Chapter Text
Aether and Lumine are fated to travel across the universes.
Their mother was also a world traveller before she decided to settle down. The twins had a happy early childhood, picking up combat skills from their father and garnering magical power with the help of their mother. She told them countless tales of the different worlds out there, their beauty as well as danger. Though the former traveller did not know for certain if the power of the Stars would be with her children at that point, her mother instinct always seem to foresee the needs of her babies.
Any parents would wish to keep their children home for as long as possible, but fate had a different idea. It was bittersweet for the twins' parents when a set of transparent wings manifested on the little siblings' backs. They were so young, but those wings were an apparent proof that their hearts would start yearning to fly away.
The day after their eighth birthday, Aether and Lumine bade farewell to the comfort of their home and embarked on their journey across the stars.
Right from the first adventure, the siblings quickly learned that they should never carelessly reveal their power. In a world where humans weren't gifted with any magical ability, their innocent use of magic had resulted in many bad responses. People tried to take advantage of the little twins, then forced them when they did not agree to comply.
The second world wasn't much better. The locals were animal hybrids so Aether and Lumine, with pure human appearance, stood out like sore thumbs. They ended up fighting and running away from hunters for the entirety of that trip.
All in all, for every world the travellers have explored, there are always lessons to be learnt. It's exciting, but also thrilling to discover all the different civilisations as well as the cultures and restrictions they may have. At every location, the twins try to spend at least a few months before moving off to the next. Every so often, they met precious companions and friends who would make them wish to stay longer. Nonetheless, in the end, the siblings always set off on a new journey.
That was until they arrived in Teyvat.
The continent was, quite literally, burning. And it was not solely one place or a few. As the twins took flight across the rumbling lands, they realised there was no end to the sight of destruction. Afraid for their own safety, the siblings simultaneously agreed that leaving would be their best course of action.
Unfortunately, when they reached the exit of the world, their way was blocked. A god appeared before them, proclaimed to be a Sustainer of Heavenly Principles and announced the end of their journey.
Neither of them understood what that meant, but if a deity wanted to punish them for an act of "arrogation" they had no knowledge of, then the only option was to fight back.
It was regrettable, however, that their power was inadequate to take down the Unknown God.
“Lumine! Careful!”
Aether cried out when he noticed his sister charging in right when the Sustainer was about to launch her next attack. Sadly, Lumine could not react in time. One of her arms was hence locked in place by the god's dark magic, which continued to rapidly spread through the rest of her body. Without hesitation, Aether grabbed at her other arm and tried to pull his twin away, only to get engulfed into the structure himself.
“Aether. Let go of me!” Lumine shouted, trying to push her brother away to safety, but the grip on her hand only tightened further.
“Never!”
The boy held on, not without throwing one last glare at the unreasonable godly being who had successfully captured them.
Then, the bright sky turned into darkness, swallowing up the trapped siblings. Yet, as their consciousness faded away, their hearts were assured by the warmth of their joined hands.
++++++++++
Undetermined amount of time...
++++++++++
When Aether opens his eyes again, he is greeted by the pleasant sight of green grass and blue sky.
As he slowly sits up, his next thought goes to his twin sister.
“Lumine?”
Aether looks down at his hand, only to find it empty and cold.
Despite the calm scenery, his heart rate starts to pick up once he recalls exactly what has happened before this moment, how Lumine and he were defeated and sealed by that strange god’s magic.
“Lumine!!”
Aether calls out again helplessly.
Thank heaven, a reply comes back this time.
“...I’m here!”
The boy immediately turns around towards the familiar voice and spots his sister's blonde head from a few feet away. Relieved, Aether let out a sigh. She sounds unharmed.
“I woke up a bit earlier, but didn’t want to wake you,” Lumine says as she hurries back to his side, arms juggling a few fruit that looks too big for her tiny hands, “I went around to check if the area is safe.”
... Wait.
As Lumine comes closer into full view, Aether takes in her appearance, and blinks a few times. It’s not the distance that has caused his confusion, Lumine is so small, a lot smaller than she should be.
Eh.
Aether finally takes a proper look at his own body…
It’s not his imagination... They shrunk!
As if hearing his realization, Lumine starts cackling. Aether looks over at his sister, still rather shocked by the ridiculous situation, but soon enough, he cannot help but join in with her laughter as well.
After such a stressful encounter, it feels good that they can be this carefree again.
The siblings give each other a tight hug, overjoyed that at least they do not get separated.
++++++++++
Thankfully, the twins still have their wings and their power.
On the odd side, the Unknown Goddess has nerfed their physical state. The siblings now look to be around six or seven year-old. It's the most extreme physical change they have ever experienced. Even so, Aether and Lumine have been attached by the hips ever since they were born, so the change in appearance does not faze them for long. Since their bodies are de-aged, their memories also became rather fuzzy. When they tried to think back, it's like watching an old film rather than recalling something they have gone through themselves. It's like an out of body experience. In addition, they find it more difficult than usual to focus and think deeply into a particular topic without getting distracted, a sign that their mind may have also receded.
Overall, it’s a peculiar situation, but still a lot better than some unfortunate circumstances they have run into previously. And as long as they have one another, nothing seems too scary.
As always, the twin travellers look towards the more optimistic side of things.
“This world is at peace now,” comments Aether while munching the fruit Lumine has picked up earlier.
It looks like a pear, and also smells similar to one. Since they are now way younger than their actual age, the fruit's sweetness definitely agrees well with their taste bud.
Lumine nods in agreement, cheeks also stuffed with sunsettia. “If it was like this we wouldn’t have rushed to leave. Shall we explore around first then?”
“Sure, I’m not so eager to fight that god soon anyway.”
“Me too. Let’s go!"
++++++++++
After many adventures, Aether and Lumine have learned that the first thing they must do in any new world is to get to the big city. Big city means there is water, food, jobs, and protection. Even though they also camped out a lot, it would be unwise to do so before you understand the dynamic of a new place.
Therefore, when the twins spotted a large stone castle standing proudly from across the water, their destination for the day was set.
However, along the way, they run around picking up flowers, mints, berries, pinecones, mushrooms and all kinds of edible looking fruits they see. If both of them have short attention spans before, now they also have an abundance of kiddy energy to boost. In any case, it's wise to collect more materials, one never knows when you may need the most random thing.
After some time, they come across a small campsite where three tribal masked people are sleeping on the ground around a small fire. Curious, the siblings decide to approach the group. Aether is about to speak up when he hears a soft swoosh sound from behind. Two fire arrows have been shot at the unsuspected twins, though they are automatically blocked by an invisible protection barrier Lumine has raised in caution.
The siblings turn around and quickly spot the attackers. There are two masked snipers standing atop the wooden posts leading inside the camp, who are still aiming at them.
“Eh, I don’t think they are friendly.” Lumine states the obvious as the three tribal creatures wake up and start shouting in indecipherable language.
Aether draws out his swords, running towards the opening while Lumine covers his back, taking care of the snipers. The elder boy imbues his sword with fire and makes one big swipe as a warning. Then, he swiftly adjusts his footing, ready to attack again, but alas, before he realizes it, the fight is already over.
Aether stares skeptically at the group of unconscious bodies on the ground. Behind them, a rock boulder is cut to pieces, revealing a small treasure chest.
“That was fast,” says Aether.
“Hmph… Maybe these ones are weak.” Lumine hums in agreement. Her wind magic has somehow blown the poor hilichurl archers all the way across the island.
“Anyway, Let’s see if we can loot anything.”
“Okay.”
They searched the small camp and got two potatoes, two pieces of raw meat, some wheat and a few ores from the chest. They put everything inside their bags and are ready to move on when someone calls out to them.
“Hey, you two!”
They both turn towards the direction of the voice and spot a young girl dressed in a red outfit, waving at them to come over. She looks friendly.
“Hi! I am Amber, Outrider from the Knights of Favonius.” The girl introduces, grinning at the small children who stare owlishly up at her, “You don't look familiar. Are you here to visit Mondstadt? Where do you two come from?”
She uses quite a few strange words, but the twins are delighted to find someone who speaks human language, unlike the hilichurls from earlier. It would be terrible if they go to the city and only see a bunch of tribal creatures ready to roast them on some BBQ pits.
“Hi Amber, I am Aether.”
“I am Lumine!”
“We are travellers. It’s our first day here. Nice to meet you!” Aether very politely introduces themselves to their first friend.
“Nice to meet you, miss Amber.” Lumine echoes after her brother, hoping to leave a good impression.
Amber cannot help muttering a soft 'aww' at the pair. They are quite something to be travelling so young. At their age, Amber doesn’t remember if she could even speak a full sentence at home, let alone with strangers.
“Wait, you two don’t have anyone else with you?”
The twins both shake their heads.
Amber’s brows furrow. What kind of parents leave their young running around like this!? Or are they orphans? Would it be insensitive of her to ask?
“Look, there's been a large dragon sighted around Mondstadt recently. Best you get inside the city as soon as possible.”, says the young knight.
“A dragon?”, Lumine repeats, golden eyes sparkling in wonder.
Amber sees the same awe on the other twin’s face and mentally adds a question mark on their survivability. She really should not leave them out here on their own.
“How about I escort you to Mondstadt? I know the way so it will be faster.”
++++++++++
The last time Barbatos went into slumber, he woke up 500 years later to one of the biggest revolutions in Mondstadt history since Decarabian. This time, the situation was out of his control, though he is glad to be awakened only a few weeks after Dvalin. The dragon's previous injury has taken a turn for the worse and so does his mental state. Venti has been trying his best to keep his old friend accompanied.
Even though Barbatos has always been considered the weakest archon, he watches over Mondstadt with his gentle songs and cool breezes that flow through every corner of the nation. As someone who knows the inside out of Mondstadt, how has he managed to miss out something this big? Has he been so focused on Dvalin that he becomes blindsided from other signs of danger?
At first, the bard had hoped that it was just a side effect from his terrible hangover after singing to the guests at Diluc’s tavern and spending all his money on Dandelion wine last night. However, it is clear at this point that this is not just a figment of his imagination. Venti takes in a deep breath once again as he looks towards the general direction where a huge storm of energy is stemming from.
A human will not be able to sense it, but even from this distance, Barbatos can feel his hairs stand on end at the pressure from a powerful unknown presence. It is of the same level with an Archon’s. However, the seven Archons rarely ever leave their assigned territory. If they want to make a visit, it is common courtesy to send words ahead of their arrival.
Whoever this entity is, has appeared without warning, so they very likely do not come with peaceful intention.
++++++++++
“Welcome to Mondstadt!”, cheers Amber when the group of three finally reaches the busy city.
The locals quickly take interest on the new little faces tagging along their gliding champion, even more so when Amber quietly reveals to them that the pair are travelling by themselves.
“Oh, aren’t you two just adorable!”
“Hello there, little ones!”
“Would you like to try this food sample? You must be hungry.”
At first, the twins are sort of awkward about being dotted on. After all, they are supposedly fifteen, despite their new bodies that make everything so big and new and exciting… Anyhow, one should not reject free food, so they happily play along and thrive on the attention.
Amber brings them around the city, introducing a few major landmarks and locations to the pair. At this point, Aether and Lumine have been able to grasp some basic concepts of society here. There are seven nations in Teyvat, each ruled by one archon of an elemental power. The one in Mondstadt is called Barbatos and he is the Anemo Archon, or also known as the God of Freedom. He has an impressive statue overlooking the city of Mondstadt.
Even though many people still pray to him, the Archon has not appeared for over a thousand years now. As someone who values freedom, the god decides to let his people self-rule the land and only wakes up when there is an extreme crisis.
“Then we can’t meet him?” Lumine asks.
“Well, normally I would say it’s not possible.” Amber chuckles good naturally, “though with the Storm Terror issue happening now, maybe he would appear? We never know.”
The knight is clearly only saying that to comfort two young children of their faith, however. The city seems perfectly fine without their deity anyway.
After that, Amber teaches the twins about gliding, which is a very common activity in all of Teyvat, but it’s said to originate from Mondstadt, the land of the Winds. Aether and Lumine both learn it quickly, since they are very much familiar with movement in the air. Even though they can fly with their wings, gliding will be useful for them to save up energy.
They wander around for about an hour more, then the weather does a one eighty. As the winds start picking up, so does the panic among the citizens. Most are smart enough to close their shops and run for cover. Amber quickly pushes the twins into a safe hidden corner, telling them to stay put, then runs out to help others in need.
Within a minute, there is a full-blown windstorm.
“Look, Aether!”
The elder twin follows the direction his sister is pointing to and his eyes are treated to the majestic sight of an azure dragon sweeping past the buildings.
They both gasp, “Beautiful.”
The creature takes a few more swipes across the sky. For such massive size, it could easily crush the city. Yet, it barely does any damage, except for the strong wind currents left in its wake. Aether and Lumine have seen dragons in rage before, and this one here is clearly not.
Something must have happened to it.
“He looks sad.” says Lumine, “Is he in pain?”
“He does sound like he is...”
It does not take too long for them to spot two purple thorns sticking out at the back of the dragon. Those spikes are definitely not normal, since the dragon’s scales are of clear azure everywhere else. The deep purple colour often means to signal an infection that needs to be cleaned. In addition, the twins could sense a spooky energy coming from it.
Aether exchanges a look with Lumine. “What do you think?”
“Healing magic might be able to purify that. Or we cut them off and heal after.” Lumine suggests, “There are too many witnesses here though.”
“Okay. We wait for a chance.”
A minute later, the twins conveniently let themselves be taken along by one of the wind torrents, much to the distress cry from Amber somewhere below.
Once they are high up and far enough from prying eyes, they materialize their wings and chase after the retreating dragon, keeping just enough distance to not alert it.
It is quite a long flight, but the twins' patience is finally rewarded. At last, the dragon descends below the cloud layers as it flies into a ruin site.
'This must be his den.'
Aether spokes through their bond. It’s a useful telepathic magic their mother embedded in their wings, though they hardly use it. After many years together, the twins can understand each other even without words.
As Lumine draws her sword, Aether does the same.
When the dragon takes a dive, about to land, they attack. Each of them swiftly cut down one of the infected spikes. The creature howls in pain, before falling down into its nest at the bottom. It’s as soft a landing as they could afford for it in this situation.
They don’t want to hurt the injured creature, but infection is dangerous if left untreated.
Lumine quickly flies down and places her hands close to the large bleeding, mumbling a recovery spell. A gentle light shines through her fingertips and spreads towards the open wounds, slowly healing them.
“Is it clean?”, asks Aether as he stands close and keeps watch of the area, in case there are other unseen enemies.
“Yeah, I can’t sense that creepy dark magic anymore”.
Lumine replies while she continues with her healing task.
The dragon lays in silence, eyes closed, breathing evenly as if he is asleep. And then they almost jump in fright when a voice echoes in their mind.
'It’s a feat to be able to cut off corruption like that.'
Startled, Aether looks at Lumine, who looks back at him with mirrored surprise.
“Y-you can talk?”, Aether is once again, in awe. The dragon let out a low grumble, which seems to be some sort of snort.
'Yes, little Godlings. I’m a guardian of this land, from a long time ago.'
And from there, the dragon, or Dvalin, tells them his story, how he defended Mondstadt with the Anemo Archon five hundred years ago, got injured by his enemy’s poison blood and fell into a long slumber until he woke up recently to a new world.
'I only hope that I can be understood by humans. But it has been a long time and they have forgotten completely.'
Lumine consoles him, “The people only need to know the truth. This can be fixed.”
“Yes, we can help you. I’m sure the history is recorded somewhere.”
The dragon replies to them calmly.
'Do not worry yourself, little ones. Barbatos says he will take care of this matter.'
'It is the corruption that made it worse in my head.'
“It is understandable to be upset”, says Aether. “Wait, did you say Barbatos? He is around?”
'He is here-'
Dvalin’s deep voice is cut off there as a much chirpier singsong voice sounds out from behind them.
“You bet I am!”
Again, the twins almost have a near heart-attack when the God of Anemo, Barbatos emerges from the wind itself.
Unlike the Mondstadtens’ depiction of their Archon’s appearance, the God of Winds takes on a very human-like appearance. He still looks ethereal without the large white wings though, light feet barely touching the ground as he skips over to their side.
At the little travellers' dumbfounded expression, the archon simply responds with a playful wink.
“When in Mondstadt, please just refer to me as Venti the bard!”
Having said that, his fingers brushed over the strings of the holy lyre, a magical pure melody echoed through the lair. It sounds so warm, gentle and full of hope.
“That’s to celebrate my friend Dvalin who is finally healed”, the God of Freedom says after the last note of the unnamed song finishes, “and my thanks for our new friends here.”
He smiles at the siblings, green eyes holding their gaze with gentleness.
“Little ones, may I know your name?” Venti asks, kneeling so he is at the same level as Aether.
The elder twin fights off his stutters at being addressed directly by a God, bowing as he answers to the archon, “I-I’m Aether, and that is Lumine.”
He gestures at his sister, who gives a respectful bow at the God from where she is treating Dvalin.
“We are travellers. We just passed by Mondstadt this morning. T-thank you for your hospitality so far, Lord Barbatos!”
Aether tries his best to act appropriately though it proves a lot more difficult in his new de-aged form. It's tiring for the twins to even speak a long sentence with their new physics.
“Ehehe!~ But I haven’t done anything for you to be thankful like that! I must bring you around tomorrow!~” The archon giggles cheerfully, swishing the elder twin into a hug, acting as if they have been long-time friends, or that Aether is his newly acquired teddy bear.
Lumine shoots her brother a rather alarmed look. Aether shoots back a helpless one.
“And please call me Venti! I don’t like to be addressed so formally you know”, the God all but whines childishly.
“O-of course, my Lor- I mean Venti!”
“That’s right! We are now friends! Let’s have a lot of fun tomorrow!”
What a character.
Thankfully, Aether’s mortification is stopped short when Lumine finally completes the healing. Dvalin let out a soft grumble in appreciation as she stepped back, the wound fully closed off.
'Thank you, little ones.'
Aether walks to his sister to check on her, “You okay?”
Lumine rubs her eyes sleepily, wings drooping, “Yeah, just tired.”
Despite their power remaining intact, it seems that this small body is still on the low endurance end. They will need to train it up if they want to travel through the whole continent like this.
“Come. I can bring you two to my statue.” Venti tells them, “Each statue holds some of my Anemo reserve to help with healing, might come in handy for your future adventure.”
The twins easily agree to the archon’s suggestion.
After bidding farewell to the dragon, they hold Venti’s hands and let the archon guide the way, teleporting out to Windrise.
++++++++++
The statue of Seven brightens up, releasing gentle waves of rejuvenating Anemo power, forming a protective cloak over the small twins resting at its base. The sun is already setting, its last rays of light disappearing from the horizon.
Venti softens at the sight of the twin godlings snuggling together under his statue, snoozing without a care in the world. As an Anemo spirit, Venti always holds fondness for wings and these two have the prettiest set of translucent wings he has laid eyes on. Looking at them, the archon feels somewhat ashamed how he has assumed the worst of them earlier.
While they are no doubt powerful, extremely so considering their years, they look every bit innocent and carefree as any young ones would. They have helped Dvalin without hesitation, purifying his corruption and even healing his wound. It’s a feat Barbatos himself has no idea how they manage and likely the two have no answer to it either, considering how they acted completely nonchalant while talking to Dvalin about it.
It has been a really long time since an entirely newborn deity of this power has come into the mortal realm. Ever since the end of the Archon War, there is only the Seven and their followers. A new archon is formed simply from receiving energy from one passing over. Barbatos wonders what it means to have these two descended now.
His fingers glide over the lyre and produce a new gentle tune of hope. The Anemo Archon prays that Celestia would show mercy to these Godlings, let them be cherished for their kindness and not feared for their power.
May freedom always be on your side, precious children of the sky.
++++++++++
A while later, back in Mondstadt…
“Ahh. I knew they would be okay.” Says Kaeya coolly, “I did see them briefly near the fountain and they look rather calm despite the situation.”
Amber fumes, “They were flipped upside down like some sacks of rice up there!! How do you tell if they looked calm or not!?? You were just too lazy to look for them!”
“Now now you two.” Jean sighs at her friends’ antics, “The two are safe now so please stop this unnecessary fight. You are scaring them!”
Lumine and Aether stand there awkwardly as they watch the banter. They did not expect the knights would be out till late night searching for them. Amber threw an absolute fit when Venti brought them back, fussing over them like a mother hen.
“Look at the time, the children must be hungry.” Venti chirps, “I shall bring them out to make them happy!~”
The archon has explained to them how he still lives among his people but rarely feels the need to bring out his divine power. It sounds like a very noble thing to do, though Venti just laughed it off and said it was simply because he was too lazy to enforce laws on his people. Anyway, the twins have agreed to stay quiet about his secret identity.
It still shocks them that the archon blends in so flawlessly among his citizens.
“No you shall NOT!” Amber stops the bard, pointing a threatening finger at his forehead, “A tavern is no place to bring kids in.”
“If they don’t like the booze, they can surely find other brews~”
“STOP RHYMING!”
After facing the Unknown God, the twins have thought all the Gods in this world would be fearsome, powerful beings, but it seems like some of them fall through the cracks. Barbatos is a prime example.
It’s quite a sight to see a god being bullied by their own people.