#ae rambles about: xiao

[opalthea]

Childhood friends AU with Xiao, but it's historical 👀. (Reader and Xiao are from noble families ofc).

When it comes to companions, you were not a picky child. In fact, every child from any family instantaneously became your friend the moment your eyes landed on them. Your maids described you as a "bright, curious young child", while the knights laugh as they say that you're "one hell of a little child".

A well-loved babe, that you were. It was no wonder how you managed to befriend the youngest lord from the Northern Kingdom, timid as he is.

The first time you met him, your first thought was...

"Cute! How cute!!"

Your mother and his mother were both so equally surprised when you approached him with a big grin, handing him your hand as you introduced yourself. He was startled, to say the least.

The next few minutes passed by as he continued to hide behind his mother's gown, away from your enthusiastic staring. He can faintly hear your mother reprimanding you lightly every now and then - he thought that she should be a bit more stern...

You found out that his name was Xiao, after his mother coaxed him (and because he was a proper, polite lass).

It took you a few more playdates (with his mother present) but finally, he came out of his shell.

Oftentimes, you both played within eyesight, playing either dress up or play pretend. He was not a loud speaker, and relied much on your narrating abilities, which you happily demonstrated each time! He always seemed to pick the warrior-like characters, though... But perhaps he picked that up from his father, who was quite the famous emperor.

You were both kids — still so young and naive — but after a few plays, you realized that Xiao did not like any physical contact. It wasn't as if he flinched out of fear or whatsoever, but he just.. did not seem like he enjoyed it either. So you, the formidable young child that you are, respected his boundaries and did your best to NOT touch him in the slightest.

He appreciated it. Very much, in fact.

Well, that was until he sees you joyfully holding hands with your maids, and the teenage-ish knights hoisting you up from the ground by your hands as you giggle gleefully.

He wondered what it would be like to be close with you that way. You seemed the happiest when you get to be physically affectionate.

That's all I can think of for tonight, might mimir to go full fic mode tmrw.

[opalthea]

12:10

You liked to believe that you've lived a pretty normal life.

It was pretty ordinary, this routine that you're familiar with. You wake up sometime before dawn so you can get ready for your shift, arrive right on time, and leave your workplace as soon as you can. And it wasn't like everything was the same each day - you see different faces every now and then, coming from different parts of the city, and every conversation leads to even longer talks. And yeah, there were some accidents you couldn't avoid — like that one time, where you accidentally spilled a customer's drink twice — but all was well.

And you were comfortable with this life you've built on stable pillars.

... So if you were so used to the sense of normalcy, and learnt to stay out of trouble, why were you following this sketchy guy with his date?

...

You hid near the alleyway, palms covering your face as you sighed.

To be fair, you were not trying to act like a good Samaritan - a hero, if you would. You were really only worried for the lady draped over the guy's arm, like a fur coat of some sort, right after they left the building. Without any evidence or witnesses, you couldn't just say outright that the guy had basically dropped something in her drink, and it was a little strange to you how nobody caught him red-handed in such a public spot.

This wouldn't count as stalking, would it? That's already a crime on its own, but.. you already feel horrible if you had decided to do nothing. Your conscience wouldn't forgive you if anything happened to that poor woman.

Peeking from your hiding spot, you almost missed the two of them taking a turn for another alleyway, and you panicked. You may have lived here for a while, but you knew nothing about the more secluded streets - if you were to go there alone... A weapon. You'd need a blunt object, or something. Your hands rummaged through your pockets, and you only managed to retrieve a pen (if you ever lost the cafe's pens while you jot down orders) and your keys.

These would do, right? Right.

You waste no time chasing him down the alleyway. In hindsight, this was stupid. Going alone was always a stupid choice. Maybe you should've reconsidered- but if you had left for one second and the lady became a missing person, you wouldn't forgive yourself.

You can't think like that. She was still alive and well, if not a bit drowsy, but alive. You'd get the two of you out of there and you'd file a report immediately.

You rushed towards the alleyway.

.

The alleyway stared back. Empty. A long, narrow street, with shadows cast by the tall buildings between it. No sign of life, no sign of that lady you were so worried about, and where was that man, crap, that man--

You turned around to flee, but a figure stood tall behind you, fangs bared and arms outstretched. And you swore that nobody — or, rather, nothing else — had been following you or that strange couple, but this thing hissed and growled, clearly not human, and you were sure that your life was flashing before your very eyes-

A blade struck through the creature's chest, and it shrieked. Loud enough for you to crumble and fold into yourself, clutching to your ears so you'd face no eardrum damage. Even then, you still heard it sputter, and the blood that spat out through the clean wound was probably the second loudest thing you heard before it collapsed on itself. Its body disintegrates before your eyes.

Behind that monster, stood a man. His highlighted, yet dark hair definitely stood out first, but then his eyes caught you frozen. Unlike that creature, which was dark, and attempted to consume you with its shadow, this stranger's eyes were the brightest features on him.

Gold.

There was no mistaking his eyes, pure gold as they came. Even in the dark, they seemed to shine - maybe that was how he came to find you, even though the hostile noises from that thing should've been enough to alert any passer-by. In his hand, the blade that cut through the monster's body, almost with no effort whatsoever, despite the small size.

My saviour! You thought, and you opened your mouth to speak — thank him for coming, and for protecting you — until his gaze landed on you, and suddenly, you became the object of his attentive glare. Yikes. Okay, maybe you're just being hopeful that someone came to your rescue, yeah - if that thing somehow stalked up behind you, there was no way that this man, too, was following you. And that thing. Whatever it was.

.. Actually, what was it? You've seen your fair share of large animals, but nothing so...

"Demon." Your knight in shining armor spoke up, amidst the silence of the alleyway and the faint bustling of the street behind him. You gaped at the sound of his voice, a little startled he had even started to talk, though he took it as a cue that you didn't catch what he said. "What you saw just now. That was a demon."

"...Demon? That thing?"

He sighed. Okay, so maybe he wasn't in the mood to speak to stupid people-- but you weren't stupid; imagine just having survived a demon attack! That's unheard of, one, and secondly, people would call you insane if you were to tell anyone about this! (Not that you would. Right? Right.)

Or maybe he was insane and he was one of those bad guys who like to pull a prank on innocent people working in cafes.

"I've said too much. Best to forget about this. You were not supposed to be caught in the affairs of our world." His eyebrows furrowed a little deeper, his hand storing away his weapon in his pocket. "And you don't talk about this to anyone. Nobody else. It's for your own good, mundane."

The nerve-! No, forget it. Judging from the way he looked, he would probably just leave you if you had anything more to say.

No, wait-

"Did you see a girl being dragged away by some random, real sketchy guy?! I was following them earlier, but they disappeared the moment I came here and--"

"Those two weren't real."

"-- I'm worried if this is some- wait, what?"

"You were fooled. The demon lured you here." He averted his eyes towards the remains of the demon, or where you thought it should be, because there wasn't anything left on the ground anymore. It was completely gone. But the stranger didn't look so alarmed, so.. that was nothing to worry about, right?

He cleared his throat. "... Knowing that you're perfectly able to see things that the naked eye shouldn't, makes me restless."

"Why's that?"

"All humans are born with their third eye closed after their infant stages of life. If this gets out to the Institute..." The stranger then held his hand out, as if gesturing for something, "give me your phone."

Okay, now he's just weird. So he's your saviour and a thief. "Uh, what are you gonna do with my phone?" And the dude just had the audacity to roll his eyes.

"If there's going to be a time where you're in trouble, and it's not something even the cops can handle, it would be wise to have my contact." He bent his fingers slightly, but flexed might be the right word, and gestured again. "In case this happens again."

... Honestly, how do you reject a man that pretty? Without much hesitation — shameless, that you are — you handed your phone over to him, and watched closely as he typed in his number and name. Before you could make out the letters — you realized that he had a pretty short name, which somehow suited his short stature — he turned the device off and gave it back to you.

"Do not tell anyone about this. The longer you keep this a secret, the better." He said, before leaving you alone in the alleyway, joining the busy street as if he hadn't just taken down a monster twice his size.

.. You later learned that his name was Xiao.

SHADOWHUNTERS AU WAWAWA,, YEAH I'M JUST GOING INSANE FOR NEPHILIM XIAO BECAUSE IT'S ALREADY SO CANON WKDGSNVSBSB like... Okay... Besties I don't think I can stand it anymore, he's just so FINE.

[opalthea]

SELFSHIP WARNING! You have been warned. 😈

The content below will be a belated birthday gift for myself. Happy birthday to me ❤️ and I know he'd be there for me. See how his events involved his birthday AND my birthday, we are meant to be <33

15th of October, 11:50.

Xiao stood idly with his arms crossed, eyeing the view below them mutely. The night had been as peaceful — the winds chimed in each breeze, but perhaps that was the doing of the Anemo Archon — without the need for him to vanquish demons of the old.

Beside him was Esther, sitting on the grassy part of the cliff and writing away in her sketchbook that she carried on her person. The poetry event had kick-started her love for the arts, Xiao recognised it well in the way her eyes sparkled, and truly, he need not disturb her in her peace.

Was it a normal occurrence for him to have the time to accompany another being? Logically speaking, no - with his duty on his shoulders and his preference to avoid people, he should be far away from this gala she spoke of. He should be out there, protecting what has been bestowed upon him and continue to serve the nation, like the weapon he claimed to be.

But here he was, watching her fingers weave and string words into a flowery language, like a skilled florist. A language that he was versed in — courtesy of Bonanus, that cheeky yaksha — but not well equipped with. His eyes trail intently when she got stuck in a particular sentence, her lips pursed and bitten, and then her eyes glaring at the paper as if it would bring her the words she needed.

He knew not of the time, but the day drew nearer to a close. The moon rose to its peak slowly.

"You put yourself in trivial matters that would only strain your mind," he began, though not chiding or insulting. He took his seat right next to her, propping an arm up with his knee. "Why focus on a specific sentence when you could create more from a different perspective?"

He earned himself an eye roll from her, but it was all out of lighthearted jest. And, as if she could not hide it for any longer than a second, a smile pulled at the corner of her lips.

The moon paled in comparison to her, for she was the sun that provided it light.

"By all means, dear adeptus, if you think yourself learned, won't you craft me a short poem?" She teased, poking the feather tip of her quill towards his exposed shoulder. He all but flinched; he had endured many great things, a simple feather would not bother him in the slightest.

In reply to her playful banter, his stare remained on her person, and so did hers to his eyes. A silent challenge, but nothing malicious.

The moon awaited his response, breath held, inching higher in the sky. His eyes glimmered determinedly when his mind came up with the idea, and like the hidden poet that he is, he pretended to be brave, and uttered lowly.

"I want nothing more,

Sweet dreams cannot compare to

You who consumed me."

... Silence washed over them, and Xiao quickly regretted his actions. Perhaps he truly was not built for these kinds of things, with his talents being so closely related to the art of weapons and wars, and the dances of graceful fights.

That was until a lovely blush settled across her face, and a smile so endearing wobbled on her lips. Esther made a sound similar to that of an amused snort, before turning away bashfully.

Ah, so it was not all for vain.

"Okay, you caught me there. You're definitely not bad at it." She ran a hand through the hair on the side of her head, tucking a thick lock behind her ear. Noticeably, it turned red at the pointy top. Then, she returned her gaze to him. "But I guess that means I've used up what little things I could demand of you for a birthday gift, right?"

Xiao hovered his hand over half of his face when he realised that he, too, was burning up. A smile tugged dangerously on his face. What a foolish feeling.

"No. Feel free to ask anything of me, if it is within my capabilities, I will do it."