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The honey-eyed traveler would dip down, before swiftly rising.
New pointe shoes are always so hard to the feet.. Good thing that he managed to break the wood, even if only slightly.
That is, because even if he was the one dancing, it was his sister, Lumine, that always prepared most of the things for it.
She sewed the ribbons and the shoes, broke the wood and even aided him in times his achilles were sore.
Basically? She was his lifeline, just as he was hers.
They were always equal, even if one was feeling under the weather. Lumine... Ah, how he longed for her comforting touch when she told him that everything would be okay, and that if he wanted, he could always tell her, or if he preferred, to dance it out.
And that, he did. Oh, how many late nights he was awake, and danced it all out, feeling a hideous taste creep upon his tongue.
How many tears his beautifull eyes had shed almost every night after they were torn apart. Aether and Lumine were soulmates, platonically of course, as they were siblings.
They complimented one-another.
She, a powerful and merciless beauty whom had a soft spot for her sibling. He, a rather soft, but strong willed invidual who too, had developed a soft spot for his sister. After all, who could not? She was his everything, literally.
Lumine was the other part of his soul, once they were together, they were whole.
But right now, they were hundred kilometers, if not more, away from each other.
He still couldn't comprehend the fact, that Lumine was with the Abyss Order.
A painful ' Why ' would tear itself into his mind, as he grit his teeth. Enough, he should get back to the main focus. As he worked out the pointe shoes, he felt tears prick the corners of his beautiful and enchanting eyes. He swiftly blinked a couple times, to get rid of the tears that had glistened over his eyes.
Aether heaved out a breath, before he even managed to get into a stance. It was rather good that he had shown Albedo the structure of his previous pointe shoes, because the latter could now recreate them for Aether everytime they broke.
Despite the fact that he mostly danced when upset, they still broke fast. It was a shame that Teyvatians didn't know anything about ballet, really. It too, was a shame, that ballet had been only recognized in their homeworld. The other worlds had no idea of what ballet was. How, he didn't know.
He'd grunt once he felt his feet back on the floor. It hurt so much, especially because the pointe shoes, or rather the wood in them, wasn't broke properly. If only...
He'd shake his head. No, not now. Aether continued warm ups, before he spun, heaving out a sigh of relief. Finally, it hurt less. Erm, it still was painfull, just.. Not that much.
Once Aether begun the dance of sorrow, a curious pair of dark, golden eyes peeked through the door. Well, wasn't that a surprise? The Yaksha didn't expect to stumble upon the Traveler, but oh well. Curious eyes glided over the features of the blonde. From the soft, rather messy bun on the top of his head, to the... Weird shoes. What even were those? Hm..
As Xiao studied the.. Thing, that Aether was currently doing. What even was that? ... He couldn't help but feel his heart ache, as the movements looked rather devastated.
Everything seemed to freeze, when the blonde noticed Xiao. His gracefull, but painfull movements came to a halt, as Aether stared. He... He wasn't supposed to see this! This whole thing was supposed to stay a secret, something that Aether kept to himself! Not something that others should stumble upon, and become mesmerized. There wasn't even any reason to do so! This whole ordeal was filled with pain, sorrow, dread! It wasn't supposed to be beautiful.
But in his eyes, the blonde, even if so distressed, was charming. Xiao felt his breath catch in his throat, as his body moved entirely on its own.He embraced the man, not caring about the fact that Aethers cheeks were dampened with salty tears.
When Xiao embraced him, Aether seemed to turn into jelly, as his legs almost gave out on him. Oh, no, no, no, no, no! He wasn't supposed to show vulnerability, he was supposed to stay the strong, tough traveler who faced everything face on!
But he couldn't stop the painful sob, which ripped itself from his throat, as tears welled up in his eyes, finally flowing freely down his cheeks. He reciprocated the hug, embracing the raven-haired adeptus aswell.
In one moment, his chin was lifted up, as he stared into the Yaksha's eyes, so full of sadness.
— Remind me, why did I give you my name, that promise, Aether? —
Xiao furrowed his eyebrows, as the blonde's eyes got swallowed by tears. The older hiccuped, before answering softly.
— Well... I- — Aether was cut off, as the younger softly kissed his lips. The blonde was in pure shock, when Xiao pulled away and spoke again.
— Aether, I want to be here for you. You- Why must you mortals be so difficult. — The Yaksha huffed, but once he saw the Traveler finally calm down, a small, almost invisible to the eye, smile creeped it's way onto his face.
And just as he promised, he was there for Aether, every other night, every other day. Just like he was supposed to, just like he wanted to. To stick close with the blonde.