Switchblade | Xiao

switchblade | xiao

pairing: xiao/reader

warnings: physical fighting, mentions of knives + blood, slight profanity, implications of controlled crime

word count: 0.8k !!

note: uhHH okayokay so this is like a wannabe mafia!au ? maybe just a gang!au ? idk i got the idea of how good xiao would be at hand-to-hand combat in a modern setting and all this came from that,, hm i might use this idea for other characters as well (*•̀ᴗ•́*)و

summary: “the vigilant yaksha” is what he’s called amongst his subordinates, though, you most commonly know him as your estranged sparring partner when transactions don’t go as smoothly as planned.

“you disgust me.” he quickly spat, jumping back to avoid your jabs. he dodged each of your blows with terrifying accuracy, yet he never broke eye contact despite how fast your movements were.

“do i?” you laughed and he’d disappeared, just as he was always known for. his footsteps were loud in your ears as you focused on where he was coming from.

you were envious of how the darkness of the alley concealed him so well, and you made a mental note about learning his techniques when you two weren’t at such odds. however, he was predictable enough, and you perfectly ducked out of his way after anticipating where he’d drop from.

his attacks were perilously more relentless than yours. even with the acquired knowledge of his fighting style after your many disputes, you still minorly struggled to keep up.

“we don’t need to be fighting like this, you know,” you groaned as you just barely moved out of the way in time for him to miss, your breaths erratic from the cardio.

“if you’d just give me my damn information, xiao—”

“as i said, you disgust me. i owe you nothing.” how was he so agile? still being able to speak clearly during such activity — you supposed these were the perks of having been trained from such a young age.

seeing a vantage point, you dodged one of his hits in order to land your own, though he always seemed to be prepared. he grabbed your arm as soon as you’d made your move, yanking you around to his front and against a wall. the sound of a switchblade unhinging was familiar, but you never really got used to the feeling of one being held against your throat.

he’d grabbed your other arm before you could retrieve your own blade. you cursed under your breath, not wanting to stretch your mouth too much for the unlikely case of his blade actually piercing you.

you could feel the slow rise and fall of his own chest as he pushed the blade further up, an empty threat but still a much greater one than several you’d received. you sighed, rolling your eyes as you tried to wiggle out of his strong grasp. how is it that he bested you every time?

“do you intend to keep fighting? or, perhaps you’d enjoy me ending your feeble little life right here and now, hm?”

you snorted, and at such a careless action his handle on you loosened a bit. were you mocking him?

“every single time you put that knife to my throat you never actually do anything with it.” voicing your reason for laughing, his pride was damaged immensely.

“you…” xiao searched the corners of his mind for an instance where he had in fact done something with the blade before coming up short. why was that? with a frustrated growl from your captor, you felt a certain coldness trickling down your neck, which only elicited another half-assed chuckle from you.

“are you not aware of the fact that your life is currently in my hands? i’d watch my tone.”

“yeah, well, you’re not me. and…” you trailed off, wrestling with the tiny blade your sleeve contained while your hands were still in his hold. the small sheathing sound of it being removed from its confines gave you away, and he’d pushed you forward before you could slash him.

“it’s not “in your hands” if i’d only let you believe you had the upper hand. you should know by now not to underestimate me.”

wiping your neck, you shuddered at the color of blood against your fingertips. you were about to chime another shrewd remark before being cut off by a sharp pain along your cheekbone. the pang of his blade fastening itself in the wood behind you vibrated in your ear, causing you to flinch. you hadn’t registered that he’d thrown it until you felt the same chill roll down your face from your new cut.

in your shock, he’d approached in order to retrieve it. you’d be lying if you were to say his hardened eyes weren’t intimidating, though when he’d backed you up once more, your smirk seemed to plaster itself.

the fluid movement of him tucking the blade back into its rightful slot inside his glove was attractive in itself. he wanted to wipe your dopey expression right off your face since he knew what your next words would be.

“god, you’re so pretty, xiao.”

it took everything in him not to smile when you’d blocked his attack once again.

[L→R] how is a scary place romantic?? 🤔

HOW THEY PLAY WINDTRACE (HC)

penpal: this isn’t technically an x reader but i just had an idea about this and i really want to write it lol

sypnosis: hc on how the characters would play in windtrace

warning/s: none

characters: diluc, kaeya, zhongli, childe, albedo, xiao, ganyu, jean, lisa, and venti

DILUC

-> an amazing hider and hunter. it’s all thanks to his darknight hero duties. he doesn’t go to the favor unless he’s the last hider that’s not yet caught.

-> when hiding, he will get every opportunity to slip away from the hunter’s grasp. if a hunter is near his hiding spot and they turn a blind eye, he’ll immediately leave without them noticing.

-> he uses his lay bait around his hiding spot just so he has the chance to get away if the hunter got blinded from it.

-> as a hunter, he has a good reflex. the moment the sensor aura skill alerts him that a hider is nearby, he’ll immediately use the capture skill.

-> he only loses as a hunter if you’re always in one place to another and a fast runner like him along with managing to get the favor before him.

-> dawn winery is definitely when he is insane as both hider and hunter. he knows every single spots of the place for hiding and hunting down hiders.

-> favorite people to play with: aether

KAEYA

-> a sneaky hider. he has so many good hiding spots that numerous hunters would go pass him and he doesn’t even use the disguise skill much.

-> he’ll tease the hunter if they managed to walk pass his hiding spot and will laugh if the hunter goes back to his “hiding spot”— in reality, he was nowhere near the hunter and was just watching them from afar.

-> as a hunter, he’s the type of hunter that manages to win last minute. in the first minute of the game, he will just stroll around and would pass a few hiders— while you think he didn’t see you, he’s just waiting for the timer to be in a specific time and would immediately get them all.

-> kaeya is fast so the moment you try to run away from him, it’s game over (unless you’re rosaria or someone who’s just as fast as him, then you can possibly escape him). he has a good eye too so even mona’s sprint skill or pretending to be an npc won’t help you if he were the hunter.

-> for favors, he’ll get them as both hider and hunter. he’ll find it challenging as a hider if the hunter is nearby the favor and will definitely try to get it without them noticing. if he was the hunter, he’ll either camp or get it and use it if the last hider decided to change their hiding spot after his “stroll.”

-> favorite people to play with: jean, diluc, albedo and rosaria

CHILDE

-> the hunter who loves a great chase. he’s mostly a hunter in most rounds and he prefers it that way.

-> he mostly targets zhongli because of what happened in the archon quest (iykyk).

-> he’ll spam the capture skill while running around, which can backfire if he came across to a lay bait.

-> when he spots a hider running away, he’ll give them a few seconds before he starts chasing them.

-> as a hider, he once tried to hide behind hunter’s spawn area while the other rebels are trying to find a good spot to hide in. he thought the hunters are blinded and ended up with him being the first to get captured. this was his first round of the event and he did not accept it.

-> he’s a good one too— but a risky kind. the moment he showed himself to a hunter, he will make them lose stamina and hide somewhere else. he mostly prefers lingering around the roofs or high places just to be chased with gliding.

-> favorite people to play with: zhongli and aether

ZHONGLI

-> the hider who’s always being chased the whole game. he usually hides far from where the hunter is but sometimes can backfire if he was still running to his hiding spot when the hunter is now out— hence why he’s being chased.

-> he’s mostly the second or last to be out. he’s a sneaky runner and won’t hesitate to bamboozle the hunter with the lay bait.

-> he’s also a decent hunter. he relies on his sensor aura skill and will immediately capture hiders if the skill detects one.

-> don’t think about fooling him with npc’s or pranks, he’s cautious with his surroundings and is a smart guy (he’s one of the only people who can’t be fooled by venti).

-> favorite people to play with: qiqi, xiao, ganyu and aether

XIAO

-> the non-existent hider and a beast at hunting.

-> xiao was probably dragged into the game thanks to zhongli, who thought it would be best to give xiao some fun time. it didn’t take long for xiao to understand the mechanics and how to play as a rebel and hunter, when he did; he’s insane.

-> as a hider, he mostly hides in high places or spots that hunters would usually turn a blind eye on. if he were to use the disguise skill, he’ll do it if one of the props is small.

-> he’s definitely the scariest as a hunter. it will feel like you’re in a horror movie (it will get scarier if the map is wuwang hill).

-> he has good eyesight, the moment he sees a prop moving, he’ll immediately go to it and use his sensor aura. he’s usually fooled by venti’s pranks but he doesn’t mind. in fact it made the game a little more interesting.

-> although he isn’t a fan of the windtrace game, he would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy it.

-> favorite people to play with: zhongli, hu tao and venti

ALBEDO

-> the lay bait master. albedo’s not reliable on that skill, however he does know the best times in using it, especially when getting chased.

-> he usually hides in places that has the most props and won’t budge unless the hunter obtains the favor or is very near.

-> as a hunter, he would go to a high place and watch out for any props moving. he’ll also try thinking of his friends’ playmates’ perspectives to find them (such as kaeya being in trees, klee near where kaeya is, etc.)

-> favors are just an obstacle to albedo. if a hunter manages to get it, he’ll immediately start planning on running and put his bait in the right places.

-> favorite people to play with: klee, sucrose and kaeya

VENTI

-> the mischievous one. do i have to explain why?

-> as a hider, every single prank you’ve seen on social media related to windtrace, venti will do it all. he’ll do the “pretending to be an npc”, hiding in a chimney of springvale as a hale, try to hide behind the hunter’s spawn, etc.

-> he’ll definitely go to roofs or high places and pull a gliding chase from the hunter just for fun.

-> he usually gets caught first depending on what he’s doing this time but he doesn’t really care since he’ll be busy giggling.

-> venti doesn’t mind being a hunter since he has plenty of tricks to play. he’ll definitely pretend he’s afk and will catch all hiders if they dare to go to him.

-> he’s also very cheeky when being chased. the moment you turn around the corner while chasing him, he’s gone.

-> favorite people to play with: xiao and zhongli

JEAN

-> the team player.

-> if she’s a rebel, she’ll carry the team all the way until the end. she’s willing to distract the hunter when she notices her teammate nearby.

-> when it comes to favors, she’ll immediately run for it so that she and the hiders won’t be found by the hunter. though she won’t do it if the hunter is too near to the favor.

-> she’s a smart hunter. just like kaeya, she will think of her playmates’ perspective on where would they hide. when using favor as a hunter, she only uses it if time is about to run out and if there’s only one rebel left.

-> even though it’s just a game, jean couldn’t help but have the urge to help her friends out. plus, she’s a very positive person after the game and would treat her playmates to good hunter for meals after playing.

-> favorite people to play with: barbara, amber and lisa

LISA

-> the hider that watches everyone get caught.

-> she isn’t the last hider in most rounds (mostly because she lets herself get caught and didn’t want to be chased down) but she knows a few good hiding spots to hide in.

-> lisa’s hiding spots are usually where she can see the hunter, so she just watches every movement of the hunter as a prop and watch her teammates being chased down.

-> since she’s scary when retrieving books, think about her as a hunter tho 👁👄👁

-> while hunters run around, she walks with a scary smile on her face.

-> every movement you make, she’s only one step closer. your only advantage is running since she doesn’t want to get dizzy or too exhausted.

-> favorite people to play with: aether, amber, and jean

GANYU

-> the normal player that just plays for fun. no tricks, no being obsessed in chasing down, just a normal player who’s here to vibe.

-> ganyu usually plays if qiqi or anyone invited her for a round, she will not play if there’s no one she knows of. she first played it thanks to ningguang and yaoyao, who had persuaded her to play the game before she could overwork herself again.

-> she gets scared when being a hider because of how anxious she feels when a hunter is near (especially if the hunter is xiao).

-> she immediately starts moving when the favor is announced. she wants to avoid being chased even if it means she has to get out from her safe spot and get the one thing that will not end up with her being chased around the map.

-> she’s very confused when playing as a hunter (mainly because she’s rarely a hunter) so she had to have a conversation with xiao or yaoyao about how the hunter works. later on, she’d enjoy playing as a hunter (just because she doesn’t have to be chased).

-> despite the panicking she received from playing, she did have a lot of fun and is happy that she has a bonding moment with her friends given that she’s mostly busy from her workload.

-> favorite people she likes to play with: qiqi, xiao, ningguang, keqing, and yaoyao

dad and his first generation kids

★ 【てこ】 「 アルベド＆甘雨 」 ☆ ⊳ albedo / ganyu (genshin impact) ✔ republished w/permission ⊳ ⊳ follow me on twitter

xiao and ganyu have some interesting voicelines about interesting foods,