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m1d-45 · 1 year

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I know yall hate on her for wrecking the 50/50, but. Imagine Qiqi finding the creator. Lil zombie girl is just roaming around, kinda lost, when she sees a strange blue bird flying through the air. She gets the feeling that she needs to follow it, so she does. She ends up finding the blue bird, and with it, the Creator. She doesn't really get that the person before her is the God Of All Things, but it doesn't matter. This person is injured, and she has plants on her that can help. Baizhu had written down a few simple recipes in her notebook in case she got hurt, and now she can use them to help someone else! She's a little doctor now, like Baizhu!

The blue bird seems suspicious of her, but she doesn't mind. Baizhu told her that finches fly away as a precaution, not because they are truly scared. Maybe it's the same for this bird? She hopes she can be friends with the pretty bird one day.

-sibling anon, who absolutely adores Qiqi

WHAT DO YOU MEAN I HATE QIQI WHAT HAVE I DONE TO GIVE THAT IMPRESSION-

i love qiqi. she’s baby. i’d rather lose the 50/50 to her than to keqing or jean or mona. we love and adore qiqi in this house.

anyway:

imagine. qiqi going on a trip to gather more herbs, basket in one hand. her trip has been successful, more plants than usual cropping up around the area.

above her, a bird cries. she looks up, free hand holding her hat, and sees a bright blue… finch? it’s fling quickly, urgently, something grasped tightly in its claws.

is the finch… in trouble?

maybe if she had a clearer head she’d know that it was ridiculous to follow a bird because it sounded distressed, but some instinct within her told her to follow.

“wait… bird…” she grabbed a final fistful of horsetail and rushed as quickly as she could to follow. the bird was quick, but with a few lucky guesses (and the repeated cries of the bird) she was able to follow.

still, it was a long journey. once qiqi saw the bird fly into a tree she took a break underneath the shade of another, resting against the tree.

it was so hot in liyue. a breeze came by, somewhat cooling, and she put her hand to her forehead to keep her talismans in place.

she had to go. something told her that somebody was in trouble.

so she clutched her basket tightly, using a bit of cryo to keep herself cool. as she got closer to the birds tree, she could hear a voice.

“-can’t do anything with this, friend.” the bird chirped. “i don’t know enough about medicine. thank you, but…”

qiqi carefully rounded the tree, basket held in front of her like a shield.

you didn’t seem like much of a threat. you were sitting against the tree, chest heaving, clutching a stained bundle of cloth to one of your arms. the bird sat on your knee, and she could see now that the thing it was carrying was a small bundle of qingxin.

qingxin…

“excuse me?”

both you and the bird startled, the small finch flapping its wings as if to scare her off. you tried to calm it down, carefully, looking over at her with a watery smile.

“sorry, he’s a bit skittish.”

the bird, though small, felt familiar, and you… she had to have met you before, right?

“i am qiqi. i do not remember you.”

“we’ve never met.”

that’s not right. she barely recognized dr baizhu sometimes, but you she knew she met before. but where…?

“…you are injured.”

the birds wings ruffled.

“i am.”

“i have herbs.”

“…shouldn’t you be getting back to the pharmacy, qiqi?”

“qiqi does not understand. you are injured.”

the bird flapped over to her basket, seeming to inspect the plants she’d gathered. satisfied, it turned with a sharp chirp, and you sighed.

“are you certain you don’t need to get back soon?”

“qiqi needs to be at the city before the stars. that is far later.”

you glanced up, through the protective canopy of trees.

“alright then. just don’t use too much of your supply, okay? you still need some for the pharmacy.”

the bird chirped again, flying back to you when qiqi picked up her basket.

it settled at your shoulder while qiqi worked, glass eyes watching her flip through the small field notebook baizhu had filled out for her. crush this, apply that, prevent infection with-

you hissed at the sudden burst of cryo to your wound, the icevein talisman at her side jerking back when your bird cried.

you shakily pet over him, and with some hesitation, she continued.

as she worked, qiqi thought. sifting through her small memory bank. you were familiar, she knew it, but from where? your face struck a chord on an instrument she didn’t know how to play, your voice an unheard chorus.

and your bird…

when qiqi returned to the harbor, she did so with a half-empty basket and a new entry in her notebook.

‘remember the person with the blue finch.’

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#sibling anon #bird!xiao shenanigans

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m1d-45 · 1 year

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i need MISERY and SADNESS and ANGST !

reader absolutely sobbing to bird xiao. i mean fucking wailing, man.

our birdie was going about his usual business, peeping around, looking for any possible dangers, maybe bring back a nice acorn. once he’s done, he’ll fly back to us, glad to report — (chirp a few times) — that the area is safe.

but instead of finding you eagerly awaiting him with an outstretched hand, he finds you curled in on yourself, stifling sobs.

he lands on the ground in front of you, worriedly hopping past the squirrels and deer nudging various forest tributes to you. he peeps once, but you don’t respond. he peeps a second time, and this warrants an answer.

you weakly unfurl yourself, willing your head upwards.

xiao now notices the state of your clothes. tattered, dirty, and dampened with what he hopes is just a peculiar blue juice.

he then meets a pair of reddened, glossy eyes. your cheek was scratched, and your now visible hands badly scraped. he chirps in concern, flapping his wings and hopping closer to your face.

that same face scrunches once again, as you curl your head back into your knees. as another sob escapes, you only wordlessly produce a few almonds from your pocket. you only whimpered an apology as a deer laid at your feet.

the almonds were not what he wanted. he did not need an apology for- what? a lack of attention? no, none of that. he only wanted you to be happy. how had he failed you again? he was a disgrace to the adepti, he was surely deserving of avid punishment. perhaps the loss of a finger would serve well. or two, after all, he had been too selfish and ignorant to save you. why was he even aIive? why was he ever even born? such a faiIure should never have been —

his inner monologue was cut off by an offering of a hand instead. you shakily nudged him with your index finger, making him release a squeak.

“hey.. i said i’m fine, right? please eat. you’re always so hungry.”

you sniffled.

“i can find some plants, and-“

but the sobs only continued.

“and fix it..”

your hand went limp as your cries shook your body. you didn’t even bother to weep silently anymore.

the squirrels chittered, the approaching raccoon held a rock in its small hands as an offering. a deer sniffed your head as you curled into fetal position again.

“i didn’t want this- i- i didn’t want to—”

i was just having fun, why did- how did it come this far?-”

a rabbit hopped closer.

“i want to go home. i miss my mom, i miss my dad, i miss their hugs-”

the deer at your feet nudged your leg.

“why can’t i just die aIready?”

xiao squealed, flapping his little wings furiously. he chirped and chirped, trying to bring you back to your senses.

he’d seen this thing time and time again- the form taken by relinquishment. once the thought was spoken, it could only end in misfortune.

he knew this was only a psychological effect, of course. to lose a battle when a small part of you wants to. to become careless and fall asleep on a thinly frozen lake. or, to intentionally cause one’s own end.

but that would not stop him from bringing you charms of good fortune in the following days. talisman to ward off draining spirits, necklaces and bracelets he personally imbued with evil-vanquishing power.

it did not stop him from distancing himself from you, in fear his karmic binds had effected you. that they were having the same effect on you as his siblings- as himself.

he had to protect you.

it was his duty.

-owl anon RAAAHH

i’m sorry this got so long, my thumbs go *taptaptaptap* on my keyboard while i just watch

oh…. you get it.

(under the readmore because my fingers tend to go)

xiao blessing small pebbles with adeptal energy, ignoring how it stings his hands as he wraps it in a leaf. as the one enchanting the stone, he’s granted a small amount of grace, but protection charms always tended to hiss at his karma.

he picks it up with his claws, flapping up and into the skies of liyue. he always brings you small gifts, and he knows you keep them, at least for a little while. he’s not sure if the magic is absorbed into you, if it fades, or if you simply lose them—some small part of him is satisfied at the image of mountain shaper being repelled by a simple stone—but he brings them to you faithfully. you always greet him the same way, and anticipation begins to bubbles under his skin at the thought.

he loves seeing you.

…but not like this.

your tree is more crowded than usual, various small wildlife surrounding you. nothing big, nothing threatening—the deer hesitate at the treeline, huffing and pawing at the ground—but worrying for certain.

he gives his same warning cry he always does, but you don’t step out to greet him. he has to duck beneath the leaves, and he sees you… crying.

he freezes, dropping a few inches in his shock, but quickly recovers.

(he can’t hesitate. he can’t pause. there’s no time for his own problems when you are in pain-)

he lands on your arm, bumping his head to yours and giving you a small chirp.

(please be okay. please be okay. please let the teal grass around you be lighting, or his bird eyes. please.)

another bump. another chirp. he reaches and pulls a leaf from your hair, turning to drop it away, and when he looks back you managed to lift your head.

he can’t stop the way he jumps, flapping to regain his balance at the smear of blue across your face.

“oh… hello there, little friend.”

he can’t even bring himself to be as happy as he normally is at your voice.

you take the wrapped rock from your claws, both you and the leaf unfurling. the blue stone glitters, and you smile slightly. from his new perch on your wrist and your shift in posture, he can’t help but notice more and more tragic details about you.

a slash across your waist, the cloth of your shirt clinging to your skin. the dirt across your skin, the tracks of tears down your cheeks.

“th-“ you cough, and the stone in your hand pulses outside of your view. “thank you, pretty bird.”

some part of him hopes that the stone brings you some joy. that you can absorb some of his magic- hell, he’d enchant it again if he needed to, expending every drop of energy he had of it meant you didn’t have to cry.

but not even the beauty of the earth can mend the tragedy of betrayal.

if anything, you cry more, curling up again in an attempt to hide from the world that wanted you dead. concerned cheeps slip from his beak as easily as the rabbits and birds around you hop closer. none dare to get as close as he, but acorns and river stones and pushed towards you, a ring of offerings surrounding their god.

“sorry,” you stutter, your voice choked, and he wonders why you’re apologizing. “i- i still-“ another sob. xiao feels like crying himself.

(he has no right to be distraught. not when he’s the blade you fear)

“here,” you manage, offering up a shaking handful of crushed almonds. you still have him your food, you still went through the strain and effort of crushing them so he could eat them in this form- even after the adepti had injured you, you still found it in yourself to help him?

(you didn’t know he was an adeptus. he was still lying to you. he hasn’t even taken any serious action, he couldn’t even try and help you when you still helped and cooed over and loved him-)

“do- do you-“ your voice hitched and broke, and he chirped, hopping up your arm. how he wished he could comfort you properly. how he wished he wasn’t a coward, that he could do more. “i know it isn’t enough, i-“ fresh tears welled in your eyes, and he had the feeling the pain ran deeper than your skin. “i’m sorry.”

you were sorry? why? he didn’t need an apology, he- if anything he should apologize. you deserved his offerings and apologies, you deserved his effort- and he couldn’t even give you that. he couldn’t even do what he was meant to, he wasted air with every breath, he spent his time protecting the citizens that hurt you. you shouldn’t be giving you his food, he should be giving you his blade, his armor, his mask, his- his faith.

he didn’t deserve to cry. but when he took a look at his own actions, he couldn’t help but think that he should be the one with blood on his skin, with ragged clothes and heaving breaths.

(he should be dead for what he allowed to happen to you.)

“please eat,” you sobbed, nudging him with the hand holding the almonds. “i can- i’m- you can trust me.”

(you shouldn’t trust him.)

“please…”

he hated seeing you cry. he hated hearing your sobs and knowing he was indirectly part of the cause. he hated that he was too much of a coward to take any serious action, he hated that he still stood besides your enemies, he hated that some of your blood fell on his hands, hated that every ounce of strength he had was one that you didn’t, and it was his fault. at least partially.

(entirely.)

your cries took words, pleads to the wildlife for a world they didn’t know, people and names you begged to carry you from your position.

“i just wanted to have fun.” you should be. you should be dressed in gold with jewelry of silver, you should be smiling and dancing with the ones you had blessed, traveling nations not as a fugitive, but as a god. “i never meant to come here. i never meant to be a problem.”

he hates that he knows you’d be safer in your previous world. he hates it. he hates it. he hates the adepti, he hates the millelith, the knights, the matra, he hates every blade that dared to cross your skin.

(he hates himself. he hates that he’s never done enough. he hates that he’s still so much of a coward he can’t take any action, not even against himself. he should turn his spear on himself, for allowing such heresy.)

you sniffled, harshly wiping at your eyes.

“god, why can’t i just die?”

ice frosted xiao’s veins.

he would understand if you were angry. he would understand if your tears were of frustration, if you beat at the ground instead of your aggressor’s bones, if you wanted to shout and take out your anger on the sky. he’d offer himself for your wrath—at least then he could finally be of service—but for you to wish to offer your life?

for you to be convinced that the death of a god was the only solution for the falsehood of another…

how long had this thought been in your head? how long had you offhandedly thought of letting yourself be captured, be slain, of giving up what you had blessed upon so many? how many times had you debating letting a wound get worse, of allowing infection to rid you of the thorns of this world?

xiao hopped up your arm, cooing sadly and curling into your neck.

he wished he could do more. he wished that he could hold you with human arms, he wished he could give you faith in your own creations, he wished he could whisk you away and take on the world himself, that he could fight on your behalf, that you would remain safe and if anything, he would be the one to die.

“don’t cry,” you said shakily, awkwardly reaching to pet over his wings.

how could he not, when his god had forsaken everything, including themself?

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#bird!xiao shenanigans #fuck t all the bird xiao stuff is now under this tag #we ball baby #owl anon #ALSO. THE COLORS IN THIS ASK. I AM GIVING YOU A KISS ON THE FOREHEAD AND TUCKING YOU INTO BED BTW.#hhrrrrrrrr me when colors #i should make a bird xiao tag. hm.#eh but they’re on the masterlist who cares

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m1d-45 · 1 year

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Now I thought of something fluffy that make my heart burst

So you're chilling with lil bird xiao on ya

And you're singing to him to sleep

But the moment xiao falls asleep

Your lil birdie poofs into ACTUAL FUCKING XIAO

you at first are panicking until you see xiao start cooing and trying to snuggle up to you

So you end up just having a sleepy xiao on ya until he wakes up

So you end up just having a nice cuddle with xiao

That is until xiao wakes up and nearly has a panic attack due to still thinking you'll freak out

From raccoon anon 🦝

xiao is probably used to his human form and likely found being a bird for you awkward at first simply because he wasn’t used to it. his limbs were in the wrong spots, his joints were different, everything was so odd.

and sleeping is already an activity that he doesn’t partake in anymore. he meditates at night, if he takes a break at all.

but with you…

his eyes droop when he’s curled up with you under the leaves, his mind slows to a crawl sitting under the sun with you. it’s so easy to rest with you.

he tries to be careful, he does, but when he sits on your knee and watches you practice with dendro… it’s so peaceful. so calm.

so… so quiet.

when your bird falls asleep, you don’t think much of it. when the wind seems to blow w bit harder, ruffling his feathers, you double check nothing had blown away before continuing your practice.

when your bird is gone, and it’s a human head resting in your lap instead, you notice.

you startle, dropping the small stick you’ve been working with, the wood landing in the blue strands of a yaksha’s hair. he looks… peaceful, when he’s asleep, his head resting where your bird once was.

so he… was your bird? you knew adepti had different forms, but now…

oh god, you’d been feeding an adeptus bird food.

there’s more to unpack, about the likelihood that he was sent as a spy, about the repeated kindnesses he’s shown you, about the fact that xiao felt comfortable enough around you to not only sleep, but to unconsciously reveal the secret he was unable to spill while awake. a lot to unpack and think about, but you’re not equipped to unzip that suitcase.

so you pick up your stick, and sprout a flower, feeling satisfied with how it looks in his hair.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#raccoon anon #bird!xiao shenanigans #i could say more #but i need to get up rn and Do Task #so

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m1d-45 · 1 year

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GASP I had another idea. What if, since Xiao now knows who the real Creator is, he prays the them and not the faker on the throne? And when he next visits the creator as a bird, they are excitedly showing him a new bit of power they suddenly got, not knowing that it was his own faith that restored a bit of their glory??? -sibling anon, who is just vibing with this idea like it's a rubix cube

combined this ask w your other one, and sorry this is kinda late/reads weird. been busy and i am tired 👍

word count: 723

xiao knows the one on the throne isn’t his god, and his curiosity about you has turned into conviction.

you’re his creator. you have to be.

you’re soft where they’re harsh, you gently pet his feathers where they snap out orders. he knows he’s only one against many, he knows he doesn’t stand a chance and giving you the worship and praise you deserve, but… he tries.

he’s forfeited all but basic politeness to the fraud, limiting his interactions with them and instead spending his time with you. he spends more time in his bird form than human, at this point, curled into your side as you wander liyue. he takes patrols where you are to keep the others away from you, always ‘just missing’ wherever you are. sometimes he brings you things in return for your eternal kindness, hiding things as a human to lead you to them as a bird.

your bird. your little songbird, perched on your finger as you flip over the coin of mora he brought you with a smile. perhaps he should be ashamed, that an adeptus such as him is reduced to eating from another’s palm, but he’s not. not when it’s you. not when he finds your image the one in his mind when he’s in danger, not when he finds himself defending liyue in your name, not when he makes offerings to you instead of the fraud.

your little bird, your xiao. he knows he can’t do enough on his own, he knows that his small acts of protection aren’t nearly what you deserve, but…

as he flies across liyue, a coin of mora clutched in his claws, he hopes that it will help you in places he can’t.

he lets out a call when he spots you walking between the trees, tucking into a dive. you turn, the same smile on your face as every time that you see him, and he lands in your hand, the coolness of the coin contrasting with the warmth from your hand.

“little friend! welcome back, pretty bird.”

he chirps back at you, settling in the curve of your hand as you pick up the coin he brought you. however, instead of telling him about your day, or continuing on your walk, you reached for the branch of a nearby berry bush—thankfully, one that was edible, though you didn’t go for the fully grown ones instead, you pulled off a small part of a branch with a flowering bud on it.

“look, i learned how to do something new today!”

he chirped, moving closer to your wrist to watch your actions. you held the branch between two of your fingers and carefully brushed over the flower, something green sparking under the pad of your thumb. as he watched, the small bud bloomed, a bright red berry sprouting at impossible speeds.

something like a yelp left him in surprise, his wings puffing up as he tried to make sense of it, and your attention quickly shifted from the branch.

you moved him up and cooed nothing at him, unaware of how far xiao’s mind was from the situation.

you had made the plant bloom. dendro had answered your call, when he knew for certain that nothing had bent to your will when he’d first found you.

he knew being near you was calming—it was why you were constantly surrounded by birds and butterflies, it was how he was clued in to your divinity, at first. the way his karma seemed to settle and fade- even now, his shock washing away under your touch over his wings.

something featherlight pressed to the top of his head and he blinked himself from his thoughts, looking up to see you pulling away.

you don’t say a word, carefully plucking the berry from its stem with one hand. in your other, xiao is frozen again, this time for an entirely different reason. his forehead is alight, his heartbeat pounding in his ears, the problem of your blossoming godhood pushed aside and buried.

you put the fresh berry in your other hand, in front of xiao, and he dipped his head to nip at it.

blessed is he who partakes in the divine.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#sibling anon #bird!xiao shenanigans #the line on my ‘non-writing related asks’ tag is REALLY BLURRING #also yeah um. it’s big delay between posts time again 👍#been busy been tired used all my brain juice in dms and these bird xiao snippets #wait. dms. shit.

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m1d-45 · 1 year

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Okay last little idea and I'll leave you be for a bit

Xiao actually responding to the names the creator gives him. Little Friend, Pretty Bird, ect. No matter how far away you are, if you call those names, he has to stop himself from turning into a bird and flying away at that very moment. Those pet names are as much his name as any other he's kept.

-sibling anon

me when xiao

in his time with you in his adeptal form, xiao has never told you his name.

and yet, he still hears you.

if he’s in the area and the wind brings him the softest call of “you here, little friend?” he morphs in an instant, instinct taking over as he flies to your summons. he ducks through the trees, landing gracefully in your outstretched hand, meeting your wide smile with a chirp.

“there you are,” you mumble, and he ruffles his wings in an approximation of standing straighter. he is here. for you.

he’s commonly perched on your index finger, or your thumb if he’s eating from your palm. you only feed him simple almonds, yet it tastes of a delightful meal, energy coursing through his body. he’s careful not to nick your skin in his eagerness, but nobody could blame his enthusiasm if they knew what he felt.

by sitting in your hand, he is rested. by staying at your side, he is healed. he still upkeeps his duties, ever vigilant, but he’s quicker now, spurred on by something—someone—to return to. his place is at your side, and he hates keeping you waiting.

even when he has to.

xiao crossed his arms over his chest, staring off at liyue’s plains while he waited for the traveller to finish talking with… whoever. he honestly wasn’t paying attention. all he was there for was the lost adeptal artifact that the commissioner had promised he had, and then he would be on his way.

the man said something with a tilt to his tone. the traveller laughed. xiao grit his teeth.

“friend? little buddy? where are you?”

the call pulled at his soul as every other name he held, and he itched to answer.

paimon made a comment, an ooh! tossed somewhere in the middle, and xiao snapped.

“can we wrap it up? this is not a proper use of an adeptus’ time.”

the man swiftly apologized, handing over the totem, and xiao all but snatched it from his hand. a ‘farewell’ may or may not have slipped from him in time for the traveller to hear, he wasn’t sure. all he knew was that one moment he was dropping the totem off at his room at the inn, and the next he was leaping off the balcony, shifting mid-air to fly towards you.

he let out a loud cry when he spotted you, tucking in his wings to dive. you saw him and held out your hand, a motion so familiar that the actions to land were muscle memory.

he flared his wings, slowing his fall, flapping once, twice, before settling on your index finger. your thumb reached up, as it always did, and he leaned into it, repressing a coo at the feeling of it smoothing over his back.

“there you are, my pretty bird. where were you?”

a shiver rolls down his small body at your words, and he hides behind your thumb. you had many names for him—little friend, blue bird, simply blue—but pretty bird?

your pretty bird?

he’s hot in a way he can’t identify, a melting mix of emotions filling his chest. pride, admiration, adoration, even, all blurring into a messy film that covered his mind.

you turned towards your camp, keeping the hand with him perched close to you. “doesn’t matter. you’re here now, pretty bird. i missed you, you know.”

and you missed him?

xiao’s known for a while that the one on the throne wasn’t truly his god, but now he’s wondering if you were. the swell of confusing feelings was proof enough; were you anybody else, mortal or immortal, god or adepti, he’d have surely struck you down for your behavior long ago. cooing over him as if he were a mere household pet, feeding him scraps of crushed fruit, calling him such names as ‘pretty bird’- he’d have morphed back the second he was strong enough, held his blade to your throat and called you insolent and ungrateful. he’d leave you with a scar, and yet here he was, apologizing for the one he did leave in any way he could.

you carefully poured some almonds pieces in your palm, and he shifted to your thumb as you sat. were you anybody else, you would be dead. but your eyes are still open, carefully watching him, and your heart still beats blood. he can feel your pulse through his claws, sometimes, and often finds his own slowing down to match it.

you had an adeptus eating from the palm of your hand, and yet you were none the wiser. you simply propped your head in your free hand, a gentle smile on your face.

“my pretty bird,” you said quietly, and xiao’s eyes closed of their own volition.

yours.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#sibling anon #bird!xiao shenanigans #< sorry for high jacking your post for this king #to stew anon: i saw your ask regarding bird xiao but the topic makes me uncomfortable. while i agree with your last point everything prior #is off the table. not your fault btw i never gave anything to suggest otherwise #anyway here’s another 800 words abt bird xiao in hopefully ‘good enough’ compensation #hey FUCK tumblr for continuing to delete the last paragraph of my fics #wholeheartedly #GOD fuck this fuck everything lesson learned NEVER DO JACK SHIT IN THE DRAFTS #tumblr is hell and i’m not good enough at navigating to get our #i’m fuckin sobbing- on my hands and knees disoriented and confused

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m1d-45 · 1 year

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More unrelated Bird Xiao blurbs because this idea has me in a chokehold.

Xiao always felt guilty about the scar he left on your hand when he but you. He nuzzles that scar with his little feathered head every chance he gets.

Zhongli noticing Xiao is in a much better mood these days. When the former archon asks the yaksha about it, he swears he saw Xiao give a small smile before he left to pray to the creator.

Xiao gets hurt in his bird form. He can't fight back in this little body and ends up with a broken wing. When the true creator finds him, he can only chirp sadly and apologetically. 'I'm so sorry,' he thinks, 'I just wanted to find you.' But instead of leaving him there like he expected, you oh-so-carefully pick him up and use what little powers you have to heal him. His heart aches for you when he hears you murmuring comforting words to him while you hold him close. He never wants you to let go of him.

-sibling anon, who is currently fixated on all the fluff+angst material of this idea

honestly i could probably post this stuff as like. a Genuine Post. but i wanna answer this now and also have a really sad post right after valentine’s day (which is already q’d) so… here’s 800 words of bird xiao :)

xiao’s fond of sitting in your palm, head resting on the small scar on your finger. he feels so bad for it, always, the glimpse of blue engrained in his memory, but he hopes by covering it you won’t hate him for it.

you don’t hold it against him (honestly, you probably forgot) and treat him as you always do: with kindness. you pet over his wings and give him your almonds, and in return he sings you a gentle song.

he’s seen at the inn less and less often, it’s so quiet on the balcony that verr ends up calling zhongli over. the consultant knew the yaksha, somehow, and she hoped he could find out what was wrong. zhongli wasn’t expecting anything serious, but when the balcony was empty even after he called for him…

(across liyue, xiao stiffened in your hands. you frowned, but he only flapped up, up, and away, leaving you as suddenly as he arrived)

xiao appears a moment before zhongli was going to call again, seeming… almost relaxed.

they talk, and though xiao swears he’s keeping up with his duties… zhongli knows he isn’t lying, but he can see how his debt has lessened. his shoulders are straighter, he isn’t as hunched over, and his hands aren’t balled at his side.

zhongli eventually shrugs it off. hes not surprised xiao hasn’t been hanging around as often when the traveller recently went to sumeru; love does strange things to people.

xiao’s only seen you in his mortal form once, and it was entirely by accident.

he’d been traveling from one hilichurl camp to the next, and your paths had crossed. he’d frozen, unused to seeing you when he want the size of your palm, but even from a distance he could see the terror in your eyes.

he hated it.

he couldn’t move for you if he wanted to—he did, he wanted to stop and hold you like you’d held him, wanted to brush his hands over your skin and assure you you had nothing to fear—as you turned and fled, leaving him alone on the trail. he couldn’t blame you, in truth, not when his spear was drawn and his face was taught with irritation. it made sense you’d be afraid of him, just… he wasn’t prepared for it to hurt this badly.

he’s been careful to only approach you in his smaller form ever since, no matter how far he had to fly. it wasn’t worth scaring you.. not after he’d already hurt you once.

he was distracted as he flew, not seeing the hawk that was diving for him until it was too late. the claws of the larger bird slammed him into the earth with a sharp crack, and he let out a cry. he couldn’t shift, not now, not when it was the time when you were usually walking about-

“hey!”

the bird didn’t pay attention to your call, only pressing xiao down further, but he did. he tried to wriggle from the hawk’s grip, to avoid the sharp beak that could spell his death in this smaller form. all he needed to do was get out, to slip free- but what if you saw him? would you still be afraid of him?

a large stick hit at the hawk, knocking its beak from xiao. you’d picked one up, one of the many splintering sticks scattered in liyue. you.. were protecting him.

the hawk cried and let him go, flapping backward, but you continued to jab at the dirt in front of it until it caved in and flew away.

xiao tried to flip to his feet, but one of his wings was hurt badly, pain shooting up his shoulder when he tried to move it. another weak chirp slipped out of him without his meaning to, and you turned, worry on your face.

you knelt—you shouldn’t be doing that, not to him, not when he was so dark and you were such a bright light—and carefully picked him up, cradling his small form in your palm. the warmth from your hands quickly covered his body, seeping into the definitely broken bone and easing some of the pain.

you carried him back to your messy camp, carefully hand-feeding him bits of almonds. if he weren’t covered in feathers, he’d surely have flushed a bright red, but he couldn’t deny that the food did help slightly.

for the rest of the day, he sat in your palm in a quiet half-sleep, weakly chirping whenever you checked on him. other birds came and went, but you kept him sheltered in your hand, wiping away any dust on his feathers.

by the time morning came, his wing was barely even sore.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#sibling anon #bird!xiao shenanigans #i could genuinely make this into a post like /srs but like…. why do that…. too much work…..#n my fated diluc post is already set up n q’d…..#i didn’t fistfight tumblr to get that to work to delay it by two days yk?#would i like Internet Numbers of course but like… this is our littol secret….#also the line abt the traveller is meant to be like. zhongli thinks xiao’s with the traveller. he’s not. but.#man idk i need to shut up #1k research paper = cringe but 800 words of xiao = i’d love to #bird xiao **cradles him gently**

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m1d-45 · 1 year

Note

i NEED xiao writings in my BLOOD STREAM arghmfhashrgh (snarling) (crawling darkly)

what if reader shows not-so-subtle favoritism to xiao, even after the whole impostor hunt? i want this man to WEEP.

maybe reader takes him up as a bodyguard of sorts, taking him around from place to place like he’s their happy little charm.

But even if reader just can’t get enough of (their scrunkly boogly bloop) - xiao, old habits die hard. sometimes when he makes a sudden move at reader, such as to catch their fall, reader still flinches. nightmares of the scarring past are common, and when they wake up to see their beloved guard hovering over them in concern, reader can’t help but yelp and shield themself with their arms.

but oh, oh no no. reader couldn’t bear to tell xiao about the dreams they have, like he kindly requests them to. then they’d have to tell him about the gruesome nightmares of him nearly tearing them apart ! that would make him awfully sad.

it would be a real shame if he found out, considering how you obviously avoid his gaze and touch during those nights. how you have a bad habit of sleep talking, when your body cannot hold in its terror.

but surely if he did find out, reverting to his small finch form as not to scare you, you’d still cradle him in your hands as if he were a fragile chick. whispering comforting words as you caress his wings, nuzzling his small head.

poor little guy awwww :((

poor little scringle :(((((

i’ve been meaning to do something w xiao post imposter au but like… this..

xiao who knows you’re afraid of him, who can’t even blame you or be upset. xiao unsure if he should try and wake you up, if it’s worth seeing the terror in your eyes when you realize who’s next to you. he wonders if it’s worth bringing you back to reality if it’s just as dangerous as your dreams.

typically he teleports out the second you’re awake as to not scare you—the glimpse of shadow he leaves behind undoes a lot of it—but one night your hand jerked and grabbed is, and in an attempt not to teleport you into the roof of the inn, he accidentally shifts into his bird form.

you blink awake, disoriented, feeling something wriggle in your palm. you sit up blearily, bringing your hand to your lap, and see a bright blue bird in your hand. it stares up at you with wide gold eyes, seeming just as startled as you are. you open your hand a little further, encouraging it to fly away—how did it even get inside??—but it doesn’t. instead, it hops closer to your fingers, bending to butt it’s head at them. you carefully close your hand again, stroking its side with your thumb, and the bird seems satisfied.

your mouth pulls into the smile, and the little blue bird closes its eyes.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#bird!xiao shenanigans #first off can i say i adore the use of color in this ask. absolutely made it so much more tolerable to read #that sounds bad- i mean big chunks of text can be hard to read #this doesn’t even have that big of paragraphs- yk i’ll just shut up now #thank you anon

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m1d-45 · 1 year

Note

OK but I'm just thinking

The reader gets straight up cornered by zhongli with bird xaio along with them

And their first instinct is to cradle and protect their pretty bird from harm

ADD THAT ✨️ANGST✨️

From raccoon anon 🦝

oh….. so soft… agh…

(spoilers for xiao lore and for liyue archon quest!)

like you have him perched on your hand, just going for a walk… he’s sitting, maybe slightly sleepy just from your aura and the slight swaying from your walking. the only sound is the shuffling from the leaves, your footsteps in the ground, the wind through the trees… it’s calm. quiet. peaceful.

and then it isn’t.

you turn a corner, and stop with a sudden jerk. his eyes slowly blink open—it’s bad he’s so dazed when he’s with you, but he can’t help it.

you tap his wing twice, quickly, just as he recognizes the form of zhongli a short ways down the path.

“run, birdie.“

but he’s frozen. he can’t. not when he can see the recognition carved into the lord of geo’s eyes, not when he knows this confrontation is going to end in bloodshed, whether yours or his or even zhongli’s.

zhongli took a step forward, and you took one back, your other hand coming up to- to shield xiao?

“go.“

zhongli’s eyes narrow, and through the gaps in your fingers he can see his spear begin to form in his hand.

“alatus,” he says cooly, “what are you doing?”

he feels you tense, can hear the hiss of your breath as you take in zhongli’s words, and his finch heart beats its wings.

of course you know his name. now his secret’s out, now you- now you won’t trust him, now he’s lost your faith, now this life he’s lived with you is gone over dead lost- what can he do if he’s been forsaken? how can he protect you if you don’t trust him to do so?

he feels glued in place, pinned by the weight of your breath, soft as it is, and he can do nothing but watch as vortex vanquisher finally takes shape.

you take another step back, and the shield of your hand loosens.

“run, birdie,” you urge again, but he can’t.

in a fight between two gods, a songbird cries.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#bird!xiao shenanigans #raccoon anon #this is likely nowhere near as good as i think it is #but fuck it baby #we ball

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m1d-45 · 1 year

Note

Not me thinking about Xiao getting ready to leave to see the Creator, only to be stopped by idk a little kid (or maybe another acolyte) and they hand him a piece of candy or smth while saying "can you please deliver this offering to them?" they are like, trying to be subtle, but it's a really clear "I know who the real Creator is but I don't want to get in trouble" sort of thing -sibling anon

YOU.

xiao checking the time, and noticing his training with ganyu has taken too much of his time. if he isn’t quick, you’ll stay out waiting for him, and he doesn’t want you in danger.

“enough,” he calls, and she looks over, lowering her bow. “i have business to take care of. you are dismissed.”

he knows she won’t ask what it is, which is why he mentioned it at all. he helps her put away the targets, noting the progress she’s made since last time, and handing her back her arrows. there wasn’t many, since she hurried to retrieve them, but a few were still embedded in the wood.

he’s ready to leave, but a nervous call of his name stops him.

“x-xiao?”

he turns. “what?”

she cautiously hands him a small travel bag. it’s full, and when he opens it he sees what looks like a regular traveller’s rations. food, water, clothes… “what is this?”

she’s nervous, twisting her fingers, and he wonders what she could possibly say that warrants such a response.

“could you… give that to them? please? a-and say i’m sorry?”

xiao freezes.

did ganyu…? no, no she couldn’t have known. he was so careful, so cautious- had she poisoned the food, thinking he’d be careless? no, she’s not the type, she would have gone straight to morax-

“what are you talking about?”

“i know you talk to them, xiao… mountain shaper had me follow you since he was worried for you.” she might as well have shot a frosted arrow into his heart, blooming ice spreading across his blood. “i told him you were meditating, by the way! i didn’t tell him where you’d gone-“

“why are you doing this?”

part of him wanted to go. to toss the bag at her feet and leave, to go where you were waiting. but you… you needed these supplies. if these were safe… he couldn’t risk not bringing them to you.

slowly, she brought one of her arrows from her inventory, holding it out to him. he took it, spinning it between his fingers. it looked fine; the fletch was undamaged, the wood uncracked and smooth. but when he twisted it again, a stain across the tip caught his eye.

a smear of blue.

he dropped the arrow in an instant—how could he hold what had injured you?—and understood just as quickly.

“this is your attempt at an apology?”

“i know it isn’t a lot, but i’m too busy with the qixing to do anything more. i’m trying to redirect patrols and keep the other adepti away, but… you know how they are.”

xiao studied her face, searching for any sign of dishonesty. he found none.

“if i find out any of this is tampered with, i’m coming for you, got it?”

“u-understood!”

xiao closed the bag tightly, slinging it over his shoulder. as he travelled, searching for a place to “hide” it so he could lead you to it in his other form, his mind wandered.

if ganyu could be convinced… could the other adepti?

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#sibling anon #bird!xiao shenanigans #damn i still need to tag the other stuff w that—#sorry if ganyu is ooc i don’t know shit abt her #she just feels like the stuttery type yk #not a bad thing—lord knows my mouth does not work sometimes—but.#idk i did what i thought was best

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m1d-45 · 1 year

Note

Treasure hoarders or someone unimportant grabs Bird!Xiao and tries to lock him in a bird cage while the group is dealing with Creator. This goes south very quickly not because of Xiao, but because the Creator repeatedly hits the fools that attacked them and tried to hurt their little birdie.

Extra fun if they use Creator powers to protect their little birdie.

Extra extra fun if they got hurt doing so, but their first and only concern is Xiao.

“treasure hoarders or someone unimportant”

(cw for animal violence btw, since xiao is a bird. minor, but it’s there)

i imagine they’ve seen the bounty put out for you, as most of the world has. there’s a hefty price to be paid for your head, and treasure hoarders are always seeking mora to be made.

you were on one of your regular walks, trying to keep moving. the sun was bright, the path clear, and you didn’t expect anything to go wrong. nothing ever did, in fairness; a combination of xiao’s patrols around your area and you simply picking a more obscure area of liyue to hide in made certain you didn’t run into anything save for a stray geo slime or two.

you stepped into a cross between two paths, and a dark chuckle drifted through the air. “another test subject?”

you’d know that line anywhere.

you clutched xiao to your chest, shielding him with your hands as the treasure hoarders began to surround you. there were a lot, far more than you remember seeing in any one spot in-game, too many for you to outrun. and by the sight of the twin potioneers, both holding slightly different blue vials, you weren’t going to be able to.

you opened the top of xiao’s cradle, poking at him with a finger to try and get him to fly away. injury to you you could heal eventually, but you didn’t know nearly enough about birds to fix him.

xiao stayed frozen in your hand, pinned by indecision. he couldn’t fly away, he couldn’t reveal himself, but he couldn’t leave you defenseless. he could try calling for ganyu, hoping she’s be close enough and recognize his voice, but what if another adepti heard? what did he do, what did he do, what did he do…

someone’s harsh hand wrapped around him, pulling him from yours with a sneer. “look at that! the imposter’s first follower, a bird!”

rage simmered in his veins. yes, he was yours, but to call you the fake?

he wriggled in the treasure hoarder’s hands, twisting until he could bite at his hand, right on the webbing between his thumb and forefinger.

he didn’t regret it. not when he was tossed harshly too the floor, not when your cry after him made his heart hurt. this form was fragile, but he would heal, and to take an injury in your name was nothing he wasn’t expecting.

but he didn’t expect you to force yourself out of the grip of the hoarder holding you, didn’t expect you to grab one of the potioneer’s bottles and smash it over the face of the one that had hit him. he didn’t expect to see ice bloom across his cheek with a shout, didn’t expect you to pick him up with gentle hands and force through the wall of treasure hoarders surrounding the crossroads. he knew the wind would deflect the projectiles thrown at you, but didn’t expect chips of stone to break off the cliffs on either side of you and fly backward, into the ground.

the elements responded to your anger, and he never thought that it would be because of him.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#bird!xiao shenanigans #god me when bird xiao #he’s so #skringle. a crunchy man. i want to hold him like a handful of cotton balls

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m1d-45 · 1 year

Note

xiao has definitely watched us sleep before. without a doubt. bro finds us fascinating

getting a good night’s rest in your happy little moss bed, dreaming your little dreams, of your dreamy little house, in your dreamy little world. finally, you weren’t having another nightmare. no screams were here, no blades were pointed at your neck here. you’d stay here forever if it meant you’d never wake up to those things.

it was a welcomed change. a rare opportunity to get some real rest. your breathing was slow as you traversed the soft grass of your subconscious echo chamber, reveling in the knowledge that it was safe for now.

as he watches you.

truly, he felt like some sort of sicko. who in their right mind just watches someone sleep? he wasn’t even sure how long he’d been at your side, now.

but your comforting presence was simply irresistible to a karma ridden creature like him. simply being within 10 feet of you was akin to being blanketed in the sun’s sheen. how could he not want to, observe, the one who emits such an aura.

a god is the only thing that could elicit such feelings of serenity by one’s mere presence. some even referred to you as ‘the god of all gods’. but it was only when you were asleep that he could view you in this way. though he often finds himself snuggled against the pulse that fans him in divinity, it’s different when you’re sleeping.

he can actually feel the beats of your heart, even from feet away. with each passing throb of the air around you, he can feel his karma being chipped and dissolved. the malicious voices in his head quieting to inaudible whispers.

in fact, almost everything was inaudible- muffled, as if underwater. he could barely hear the crickets, or the owls, let alone the wind. only a deep and rhythmic ba-dum, ba-dum, ba-dum.

though, he wonders, greedily, ‘what would it feel like to touch you?’. it wasn’t new by any means, no, he’d contemplated this many times.

‘just a small poke.’ ‘maybe just their hair..’

but he never went through with it. if he awoke you, you might even leave liyue- you weren’t a fool. you’d put it together very quickly that he’d be a liability, especially as an adeptus. loyal as he was to rex lapis…

but, if it was gentle, you’d never know, right? if he only touched a less sensitive area of your body, you couldn’t notice.

his hand reached out.

maybe an arm, or the lower part of your leg..

retracting the hand, he swatted the thought away. this is a terrible idea. he should leave, before he gets as close as last time. how was it even conceivable to touch you? while you were in such a vulnerable state, at that. blasphemy.

but,

your aura really was overwhelming.

he could easily explain himself. it would make things so much easier. instead of leading you to supplies, he could just,, carry them, in his hands..

an inch closer.

he was sure you’d understand, right? you were sharp.

two inches.

you’d find out sooner or later anyway. things change.

four inches.

just like last time. he could practically feel the blood rushing under your skin. honestly, he couldn’t stop thinking about it for weeks. don’t you know how bizarre it is to feel the flush of blood in a gods veins? it was, frankly, mind numbing.

his hand was only hairs away from your shoulder now. the thump of your heart was all-encompassing. he briefly wondered if he would simply disappear if he touched you- you created him, technically. would it be considered you taking him back?

he tested the waters with just one finger. his index finger rested right on the joint. suddenly, he could hear the wind blowing against grass, a stream off in the distance. he could vaguely make out that he was in a field. it expanded miles, the grass and moss in various states of growth. he saw the sky, and the ocean, and a figure.

why was he suddenly here? was this death? or a memory? or, perhaps your dream? ah. he was probably just in your dream, then. that figure did look at awful lot like you, especially now that he could see your face. a shocked face. or was it fear?

oh! oh wow. he’d actually touched you, haha. why did he do that. dumb. dumb dumb xiao.

his thoughts raced. he could really only make out a notion of regret in his clarity.

he was back just as quickly. facing you again, though this time, outside of the dream.

well, what? should he disguise himself in a poof of feathers? play it off a simple bit of bird mischief? carry himself away on the wind in a blur, like usual?

or confess?

-owl anon strikes again at exactly 2:22AM

i’ve been noticing a lot of the other anons using the colors too now lmao

ugh….. xiao my beloved…..

he’s been closer to you before, but you were awake then, alert. your energy was put into being on guard, on watching your surroundings. even nestled into your neck, the thuds of your pulse only blur the edges of his mind, only make it a touch easier to fall asleep.

but now, when you’re the one at rest…

xiao crouched on a log a ways away from you, fingers digging into the crumbling bark to stay stable. even from further away, your power was so much stronger. part of him knew it was because you weren’t as on edge, that you were pulling in energy from the surroundings, that if anything he should leave and let you recover quicker. but here, here on the edge of the log he’d slowly shuffled down, here within arm’s reach…

xiao took a shaky breath, resisting the temptation to move closer. his karma called to be settled, for him to crawl closer and bask in the heat of your divine energy. but he knew he couldn’t. the moment he stepped off the log, when he gave in, he ran the risk of you waking up and him not being able to react quick enough.

he shouldn’t even want to. he deserved his burden, his karma, the thick binds of his sin—ones he’s carried for years. he shouldn’t want to impart it upon someone as holy as you, shouldn’t want to rid himself of his punishment..

he shouldn’t, but he did.

you wouldn’t blame him for that, right? you wouldn’t blame such a broken bird as him for seeking out your blessing? it was hard to convince himself not to, your aura inviting him closer, to sleep at your side..

it’s not like he could hide forever, right? when you took your rightful place, when he was able to face you as xiao without you being afraid, he couldn’t pretend to be your bird anymore. no, then he’d have to do his duties properly, wouldn’t he? so what was the harm in taking this moment to..

to..

he could feel your heartbeat in the air, the soft thuds washing towards him in waves, driving out every other thought that wasn’t you. even those were hard to conjure—his breath came in heavy huffs, now, bliss buzzing just underneath his skin. it was like a magnet was tied to his soul, pulling his hand towards you, across the foot or two between you two.

it’s not a sin to crave his god, is it? it’s not a sin to feel as if he was struggling for air when he’s this close but not touching, surely. it can’t be a sin to reach for you, his savior.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#owl anon #bird!xiao shenanigans #this is bad but i am in an italian restaurant rn so #also YES i love the colors #both from you an others #me when colors

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m1d-45 · 8 days

Note

-Pari Anon

Pari!Reader gets sad when their leaf mask gets torn. Whether they were playing too rough or Wei (the cat in the inn lobby) tore it, they lost their mask. They have those sad anime eyes (the cutely exaggerated ones). They want to fix it, but no one else knew about that leaf mask.

They stay gloomy for the rest of the day until Xiao comes back.

The next day, they see a little replica of Xiao’s mask made from wood. It was sitting near their nest. When they tried it in, it was light but sturdy. Who could have gotten it for them? How was it so detailed? Who could have known? Oh well. Time to play, little Pari thinks.

Xiao didn’t have the heart to just leave them after he heard them crying when the leaf mask was ripped. He might have put a charm on this one so it wouldn’t break as easily.

[ previous post ]

xiao was better than this. the last yaksha, conqueror of demons, the bane of all evil himself.. searching the plains of liyue well into the night for a suitable piece of wood to carve. it wasn’t for an offering, it wouldn’t be turned into an incense bowl or statue, it was neither for a critical repair or somehow enchanted to be a danger. no, this wood would be used for a far more frivolous purpose: you.

you, who he’d been watching from the roof as you played on the balcony below. you with your mock spear and wei with his paws, uselessly batting at each other in a play fight. he thought it was ridiculous, really—your thin wings would surely bleed beneath any monster’s claws, better you learn to run away from danger—but had watched. it was harmless fun. you ducked behind the potted bonsai for protection, racing around the trunk and likely making the poor cat dizzy, when a harsh rip echoed into the night. you stopped, looking behind you as the two halves of your ‘mask’ fluttered to the floor, torn by one of the branches of the tree. his only thought was that you weren’t hurt, watching as wei tackled you off the pot and onto the floor, but you squirmed free quickly, floating over to the remains… sadly? wei followed, sniffing the leaves, but you didn’t seem interested in playing anymore. you sat by the leaves for far too long, not even moving when wei curled up beside you.

it was nothing. it was a leaf tied around your head with another’s stem, bound to rot and flake away anyway, but you were sulking the next day. he never thought he’d return to his makeshift room and have you not fly up to him with a cloud of chirps, and he quickly decided he didn’t like it. if you were sad you lost your mask, then he’d just have to get you a new one.

he kicked at the remains of a campfire, stomping out the remaining embers. an abandoned adventurer’s camp of some sort, the air free of any malicious warnings. besides the remains of the campfire were a few stray logs, likely spare firewood. he dug through the measly pile, pulling out a log. there was no rot, water damage, no sign of bugs or anything else that would ruin the wood. without another thought, he tucked it under his arm, turning and vanishing into the wind.

he had left when you were already asleep, so he could go straight to his room, but he made a stop first. yanxiao hardly jumped when he turned from the stove, though he did eye the log in his hands strangely.

“what can i get you?”

“i need to borrow a knife.”

“…” he laughed, propping his hands on the table in front of him, and xiao grit his teeth. an adepti, reduced to this… “what, did you lose your spear?”

“of course i didn’t,” he snapped, “but i��m not foolish enough to think i can use a spear to carve wood.”

yanxiao nodded in understanding, reaching into his pocket for a small flip knife. it was barely as long as one of his fingers, the handle a dark wood. “this should do, i think.” he threw the knife underhand, and xiao caught it with ease. the blade flicked out easily, sharp to the touch. “remember to cut away from you, yeah?”

his grip tightened on the knife, leaving without thanks.

safely in the shadow of his room, xiao finally relaxed. one by one, he removed his guards and charms, quietly setting them in their respective places. you were curled up in your bed as always, none the wiser as he stepped out onto the balcony. he sat facing the moon, setting his mask on the floor beside him. again drawing the small knife, he braced the wood in his lap and began to carve.

yanxiao was many things, but a fool he was not. he had heard from verr about your mask tearing yesterday, about how you sat quietly on xiao’s terrace for the rest of the day in a pout. you were a strange guest, certainly, but you were xiao’s. he kept very limited company, and those he lingered around felt his affections quietly.

when flowers had blown off their tables prior to the reception of an important guest, a mysterious bundle of qingxin had found it’s way onto the reception desk to replace them. when the eccentric xianyun had stopped by for a ‘surprise lunch,’ a small note in familiar writing on his table told him her tastes. when your small, flimsy mask tore in two… well, he couldn’t wait to find out.

he worked as usual, trading guesses with verr as he helped ferry plates back and forth. would he fetch you new leaves in perpetuity? fetch new ones from your home nation of sumeru? find a new toy to distract you? neither of them had ever met a pari before, didn’t know what you wanted or needed to thrive, but they entertained themselves with nonsense speculation nontheless.

xiao showing up in his kitchen without warning was nothing out of the ordinary. yanxiao had learned to pick out the shift in air pressure that signaled his arrival, wiping off his hands and putting the washed vegetables aside. the flat expression on his face was also routine, but the log he held most certainly wasn’t. handcarved offerings weren’t all too uncommon in liyue, especially from an adeptus, but he had a feeling it wasn’t for rex lapis or another adepti.

the next question, of course, was what he would carve. verr suggests a wooden mimic of the leaf mask and he can’t hide the way that makes him laugh, his smile wider than usual as he greets customers.

that night, if you stood just quietly enough beneath the upper balcony and the wind blew the right way, you would hear the quiet scrape of wood and metal. and the next morning, if you were anywhere near the inn, you would likely see a bright pari weaving through the levels, eager to show off their brand new mask carved by the hero of dihua marsh himself.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#pari anon #WHATS UP CHATTERS #IVE HAD THIS ASK FOR 323 DAYS #FEELING GOOD (LIE)#either next up or the one after is the promised fatuiposting because. because. b. because-#pari anon pretty please dont hate me 🙏#im working on your other asks as we speak xoxo #i finally went through and logged all the asks in my inbox which ive been meaning to do forever #theres like 30+ of them but we ball we ball we ball we ball #feeling motivated n im going to try not to burn myself out again cause ngl? shit sucks #oh also happy 4/20 to those who celebrate

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m1d-45 · 1 year

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What if when Zhongli picks up the cor lapis, he notices that it's hella high quality and the only thing he feels from it is "protect"? Like clearly the earth was trying to protect something, but why would it protect the imposter??? Doubt ensues -sibling anon

great idea

zhongli who takes a sample of the strange ore, bringing it back to his home. he’s… strangely protective over it, moreso than he should be, and when he gets home he finds out why.

whenever he reads cor lapis, he usually finds one of two things. either it was made in response to an excess of geo energy in the area, or it was, as all other ores were, created with a desire to grow. but this one…

the rock in his palm had grown swiftly, and with the intent to shield. it almost reminded him of the shields formed by his steles, the geo energy thrumming a song of safety.

but… that couldn’t be right. the millelith had stated that they’d tracked the imposter to that tunnel- one of them had remarked it could be a blessing from morax (which he’d barely pinned away a smile at) and that the fake was dead, suffocated by gems and encrusted in jewels. but even if he wasn’t who he was, he’d know that was a lie.

the cor lapis was forged to protect whoever was within it, an impossible feat for anybody save-…

zhongli stared at the cor lapis in his hand.

the stone did not yield.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#sibling anon #hoping the implication at the end is clear #or at least clear enough you get it

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m1d-45 · 1 year

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Let it be known that I love writing fluff, and I listen to character audios sometimes. SO! I came up with a cute idea for sagau imposter au. I heard somewhere that Xiao's adeptus form is a bird, so I wonder, what kind of bird? And that got me thinking. Xiao being a little song bird, or perhaps even a cardinal.

Now imagine: while looking for the imposter, Xiao stumbles upon them sitting beneath a tree, just feeding some birds. Said birds are absolutely loving the attention since the creator of Teyvat is giving them food and love!

Xiao watches, rather curious. The creator he knows hates birds, because they always dive and cause problems for them. But now... these little birds have completely abandoned any fear they may hold for human beings, happily landing on the hands and shoulders of this supposed imposter.

So he decides to test something.

Xiao turns into a small bird and approaches cautiously. In his smaller form, he's vulnerable to attack. But the person before him doesn't try to hurt him. Rather, they smile and call him "little friend" as they offer food to him. In his distrust, he bites them with his sharp beak.

His heart shatters when he sees divine blood spilling from the wound.

He's about to fly away, get as far away from here as he can. He found the true creator, and instead of worshipping them, he bit them! He caused them to bleed, he shouldn't even be near them-!

His mind stills when they pet his feathered head.

They murmur kind words to him, apologizing to him. They believed that they had startled him, that he bit to protect himself. They forgave him, they felt no hatred towards him, no anger or disappointment. Instead, they offered some chopped almonds, hoping he'd prefer that over bird seed.

He sang for them as he perched on their shoulder.

After that, he did his best to secretly protect the creator he'd harmed. He would adopt his smaller form and sing for them when they felt sad, and he'd use his human form to guard them from a distance. Yes, it made his chest ache whenever they looked at him with fear when they saw his more human form, but the yaksha only shook it off. It only made sense that you'd be scared. He was a frightening person, one that had tried to harm you before. He refused to try and change your feelings towards him. He didn't have the right.

He would be content to sing for you as a harmless bird.

-sibling anon (sorry if this is out of character for him I just like the idea)

oh….. he’s so soft…..

xiao hovering near the edge of the crowd, at first, drawing your attention since he doesn’t seem to be eating any of the seed you’d passed out.

when he finally hops within arms reach, you reach to nudge some of the food next to him closer, only to quickly whip your hand back. the birds around (on) you all flutter at the sudden movement, but you inspect your finger, the blue blood of teyvat welling up. your instinct is to stick it in your mouth, but that doesn’t seem safe considering a bird bit it, so you dab at it with a napkin.

the bird cries and flaps his wings, distraught, and your heart hurts. poor guy, you probably scared him, moving so quickly.

you pull out some chopped almonds from your pocket. the plan was to have them as a snack, but now… you put a few in your palm and close your hand around it, reaching forward to gently run two fingers over the birds back.

the other birds in the area seemed receptive to that, and this one does too, calming down considerably.

you take your hand back, opening your palm to drop the almonds on the floor, nudging them close before backing off.

“there you go,” you murmur, as the bird dips down to inspect the food. “i won’t hurt you.”

you allow yourself a silent cheer when it eats one of the almond pieces.

you see the small bird fluttering around you often, always on the edge of your vision. it’s easy to identify, the purple patch of feathers on its forehead easily standing out, and you’re always certain to push some food over to it. almonds, not birdseed.

the bird is a dark blue-teal, the underside of its wings a softer blue. it’s like no other bird you’ve seen in liyue, something that quickly catches your attention.

you brush some dirt off you as you stand, noting the way the bird immediately looks up from its food, unlike the others, to flap up into the tree you were sitting under.

you crack a smile, carefully reaching a finger for it. you’re slower this time, cautious of its skittish nature, but it lets you approach. when you carefully pet over its head, the birds eyes close.

your smile grows, and you try not to laugh at how confused the bird seems when you pull your hand away.

“i have to go,” you explain. “the millelith… they’re getting too close again. i won’t be able to see you again, little friend.”

the bird chirps, nearly indignant, and you do laugh this time. putting a small piece of almond on the branch in front of it, you wave goodbye to the other birds, seeing the blue one hadn’t touched the almond.

you frown. hopefully it’ll be alright….

xiao watches you until you’re out of sight, and even then, he stays on the branch.

you…. he’d forgotten you were being hunted by the millelith. he’d forgotten the order to look out for you. he’d forgotten the qixing called you a criminal.

who could blame him? it was easy to forget everything at your side, when you carefully ran your fingers over his feathers, scratching at his jaw with the edge of your nail. yes, he was vulnerable as a bird, but it was easy to be vulnerable with you. it was easy to be open, to sing as best he could in this form, to allow himself close enough to see the way your eyes lit up whenever another bird landed on your outstretched finger.

xiao dropped to the ground, morphing back into his human form. predictably, the birds cawed and flew away quickly. he watched them go, his mind contrasting it with how readily they flocked to you.

you…

he turned to the branch he was on, to the small almond piece left behind. the small symbol of your care, of how you recognized that he didn’t touch the birdseed and instead offered him your own food to eat. normally he wouldn’t lower himself to eating off the ground at all, let along bird food, but almonds weren’t awful and you seemed so happy when he ate..

xiao looked back to where you’d gone, to the sandbearer trees swaying in a soft wind.

he allowed his form to fall away and spread his wings, taking flight on the same breeze that urged you along.

perhaps he’d forget his orders for a little while longer, if it meant he could spend that time with you.

perhaps he’d forget his orders for a little longer, if it meant he’d get to spend that time with you.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#sibling anon #bird!xiao shenanigans #btw he’s pretty in character #you can add a dash of a ‘mysterious calm in the air’ if you wanna be certain but he’s oretty pretty good as is #also! let it be known that i too like fluff!!#< been meaning to write a piece based on hugs ppl would give for a while now #dilucs near the top of the list which is kinda funny considering the shit i’m (hopefully) gonna pot tonight #post* whoop #post-valentines day sadness #this got WAY too long #forgive the old format i wasn’t gonna try n find more photos of liyue than i already have #writing this was hell. thanks tumblr. i really appreciate you glitching out my drafts.#i’m trying to save my writer energy to wrap up dilucs piece COME ON I DONT NEED THIS #had to write this on the website version of tumblr ugh. dislike.#anyway debating adding this to the masterlist bc it’s… so nice…#the vibes….. immaculate….#TUMBLR DELETED HALF MY FUCKING WRITING WHEN IT HIT POST WHAT THE FUCK #THIS IS WHY I WRITE ELSEWHERE THEN COPY PASTE TO THIS HELL #FUCK. IT WAS SO GOOD. WHY.#the last half of xiao’s part at the end is the bad shittier version of what i had written originally #i am bitter. but i guess i’ll have to die mad abt it.#ugh.#it cut off the last paragraph AGAIN WHY #hate. >:(#also mushroom anon send help one of my mutuals is doing a letter event in celebration of his 1k what do i do #ok it’s his 800 celebration but STILL HELP #whatever fuck it i’m done trying to get this to work #fuck it we ball

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m1d-45 · 7 months

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You know, that would be ANGSTY COMICAL if we mixed that in the aftermath of the reveal of who is the real creator, since it could be taken as the creator REPLACING characters who hurt them.

-🥘Stew

that was the intent!

i think diluc would have it easiest. red is from a hateful part of his past, and he knows that he’s grown beyond that stage. if it weren’t for red’s temperament, he’d want to try and connect, if only to gain his trust. it still hurts, knowing that even after all this time he still failed to be what you needed, but it burns him the least.

fischl would be worse. night is everything she tried so badly to be, down to her own oz. to make it worse, night couldn’t care less about fischl, ignoring her monologues about who’s the real princess. the only one she needs the approval of is you, and she’d gotten that the second she was first summoned. she does fischl the mercy of letting her keep her name, but even that is mostly at your discretion. ‘fischl,’ ‘night,’ whatever. she just needs to protect you where amy failed.

and kaeya… my poor beloved. if night is what fischl wanted to be, shade is what kaeya has to be. night is a persona that fischl copied, shade is the very mask kaeya had put on for all his life. he’d entirely remade himself, down to the name he used and the way he treated his fellow knights, and it still wasn’t enough. all of his effort was poured into making himself something that could be accepted, that could be good enough. he’d thought he’d done a good job when he was first marked as a vessel, but now in the hunt it’s clear that his palatability only ran skin deep. shade is what you need, shade is what you want, and he’s genuine about it. shade’s entire life is yours, and he was rewarded for that devotion with your affection, earning a place at your side. and kaeya had devoted himself to the hunt instead, was so blinded by his own desires that he’d ignored the resistance of his vision. diluc may hate his past and fischl may hate night, but kaeya can only really hate himself.

#m1d : [chats]#m1d : [secrets]#stew🥘 anon #the shining nikki saga #the dark side of dawn #sailwind shadow #hello. i need a moment to be emotional about venti really quick sorry #hey siri put on my yearning playlist #fucking. destroyed. on the floor reminiscing about something that never happened.#me when i’m the victim of an idea of my own making #me when i’m the cause and the cure. me when ventis stuck in a problem that isn’t there. obliterated.#no words for this feeling rn. venti i’d like to formally apologize for the shit i’m about to put you through #‘it’s just a video game’ well your honor. it’s giving me shrimp emotions. so jot that down.#to clarify this is about nothing canon and nothing irl i’m just on the painful end of my own ideas #the author that writes the words and the reader that’s bound by them you know.#don’t worry if all goes well you’ll be inflicted with my pain too. provided i can pull it off.#pull it off as in convey it right not pull off the weight of it. i should shut up now.

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