with my extraordinary presence!” Venti laughed, “Nah, I think I will allow you to oversee the meeting and the talking. I should go before he traps me in amber again!”
Zhongli snorts as he takes Kaeya’s hand. “He did apologize. And you were hardly there for five minutes. I wouldn’t even be able to burn a full incense stick in that time,”
“It was still terrifying!!”
“Oh, I can imagine how terrible it must’ve been since you weren’t asleep the whole time.”
“…You won’t ever let that go, won’t you?”
“Absolutely not.”
Venti’s laugh carried in the wind, musical as always, and Zhongli could not help but allow his to harmonize with it.
“I will let you know when we are done with the meeting. It shouldn’t take that long.”
“Take your time,” Venti replied as he went to sit underneath a cuihua tree, “It has been a while since you saw Mountain Shaper, after all.”
Zhongli reaches for Kaeya’s small hand, grasping it tight and led the boy towards the pilgrim’s path that lay carved into the mountain. There are few pilgrims that climb here, most preferring to take the chance with Moon Carver or Cloud Retainer who were more palatable to humans, as it has been since Zhongli had been only a hatchling playing on the mountain. Mountain Shaper had always had his views on mortals, despite accepting the contract to protect them and Liyue as a whole. Zhongli has come to terms that his master would always be set in his ways.
Kaeya hops alongside him, bright eyes flickering this way and that, absorbing as much information as he could of this new environment. Zhongli keeps a secure hand on the boy, making sure he stays far away from the amber and the karst crawlers that he knew Mountain Shaper would have planted. Zhongli still knows the telltale signs of the flowers, easily sidestepping the traps as they made their way to the base of the steps. He felt Kaeya lagging behind, still prone to exhaustion after recovering from the fever he had from when he was found. Zhongli hoisted the boy up on his shoulders as he began climbing the familiar steps. He counted each one, a smile tugging on his face as he feels Kaeya hold gently onto his horns and play with his hair.
There was a mere one thousand and twenty-seven steps to the top of Mt. Hulao and from where he stood just outside the grove of maple trees, he could smell the fragrant lilies and feel the spiritual sea of his master. He sets Kaeya down, and the boy, as if sensing it himself, clutched to his robes, the too-long sleeve of the borrowed shirt Master Ragnvindr had provided them being chewed on. Zhongli did not bother to correct him, knowing that the child was nervous. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t nervous himself.
He crouches down to be eye-level with the child and gives him a hopefully convincing smile. “Come now, little star. Be brave for your a-die,” Zhongli says, as he straightens out the white dress shirt that hung off Kaeya’s thin frame. He was still too thin for Zhongli’s comfort, but they were working on it. He did regret not being able to stop by Liyue Harbor to buy him some more tailored clothes.
Kaeya nodded, giving his own small smile as Zhongli finishes fixing his hair. Zhongli rises, fixing his beizi and smoothing out non-existent wrinkles from his yichang. Kaeya digs his small hand back into his clothes and without looking back, Zhongli walks forward into his childhood home.
Little had changed, as usual. There were still the cranes that rested in the crystalline waters of the pool, the seal which Mountain Shaper kept securely in place, and the scattered amber. The shade of the trees kept the area cool, and the crisp mountain air made Zhongli straighten his spine. He walks the beaten path to the edge of the pool where there was a small cooking pot nearby. From the ground, he erected geo constructs in what was an imitation of a small table with three seats. From his sleeve, he removed a holder and some incense and motioned for Kaeya to pass the pack they had brought with them. Zhongli unwrapped it and took out the small teapot and the ginger to brew tea. He gives Kaeya a small knife and the ginger for the boy to start peeling them as he boils the water and prepares to cut it into slices.
“Did you know that my master and I would sit like this after training, drinking ginger tea?” Zhongli spoke, accepting the ginger as Kaeya passes it to him. Kaeya puts down the knife and half-peeled ginger, looking up at him. If he had long ears, Zhongli smiled, they would’ve been perked up in interests. “I was just a little older than what you are. I was raised here, on this mountain.” Zhongli looked wistfully passed the little sanctuary, out towards the mist of the mountains that pierced the sky.
“You’re adopted, too?” Kaeya asked, bringing Zhongli’s attention back to the child. He hesitates, just for a moment, biting back the instinctive denial.
“You could say that” he replies, for lack of a better explanation. He doesn’t know anymore what the relationship between his master and he is anymore. He remembers being young, perhaps younger than Kaeya, and being raised under Mountain Shaper’s tutelage. Tutelage and nothing more, as Mountain Shaper had emphasized. There was no need for something as mortal as family to the adepti.
“You will meet my master soon. For now, we prepare some tea for his arrival.” Zhongli says, tone doing nothing to bely his thoughts. Kaeya nods and continues his task as the two settle into comfortable silence. The monotonous motions of cutting the ginger into slices and dropping them into the pot keeps him busy, keeping his worries away as he lets his mind drift.
The sun filters through the leaves and as the tea brews, Kaeya already running around and climbing on trees, forever the free spirit his other father is like. It brings a smile to Zhongli’s face, and the curve of his shoulder eases as he can’t help but think of Venti when he watches their child. He drains the tea into the teapot he had brought. From his sleeve, he takes out a sundial and observes the time and calls for Kaeya to return. It was time for him to meet his master. His master was never late when Zhongli was on the mountain.
The seal in front of the domain shimmers and Mountain Shaper steps out, crane form making his way towards the pair. Zhongli stands, gently pulling Kaeya on his feet. He starts to sink to a bow, for despite being the Geo Archon, this is still his master and to show anything other than respect to him would be rude, only to be stopped by Mountain Shaper himself.
“Do not bow to me, my Lord. Who would want to see their sovereign be below them? Rise.” Zhongli straightened yet bowed his head.
“Be that as it may, it would be uncourteous of me to not show respect to my master,” replies Zhongli easily. Mountain Shaper huffed, before he turned his eyes to Kaeya. He stares at the child for a few moments before turning to Zhongli.
“Who is this mortal child that you bring?” It is not accusing, but there is a hint of something in his master’s voice. Zhongli does not react, nor does he look as he feels Kaeya hiding behind the folds of his clothes.
“My child, this is Lord Mountain Shaper,” Zhongli introduces, watching as Kaeya stares at Mountain Shaper. He can almost see his young mind already pronouncing the words in his mind, Liyuean slowly but surely being taught to him. For now, the common tongue will be used. He then turns to Mountain Shaper.
“This is Kaeya,” Zhongli says, taking a pause. He gently steps aside, caressing Kaeya’s blue locks with his hand to calm the child and allowing Mountain Shaper to take a closer look. “He is my son with Barbatos.”
Mountain Shaper is quiet, as he stares between the two of them. Zhongli stands patiently, already knows his master’s opinion on his choice of mate and Mountain Shaper knows there is no changing Zhongli’s mind on that matter.
“Barbatos, you say… He is not on my mountain, is he?” Zhongli breaks his composure, bringing a sleeve up to hide his smile.
“Not at all, master. He stayed at the base of the mountain. It seems your… persuasion skills convinced him to stay far,” Zhongli replies, mirth seeping into his words. Mountain Shaper huffs, feathers puffing in what was most definitely pride. The older adeptus finally turned to Kaeya once again.
“Son of Morax,” No mention of Barbatos, huh. “Step closer for me to see you.” Kaeya remained by Zhongli side, hands creasing the fabric of his shanqun.
“Go on, A-Ya. The venerable master will do you no harm. I am here,” he soothed, voice soft as he stroked the child’s hair once more. Kaeya steeled himself, scrunching up his nose, before releasing him and stepping forward towards Mountain Shaper. The closer he got, the more the fear the boy had seemed to fade away, replaced with the childish innocence that is curiosity. Zhongli watches carefully as Kaeya stood in front of his master.
“How old are you, child?” asks Mountain Shaper, standing taller than the child.
“I just turned seven!” Mountain Shaper hummed, focused completely on the child. Zhongli watched them interact, knowing Mountain Shaper would bring no harm to the child, at least not on purpose. Mountain Shaper isn’t used to mortal child, though. They are, at the end of the day, strong yet fragile beings. Zhongli watches the adeptus bristle, plumes puffing as he turned to Zhongli.
“You have not had this child for seven years, have you, Morax?” the tone was accusatory, almost enough to make Zhongli laugh. He allows himself a small smile, shaking his head.
“No, master. Barbatos has only just recently awoken but two months ago. A-Ya has only recently come into our lives.” Mountain Shaper gave him an assessing eye, only to be distracted by Kaeya.
“A-die is telling the truth! My vati found me after my baba left! It was scary because it was rainy really, really hard and I was so hungry! But now I’m never hungry because a-die and vati take really good care of me!!” Zhongli swallows, clasping his hands behind his back to hide the sight of them shaking. He looks away from the pair, pretending not to notice Mountain Shaper’s gaze. His master is no fool, and though he prefers to stay in his mountain dwelling, there is no way his master does not see the star of Khaenri’ah in Kaeya’s mismatch eyes. Zhongli knows that there are some sins he can never be forgiven for, and Kaeya and his people had suffered from what was done five hundred years ago. He says nothing, keeps it trapped behind the lock that is the contract that bought his silence.
“Well, I am glad my disciple and his… and your other father are taking care of you. However,” The change in his master’s voice brings Zhongli’s eyes to stare at him in confusion. Mountain Shaper stares at him, eyes angry but with a hint of… playfulness? Zhongli can only watch as Mountain Shaper changes into a human form for the first time in millennia. Mountain Shaper scoops up Kaeya easily, movements not belying how unused to this form he must be and how foreign it must feel, before turning to Zhongli.
“Foolish boy, how could you bring a grandson of mine to meet me in such improper clothing? I did not raise you to have your child be dressed in such a manner!” Zhongli could only watch wide-eyed as Mountain Shaper carried on with his tirade, carrying Kaeya with him over to the table where he sat down. “Do not stare, Morax! Come, serve this master some tea. It truly does seem as Barbatos has rotted your brain. I had told you he was not the right one for you! He was always a fool; did you know that young Kaeya? The both of them! And Barbatos has no respect!!” Zhongli breaks out of his surprise, feeling his handles tremble once again as he almost stumbles towards the table. He is glad Kaeya is too busy playing with the braids in Mountain Shaper’s hair to notice Zhongli’s shaking hands as he served them tea, before sitting down. His master’s eyes were keen on him, watching his every move. Zhongli could never hide from him. He felt like a child, once again.
He feels a pushing of his master’s spiritual sea, in any other occasion it may have made him bristle but now, it grounded him into the present. His master had never proclaimed to be his father. Had pushed that adepti do not need parents. So why… why has he changed? He had spent most of his life unlearning it, learning to accept such connections. He had believed it, thought it to be true for the longest time, only to be shown otherwise by his loved ones. By Guizhong and Azhdaha. By Barbatos, Xiao, and Ganyu. He will not repeat old mistakes. He will be better than who he was before. He calmed himself, grounding himself with Mountain Shaper’s energy and watching Kaeya and his master interact. He was content, as of now to simply not rush and allow the two to get to know each other, but the elephant in the room was there and they both had things to say.
The pot of tea is almost empty by the time Mountain Shaper finally has decided he would entertain Zhongli’s questions. His master turns to Kaeya, catching the boy’s attention.
“Would you be willing to feed the cranes at the pool, little one? There has been quite the scarcity of food in their pond, and I am inclined to believe they are quite hungry.” Mountain Shaper gestures to a bush off to the other side of the mountain. “There are some berries there that they would find agreeable. Do take good care of them,”
Kaeya turned to Zhongli, seeking permission, to which Zhongli gave him a gentle smile and a nod. The boy jumped off Mountain Shaper’s lap before rushing to the bush, excitement evident in his hurried pace. They watched the boy and sat in silence, before Mountain Shaper spoke.
“So, Barbatos has finally awakened,” Zhongli remains quiet, gently drinking the remains of his tea. It was not a question, and Mountain Shaper was not waiting for Zhongli to answer. “How long has it been? Five hundred years? The years must go quickly as one slumbers.” Zhongli sighs, putting down his empty teacup.
“Morax, do you not realize the injustice of it all? You, of all of us, must understand. You have suffered while he has… He leaves, only to return with a child. I do not fault a child for the sins of his parents,” A pause. Mountain Shaper lets out a heavy sigh. Zhongli’s hands clench under his sleeve and his heart grows heavy. “I have never believed Barbatos was a good match for you, far from it, but I know you are not me. You will never be. You are a god of humans as much as you are of the earth. I do hope you are not suffering too much. The pain those five hundred years brought you are hard to forget.”
“Five hundred years is but a small window of time in my life.” Zhongli replies, trying to keep the tremble out of his voice. He knows he fails as he feels his hands shake.
“Even something as small as twenty years of anguish can make the strongest of us crumble. Five hundred in addition to twenty years an only cause irreparable cracks, Morax.” His master sighs again, laying a hand on his forearm.
“I had never been a dutiful master to you, and I will not deny the hand I have played in bringing you pain. Forgive your foolish master if this is overstepping but, Morax— are you truly happy?”
Zhongli tries to control his breathing, nails digging into the meat of his hand as he stared at Kaeya, letting out shrieks of joy and peals of laughter as the cranes pick berries right out of his hands. He thinks of those five hundred years, and the twenty years he spent in a forced slumber chained to this very mountain. He remembers Xiao’s haunted expression and Ganyu’s refusal to meet his eyes and he remembers feeling as if his own heart had been ripped out as he waited those centuries for any sign of Barbatos. He remembers his tears and the apologies streaming out of lips, remorse making a home in those eyes. He thinks about how it has been this past month, smile and kisses and the touch of skin. Seeing Xiao smile more than he has since before the calamity. Ganyu, slowly but surely, coming to terms with her own humanity and place amongst the adepti, despite still having a struggle. Kaeya’s bright, starry eye at peace and slowly but surely getting better under his and Barbatos’s care.
“It has been hard; I will not deny it. I have never felt such pain since Azhdaha and Guizhong.” For the first time, Zhongli meets his old master’s eyes. “Barbatos has hurt me, but every day he makes amends. I have not forgiven him, and I do not know if I ever will, but I love him, and he does everything in his power to make up for it.”
They stare at each other, and they both know they are not solely speaking about Barbatos. His master lets out a little huff, a rueful and bitter smile crossing his face. He gently pats Zhongli’s arm.
“You have grown into a fine adeptus, Morax.” Mountain Shaper gives him a rare smile, and Morax feels his heart unclench. He returns the smile, his chest swelling. “I am most certain that Barbatos will do his best to make amends. He will work most diligently to do so.” His tone is heavy, and the words are simple, but what kind of disciple would Zhongli be if he could not read between the lines?
“I will keep that in mind, master.” He replies, tone soft.
“A-die! Yeye! I finished feeding the cranes!!” Kaeya calls as he runs over to them, clinging to Zhongli’s side. He smiles at the child and smooths out the strands of hair that have escaped his hair tie.
“Thank you, A-Ya. You have helped out master very much,” Zhongli says, lifting the boy to his own lap. The boy grinned up at him, yawning and Zhongli notices the tiredness in his eyes. He looks to the sun as Mountain Shaper thanks Kaeya and sees it has gotten much lower than he thought. He is about to open his mouth to begin to say goodbye when he feels a change in the wind as a familiar spiritual sea appears near the three of them.
“Xiao, come out. You are not intruding. Come say hello to Mountain Shaper,” Zhongli calls, turning to the edge of the grove. He hears the soft footsteps approach after a moment of hesitation and there appears Xiao.
“Apologies for intruding, Lord Mountain Shaper. Lord Barbatos had sent me to see how Lord Rex Lapis and Kaeya were doing,” Zhongli sighed in exasperation at the overly formal title yet couldn’t help but feel fondness for his eldest.
“Yaksha Xiao, it has been much too long. I hope you have been doing well?” The ‘as well as you can be’ remained unspoken.
“I have done well. I will always be diligent in my duties.” Kaeya perked up from his sleepy haze at the sound of Xiao’s voice and wiggled in Zhongli’s eyes. He released the little boy and the older adepti watched as the little boy ran to Xiao.
“Xiao-gege!! You’re here!!” Xiao quickly turned bright red as Kaeya crowded his right leg, curling up around it like a panda. He boy looked up at him and Xiao flushed even deeper. Zhongli hid his chuckle behind his fan. Xiao truly did have such a thin face; the poor boy was weak to anything affectionate. He crumpled like rice paper in the presence of his didi.
“Please get off the floor, A-Ya. You will get your clothes dirty.” Zhongli feels a grin spread across his face as Xiao hauls Kaeya off his leg and carried him, propping him up on his hip. Kaeya quickly curled up in the adepti’s embrace, gently holding onto his vajra as he rested his head on the other’s collar bone.
“I hope Barbatos hasn’t gotten too restless.” Zhongli sighed fondly, thinking about his silly husband. Xiao shrugged. “He is waiting at the foot of the mountain.” Zhongli ignores his master huffing about rude and unruly archons and nods to the other.
“Well, master. It seems that my husband is waiting; I should be taking my leave. The little one is also already halfway to sleep, and he is still recuperating.” Mountain Shaper hummed, nodding in agreement.
“To keep him up late would be counterproductive to his betterment.” Mountain Shaper stood and Zhongli followed, giving him a small bow that had Mountain Shaper giving him a scolding look.
“Thank you for entertaining us today, master.” Zhongli said with a smile. Mountain Shaper waved away the words, before morphing back into his illuminated form.
“You are always welcome here, Morax. Do not forget that. Do come again soon.” Zhongli swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded. With that Mountain Shaper gracefully flew towards the entrance of his domain. The ancient wards sprung up once again and the three were left alone. Zhongli couldn’t help the sadness crawl into his heart, and it curled with the happiness, leaving a bittersweet feeling.
“Let us go, Xiao. Venti has waited long enough, I believe.”
Xiao nods, careful not to jostle the sleeping child. He hesitates, staring at the profile of his father, fine features wistful, and turns away. He leads them down the steps, not mentioning the tears he had seen slip down Zhongli’s face.
It is in the comfort of the small cottage they have at the edge of Dawn Winery in the comfort of their own bed when they speak.
“You were crying,” Venti murmurs into the dark. Their legs are tangled and Kaeya is snoozing in his own room across the hall. “What happened?”
Zhongli stared at the wooden ceiling, eyes seeing perfectly in the dark. He looks at the grain of the wood—fir and pine, it seems. He is quiet as he lets the question wash over him. The room feels too small, yet too large. Too cold, yet too hot. He ruminates on his answer, his heart aching. He hates that his tongue had slipped when he first saw Venti after he had awoken. He hates that Venti knew of how weak and lost he was while he slept. It is not an issue of trust, but an issue that his words had brought Venti his own pain.
‘It has always been in your nature to be kind, Morax,’ says a figure in a sea of glaze lilies with flowing sleeves.
‘It is your nature, to not want to harm people. I know this was your last resort. You are truly king, Morax,’ says a familiar voice, warm and tired, crumbling like bedrock and the chasm surrounding them.
He wants to hold his tongue, but it is Venti, and Venti has always been good in causing him to shed his walls and to let him speak his mind. It is a win-lose situation, and perhaps if he had been more forthoming, their situation would have been different. He's determined to not have their mistakes be repeated.
“I sometimes still feel the chains from those years,” he whispers, hand curling around his wrist. He feels Venti freeze next to him, and feels the lithe arms tighten their hold before immediately releasing. He hears Venti swallow. "It would be cruel for me to blame you, for you also suffered. But in my mind, I cannot forget. I am sorry."
“Do not apologize," Venti whispers, unknowingly becoming an echo. "Even for us, twenty years of pain can be long.”
“So I have been told,”
The silence permeates the room and Venti’s arms return to holding him.
“My breath will never be wasted saying sorry,”
Zhongli sighs and leans into the embrace. He lays there, held in those familiar arms, and wraps an arm around the other, holding on just as tight.
“I know. It seems there were lots of unneeded apologies today.” Zhongli wistfully stared outside the window at the glow of the moon, watching as crystal flies glitter in the white light. He replies.
“Give me time,” Venti reached over, kissing the inside of his wrist. Zhongli holds back the tears as he looks back at the other to be met with the tenderness and determination in those eyes.
“I will wait for as long as you need, right here by your side.” He replies. “I won’t hide, not anymore.”
"Neither will I," Zhongli gives him a smile, feeling so very small and fragile.
“That is all we can ask for, my love.”