#♥ / ❝you were the song stuck in my head.❞ — diluc ( noctuafought )

[decoysouled]

TAG DUMP // BONDS 02.

[decoysouled]

& ONE DAY, perhaps Aether will stop finding things he has in common with Diluc & it will no longer feel as if they were cut branches from the same tree, or fallen leaves searching for one another in the autumn only to shrivel up & fade into nothingness come the gentle touch of winter's first frost. Maybe one day, he will not look at Diluc & feel as if he looks in the mirror, as if their souls are worn in the same ways, for how could they be?

( they are similarly torn at the seams, Aether knows, but not in the same way. but sometimes, it feels as if he understands them. sometimes, they wish they could drown in that feeling; in being known. )

❝I'm not sure I'd have the courage to do that.❞ Aether confesses, voice like a sprinkling of stardust on the ground ( light, airy, but oh so full of grief for a future that may never come ) & he turns his gaze away, not daring to look him in the eye, as if he fears that such an idea may come into fruition if he lets his eyes linger for longer than could be found reasonable.

❝If... I left this world, I think I wouldn't want to come back. Not because I wouldn't want to see you.❞ He bites at the inside of his cheek slightly in an attempt to concentrate on conveying his thoughts, yet he comes up emptyhanded. & thus, Aether looks back at him, an immeasurable longing in his gaze for a future that could never be his own — the one where he stays, the one where Diluc is at his side, the one where everything is alright & nothing can hurt him & he is safe & he sits next to someone he loves in front of a fireplace, watching the snowflakes fall outside the window.

That life, the one he visits only in his fondest dreams, could never belong to a creature like him, for the other would grow old & Aether, decidedly, never would. & nor would he die. How funny, he thinks & it is like swallowing a lemon, that the one thing I truly want for myself could never be mine. How cruel the universe is to take it away from me before I knew I wanted it at all.

❝I'm not used to having a home either.❞ & he wonders, really, if Diluc already knows that about Aether, for how could he not? He has never allowed himself to remain in one place, even during his time within Teyvat, & it is the same for his travels amongst the abundance of stars in the sky: there is no place, no home, for a being that will outlive the universe, that will watch the last of the stars flicker out. ❝I wish I could take you with me when that day comes.❞

( but you wouldn't come with me. i know better than to ask that of you. )

he's used to people leaving him — his mother, his father, kaeya, old friends, the list grows. it's a sad fact, but it's true nevertheless. he knows that things are just too good to be true, whether the fault lies in himself or in another factor.

deep inside, he knows he can't tie aether down, he knows the traveler goes wherever his heart takes him, and diluc is perfectly fine with that. does he wish that were the case? no, definitely not.

he shakes the thoughts. he hides the heart on his sleeve and he merely gives aether a soft smile.

"i'm glad to know that you're able to offer me a home in yourself. it's not something i'm used to." he admits. he knows they'll drift, so he starts preparing himself now, for that inevitable loss.

"however, if you do leave and ever choose to return, i'll always welcome you with open arms." he promises. even if he accepts fate, there's still that hope in him.

[decoysouled]

& IF AETHER WERE A POET, perhaps he would liken the smile on Diluc's face to the spring sun that melts the final vestiges of the winter's frost away — however, he is no poet, & all he can do is commit the warmth of it to memory, like he would the last rays of a dying sun if he were just as human as his companion. In a thousand years, when he has forgotten the names & faces of all those he has met within Teyvat, Aether hopes that Diluc's smile will be as crisp in his mind as a freshly fallen leaf on the ground in autumn.

( in a thousand years, they hope that he will remain in their memory. they know better than to promise, but they have never known better than to hope. )

❝You mean, you used to wear it in a braid at one point?❞ Aether questions, curiosity lacing his words — there is a part of him that wants to ask if Diluc has any pictures, if only because he wonders how he must have looked back then, but he dismisses that thought. What use is asking to see images of the past when he could simply create that picture perfect moment in the present?

( they can understand, really, why he had chosen a much easier hairstyle. their own braid takes a long time to redo & diluc has always been a very practical man when it came to organising his time, from their observations. )

❝I can't promise it'll look anywhere near similar, but I'll try my best to make it look nice on you. Not that it really takes much effort, you don't really need any to look good, after all.❞ It seems, Aether realises belatedly, that he may have gotten a bit too lost in his thoughts & a little too comfortable in expressing them to the object of his affection, albeit he does not dwell on the embarrassment welling up within his chest if only to save face. He does not make any further comment, instead conjuring a hairbrush in his hand & beginning to gently brush through Diluc's hair.

It would be far easier, after all, if he did not run into any unforeseen tangles while braiding it, no matter how miniscule they may be.

diluc understands the need to remain guarded. despite having been a free-spirited child, tragedy often hardened the heart. he had become fearful and cautious of others — whether they are a threat to his home, or if he worried about what his fury could do in the heat of the moment.

however, meeting aether began to change that, helped loosen the shell he forced himself into. he doesn't know when it started, he just knows that aether became a beacon of hope, a ray of light. he prays to every god that he doesn't lose the traveler.

he smiles at aether's offer. he rarely ever let anyone touch his hair besides his father and adelinde, for it's his pride and something he takes intensive care of, but he can't help but make an exception for the traveler.

"i admit, i haven't worn a braid in years. i can't say i'm not eager to see how it comes out." he approves, taking his ponytail down, unfurling his wild, fiery curls.

[decoysouled]

FEW PEOPLE WERE ALLOWED SO CLOSE — it was an effect of his endless travels that lead to his constant guardedness around others, even those he loved dearly, & so rarely was it that Aether allowed those walls to crumble enough to accept any form of fleeting affection. However, this is not quite such a thing, it is no simple moment that will end as fast as it began & become a relic of the distant past; rather, it is a gentleness that he is not so often afforded, that he has relished in since Diluc had started with caring for Aether's hair.

( there is something warm & fuzzy that makes itself known in the beating of their heart & the sparks under their skin. )

❝I'll add that to the list of things you like about me, then.❞ Aether speaks, his voice holding a lilt of amusement as he cherishes those last seconds of contact in the way Diluc ties the braid up. It feels far lighter on his head than the previous one & he cannot help but offer a small smile, half-adoration & half-appreciation. ❝Thank you.❞ These words are quieter, softly said. ❝May I return the favour? You wouldn't look half-bad with a braid too, you know?❞

@artificeheart / ♥️

"you have lovely hair." the redhead hums softly.

his fingers gently rake through aether's hair, gathering the silky locks before weaving them into a beautiful braid. once finished, he secures the end with a rubberband and a small gold bow.

"all finished."