"I hope you don't mind my sudden visit, Xiao," Mr. Zhongli enters his apartment. His crisp black coat smells of expensive tea. The kind that Xiao would most likely not be able to appreciate.

"Not at all sir,"

 this is your property, after all

. It has been a while since he's talked to his sponsor through texts, and even longer since they've seen each other. He doesn't really know much regarding the happenings in the Jade Chamber. Ganyu talks about it to him every now and then, but it's clear that she knows Xiao finds it a bore. Thank goodness for him really. Even if he tried his best, the likelihood of him understanding all that techno-babble is close to zero.

Xiao was about to close the door when a mass of purple entered the apartment after Mr. Zhongli.

Oh, it's Qiqi

.

She's a small girl of pale white skin with lavender? Lilac? Some sort of light purple hair. There's a sluggishness to her steps and movements that always grated on Xiao, but he had always attributed it to her being a child.

A child that seems to

always

 be tired, never an ounce of energy to her. Shouldn’t children be more energetic at their age?

Now that he thinks about it, she doesn't seem to have grown all too much from when he last saw her. Granted, it's not by literal years. She could just be growing slowly.

She's also the reason he and Ganyu were able to trust Mr. Zhongli. Before they had gotten under his care, Qiqi was already there. She was his daughter of sorts, adoptive, though she's never really heard her refer to him as father, or dad, or papa for that matter. He's never heard Mr. Zhongli refer to her with some sort of endearment either. Regardless, she is very well taken care of; from what Xiao and Ganyu can tell. There's a trust between them that Xiao thinks only those with a familial bond could ever achieve.

Though, there is the question about her general demeanor.

"Qiqi, you remember Xiao. Say hello."

The small girl turns and gives him a small bow. "Hello, Xiao gēge."

"Yeah, hello," Xiao says, hesitance clear in his voice. She always referred to him as an older brother. It wasn't unwelcome, just…odd.

What's even odder was after she gave a nod of acknowledgement, she immediately grabs his hand. That isn't odd on its own. What's odd is how she holds it. She digs her thumb into the space between his thumb and his forefinger. Real hard, massaging it in circles as if she's trying to pop something in his flesh. It's a bit painful in all honesty, but he never had the heart to tell her to stop. She is just a kid after all.

He closes the door behind them, Qiqi still holding his hand. "What brings you here today, sir?"

"Straight to the point, I see," Mr. Zhongli hums. "Were you in the middle of something when I arrived, Xiao?"

"No, sir. Not at all," he hasn't really been up to a lot these days other than moping. "It's just… you haven't been here for a while."

"Yes, well. Things have been rather busy these days. I've had to do a lot of field work recently," he sighs, pensive as he stares outside through the open window in the room. The sky is blue and clear of clouds. Some would even call it pleasant enough to spend the day outside. "Today and the weeks after are the same."

"Sir?"

"I will be out for a long while and, well, I've set a babysitter for Qiqi but she hasn't been off her work at the Dawn Winery yet. And Ganyu is almost just as busy as I am nowadays. I was hoping you could watch over her before the babysitter arrives?"

"That's-"

Dawn Winery

, "-fine, sir. I can- Dawn Winery?"

"Yes," Mr. Zhongli nods, still staring outside. "I assume you know of the place?"

"I do-"

I haven't asked Dirk about Venti in a while

, "-the sitter, who?"

"Miss Amondine," Qiqi cuts in, looking dazed. Then again, Xiao doesn't think he's ever seen her with a different expression before. She quickly corrects him in a second as she suddenly makes the softest smile Xiao has ever seen on anyone. It looks off on her otherwise pallid face. "She takes good care of Qiqi's friend."

Xiao… doesn't really know how to respond to that. Mr. Zhongli seems to have no follow up either, perfectly content as he stares at the outside, his gaze now intense. Maybe there’s a change in the weather, Xiao thinks, but when he looks outside all he sees are a few clouds covering up the sun.

"How do you know Miss Amondine, sir?"

"Well, Dawn Winery is a very important business partner," Mr. Zhongli says, "At some point we befriended each other, though I wouldn't be able to tell you how. You're acquainted with her then?"

Thunder claps outside so suddenly that Xiao flinches. Qiqi, who hasn't let go of Xiao yet, now holds him with two hands, though her face doesn't really show any apprehension of the sudden sound. Xiao searches the sky for any shades of grey and sure enough, there they were, though he could have sworn that the sky showed no signs of stormy weather until just now.

"Y-yes, sir."

"Then I won't have to worry about you sending Qiqi to the wrong person."

"Yes, sir,"

how little faith you have in me-

"I'd advise bringing Qiqi outside," Mr. Zhongli walks towards the door with haste. He doesn't spare them a glance when he says, "Make sure not to get stuck under the rain."

He slams the door behind him before Xiao could mutter, "Yes, sir."

With Mr. Zhongli's exit, the room becomes quiet. And

deathly

 awkward. Xiao looks down at Qiqi to get a read on her only to find that she'd already been staring at him.

"Uhm," it dawns on Xiao that he has absolutely no idea how to deal with a child. What makes it worse is that Qiqi's face is absolutely blank. He has no idea what to make of it. And she is

still

 holding his hand.

The hand that she is now dragging towards the sofa. She places his hand on the soft furniture.

"You want me to sit?"

A nod.

Xiao sits. And she sits beside him. The awkward atmosphere ensues.

He sees Qiqi's mouth move but her voice is too small to hear.

"What?"

"TV," she points at the screen across them. "Please."

He sighs in relief. His shoulders drop considerably. Engaging with children is stressful.

Time passes by extra slowly when you remain still. By his estimate, he should have been sat still for only 50 minutes to an hour, but it feels like two days of his life had just gone by.

Qiqi remains static beside him, leaning on his arm with her hands holding the remote. She has changed the channel at least five times now, to Xiao's count, at least. It's quite likely he blanked out a few times and didn't notice her change the channel. Right now, the program seems to be about a girl who befriends a ghost named Casper. It's a bit plain for Xiao's taste; that and he hasn't really been paying attention, but Qiqi seems to be enjoying it.

Again, at least he

thinks

 she is. Her face hasn't moved a bit other than the occasional blinks. From his perspective, she looks… dead.

What a morbid and exaggerated way to say that she looks stoic. Venti must be getting into his head, with his flowery words and all.

Venti…

"Xiao gēge," Qiqi pulls at his shirt gently. "Where can I get cold water?"

"Uh-," hearing her talk always catches him off guard. "In the kitchen."

She stares at him still. Her eyes… so wide yet so- "Where in the kitchen?"

"The- the fridge…"

"Kitchen, fridge," she nods after each word. "Got it."

She makes a little 'hup!' before climbing down the couch. As her foot steps skitter away into the kitchen, Xiao wonders how Mr. Zhongli got a hold of such an odd girl.

Why were they using the cable service? Qiqi would have had a wider selection of films to choose from if she used the streaming service. Xiao wasn't paying his full attention, but even then the commercials would somehow invade his otherwise peaceful state of mind. Annoying.

Xiao was never one to complain though. At least it kept Qiqi still.

Speaking of, where is she? It's been a good while or so, but Xiao hasn't heard water being dispensed from the kitchen. The kitchen wasn't big, but did she get lost somehow?

"...Qiqi? Are you… okay?"

Silence, and then he hears a very faint, "Kitchen, fridge… cup?"

That didn't sound

too

bad, but Xiao had to make sure. He heads to the kitchen and finds Qiqi jumping as high as she can to reach a cup on top of a counter. Her efforts are… frankly, useless. Xiao reaches one out for her. She nods dutifully.

"Are you okay?" He says out of a sense of responsibility. She looked perfectly fine. "Are you hurt anywhere?"

Her hands tighten on the cup. "Qiqi, is not growing at all."

Dumbfounded. Xiao is inclined to agree. He doesn't know much about children, but Qiqi really doesn't look like she's grown the last time he saw her.

But that's not something you say out loud, isn't it? At least Venti wouldn't, he thinks. The words he spoke about people were always positive (save for the on and off jokes). What would Venti say to Qiqi?

"That's not true. I'm sure you did, one way or another."

No, that's not it. But it's out of his mouth now. That will have to do.

Qiqi's expression (or lack thereof) doesn't change, but she gives him a nod. Xiao sighs in relief, then wishes he didn't (out loud at least).

They continue watching, but it's an entirely different film. A relatively old film about dinosaurs. Xiao failed to keep track of the plot, getting too side-tracked with how well done the special effects were. The dinosaurs

almost

looked real, and this was made

when

?

Qiqi seems invested at least. He can hear her whisper under her breath the names of the dinosaurs that appear on screen, though he can’t tell if she was right.

Behind him, by his windowsill, a soft

pitter patter

 starts. Small droplets of water fall from the slowly darkening sky. They bounce off from the window to his neck with an uncomfortable chill. How had he not noticed that the weather had changed so quickly?

He returns his attention to the TV only to find Qiqi staring right at him, eyes blank but intense in a way that Xiao couldn’t understand. He sits still, frozen for a moment, until his posture gives out and he backs away and notices that Qiqi didn’t follow his line of movement. She had been staring at the darkening sky too.

“Oh,” Xiao scratches his neck. “Did you want to go out, maybe?” Qiqi doesn’t react. “S-sorry, I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

Qiqi nods, then returns her attention to the TV. Xiao manages to sigh in relief when she changes the channel- channels, so suddenly. What is she looking for?

The rain from outside crashes down like drums with thunder. It’s getting the couch wet, so Xiao closes the window.

Qiqi seems to have found what she’s looking for. She stops at a news channel, the rain from outside seemingly overshadowed by how strong and loud the rain was at the TV. He could hardly hear the newscaster, who was holding onto his microphone for dear life. He didn’t look safe there, like he could be swept away by the wind at any given moment. His voice came out choppy through the speakers. The cameraman seems to be having a hard time standing his ground.

-

weather- - - - intense winds and rain pouring d- - - over at the fields - - - - - - unprecedented - - - - nearby towns - - - - - - citizens forced to evacuate under - - - - - notice. I have never seen rain - - - - this hard and so su- - - - - enly. - - - - already flooding in - - - - - and soon enough, the roads will be - - - blocked by!!! Lord have me- - - - - - landslides caused by the flooding!

A streak of purple lightning flashes against the almost black sky behind him. It’s only then that Xiao realizes it was nowhere near evening, yet the sky behind the newscaster looked almost like night time.

- - - everyone’s safety, please - - - - getting out of your homes! If you live - - - - , please, evacuate as soon as - - - - - - - -. No news on when the - - - - - - - - will move on, we will try - - - - - - - - keep you updated! Fuck!

A large branch almost hits the newscaster by the face. The camera shakes.

Let’s get out of here!

The live broadcast stops, moving on to the news anchors who look very concerned. Positioned on the screen seems to be a live broadcast of the area affected by the… storm is a light word to use for it. The footage seems to be taken from a helicopter and - compared to the actual footage, the camera itself doesn’t seem to be in too much danger. In fact, it looks relatively safe. But the

storm

.

Contained would be the best word to put it. Like a dark and giant cloud hovering only in one area. In that dark area, the downpour is nothing like Xiao has ever seen at a distance. Thunder can be heard every other minute. The visibility is close to zero. There’s no telling what’s happening inside the contained storm. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of people surrounding that area though; seems to be the countryside.

Now that he looks at it more, it… is that the area where the Dawn Winery is? He isn’t too sure. It could be but, there’s more of the countryside that Xiao hasn’t seen.

He hopes not. He hopes he’s wrong. He hopes Dirk and Kaya and the others are okay.

Dear- what if

Venti

is there? Caught in the storm?

That- such a thought. He couldn’t be there, right? If he was at the Dawn Winery, Dirk would tell him so, right? Then again if this was happening near the Dawn Winery, Dirk wouldn’t have the leisure to tell him anything.

He feels his vision crackle as the scent of ozone creeps in from the spaces in the window.

God.

Gods

, no. Please, something, someone, give him a sign. Tell him

Venti

 isn’t there.

Please.

 And… and Dirk. Kaya. Amondine. That’s right, Amondine was supposed to pick up Qiqi. But Venti. Venti. Is he safe?

“Ow!” A sharp pain from his hand jolts him out of his thoughts.

Qiqi stares at him, still and quiet. For a second, he sees what he could call

concern

in her eyes. “Xiao gēge?”

“Qiqi- you-”

“Is Xiao gēge scared of thunder?”

“You-” Xiao swallows air.

Him?

 Afraid of

thunder

… is he? No, he isn’t. Of course he

isn’t

. He probably wouldn’t even die from getting struck by lightning. How could he ever explain to a child that his state of distress comes from something more than just a fear of thunder? “Yeah, yeah, I think, I think so.”

Explaining it would be too much of a hassle.

Qiqi changes the channel. “No more thunder.”

He purses his lips, not too sure of how to respond. He settles with a pat on her head and a quiet, “Thank you.”

Xiao doesn’t know when they fell asleep on the couch. What he does know is the lights are somehow off, and Qiqi is currently on his chest, cuddling him as if he’s a pillow. Only static comes from the TV with the connection seemingly off. He panics for a moment before realizing that if he squirms, he might disturb her sleep, so he winds himself down.

Though, it would help if he could move a little. The position isn’t the most comfortable one.

Qiqi asleep is quite different from when she’s awake. Awake, she’s almost stoic, yet there’s always some sort of confusion with how she acts, as if she’s never sure of what to do.

Asleep, she’s peaceful. Quiet, but without any pressure. And… still. She’s always been a still child, but asleep she almost looks like she isn’t breathing. He can barely see her back move from breathing. It’s… almost amazing.

Too amazing in fact, if Xiao didn’t know any better… he’d think that… Qiqi…

“Qiqi?”

Before he could shake her awake, he hears a knock on the door. Like a switch, Qiqi’s eyes open. Xiao stays frozen as she scoots down and off him and heads for the door.

It must be Amondine then. How long were they asleep?

Qiqi opens the door to greet Amondine, but instead finds Ganyu there with an umbrella, slightly wet from the rain. The rain that was still going, albeit not as hard.

“Ganyu?” beside him, Qiqi is frozen.

“Good evening, Xiao,” Ganyu bows. Is it night time already? “I’m here to take Qiqi back.”

Qiqi grabs on to his shirt. It seems that she and Xiao share the same concern. Somehow. He gives her a comforting pat on the head.

Tries.

“Wasn’t someone else supposed to pick her up? Amondine?”

“Yeah, from what I was told,” Ganyu tidies her hair. “I don’t know her personally so - it was actually Mr. Zhongli that told me to pick her up. Something came up with her apparently, she texted him… or something.”

“She texted him,” Xiao can feel Qiqi sigh in relief. This is a good sign, right?

“Is it really safe for her to travel in this weather? Wouldn’t it be better if she stayed the night over?” He feels Qiqi nod against his shirt.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Zhongli insisted,” she bows her head. “He said he’d feel better if she was at home. He has people to watch over her there.”

Xiao looks at her. “Are you okay with this?”

Qiqi looks at the floor, then at Xiao… then at Ganyu. Slowly, hesitantly, she releases Xiao’s shirt and stretches her hand towards Ganyu. Ganyu bends down and reaches for her, carrying her almost effortlessly in her arms.

“Good girl, Qiqi. Thank you,” Ganyu says.

Behind her, a car waits. At least they wouldn’t be commuting in the rain.

“We better be off then,” Ganyu bows her head at Xiao. “Thanks for watching over her for a bit. Stay safe, okay?”

He nods. “You too.”

He waits for them to get to the car safely, and waves at them as the car drives away before re-entering his home.

Qiqi… he’s known her for quite some time, but this is probably the first time he’s ever got to spend some time alone with her. She had always been this odd enigma to him, and even though they spent time together, he’s not even close to understanding her.

But… there’s a quiet solidarity between them that he’s only noticed now. A kind of not knowing what to do that they share with each other. Is it the amnesia? Mr. Zhongli mentioned her having some sort of amnesia, the sort where she couldn’t remember new things. Anterograde, was it?

Knock.

Maybe it was that, or something different. One thing is for sure: children are hard to deal with. Qiqi wasn’t unpleasant, but he’d rather not have to take care of her alone ever again.

Knock knock.

Did he hear that right? Is it Ganyu? Did they leave something here?

Knock knock knock.

It isn’t frantic, but it isn’t soft either.

He opens the door.

“Ganyu? Did you forget something aga-”

Xiao freezes as someone tackles him.

No, not

tackle

. An embrace. Cold, soaking from the rain. No weight into it, but sturdy enough that he couldn’t push the person off and-

-crying

. They’re crying. And that smell. That voice. That

voice

.

“Ven…

Venti

?” He isn't doing well with keeping his voice from cracking.

“They’re gone. Xiao, they’re

gone

.”

“

Gone?

” He’s back and his mind is still somewhere- “You came

back-

”

“

Please,

” the wetness of his voice is unmistakable. The sobbing, sniffling, his fingers clawing at Xiao’s back. All unmistakable. Xiao could only bring himself to return the embrace as his mind races with so many things, so many thoughts, all at once. They were loud enough to cover the TV coming back from the white noise, with a voice frantic and screaming through the camera.

- It’s -  it’s gone! The Dawn Winery. It’s gone! It’s completely gone!