Chapter Text
They didn't teleport to Sumeru right away.
Instead, Venti warped them just outside the gates of Mondstadt, dropping them into the lush greenery of Windrise. He made sure to keep them far enough from the main gates to avoid alarming any passing residents or guards with the sudden materialization. Oliver was finally getting the hang of teleportation; rather than feeling like he was about to lose his breakfast, he only stumbled slightly, gently catching himself on Venti's arm.
Blinking in confusion, Oliver took in the vibrant green grass and the bright blue sky above. "Uh... I was expecting the desert to be a little more... you know. Dead-looking." He squinted, catching sight of the massive oak tree in the distance, and realized they were still in the nation of Mondstadt. "Wait, we didn't leave—"
He glanced to his side, but Venti was already giggling.
"I know! Just give me a second!" Venti gently pushed away from Oliver and teleported off on his own, leaving Oliver standing alone in the breeze.
"O-Oh," Oliver muttered, stepping back and wondering where his boyfriend had darted off to.
A moment later, Venti reappeared, proudly holding a woven basket. "Can't go and give Tighnari flowers without the flowers now, can we?" he chimed.
Oliver nodded, though his voice wavered. "Right."
Oh god. It was hard to concentrate on anything. Venti wearing this revealing, warm-weather attire was seriously messing with his head. "Y-Yeah, we p-pick flowers... N-No... Uh... No rush! Haha!"
Venti immediately picked up on what was happening. He saw the glint in Oliver's eyes and noticed how desperately he was trying not to stare at his exposed midriff. "Yeah, yeah~ don't try to deny what you're looking at there, windblume~" Venti winked playfully, setting the basket down on the grass. "Here."
The bard handed Oliver a few pieces of parchment. They were beautifully drawn illustrations of flowers. "These are the ones we're looking for. They grow all over Windrise."
Oliver nodded, taking them from Venti's hands.
"When you find any, just drop them in the basket. I'm leaving it right here," Venti instructed. "Have fun~ They're all really pretty and smell amazing!" He held up his own set of drawings with a bright smile. "I'll help out too!"
With that, the two set off to forage.
Windrise was sprawling, especially out in this section. They were roughly four hundred meters from the city, and the massive tree where they usually slept was just a bit closer. Venti had warned him that venturing any further would lead to dangerous creatures like hilichurls, which was why he kept their search perimeter tight to the city.
Oliver was still somewhat paranoid about those slimes appearing again. The sword had magically materialized in his hand that day, but the phenomenon hadn't repeated itself since—not even when they had left the boat dock in Inazuma.
But with no anomalies in sight, Oliver relaxed and focused on matching the local flora to the sketches.
The first drawing depicted a striking red, pinwheel-shaped red plant titled Windwheel Aster. Luckily for Oliver, they were abundant. He gathered a hefty bundle, carried them back to the basket, and carefully lowered them inside.
Standing back up, he flipped to the next page: Cecilia. It looked oddly familiar. "Where have I seen this?" He brought the parchment closer to his face, studying the delicate white petals. "I've seen this somewhere, haven't I?"
Looking up, he spotted Venti standing on a raised patch of terrain in the distance, plucking his own batch of flowers. Oliver squinted, his eyes trailing up to the green, beret-style hat Venti always wore outdoors.
"Oh! Right!" Oliver nodded to himself. Venti had a flower tucked right at the base of his hat—it was the exact same bloom. "He must love Cecilias."
Scanning the grass, it became clear that Cecilias were much rarer than the Windwheels. Still, he managed to scrounge up a few and added them to the pile. "Okay—" He was about to review the final page when Venti bounded back over, his arms completely overflowing with flora.
Oliver was so startled he nearly dropped his papers. He watched in disbelief as the bard gently placed each individual stem into the basket. "Did you duplicate the plants? How the hell did you find so much?"
Venti giggled. "I have my ways! Also, I'm somewhat of a flower expert." He stood back up, stretching his hands out. "I found these, too!"
Oliver looked down at the bard's hands, which were holding four peculiar mushrooms.
"These grow near Wolvendom! I had to teleport over there to grab them. If I'm not mistaken, Tighnari has a massive soft spot for mushrooms, so I'm pretty sure he'll love these!"
Oliver blinked. "Huh." He looked down at his remaining drawing, thoroughly confused. "Hey, I couldn't find this last one. Do you know where it is? It says it's called Wolfhook."
"Oh! Did I give you that one by mistake? Sorry about that, I was meant to take that page! But no matter, I got them anyway!" Venti dropped the Wolfhooks he was holding into the basket, pulled out a lid, and secured it. "There we are!" He lifted the basket with a small heave and beamed. "Okay, we're ready!"
Holding the basket in one hand, Venti reached out and touched Oliver's shoulder.
In a sudden warp of wind, the world shifted.
The hot desert.
It was Oliver's first time here, and the heat was instantly, unforgivingly brutal.
Oliver blinked repeatedly. "Okay, yeah. That is total whiplash." The cool, gentle green of Windrise had morphed into an endless, rolling ocean of sand dunes, distorted by shimmering heat waves. "I think this might be my first time actually standing in a desert."
Venti giggled, adjusting his grip on the basket. "Well, how can you know for sure? Unless your subconscious is telling you that?"
"I'm not sure," Oliver shrugged, scanning the barren horizon. "I... I feel like I've only seen deserts in books or something. Never in real life." He wiped his forehead, which was already damp with sweat. "Man, it's hot..."
Venti walked ahead, tossing a glance over his shoulder. "Hehe, are you gonna say that pick-up line again~?"
Oliver narrowed his eyes, let out a soft grunt, and shook his head. "Okay, I'm not that much of a dork to use the exact same pick-up line twice in a row."
Venti laughed lightly.
"But yeah. You're definitely hotter than the desert," Oliver added, murmuring the second half under his breath, "Especially in the clothes you're wearing right now."
But Venti heard it—because of course he did.
"Oh, really~?" the bard teased.
Oliver kept walking, trying to change the subject. "Is this that 'Archon Outfit' you told me about?"
Venti burst into laughter. "Oh, no, no, no! Not at all! Haha!" Venti smiled warmly. "These are just some clothes I rarely wear because they're a bit feminine~" He paused, giggling again. "Well, I suppose my Archon clothes are too, haha. But no, this is just something I wear on occasion when I need to visit somewhere with this climate. It doubles as a swimsuit too!"
"A swimsuit?" Oliver arched an eyebrow. "Then why didn't you wear this when you took me to the hot springs? You only wore... well, 'masculine' swim trunks."
Venti giggled, quickly trying to spin an excuse. "Hey! You were a brand-new friend back then!" He smiled coyly. "I wasn't quite comfortable wearing my feminine clothes around you yet~"
Oliver gave him a deadpan stare. "Said the man who was literally attempting to turn me on during day one."
Venti snorted, letting out a cute, breathless laugh. "Oh, Ollie, Ollie, Ollie~ I was teasing you. There's a difference!"
"No there isn't!" Oliver snapped playfully, looking away.
"There so is! Besides, you were so easy to fluster! You still are! Haha!"
Oliver grunted. Without warning, he grabbed Venti, and dug his fingers right into those exposed sides.
"BAAAHAHA!" Venti gasped, squirming away. "Hey! Nohoho! Watch it, Ollie! You'll make me drop the basket and ruin the flowers!"
Oliver relented, pulling his hands away—but not before swiftly poking his finger right into Venti's navel and giving it a firm wiggle.
"EEEEK?!" Venti shrieked at the sudden sensation. "Ollie! Come on!" Laughing hard, he balanced the basket with one arm while rubbing his stomach protectively with the other, poking his own belly button. "Hehe, I thought I was getting used to that feeling!"
Oliver stuck his tongue out in victory, but immediately squinted as a gust of wind threw sand in his face. "Ah, crap—"
"Wait!" Venti smiled brightly. He popped open the basket's lid, shifted a few flowers around, and pulled out a pair of dark shades. "I got these from Jean before I headed out. Sorry, I forgot to give them to you!" He gently grabbed Oliver's arms to halt his walking, stepped up on his tiptoes, and slid the sunglasses over Oliver's face. "There we go! Better, right? It should keep the sand out, and block the sun rays."
Oliver nodded, a grateful smile spreading across his face. "Yeah. Thanks, Venti."
"No problem," Venti giggled. "You look really cool wearing them, too. It really matches your outfit."
They resumed their trek through the dunes until Oliver realized something. "Do we even know where Tighnari is?"
"I do!" Venti beamed. "I wasn't lazy this time; I used the wind to track his voice. It helps that I know what he sounds like. That's exactly why we're in the desert! He's out here somewhere with Cyno. My hypothesis from yesterday was correct—he's hanging out with his boyfriend!"
Oliver nodded. "I honestly can't wait to meet them."
Venti giggled, nudging Oliver with his free elbow. "Maybe we can double date~"
Oliver laughed softly. "Yeah! That sounds nice."
As they kept walking, the oppressive atmosphere didn't let up. The heat was relentless.
Glancing over, Venti noticed just how heavily Oliver was sweating. "Oh my word," Venti gasped, his eyes going wide. "Your hair is literally raining."
Oliver let out a weak snort. "Yeah, that's one way to put it." He wiped his forehead with a shaky hand. "I'm actually really dying out here," he coughed. He wasn't being dramatic; the heat was genuinely taking a severe toll on his body, even if he had tried to tough it out.
"Well, don't worry, I got—" Venti patted his sides, then gasped loudly. "Oh, shoot! I didn't pack any water! OH NO! I thought I packed some for you!" He dropped the flower basket directly onto the sand. "Wait right here, let me grab some canteens from the Knights of Favonius!"
In a flash of teal light, Venti vanished, leaving Oliver entirely alone with a basket of flowers in the blazing wasteland.
The moment Venti disappeared, Oliver's condition rapidly deteriorated. It felt exactly like a heatstroke. He was confused; his clothes were breathable and didn't cover his whole body, so he thought he would have been fine. But his body felt like it was shutting down. Sweat poured from his scalp as if his hair were generating water.
Oliver swallowed hard. His throat felt like sandpaper. He could barely draw breath.
AVATAR OVERHEATING
Oliver's breath hitched. His eyes widened as his panting turned frantic. He heard a mechanical, synthetic voice, but when he looked around, there was no one. Not Venti. Not a stranger coming to greet themselves. Just him, the sand, and the flower basket.
Panic seized him. Something was fundamentally wrong. This didn't feel like a normal medical emergency. It felt like he was unraveling from the inside out. Unseen voices buzzed in his ears. Sweat stung his eyes, blinding him. "Ow—" he hissed, furiously rubbing his face.
AVA#T!R OV÷ETAAHEATING
There was that voice again. It sounded strained. As if it was glitching.
Oliver's vision warped. The distant sand dunes fractured into pixelated, shifting fragments.
Just as his legs threatened to give out, Venti reappeared in a frantic burst of Anemo energy, clutching an absurd number of canteens. As he materialized, several water bottles clattered to the sand, leaving only a few in his panicked grasp. "Ollie—I have—"
The bard froze, taking in the terrifying state of his boyfriend. "EH?!" he gasped. "Oh no!" Though panic was written all over Venti's face, his movements were lightning-fast. "H-H-Here! Drink this! Quick!" Venti ripped the cap off a canteen and practically dove toward him.
~~~~~
Begin send back.
System reboot comme-ERROR
AVATAR SELF DESTRUCT IN 5...4... 3...
Venti shoved the spout of the canteen into Oliver's mouth.
2...
Barely clinging to consciousness, Oliver reflexively swallowed the chilled water.
1... ........ AVATAR RESTORED
~~~~~~~~~~
Venti let out the most profound sigh of relief in his entire long life as color finally rushed back into Oliver's pale cheeks. "Oh, thank the winds."
He threw his arms around Oliver, pulling him into a tight embrace, before suddenly gasping and pulling back. "Wait, I shouldn't do that right now, you need coolness, not more body heat—"
Venti took a deep breath, his expression turning unusually serious. "I shouldn't do this, but... just for you—" He closed his eyes, stood tall, and swept his arms out wide.
A sudden, magical, cool gale swept through their section of the desert.
Venti slowly opened his eyes to check on him. "I can only sustain this for a little bit. At least until Sumeru's Archon gets mad at me for messing with her local climate."
Under the cool breeze, Oliver's racing heart finally slowed. His body temperature dropped to a safe level. The chilled water and the magical wind had pulled him back from the brink.
"Do you want to go back to Mondstadt?" Venti asked softly, his arms still outstretched as he directed the currents. "We don't have to continue this."
Oliver cleared his throat, his voice raspy. "I... it's okay," he nodded. "I don't know what happened there." He shook his head, trying to clear the lingering digital static from his brain. "Maybe there was some truth to what I said about never seeing a desert before. My body completely rejected that weather. But I wanna continue,"
Venti gave him a soft, relieved smile. "Wow. You really want to pet that Valuka Shuna's ears, don't you?" He let out a fond sigh. Lowering his hands, the cool gale slowly dissipated back into the natural heat. "Please," he urged, pressing the canteen back into Oliver's hands, "stay hydrated for me."
Oliver nodded, instantly taking another massive gulp.
Venti scurried around, gathering the dropped canteens and stuffing them into a small pack secured around his waist. "Bennett gave me this one year," he noted brightly. "Finally finding a use for it!"
Stepping close again, Venti smiled gently. "Come on, stick by my side. You can lean on me if you need to, okay?"
~~~~~~~~~
They didn't have to walk much further before a small settlement appeared on the horizon.
"Ah! My wind brought us right to civilization! Maybe Tighnari and Cyno are in there," Venti cheered. Tucking the flower basket neatly under one arm, he took Oliver's hand and gently led him toward the buildings. "Let's find a shop. I can buy you some fruit to keep you hydrated, and the sugar will help you regain your energy!"
Venti was true to his word. Before tracking down the two boyfriends, he dragged Oliver over to a local merchant cart and purchased some vibrant fruit.
"These are Sunsettias! They're super good!" Venti handed one over. "I don't think you've ever tried one, have you?"
Oliver shook his head, taking the fruit. "I don't think so."
Venti closed his eyes happily. "Well then, eat up! It'll keep you going until we're ready to head home."
Oliver took a bite as they strolled away from the stand. "Wow. Okay, that's really good."
"I know, right! Though personally, I prefer apples," Venti mused.
"Oh, you do?" Oliver asked between bites.
"Truly the fruit of the gods, apples are!" Venti declared dramatically.
Oliver considered making a joke about Venti casually referring to "the gods" considering he always wants people to not know his true identity, but for some reason, a completely different phrase tumbled out of his mouth.
"Okay, Yoda," He said with a deadpan expression as he took a few bites of the Sunsettia.
Venti blinked, completely halting his dramatic stride. "Bahah?!" he let out a confused bark of laughter, raising an eyebrow. "Who?"
Oliver chewed, swallowed, and looked at Venti blankly. "You know... I have absolutely no idea."
Venti shook his head with a knowing smile. "I'm starting to think these random things you blurt out are fragments of your subconscious. Locked-away memories from your home world that only slip out when triggered."
"Yeah, but—" Oliver continued chewing, "What the heck is a Yoda?"
Venti snorted. "I don't know, you should be telling me that!" he laughed. "You said it after I talked about my favorite food. So either this 'Yoda' thing loves apples, or it had something to do with how I phrased my sentence."
Oliver shrugged, swallowing off the last of his Sunsettia. "Hmm~" he smiled, patting his stomach. "That was super good."
Venti smiled. "I should let you try an apple sometime!"
Oliver blinked thoughtfully. "I dunno, something in the back of my mind is telling me I've had an apple before. Like, I'm ninety-nine percent certain I ate apples before I lost my memories."
"Well, even if you did, it wasn't a Teyvat apple. Could be a completely different experience!"
As they navigated the town, they approached an open-door hut. Sitting inside were a boy with towering, dark ears, with pink inside, and a boy with tanned skin and striking white hair.
"I think that's them!" Venti beamed, nudging Oliver. "Let's go!" Gripping the basket tightly, he bounded over, with Oliver tagging along just behind.
Tighnari, the hybrid botanist, was sitting at a table covered in scattered papers and botanical samples, quietly reading a book. Cyno sat directly across from him.
Seeing their approach, Cyno lifted his gaze. Catching the movement in his peripheral vision, Tighnari turned his head as well.
"Hello, Tighnari!" Venti chimed happily. "I have no idea if you remember me, but we met once in Mondstadt! I mean, we bumped into each other a few extra times after that, but briefly!"
Tighnari blinked, then his face lit up. "Oh, right! Yeah! The... uh... oh! The Windblume Festival!" He smiled warmly. "You were the bard in the city, right?"
Cyno looked from Venti to Tighnari, then back again. "Oh, right," Cyno said, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. "I remember you. You're the bard who never stops drinking." Cyno let out a low chuckle, then looked directly at Tighnari. "Why does Venti never lose his wine?"
Tighnari instantly narrowed his eyes. "No, please don't—"
"Because it's always in de-vine hands," Cyno delivered flawlessly. "Get it? Divine hands. De-vine. Because Venti is an archon, and wine comes from vines." He paused, looking around the table at them. "...You may laugh now."
"I am not going to laugh at all," Tighnari groaned, massaging his temples.
Oliver blinked, looking from Venti to the Sumeru duo. "Uh..." He blinked again. "They know you're...?"
Venti tilted his head. "Huh? Oh! Oh, yeah. They're some of the few mortals outside of Mondstadt who know. They keep my secret incredibly well hidden," he giggled, shooting a glance at the General Mahamatra. "And as you can clearly see, Cyno loves his jokes."
Oliver giggled. "I can see that."
Yet, as he smiled, a strange feeling twisted in Oliver's gut. For some unexplainable reason, Tighnari and Cyno knowing Barbatos's identity felt... wrong.
It wasn't a sense of the two being untrustworthy. They seemed like perfectly good people who would never betray the bard. It was more a metaphysical sense of wrongness. Like this interaction defied a set of rules. Like.. it never happened. Like, it wasn't supposed to happen.
Why was he feeling like this? Unable to articulate the sensation, Oliver violently choked the feeling down. Maybe it's the damn heat frying my brain, he grumbled internally.
"I see you changed out of your usual clothes. Was the bard attire too hot for Sumeru?" Tighnari asked.
"Yeah! Haha," Venti laughed. "I would have practically roasted if I wore that into the desert!"
Cyno chuckled to himself. "So the bard swapped out hot clothes for something even hotter."
Tighnari froze. Slowly, methodically, he turned his head to glare at Cyno. "You know I am sitting right here, right?" he said flatly.
It took Venti a second to catch the joke, but when he did, he burst out laughing.
Tighnari just shook his head, looking back to Venti. "If he isn't making terrible puns, he's making dirty jokes." The hybrid then shifted his attention to Oliver. "I originally thought you were just a passing local. Are you with Venti?"
"Oh.. oh me?" Oliver blinked.
Venti laughed, throwing a proud arm around Oliver's waist. "This cutie right here is my boyfriend!" he beamed.
"Oh! When did you two meet?" Tighnari asked, pleasantly surprised. "I don't recall you mentioning a significant other the last time we crossed paths."
Venti straightened up. "Yeah, we met... about a week ago now? Long story short, the poor guy lost his memories, and we've been trying to help him out."
"Oh... I'm incredibly sorry to hear that," Tighnari said softly, his ears dipping slightly in sympathy.
Venti nodded, pulling Oliver a little closer. "But after spending time together, we grew really close. Now, he's practically all over me~"
Oliver stared at Venti for a solid three seconds. "Actually, it's the exact other way around."
Venti giggled, shooting Oliver a playful smirk.
"So, what's in the basket?" Cyno interrupted, pointing at the woven container tucked under Venti's arm.
"Oh, it's some flowers! Flowers are in there!" Venti smiled, opening his mouth to elaborate before Cyno cut him off.
"Wow. Oliver gave Venti a basket of flowers?" Cyno asked rhetorically. "I guess you could call it a Barbouquet-os."
Silence fell over the hut.
"Get it?" Cyno pressed. "Barbatos. And bouquet."
Tighnari violently lunged across the table. Books and loose parchment went flying into the air as he tackled Cyno.
"ACK?!" Cyno gasped.
Venti sighed, shaking his head at the chaos. "The flowers are actually for Tighnari," he clarified over the sounds of scuffling. "Jean and I brought them from Mondstadt so you could study them."
Tighnari instantly dropped Cyno's shirt collar. His ears perked straight up, and his tail fluffed out. "Really?! Ooh!" he chirped, abandoning his boyfriend on the floor. "I love Mondstadt's local flora. You shouldn't have!"
Standing up, he delicately took the basket from Venti's hands and peeked inside. "Woah! They're in pristine condition. Thank you," he smiled brightly. "I'll make sure to keep these safe until I can transport them back to the forest."
"So glad you like them!" Venti grinned.
Cyno grunted from the floor. "I deserve all the kisses I want after suffering this humiliation."
Oliver covered his mouth to hide a laugh, which prompted Venti to do the exact same thing.
Tighnari rolled his eyes affectionately. "Shut up, you dramatic desert lover. Fine—" He grabbed Cyno by the arm, hauled him up from the ground, and planted a quick, sweet kiss on his lips. "There."
"Awww," Venti cooed, placing a hand over his heart. "So cute~,"
Tighnari's cheeks flushed a vibrant shade of pink.
"Well, I'm glad the delivery was a success!" Venti smiled, grabbing Oliver's hand. "We'll—" The bard stopped, a sudden realization washing over his face.
"Oh!!!" Venti whipped back around to face the Sumeru pair. "I almost forgot, and I think Ollie did too!" He grinned mischievously, gently shoving Oliver forward. "Go on, babe. Tell the Dendro archer what you wanted."
Oliver gasped as he stumbled forward, completely disoriented. "Oh— I..."
Tighnari tilted his head, his massive ears twitching in confusion.
"I, uh..." Oliver's eyes naturally drifted up to the extraordinarily long, fluffy ears resting atop Tighnari's head.
Tighnari's eyes widened in realization, and he let out a heavy, defeated sigh. "They always want to." He shook his head slowly. "Fine. Since you and your boyfriend brought me such pristine botanical samples..." Tighnari lowered his head just a fraction, his ears twitching nervously. "They're not as soft as you're probably expecting."
Oliver didn't care in the slightest. Those ears were larger than his future. He reached out and gently ran his fingertips up and down the velvety fur.
Tighnari let out a squeaky giggle; his ears were highly sensitive, and the light touch tickled intensely. The dark ears twitched a little against Oliver's fingers.
"Someone asked for consent to rub his ears. He heard them out," Cyno commented from the sidelines.
"Okay, that was the absolute worst one you've ever done," Tighnari grunted, though his voice lacked its usual bite. "Please stop!"
Oliver shifted his hand, giving a very gentle scratch right at the base of the ear.
"eEeK!" Tighnari shrieked, instantly shooting backward as a full-body shiver wrecked his frame. His eyes were wide with shock.
Cyno burst into a loud snort, doubling over in laughter. "Holy shit!"
Venti was cackling right alongside him.
Tighnari's face was completely crimson. "Okay, that's quite enough of that," he stammered, crossing his arms as his ears continued to flick.
Oliver dropped his hand, but his gaze drifted down to the bushy tail swishing anxiously behind the botanist. "Can... can I feel your tail, too?"
Tighnari stared at him blankly, then released a suffering sigh. "You give them an inch, and they take a mile."
Cyno opened his mouth to deliver another pun, but Tighnari lightning-fast reached over and clamped a hand over his boyfriend's lips, shutting him up instantly. "MRRF!" Cyno's eyes went wide.
Tighnari let go, stubbornly turning his back to Oliver. His tail flicked upward, swaying side to side in an invitation. "Fine..." he muttered.
Oliver's face lit up like a child on Christmas. "Green fluffy fur~" he hummed, making eager grabby hands before gently taking the tail and running his fingers through the dense, soft fluff.
Tighnari stared at the opposite wall. "What is my life."
Venti giggled. "I mean, you definitely like it."
Tighnari rolled his eyes. "Well, I definitely appreciate how gentle your boyfriend is... unlike my boyfriend, who practically yanks my tail out of my ass!" he snapped, glaring over his shoulder at Cyno.
"Hey, I ain't that rough!" Cyno defended.
Oliver giggled, finally pulling his hands away from the incredibly soft fur.
Freed, the hybrid's tail swished happily in the air before he turned back around to face them, then he smoothed down his clothes. "Well, are you satisfied?"
Oliver nodded, a serene, blissful smile on his face.
Venti clapped his hands together. "Alright! Well, bye you two! Hope you have a wonderful rest of your day! Enjoy the flowers, Tighnari!"
"Don't worry, Venti, I will!" Tighnari smiled genuinely, clutching the woven basket safely against his chest. "And thank you again!"
~~~~~~~~~~~
Now, Venti and Oliver were finally back in Mondstadt.
"Okay," Venti nodded firmly. "Next time... I am absolutely remembering to pack a massive ton of water for you, or honestly, any mortal I ever bring to the desert with me." He leaned forward, planting a tender kiss on Oliver's lips. They were standing just outside the main gates of Mondstadt, out of sight enough that the on-duty guards hadn't witnessed their sudden teleportation.
Pulling back from the kiss, Venti's expression shifted into one of deep guilt. "I am so sorry about that," he murmured, genuinely torn up. "I was in such a panic. I... I have no idea if you were going through a literal heatstroke or what..."
Oliver leaned in to kiss him back, offering a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, okay? I'm fine now. At least I was with you, you know? If you were just some mortal like me, it would have taken us months to trek back to Mondstadt from Summer-rue..." Oliver blinked, freezing as the mispronunciation slipped out. He hadn't even caught the fumble until it had already left his mouth.
Venti had been on the verge of tearing up; the memory of Oliver nearly collapsing in the heat weighed heavily on him, feeding his belief that it was entirely his fault. But hearing Oliver butcher the name of Sumeru so completely unironically shattered the tension. The bard let out an abrupt snort, catching his almost-tears in his throat. "Hah-ha... hahaha!" Venti burst into weak laughter, pulling away slightly. He sniffed, wiping his eyes.
Giggling breathlessly, the bard pulled Oliver back in for a deep, passionate kiss. "You complete idiot," Venti sniffled as they parted. "I love you."
Oliver blinked, a warm smile spreading across his lips. Yet, deep down, a strange block remained. For some unexplainable reason, he just couldn't force the words out to say it back. "I—" he started. He really was going to say it this time. But then, a very loud, very sudden voice cut him off.
"TONE-DEAF BARD HAS A BOYFRIEND?!"
"GAAAH?!" Oliver screeched, violently flinching away from Venti. His heart hammered against his ribs at the piercing, all-too-familiar pitch.
Whipping around toward the path from Windrise, the couple spotted the Traveler approaching, with Paimon floating excitedly by his side.
The Traveler was just chuckling to himself, but Paimon looked absolutely utterly flabbergasted. "Paimon is shocked, she tells you! SHOCKED!" she declared with maximum dramatic flair.
"Hey, I'm not that unlovable, am I~?" Venti chuckled, planting his hands indignantly on his hips as he faced the floating fairy. "People seriously wait in line to date the best bard in Mondstadt!"
"Sure, sure," Paimon deadpanned. "People seriously want to date the city's drunkest bard."
As the Traveler and his companion drew closer, Paimon blinked, finally taking in Venti's outfit. "Uh? What are you wearing?" she asked, eyeing him up and down.
"What? Oh, this? I took Oliver to Sumeru and wanted to wear some... more Sumeru-friendly clothes," Venti chuckled, scratching the back of his head with a sheepish smile. "You know how brutal that desert heat can be."
The Traveler chuckled, leaning over to whisper to Paimon. "This is like seeing your teacher out in public with different clothes on,"
"Huh?" Paimon tilted her head before letting out a high-pitched giggle. "Oh! Paimon gets it! Haha!"
Venti, having heard every word, huffed out a laugh. "Hey! You're making it sound like I'm old!"
"Hmm~" The Traveler conspicuously looked away, while Paimon giggled and stared at the sky.
"Oh, stop it!" Venti rolled his eyes playfully. "Also, you don't have to hide the whole secret around Ollie here. He already knows."
"Awww!" Paimon teased immediately. "They're already soulmates~ Sharing all their little secrets!"
"Ugh, whatever!" Venti scoffed, though he couldn't hide a gentle laugh. "What were you two up to, anyway?"
"Oh! Well, Paimon and the Traveler were busy helping out the Adventurers' Guild with a commission!"
"Well, technically, I did all the work," the Traveler corrected.
"HEY!" Paimon yelled, instantly floating right up into the Traveler's face.
"Heh. And you call me lazy," Venti teased mercilessly.
"Hrmph!" Paimon whipped around, turning her back to them with her tiny arms crossed tightly over her chest.
The Traveler just giggled. "We're heading to get lunch at Good Hunter. Do you guys want to come?"
Venti nodded brightly. "Sure thing! But you two go on ahead. I have to take Oliver somewhere really quick first."
The Traveler nodded. "Okay! Just meet us there whenever you're ready."
"Come on!" Venti grabbed Oliver's hand and began pulling him over toward the massive oak at Windrise.
"Huh? Wait, where are we going?" Oliver blinked, stumbling after him. Then, a sudden, fierce blush rushed to his cheeks as his mind took a sharp turn. "Oh... Are... are you wanting to have sex again before we grab lunch?"
Venti stopped dead in his tracks and slowly turned to look at his boyfriend. A second later, he burst into a fit of hysterical laughter. "Oh, baby, no!" he wheezed. "I mean, do you want to, though?"
Oliver's face turned completely scarlet.
Still giggling, Venti leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. "Okay, we'll totally do that if you want, but that wasn't why I was bringing you to the tree!" The two of them stopped a few paces away, right in front of a stone monument. "I'm taking you to this!"
Oliver had certainly noticed this mini-statue before, but he hadn't given it any more than a passing glance. He hadn't even realized it was meant to be a carving of Barbatos.
"Now, I know you aren't from this world. So technically, you have no obligation to worship me," Venti explained, turning to face him. "But, when people pay respects at these statues, it sends a signal to the Archons, and they return the favor with a blessing. I don't know how weak your body actually got from that... heatstroke? If we're even calling it that. And I can't physically heal you directly on my own." Venti reached behind his back, pulling something out. "Take this—"
Oliver glanced down, staring at the small, intensely glowing blue orb resting in Venti's palm.
"It's called an Anemoculus. It's an offering specifically for the Anemo Archon. Barbatos. Me," he added. "Just hold onto it and present it up to the statue."
Oliver gently lifted it from Venti's hands. He glanced up at the stone carving of Venti's godly figure looming above them, then back down to the Anemoculus. With a breath, he raised his hands, aiming the orb toward the monument.
Almost instantly, the Anemoculus floated right out of his grasp. It drifted upward through the air, gravitating toward the top of the statue. Oliver gasped in awe as the orb seamlessly infused itself into the stone with a soft, resonant pulse of wind.
"Babe—" Venti's voice said.
Oliver blinked, and looked down at Venti.
The bard smiled warmly, placing a reassuring hand on his boyfriend's shoulder. "There we go."
Suddenly, a rush of soothing, revitalizing energy washed completely through Oliver's body. The lingering fatigue melted away, leaving him feeling deeply calm, grounded, and entirely collected.
"You're healed now," Venti smiled, leaning in for another kiss. "Yeah, due to the rules of this world, I physically can't bestow a godly blessing like that upon you unless you make an offering first," he chuckled softly. "I'm so glad it worked." He reached down and laced their fingers together.
"Wow... that was actually really cool," Oliver admitted.
Venti giggled brightly. "It was?" His smile turned a bit cheeky. "After lunch, you should definitely go take a bath. Because you're stinky."
Oliver blinked, offended. "Geez, rude much?" he barked out a laugh.
"Hey! That's what makes for a good boyfriend, right? We gotta be honest with each other!" Venti defended with a laugh.
"Fair enough. Well, what do you recommend? The hot springs?"
"Well, that would normally be a fantastic choice," Venti smiled. "It would definitely ease any lingering aches and pains your body went through from the heat. But, as I said: you're stinky. You actually need to be scrubbed clean."
"Oh, so those tubs you mentioned here in Mondstadt?"
"Precisely!" Venti beamed. "I'll just ask the Traveler if you can borrow the tub in his hotel room. I'm sure he won't mind at all."
Oliver nodded in eager agreement. "Honestly, soaking in a hot bath sounds completely amazing right about now."
"See! It's going to be perfect!" Venti smiled. "Come on now, let's go get lunch,"