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No matter what time of the day it was, when Venti walked into the Angel’s Share, heads turned. It was simply part and parcel of being the five times winner of the "Most Popular Bard of Mondstadt" contest.
Despite that, today’s heads were a little more special than most others because this time, even the famously stoic Master Diluc did a double take upon seeing him stroll into the tavern.
“What’s the matter?” Venti asked cheekily. “Surely you can’t have failed to recognize me?”
The grumpy bartender gave him a once over. “What’s with the dress up?”
Venti grinned, conjuring a spear which he spun before sticking firmly onto the ground with a sharp thud. “It’s cosplay! Haven’t you heard of it? You ought to catch up on the latest trends, Diluc. You’re too young to be missing out~”
As expected, the bartender only rolled his eyes, gesturing almost dismissively to the corner reserved for any bard performances, in a manner akin to shooing Venti away before turning back to wine cupboards behind him.
“Oh, come on,” Venti whined a little. “An adeptus has travelled far and wide to grace your lovely tavern with one’s presence. Surely, the least you could do is provide a little offering. A bottle of rice wine, perhaps?”
The wine tycoon didn’t deign that worth turning around for it seemed, returning to pointlessly scrubbing his squeaky clean cupboards. “I do not worship any adeptus.”
“Aww… not even an Anemo one?”
This apparently did catch Diluc’s attention as he turned around to eye Venti’s attire once more. “Hmm, I would have thought Electro perhaps.”
Electro?? Perhaps it was the purple pants? Venti stuck his tongue out at him, swiping the glass of wine Diluc pretended not to have set down before he could regret it and take it away. “It’s definitely Anemo,” he insisted.
Diluc only shrugged, uncaring. Venti wrinkled his nose.
Sauntering over to the performance area, Venti took a sip from the offered wine. Dandelion wine. Guess the cosplay did not move the tycoon enough for some rice wine then.
Setting the glass down, the cosplaying bard began to perform. As is fitting of his fancy new attire, he decided to indulge in songs celebrating the glory and tragedy of the yakshas today. After all, he recently had the pleasure of coming across a perfect opening poem to tie together the many heroic stories.
千年浮沉定，生涯不老身。
未灭胸中火，万般难舍恩。
见山怀其高，见水念其幽。
重会南柯下，幸知已还真。
(A thousand year's vicissitudes, one's form never aging.
Grace never forgotten, the fire yet burning.
Mountains climb high and waters run deep.
Strange fate, indeed, to once more meet.)*
As the taverngoers drifted in and out, Venti weaved chivalrous tales of the various yakshas. From lesser known ones who died in the archon wars to famous ones who fiercely protected the land, he sang boldly of the neighbouring heroes of the past, letting it inspire and fill the room. Perhaps it too would galvanise a new generation of knights, heroes, and adventurers through heartening, noble tales.
Yet the songs were rarely embellished enough to truly tell of the grandness of their deeds, and so Venti found himself slipping in a few more verses here and there. Some from the stories he had been privileged enough to hear from his beloved, and some of whom were relegated only to fanciful imaginings, for even he had heard too little of them.
Despite the fact that most of his audience were barely paying attention to the words he was weaving, there was something oddly cathartic about indulging in the grief and tragedy of these stories through his own performance. It might have been a public show, but tucked away in a corner, Venti was almost insulated from the crowd, wrapped within his own music and the emotions it carried.
These stories were deeply tied to his sweetheart, but outside of Xiao, there were very few chances to speak much of these people and stories. He might have never met them, and the grief was not quite his own to carry, yet their sorrowful tales twisted his heart with anguish all the same.
Unfortunately, these stories often haunted Xiao and surfaced memories that were sometimes better left alone, and Venti hated the thought of putting Xiao through that just to process his own sympathy grief.
So what better opportunity than to process them through songs to a tavern of drunkards who would barely remember it beyond the fleeting feelings it induced? Perhaps it would even impact them in ways they needed.
Thus, deep into the night, he sang. As the patrons of Angel’s Share slowly emptied out, Venti couldn’t resist debuting the latest of his new songs in the suite. One of a brave yaksha who survived through the wars and terrors, yet found himself bereft of a home. Resilient as he was, he had trudged on, determined, with naught but soft guiding music to pull himself together and with that alone, had admirably sustained himself for another thousand years.
The end of the song softens to an almost romantic note, narrating the story of how the sweet adeptus found the hope and courage to join the song at long last. Soft and gentle, the beautiful harmony created by the intertwining of voices was adored by the wind. With his final breath, Venti poured his soul into a earnest hope for the entangled voices to be carried far and wide, to cleanse the lands and gentle hearts, purifying the world around them even when the song took forms that may not be easily understood.
As he ended his final performance of the night, Venti slid back in front of Diluc, content to rest his head down onto the counter. Tradition dictated that he demanded at least an apple cider, yet with the emotional turmoil he stumbled through in today’s performance, perhaps that could wait a moment or two.
“Hmm,” Diluc hummed, causing Venti to open an eye and tilt his head a little to better watch the bartender. “Should I be concerned for Mondstadt’s security?”
Venti blinked at him. “Mondstadt’s… security? Did the Darknight Hero uncover something?”
Diluc shot him a dirty look at the mention. “How would I know what he does or does not uncover? I was speaking of your final song.”
“A beautiful one, isn’t it?”
“I did not know our archon was dating a foreign entity. Would that constitute foreign interference?”
Venti let out a little puff of laughter at that. The concept of Xiao conducting foreign interference… How absurd! Maybe he should make that happen and somehow find a way to declare the next year’s Windblume to be Qingxins just to watch the merchants scramble to purchase them.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” he said at last. “He would never hurt Mondstadt.”
Dahlia slid onto the stool beside Venti with a cheeky grin. “Are they even dating? Last I heard, our poor little bard was just engaging in centuries long endless pining, and yet he has been singing those mournful little ballads for as long as I’ve known him.”
“Nahh,” a rowdy voice interrupted, clapping Dahlia on the back and nearly bumping him onto the counter (Diluc wrinkled his aristocratic nose at that). “They’re actually dating now.”
Venti blinked. He most certainly hadn’t mentioned anything to any of the humans present so… “Wait, hold up, where—”
Unfortunately, that piece of gossip was entirely too juicy for Dahlia to stay calm, it seemed, for he spun around immediately to face Varka, a sparkle in his eyes. “Oho, really? Where did you hear that?”
Varka grinned. “Would the Grand Master of the Knights of Favonius come to you with false news on our beloved Anemo Archon? Of course not! It is a matter entirely too important to be inaccurate about!”
Diluc rolled his eyes, but the curiosity must have spread like a disease to him too, for he asked, “Yeah, so what’s your source?”
“The Wolf of the North himself!” Varka declared proudly. “I was visiting Razor at Wolvendom a little while back, and Boreas mentioned offhandedly that Barbatos was singing of his favourite kisses from the adeptus.”
“Hmm,” Dahlia mused. “Kisses don't necessarily mean dating though. They could be courting.”
“I am right here,” Venti grumbled at last. “This is only fun when you do this to other people.”
Dahlia grinned at him. “I don’t know, dude. I’m having plenty of fun.”
Varka gave him a hearty laugh. “Guilty as charged.”
Venti gave a huff of annoyance, sending a strong gust of wind to mess up both their hair. Incorrigible! Worse, it was Boreas of all people who was spreading his gossip. Thousands of years of friendship really meant nothing! He would need to have words with him.
Diluc only gave him a blank stare. “Honestly, it’s not like you’re being the subtlest right now, anyway.”
“Ah well,” Venti shrugged, a warm feeling flowing through him. “You should see him one day.”
“Mhm,” a familiar voice joined in agreement. “He is very handsome after all.”
In unison, all three gossiping scoundrels turned instantly to face the Traveler, like moths to a flame.
“You’ve met him!” Varka cried in delight.
“Whoa, you can’t just say that and not elaborate,” Dahlia insisted. “Come on, spill the tea.”
Diluc said nothing, only slipping an alcoholic apple cider in front of the Traveler.
Venti tilted his head up to the ceiling with a sigh of defeat. Perhaps if they managed to live for several more centuries, they’d actually get that chance to see Xiao.
Xiao was in a different attire today. Venti’s usual outfit specifically. It was warm and snug, and heavier than he expected, but it was strange navigating all these more restrictive bits.
The only reason he had agreed to do this was because he had lost a drinking game to Venti. He had known, even before he agreed to it, that it was a terrible idea really, for how was he going to win a drinking game against Barbatos? Unfortunately, Venti was so adorable when he proposed the bet that Xiao found it near impossible to refuse.
Xiao sighed. At least he spent much of his time in the shadows. On most days, nobody even saw him, so it was merely a matter of getting through the day and switching back with Venti at midnight as promised.
He did briefly consider changing out of the foreign outfit and switching back closer to the time, but Venti had helped dress him in this outfit. It felt somehow blasphemous to just… remove it without permission, especially after he already agreed to do this. Besides, it was an impractical idea anyway, for he wasn’t sure he knew how to get everything back in position properly, and while Venti wasn’t likely to call him out on it, he just…
He didn’t want to disappoint Venti.
There was an odd comfort in it as well. Sitting among the trees and watching the lands was habitual for him nowadays, yet with the heavy cloak wrapped around himself, he almost felt safer. As though he was being hugged by Venti and surrounded by his scent.
What a ridiculous notion. It was a day like any other, and he was alone as he always was.
There were other… perks to the cloak, Xiao decided, as he strolled among the shadows at Wuwang Hill, swishing the cape the way he sometimes saw Venti do. As much as it was almost a little too clunky in a fight for him, it was certainly fun to feel the weight of it shift from side to side. It took a while to get a hang of making it swing, but when it did, it even felt oddly regal sometimes. He could see how Venti got his dramatic self-important talk with such a cape.
Strolling back and forth across a shaded path, he was so focused on surreptitiously attempting to perfect the sway of the cloak that he nearly missed the sudden crunch of footsteps rounding the corner—much closer than he had expected! Startled, his eyes shot upwards only to spot the two of the last people he would ever want to see him like this. Panicked, he found himself teleporting away instantly. As if in slow motion, he saw Zhongli’s eyes drift briefly to where he was moments ago as Hu Tao turned to Zhongli, a puzzled expression on her face.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t thinking of where to go and somehow ended up at the bottom of a cliff in Qingce, catching the exact momenta young boy tripped over a rock at the edge of the cliff. In an instant, he was by his side, catching him and hauling him back up onto safer grounds right as his companion looked like she was about to panic.
Thankfully, they both calmed down the moment they were back on more solid ground. However, it did mean that he was still spotted in this… outfit in the end. If for nothing else, he was at least glad for the covered arms providing a layer of separation between him and the boy, giving the child a degree of separation from the karmic debt that tainted him and a softer landing.
“Be careful,” he told them severely, before disappearing in a swirl to a nearby perch to ensure that they left safely.
Thankfully, they took his advice and started heading down the mountain, only to quickly run into a familiar little girl along the way, one clutching her precious little doll just like she had been before.
“Lil’ Li, Lil’ Tian,” Little Luo called, waving her doll in the air excitedly. “Where have you been?”
“You won’t believe who we just met, Little Luo,” the little boy cried, delighted. “We saw the adeptus!”
“Oooh, the handsome yaksha?” she cried delightedly. Xiao felt his cheeks warm at the descriptor.
“Yes! His cape was sooooo cool!!” Oh…
Little Luo blinked at the boy, confused. “Cape?”
“Yeah!! The long green cape that swishes behind him?”
Little Luo frowned at him. “Are you making it up? The adeptus doesn’t have a cape! He has those purple scarves and the white shawl with clouds on them.”
“What? No, he doesn’t!” Lil’ Li turned to his sister for back up. “You saw him too! Tell her he was wearing a cape.”
Lil’ Tian nodded sagely. “He was indeed,” she said, despite the outcry of “nonsense” from the other girl. “But he is an adeptus after all. Maybe he has many different outfits.”
“Ooooh, that’s true!” Lil’ Li agreed, suddenly intrigued by the thought.
“Hey, what if we make him a new one as a gift?” Little Luo suggested suddenly, almost bouncing on the balls of her feet in excitement. “Do you think he’ll like it? It might make him smile!”
Xiao scoffed, biting his lips to stop them from tilting upwards. What a ridiculous notion.